#riftlands

So, we have learned about the Riftlands which is presumably the country/place in which Elden Ring takes place in. Let’s get definitions out of the way first. What is a rift?

In geology, a rift is a linear zone where the lithosphere is being pulled apart and is an example of extensional tectonics.

Typical rift features are a central linear downfaulted depression, called a graben, or more commonly a half-graben with normal faulting and rift-flank uplifts mainly on one side. Where rifts remain above sea level they form a rift valley, which may be filled by water forming a rift lake. The axis of the rift area may contain volcanic rocks, and active volcanism is a part of many, but not all, active rift systems. (source)

So, with this we can presume the lands are just a bunch of rifts or cracks in the ground. Now, in the trailers we don’t really see anything like that. Anywhere, but we might see a Rift Lake from where the Dragon Lands. Though, this isn’t likely: 

And the next thing about the Riftlands is the ruins. In all that we see there are just many broken places and architecture. The architecture and the themes of the Riftlands seem very Celtic as well. Not only that some parts feel almost Dwarven. Which is still Celtic but holds a more fantasy and homebrew feel, not entirely connected to reality.

We also have all of the Castles in the trailers which honestly all vary in style. We have a very Celtic castle and then we have a more French Style castle in other places. Of course, we have no idea what that means or why its so inconsistent. It’s possible that the Riftlands are a cultural Melting Pot of sorts which we see in real life as well. Or at the very least the Older Settlers were more of a Celtic type and now many kinds of people now settle in. That is what happened with Bloodborne with the older parts resembling more Pthumerian architecture and the further up, the newer the architecture is. In the trailers we seem multiple castles, whether these are places we have to go, this also leads back to a 4chan leak we had last year where it says there are 8 Kingdoms. With this information and the fact we see so many, this is probably true and there’s 8 kinds of people inhabiting the Riftlands.

Next we have environment and such, In the leaks we see regular land, fields and snow. Meaning the land, as we can guess, is extremely large and varied without say like Dark Souls 1 and 3 where the only snow area was through a painting or with Irithyll and the reason it’s so cold is due to a permanent moon. It seems like it’ll be natural and much cleaner.

Then we have the possible importance of the Moon. In a lot of shots we see the Moon. In Celtic Lore the Moon is a great source of power and has many gods associated with it. It is basically a divine thing and here it seems it is no different. In the Boss Fight cutscene it seems the Moon’s power is being used or the Moon is being protected. Whether its because it is powerful or possibly it contains the secret of the titular Elden Ring is unknown as there is no information. The Moon in everywhere its shown is a beautiful blue and shines the sky very nicely.

Then we have the World Tree, this isn’t the same name it has most likely, but it’s definitely what this is. The World Tree is a common mythological thing where it holds many of the world’s secrets or places. This is presumably the case with Elden Ring too. Though, this could just be a very, very large tree such as an Arch Tree from Dark Souls. There seems to be a few of these in the world though but maybe not to this stature. But we won’t know until we get more, anyways. What these trees mean could be anything to people living in them or a portal to another plane. Whichever it is, it is an interesting world asset and will definitely have a great aesthetic.

Let’s talk religion. Already we can tell Elden Ring will feature an organized religion such as Bloodborne (Blood and Great Ones), Sekiro (Buddhism), Dark Souls (Way of White) and Demon’s Souls (Church of God). We can tell due to the amount of religious clothing and not to mention the literal cathedral we see with a lot of seats. This leads back to the Moon where it is likely that the Moon is worshipped due to its Great Power. It’s also assumed that the Elden Ring is linked to this religion in some fashion which wouldn’t be surprising in the slightest. The boss we were shown can only be described as a religious leader of some sort, the clothing basically gives it away. 

Next, let’s talk about the Giants. As I said in my previous post, Giants seem to be enslaved, they are literally chained and forced to be walked. They also seem to be impaled with some sort of stake, why this is I have no idea. This immediately opens the world up to multiple kind of beings, such as Dark Souls. We have yet to see other kinds of creatures but I assume again by the leaks, Elves will be involved and possibly other types of creatures.

Now we get to Dragons. Dragons are very cool. But all we know is that they just exist, sadly we don’t get much about them. It seems they appear in open air and possibly in catacombs, which is kinda terrifying.

(Circled it)

And let’s talk about the Sea of Fog. It was mentioned once and was said that the way we(the Player Character) manage to get through the Riftlands is through that. Assumedly it is not a real Sea but only just a vast and large area where there is just a lot of fog and it leads to the Riftlands, it is not known if the Sea holds any power or mystique all we know now is that it just is a space between.

Lastly, let’s talk about the Sky. Yes! The Sky. In the trailers we see Sun and Moon but we also see a Red sky, very cloudy. And this actually may have some importance. It’s the exact same sky in the trailer.

I have no idea what this sky means but it’s obviously something that happens when the world changes, which has been a thing since Dark Souls.

And extra note about races, whatever that guy is, it seems that brute men are in this world too, I guess? Doesn’t seem like a Giant, but yeah. Not to mention there’s also the thing with him fading away but I’ll be honest, I have NOTHING on that, I can’t even guess what that’s about.