How to level up your character in Elden Ring

You begin Elden Ring as “Maidenless.” While this may not sound very important, you will soon discover that it affects your very future in the game. Without a maiden, you can’t level up. If you can’t level up, you may end up dead before you know it. Here is how you level up your character in Elden Ring.

Where to find your maiden

Leveling up in Elden Ring isn’t as simple as resting at a Site of Grace. You first need to find a maiden that will help you level up. The maiden you discover is Melina. She will appear before you after you have rested at three Sites of Grace in the overworld. This doesn’t include dungeons. After you rest at your third Site of Grace, you will get a cutscene showing Melina.

You can easily find three Sites of Grace by going to the following areas:

• As soon as you exit the starting area.
• Head north from the first Site of Grace to find the Church of Elleh.
• Head northwest of the Church of Elleh to find the third Site of Grace in the Gatefront Ruins.

While searching for the Sites of Grace, make sure to pay attention to the light trail that appears at each site. This trail will guide you to the next Site of Grace.

Leveling up

Leveling up in Elden Ring requires you to pay Runes. Similar to Dark Souls, Runes are Elden Ring’s version of Souls. You obtain Runes by defeating enemies and selling items that you discover. Once you have a sufficient number of Runes, rest at a Site of Grace and select the level-up option. This will only appear after you have unlocked Melina.

In the level-up menu, you will notice several attributes that you can increase. Increasing certain stats will allow you to use different weapons or increase the power of weapons you already have access to. Be sure to pay attention to your equipment’s scaling when leveling up to give your character the greatest bonus. Remember that the Rune requirement to level up increases with each level, so hoard Runes for a while before you level up to get as many levels as you can.