To complete Count Ymir’s questline in Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree, begin at the Cathedral of Manus Metyr, collect Ymir’s Ruins Maps, ring the bells at the Finger Ruins of Rhia, Dheo, and Miyr, defeat Metyr, and then resolve the confrontation with Jolán and Ymir. Your final conversation with Jolán presents a permanent choice: an Iris of Grace gives the Swordhand of Night Jolán spirit ash, while an Iris of Occultation gives the Sword of Night.
The sequence is easy to interrupt because the second ruins route is hidden behind the O Mother gesture and the final route opens only after Ymir leaves his throne. Follow the order below, exhaust dialogue whenever instructed, and do not give Jolán an Iris until you have decided which reward you want.
What do you need to do to finish Count Ymir’s questline?
The quest is a three-bell progression centered on the Cathedral of Manus Metyr. Ymir gives you the first map and the Hole-Laden Necklace, then sends you to the first Finger Ruins. After that, you must open a route to the second ruins with the O Mother gesture, return for more dialogue, and finally reveal the passage beneath Ymir’s throne.
The complete order is:
- Meet Count Ymir at the Cathedral of Manus Metyr.
- Take the Hole-Laden Necklace and the first Ruins Map.
- Ring the bell at Finger Ruins of Rhia.
- Return to Ymir for the second Ruins Map and exhaust Jolán’s dialogue.
- Use the O Mother gesture at the Shadow Keep Back Gate to open Hinterland.
- Ring the bell at Finger Ruins of Dheo.
- Return to the cathedral, exhaust dialogue, reload the area, and use the ladder beneath Ymir’s throne.
- Ring the bell at Finger Ruins of Miyr, then defeat Metyr.
- Return to the cathedral and defeat Jolán followed by Count Ymir.
- Reload once more and give Jolán either an Iris of Grace or an Iris of Occultation.
This ordering follows the PowerPyx walkthrough published June 22, 2024. It is a third-party guide, so progression behavior can vary with game version or an individual save state.
Where do you meet Count Ymir?
Count Ymir is seated inside the Cathedral of Manus Metyr. Reach the cathedral through the route that passes Moorth Ruins and Bonny Village, then speak with Ymir on his throne.
Collect the items that start the quest
When you first speak with Ymir, take the Hole-Laden Necklace and the first Ruins Map. The necklace and map establish the bell sequence; the map is your instruction for the first Finger Ruins destination.
Do not leave the cathedral without speaking to Ymir until his initial conversation is exhausted. The quest’s next destination is tied to this handoff, and returning to the cathedral after each major objective is part of the progression rather than optional flavor.
How do you reach Finger Ruins of Rhia?
Finger Ruins of Rhia are along the coastline southeast of Cerulean Coast. Follow the first Ruins Map from Ymir to the ruins and locate the bell in that area.
Ring the first bell
- Leave the Cathedral of Manus Metyr with the first Ruins Map in your inventory.
- Travel toward the coastline southeast of Cerulean Coast.
- Search Finger Ruins of Rhia for the bell.
- Interact with the bell to sound it.
- Return to the Cathedral of Manus Metyr.
The bell interaction is the objective at Rhia. You do not need to solve a separate dialogue choice there; the important confirmation is that the bell has been rung before you go back to Ymir.
What to do when you return
Speak with Ymir again to receive the second Ruins Map. Then speak with Jolán in the cathedral and exhaust her dialogue. Jolán’s conversation is a required progression check for the next phase, so continue talking until she has no further lines rather than stopping after her first response.
How do you open the route to Finger Ruins of Dheo?
Finger Ruins of Dheo cannot be reached through the ordinary route until you activate the O Mother gesture at the Shadow Keep Back Gate. The gesture is found on cliffs northeast of Bonny Village.
Find the O Mother gesture
- Travel to the cliffs northeast of Bonny Village.
- Search the cliff area for the O Mother gesture.
- Acquire the gesture before attempting to open the Hinterland route.
The gesture is the key item for this transition. If the route does not open, the usual cause is attempting the statue interaction without first collecting O Mother.
Use O Mother at the Shadow Keep Back Gate
- Go to the Shadow Keep Back Gate Site of Grace.
- Stand in front of the praying statue.
- Open the gesture menu and perform O Mother.
- Wait for the route to Hinterland to open.
- Proceed through Hinterland toward Finger Ruins of Dheo.
The gesture must be performed at the statue in front of the Shadow Keep Back Gate Site of Grace. Using O Mother elsewhere does not perform this quest step.
How do you ring the bell at Finger Ruins of Dheo?
Once the statue has opened the path to Hinterland, travel through that newly available route to Finger Ruins of Dheo and sound the bell there.
- Enter Hinterland through the opened passage.
- Continue to Finger Ruins of Dheo.
- Locate the bell within the ruins.
- Interact with it to ring the second bell.
- Return to the Cathedral of Manus Metyr.
This is the second bell in the chain. The route is gated by the gesture activation, not by a new map item, so retrace the statue step if Hinterland remains inaccessible.
Complete the cathedral conversations again
Back at the cathedral, speak with Ymir and Jolán and exhaust both conversations. These dialogues prepare the final phase. If either character still has dialogue, continue speaking before trying to interact with Ymir’s throne.
How do you reveal the passage beneath Ymir’s throne?
The final route appears only after the Dheo objective and the required cathedral dialogue. Reload the cathedral so Ymir is no longer sitting on the throne, then interact with the throne itself. A ladder is revealed beneath it.
- After ringing Dheo’s bell, return to the cathedral.
- Exhaust Ymir’s dialogue.
- Exhaust Jolán’s dialogue.
- Reload the cathedral area.
- Confirm that Ymir is no longer on his throne.
- Interact with the throne.
- Use the ladder that appears to descend below the cathedral.
Reloading is a deliberate quest step here. If the throne still behaves as a normal seat, leave the area and reload again after confirming that both conversations were completed.
How do you reach Finger Ruins of Miyr and trigger Metyr?
The ladder beneath the throne leads to Finger Ruins of Miyr. Descend, find the final bell, and ring it. Sounding this bell triggers the Metyr encounter.
- Descend the ladder revealed under Ymir’s throne.
- Enter Finger Ruins of Miyr.
- Find the bell in the ruins.
- Interact with the bell to sound the final bell.
- Prepare for the Metyr encounter that follows.
Miyr is the third and final bell location. The encounter is not triggered by the Rhia or Dheo bells; it begins after the bell beneath the throne has been rung.
What if the final route does not appear?
- Confirm that Rhia’s bell was rung.
- Confirm that you returned to Ymir and collected the second Ruins Map.
- Confirm that you found O Mother and performed it at the praying statue at the Shadow Keep Back Gate.
- Confirm that Dheo’s bell was rung.
- Return to the cathedral and exhaust both Ymir’s and Jolán’s dialogue.
- Reload the cathedral before trying the throne again.
These checks follow the quest’s dependency order. Skipping one of them can leave the throne without the ladder interaction.
What happens after you ring Miyr’s bell?
Ringing the bell at Finger Ruins of Miyr triggers Metyr. Defeat Metyr, then return to the Cathedral of Manus Metyr for the final confrontation involving Jolán and Count Ymir.
Defeat Jolán and Count Ymir in the cathedral
- Return to the cathedral after defeating Metyr.
- Approach Ymir’s throne area.
- Defeat Jolán when she attacks.
- After Jolán is defeated, defeat Count Ymir.
Jolán attacks first, followed by Ymir. Treat these as two successive encounters rather than expecting both to resolve simultaneously. Once both are defeated, reload the cathedral to make Jolán available for the reward conversation.
Which Iris should you give Jolán?
After the Metyr encounter and the cathedral fights, reload the area and speak with Jolán. You must choose between two Iris items, and the walkthrough reports that the choice locks out the other reward.
| Item given to Jolán | Reward | Reward type | Choice consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iris of Grace | Swordhand of Night Jolán | Spirit ash | Prevents receiving the Sword of Night from this choice |
| Iris of Occultation | Sword of Night | Sword weapon | Prevents receiving the Swordhand of Night Jolán spirit ash from this choice |
Choose Iris of Grace for the spirit ash
Give Jolán an Iris of Grace if you want the Swordhand of Night Jolán spirit ash. This is the summon-oriented reward in the quest’s final choice.
Choose Iris of Occultation for the sword
Give Jolán an Iris of Occultation if you want the Sword of Night. This is the weapon reward rather than the spirit ash.
Decide before interacting with Jolán’s reward prompt
Because the rewards are mutually exclusive according to the guide, decide which item matters more before giving Jolán an Iris. The quest does not offer both rewards from one resolution, so do not treat the first choice as a temporary selection.
Can you complete the quest after the sealing tree is burned?
The walkthrough says Ymir and Jolán remain available after the sealing tree is burned and that the quest can be completed after the story. This should be read as the guide’s reported progression behavior, not as a universal guarantee for every game version, patch, or save state.
If you are late in the expansion, check the cathedral before assuming the quest is unavailable. The same sequence still depends on the three bells, the O Mother gesture, the dialogue checks, and the throne reload.
Count Ymir questline checklist
Use this checklist to identify the first missing objective if the next event does not occur:
- Cathedral arrival: reached through Moorth Ruins and Bonny Village.
- Initial handoff: spoke with Ymir and received the Hole-Laden Necklace and first Ruins Map.
- Rhia: traveled to the coastline southeast of Cerulean Coast and rang the first bell.
- Second map: returned to Ymir and received the second Ruins Map.
- Jolán dialogue: spoke with her and exhausted her lines after the Rhia visit.
- O Mother: found the gesture on the cliffs northeast of Bonny Village.
- Statue activation: used O Mother before the praying statue at the Shadow Keep Back Gate Site of Grace.
- Dheo: entered Hinterland and rang the second bell.
- Final dialogue: exhausted both Ymir’s and Jolán’s dialogue after Dheo.
- Throne reload: reloaded the cathedral and confirmed Ymir had left the throne.
- Miyr: descended the ladder and rang the final bell.
- Metyr: defeated the boss encounter triggered by Miyr’s bell.
- Cathedral battle: defeated Jolán first, then Count Ymir.
- Reward: reloaded the cathedral and gave Jolán one Iris, knowing the choice is permanent for that playthrough.
Common mistakes and their fixes
Going to Dheo without O Mother
The route to Hinterland is opened by the gesture at the statue, not simply by discovering the ruins on the map. Return to the cliffs northeast of Bonny Village, obtain O Mother, and perform it at the Shadow Keep Back Gate statue.
Leaving Jolán’s dialogue unfinished
Jolán must be spoken to after the Rhia return and again after the Dheo objective. Continue the conversation until it is exhausted at both points.
Trying the throne while Ymir is still seated
The ladder is revealed after a cathedral reload in which Ymir is no longer on the throne. If the throne has no interaction, reload after completing the required conversations.
Expecting the Metyr fight at an earlier ruin
Rhia and Dheo advance the map sequence, but Miyr’s bell is the trigger for Metyr. Reach Miyr through the ladder under the throne before expecting that encounter.
Giving Jolán an Iris without choosing a reward
The Iris determines whether you receive the Swordhand of Night Jolán spirit ash or the Sword of Night. Select the reward you want first because the guide reports that one choice excludes the other.
What is the shortest reliable route through the quest?
The shortest reliable route is not a speedrun shortcut; it is the sequence that avoids backtracking caused by missed dialogue or the hidden Hinterland trigger.
- Reach the cathedral through Moorth Ruins and Bonny Village and take Ymir’s necklace and first map.
- Ring Rhia’s bell southeast of Cerulean Coast.
- Return for Ymir’s second map, then finish Jolán’s dialogue.
- Collect O Mother northeast of Bonny Village and use it at the Shadow Keep Back Gate statue.
- Cross into Hinterland, ring Dheo’s bell, and return to finish both characters’ dialogue.
- Reload the cathedral, use the throne ladder, and ring Miyr’s bell.
- Defeat Metyr, then Jolán and Ymir at the cathedral.
- Reload and make the Iris choice with Jolán.
Following this order keeps each map, route-opening gesture, dialogue check, and encounter in the state expected by the walkthrough.
Reward decision: summon or weapon?
The final decision is between a spirit ash and a sword. Choose the Swordhand of Night Jolán reward if your priority is adding Jolán as a summon; choose the Sword of Night if you want the quest’s weapon reward instead.
| If you value… | Select… | You receive… |
|---|---|---|
| A summon associated with Jolán | Iris of Grace | Swordhand of Night Jolán spirit ash |
| A weapon reward | Iris of Occultation | Sword of Night |
The guide does not report a way to obtain both rewards from the same Iris resolution. Make the choice only after you have completed Metyr and the cathedral fights, when Jolán becomes available for the final conversation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I start Count Ymir’s quest if I have already progressed far into the expansion?
The walkthrough reports that Ymir and Jolán remain available after the sealing tree is burned and that the quest can be completed after the story. Because that behavior is guide-reported rather than an official guarantee, check the cathedral on your own save before assuming the opportunity is lost.
Why is the Finger Ruins of Dheo route still closed?
The route depends on a specific gesture interaction, not merely on visiting the cathedral or collecting a map. Find O Mother on the cliffs northeast of Bonny Village and perform it directly before the praying statue at the Shadow Keep Back Gate Site of Grace.
What does the Hole-Laden Necklace do in this quest?
Ymir gives the Hole-Laden Necklace together with the first Ruins Map during the opening cathedral conversation. Its practical role in the walkthrough is to mark the start of the bell sequence; the map supplies the first destination.
Is the Swordhand of Night Jolán reward a weapon?
No. It is a spirit ash obtained by giving Jolán an Iris of Grace. The alternative Iris of Occultation reward is the Sword of Night, which is the weapon option.
When should I make the Iris decision?
Wait until Metyr has been defeated and the Jolán-and-Ymir cathedral confrontation is complete. After reloading the cathedral, speak with Jolán and choose the Iris only after deciding whether you want her spirit ash or the Sword of Night, because the guide reports that the rewards are mutually exclusive.