Elden Ring is finally getting its long-awaited expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree. And the reveal trailer for this DLC has showcased a bunch of new things that really blow away pretty much every fan of the game. Besides adding new enemies and stories to the game through this DLC, FromSoftware has also added a bunch of new equipment.
New equipment does not mean new weapons and armor pieces, but brand-new weapon classes. The developers have done this to keep their DLC fresh for players who have not stopped playing Elden Ring since its launch in 2022. But one class is so unique that it has never been seen in a Soulslike title.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree brings martial arts to the Lands Between
As an RPG, Elden Ring might not give players much control over the direction of the story they experience, but players get to be whomever they want to be on that journey. They can be ruthless warriors; they can be mages; and they can even be pyromancers.
When players choose to be a warrior in Elden Ring, they once again get a lot of choices, and no, they are not just limited to the shape of the weapon they choose. Players can in fact choose their weapon type, and they can choose what stat to boost to get the most out of that weapon, and then they get to choose the skill to use with that weapon.
And every player who has spent enough time on Elden Ring knows well enough that there are a number of weapon types in this game. Players can choose from katanas, curved swords, great swords, lances, and scythes. This list keeps on going; there are even hybrid weapon types, twin swords, and those curved swords with a spear at the end.
As if the choice wasn’t hard enough for newcomers, game director Hidetaka Miyazaki decided to add even more weapon types to this game. One such category is not yet named but turns players into martial artists.
These are the kinds of weapon arts, or maybe skills, that would allow players to kick and punch their enemies like they do in those Kung Fu movies. It looks incredibly cool, and it can end up being an effective weapon in case players desire to knock their enemies back a bit.
This new kind of combat technique reminded players of those skills in Sekiro. Those combat arts looked cool but proved deadly when those mini-bosses used them against players. With their entry in Elden Ring, it would become the first ever Soulslike title to have such weapon arts, as fans never counted Sekiro as a Soulslike.
There’s much else in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree besides the martial arts
This upcoming DLC would also give players access to what looked like large throwing knives that looked a lot different from the original ones when in action. In fact, they are so powerful that they even break an enemy’s stance in the trailer.
The trailer also showcased tarnish using a massive pot bomb. The likes of which have never been seen in the game before. One wonders how they would work, but one thing is for sure: players would not carry those in their pockets. Well, wherever they keep those pots fans will find out when Shadow of the Erdtree launches on June 21, 2024.
