Before starting Journey 2 in Elden Ring, finish any first-run quests, bosses, exploration, or collection goals you care about, then spend runes and prepare the build you want to take forward. Your character and much of your inventory carry over, but world progress and NPC quest states reset. You can start Journey 2 after the final boss or wait and begin it later from Roundtable Hold.
When should you start Journey 2?
Journey 2 becomes available after you defeat the final boss. You do not have to begin immediately after the ending: you can return to Roundtable Hold and start it later. Treat the transition as a reset of world and quest progress, not as a routine menu choice; once you start, you will need to revisit areas and re-establish access to their Sites of Grace. PC Gamer’s Journey 2 checklist outlines the option to defer, while Eldenpedia’s Journey page details what carries over and what resets.
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Elden Ring (PS5) (European Version) | $34.00 | Buy on Amazon |
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Demon's Souls - PlayStation 5 | $39.45 | Buy on Amazon |
Choose a preparation strategy
| Approach | Prioritize before Journey 2 | Best suited to |
|---|---|---|
| Completion-first | Finish desired NPC quests, optional bosses, exploration, collections, and limited-use activities before the reset. | Players who want first-run story, rewards, or achievements before replaying. |
| Build-first | Spend runes, buy relevant spells and upgrade materials, and ready the weapons and Spirit Ashes you plan to use. | Players who want to start the replay promptly with a prepared character. |
You do not need to clear every optional task. Decide based on whether you want the content or reward, whether it is unique or limited, and whether you are comfortable replaying the relevant area or quest in the next journey. The practical checklist in GamesRadar+’s pre-NG+ guide is useful for identifying possible goals, but treat its item totals as secondary-source figures rather than a requirement to collect everything.
Finish the content you do not want to revisit
Wrap up NPC quests
NPC quest states restart in Journey 2. Complete any quest whose story, reward, or ending matters to you, and claim what you want from it before the transition. NPCs return to their reset states, so unfinished quest progress will not simply resume where you left off.
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- Collaborating with George R.R. Martin to create the ELDEN RING mythos has been a genuinely delightful experience and a source of wonderful inspiration. The team is working hard to ensure that the world of ELDEN RING will be a fascinating place for players to explore, filled with peril and wonder from its furthest reaches to its lowest depths. This is a FromSoftware title through and through, rich in fantasy and RPG action. We sincerely hope you look forward to it.
- Building the world of ELDEN RING with Miyazaki-san and his team was a treat! The graphics, mythos, and action-RPG gameplay will deliver an unforgettable experience. I can’t wait for people to see what ELDEN RING has in store for them.” Said George R.R. Martin.
Defeat optional bosses and explore
Visit remaining areas and fight optional bosses if you want to experience them on this run or collect their rewards now. Area access and story progression reset, so the route to optional content may need to be opened again during Journey 2.
Collect limited or unique items you want
Consider gathering any remaining Golden Seeds, Sacred Tears, Larval Tears, Stonesword Keys, Crystal Tears, high-tier Smithing Stones, or high-tier Gloveworts that matter to your plans. These are examples of possible collection goals, not a mandatory checklist; the available guides do not establish authoritative current totals for every category. Also collect any specific gear or achievement you want before resetting.
Use Walking Mausoleums for wanted Remembrances
If you want another reward from a boss Remembrance, use an available Walking Mausoleum before moving on. Mausoleums are limited-use, and not every one can duplicate every Remembrance, so check which one suits the reward you want rather than assuming any mausoleum will work.
Spend runes and prepare your build
- Use a large rune balance deliberately. Put runes toward levels or items that serve your next build instead of carrying an unnecessarily large balance into the reset.
- Buy useful spells and upgrade materials. Visit vendors you can access and purchase what you expect to need early, particularly materials or spells relevant to your chosen weapons and playstyle. There is no need to stockpile items that do not fit your build.
- Ready your equipment. Choose the weapons, armor, Ashes of War, talismans, and Spirit Ashes you want to use, and upgrade them as far as your available resources allow. Equipment and upgrade materials carry over.
- Offer Bell Bearings before you go. The important distinction is whether the bearing has already been given to the Twin Maiden Husks: certain non-NPC shop unlocks persist when offered, but a bearing still in your inventory disappears at the transition.
What carries over and what resets?
Journey 2 retains much of your character and collected kit, but it is not a continuation of your world state. The categories below summarize the distinctions listed on Eldenpedia’s Journey page; some guide lists give more detail than others.
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- Discover where the journey began - Experience the original brutal challenge, completely remade from the ground up. All presented in stunning visual quality with enhanced performance, this is the world of Boletaria as you have never seen it before.
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| Carries over | Resets or must be reacquired |
|---|---|
| Character level and carried runes | Sites of Grace; activate them again to use fast travel |
| Weapons, armor, Ashes of War, Spirit Ashes, talismans, consumables, crafting and upgrade materials | NPC locations and quest states |
| Torrent and the whistle | Great Runes |
| Maps, cookbooks, containers, Crystal Tears, Whetblades, Memory Stones, and Talisman Pouches | Story and area-access key items |
| Certain non-NPC Bell Bearing shop unlocks already offered to the Twin Maiden Husks | NPC-associated Bell Bearings; unoffered bearings still held by the player |
| Items stored in the Item Box, though they remain inaccessible until you can reach an applicable Site of Grace | Some appearance changes, according to the consulted guides |
Discovered map information persists, but that does not preserve activated Sites of Grace. Plan to explore and touch them again before relying on familiar fast-travel routes.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Bell Bearings: what the update changed
Do not assume every Bell Bearing unlock is lost. The Journey page records that update 1.05 made selected non-NPC Bell Bearing shop unlocks persist when they have been offered to the Twin Maiden Husks. NPC-associated bearings still need to be reacquired, and bearings that remain in your inventory rather than being offered do not carry over. An older checklist’s blanket statement that Bell Bearing unlocks reset is therefore too broad for this distinction. The cited sources do not establish a current official build number or a platform-specific difference, so this guide does not make claims beyond the update 1.05 behavior recorded on the Journey page.
Will Journey 2 be harder?
PC Gamer describes the next journey as more difficult and notes increased rune rewards, but the cited sources do not establish an authoritative current scaling table. Avoid planning around an exact enemy-health, damage, or rune multiplier based on those qualitative descriptions alone.
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