Ever since Elden Ring came out, fans have pieced together a ton of lore. The game does not give its history and truths on a silver platter but leaves hints for the player. By now most have an understanding of the Shattering, demigod family tree, and the Outer Gods. However, there are still a lot of mysteries left unanswered.
Some of these mysteries, such as the identity of the Gloam-eyed Queen, Malenia and Miquella's shadows, and Melina's identity are character based while other mysteries are lore-based. Some mysteries are even plot-related, such as whether Marika shattered the Elden Ring as part of a big plot or whether she shattered it with no plan at all. It is possible some of these mysteries will be answered in DLC while others will be left to fan interpretation.
Elden Ring Character Mysteries
Most of Elden Ring's unsolved mysteries are related to its characters. Melina, who is met at the beginning of the game, is perhaps the greatest character mystery of all. Her background and what drives her to do what she does is unknown. Dialogue in the game hints that Marika could be her mother, but that only brings up many more questions. The Lord of Frenzied Flame ending cutscene especially made fans wonder about Melina, as her other eye opens, and she promises to give the player Destined Death. Many think she is connected to Ranni in some way because each has an eye shut, but there is no clear answer as to how they could be connected.
Another character matter has to do with Malenia and Miquella, who are both Empyrean but have no shadows like Marika and Ranni. Lore dictates that every Empyrean is bestowed a shadow by the Greater Will. Ranni got Blaidd while Marika got Maliketh, but no sign of shadows have been in Elden Ring for Malenia and Miquella. The big mystery is why this is the case. The shadows could be dead, never given, or even hidden somewhere in the Lands Between.
Marika herself is a bit of a mystery in terms of her motivations. She is the one who shattered the Elden Ring, but fans have mixed theories as to why. Some think it was due to Godwyn's murder. It could be that she lost faith in the Greater Will when her son died. Others think differently, that she planned to shatter the Elden Ring long ago and Godwyn's murder may have even been a part of that plan.
Then, of course, there is the question of the Gloam-eyed Queen. She is a character who has many unknowns, as the lore does not quite explain what happened to her. She used to wield Destined Death before Maliketh defeated her and seized it. She also oversaw the Godskin, hinting that she may have been an enemy of the Greater Will. Some believe Melina is the Gloam-eyed Queen while others believe she is dead.
Along with the Gloam-eyed Queen, the Snow Witch is another character full of unknowns. She was Ranni's secret mentor and the one her doll body was inspired from. Despite having this great effect on Ranni, the Snow Witch is barely mentioned in the game. It is not known what happened to this mentor, why she took in Ranni, and what her story was.
Elden Ring Lore Mysteries
Outside of characters, there are many questions yet unanswered in Elden Ring's lore. For example, Radagon and Marika being one and the same brought up a ton of unanswered questions. It is unknown how or why they are one person and if that was always the case or not. There is also the matter of Godwyn's body, as it looks quite strange and different compared to the scene of him being killed by the Black Knife Assassins.
The Numen race is another mystery, as Marika and the Black Knife Assassins are Numen and there are items called Numen runes. This hints at who Marika was before her connection to the Greater Will, but it also leaves a lot of questions about what happened to the Numen.
Another mysterious race is the Albinaurics. While it is known they were made by human hands, it is unknown why and for what purpose. It is also unknown why there are two generations of them and why they look so different. Latenna's quest is also a great mystery, as she gives a giant sleeping Albinauric named Phillia a "birthing droplet" and says it will create life for all the Albinaurics. Who the giant Albinauric is and what the birthing droplet will actually do is completely unknown.
Outside of race, certain locations are great mysteries still unsolved. A major one is the Windmill Village, which has many old women dancing with flower crowns and giggling. However, they can become hostile and attack the player with knives. A spirit mentions that these women skin people. It's possible that these women are connected to the village's Godskin Apostle boss, but Elden Ring provides no clear explanation, as is the case with so many other bits of lore.
Elden Ring is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
