Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree continues the base game’s tradition of extremely difficult quest lines with very little direction. Players will almost certainly encounter certain items and NPCs that will completely confuse them. An example of this is the proper use of the Iris of Grace and Iris of Darkness consumables. We tell you why they are needed.
Guides for Elden Ring Shadow of Erdtree
Iris of Grace and Iris of Darkness are unique consumables that are quite hard to find.
Remark. Do not use the Iris of Mercy and the Iris of Darkness! Their number is limited and the loss of one of them can lead to blocking access to a certain element.
Where can you find the Iris of Grace?
Technically, you can use the Iris of Grace to activate the effects of your Great Rune (in the same way as with rune bows, for example). But you must keep the Iris of Grace to use it in either of the two side quests, as giving the Iris of Grace to other characters will reward you with special items.
The Iris of Grace is located in the Shadow Keep in Scadu Altus. You’ll likely find her after defeating Messmer the Impaler on the way to the next area, Ancient Ruins of Rauh, but you can also find her when you access the Shadow Keep’s Storehouse and the Storehouse on the first floor.
Here is the exact location of the Iris of Grace on the map screen:
To find the Grace Iris, head west from the Grace Warehouse location, the first floor, to the first hallway you see on the left. You’ll have to deal with enemies if you try to pick up the Rune Arc on the corpse, otherwise feel free to continue down the hallway until you reach the elevator.
Take the elevator down and go down the first hallway on the right. An enemy will rush you through the door on the left, so be careful going through. You can also get the new War Ash “Wall of Sparks” from the room the enemy came from.
You’ll reach a staircase that leads down to another room with more enemies. If you want to handle them one at a time, slowly lead them back up the stairs so that you can handle them more easily. Be careful when approaching them.
Make your way through the room to the next area and you’ll find more miniature pot monsters. They’re a bit easier to deal with, but be careful as there are many sleeping enemies here that can easily sneak up on you.
However, before you go deeper into the Fortress of Shadows, while staying in this room, turn east. You’ll see another living pot monster behind you, and if you go to the end of the room you’ll find the Iris of Grace near the altar in the dark.
Where can you find the Darkness Iris?
Three Dark Iris items have been found in Shadow of the Erdtree. Fortunately, you only need two to complete certain side quests. So if you’re having trouble with the tree spirit at Sunken Chapel, fear not. You can safely leave it alone and come back to it later.
Inside the Fortress of Reprimand in Scadu Altus.
Fort Penance is located in the southern corner of Skadu Altus. It can be reached by driving south from the Moorth Ruins or through the Gravesite Plain, via a hidden route past Castle Ensis. Here is the exact location of Fort Penance on the map screen:
In the courtyard at the main entrance to the fortress, you must enter the cesspool through the square opening on the north side of the courtyard:
There you’ll find several corpses containing items, but to obtain the Iris of Darkness you’ll need to defeat the Horned Warrior, who charges at you from around the corner with two two-handed swords.
At the statue before you reach Scadutree Base.
The second Dark Iris can be found in the Shadow Fortress in Scadu Altus, just before you reach Scadutree Base, where you fight the Scadutree Avatar. However, you must drain the church area on the east side of the Shadow Fortress before you can reach this item, as it can only be accessed when the water level is lowered. Here is the exact location of the Iris of Darkness on the map:
From Sunken Chapel, head west and turn right as you exit the chapel building. Sneak past the tree spirit that lurks in the circular square next to the chapel and enter the church on the left (the one with all the exploding fire monsters in it).
Run to the end, but before you reach the niche with the large statue, turn right and follow the passage north.
Go through the large doors under the balcony in the next room and take the elevator down to the Scadutri base. When you reach the bottom, activate the Tree-Worship Passage and cross the wooden bridge. On the other side you’ll find another chapel with a large statue at the end. The Rainbow of Darkness will be here.
Defeat the Ulcerated Tree Spirit in the drained church area of the Shadow Fortress.
The third Iris of Darkness can be found by defeating the tree spirit in the drained church area of the Shadow Fortress. It’s actually very close to where you found the second iris mentioned above.
There are two tree spirits in this area, and the Iris of Darkness is your reward for defeating the one north of the Church District (not the one in the round pillars by the church). Here’s the exact location on the map screen:
Start again at the Sunken Chapel Mercy Location, but this time head east out of the chapel and follow the back wall around the circular plaza on your left. You’ll encounter crabs on the way up.
Ignore the tower with the elevator in it and instead head north along the left side of the tower, between the two large church buildings.
When you get close, the tree spirit will appear from the ground and leave an item for you after you defeat it.
What are irises used for?
As mentioned above, like Runic Arc, Iris of Grace can be used to activate any Grand Rune you have. But you can get the most out of this rare item. Save it for two side quests in Shadow of the Erdtree:
- Fire Knight Quiline questline;
- Swordswoman of the Night Yolan Mission Line.
Once you’ve progressed far enough in each of these characters’ quests, you’ll have the option to gift them the Iris of Grace or the Iris of Darkness. Depending on which one you give them, you will receive different rewards.
It’s important to note that you can only collect one Iris of Grace item. You can still use it for both quest chains. As a result, you don’t have to worry about which quest chain you complete first, as you still have the option to transfer the Iris of Grace to a second character once you get there.
Here’s what you can get from each character depending on which Iris you give them:
- Fire Knight Quilain: Iris of Mercy (Ashes of Fire Knight Quilain), Iris of Darkness (Great Sword of Quilain);
- Swordswoman of the Night Yolan: Iris of Grace (Ashes of the Swordswoman of the Night Yolan (with the possibility of later turning it into Ashes of the Spirits of Yolan and Anna)), Iris of Darkness (Sword of the Night).
The most important thing here is to choose the desired reward of each character, since you can only give them the Iris once. It is impossible to get both rewards at once here, so choose wisely!
