Elden Ring enthusiasts, please brace yourselves. The long-awaited Nightreign DLC has arrived with a sweeping array of world, environmental, and gameplay alterations. From new landscapes with unique twists to strange new foes, this update has something for everyone. Without further ado, let's dive into everything new in Elden Ring Nightreign.

• World Changes
• New Gameplay Features
• New Characters
• Items & Costumes
• Character Lore & Side Quests
• New Nightlords
• Other Confirmed Bosses

↖ World Changes

The Nightreign DLC brings some renowned changes to world of Elden Ring.

1. Cathedral of Manis – A Warped Transformation  

The Cathedral of Manis "continues to" appear as a torn cathedral. A giant tornado spins above what is left of the cathedral. Statues in front of the cathedral further suggest that there is some form of an original statue. This area is likely based on lore and will give players new challenges to attempt.

2. Meteor Strikes and Falling Star Beasts  

A meteor strike is shown which likely means something spawned the meteor.  Very likely to be associated with the Falling Star Beasts due to crater formations shown in the trailer.

3. Volcanic Canyon  

A new volcanic canyon containing foes that seem to belong to the mountain tops of the giants. An altar surrounded by torches lies deep within the lava pit and could either be a dungeon or a mini-boss area. A fire prellet or a magma worm could be potential mini-bosses.

4. Rot Forest: A New Nightmare

An avatar of erd tree might be present in this region and players may receive special rewards from them. While there is a lot of difficulty in this region, there might be a hidden treasure or a knight's final battle location. 

Shallow Areas: These Zones looking exceeding hot may have water sources underground which can be used to store precious resources(+water).

↖ New Gameplay Features

Nightreign is more than just a visual overhaul, as it also implementing new gameplay features to keep things interesting:

• Small World Events: Insect swarms and landing of the spectral hawks are a few of the random phenomena that occur to break the usual monotony of exploration. These were rare features during the play test, but there is a chance that they might be more common in the full release.
• More New Mysteries: Some locations are populated by ethereal hawks and floating orbs which serve no obvious function. These orbs might come in handy in new mechanics or challenges.
• Madness Eye in Lyfeld: Bringing with it the mix of sheer brutality and some areas which are impossibly hard, the madness eye feature is sure to add complexity making Lyfeld one of the hardest zones.

↖ New Characters

The update of Nightreign adds exhilarating new character classes which come with unique abilities and playstyles.

• Returning Classes:The wilder, recluse, guardian, and duchess: Available during the build test, these basic classes are likely to be part of the final game.
• Raider and Ironeye: These two classes had reveal trailers showing off their unique gameplay.
• New Classes:
  • Executor: This 'sakiro'inspired class is the most noticed addition and one which fans can't wait to see the teaser trailer for thanks to its beautiful aesthetic design and engaging combat features.
  • Unnamed Spirit Summoner: This class seems to have a mixture of melee and non-melee weapons as they carry a scythe-like weapon and a harp. As the name suggests, they specialize in summons and can likely interact with the spirits in different ways. Given that the class is non-melee, it will offer different play styles.

Note: The Iron Eye class appears to be a bow-exclusive character. All their gameplay captures show them exclusively using bows, some with flames, which other classes don’t seem to use.

↖ Items & Costumes

Unlockable purchasable items and costumes in Nightreign can be obtained through successful merc currency runs, also known as Merc. 

Items from the Jar Vendor

Players can use Merc to purchase the following items from the Small Jar Bazaar located at the Round Table Hold: 

• Relics: Permanent buffs to your character's abilities, which strengthen them for future runs.
• Gestures: Emotes through which you can express yourself.
• Scenic FlatStones: These items are described as "precious gifts" and act as wildcards that grant random relic rewards.
• Guardian's Goblet: These allow you to alter your character's relic color sequence. For example, a character can be set to blue, then green, then red. Each character has a set of goblets granting them multiple customization options. 

Costumes at the Fitting Mirror

Players can also purchase recognized iconic costumes of the characters they control. Some notable examples are the Farum Knight Set and the Solair Set.

For many fans, running around Nightreign dressed as Solair is a dream come true! This raises two key questions.

• 1. What other costumes might be added? Imagine Wolf from Sakiro or the Hunter from Bloodborne!
• 2. Will Merc remain as an in-game currency or be debatable if the currency becomes available for purchase through real money?

↖ Character Lore & Side Quests

As always, Nightreign does allow its players to slowly discover character lore while earning quests.

• Memory Fragments: Battling the knights makes you relive parts of your past. Memories start returning piece by piece and help you to understand your past.
• Side Quests: A portion of side stories is unlocked after recovering memory fragments. These fragments of memory aid other night farers enhance the characters narrative.

You can complete these quests in a group, or tackle them solo: a handful of these achievements require going to certain locations. Thus, while teaming up with other players makes this easier, solo mode is always an option.

↖ New Nightlords

Nightreign introduces three new nightlords, each with unique abilities and challenges:

Key Highlights

• Dragon-Type Nightlord: Speculation suggests players may encounter defeated nightlords in later play sessions.
• Centaur-Type Nightlord: Its second phase transition includes regrowing an arm and wielding a weapon.
•  Libra's Fight: The encounter begins with an NPC called the Scalebearing Merchant offering buffs. Declining the deal triggers the boss fight.

Questions remain about the merchant's deal—what happens if you accept? What do you give in return? We'll have to wait and see!

↖ Other Confirmed Bosses

Nightreign also brings back some familiar faces from previous FromSoftware games:

• Duke's Freya (Dark Souls II): Complete with her signature beam attack.
• Godskin Noble
• Astel
• Ulcerating Tree Spirit
• Dragonkin Soldier

Godric 2.0

The standout among returning bosses is Godric, who now features a Crucible Knight upgrade. This new version promises a more intense challenge, showcasing how creative developers can get with existing bosses.

Elden Ring Nightreign is shaping up to be an incredible expansion with its mix of fresh content and nostalgic callbacks. Whether you're piecing together character lore, battling new nightlords, or facing revamped bosses, there's something for every player to enjoy.