Elden Ring - There's always more 

Someone asked me about the Elden Beast's strange forest, so it seemed like a decent video idea. Even if there's not much in the way of discrete answers, it's interesting to note the somewhat common visuals appearing across multiple games now.

I think miyazaki just really really likes the idea of a ton of pillars/trees in the distance, similarly to how he enjoys poison swamps

It's interesting how all of the other trunks are perfected in comparison to the actual erdtree. The one we have is broken, crooked, and dropping leaves. That makes me think this isn't representing other player's worlds , but the influence of the Greater Will

beksinski my beloved

Tarnished, arise ye, zullie has come forth with a new blessing. Hear thee words of wisdom.

I always interpreted it as the meteor that brought the Elden Beast/Elden Ring being just one of many across the universe, with the Greater Will trying to use Erdtrees to influence many different planets.

Yup. By the way, congratulations on 700K subscribers, Zullie!!!

the distant giant tree motif is one of my favorite aspects of Miyazaki's games. Just really goes a long way to show how even though you feel like what you're doing in game is of massive importance, the world is so much bigger than we could ever possibly imagine.

I think the idea of the Elden Beast having influence over otherworlds is super interesting, because that means... how big is the universe in Elden Ring itself? Which direction could the series go if they continue it? What strange places and odd worlds are hidden just beyond our sight? I think it's awesome because despite the story of Elden Ring feeling like such a grand huge adventure of glory, by the end we really do feel like just a small part of something waaaaay bigger that we don't understand yet. In otherwords: "Our eyes are yet to open..."

This may be simply my impression, but when I first fought the Elden Beast I was under the impression that it was the spirit of the Erdtree. So when the scenery opened up and there appeared to be a seemingly limitless number of Erdtrees, I took it to mean that the Elden Beast was just one of endless legions that the Greater Will could send. Just one, and we called it a god.

i read somewhere that the main inspiration for this imagery in DS1 with Ash Lake and archtrees was Nausicaa by Hayao Miyazaki !

I hope you see this: The lake that is in the underground beyond the remains of the ancestral spirit where you find a skull has a very interesting view... It's under the ocean, but the water is fully still, meaning the water does not go fully between the two layers (It'd be flowing if the ocean was draining into the underground) so why is that water there?

1:38 there's a lot of consistent imagery in souls games (dragons=immortal, human immortality bad, manus type bosses) but I never noticed the massive pillars until this video. They're everywhere but Sekiro, unless I'm forgetting something there

The recurring theme i see with these pillars across all souls games is the idea of such structures holding the known world up, or to keep a lower world away as some sort of dimensional frontier.

The recurring trees and pillars may also be drawing from the scenery in Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind. The area beneath the Toxic Jungle has pillar-like trees that are very similar to the ones in Ash Lake, which is located beneath Blighttown's own poison swamp. Additionally, Caelid seems like it may have been partially inspired by the Toxic Jungle itself!

The Great Pillars imagery has always been a favorite staple of FromSoft games, it just so epic and awe-inspiring

I like the idea that the Greater Will is not just in the Lands Between, but also has roots (both figuratively and literally) in other lands - which may be why Marika sent Godfrey and the Tarnished far away, not just for a honeymoon with Radagon, but also to spread the Greater Will's influence.

Has anyone ever talked about how you see the same imagery of the Elden Beast's arena in several other places, mainly boss battles? - The Elden Beast in the "center" of the arena, sorounded by the trees or pillars going up into the sky/stars -Ryakard's boss room with him and the snake in the middle and several pillars going up into the ceiling of the room -Placidusax's arena also has him in the center sorrounded by stone pillars -The moonlight altar in Ranni's quest, once you reach the place the first thing you see is some pillars/beams of light reaching from the ground up into the sky, the moon is sorounded by these pillars just like in the other examples

I joked with buddies for years that all the games are connected through the trees . I'm glad you brought this up! Also thanks for years of great videos !

i just always assumed the tree trunks in the hunters workshop was an explanation of why you can see other player hunters and summon npc helpers. its all one big overlaid multiworld.

It's a take on the axis mundi or world tree concept common to many real world mythologies. Some object, a tree, a spear, a mountain is conceptualized as a connection between the world of the mundane and the world of the divine. Since these games are dealing in parallel worlds, they tend to have multiple axis mundi. I tend to think that they aren't representative of the many worlds of the players though. I think they're more about the many "worlds" that inspired the games in the first place. A symbolic connection being transformed into a figurative one. As though the world of Berserk and the TTRPGs Miyazaki used as inspiration are actually accessible in his games.

One of my favorite aspects of FromSoft's storytelling is easily represented in these giant trees/pillars than exist across their games. From the Archtrees in DS1, to the mysterious pillars in BB and now the Erdtrees in ER, we see these impossibly enormous objects throughout these games and we have not even begun to understand them fully. To even think about the power behind what these things are and what they do in the worlds they belong in is far removed from what we can even comprehend, let alone properly study. It makes you feel that much smaller and inconsequential in these worlds that such universal forces exist to create these things or places at all. It's humbling and awe-inspiring at the same time and it's why I love these games and their worlds.

I cannot believe you drew the comparison to Zdzisław Beksiński in this video and I love you for calling that to my attention. I've always been a great fan of his but never saw the similarities before now. As for the theories, I like to believe the idea that the other trees represent other worlds of other players, or universes. Thanks for that, too. Love your work as always.

It's Miyazaki's subtle way to tell us "protect the trees, they are our world". 🌲🌳

This is the thing that first struck me when i got to the Elden Beast and saw all those other Erdtrees in the distance. The Lands Between are not the only world the Greater Will has been to, and almost certainly not the first. Really hammers home how, despite everything we've been through and all history of the Elden Ring here, its all so miniscule compared to the GW and its endeavors. Cosmic horror indeed.

I always interpreted the trunk in the elden beast boss fight as show the presence of the greater will on other planets since the outer gods are references to Lovecraft and many of his gods were actually alien on origin.

The imagery of the spires or columns is also reminiscent of Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaa and the crystalline caverns beneath the toxic jungle.

Since every single one of these games has online co-op / PvP and the players you interact with are clearly separated from your world i see it as an artistic representation of all those who played alongside you whether you played with them or not. Pretty beautiful in a way

I always looked at the Elden Beast's trees as representations of other Erdtrees on other worlds that the Greater Will seeded with life, just like it did in the Lands Between. That would kinda explain why it is left the TLB and not that invested in it's future. Also, in the Frenzied Flame ending Melina states that she is going to hunt down the Tarnished wherever they may go, whic implies that the Lord of Frenzird Flame still has a purpose, and that purpose is maybe to destroy other Elden Rings that exists on other worlds.

This concept might have also been inspired by Nausicaä, the first studio Ghibli film (well technically it was before Ghibli was founded). In the movie there was also a underground forest with massive trees that made up the foundation of the world. It's pretty likely that Miyazaki was inspired by Miyazaki on this theme or visual concept, given how well known the movie us and that there is a Manga series as I recently found out.

I like that shot of the Tarnished holding the torch, with their reflection in the water.

I think theres a lot more precidence to the Erdtree we see being an illusion and the rot tree in the DLC is bearing it down. When we fight the Erdbeast, every Erdtree in the background is standing upright. Implying this is how theyre supposed to stand Whereas ours is leaning or rather the tree isnt an illusion, but whatever is pulling it down is being hidden from sight

I always assumed the arena was like the second Renala phase, an illusion to psyche you out. The moon there looms large as if to say "I have the power here", just like the many Erdtrees. It's meant to make you feel like you're at a disadvantage. Then you win the fight and it all disappears.

Another place in ER with similar imagery is located in the Siofra River-area, at the western* edge of the area with Ancestral followers. Not only is the whole area, both the higher and lower elevations, full of these trunks that look like petrified trees, they stretch out across the underground lake at the eastern edge, creating this strange parallel to the view in the Elden Beast's room. I think it could be interpreted in all sorts of ways, like representing a past version of Order.

Ooh, I'm rather tickled by the idea that my favorite series may have some inspiration from my favorite picture by my favorite artist. I once wrote a short story about that same Zdzisław Beksiński painting! It's very evocative. Er, the painting not my story :p

Didn't expect Beksinski to make it into a video about dark souls but then again his artwork has always reminded me of the feelings I get when playing souls games 👀

From games are absolute art pieces.

I’d like to throw out that there are also many spiritual Sakura Trees seen in the background when you face the Enteral Dragon in Sekiro. Could be just similar fromsoft imagery, or it could be a link between the games.

I always loved the unspoken implications of this motif in each of the games. Makes my imagination ignite!

The strange orange mist in one particular area was always quite ominous to me, it even has a fog wall that blocks you from geting too close to it during the Elden Beast fight

I like the idea of the FromSoftware Multiverse being represented by infinite pillars/trees. Has an almost fairy tale like aesthetic to it.

The Ash Lake scenery reminds me of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. In that story, there are also ancient trees far under the earth, long turned to crystal, which uphold the lands above.

in my head the elden beast arena is physically on top of the erdtrees canopy. the erdtree pillars aren't entirely real, but meta-psychical manifestations of pillars holding up the sky (space, not like, the clouds), like the archtrees hold up the world in ds1.

I truly appreciate the time you put into your content. I don’t have time to sink into games like I used to, and your super informative and beautifully edited videos always bring me right back into the fantastic worlds we love to play in. THANK YOU!

Your cinematography is so good. I love the beatiful shots you create for your vids ^.^

Cannot wait for Shadow of the Erdtree.

Shots like the one at 2:16 are awesome. I've been watching your channel for a while and seeing how you gradually get creative with your visuals using the game engine is incredibly cool. Great work!

Thanks for making such awesome and insightful soulsbourne videos - it’s such a nice oasis from reality when one of your vids pop up 😊

I always took the Erdtrees in Elden beast’s arena to be an indication that the greater will is doing the same all over the world, across the universe. It always gave me this vibe of almost colonialism.

I think partially, Miyazaki was inspired by Miyazaki. Specifically Hayao Miyazaki. The parallels in Dark Souls 1 of the Ash Lake being beneath the poison swamp at the bottom of Blight Town struck me as near direct lifting from Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. For those who don't know, in the manga and film, the world is being slowly consumed by a Toxic Jungle/Swamp, which feels like something Hidetaka would love. Part way into the story, Nausicaa and her soon to be ally Asbel fall to the floor of the Toxic Jungle, and sink through a sandpit. Underneath they see a wide area filled with fresh water and air, with sand bars they can walk on, while long dead petrified trees hold up the world above. It looks remarkably like Ash Lake. I also feel it fits with the themes of Dark Souls. From knowledge Nausicaa learned from growing the Toxic Plants safely, she realised the entire worlds soil is polluted, and suggests that the Toxic Jungle is only toxic due to this pollution and is actually cleaning up the toxins. I feel the idea of the Toxic Jungle being part of this cycle of destroying the old world to give birth to a new one fits remarkably well (especially if you look at the manga which has a more reaching story than the film) with Dark Souls plots around the Age of Dark, with the old world needing to die for a new one to take it's place.

I love you forever for bringing up Beksinski, my absolute favorite artist.

It's crazy how good the twilight princess soundtrack goes with elden ring/from soft games. The vibe felt right

Zullie the goat

I like to think those pillars/trees represent other lands or even worlds where to golden order has made itself know and even has made other erdtrees Edit: just watched the video and now realized that i took the idea from this but I posted this before I swear

I'm so happy you talked about this Zullie, it's been on my mind for ages. Also, Beksinzki is one of my favorite artists ever and it's cool to see that connection

Your videos are amazing and you always lead towards such amazing things. Im so happy you showed me Zdzisław Beksiński

I've always found it remniniscent of the Underground Forest in Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Nokstella and the other sunken cities also have a very similar aesthetic to that of Elden Beast arena. The giant collums of the ancient kingdoms ruins and the false night skies the cities have. Kinda surprised you didn't mention it yourself Zullie. Congratulations on all the subs btw.

I’ve been saying this for agesssss, I’m glad it’s getting some recognition, amazing work! Congrats on 700k!🥳

Thank you for all your explorations!

The interpretation I took from seeing the multiple Erdtrees was that the Greater Will is a sort of cosmic parasite, and the Erdtrees are how it literally "takes root" in different worlds/universes.

This off topic from Fromsoft games, but an interesting note for Tears of the Kingdom is that the normal aboveground is held up seemingly by large roots that span the Depths. A cool theory I found was that after Hyrule was flooded (Windwaker timeline) the depths was the bottom of the Great Ocean, and the Great Deku tree with the koroks planted new forests across the isles. Which interconnected and formed the new hyrule. Sorry was off topic but found it similar and neat!

Trees seem to represent universes or timelines, with many branches but singular pillars. Firelink Shrine in Dark Souls is denoted with a singular tree near the bonfire, possibly representing the player who dies many times (the branches) but still is one person. Similarly, the entirety of lordran seems held up by a single archtree. We also can see the First Flame began in the depths of an archtree, possibly representing the beginning of time. One important thing to note is the original Kiln of the First Flame in Dark Souls, which is held on a giant archtree but whose entire top has been replaced by the kiln, the archtree now reduced to a hollowed trunk. This possibly represents the end of time/possibility for a world, and does function as the actual end of the game.

I was not expecting the mention of Zdzislaw Beksinski, but I'm very glad it was brought up. I always thought of that specific painting when viewing the distant pillar imagery in these games. The man's art lives rent-free in my head, and it's my favorite thing to draw comparisons to, for a bit of fun. I also recommended looking further into Beksinski if you really enjoy strange, existential, bleak, and even sometimes horrific art. The man was quite the artist, among many art forms, though I think some didn't work as well as others did.

Pretty sure Miyazaki got the idea for this type of visual from Nausicaa of the valley of the wind aswell!

Nice catch with the painting, I wonder. How did you hear of it?

I always interpreted the tree pillars recurring as an idea that each tree is a different Soulsborne world, so that its universe is splintered, yet connected. You can see the other worlds, aknowledge their presence and understand how insignifact your entire quest is in the vastness of the universe. I also like the idea that only those who go beyond the madness and futility get to actually see the other trees, as they are hidden from most who will give up or die before they unveil the true nature of their cracked world-box. Also, yes, the Beksiński bit is very true, he was the first thing that came to mind the second I exited that damn Selia Tunnel in Caelid. He seems to be getting more and more recognition lately and rightfully so. His paintings are more twisted than the most poisonous of Miyazaki's swamps. And just like him he left the interpretation to the viewer. I also thought those crescent astrolabes were another reference, as one my absolute favourite paintings by him is that big lonely tree with a sharp gory crescent in the foreground. One of the best artists there were.

When I saw the trees in Ash Lake I always thought of the scene under the swamp in Nausica and The Valley of The Wind

I always thought of Nausicaa of the valley of the wind, they have a similar concept in that movie where the world is poisoned and there are massive tree looking pillars draining the poison from the world Im bad at explaining things, go watch the movie, it'll make more sense

Bringing my favorite painter into this? Hell yeah! I've seen his work several times in museums + I have to reproduction painting on my wall.

Wow, that painting was quite a haunting note to end the video on! Love it

Beksiński mentioned, I've been summoned. I was actually in Sanok at a special exhibition, since I live just next town over. It was an exhibition where we'd have VR headsets and be shown to 3D versions of his paintings. It was stunning to see those hellish landscapes brought to life and all around me

The Greater Will is the creator God, so of course has influence beyond the Lands Between

I remember when you were about 10k subscribers, oh how far you’ve come!

Another amazing video. Always a fun and intriguing watch.

Really glad to see a video covering this recurring imagery. I've seen this in several FromSoft games and my headcanon has always been these are representations of other worlds. It was a truly mind-blowing experience seeing it for the first time at Ash Lake, like I had gained some understanding of the impossible or discovered a hidden truth of the world. There, at the base of our own Archtree, I couldn't help but think there must be worlds beyond our own.

Just what I wanted before going to sleep. A video that makes my mind wander around and wonder about the multiple pillars in the Souls series and their possible implications. Very grateful for your thoughts!

Makes me think of the visual form "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind". There is a scene where multiple trunks exist below the toxic forest, slowly cleaning it and suporting it.

I'm dropping in to appreciate the shot at 2:18 as it's brilliant. Great work as always!

We all appreciate your hard work looking into these things Zulie. But please remember not to burn yourself out. You had to take a decently long break a while back so please remember to take it easy between uploads. We'll be patient.

Fun video. I do like the little touches that bind the FromSoft games together. I've been playing Evergrace and it's kinda crazy how much of it already feels like a later FromSoft title, from mood, to oblique mechanics, to strange NPCs.

When I first saw the Elden Beast arena I thought that the trees in the background are other Erdtrees on different planets or something that the Greater Will occupies. It makes the scale and the vastness of the Outer Gods seem that much more immense and hard to imagine.

So cool that you include bekinskys art. I'd never seen that piece before!

I enjoy your storytelling in these videos.

Thanks for the *insight* Zullie. Mind-blowing theories.

the relation to beksinski makes me so happy, hes been a favorite for a long time. makes me sad he never got to see how much people truly loved his works

Finally someone noticed thank you!!! Also in the starting location of the ds2 there are those trees. Moreover maybe there is a connection with 3 final bosses- elden beast, moon presence and the old one as they look alike and have pretty the same role in the plot, but is more conspiracy. Anyway thank you for the video and for showing this miadzakis hidden desire to put pillars and trees just like swamps.

of the many confirmed and possible influences on Fromsoft, beksinski is a new one to me! i've seen his work many times in the past, it's wonderful to imagine it included in the vocabulary of these games i love. i must admit, this repeated pillar image in FS games is really provocative and intriguing. also, amazing mirror shot at 2:15, adds a lot to that part of the video.

One thing this imagery has always called to mind for me is aspen clusters, groups of trees and in some cases massive stretches of forest that appear to all be individual trees - but are all actually the same organism linked together underground. The idea of parallel worlds, linking together player's alternate realities (and maybe even the universes of the other games) seems like it would fit with that, though it may not be intentional.

Thank you for mentioning Beksinski. I feel like in the common references to inspirations, he is often left unmentioned.

I think miyazaki just really really likes the piss filter so much that he put a huge golden tree at the middle of the map

Elden Ring was my first FromSoft game where I actively made sure to read every item description and such the moment I got them. It was also the first time I bothered to do every NPC questline (that I found, anyway) instead of abandoning some of them for later playthroughs. As such, I finished Elden Ring with a very solid understanding of what was going on in its universe, and my immediate and only interpretation of the Elden Beast's arena is that the trees represent the Erdtrees from other planets under the Greater Will's control. And the water you walk combined with the Elden Beast's swimming ability are an evocative way of making the player feel like they're floating in the void of the cosmos. With the Elden Beast swimming and jumping out of it like a whale.

I had never seen anything by Beksinski before, and I can immediately see why you drew that parallel. I would love to watch Zullie-style vids - with the environmental, slow-moving panning shots, and calm music, and no speaking or game sfx - about art history! If you ever wanted to branch out into that. I think your style fits really well for that!

My impression was always that just as the outer gods compete for influence in the Lands Between, with the Greater Will having the most influence and control in the Lands Between, so to do they compete for influence in other worlds, other places that they cannot directly reach. The Erdtree is the great symbol of the Greater Will's presence and influence in the Lands Between, and the sea of stars where the Elden Beast resides is full of the trunks of other Erdtrees which have colonized other lands. The Elden Beast, being the embodiment of the Greater Will in the physical world, could hypothetically be visited by entering any Erdtree. Of course, this is just what I think of it.

Wow, that's so interesting! Great video!

I like the idea that this isn't the only Erdtree the Greater Will has, perhaps those trees in the arena are on different planets.

I always thought we were getting a glimpse at some sort of 'Grand Design' were we can see all the other Erd Trees that the Greater Will has established across the different lands, not just ours

Zullie I hope everything is going ok for you in your personal life. Thank you for the video as always!

Beksinski's life and death were just as wild as his artwork. What a true legend and raw inspiration he was, no other artist quite like him.

To me, the trees in the arena represent the "branches" of the Greater Will's galactic dominion, all the other worlds it seeded surrounding the dimensional hub the Elden Beast fight takes places it. It suits well with the idea that Ash Lake represents the imagery of Yggdrasil, with each tree truck leading to a different world. Miyazaki might really like that particular idea since each game since has it's own version of it representing in some way a dimensional branch. (the pillars were also in Things Betwixt)