Ainsel River - Elden Ring Guide - IGN (2024)

Ainsel River is a larger Dungeon found in the Liurnia Region in Elden Ring. It is an optional underground area slightly more linear than the overworld, but keeps many of its core mechanics - including fast travel and the restoration of flasks upon defeating enemy groups persist whilst underground (however, unlike Siofra River you cannot use Torrent in this region). This page contains information on the location, walkthrough, and guide to traverse this area, locate all of its treasure, and tips to defeat the enemies within.

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• How to Get to Ainsel River
• Ainsel River Walkthrough
• Boss Fight - Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella
• Continuing to Explore

How to Get to Ainsel River

In eastern Liurnia, just north of the Eastern Tableland Site of Grace, you'll arrive at a spherical domed building guarded by a Golem. After dealing with the Golem, most efficiently by targeting its ankles, open the door and step onto the lift to ride it down.

Just to the right as you step off the lift is the Ainsel River Well Depths Site of Grace.

Ainsel River Walkthrough

Heading down the slope from the Site of Grace, you'll note 5 Giant Ants lining the ceiling around a tunnel on the left-hand side. First, head right upstream through a small tunnel to loot a corpse containing Magic Grease. As you head back down, there is a Giant Ant on the ceiling which, whilst it doesn't always drop down, can do so and ambush you so be wary as you're passing by.

Dealing with the 5 Giant Ants (which you can lure down one by one if you're careful), head through the passageway that they were guarding and grab the Grace Mimic on the corpse lead over the coffin in the center of the stream. Continuing on you'll be ambushed by an Ant to the right tucked in an alcove, and there will be a patrolling ant roaming the lit tunnel to the south.

Dealing with the patrolling Ant, another Ant will sprint down the tunnel to the southeast, and upon defeating it you can either follow that tunnel to the southeast or go down the slope to the southwest. Moving down the southeast tunnel, as you turn the corner you'll find a corpse holding a Smithing Stone (3), as well as an Ant that will ambush you from the far end, as well as one coming up from behind you.

Backtracking and heading down the southwest slope, two Ants will drop from the ceiling. In the room beyond full of corpses and viscera, there will be two corpses; one with a Silver Firefly, one with a Golden Rune (1). There is also a corpse in the tunnel to the left holding a Golden Rune, protected by an Ant. You can platform up the rocks beyond to pass down a tunnel that opens out into a cave with multiple Giant Ants lining the ceiling, and an Ant Queen on the floor to the left. These are all non-hostile unless you attack the Queen, so do so at your own peril. As such, if you wish, you can pass by without issue and after passing through the long tunnel you'll emerge above the Uhl Palace Ruins.

Before dropping down, backtrack all the way to the room full of bones and viscera, and take the other tunnel sloping down. As you exit out, you'll arrive at a well-lit structure. There is a Ghost Glovewort (1) plant near the stalagmite in front of you, and behind the stalagmite is a corpse that holds Shattershard Arrows (Fletched) x10. There is another corpse in that left corner that holds a Smithing Stone (3).

Heading up the steps on the right, pass along the walkway (to the right being the Uhl Palace Ruins you saw earlier) and on the opposite end of the walkway is a Site of Grace. Ride the lift down next to the Site of Grace and to the right, on the far side of the waterfall is a corpse holding a Golden Rune (1). There is a Ghost Glovewort (1) plant along the right-hand wall, a corpse with a Golden Rune (3) along the left, a corpse with a Golden Rune (2) in the corner of the ruins and another with a Smithing Stone (1) just to the left of the destroyed statue head. In this area and the ruins beyond it, there are dozens and dozens of Clayman warriors, often roaming the area in small clusters, so try and lure a couple out at a time to ensure you don't get overwhelmed.

Before continuing, it might be worth backtracking to the platform beyond the Ant Queen and drop down off the left side onto the pillar. The corpse at the end has a Smithing Stone (4), and dropping off onto the rocky platform to the left has a corpse holding a Celestial Dew, an extremely rare item.

You can then drop down again to the Uhl Palace Ruins, and either pass through the main entrance or head around the right-hand side of the statue to the right of the entrance, jump over the rocks, and find a secret passage. This passage can help you in avoiding the projectiles that the Malformed Star hanging from the ceiling across the way fires.

There are a number of corpses with Smithing Stones, Golden Runes, a Furlcalling Finger Remedy, Magic Grease and Throwing Daggers lining the right side of the room, and the central steps and structures. All of these will need to be traversed whilst keeping an eye on the projectiles being fired. If you hug the left side of this cavern, following the path of the water, you'll come across a Ghost Glovewort (1) plant, above which is a Site of Grace.

Upon activating it, you can continue following the water stream to emerge into a cave filled with viscera and multiple Giant Ants. There are a number of corpses in the room as well, holding Formic Rock, Smithing Stone (3), the Immunizing Horn Charm, Crystal Dart x5, and a number of Formic Rock deposits (which you can easily mistake as bloodstains). If you head up the slope in the southwest corner, you'll face a number of Basilisks that can breathe out Death (curse) smoke. At the top of this slope, you'll emerge on a platform overlooking a gigantic cavern, where you can grab multiple Aeonian Butterfly and a Somber Smithing Stone (3) off of a corpse.

Backtracking down the slope and turning left, you can grab 2 Ghost Glovewort plants, and after dealing with the three Ants in the area, head down the slope and at the fork in the path, turn left to grab a Melted Mushroom off of a corpse. Taking the right instead, you'll find a Ghost Glovewort as well as a tunnel that leads to a large open room, and a boss fight.

Boss Fight - Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella

A giant armored dragon-like warrior, the Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella has a limited number of highly-damaging moves in the first phase to look out for. Thankfully, despite its name, the Dragonkin Soldier doesn't breathe fire. The majority of the attacks rely on sweeps with the arms and ground pounds.

The Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella can swipe in all directions; left, right, back, or forward. The main strategy, particularly for melee builds, is to dodge-roll in the same direction as the swipes. If one hits you, the Soldier won't pursue with a follow-up attack before you can recover, so don't begin to panic if you take a strike.

You'll want to ensure, if you're a melee fighter, that you target any portion of the Dragonkin Soldier's body other than its chest. If the chest is where you are locked on, many of your swipes will often miss or clink against the armored belt portion of the Soldier.

At around 50% health, the Soldier will emit a gigantic roar and will spread its wings as it becomes charged with frozen lightning. All of its swipe attacks will now be imbued with this lightning and can inflict the Frostbite status effect. The Soldier can fly into the air and lunge at you with a swipe, dragging itself across the floor as it lands. A dodge-roll can help to avoid that, and it will also work for the most common attack in this phase; the Soldier will throw bolts of lightning onto the ground near it, which creates a streak of lightning across the floor of the arena in that direction. These will always be locked on to your location, but the ground sparks with lightning in the affected area for a couple of seconds before actually exploding with lightning, so you can sprint or roll out of the zone with relative ease.

Upon defeating the Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella, you'll earn the Frozen Lightning Spear Incantation.

Continuing to Explore

You will be able to activate a Site of Grace in this room after defeating the Dragonkin Soldier of Nokstella, and in the chamber beneath the giant corpse in the chair is a chest that contains a Great Ghost Glovewort.

Backtrack through the tunnel to the southeast, all the way to the Uhl Palace Ruins, you can sprint to the left and get beneath the Malformed Star throwing projectiles and find the Hermit Merchant, as well as a corpse that holds the Ainsel River Map.

Then, head back out through the main entrance of the ruins and curve around to the left to go through the secret passage again, where you can sprint up the collapsed pillar, onto the top of the structure and run along to jump to a pathway leading up to the Malformed Star. You can defeat the Malformed Star with ranged attacks (bows, throwables or spells) and that will allow future traversal of this room to be much easier.

You cannot explore more of Ainsel unless you have completed Ranni's Questline by exploring Nokron, The Eternal City.