To say that being Tarnished in Elden Ring is an ordeal is an understatement; it's a curse. All those NPCs look down on them but still order them around and as a cruel joke, their instructions and directions are cryptic and hazy. But that doesn't matter as players always adjust and as the persevering Tarnished they are, they've discovered some ways to make things easier – even cutting corners at some point.
It just so happens that Elden Ring is chock-full of hidden mechanics obscured either through the meager tutorials or deliberately concealed so the developers can have their chuckle. Such is the signature of Soulsborne games. In any case, players keep learning something new in Elden Ring and some of them are like discovering secret superpowers.
Updated May 13, 2022 by Sid Natividad: It has been out for a while now but there are still plenty more secrets to discover in Elden Ring. It's only one of the best things to do in Elden Ring. The whole game is like uncharted waters and players are the voyagers, mapping out the treasures. These treasures are the lesser-known things to do in the game.
Thankfully, players are not about to run out of things to do in Elden Ring. Even now, some relatively fresh activities are still being discovered. So it's only fair to cover them and include them in the list of things to do in this mammoth title. Some of these might even warrant or enhance additional playthroughs, which is always welcome in a game like Elden Ring.
15 Erasing Other Player's Buffs In PvP
This action is mostly for Intelligence-based builds or characters — as if they weren't powerful enough already. They can become even more deadly or annoying in PvP thanks to a high-Intelligence Incantation named Law of Regression. It's a quest-related spell that requires 37 Intelligence and can uncover Radagon's biggest secret.
Players will be pleased to know that it has other uses. If cast near other players whose buffs are active, the spell will erase those buffs. It can even cancel a Lightning Spear mid-flight. It's thus highly useful against some builds in PvP. If not PvP, then it can also dispel some illusory walls and barriers.
14 Using Waterfowl Dance To Skip Areas
The Hand of Malenia might be one of the most disappointing katanas in the face of behemoths like Rivers of Blood or Moonveil, but it has other practical uses. Its skill, Waterfowl Dance, isn't just for flashy points or killing soft enemies in one cast.
Some resourceful players are using it in order to skip some areas or obstacles. Since Waterfowl Dance propels the players forward regardless of the footing, it can then be used to make some impossible jumps. Ledges or platforms that are too far for a running jump can be trivialized with the Waterfowl Dance. Those pipes in the Subterranean Shunning-Grounds? They can be skipped with the Waterfowl Dance.
13 Getting To Crumbling Farum Azula Early
Despite the numerous patches and updates (Update 1.07 at the time of writing), some glitches and exploits are still present that reward speedrunners and NG+ players alike. Any player can reach the Crumbling Farum Azula as soon as they start the game using an exploit called "Wrong Warp." Here's how to do it:
- Go to the Four Belfries on the western banks of Liurnia of the Lakes.
- Grab the Imbued Sword Key in the top-most Belfy/tower on the hill (it's inside a chest).
- Head to one of the Belfries with the words "Crumbling Lands" written nearby (the first tower).
- This will take players to a teaser area in Crumbling Farum Azula.
- Head back to the Roundtable Hold and force-close the game while it's loading.
- Open the game again and load it up. It should load into the playable main area in the Crumbling Farum Azula.
This might or might not get patched out in the future.
12 Very Hard Mode Talismans
As if the game wasn't hard enough already, players can add even more challenges to their challenge runs. Apart from running around naked as a level one wretch, some talismans increase the damage taken by anyone who wears it. It's called Daedicar's Woe.
Players can obtain this talisman by the end of Rya's questline in Volcano Manor. Combined with something like Scorpion Charms and Scarseals, this will plummet the player's defense values deep below negative where even a slight scrape might kill them.
11 Using Torrent To Dodge
Torrent is a gift that keeps on giving in Elden Ring. Apart from being a reliable companion and a good means of travel in the Lands Between, he's also an invincible evasion god. That is assuming the players time these invulnerability frames (I-frames) right. These I-frames occur when mounting or dismounting Torrent.
There's a split second or a second of invulnerability whenever players dismount or mount Torrent. It can even be more generous than the typical medium roll. This is tremendously useful in fights against the 
Fire Giant or some stompy dragons in the late-game areas if players can get the timing right.
10 Skipping Margit The Fell Omen
It's easy to get to Margit, especially if players keep Seabiscuit-ing with Torrent past the guards and the gates. So it's not uncommon for players to stumble upon the cranky geriatric boss too early or too underleveled. At times, Margit even seems like the first brick wall, and in an open-world game no less!
Except he isn't. Margit can be skipped. Players can even proceed through to Liurnia of the Lakes without going through Stormveil Castle. All they have to do is keep running straight from Stormhill Shack instead of turning left where the road diverges. There's always time for Margit later – 20 or 50 levels later; now that's a spanking the old man won't forget!
9 Taking Advantage Of Weather Effects
The beauty in Elden Ring's open-world compared to others is that the weather isn't just a visual effect. It has its functions, especially for players who use fire or lightning incantations, attacks, or spells. As it turns out, effects like rain can enhance or reduce the damage depending on the damage type.
Fire damage, of course, will be reduced under the effects of rain or water. Meanwhile, lightning damage will be increased in the presence of said weather effects or water. It's not much though (around 10% give or take), but it can be useful when it comes to open-world boss fights.
8 Jumping & Crouching To Evade Attacks
Elden Ring's hitboxes put its predecessor Souls games to shame because they're stunningly precise. There are little to no noticeable invisible hitboxes here. This leads to some creative and resourceful shenanigans as rolling or backstepping isn't the only way to dodge attacks.
Players can also jump through or away from some attacks, which is useful as a countermeasure for area ground damage or shockwave slams. Meanwhile, players can duck or crouch against a boss with wide, sweeping lateral attacks and they won't get hit depending on the weapon's size or trajectory. It does take a while to get used to this but it makes the fights a lot easier.
7 Going Back To The Starting Area
New Game players were meant to die in the game's starting area after having just picked and created their characters. It's pointless to grit through that freaky first boss. If players are itching to get their revenge, however, they can do so by inserting an Imbued Stone Key in the Precipice of Anticipation tower in the Four Belfries, located on the western edge of Liurnia of the Lakes.
This lets them go back to the starting area to dish out some well-deserved cold revenge against an enemy that's now on the same level as fodder minions. Beyond that, there's not much to do in that opening area apart from ticking some exploration boxes; it's actually the island to the west of Stormveil Castle.
6 Controlling Torrent Mid-air
Torrent is one of the best blessings to the open-world genre in a video game. In hindsight, he's actually as innovative as Link's climbing and gliding skills in Breath of the Wild. Because Torrent also doubles as a platforming tool once players have gotten used to his double jump.
Players can utilize this double jump to change Torrent's direction and elevation even during falling (as long as the fall is from the first jump). This lets players correct jumping errors with Torrent or even discover some secret areas or platforms. At the very least, players can mitigate fall damage by activating the second jump before landing.