The Lands Between in Elden Ring is much older than previously speculated, as confirmed by author George R.R. Martin. FromSoftware collaborated with Martin to bring the world of Elden Ring to life, which entailed writing the history of the Lands Between and its inhabitants. The little description and lore found in-game aren’t clear on just how long ago the most significant events took place. However, Martin detailed his part of the collaboration and gave some insight into how long ago the titular Elden Ring was shattered.
In an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Martin stated that FromSoftware approached him years ago to do world-building for Elden Ring. The developer made it clear that the game would take place in the universe’s present, while the work Martin would do takes place 5,000 years beforehand. This detail helps put into perspective the scale of Elden Ring’s timeline and lore, as well as the severity of the events that sent the Lands Between into chaos.
Elden Ring Timeline: The Lands Between Have Been Broken For A Long Time
Martin’s work for Elden Ring constituted crafting the central characters and their conflicts with one another, as well as the powers they bear. He clarified that he wrote the events responsible for messing up the present Lands Between. From this, it can be deduced that Martin’s history culminated in Queen Marika breaking the titular Elden Ring and extending to the stalemate of the Shattering war. The fact that these events took place 5,000 years ago offers a new perspective on the Demi-Gods. For instance, it implies that General Radahn has been afflicted with the Scarlet Rot Malenia unleashed on Caelid for much longer than most think. Five thousand years spent devolving into madness is unthinkable, so it makes sense why Radahn is feasting on the corpses of his enemies and friends.
By extension, the detail clarifies how long Malenia has been slumbering under the Haligtree, waiting for her twin brother Miquella. It adds more weight to what she tells the Tarnished before the boss fight, “I dreamt for so long.” The five thousand-year detail also shows how long Ranni has been working to bring her Age of Stars. By this measure, the Night of the Black Knives is ancient history, and Ranni has inhabited the body of the Snow Witch doll, plotting to murder her Two Fingers, explaining fleeing their Divine Tower, for longer than normal humans can understand. The ordinary people of Elden Ring’s world have suffered most of all, and the clarification of the timeline makes their suffering even more extraordinary. It's clear to see why many of the wandering nobles and castle servants are withered and frail.
However, it’s possible that five thousand years may not mean the same in Elden Ring as it does for humans in the real world. Long before Queen Marika shattered the ring, she removed the Rune of Death, preventing the occurrence of true death. So, in a world of essentially immortal beings, multiple millennia would indeed be perceived differently than a typical human would expect. Even still, it changes the player’s understanding of the world and story of Elden Ring so that the tragedies and struggles are much bleaker.