Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree sees players traversing the Land of Shadows, following in the footsteps of the Empyrean Miquella. Eventually, this will require players to travel to the Shadow Keep, guarded by the Golden Hippopotamus. This particular boss can be quite frustrating to fight due to its surprising speed and wide-reaching attacks, but you can avoid this boss in its entirety without too much trouble by taking a detour.

This Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree guide will show you how to enter the Shadow Keep from the east, avoiding the Golden Hippo's room entirely and getting you inside the Shadow Keep proper. This route can be accessed without fighting a single boss, so you could technically make it inside the Shadow Keep before fighting any bosses in this DLC. (Not that I'd recommend entering the Shadow Keep that early, since you'd end up missing a lot of NPC dialog and be up against enemies you're probably not prepared for.)

Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree Land of Shadow and Lands Between
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Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree's Land of Shadow is actually quite a bit different from the base game's Lands Between, in all the best ways.

Finding the way to Bonny Village

The first step on this alternative path to the Shadow Keep requires you to head to Moorth Ruins in Scadu Altus. From the Site of Grace here, go south-east down towards a building you can enter, then turn left and head north-east to find a tilted tower sticking out of the ground. Climb over the rooftop in front of it and drop onto the balcony to find a hole leading underground. Drop down the hole and fight off some dogs, then take the tunnel to the southwest, dropping down to find a buried building guarded by some Hornsent. Take them out (ideally at range) then drop down and open the chest inside the building to grab the Golden Arcs spell. Head back out and drop onto the balcony to the west, then drop again to make it to the ground before heading through the southeast tunnel.

This tunnel leads to a ladder, which will take you up to Bonny Village via the well. This area is filled with useful items for anyone who wants to use the new "Hefty Pot" consumables and is also where you can find the DLC's only new whip. That said, this guide is focusing on reaching Shadow Keep, so details on those items will not be included here.

Heading for the Shadow Keep

Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree_Shadow Keep_Church District Tunnel

To reach the Shadow Keep from here, you'll just need to follow the road through, and out of, the village. Start by reaching the "Bridge Leading to the Village" Site of Grace, then continue to follow the path (avoiding or killing the Furnace Golem along the way) to find the "Church District Highroad" Site of Grace. From here, the road leads into a tunnel and straight into the Shadow Keep. From here, you can start investigating the flooded area of the Shadow Keep and explore without having to deal with the Golden Hippopotamus.