Developer From Software has firmly established itself as a studio that knows how to push players with the difficulty in its games. Really starting with Demon's Souls on the PS3, From Software has gone on to develop a genre of games including beloved titles like the Dark Souls games, Bloodborne, and even Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. While each one was quite different from one another, they all kept a high difficulty, memorable boss battles, and impressive locations to explore.
From Software's latest title, Elden Ring, serves as an evolution of the studio's work, taking those boss battles and high skill gameplay and infusing it into the open world genre. Instead of following a specific path, players are now free to roam and explore, typically rewarded for following their curiosity. While there's a greater sense of openness with Elden Ring, players are still facing a challenge, some of which may prove to be a difficult hurdle to overcome.
Thankfully, Elden Ring allows players a few ways to get help if they so choose. Spirits and NPCs can be summoned to join in during adventures and even when facing down a menacing boss. However, there's a few things that players need to do first in order to gain access to these summons, so here's everything they need to know.
How to Obtain The Spirit Calling Bell
In order to summon spirits, players need to obtain a special item called the Spirit Calling Bell. However, before the bell can be found, players will need to progress the story far enough to summon the horse known as Torrent. At this point, players should return to a location called the Church of Elleh Site of Grace where a new NPC character called Renna will be waiting alongside the first merchant, Kale.
Speak to the witch Renna and she'll ask players if they're able to summon the horse. Answer yes to this question and she'll hand over two items: the Spirit Calling Bell and the Lone Wolf Ashes. Players don't actually need to equip the bell in order to use it, simply having it in the inventory is enough to unlock the ability to call friendly spirits in battle.
However, there are a few catches players need to be aware of. Spirits can only be summoned near Rebirth Monuments, smaller statues that appear near most major areas and boss arenas. The white tablet will start to glow white when players are in range. In addition, summoning spirits cost Focus Points, varying based on what type of spirit is being summoned. Players will want to level their Mind Attribute to increase the amount of FP available. Only one Ash Spirit can be used at a time, so players won't be able to summon an entire army at the same time.
Upgrading Spirits
Through continued story progression, players will eventually gain the opportunity to upgrade their spirits. Players will need to speak to the NPC called Roderika and progress through her quest at Stormveil Castle. Eventually, she'll set up camp next to the blacksmith Hewg at Roundtable Hold. Roderika will allow players to enhance their Ash Spirits with greater health, attack power, and for some, how many can be summoned at a time.
In order to upgrade Ash Spirits, players will be spending the Grave Glovewort resource typically found in underground areas, burial grounds, or locations associated with death. Ghost Gloveworts are also required for upgrading some of the more powerful and named spirits.
Unlocking More Spirits
While Renna gives players their first ash spirit summon known as Lone Wolf Ashes, Elden Ring contains a ton for players to find. It pays to explore the open world as Ash Spirits can be found in chests, dropped as loot from defeating enemies, and given as rewards. In fact, the previously mentioned NPC Roderika gives players a Jellyfish ash that can shoot projectiles, and beating bosses like Erdtree Burial Watchdog north of the Church of Elleh or Tibia Mariner at Summonwater Village can unlock even more.
How to Summon Friendly NPCs
Spirits are not the only things players can summon. Friendly NPC characters are also available, however, they work a bit differently from spirits. First, NPCs need to be summoned from Martyr Effigies, statues of people that need to be interacted with. Not only does this enable Elden Ring's co-op, but it activates golden runes that will summon an NPC character. While these characters can be a bit stronger than spirits, they don't cost any FP, and have no limit on the amount that can be summoned.
However, unlike spirits, friendly NPCs are typically contextual and can only be found in certain locations linked to story elements or some boss arenas like the one for Margit. Therefore, it pays for players to fully explore the world and talk to as many NPCs as possible, as it may unlock more locations and opportunities.
Elden Ring is available now for PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X|S.
