Thiollier questline guide - Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree
A full walkthrough of Thiollier's questline in Elden Ring
How do you complete Thiollier's questline in Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree? The mild-mannered Thiollier is one of the key NPC characters in the Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC, and his questline is one of the most intriguing in Elden Ring.
Thiollier's side quest runs parallel to the main story in the Land Of Shadow, and if you do everything in the right order, you can get some very fine quest rewards at the end of it. In this guide, we'll walk you through where to find Thiollier and how to start his questline, before delving into every step of the quest and what to do at each moment. Here's everything you need to know about Thiollier's questline in Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree.
Thiollier questline steps
We have a full walkthrough below, but first here is a quick summary of the steps to complete Thiollier questline in the Elden Ring DLC:
- Speak to Thiollier at the Pillar Path Cross in the Gravesite Ruins.
- Speak to Moore at the Main Gate Cross outside Belurat.
- Talk to Moore again to receive the Black Syrup item.
- Bring the Black Syrup to Thiollier.
- Ask Thiollier about the Black Syrup.
- Tell Thiollier "I'm weary of life" to receive Thiollier's Concoction.
- Journey into the Rauh Base or past Bonny Village to break Miquella's charm.
- (Optional) Speak to Leda and "Suggest Thiollier".
- Speak to Thiollier at the Pillar Path Cross.
- Reload the area and speak to Thiollier again to hear he's heading south.
- Descend into the Fissure at the bottom of the Cerulean Coast.
- Proceed through the Stone Coffin Fissure region.
- Defeat the Putrescent Knight.
- Speak to Thiollier in the Garden of Deep Purple.
- Reload the area and speak to Thiollier again.
- Imbibe St. Trina's Nectar four times.
- Pass on St. Trina's words to Thiollier.
- Try to pass on St. Trina's words to Thiollier again.
- Reload the area and survive Thiollier's invasion.
- Speak to Thiollier again.
- Imbibe St. Trina's Nectar twice more.
- Pass on St. Trina's most recent words to Thiollier.
- (Optional) Summon Thiollier for the NPC fight in Enir-Ilim.
- (Optional) Ask Ansbach about Thiollier.
- Summon Thiollier for the final boss fight.
- Loot Thiollier's Hidden Needle from the final boss arena.
- Return to St. Trina after defeating the final boss.
Now let's explain each of those steps in greater detail for those who aren't sure what to do next in Thiollier's quest.
Important: Complete Thiollier's quest before Enir-Ilim
It's possible to accidentally lock yourself out of finishing Thiollier's questline by progressing too far in the main story before completing all of the above steps.
Once you reach beyond the Cleansing Chamber Anteroom Site Of Grace inside Enir-Ilim, Thiollier will disappear from the map. If you completed his questline before this point, you will be able to summon him for the NPC fight in Enir-Ilim. If you haven't completed his quest by this point, then he will simply disappear forever.
So if you haven't completed everything else in Thiollier's questline before this point, then you won't be able to experience Thiollier's full story.
How to start Thiollier's quest
Where to find Thiollier
You can first find Thiollier sitting next to the Pillar Path Cross in the Gravesite Ruins - the first region of the Land Of Shadow. To get there, cross the Ensis Greatbridge in the north of the region and then turn right at the Castle Front Site of Grace. Follow the road southeast and then turn left when the path splits just past the encampment. You should see a Miquella's Cross at the end of the path; next to it is Thiollier.
Speak to Thiollier and he'll tell you a little about himself; namely that he's weak and his only proficiency is in poison. Feel free to peruse his shop of poisonous goodies before moving on.
How to begin Thiollier's quest
Once you've spoken to Thiollier, head to the Main Gate Cross just outside the Belurat, Tower Settlement legacy dungeon. This can be found by following the road a short distance west from the Three-Path Cross Site Of Grace in the centre of the Gravesite Plains. There, speak to Moore if you haven't already.
Specifically, select the option to "Talk to Moore", and he'll tell you that he's been holding an item for Thiollier. He'll give the item - Black Syrup - to you, and ask you to pass it on to Thiollier. Though it may seem like Moore's questline more than anyone else's, this also marks the beginning of Thiollier's quest.
How to get Thiollier's Concoction
Speak to Thiollier at the Pillar Path Cross again, and select the following dialogue options:
- "Give black syrup".
- "Ask about black syrup".
- "I'm weary of life".
When you first give him the Black Syrup, he'll wax lyrical about it for a while. Then when you ask him about it, he'll tell you that if you ever feel weary of life, he can provide something for you. Go straight ahead and tell him that you're weary of life, and he'll give you Thiollier's Concoction for free. You can also buy more Thiollier's Concoction from him at his shop for 30,000 Runes.
Breaking Miquella's Charm
The next stage of Thiollier's questline requires you to first reach either Rauh Base or the eastern section of Scadu Altus beyond Bonny Village. Progress along either of these paths far enough, and you'll hear a great shattering sound. Moments later you'll receive a notification:
Somewhere, a great rune has broken...
And so too has a powerful charm.
Once this happens, speak to Thiollier again at the Pillar Path Cross, and he'll tell you that, with Miquella's charm no longer affecting him, he's feeling haunted by memories of St. Trina - Miquella's sleep-giving alternate self.
(Optional) Speak to Leda about Thiollier
You can also, either before or after speaking to Thiollier, head to the Highroad Cross Site Of Grace where Leda is located, and talk to her after the lifting of Miquella's charm. She'll resolve to start weeding out the unworthy from the group. While this is delving more into Leda's quest than Thiollier's, you can get a little bit of extra dialogue about Thiollier from her by selecting the option, "Suggest Thiollier".
Don't worry, this won't do anything drastic. Leda will tell you that, given Thiollier's love of St. Trina, she can't see him as anything other than an ally to Miquella, and so she won't make any moves against him. It also won't stop you from then picking one of the other dialogue options while speaking to Leda, so you'll be free to continue her quest as normal too.
Speak to Thiollier to hear he's heading south
After speaking to Thiollier the first time following the breaking of Miquella's charm, reload the area and speak to Thiollier again, for the final time in this location at the Pillar Path Cross. He'll tell you that he's heading south, in search of deep-purple water lilies that he heard Moore once speak about. Apparently they bloom on the southern shore, so he's heading there to track down St. Trina.
What if you found St. Trina before Thiollier?
If you managed to break Miquella's charm and reach the end of the Stone Coffin Fissure region before even meeting Thiollier, then when you first meet Thiollier at the Pillar Path Cross, you have the option to tell Thiollier where he can find St. Trina. He will then be at the Garden Of Deep Purple the next time you reload the area.
Head to the Fissure
The next stage of Thiollier's quest involves quite a lot of travel. First you need to reach the Cerulean Coast, then the Fissure entrance on the south coast, and then you need to conquer the entire underground Fissure sub-region as well. So let's dive into... all of that.
Reaching the Cerulean Coast
We have a guide on how to reach the Cerulean Coast in Shadow Of The Erdtree, because the path is quite obscure. But simply put, you need to follow the Ellac River down south below the Gravesite Plain. Start at the Castle Front Site Of Grace outside Castle Ensis, then take the lower path southeast, to the right of the path that led you to Thiollier's previous location. Turn left just before where the Bloodfiends are fighting Messmer's soldiers, and follow the path left into a poisonous swamp area.
From here, follow the curving path to the left, and once you reach the river past the Vulgar Militia, head into the cave behind the giant Miranda Flower. Take the left path when it splits, and follow it until you reach the Ellac River Site Of Grace.
After that, it's just a long trek south down the river to reach the Cerulean Coast. Use the large rocks as platforms until you reach the ground, then just keep charging south. When the path opens up into a clearing, you'll see a Furnace Golem which you can either kill or bypass for now; and just beyond that, you'll find the Cerulean Coast Site Of Grace.
Reaching the Fissure entrance
From the Cerulean Coast Site Of Grace, this middle phase of the journey is much easier. Just head directly south, killing or avoiding enemy threats as you see them. If you haven't yet found the Map Fragment for the Cerulean Coast, then head to its marker in the fog of war of the map, because it'll take you fairly close to where you need to go anyway.
If you've revealed this part of the map, your goal is to reach the peninsula sticking out of the southern edge of the Cerulean Coast. Follow the road past the Spirit Worms and the ruin, and you'll soon come across a gigantic hole in the ground. This is the entrance to the Fissure, a sub-region below the Cerulean Coast. Carefully parkour down all the way to the bottom, where you'll find the Fissure Site Of Grace.
If you came here before Miquella's charm was broken, then the entrance to the sub-region is sealed off by a magical barrier. With Miquella's charm broken, however, you are free to enter the Fissure itself.
Heading through the Fissure
The Fissure
The Fissure sub-region in Shadow Of The Erdtree is lengthy but fairly linear. Your main enemies in this region are Bloodfiends, Skeletons, and Abnormal Stone Clusters (the wierd stone worm things you see outside Evergaols in base Elden Ring). Stay patient and tackle everything carefully, and this region won't pose too much of an issue for you.
Once you reach the Fissure Depths Site Of Grace, head up the stairs and jump off the top of the giant stone statue's head in front of you. You will fall a very great distance, but don't worry, you won't take any fall damage. When you finally reach the bottom, you'll find yourself in a beautiful boss arena: the Garden of Deep Purple.
The Garden of Deep Purple
Take a few steps into the Garden of Deep Purple and you'll be assailed by a terrifying boss: the Putrescent Knight. This guy is no joke, and it may take you a few attempts to get used to his aggressive combos - particularly when he jumps off his mount, and both Knight and mount start attacking you together.
You can make the fight slightly easier by summoning Thiollier to help you using the gold summon sign on the ground near where you land. I didn't bother with this; my key breakthrough with the Putrescent Knight was learning that you have more time between his attacks than you think - he just makes it look like he's about to attack when he actually is giving you enough time to pop a heal or recover your stamina. Be patient, don't get greedy, and you'll finish him off.
Finding Thiollier again
Once you beat the Putrescent Knight and optionally rest at the Garden of Deep Purple Site Of Grace, head down the path in front of the Grace and you'll finally see Thiollier again, slumped in a pool of purple nectar next to the godly St. Trina herself. Speak to Thiollier, and he'll explain that he's drifting off in St. Trina's poison, and to let him be. He also warns you against taking the nectar yourself, because it will kill you.
After this point, you can reload the area and speak to Thiollier again, and he'll beseech St. Trina to grant him more of her poison. He'll also tell you once again to leave him be.
Imbibing St. Trina's Nectar
Imbibe the Nectar four times in a row
Despite Thiollier's words of warning, to progress this quest you must now imbibe St. Trina's nectar. To do this, go up to St. Trina and interact with her, then select "Imbibe nectar". Doing so will kill you, which is intended. When you respawn, pick up your runes and then imbibe the nectar once again.
Keep imbibing the nectar and killing yourself, and the fourth time round, after you die you will hear St. Trina speak to you:
"Make Miquella stop... Don't turn the poor thing into a god..."
When you respawn, speak to Thiollier and pass on St. Trina's words. He'll become angry with you, thinking that you're lying to him, and he'll warn you not to speak those words again.
Pay him no heed! Immediately try to pass on St. Trina's words to him again. He'll tell you that he'll never forgive you.
Defeat Thiollier
Reload the area, and when you attempt to head towards St. Trina's cave, you'll find the way blocked. Thiollier invades you at this point, and will fight you using his poison-spewing Perfume Bottles.
He's pretty easy to defeat, just pay the poison no mind, get up close and personal, and finish him off. As he's told you, he's weak as a kitten really.
Pass on St. Trina's words
Once you've survived the invasion, go into the cave and speak to Thiollier again. He'll lament his weakness, and ask you to tell him what St. Trina said.
You won't be able to respond at this point, so leave him be and go to St. Trina. Imbibe her nectar two more times to hear the following dialogue from her:
"Godhood would be Miquella's prison. A caged divinity... is beyond saving."
"You must kill Miquella... Grant him forgiveness."
After this final dialogue, speak to Thiollier again and pass on St. Trina's last words to you. He'll - yet again - consider it a lie, but will question himself in his final moments, and implore St. Trina to visit him in his eternal sleep.
After this point, you can reload the area and interact with Thiollier again, but he'll only breathe loudly at you ("A-Ah"). You can also continue to imbibe St. Trina's nectar, but she will simply repeat her final instruction to you.
Summon Thiollier for the Enir-Ilim NPC fight
If you have completed all the previous steps in Thiollier's quest before you reach the Cleansing Room Antechamber Site Of Grace in Enir-Ilim, then you will be able to summon Thiollier for the next fight against Leda and her allies.
This fight potentially allows you to summon multiple allies if you have completed their quests; obviously Thiollier is one, but you can also summon Ansbach and the Hornsent if you sided with them both during their quests.
If you did not gain any of these characters as allies, you'll still be able to summon Sanguine Noble Nataan as a backup helper during the fight against Leda, Dane, and the rest. However, if you see Sanguine Noble Nataan, it means you didn't fully complete all the previous steps before getting to this fight in Enir-Ilim, which means you can't get Thiollier's final quest reward (explained in the next step).
Summon Thiollier for the final boss fight
If you completed all the previous steps in Thiollier's questline perfectly and in time before reaching the point of no return at the Cleansing Room Antechamber, then when you reach the final boss fight of the DLC you'll be able to summon Thiollier to fight with you. His summon sign will appear on the left just outside the fog wall of the final boss arena.
Optionally, you can also speak to Ansbach just before the final boss fight, if you managed to complete his questline as well and summoned him in addition to Thiollier in the previous fight against Leda and her allies. This isn't mandatory, but you are able to ask Ansbach specifically about Thiollier in the previous fight, in which case he'll remark the following:
"I am afraid I underestimated the lad. Appearing frail in both body and mind, I presumed he'd be like to stumble upon the field of battle... What a fool I was. He serves another master, but Sir Thiollier performed magnificently. Perhaps he too quivers with anticipation. As do we."
Now for the final step in Thiollier's questline. Make sure you summon Thiollier for the final boss, and once you defeat them (this may take some time), you will be able to loot Thiollier's final quest rewards from his body in the boss arena: Thiollier's Hidden Needle, and Thiollier's Armor Set.
Thiollier himself will be dead (as will Ansbach if you summoned him as well), so it's a bittersweet end to his story. But hey, at least he fulfilled his master St. Trina's wishes at the last.
Return to St. Trina after the final boss
While this is technically the end of Thiollier's quest, I'll just take this moment to finish explaining St. Trina's quest as well, since the two are inextricably linked.
To finish the quest entirely, you must proceed through Enir-Ilim and defeat the final boss of Shadow Of The Erdtree. After that's done, return to the Garden Of Deep Purple and proceed into St. Trina's cave.
St. Trina will have fallen to the ground, presumably dead along with her other half, Miquella. In front of her, you can loot St. Trina's Blossom, a flower you can put in your hair which technically acts as a Helmet:
"St. Trina's life withered and fell, as fleeting as the seasons. At her last, she left a single water lily.
Slightly boosts max FP.
Despite the velvety-purple hue, the flower is in no way poisonous - it merely blooms in quietude."
Thiollier questline rewards
Complete every step of Thiollier's questline perfectly, and you'll end up with the following rewards:
- St. Trina's Smile
- Thiollier's Hidden Needle
- Thiollier's Mask
- Thiollier's Garb
- Thiollier's Trousers
- Thiollier's Gloves
- St. Trina's Blossom
This is in addition to the incidental rewards from the required fights against the Putrescent Knight, Leda and her allies, and the final boss of the DLC.
That wraps up this comprehensive guide to completing Thiollier's questline in Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree. It's a tricky and sometimes confusing quest that involves a lot of travel through some rather dangerous areas of the Land of Shadow. Make sure you're prepared with our guides on the best weapons, best armor sets, best spells, and best builds in Elden Ring. And if you want to get stuck into the other quests the Shadow Of The Erdtree DLC has to offer, make sure you check out our walkthrough for the Ymir questline as well.