5 things you might've missed in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree story trailer

The wait is over, the Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree story trailer is here. Just like in classic FromSoftware fashion, this glimpse of the upcoming DLC is filled with all kinds of secrets and lore. Not only do we get to see more of the Golden Prince Miquella, but also small snippets of other characters who are going to play major roles in the DLC.

It was made apparent a while ago that the DLC's center stage will be taken by the eternal Prince Miquella and a character named Messmer will play as the antagonistic force. But we knew hardly anything else, and now with the new trailer, nothing has changed. However, the new glimpses have given us new material for more speculation, so let’s go over what we noticed in the trailer in our first few watches.

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5 things you may have missed in Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree story trailer

1) Marika was the narrator

The Golden Queen tells the tale (Image via FromSoftware)

The Golden Mother, the Queen of the Lands Between, and the Vessel of the Erdtree, Marika has many names; a storyteller is not one of them. But this time, the Queen herself narrated the story of the flames, the great war, and the fall of the prince. In the Shadow of the Erdtree story trailer, she also made an appearance in her feminine form.

So far it is not clear what role she plays in the Elden Ring DLC, but we do have some theories which we have discussed in the points below. We believe, like the base game, Marika will play a passive role even in the DLC.

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2) Golden Order may have also created the Shadow

From light comes darkness (Image via Fromsofware)

In the first part of the Shadow of the Erdtree trailer, in her monologue, Marika said a very interesting line. “An affair from which Gold rose, and so, too, was Shadow born.” This quote could be a direct hint that the phenomenon that summoned the Golden Order into the Lands Between also created the Shadow, which is embodied by Messmer.

Elden Ring’s story heavily features the two sides of the same coin. Marika is Radagon, Renna is Ranni, and more, so it won’t be too farfetched to think that the Golden Order that gave birth to the Grace and Erdtree is also responsible for the Shadow that came to burn it.

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3) Messmer was the instigator of the Great War

The tyrant's flame (Image via FromSoftware)

The Great War that ruined everything may have been instigated by Messmer the Impaler. The Demi-God with Red Snakes has a very strong presence in the Shadow of the Erdtree trailer. He was referred to as the flame that destroyed the lands in the Great War without honor, without grace. But the question still stands, how did he come to the Lands Between?

For a few seconds, we do see that Marika is holding golden strings between two giant red gates that have red serpents akin to Messmer’s and Rykard's. This could be the gate that brought Messmer and the Serpent God into the Lands Between.

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4) The Lion head Boss wasn’t a bad guy

A martyr not a monster (Image via FromSoftware)

Remember that weird lion-headed boss we saw in the previous trailer for Shadow of the Erdtree? Well, guess what? We don’t think he was a bad guy. In the new Shadow of the Erdtree trailer, we see this character charge at Messmer and attack him. This makes us believe that this character may have been an Elite Soldier of the Golden Order who got trapped in the Shadow and later was corrupted by it.

This character gives Artorias vibes. Artorias was a knight, a hero, in the previous Dark Souls games. He made a stand against the great shadows, but ultimately fell and got corrupted by it.

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5) Miquella is Trina?

Saint Trina is Miquella? (Image via FromSoftware)

So, for the longest time, the entire fanbase of Elden Ring argued that Saint Trina and Miquella are the same characters. But with the lack of solid evidence, no one could have said for sure. But thanks to the new Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree trailer, we have some new evidence. The part of the trailer where Marika narrates the fall of Miquella gave away everything.

He sacrificed his flesh, his grace, his power, and everything. In this part, we see that Miquella leaves with his normal body with golden locks, but in the next scene, we see a feminine body with purple locks drowning. This figure is believed to be Saint Trina, but we are not completely sure about this speculation.