Those exploring Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree DLC will find the challenges in the Land of Shadow to be more difficult than those in the base game. Even if players have reached the minimum required level of 150 and are equipped with the best weapons and gear, these upgrades will mean little if they don’t collect enough Scadutree Shards and Revered Spirit Ashes. These two items drastically increase damage dealt and reduce damage taken, to the point that without them players will struggle to complete Shadow of the Erdtree.
What do Scadutree Shards and Revered Spiritual Ashes do?
As mentioned above, Scadutree Shards and Revered Spirit Ashes affect the offense and defense of different aspects of the player character. Scadutree Shards increase the damage dealt by the Tarnished and reduce the damage they take from enemies. Revered Spirit Ashes, on the other hand, increase the offense and defense of Torrent and all Spirit Ashes. While Scadutree Shards are the most important upgrade material, players should not underestimate the benefits that Revered Spirit Ashes provide. To use them, all players need to do is rest at a Place of Grace and choose the "Shadow Realm Blessing" tab.
It should be noted that the passive effects of Scadutree Fragments and Venered Spirit Ashes only work in the Lands of Shadows. They have no impact in the Lands Between, where the main game takes place.
What impact do Scadutree Shards and Ashes of Revered Spirits have?
50 Shards are required to fully upgrade Scadutree's Shard Blessing, while 25 Ashes are required to fully upgrade Revered Spirit's Ash Blessing. At the maximum level of 20, a Scadutree Shard Blessing will increase the damage dealt by the player by 2.05 times and negate the damage taken by 0.487 times. A level 10 Revered Spiritual Ash Blessing will increase the damage dealt by summoned Spiritual Ashes by 1,750 times and decrease the damage taken by 0.625 times for both Torrent and Summoning.
Although the numbers seem small, any form of damage increase or negation is invaluable in Shadow of the Erdtree. The enemies in this DLC are relentless and many of them can kill a player with just a couple of attacks. That being said, players should prioritize obtaining as many Scadutree Shards and Ashes of Revered Spirits as possible.
The importance of the Scadutree Shards and the Ashes of Revered Spirits contributes to the difficulty of The Erdtree's Shadow.
The locations of Scadutree Shards and Ashes of Revered Spirits vary. Some of these priceless items are found in the open world. Others are held or protected by tough enemies. Without proper guidance, players will find themselves searching everywhere for these items just so they can be on equal footing with enemies.
This is one of the reasons why many players find Shadow of the Erdtree so difficult. By making Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ashes essential, the DLC appears to direct players to explore certain parts of the DLC in order. By comparison, Elden Ring's base game combined exploration and player freedom in such a way that players could do things in any order they wanted and still progress (i.e. earn enough Runes to level up). This freedom seems to be reduced somewhat in the DLC, as not having enough Scadutree Shards and Revered Spirit Ashes can create barriers that are difficult to overcome. Efforts have been made to increase the immediate impact of these items (patch 1.12.2 increased the attack and damage denial during the first half and the final level of the maximum amount of both boons), but it remains to be seen if this is enough to balance the DLC. That said, players can still interact with Shadow of the Erdtree however they want, but if they want less resistance to clearing the DLC, seeking out these upgrades and upgrading their characters is a prerequisite.
