Elden Ring continues FromSoftware’s “weird but cool” multiplayer, where by “weird but cool,” we mean “confusing and opaque.” It’s not quite like any other FromSoftware game, except the parts that are, and the game kind of explains it all, but not super well.
But understanding Elden Ring multiplayer can make you a better, richer player.
In this Elden Ring guide, we’ll teach you everything you need to know about Elden Ring multiplayer. That begins with an overview of connecting with other players (for good and for evil) — including when and why that’s a good idea. Whether you want to be helpful or a monster hurtful, optional multiplayer can make the game better. It’s also among the best ways to earn runes in Elden Ring.
Table of contents
- How multiplayer works in Elden Ring
- Write messages with the Tarnished’s Wizened Finger
- Bloodstains
- Summoning and being summoned: Playing with other Elden Ring players
- Summoning other players
- Summoning pools and martyr effigies
- The password system for playing only with your friends
- Elden Ring multiplayer items
How multiplayer works in Elden Ring
When you launch Elden Ring, you connect with the game’s servers automatically. Those servers are portals into other players’ games. If you don't want to be online, go to the System > Network, and chose Launch Setting > Play Offline. (Play Online is the default.) But even if you do that, parts of Elden Ring will behave as if you were online.
Write messages with the Tarnished’s Wizened Finger
You can see online-like behavior early on, when you walk across notes written on the ground. If you play offline, the only notes you’ll see are from the game’s creators. If you play online, you’ll also see messages from other players. Sometimes, those messages are helpful, like when players warn you of an ambush ahead. Sometimes, they trick you into jumping off a cliff because that’s kind of funny, from a certain point of view.
If you’re playing online, you can leave messages with the Tarnished’s Wizened Finger item which is “Used to write messages to other worlds.” (Fingers are an item that will keep coming up.) You’ll get it from a dead body in the Chapel of Anticipation right at the beginning of the game. Write a message, and they’ll show up in other players’ games. If someone rates your message, you’ll get a bonus to health.
Bloodstains
Bloodstains are a big advantage to playing online, because they show you where and how other players died, so that you don’t have to die that way, too.
Imagine finding a message that some naughty Elden Ring player wrote, telling you to jump off a cliff. It could be horse apples. It could be the path to untold riches. What’s a Tarnished like you to do?
Well, you find a bloodstain nearby, and you walk over it, and sure enough, it shows another Tarnished leaping down the hole to their death. Crisis averted. Watch those bloodstains. They might save your life.
Summoning and being summoned: Playing with other Elden Ring players
Real-time multiplayer takes two forms in Elden Ring: You can become the Host of Fingers to other players into your game, or you can leave your game temporarily and join someone else’s.
If you want to make lots of runes and you’re a helpful person, consider using the Tarnished’s Furled Finger and helping other players defeat a boss. If you want to make an indeterminate number of runes and you’re a mean and cruel person, consider invading other players’ worlds with a Bloody Finger and killing them.
Summoning other players
In Elden Ring, as in so many other FromSoftware games, summon signs represent other players. They look like piles of rocks on the ground. Use a Furlcalling Finger Remedy to see nearby summon signs. Gold summon signs are allies — people who want to help you. Red summon signs are enemies — people who want to fight you.
If you want to help someone, use Tarnished Furled Finger to create a gold summon sign that appears in other players’ games. Elden Ring calls this cooperative multiplayer.
If you want to fight someone, use the Duelist’s Furled Finger to create a red summon sign. You’ll become the Duelist, and your job will be to kill the player Host of Fingers who summoned you.
Summoning pools and martyr effigies
Summoning pools are a … weird part of Elden Ring multiplayer. Here’s how they work.
Let’s start with what Elden Ring says:
In each area, you may find effigies of martyrs. These effigies are summoning pools.
You’ll find it easy to summon other players at these locations, as co-op and hostile summoning signs created with small effigies gather at summoning pools.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23267097/Elden_Ring_martyr_effigy.jpg "Elden Ring guide: How to play online, summon friends, terrorize enemies, and earn tons of runes (1)")
Geographical areas in Elden Ring have summoning pools, as represented by martyr effigies, like the one pictured above. You’ll find them near sites of grace, dungeons, catacombs, and legacy dungeons.
Walk up to an effigy, interact with it, and others’ summoning signs appear.
The password system for playing only with your friends
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23267696/Elden_Ring_multiplayer_password.png "Elden Ring guide: How to play online, summon friends, terrorize enemies, and earn tons of runes (2)")
Elden Ring’s password system allows you to play with a friend of your choosing. If you and a friend want to play together, here’s what you need to do.
- Open the Elden Ring, menu and select System. (It’s the one on the bottom left with the gears icon.)
- Navigate to the Network tab (it’s the wireframe globe icon), and make sure you’re online.
- Navigate to the Multiplayer tab in the main menu.
- Press Triangle/Y/whatever the PC equivalent is to enter Settings.
- Choose an easy-to-type, definitely mature password that isn’t a childish word that we would never use.
- Tell your friend the password.
- Enjoy a period of jolly co-operation.
Elden Ring multiplayer items
There are several multiplayer items. They’re all about fingers. Here’s where to get them and what they do.
Elden Ring multiplayer items
| Item name | Description | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Item name | Description | Location |
| Furlcalling Finger Remedy | With a Furlcalling Finger Remedy, you can see summon signs, which can be used to summon players from other worlds.(Finger Remedies are consumed with use.)There are various types of summon signs.Gold signs summon Furled Finger cooperators.Red signs summon duelist adversaries.(For either type of multiplayer, the summoning player becomes Hostof Fingers.) | A crafting item that requires Erdleaf Flower. |
| Finger Severer | Choose a summoned player to send back to their own world.This player will be removed from the multiplayer session | Pilage a body near the Stranded Graveyard site of grace. |
| Small Golden Effigy | Send a cooperative summon sign to several nearby summoning pools (activated pools only).If you are summoned, you will be transported to that summoning pool’s location in the host player’s world and multiplayer will begin.(Your objective will be to help the host player defeat the area boss.) | You'll get this when you examine a Martyr Effigy. |
| Tarnished’s Furled Finger | You can leave a gold summon sign to play cooperative multiplayer.This sign will appear in other players’ worlds and allow them to summon you as a Furled Finger for cooperative multiplayer.Multiplayer begins once you are summoned.(Your obiective will be to defeat the area boss.)If you leave a second summon sign, the older sign will vanish. | Pilage a body near the Stranded Graveyard site of grace. |
| Duelist’s Furled Finger | You can leave a red summon sign to play competitive multiplayer.This sign will appear in other players’ worlds and allow them to summon you as a duelist adversary for competitive multiplayer.Multiplayer begins once you are summoned.(Your obiective will be to defeat the Host of Fingers.)If you leave a second summon sign, the older sign will vanish. | Pilage a body at the entrance of the Stormhill Colosseum, in the northeast of West Limgrave. |
| Small Red Effigy | Send a competitive summon sign to several nearby summoning pools (activated pools only).If you are summoned, you will be transported to that summoningpool’s location in the host player’s world and multiplayer will begin.(Your obiective will be to defeat the Host of Fingers.) | Pilage a body at the entrance of the Stormhill Colosseum, in the northeast of West Limgrave. |
| Festering Bloody Finger | Attempt to invade another player’s world as a Bloody Finger.If you successfully invade, your Festering Bloody Finger will be spent and invasion multiplayer will begin. (Your objective will be to defeatthe Host of Fingers.)You can attempt another invasion of the same world by using a Phantom Finger item. (These items are consumed upon use.) | White-Faced Varré in Liurnia of the Lakes’ Rose Church. |
| Blue Cipher Ring | Puts you into a ready state to answer, should someone in another world call for rescue.You will be summoned to their world as a hunter. Multiplayer will begin once you are summoned. (Your obiective will be to defeat invaders.) | Buy from the Twin Maiden Husks in Roundtable Hold for 1,000 runes. |
| White Cipher Ring | Allows you to automatically request for a hunter from another world to come to your rescue when your world is invaded.You can also use this after being invaded to summon a hunter for help. (Summoning rescuers may not always be possible.) | Buy from the Twin Maiden Husks in Roundtable Hold for 1,000 runes. |
| Bloody Finger | Attempts to invade another world to kill the Host of Fingers. | You'll get this as you go through the NPC quests in Liurnia of the Lakes’ Rose Church. |
| Recusant Finger | Attempts to invade another world with the goal of killing the Host of Fingers, though with a different narrative than the Bloody Finger. | You get this as you go through the Volcano Manor quests, which stars with an NPC looking for an item in Liurnia of the Lakes. |
| Tarnished’s Wizened Finger | Used to write messages to other worlds. | You'll get this in the Chapel of Anticipation. |
FAQs
How do you summon enemies in Elden Ring? ›
NPC Summons in Elden Ring are the summonable cooperator NPCs that can be available in a boss fight. These are different from Spirit Ashes and can be activated by using their summon signs that appear in gold. A number of NPC summons have been added since the 1.03 Patch.
How do you fight people online in Elden Ring? ›Elden Ring PvP multiplayer explained
First, to offer other players an honorable duel, you need to place a sign with the Duelist's Furled Finger. Or if you're feeling mean-spirited, you need to use the Festering Bloody Finger to invade the game of an unsuspecting newb.
| Summon Type | Equation |
|---|---|
| Cooperative | Lower-level Limit : Level * 0.9 - 10 Upper-level Limit Equation: Level * 1.1 + 10 |
| PVP | Lower-level Limit : Level * 0.9 Upper-level Limit Equation: Level * 1.1 + 20 |
The Red Wolf of Radagon might be a fight where you feel like you need the help of another player, especially since it locks you out of the story until you've beaten the boss. If you feel the need to, you can summon in another players, or use a spirit ash summon.
What is the max coop in Elden Ring? ›How many people can play coop in Elden Ring? Elden Ring coop supports up to three players at a time; one Host of Fingers and two golden Phantoms to support them. It's also not cross-platform, so players won't be able to brawl with buddies on other consoles or computers.
Do enemies respawn infinitely in Elden Ring? ›Only bosses and a few minibosses don't respawn. You don't need to kill all this enemies over and over again, just take another way around, run past them or use Torrent and ignore them all.
Who can you summon for Melania? ›Malenia, Blade of Miquella Boss in Elden Ring
Multiplayer is allowed for this boss. Spirit Ashes can be summoned for this boss.
Gold summon signs are allies — people who want to help you. Red summon signs are enemies — people who want to fight you. If you want to help someone, use Tarnished Furled Finger to create a gold summon sign that appears in other players' games. Elden Ring calls this cooperative multiplayer.
How to bypass Elden Ring anti cheat online? ›- Go to the Steam library location where you installed Elden Ring.
- Go to steamapps > ELDEN RING > game.
- Rename start_protected_game.exe to something else. ...
- Make a copy of elden_ring.exe.
- Rename this newly made copy to start_protected_game.exe.
- Run the game through Steam as normal.
The Duelist's Furled Finger will create a red competitive summoning sign in a specific spot, while the Small Red Effigy will send these signs to nearby Summoning Pools. If a player interacts with your competitive summoning sign, you will jump into their world as a Duelist, tasked with killing the other player.
Can you play the entire Elden Ring game coop? ›
Creator LukeYui's 'Seamless Co-op' mod allows you to play the entirety of Elden Ring with up to three fellow players, which means you can conquer the Lands Between hand in hand with your besties.
What level should I stop at in Elden Ring? ›It's advisable to stop leveling Mind at 40 points due to diminishing returns. This is unless you really need more for your build, then you can take it to 55 or 60 before the caps start to kick in.
How many hours is max level in Elden Ring? ›Despite the game being out for a while and no shortage of diehard Elden Ring players to gnash their teeth against it, new limits are just now being pushed in Elden Ring.
What is the best level to stop at in Elden Ring? ›Rune Level 138 is the sweet spot for matching with both 125 and 150. 120 is where a lot of people are doing PVP, and 150 is more co-op (there are obviously exceptions). I assume most people have maxed out weapons at that level?
What is the best weapon to beat Elden Beast? ›In general, the Black Flame is powerful against the Elden Beast because the lingering damage is percentage-based.
What weapon is best for Elden Beast? ›In general, the Black Flame is powerful against the Elden Beast because the lingering damage is percentage-based.
What is the Elden Beast weakest against? ›Holy damage will heal them, so avoid using it completely, and they have resistance to all status effects, meaning the Elden Beast weakness is pure physical damage. They also have a weak spot on their stomach which you can aim for to deal more damage.
Can I summon my friend for Godrick? ›It's possible to summon the friendly NPC Nepheli to fight Godrick at your side. Her summon sign can be found right outside the fog gate and she can be a useful ally. Her damage output isn't great, but she'll draw half of Godrick's attention, allowing you to score some shots against him.
What is Radahn weak to? ›Radahn is extremely weak to Scarlet Rot. Inflicting it on him once will bring him down to half health in a short time. Inflicting it on him again near the start of the second phase will kill him in a short time.
What is Radagon weak to? ›Radagon is surprisingly weak to fire damage, and any flame-based attacks, skills, and spells can very quickly dispatch him. Popular weapons like Blasphemous Blade and the Sword of Night and Flame work great for this, as do fire Incantations and Sorceries. Use any of these to deal huge chunks of damage to Radagon.
Do you get less runes in coop Elden Ring? ›
Elden Ring's Co-Op Provides Practically Free Runes
All of this risk is negated when helping others through co-op. Whether players use the Tarnished's Furled Finger or the Small Golden Effigy, they'll get runes for killing enemies as a phantom.
Elden Ring borrows most multiplayer elements from Dark Souls 3. Summoning band is based on your character level and most upgraded weapon.
How many people can be in the same game in Elden Ring? ›You can have a max of four players in your party.
Do enemies get stronger as you level in Elden Ring? ›Elden Ring enemies do not scale. You can eventually overlevel them.
Do small dragons respawn Elden Ring? ›Lesser Dragon is a Creature in Elden Ring. These creatures are found numerously in the Dragonbarrow. Unlike Glintstone Dragons, these Lesser Dragons respawn and do not have use a breath attack.
What is the best weapon to beat Malenia? ›Colossal weapons can interrupt just about every one of Malenia's Phase One moves, and weapon abilities that knock down enemies like the Blasphemous Blade's can keep her down the entire time, and Gravity spells can be used to great effect too.
What happens if you refuse Malenia? ›What happens if you refuse Melina in Elden Ring. Refusing Melina's offer in Elden Ring will block your progression in the game. Accepting her offer is the only way to level up in the game, and she's the one who will give you the key item Spectral Steed Whistle, which you can use to summon Elden Ring's horse Torrent.
What is Melania weak against? ›To beat the Malenia boss fight in Elden Ring, here's some strategic tips and tricks: Malenia is weak to Fire and Bleed weapons. Armor up against Slashing, Piercing and Scarlet Rot.
What happens if Melina dies when you summon her? ›Some players were worried about being unable to get the Rold Medallion or if her death would significantly impact the game, but Melina will return as if nothing happened the next time you summon her.
Who is the hardest boss in Elden Ring? ›The list is unsurprisingly topped by the infamously difficult Elden Ring boss Malenia, whose encounter was attempted some 329 million times, thus accounting for 5.5% of all in-game boss fights the players initiated to date.
Is Miquella a guy or girl? ›
Miquella's lore
Miquella, the brother of Malenia, is one of the Empyreans. Cursed to be forever young, he created the Haligtree to allow himself to grow to be an adult and to purge the rot from Malenia.
Elden Ring Mohg, The Omen Boss
This is an optional boss but it must be defeated to achieve a certain ending. NPC Summons: Dung Eater can be summoned for this boss if you've released him from his cell.
Elden Ring Godfrey, First Elden Lord Boss
NPC Summons: NPC Nepheli Loux and Shabriri can be summoned for this fight. Both summon signs are outside the boss arena. You can use both summons in the same fight.
In the Forbidden Lands, Millicent can be summoned to aid you against the Black Blade Kindred boss. She'll then appear by the Ancient Snow Valley Ruins Site of Grace in the Mountaintop of the Giants. Here she'll say that she's searching for the Haligtree to look for Malenia.
How to bypass Elden Ring ban? ›Bandai Namco customer support is telling users that they need to uninstall and reinstall Elden Ring in order to avoid the ban, and this includes deleting their save file and starting from scratch.
Is Elden Ring just a hack and slash? ›Elden Ring does an amazing job of making players feel as if it's them versus the world. Much of their journey is spent hacking and slashing their way through tough enemies and killer bosses, all for the chance to change and influence the lands around them.
Are the Two Fingers good or bad in Elden Ring? ›In Elden Ring, the Two Fingers act as a source of guidance towards order in the Lands Between, but they may not be so good-intentioned. Elden Ring is full of mysterious characters and beings whose goal is to guide the character through the story and interpret the lore surrounding the world and the Lands Between.
What do finger maidens do in Elden Ring? ›Finger Maidens are said to serve the Two Fingers, offering guidance and aid to the Tarnished. They can turn rune fragments into strength.
What does Bloody Finger mean in Elden Ring? ›The Bloody Finger can be used as an online item that allows the player to attempt to invade the world of another player.
Can you free roam with friends in Elden Ring? ›ELDEN RING. client players can freely interact with in-game objects (opening chests, doors etc.) In other words, using this model, the only times the co-op players part company, is if a fog gate boss is fought, a player or host dies, or a client voluntarily leaves.
Can you buy Furlcalling finger remedy? ›
- Dropped by Bloody Finger Nerijus. [ ...
- Dropped by Hosts of Fingers when invading.
- Dropped by Recusant Henricus when invading. ...
- Dropped by Anastasia, Tarnished-Eater when invading. [ ...
- Dropped in Highroad Cave. [ ...
- Players can buy it from Merchant Kalé, for 1000 Runes. [
Multiple factors can cause the “unable to summon cooperator Elden Ring” issue. For instance, it could happen because other gamers have summoned the same operator ahead of you. Issues with the network can also cause the unable to summon cooperator error.
Why am i unable to summon friends in Elden Ring? ›The first thing you should be aware of is that you may receive this message if someone has already summoned the person you are attempting to summon. Next, you should check your internet connection, followed by the version of Elden Ring you are running. Finally, the last thing you might need to do is reinstall.
How do I find my friends summon Elden Ring? ›If you're still having trouble seeing summon signs in Elden Ring, you can attempt to connect to your friends using their online ID. To do this, you'll need to go into the settings menu of your game and choose the network tab. Once you've done this, you should be able to see summon signs.
How do you summon a friend for tree Sentinel? ›Just like with other boss fights in Elden Ring, you can summon help by opening your multiplayer menu and using the Furlcalling Finger Remedy item to enable you to see other players' summon signs.
Why can't my friend summon me for Radahn? ›If you are on the beach, that means you have defeated Radahn who is the main boss in Caelid region. You cannot summon anyone in the region after defeating main boss. Originally posted by Witcher: If you are on the beach, that means you have defeated Radahn who is the main boss in Caelid region.
Can you summon friends after beating a boss in Elden Ring? ›You can't just summon anywhere: The most frustrating thing about Elden Ring's co-op is that players aren't able to summon others anywhere they please. For example, areas where the boss has already been beaten become unavailable and you can't bring new players in to explore a boss-less dungeon.
Why can't i summon the jellyfish in Elden Ring? ›Elden Ring Can't Summon Jellyfish
Your Jellyfish is dead. You only have the chance to summon one Jellyfish at a time in Elden Ring. You are not in a boss fight or a location that allows summoning.
To fix Elden Ring invisible enemies, players should: Load a previous save. Load a previous save state and go back to the area with the invisible areas. Hopefully they are now visible.
Why do summon signs disappear? ›There are certain multiplayer areas of the game, if you leave the area you put your mark it will disappear. Generally any area between a bonfire and the "next" boss is safe, but certain places (like the bonfire by the blacksmith) can be a bit fidgety.
Where can I get a spirit calling bell? ›
Where to find Spirit Calling Bell: Given to players by Renna at the Church of Elleh in Limgrave. Return to the church after acquiring the ability to summon your Spectral Steed Whistle from Melina. You will find Renna sitting by the ruins at night time.
How does summoning work in Elden Ring? ›To summon these Spirits, you will need to select them from your inventory to activate. Your character will automatically ring the Spirit Calling Bell (no need to equip it) and your Spirit will come to your aid.
How do you use co op summoning pool? ›Use the Furlcalling Finger Remedy in front of a Summoning Pool to show all of the active player summons in the area. You can select any of the golden messages on the floor to summon a friendly player to help you in battle. The player will be with you until they die or you're defeated.
How does Elden Ring co op work? ›How Elden Ring multiplayer works. In Elden Ring multiplayer works through summon signs - marks you can leave on the ground in-game or find left for you. You can only see these, however, if you use an item called a Furlcalling Finger Remedy. These signs let you be summoned by other players, or summon them yourselves.
What is the best summon to beat Tree Sentinel? ›Defeat the Tibia Mariner at Summonwater Village to get the Skeletal Militiamen Ashes, which provide a great distraction against the Tree Sentinel.
Can you summon anyone to help with radagon? ›NPC summons to defeat the Red Wolf of Radagon
If you've met Sorceress Sellen and become her apprentice, you'll be able to summon her for support in this boss fight. Her gold summon sign can be found outside the boss gate. While doing so will give the wolf a health and power buff, Sellen will be a powerful ally.
Radagon of the Golden Order is a God Boss found in the Stone Platform. This boss is NOT optional. This is a God boss. Spirit ashes can be summoned for this boss.