Thops is one of the many NPCs you meet in Elden Ring. This fact alone spells trouble for the character since characters created by FromSoftware typically meet a tragic end—and that’s exactly what happened to poor Thops.
In case you’ve missed this, this guide will first discuss how you can progress Thops’ questline up to the point of his demise. It isn’t too long, thankfully. After which, you’ll go right to learning about Thops’ fate.
Table Of Contents
Meeting Thops
We first meet Thops at the Church of Irith in Liurnia of the Lakes. This is the first church you should encounter after you leave Stormveil by exiting it from Godrick’s throne room.
Upon meeting the character, he speaks about Raya Lucaria and how to pass through the magical seal at the academy’s entrance. He also tells you to look for the Academy Glintstone Key and requests you give it to him if you find one.
Take note that Thops won’t accept an Academy Glintstone Key if you only have one in your inventory. Being the good guy that he is, he knows that you need that key as well. What you’ll want to do is to go look for the spare one.
Where to Find an Extra Academy Glintstone Key
The second key is located inside Raya Lucaria. You’ll want to start at the Debate Parlor Site of Grace, the same room where you fought the Red Wolf of Radagon.
Take the exit to the north and look to your left to find a structure with a balcony. There are two staircases that lead up here, you’ll want to head to the staircase that’s furthest from the Debate Parlor. Deal with the enemies in the area as you see fit.
From here, you’ll find a door that doesn’t open from the side you’re on. What you’ll want to do instead is to head to your left and jump over the balcony.
Proceed onwards and jump over the balcony once more to land on a roof. Keep pressing on and you’ll find a couple of Marionette Soldiers. Fight them, run away from them, your call.
To the right of the second Marionette is a ladder. Take this ladder up. You’ll then arrive at a pathway with three Avionette Soldiers waiting for you and a sorcerer at the end. Once again, kill them or run past them.
At the end of the path, you’ll find a roof at the bottom of a ledge. Jump down here, then descend once more. Turn westward to find another roof you can jump onto below you. To the right, there’s one Marionette Soldier waiting for you, and another one waiting ahead.
Turn to the enemy to your right and drop onto the ledge to its left.
Proceed onwards from here and you’ll find yourself on the roofs of the Church of the Cuckoo. Enter the building and use the beams to get closer to the chandeliers. You’ll find the Academy Glintstone Key on one of them.
Giving Thops an Academy Glintstone Key
Once you’ve acquired a spare Academy Glintstone Key, return to Thops and give it to him. He’ll thank you and you’ll get the Erudition Gesture. He’ll then head to the academy where he’ll, unfortunately, meet his end.
You’ll find Thops’s lifeless body at a desk outside the Schoolhouse Classroom Site of Grace. Take the northwestern exit and make a hard right to find him. You can then loot Thop’s Bell Bearing, Academy Glintstone Staff, and Thop’s Barrier from his body.
How Thops Died
There is no in-game lore that explicitly states how Thops met his end. What’s clear, though, is that the Raya Lucaria Academy is no safe place. According to Thops’ own words, his sorceries are “meager” and none of them are particularly great.
Thops may be kind, but it’s highly likely that he’s not a skilled sorcerer yet. Although he did make it to his desk at the Raya Lucaria Academy, it’s very likely that the threats that plague the academy eventually overpowered him.
What’s important, though, is that Thops died doing what he loved: studying at the academy. It also seems like the spell you obtain from him is the final thing he created before he met his demise.
According to the spell’s description, this spell is the “lifelong pursuit of Thops the Bluntstone.”
Interestingly, this spell is very effective against the enemies ahead of this area as Thop’s Barrier is a great way of repelling the Glintstone Pebbles the sorcerers ahead bombard you with.
It’s then likely that it wasn’t sorcerers that killed Thops, but the Wandering Nobles and Avionette Soldiers lurking around in the area. While Thop’s Barrier is effective against spells, it does nothing to hold off melee attacks and bows.
