Ready to face the Lands Between all over again-but this time, armed to the teeth and up against even fiercer foes? In Elden Ring’s New Game Plus, every victory and hard-earned weapon carries forward, but not everything makes the journey with you. Here’s how to unlock this challenging new cycle, what precious loot you’ll keep, and the crucial items you’ll have to leave behind as you begin your next epic adventure.
In Elden Ring’s new game plus experience, you’ll start the game fresh, with all bosses and enemies respawned – and they’ll return with more health and deal greater damage. To compensate for these stronger enemies, you’ll retain your character’s level, weapons, summons, spells, and abilities, but you’ll lose some key items and the ability to teleport around the game’s map at Sites of Grace.
New game plus in Elden Ring is worth experiencing when you’re ready for it. For a full explanation of what new game plus in Elden Ring means – including details about how to start new game plus and what carries over in new game plus – check out our guide to what you can expect.
How to start new game plus in Elden Ring (aka “Journey 2”)
After you defeat the final boss and see the credits in Elden Ring, you’ll be given the option to immediately start New Game Plus, which the game calls “Journey 2.” If you choose not to begin right away, you can continue exploring the world, finish side quests, or upgrade your gear. When you’re ready to start Journey 2, simply travel to the Roundtable Hold and rest at the Table of Lost Grace (Site of Grace). There, you’ll find the option to “Begin Journey 2” in the menu. Selecting this will launch your New Game Plus run, restarting the story with tougher enemies but letting you keep most of your gear, levels, and items from your first playthrough.
Once you’ve defeated Elden Ring’s final boss and seen one of its six endings, you’ll have the option to continue with your current playthrough – helpful if you want to clean up anything you missed – or begin a new journey. You’ll be presented with the following prompt:
Begin Journey 2? If you do not start over now, you can choose to begin Journey 2 later at the Table of Lost Grace in Roundtable Hold.
If you select “No,” you’ll continue in your original playthrough, where you can explore further and complete any remaining side quests or tasks. When you’re done with everything you’d like to do, you can visit the Roundtable Hold, where you’ll have the option to select “Begin Journey 2” at the Table of Lost Grace.
If you select “Yes” from that prompt or choose “Begin Journey 2” at the Table of Lost Grace, you’ll restart Elden Ring right from the very beginning, at the Chapel of Anticipation, where the Grafted Scion probably killed you in your first boss battle. The good news is that you’re far better equipped to dispose of that boss this time.
Choosing to start your new game plus journey will write to the same save file you’ve been using thus far; the game won’t create a separate save file for you.
What do you keep in Elden Ring new game plus?
When you start New Game Plus in Elden Ring, you keep most of your hard-earned progress and items from your previous playthrough. This includes your character’s current level, all Runes, weapons, armor, shields, spells (incantations and sorceries), talismans, consumables, crafting materials, upgrade materials, Remembrances, Spirit Ashes, Ashes of War, and most non-quest-related items. Upgrades on weapons and spirit ashes, crafting recipes, and map exploration also carry over. However, quest items, key items used for story progression, medallions, Sites of Grace, and quest progress do not transfer and must be reacquired or rediscovered in your new journey. This system allows you to tackle tougher enemies with your enhanced character while still needing to re-explore and re-engage with the world’s story elements.
In new game plus, you will retain your Tarnished’s current level, any Runes you had when you finished your original playthrough, and much of your inventory: weapons, shields, spells, talismans, consumables, arrows and bolts, upgrade and crafting materials, Remembrances, Spirit Ashes, and Ashes of War. You’ll also keep many key items, like your cookbooks, pots, perfume bottles, crafting kit, Crystal Tears, and Memory Stones.
You also get to keep some important key consumable items, like any Dragon Hearts, Larval Tears, and Stonesword Keys that you had in your inventory at the end of your first playthrough.
Lastly, you’ll retain your view of the game’s map, and the key locations you discovered in your previous playthrough will remain visible.
What you lose in Elden Ring new game plus
When you start New Game Plus in Elden Ring, you lose access to all previously discovered Sites of Grace and must unlock them again as you progress through your new journey. All unfinished side quests and quest progress are reset, meaning any ongoing NPC storylines or quest-related items will be lost and must be restarted. Additionally, key items, quest items, and keys used to unlock specific areas do not carry over, so you’ll need to reacquire them in your new playthrough. Bell bearings for shop upgrades are also lost, requiring you to collect them again to unlock merchant inventories. Finally, the ability to respec your character is reset until you defeat Rennala once more.
Though you retain the full view of Elden Ring’s map, you’ll lose access to all the Sites of Grace you visited previously; you’ll need to unlock them all again in your new game plus playthrough. Any unfinished side quests from your previous playthrough will also be reset.
In terms of inventory, you’ll also lose access to key items that are generally part of side quests or game progress. That includes literal keys (like the Academy Glintstone Key and the Dectus Medallion halves) and items that progress questlines, like the Fingerslayer Blade and Pureblood Knight’s Medal. You’ll also lose Great Runes acquired from boss fights and Mending Runes earned through questlines.
Any Bell Bearings you unlocked or turned in will also disappear, though they’ll be available for purchase through the Twin Maiden Husks’ shop in the Roundtable Hold if you turned them in during your previous playthrough.
Elden Ring new game plus difficulty: How much harder is Elden Ring new game plus?
Elden Ring’s New Game Plus (NG+) mode increases the game’s difficulty by scaling up enemy stats across the board. In NG+, enemies and bosses have notably higher health, defense, resistances, and deal more damage, making them tougher to defeat than in your first playthrough. The boost is especially noticeable in early-game areas, where enemies receive a larger percentage increase to their health and damage to account for your more powerful character and gear. While you keep your levels, weapons, and most items, the increased enemy stats mean you’ll need to adjust your strategies, especially as you progress to later NG+ cycles (up to NG+7), where the scaling continues to ramp up and challenge even veteran players.
Just as bosses and questlines reset in Elden Ring’s new game plus, so do the items in its world. That means you can acquire duplicate versions of weapons from treasure chests and boss battles, allowing you to dual wield your favorites. You’ll also get access to additional Golden Seeds and Sacred Tears, making it easier to upgrade the Crimson and Cerulean Flasks to their full effectiveness.
Enemies may be stronger, but they also drop more runes when you kill them, making it easier to level up your character in a second playthrough. That extra challenge is also part of the fun; enemies that felt nigh-impossible in your first run may feel slightly easier in new game plus, while some will be even harder the second time around.
You’ll also be able to see Elden Ring’s various endings (and unlock their associated trophies and achievements) in new game plus and subsequent playthroughs (Journey 3, Journey 4, etc.). Here’s how to plan your next journey through the Lands Between if you want to unlock all Elden Ring’s endings.
What surprising items do I keep or lose in Elden Ring NG+
Surprising Items You Keep and Lose in Elden Ring NG+
What You Keep (Surprisingly):
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All weapons, armor, talismans, consumables, smithing stones, spirit ashes, cookbooks, and flask upgrades remain in your inventory.
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Unique items like gestures and boss remembrances are kept, so you can still cash them in during your second run.
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Stonesword Keys in your inventory carry over, though you’ll need to use them again to unlock areas.
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Your map remains explored, and custom map markers stay, but all Sites of Grace must be rediscovered for fast travel.
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Magic spells, incantations, and sorceries you’ve learned are retained.
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Your character’s level, runes, and attributes are preserved.
What You Lose (Surprisingly):
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All Great Runes and story-related Mending Runes must be reacquired and empowered again.
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All quest items and key items tied to story progression or NPC questlines, including medallion pieces for lift access, are lost and must be collected anew.
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Any bell bearings not submitted to the Twin Maiden Husks are lost; only those you’ve turned in will persist in the shop.
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Progress in all quests and side quests resets, reviving all NPCs and requiring you to redo any questlines.
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Imbued Sword Keys are lost, even though regular Stonesword Keys are kept.
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All Sites of Grace must be reactivated, even though your map is still revealed.
Notable Oddities:
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You keep some unusual items like Moghs’ and Margit’s shackles, but you lose the item that teleports you to Mogh’s castle, so you’ll need to redo Varre’s questline for early access to that area.
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Spellbooks, scrolls, and prayerbooks are lost, but any spells you unlocked from them before NG+ are kept.
In summary, almost everything not directly tied to quest progression or world unlocking persists, but all quest, key, and progression items are reset-sometimes in ways that catch even veteran players off guard.
What unexpected items or gear might I find myself losing in NG+
Unexpected Items or Gear Lost in Elden Ring NG+
While most of your gear and upgrades carry over into New Game Plus, several items and unlocks are unexpectedly lost and must be reacquired:
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All Key Items: Any item in your inventory’s “Key Items” tab is removed. This includes medallion halves (like the Dectus Medallion), Academy Glintstone Keys, and other items used to unlock new areas or progress quests-even if you expected to keep them for convenience.
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Great Runes: All Great Runes are lost and must be obtained and reactivated by defeating their respective bosses again.
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Bell Bearings: Both the bell bearings themselves and the merchant unlocks they provide are lost. You must collect and turn them in again to access special shop inventories.
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Quest Items: All quest-related items, such as Irina’s Letter or the Fingerslayer Blade, are removed-even if you were hoping to use them for alternate quest outcomes in NG+.
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Sites of Grace: All Sites of Grace must be reactivated, even though your map remains revealed. Fast travel points are reset.
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Sorcery Scrolls & Prayerbooks: These are lost, though any spells or incantations you learned from them are kept.
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Respec Ability: You lose the ability to respec until you defeat Rennala again.
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Cosmetic Changes: Certain cosmetic effects, like the Three Fingers’ Mark of the Frenzied Flame and Dragon Communion eye color, are removed from your character.
These resets can catch even experienced players off-guard, especially the loss of bell bearings and key quest items, which are often assumed to be permanent unlocks.
