Elden Ring's Numen were not the only otherworldly visitors searching the Lands Between to claim the Crucible, the primordial power of the Erdtree.
Elden Ring's Numen may have come to the Lands Between for power, only for their long lives to be cut short by the Greater Will. One of the races a player can choose from in character creation, very little is known about the Numen. However, given the important roles given to Numen NPCs, piecing together their origins and intentions is crucial to the lore of Elden Ring.
The Numen are at the center of the most pivotal moments in the known history of the Lands Between, counting Queen Marika among their number. Due to FromSoftware's storytelling style, there's not a lot of information about them, and what information can be found doesn't give a clear picture of this mysterious race's origins. The intrigue around Queen Marika's name in Elden Ring and her Numen ancestry begs the question: where did the Numen come from, and why did they end up in the Lands Between?
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As the vessel of the Elden Ring, Marika rules over the Lands Between, but it's possible that her ancestors opposed the Greater Will, the Outer God who ascended Marika to godhood. The first two pieces of information about the Numen are found in the character creation screen: they are a long-lived race from outside the Lands Between, possibly being from another world. It's also mentioned that they are seldom born, so if their numbers were to have been reduced by the Greater Will, they might have set a plan in motion spanning an age - with Marika at its center.
Elden Ring contains cities hidden below the Lands Between, and among them is the Eternal City. Players are able to access Elden Ring's Eternal City of Nokron after Starscourge Radahn's fight, which is an important location in understanding the Numen. If the player gives Sorcerer Rogier in Roundtable Hold the Black Knifeprint, he'll reveal that the Night of the Black Knives assassins were from the Eternal City. In combination with the item description of the Black Knife Assassins stating that they were rumored to be Numen women with close ties to Marika, it could be assumed that there was a Numen Settlement in the Eternal City, or that the Numen originally created the city later which came later to be inhabited by the Nox, but that there is some sort of a relationship seems certain.
If the Numen are from another world, they wouldn't be the only ones to arrive in the Lands Between, as the Greater Will sent the source of the Elden Ring, the Elden Beast, to the Lands Between from the Cosmos. The answer as to why they chose the Lands Between could lie in the Crucible, which predates Elden Ring's iconic Erdtree. The Crucible is an ancient power. The description of the Crucible incantations reads, "This is a manifestation of the Erdtree's primal vital energies - an aspect of the primordial crucible, where all life was once blended together." If the Crucible is the original source of the energy that fuels the Erdtree, then it is likely what drew both the Numen and the Greater Will to the Lands Between.
If both the Numen and the Greater Will sought the power of the Crucible, then they would have been - and likely were - adversaries. Unlike the Greater Will, who introduced Destined Death to the Lands Between as part of the Elden Ring, there's evidence that the Numen preferred the way of the Crucible, where all life blends together. Because they disagreed with the Greater Will, the Numen were punished, as implied by the description of the Eternal City. It reads, "An ancient city punished for treason against the Greater Will." In order to get revenge and claim power for themselves, the Numen needed a plan, and somebody ambitious enough to execute that plan.
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Marik's story is the center of Elden Ring, and she would be crucial to a Numen plot to blend life together once more. Marika is, at least in part, manipulative and power-hungry, so she would be the perfect candidate to slip into the Greater Will's good graces, only to betray it in an attempt to take full control of the Elden Ring - and the Erdtree by extension - with the godhood granted to her by the Greater Will when she became the Elden Ring's vessel. While Marika's motives remain largely secret, it's known that she removed Destined Death from the Elden Ring upon becoming its vessel. With Destined Death guarded by Elden Ring's Maliketh and his Black Blade, souls are implied to become one with the Erdtree rather than suffer a traditional death. This would make it similar to the Crucible, which would have drawn the Numen to the Lands Between. Hewg will also reveal that he's been tasked by Marika to create a weapon that can slay gods. She most likely wanted to use it on the Greater Will to free herself from its power over her, which would also avenge her people who were punished by the Greater Will.
Though the Numen are pivotal to the lore of Elden Ring, with one of their own having ascended to godhood and ruling the Lands Between as the vessel of the Elden Ring, there is still a great deal around their origins that is shrouded in mystery, despite what's backed up by item descriptions and dialogue within the game. The allure of power and beliefs about life and death drive the motivations of many Elden Ring characters, and the Numen would not be the only otherworldly visitors to be drawn to the Lands Between for the power it holds, whether in the form of the Erdtree or something more primordial. The Greater Will comes from the Cosmos, and other Outer Gods seem to have an interest in the Lands Between, as evidenced by the Frenzied Flame allowing players to cast aside the Greater Will and unlock Elden Ring's Lord of Frenzied Flame ending. It isn't far-fetched to believe that Elden Ring DLC could bring players more information about the Numen, and perhaps introduce them to new otherworldly visitors as well.
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Melissa Sarnowski is a recent graduate from UW-Madison with an English degree and an emphasis on creative writing. She has been a lifelong gamer, enjoying games of all types from the Sims and Stardew Valley to Halo, Resident Evil, and Final Fantasy. With a vivid imagination and endless creativity, writing is both a job and a hobby for her.