In addition to its substantial main quest, the NPCs of Elden Ring come with their own sidequests for the player. The lucid inhabitants of the Lands Between each have their own problems, goals, and agendas — each of require help from the player Tarnished.
These sidequests, as with many in FromSoftware games, are convoluted and lack signposting. In stead, they rely on the player picking up on context clues, listening intently to NPC dialogue, or lucking into the next step. Beyond being complex, however, some are flat-out difficult, requiring the player to travel to different areas and battle vicious foes.
5 Patches Has One Moderately-Difficult Task After Another
No individual step in the sidequest Patches the Untethered is outrageously difficult or unfair, but his quest consists of a number of steps — none of which are particularly easy. As such, players who journey through the sidequest may feel like it's provided a robust but fair challenge by the end.
After sparing Patches in Limgrave, the player must travel West from the Altus Plateau and head to the optional Volcano Manor. Even getting here can be a challenge, as the foes in Mt. Gelmir are some of the game's more difficult. From there, players must complete the Volcano Manor questline, consisting of several moderately-challenging fights before the robust difficulty spike against Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy.
Patches' questline still isn't done, however. He can be found in the Shaded Castle, one of the game's smaller Legacy Dungeons. Despite its size, the dungeon presents challenges due to its poison lake, and difficult enemies that fill it — including a dreaded Cleanrot Knight. As such, Patches' sidequest lacks easy steps, forcing the player to fight the entire way through.
4 Latenna's Sidequest Is A Simple Walk Through The Game's Hardest Areas
On the surface, Latenna has one of the simplest sidequests in the game. She simply wants to reach the Haligtree — the fabled paradise for everything not welcome in the Lands Between. However, the location of the Haligtree is one of the game's deepest secrets, and even for a player who knows the route, it is anything but easy.
For one, it requires playing through most of the game, reaching the late-game Mountaintops of the Giants. The player then has to explore those despite their fearsome enemies, until they find Castle Sol. This is a challenging dungeon, and they have to fight their way to Commander Niall, one of the game's more infamous bosses.
Even after Niall is defeated, the player's quest isn't over. They must use the Secret Haligtree Medallion they gain after killing Niall to reach the Consecrated Snowfield (one of the game's hardest areas) and battle their way through that to the endpoint for Latenna's quest.
3 Fia's Quest Sends The Player Through Grueling Areas
The questline of Deathbed Companion Fia is interesting because its climactic boss fights aren't amongst Elden Ring's hardest moments. The questline is lengthy and involved, forcing the player to explore the Underground of the Lands Between at great length. This culminates in battles against Fia's Champions and the Lichdragon Fortissax.
Neither of these fights are challenging, with the Champions being simple Invader-style enemies. The challenge in Fortissax's battle comes primarily from unwieldy camera rather than the boss, particularly for more ranged characters.
However, the areas prior to that are challenging. The quest involves traveling through areas like the Siofra Aqueduct and defeating its Valiant Gargoyle bosses. In its hardest moments, however, the player must complete the Carian Study Hall at least once to acquire the Cursemark of Death in Liurnia's Divine Tower — fighting past the utterly-despised Preceptor Miriam NPC enemy who can one-shot most players.
2 Ranni's Questline Has Challenge After Challenge
Notorious as one of the most convoluted sidequests in the game, Ranni the Witch's side quest spans much of the game and is vital to one of the game's endings. Bringing in the Age of the Stars, however, is a challenge that will press a great many players, forcing them through some of the game's toughest areas.
The Underground areas are some of Elden Ring's more challenging, and Ranni's quest requires a reasonable exploration of the Eternal Cities and the Ainsel River. These are manageable challenges — despite the fight against Astel, Naturalborn of the Void — but two other locations the player needs to explore spike in difficulty.
Ranni's quest forces the player to fight or bypass Preceptor Mirian in the Carian Study Hall. Later the player must navigate the Lake of Rot to find the Grand Cloister. The Lake is one of the game's most-hated areas, an entire region dedicated to the vicious Scarlet Rot status effect. Navigating it is one of Elden Ring's biggest challenges.
1 Millicent's Full Questline Requires Defeating The Game's Hardest Boss
Millicent is an NPC with deep ties to Malenia, Blade of Miquella, the game's hardest and most infamous boss. In order to fully complete the quest and earn its final reward, the player must engage in battle with that boss and come out on top — a challenge that's become legendary in a short time.
Prior to this, Millicent's quest has its challenges, as the player must follow Millicent throughout the world and fight through challenging areas. Players must conquer the Shaded Castle to retrieve Millicent a prosthetic, and they need to fight to the Consecrated Snowfield and meet her at the Haligtree.
After Millicent's death, however, the player can only receive the full reward of Miquella's Needle by killing Malenia. Fortunately, this item is only required to undo one of the game's endings, so some players can do without, but it's still considered a part of the character's questline.