FromSoftware is known for adding seemingly useless items or places into its games to keep fans speculating about lore and Elden Ring DLC Shadow of the Erdtree is no different.
But there’s one specific location that has fans in awe: the Scadutree Chalice.
This is a named location found after you defeat a specific boss, but it doesn’t seem to serve any purpose. What could it be? Spoilers follow.
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The Scadutree Chalice can be found in an area behind the Shadow Keep. Players must first defeat Commander Gaius. He’s the armored boar-riding boss who reminds me a bit of that orc in Twilight Princess.
Afterwards, players can wander into a new area that leads to an archway and an abyss overlooking the Scadutree that dominates the skyline. Here players will find a huge unlit stone chalice with five fragments scattered around it.
Now, at a basic level, those fragments are incredibly useful because they are used to level up the player’s Shadow Blessing. But finding five in one place? That’s definitely unusual.
So what is it for? My first thought was that this would be the location to use Messmer’s Kindling, but quickly found a use for it elsewhere.
My own loose theory is that the Chalice is related to the Scadutree fragments. That’s obvious considering the name and the fact that it faces the tree. But is this where fragments are formed or where their power is distilled? Or were fragments used here in some kind of ritual, causing so many to be scattered around?
The item description for the fragments reads: “A splinter of the Scadutree containing golden brilliance… It is said that when the Scadutree crumbles from its core, it will spread throughout the realm of shadow. The people of the Erdtree gather the splinters and use them in prayer.” Is that prayer only at Sites of Grace, or is this chalice too?
Eurogamer’s Katharine Castle also did some research, trying out multiple poses or wearing Gaius’ armor as the nearby Albinauric drops his greaves. But so far everything has yielded nothing.
Players on reddit have also speculated, following a post from XSidsgothemX. They suggest it could be related to the Albinaurics, hence the nearby hut, perhaps a clue to how they were created, or whether their blood is needed?
“It’s not useless by any means. I’m hopeful that there’s a secret quest we haven’t discovered yet that will allow us to interact with the Scadutree,” one reply reads.
Others have tried to light the chalice with various pots, but without success.
Another user, Rockerode, suggests that the Chalice could also be related to the Suppression Tower – it is located in the first area, but serves no purpose other than housing a chest. “I think between the Scadutree Chalice, the suppression tower, and the trailer with a scene that none of us have unlocked, there’s something going on here,” they suggest, perhaps referring to some sort of quest to complete a ritual and clean the Scadutree. Is there a secret ending out there somewhere?
Or maybe, just maybe, the chalice has no purpose other than these five fragments. And that is certainly reward enough.
Do you have any theories about what the Scadutree Chalice is or represents?
Scadutree Fragments are integral to the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC as the primary method of character development. Earlier today, a new patch was released for the game that rebalances the scale of their Blessings.