After defeating Rennala Queen of the Full Moon in Elden Ring, you’ll gain access to character respecs. You’ll probably go ahead and interact with the chest behind her and, oh, it’s locked. Well, there’s a way to open it much later in the game, but it’s going to be a doozy. Here’s our Elden Ring guide to help you open Rennala’s treasure chest in the Grand Library of Raya Lucaria by fighting the Baleful Shadows.
Note: For more information, check out our Elden Ring guides and features hub.
Elden Ring guide – How to open Rennala’s chest in Raya Lucaria
If you’ve been following our series of guides, you’ll know that there are a lot of secret areas in this game, places which aren’t normally visited during the course of the campaign. If you truly wish to open Rennala’s chest in Elden Ring, here’s the gist:
- Make sure that you’ve cleared Caria Manor so you can do Witch Ranni’s personal quest.
- You’ll have to defeat Starscourge Radahn to gain access to Nokron Eternal City. Also, a key item called the Black Knifeprint from Black Knife Catacombs might be needed. Although none of the NPCs commented about it, I still had it in my inventory.
- Assuming you’re already serving Witch Ranni/doing her quest, make your way to the end of Night’s Sacred Grounds in Nokron Eternal City to obtain the Fingerslaying Blade.
- Return this to Ranni so you can invert Carian Study Hall. This allows you to pick up the Cursemask of Death at the top of the Divine Tower of Raya Lucaria.
- Go back to Ranni’s Rise, then to Renna’s Rise, where you’ll see a teleporter that takes you to Nokstella Eternal City.
Nokstella Eternal City is a massive area, equal to most other Legacy Dungeons in the game. The item that you’re looking for, though, is right at the beginning after you get teleported. It’s called the Miniature Ranni doll.
When you rest at a Site of Grace, you’ll notice another option: Talk to Miniature Ranni. If you do this the first couple of times, nothing would happen.
However, if you keep selecting the option, Ranni will speak to you through the doll (creepy). She then gives you another task to slay the Baleful Shadows.
To find the Baleful Shadows in Elden Ring, proceed ahead through Nokstella Eternal City:
- The upper path has more enemies, but also lots of nifty rewards.
- The lower path has you cutting through a creek past dozens of mobs.
Both paths are interconnected, but it’s faster to just go through the lower area. You’ll eventually see a building to your left, with an elevator that takes you to the Nokstella Waterfall Basin Site of Grace.
Rest up and get past the narrow tunnel. It has several Tadholes (they’re tadpoles, but they’re also a-holes). When you reach the next ruins with red water, you’ll see the Baleful Shadows. This enemy has attacks that are easily telegraphed. However, they’ll also cause Balefire (I thought it’s a nifty term for a status effect) even when blocked.
Anyway, dodge-roll and take swipes at it when you can. Once it dies, you’ll receive the Discarded Palace Key.
Note: If you haven’t spoken to the Miniature Ranni Doll, then the Baleful Shadows won’t appear.
Now, you’re ready to open Rennala’s chest in Elden Ring. Fast travel back to her chambers and open it to acquire… the Dark Moon Ring.
Sadly, you can’t equip it since it’s a key item. But, you’ll be able to use it soon enough. Remember that spot where you fought the Baleful Shadows? Well, if you go further ahead, there’s a lift that takes you to another secret area called the Lake of Rot. From there, you’ll battle a Great Foe, which leads to, you guessed it, another secret area (it’s where the Dark Moon Ring will be used).
Elden Ring is available via Steam. For more information, check out our guides and features hub.
