Video Games
How to play Elden Ring
Explore the Lands Between, grow stronger, and defeat challenging bosses.
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How do you play Elden Ring?
Explore to discover checkpoints, equipment, and upgrade materials. Earn runes from enemies and spend them before taking major risks. Study enemy patterns and choose safe moments to attack. Defeat major bosses to advance through the world.
Jump to the step-by-step rules ↓EDITOR'S TABLE NOTES
Is Elden Ring a good fit for your group?
This game works especially well for players who learn best by practicing the core controls before taking on advanced objectives; the listed 1-player range and Open-ended playing time should also fit the group. Before setting up, decide whether that matches the experience your group wants today.
Rules version covered here
This guide focuses on the current beginner gameplay loop rather than update-specific exploits. Controls, menus, balance, and available modes can differ by platform and patch. For Elden Ring, pay particular attention to the stated setup and ending condition below.
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Learn Elden Ring in under a minute
About this video
This original mini lesson covers what you need, setup, normal play, the winning condition, and one beginner tip. Continue below for the complete written guide.
INTERACTIVE LEARN-TO-PLAY
Practice Elden Ring before the first round
Walk through the setup, try a sample turn, and get a quick answer when play stalls.
Choose a character class and complete the tutorial cave.
Learn attacking, dodging, guarding, and healing.
Playable example turn
Step 1 of 4
Explore to discover checkpoints, equipment, and upgrade materials.
What should we do now?
Start with this action: Explore to discover checkpoints, equipment, and upgrade materials.
Scoring and winning
Defeat major bosses to advance through the world.
Common dispute to prevent
Attacking until no stamina remains. Agree on any edition-specific variation before the first turn.
The objective
Your goal is to explore the Lands Between, grow stronger, and defeat challenging bosses. Before play begins, make sure every player can explain how the game ends and what determines the winner. That one check prevents many mid-game disagreements.
What you need
Elden Ring on a supported device. Lay out every required item before teaching the rules. If pieces, cards, controllers, or play space are missing, resolve that before the practice turn.
How to set up
- Choose a character class and complete the tutorial cave.
- Learn attacking, dodging, guarding, and healing.
Setup check: Ask one player who did not arrange the game to compare the table, field, or screen with these steps. A fresh look often catches an incorrect starting position.
How to play: step by step
- Explore to discover checkpoints, equipment, and upgrade materials.
- Earn runes from enemies and spend them before taking major risks.
- Study enemy patterns and choose safe moments to attack.
- Defeat major bosses to advance through the world.
Example first round
A useful first-round walkthrough for Elden Ring begins this way: Explore to discover checkpoints, equipment, and upgrade materials. Next, earn runes from enemies and spend them before taking major risks. Continue in normal turn order until the ending condition applies: defeat major bosses to advance through the world.
How scoring and winning work
- The result is determined by the guide's stated objective: Explore the Lands Between, grow stronger, and defeat challenging bosses.
- The final step explains when play stops: Defeat major bosses to advance through the world.
- For the most common rules question, use this clarification consistently: No traditional setting, but exploration, summons, and upgrades can make challenges easier.
Useful variations
- Use the tutorial, training area, or easiest suitable mode until movement and the main action feel comfortable.
- For a shorter session, announce a stopping time before starting; Open-ended is the normal planning range for Elden Ring.
- When playing with beginners, demonstrate this strategy before scoring begins: Upgrade one favored weapon regularly.
Beginner strategies
- Upgrade one favored weapon regularly.
- Leave a difficult area and return stronger.
Choose one of these ideas for the first game instead of trying to remember every strategy at once. Afterward, identify one decision that changed the result and one move you would test next time.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Attacking until no stamina remains.
- Carrying many unspent runes into a boss fight.
If an illegal move is discovered, pause and agree on the least disruptive correction. For casual play, consistency and a shared understanding matter more than reconstructing many turns.
Frequently asked questions
Does the game have difficulty settings?
No traditional setting, but exploration, summons, and upgrades can make challenges easier.
Can other players help?
Yes, cooperative summoning is available.
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