Elden Ring is filled with tragic stories often told through questlines of various NPCs found in the Lands Between. Shadow of the Erdtree introduces the mysterious Count Ymir who needs a helping hand with ringing a few bells found at various ruins. His questline has many powerful rewards that make this lengthy journey worthwhile. Here’s everything you need to know about Count Ymir’s questline and its rewards along with a handful of puns thrown in for good measure.
Keep in mind that this guide will contain many spoilers. However, I’ll avoid spoiling anything outside this questline’s scope.
Where is Count Ymir in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree?
Count Ymir sits atop the throne in the Cathedral of Manus Metyr found in the Scadu Atlus region. This area is southeast of the Shadow Keep and northeast of Castle Ensis. As with many of the locations in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, getting there isn’t as simple as it looks on the map. Here’s how you can get to the Cathedral of Manus Metyr.
Moorth Ruins to Bonny Village
- Starting from the Moorth Ruins Site of Grace (east of Castle Ensis) look for a tower to the east that has sunken into the ground. There will be a hole that you can jump down next to it. (Refer to the images provided since it’s easy to miss.)
- The tunnel is fairly straightforward, follow it to the end where you’ll reach a ladder. Use caution as the dogs in these tight corridors can be a hassle to deal with.
- Climb up the ladder and you’ll reach the Bonny Village Site of Grace.
Bonny Village to Bridge Leading to the Village
- Cross over to the eastern side of the village and look north for the strange tree with a statue of Marika underneath it. Grab the “O Mother” gesture from the statue.
Don’t skip picking up the O Mother gesture. You’ll need to use this gesture later on in the questline to progress.
- Continue east through the village and cross the bridge leading to a plateau with a single hut on top of it. Grab the Tooth Whip from inside the Whipping Hut if you’d like, then continue across the second bridge to reach the aptly named Bridge Leading to the Village Site of Grace.
Bridge Leading to the Village to Cathedral of Manus Metyr
- Follow the path that wraps around to the northwest. Eventually, you’ll reach the Church District Highroad Site of Grace. The road northwest leads to the Church District Entrance Site of Grace. You’ll need to go there later on in the questline. For now, take the road to the south to reach the Cathedral of Manus Metyr.
Starting the Count Ymir questline in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
Enter the cathedral and activate the Site of Grace. Don’t worry, the cathedral is devoid of any hostiles at the moment. Past the Site of Grace, you’ll see Count Ymir sitting atop a throne. Speak with him and exhaust his dialogue to receive a Ruins Map and Hole-Laden Necklace.
Talk to him once more and he’ll explain that the map leads to a finger ruin and that he wants you to ring the hanging bell that’s there. Give him a chuckle and wave and then move towards the western exit of the cathedral. You’ll find a fearsome NPC named Swordhand of Night Jolan standing against a pillar. She’s Count Ymir’s bodyguard and plays a role later on in the questline, and a short quest of her own afterward.
Continue through the western exit and you’ll reach a small graveyard. There’s an interactable gravestone that can be read. You’ll learn that this is the grave of Yuri, a child taken before his time. Return to Jolan and then Ymir and exhaust the new dialogue options. Now it’s time to delve into the first ruins.
Where to find the first ruins for Count Ymir’s questline
The first set of ruins that you’ll need to go to is called the Finger Ruins of Rhia in the Cerulean Coast region. Check out our Cerulean Coast guide if you haven’t discovered this area yet.
- From the Cerulean Coast Site of Grace, hug the left treeline to avoid the Ghostflame Dragon that patrols the meadow. Make your way to the map fragment and grab it if you haven’t already.
- From the map fragment location, look east and you’ll see a narrow path alongside a ruined building. Follow that path until you reach the shore.
- Simply follow alongside the shore until you see a giant fallen building that acts as a ramp upward. This leads to the Finger Ruins of Rhia Site of Grace.
Once here, your objective is seen clearly in the distance. A cocoon-looking object hangs in the middle of a circle of fingers. Believe it or not, these are the bells you need to be ringing. By ringing, I mean performing a kissing animation– classic Elden Ring.
But before you dash to your death, you should become familiar with the enemies that you’ll be struggling with at each of the ruins. There are multiple sorcerers which have an extremely long-range spell that stuns you for seconds, even when riding Torrent. When hit, the creatures can teleport to your location and begin to eat you for dinner. Take cover using nearby rocks and structures to avoid getting stun-locked and killed.
Once you’ve reached the bell, sound it and you’ll receive the Crimson Seed Talisman +1. Return to Ymir in the cathedral and he’ll be holding a small hand creature. Tell him about your journey and he’ll give you the Beloved Stardust Talisman and Ruins Map (2nd) as a reward. That’s right, you’ve got another bell to smooch.
Exhaust Ymir’s dialogue about Miquella and then speak to Jolan. She’ll be willing to assist you with fighting Messmer the Impaler now that you’ve earned Ymir’s trust. It’s time to head north from the cathedral and make your way to the second ruins.
Where to find the second ruins for Count Ymir’s questline
To reach the second ruins, Finger Ruins of Dheo, you’ll have to access the Scaduview region. The majority of this section takes place in the Specimen Storehouse of the Shadow Keep. There are many twists and turns in this area, so refer to our guide on how to get to Scaduview if you find yourself running in circles.
Shadow Keep, Back Entrance to Hinterland
If you’ve followed our Scaduview guide, you should be at the Shadow Keep, Back Entrance Site of Grace. At first, only the exit outside which leads to Commander Gaius is accessible. But that isn’t where we are headed for this questline. The room to the right of the Site of Grace has a giant statue of Marika. Remember the “O Mother” gesture you picked up at Bonny Village? Stand in front of the statue and use the “O Mother” gesture and the statue will move aside, revealing a secret passage leading to the Hinterland Site of Grace.
Hinterland to Hinterland Bridge and Fingerstone Hill
From here, it’s practically a straight shot to the Finger Ruins of Dheo. You’ll need to slay or evade two Tree Sentinels along the way but you shouldn’t have a problem booking it across the bridge to the Hinterland Bridge Site of Grace.
Shortly after the bridge, you’ll come across the Fingerstone Hill Site of Grace. Just as you did in the Finger Ruins of Rhia, carefully evade the stun spells and ring the second bell. You’ll receive the Cerulean Seed Talisman +1 in your inventory.
Congratulations, from this point onward there won’t be much more running around to do, but there will be one more bell to interact with. Return to Count Ymir and he’ll give you a Ruins Map (3rd). Rest at the Site of Grace, and Ymir will move to Yuri’s grave outside.
Where to find the third ruins for Count Ymir’s questline
With Ymir off of the throne, you’ll be able to interact with it to reveal a hidden ladder leading below. Prepare for combat, as you’ll be invaded by Swordhand of Night Anna. Defeating her shouldn’t be too difficult. The reach of her claws can be deceiving as they’re much longer than they look. Her Ash of War shoots needles which apply moderate bleed buildup, so look out for that attack. I simply baited out her jump attacks and punished them with thrusts and jump attacks of my own.
After slaying Anna, you’ll receive her Claws of Night. You may be tempted to rush to the third bell but before doing so, head back up to the cathedral and speak with Jolan. Tell her about your encounter with a Swordhand of Night. She’ll tell you she’s indebted to you, but that Count Ymir is her “only star.”
After you’ve rested at the Site of Grace to refill your flasks, it’s time to ring the third bell which will send you into a boss room. Your opponent is quite a handful. Mityr, Mother of Fingers is like a twisted version of Master Hand from Super Smash Bros. A finger-trap would do wonders on this boss.
After you turn Mityr into finger food, you’ll receive the Remembrance of the Mother of Fingers– as if you needed more hands in your pockets.
The final battle with Jolan and Count Ymir
Travel back to the Cathedral of Manus Metyr Site of Grace and you’ll be invaded by Swordhand of Night Jolan. It seems Ymir is disappointed in you and Jolan is keeping her word about handling business for him.
Just like with Anna, Jolan has a new DLC weapon with an awesome Ash of War. Look out for when she holds her sword out to the side, known as entering a stance. The attack is similar to the bladestorm that Alecto, Black Knife Ringleader does (the assassin that drops the Black Knife Tiche Spirit Ashes). Her weapon is the Sword of Night, which you can acquire shortly after completing this questline.
Make short work of Jolan and try to conserve your flasks. Immediately after her defeat, Ymir himself will show up to tell you that he’s… the real mother? If you recall, Ymir mentioned he’s a glintstone sorcerer; that means he’s going to be annoying to deal with. He repeatedly teleports around the battlefield doing glintstone sorcerer things. By now, you’ve fought more fellas like him than you can count on your hands.
The only thing to look out for is when you get close and he curls in like he’s charging up an explosion. A circle of fingers spew out from around him dealing heavy damage. I suggest using sprinting or jumping heavy attacks to take him down since in my experience, he would teleport before I could land a combo.
After defeating him, you’ll claim the High Priest armor set, the Maternal Staff, and Ymir’s Bell Bearing. Rest at the Site of Grace and then go out to Yuri’s grave. You’ll find the Cherishing Fingers sorcery, the finger explosion spell that Ymir used.
You might have noticed that Jolan is slumped against the pillar she used to lean against before. There are two different items you can give her to receive either the Sword of Night or her spirit ashes (which begins a questline of its own). If you want to learn about how to combine her spirit ashes with her sister’s, check out our Jolan and Anna spirit ashes guide.
Published: Jun 25, 2024 10:31 am