Elden Ring's lore finds much of its origins in Irish myth and culture. Many open world titles based in medieval fantasy settings tend to find more inspiration in English or Norse mythology. But Elden Ring instead looks to the Emerald Isle's folklore, which teems with both absurdist stories about men suddenly turning into fish and epic poems following heroic knights.

The Irish influence on Elden Ring makes sense when considering the country's and game's pasts. Players enter the Lands Between at a time that feels relatively early in its history: Marika is only the first goddess to be consort to an Elden Lord, after all. However, players soon find that dragons and giants once filled the region while a floating temple marked Elden Ring's sky, all before humans ever lived there. In a similar way, Ireland has a written history that extends much further back than other European countries, but this was originally buried due to Catholic missionaries reconfiguring Irish myth to fit into the Christian faith (e.g., the story of the Milesians being promised Ireland by Moses). The expansive histories of both Ireland and the Lands Between make them excellent subjects to study on how cultures of the distant past - even if buried - influence the present.

Related: You Haven't Found Everything In Elden Ring Yet

Perhaps as a consequence of their similar histories, Irish myth and Elden Ring's lore resemble each other. As Inverse has found, specific characters and events mirror the stories of Ireland's first settlers and later its kingdoms. The inhabitants of the Lands Between thus may find their ancestral roots not in the Siofra River like Elden Ring makes its players believe but in the Emerald Isle instead.

Elemer Of The Briar Is Elden Ring's Red Branch Knight

Elden Ring How To Find and Defeat Elemer Of The Briar

Elemer of the Briar - the boss of the Shaded Castle - bears a considerable resemblance to the Red Branch Knights of Irish mythology. These warriors were loyal to the kingdom of Ulster, where two of Ireland's most famous heroes Connor Mac Nessa and Cuchulain served as king and knight, respectively. The clearest reference to the Red Branch Knights in Elemer's design are the red briars lining his (and his fellow Bell Bearing Hunters') armor and shield. These items also indicate that Elemer comes from a distant land known as Eochaid. Considering that the name Eochaid is one of the most frequently seen among the ancient kings of Ireland and that the high king during the time of Cuchulain was also named Eochaid, it is likely that Elden Ring's Bell Bearing Hunters' homeland is a reference to Ireland during the Ulster Cycle.

Moreover, Elemer seems to take inspiration directly from Cuchulain himself. Cuchulain is an Achilles-like figure in Irish myth, as he is known as the country's fiercest fighter who was blessed by a goddess of war. He is perhaps best known for his feats in the epic poem the Táin Bó Cúailnge (The Cattle Raid of Cooley), in which he held off four-fifths of Ireland's armies. But his successes would come back to bite him, as one of the Druids he killed during the cattle raid had sextuplets who swore to avenge their father. Elemer of Elden Ring's story slightly mirrors Cuchulain's in that he held off the entire House of Marais when he was sent to the Shaded Castle for execution, capturing the essence of Cuchulain's glory in the Cattle Raid by winning a fight while being outnumbered. Cuchulain also slew three of the sextuplets during his own execution, something Elemer appears to have done himself as the only other Marais family member near the Shaded Castle is Maleigh, though his item description hints he has many siblings.

Finally, Elemer's sword is reminiscent of Cuchulain's famed Cruaidín Catutchenn (Hard-Headed Steeling). According to Irish Myths, the Hard-Headed Steeling could cut a person's head off without touching them and would shine like a candle at night. This sounds very close to Elemer's own blade, the Marais Executioner's Sword, which glows red and can strike people without its master holding it. And while the sword is titled after Elden Ring's Marais executioner, the Ash of War that gives it its Irish qualities - named "Eochaid's Dancing Blade" - is distinctly Eochaidian in origin.

Elden Ring's Irish Connections - Giants Are Fomorians

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In what writer Seumas MacManus called Ireland's "First Colonizations" in his book The Tale of the Irish Race, the story of the Emerald Isle's earliest people center around the Tuatha De Danann - magical people - and the Fomorians - giant sea creatures. Fans like Reddit user BrisketSpread1 have found a connection between Marika, the demigods, and the Tuatha De Danann, but there is also a strong connection between the Fomorians and the Fire Giants in Elden Ring. Just as the Tuatha De Danann were rivals and executioners of the evil Fomorians, so too did Queen Marika send Godfrey to kill the Giants.

Related: Elden Ring: Every Optional Boss In The Mountaintops Of The Giants

But what is more compelling is the connection between the former leader of Elden Ring's Fire Giants and the leader of the Fomorians, Balor. Known as a personification of the sun, Balor had one large eye that would wreak havoc upon opening. The eye had seven coverings he could remove one by one, and once the last was removed, the eye would emit a devastating fire. The Fire Giants once worshipped such a deity. The description of the One-Eyed Shield explains it depicts "a malformed one-eyed god" that was "Once worshipped by the giants," but "is believed to have been slain by Queen Marika." However, the second phase of the Fire Giant's boss fight, where the eye of this one-eyed god opens on his chest, reveals that this god is still alive. That the Giants were not only killed by Elden Ring's version of the Tuatha De Danann but also worshipped a deity influenced by Balor shows that the former foes of Marika find their mythic roots in the Fomorians.

The Tarnished Are Elden Ring's Milesians

Why Elden Rings Tarnished Were Exiled

The Tarnished of Elden Ring share a similar story with the Milesians of Irish history. The Milesians were the ancestors of Celtic culture in Ireland. They were known as Gaels because of their ancient ancestor Gaodhal Glas, who was believed to be healed of a snakebite by the Biblical Moses who told him of a snake-less island in the West. The Milesians were forced to wander Europe for a time before landing in Spain, from which they saw Ireland. Believing this western island to be the land promised by Moses, they traveled to it and claimed it from the Tuatha De Danann, driving them underground.

The story of the Tarnished mirrors that of the Milesians. After losing Grace, they followed Elden Ring's first Tarnished Godfrey from the Lands Between across the mists to the Badlands in a wandering style similar to the Milesians. But a few Tarnished are still touched by Grace like the protagonist and Fia, encouraging them to return to the Lands Between to fulfill the destiny of the Elden Ring and slay the demigods. This reflects the Milesians own conquering of Tuatha De Danann, who too were believed to be descendants of the goddess Dana and thus were demigods in their own right.

The extent to which Irish mythology permeates Elden Ring goes beyond the examples mentioned above. Celtic design patterns, Malenia's prosthetic arm, and much more find their origins in Irish folklore. Embracing these stories alongside other cultures' myths has created a lush, multicultural tapestry for Elden Ring's lore.

Next: Elden Ring: The Greater Will Could Come To The Lands Between As DLC

Sources: Inverse, Reddit/BrisketSpread1, Irish Myths