How to improve FPS in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree (PC)
Shadow of the Erdtree runs on the same internal engine as base Elden Ring, so it inherits its hard 60 FPS cap and its lack of advanced scaling options in the graphics menu. The real difference lies in the new map, the Land of Shadow: forest zones with much denser vegetation, enemies spawning in larger waves, and bosses with more aggressive particle effects than the base game. That translates into occasional frametime drops you wouldn't see in Limgrave or Caelid, even with a GPU capable of a stable 60 FPS the rest of the time. Here are the settings that actually move the needle without sacrificing combat readability.
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Calculations based on our FPS model combined with the % gain of each setting (measured in public benchmarks).
1. Quick wins (no visual loss)
Start here. Each one adds a little, but together they give +61% free FPS.
Ray Tracing
Ray tracing in FromSoftware's engine adds somewhat softer shadows and ambient occlusion, but it's in the DLC's new zones (especially the Land of Shadow forest with its dense foliage) where it hurts frametime the most. Disabling it is the first step before touching anything else.
Particle Effects
The DLC's bosses, especially Radahn, Consort of Miquella and Messmer, generate a far greater amount of particles than any base-game boss. Lowering this setting from High/Max to Medium reduces frametime drops in the final phase without combat looking empty.
Vegetation Density
The new map has forest zones much more densely populated than Limgrave or Liurnia. Reducing grass and foliage density especially eases the load on mid-range CPUs, which suffer the most when rendering so much simultaneous vegetation geometry.
Screen Space Reflections (SSR)
Full-screen reflections mostly affect areas with water and wet surfaces, present in several new DLC areas. Their visual impact is minimal compared to the frametime cost, especially on entry-level GPUs.
Shadows
Dynamic shadow resolution is especially demanding in the new map's dense forest sections, where there are many more light sources filtering through trees than in the base game. Lowering it to Medium keeps combat readable.
2. Medium impact settings
Here's where most of the FPS is. Minor visual impact, major performance impact.
Object Draw Distance
The new map has more decorative elements and ruins at mid-distance than the base game. Lowering from Max to High frees up some performance in the more open zones with no noticeable popping while exploring on horseback.
Texture Quality
Unlike other settings, this depends almost entirely on available VRAM. On GPUs with 6-8GB, lowering from Max to High avoids micro-stutters when loading new DLC textures, which are heavier than the base game's.
Anti-Aliasing
The engine's default TAA is costly and also introduces some image softening. Lowering it to Medium slightly improves frametime in fights with many enemies on screen without generating excessive jaggedness at 1440p or above.
Volumetric Fog Effects
Several DLC zones, especially the darker-themed areas of the Land of Shadow, make heavy use of volumetric fog. It's one of the effects that contributes most to frametime drops in specific parts of the map.
Global Illumination Quality
Global illumination directly affects how the new bosses' magic and fire effects look. Lowering it from Max to High gives a small performance margin in the most intense fights without losing too much visual fidelity.
3. Upscaling (DLSS / FSR / XeSS)
The biggest gain in the game. Compatible with almost any modern GPU.
No Official DLSS/FSR/XeSS Support
+0% FPSNeither base Elden Ring nor Shadow of the Erdtree include official support for DLSS, FSR, or XeSS in the game's menu, even after the DLC's 2024 launch, despite constant community requests. The only scaling route is unofficial mods (like the Elden Ring Reshade/DLSS mod) that replace the native TAA on their own, with no guarantee of compatibility with the anti-cheat in online mode.
4. Tips by GPU
NVIDIA
- •Enable Reflex from the NVIDIA panel if it's detected as compatible, since it reduces input latency in DLC boss fights with no FPS cost.
- •Force maximum performance mode in the NVIDIA Control Panel for this specific executable, since the game doesn't always request the GPU's maximum clock state by default.
- •If you use a GPU with 6GB of VRAM or less, watch memory usage in the DLC's new forest zones: that's where it saturates before the base map does.
AMD
- •Enable Anti-Lag in the Adrenalin software for this game, especially useful in boss fights with more particles on screen than the base title.
- •Check that the power mode is set to High Performance in Adrenalin, since on laptops with AMD GPUs the game can default to an intermediate profile.
- •On mid-range RDNA2 GPUs, prioritize lowering volumetric fog and shadows before textures: these are the settings that cost these cards the most in the DLC's new zones.
Sistema
- •Install the DLC on an SSD if you haven't already: the new zones load considerably more assets than the base map, and streaming stutter is much more noticeable on HDD.
- •Close third-party overlays (Discord, GeForce Experience, MSI Afterburner with active OSD) if you notice micro-stutters, since FromSoftware's engine is sensitive to external hooks.
- •Verify the integrity of the game files after the DLC patch: several players reported performance drops that were resolved simply by reinstalling or verifying files after the launch update.
5. Known game issues
FPS drops in the final phase against Radahn, Consort of Miquella
The second phase of the fight against Radahn, Consort of Miquella generates a far greater amount of particle and light effects than any base-game boss, causing occasional drops below 60 FPS even on systems that maintain a stable cap through the rest of the DLC. Lowering particles and volumetric fog before the fight helps mitigate it.
Estado: Partially improved in post-launch patches, but still persists on mid-to-low-end configurations
Streaming stutters in dense forest zones
When entering the new map's more heavily forested areas, some players report brief micro-hitches associated with loading high-density vegetation and textures, especially noticeable on HDD installations or saturated SATA SSDs.
No official upscaling support despite community requests
Despite the DLC's 2024 launch reigniting community requests to add DLSS, FSR, or XeSS natively, FromSoftware didn't incorporate any scaling technology into either the base game or the expansion, leaving native TAA as the only antialiasing option.
6. Frequently asked questions
Does Shadow of the Erdtree have the same 60 FPS cap as base Elden Ring?▾
Why does FPS drop in the final boss even though my PC runs the rest of the DLC at a stable 60 FPS?▾
Does Shadow of the Erdtree have DLSS, FSR, or XeSS?▾
What GPU do I need to run Shadow of the Erdtree at a stable 60 FPS?▾
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Calculate FPS for Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree →Calculations based on consensus of technical sources and our own FPS model. More about our methodology →