Well, I stil have more to say about Elden Ring NPC questlines, apparently. Here was part three and this is, by logical deduction, part four. It’s mind-blowing to think of how many NPCs and characters are in this game. It’s also fun to watch Gav and Rory of RKG react to the people they meet/hear of. Gav is Welsh, so he is happy as a clam that there are so many Welsh voice actors in this game. They have an official Welsh counter, too.
Gav was so excited when they hit the bit with Ranni and her three advisors. They called it becoming a part of the Welsh Avengers. Gav was trying so hard to find a way to make Seluvis acceptable (when they first met), but even he had to admit that Seluvis was a dickhead when Seluvis’s underground chamber was revealed. To be clear, Seluvis is a Grade A jerk. There is no redeeming quality to him, and I’m interested to see if Krupa can glean a rationale for Ranni having him as an advisor.
Have they met all the NPCs yet? No. There are several I can think of that they have yet to meet. They have talked in RTH about how many NPCs they’ve met so far. Krupa has pointed out that within ten or so episodes, they had probably met more NPCs than in any other game.
Gav said that he liked it because it gave them something focused to do for a litlle bit. It’s funny who they get attached to. Rory really liked Edgar and thought he was going to be a big part of the game. His quest is very short and self-contained.
Then there’s Kenneth Haight. Most of his questline is done within a few scenes, but there is a late-game addendum to his questline–as long as you do Nepheli Loux’s questline as well. I totally missed it on my first playthrough because I messed up a step of Nepheli Loux’s questline. I’m sure Krupa will guide them through it so they will get the triumphant ending for Nepheli Loux. I will admit I was surprised that they didn’t even think twice before doing what Seluvis wants you to do–which is give Nepheli Loux a potion.
It’s one of a very few things I have refused to do in the game because it’s so against my principles. I know she’s not real, but I just cannot. I did give it to Dung Eater twice, but even then, it made me feel not great.
And, yes, I know that he is not real, either, but it is simply not something I feel comfortable with. At all. I have a hard enough time buying the puppets that Seluvis puts on offer.
Speaking of the Dung Eater, I think Rory is going to be freaked out and grossed out when he meets the Dung Eater. That should be coming up shortly. I just Googled, and I’m right. It happens when you reach the Altus Plateau. He’s a jerk-and-a-half, but I actually kinda like him. I have a soft spot for him, and he truly thinks he’s doing the right thing. Who’s to say he’s not?
Back to short questlines. Rogier comes and goes in about ten episodes. I missed a lot of his questline the first time through. Amended: He shows up much later, but it’s for a brief moment and a lengthy lore dump. Gav said he couldn’t play these games because he would be so lost, but he would not want to play while constantly Googling things. He said it’s great to haveKrupa to carefully guide them and help them with the lore. He said, “Otherwise, you would be doing all this and not know why.”
He said it as if it’s a bad thing, but it’s really fun to play that way on a first playthrough. To explore and feel as if you’re uncovering uncharted lands. Yes, you’re not going to get the whole story on the first playthrough, but that’s why you do subsequent playthroughs.
I understand that it might be daunting for some people, but it’s actually amazing to go through one of these games relatively unspoiled. Did I understand everything? Of course not. But that did not lessen my enjoyment of it. Gav said that he has a mate who says it’s his favorite game, but does not know half of what Gav tells him RKG have done.
In the episode I’ve included above, Gav is so charmed by Iji, the big blacksmith (and very Welsh). I think he’s going to be so brokenhearted at the end of this quest. I’m not sure if he likes Iji or Blaidd better. He’s going to be devastated in about ten episodes time.
I’m trying to think of the other questlines. Very soon, they will be reaching the Fia/D conflict. It means the death of D, but it also opens up Fia’s quest. Which is bonkers, frankly. It includes D’s twin, a death dragon in Fia’s dream, and a whole new area.
It’s all optional, by the way. But you have to do it for Fia’s ending. Which I have yet to get. I have the three needed for the plat (including the vanilla ending) plus the Dung Eater’s ending. I have Fia’s ending and Goldmask’s ending. Fia’s Goldmask’s is fairly easy to do (and includes the sculptor’s secret about Radagon. It’s fascinating, and I cannot wait to see the boys reach that point.
Fia’s ending is a lot. The whole optional area is a lot. Well, actually, it’s not that much if you go on the straight path, but that’s not easy to discern. What is mindblowing is that there are two ways to get into this place, and I did not know about the second way through my first two playthroughs.
Who are the NPCs they have yet to meet? Well, they’ve met Millicent, but are only at the very beginning of her quest. There’s Eleanora, even though that is a one-time event. There is also Anastasia, who they’ve already met once. She shows up two more times (invading). There’s Shabriri who takes the form of Yura, which is weird. I tihnk those are the only recurring NPCs that they have yet to–oh, wait. There’s Tanith at the Volcano Manor, but she doesn’t move at all. Until the very end.
There are several invading NPCs, but that’s a whole different matter. I’m not going to get into that because that’s not the point of this post. This is a rich world, and the NPC questlines make it even fuller.