Elden Ring: What's Really Inside Miquella's Egg

There is a lot to discover in the world of "Elden Ring." Fans and critics alike have been singing the praises of FromSoftware's latest action RPG for a number of reasons. The game boasts a smooth and versatile combat system that allows players to pit themselves against the hoards of monstrous creatures and vicious bosses that inhabit the Lands Between, but exploring these lands is one thing that helps this game truly stand out from the studio's other franchises. There are dozens of secret areas, concealed items and hidden NPCs that many players will never encounter in their first playthrough.

One of the best hidden areas the players can easily miss if they're just doing the main questline is called Miquella's Haligtree. This is a legacy dungeon that can be found north of the Consecrated Snowfield. Players will have to complete the Evergaol candle puzzle in Ordina Liturgical Town in order to pass through the Waygate to reach it. The area is full of dangerous enemies and falling from the tree spells instant death. But those who successfully navigate the Haligtree can learn about Miquella and his mysterious egg.

Miquella never appears as a physical character that the player can actually speak with, but is often discussed by NPCs and his backstory appears in various bits of lore that can be found throughout the game. His backstory is fascinating however and so it is a shame that many players will never learn much about him.

Miquella is an Empyrean – a divine being who houses the power of the Outer Gods. He is the son of Queen Marika the Eternal and her male-half Radragon, as well as the twin brother of Malenia. Miquella was cursed by one of the Outer Gods to be a child forever while his sister was cursed with rot. He used his own blood on a sapling and created the Haligtree in order to use it to grow himself to adulthood and to cure Malenia of her affliction. He entered the tree and began incubating within an egg in order to grow his body to adulthood.

This process was interrupted when his half-brother Mohg, who wanted to become Miquella's consort and help him to attain full godhood, carved him out of the tree and took him away. Mohg's plan failed, however, and Miquella's slumber within the egg continued, leaving Malenia to wait for her brother beside the dying husk of the Haligtree.

The player can choose to fight Mohg in the Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum within Mohgwyn Palace. This is located on the western side of the map beneath Caelid, but can only be accessed through another teleportation gateway in the western part of the Consecrated Snowfield. Here they will see a Miquella's large egg at the end of the arena with a large, withered arm reaching out of a crack in the shell. Mohg will then emerge from the pool of blood that forms under the arm, taking Miquella's hand and telling him that he will have to be alone for a little longer. Then he turns to the player and then the fight begins.

Assuming they manage to defeat Mohg, the player can approach Miquella's egg after the battle. They can't interact with it at all, however, and attacking the arm does nothing. The egg is sitting on a raised dais above the player-character's line of sight, so it's impossible to see exactly what's inside Miquella's egg – if you are playing the game normally. Luckily, some modders out there have found a workaround.

The YouTube channel BonfireVN posted a video of a hacked in-game camera that they used to explore the inside of the mysterious shell, finally giving them a decent look at what exactly is going on in there. The body inside the egg appears to be proportionate in size to the arm — which is to say that it is massive. Its skin looks mottled and deteriorated. Its head is bald and its face appears old and withered with warped skin and sunken eyes. Think of a giant Emperor Palpatine from "Star Wars" and you'll have a pretty good idea of his complexion. There are also several red threads that connect his skin to the shell of the egg.

It appears as if his premature removal from the Haligtree caused both Miquella and the tree to wither. It's unclear whether or not this slumbering demi-god is actually dead, however. The description of Malenia's Winged Helm quotes her referring to her brother as "the most fearsome Empyrean of all." This, in combination with several other factors about how hard Empyrean are to kill in "Elden Ring," has led many fans to believe that Miquella will be a boss in future DLC. If so, he probably won't be happy when he wakes up.