>>984058
anon, the story is there but you have to earn it. it's not force fed to you through cutscenes that connect together with easily digestible continuity. the basic premise is this:
major characters:
>Marika is the high priestess of the Golden Order, and the queen of Leyndell
>Godfrey, the first Elden Lord and the father of the Golden Lineage
>Godwyn the Golden, son of Marika and Godfrey, the founder of the Ancient Dragon Cult
>Godrick, son of Marika and Godfrey, weakest of the Golden Lineage
>Morgott, an Omen shunned by the grace of gold and yet a stalwart protector of the Ertree from wanton usurpers
>Mohg, the Omen luminary of the formless mother who wished to usher in a dynasty of blood
>Radagon, a champion of Leyndell with aspirations for the title of Elden Lord
>Miquella, a product of Marika And Radagon's matrimony, the perpetual-child Empyrean
>Malenia, twin sister to Miquella, an Empyrean who from birth was afflicted by Scarlet Rot
>Rennala, high ranking sorceress and headmaster at Raya Lucaria, founder of the Carian Royal Lineage
>Rykard, progeny of Radagon and Rennala with an insatiable greed
>Radahn, legendary warrior that upheld the very cosmos themselves
>Ranni, the youngest of Carian royalty, a practitioner of the occult
secondary characters:
>Melina, the mysterious maiden who desires to mend the world
>Fia, Deathbed Companion who wants to usher in an Age of Darkness by consummating with the Prince of Death to produce a new liege
>Gideon, The All-Knowing who sought to
>Goldmask, a high ranking monk who sought the truth of the Golden Order fundamentalism
>Dung Eater, a blasphemous heretic who'd see the world defiled
alright so here's how it goes:
Once upon a time, during the Age of the Erdtree, the Royal Carian princess, Ranni, encountered a witch while deep in the woods. This unknown woman, who is speculated to be a sorceress of Nox descent, took Ranni into her tutelage. It's speculated that this dabbling in the occult arts is what allowed Ranni to carry out her plan to have her step-brother, Godwyn the Golden, assassinated. Though it's unclear her exact motivations, Ranni sought a method, and proof of such a method's ability, with which she could kill a demi-god. Thus, she learned of the Rune of Death, which was kept well guarded by Marika's brother and Shadowbound Beast, Maliketh, and that it could be weaponized to murder a demi-god. She commanded a company of Black Knife assassins, and on the infamous Night of Black Knives, Godwyn was slain using the rune's power.
Engrieved by this loss, Marika shattered the Elden Ring, a holy artifact of immense power. This in turn caused strife among her demi-god children, as they all clamored to obtain its shards, which then led to the Shattering, a lengthy war between Marika and Radagon's children, and the denizens of the kingdoms from which they hailed. Consequently, the Greater Will, the cosmic godlike entity around which the Golden Order as a religious institution was established, abandoned the land and its people. As a result, the Golden Order's influence started to wane, and those who were once touched by the grace of gold were no longer embraced by its power, and those cursed came be known as the Tarnished. Those who were Tarnished of the grace of gold suffered endless death and reincarnation, and were subsequently exiled from Leyndell, including Marika's own consort, the warrior king Godfrey, as a method by which Leyndell hoped to curtail the loss of the Greater Will's influence and possibly regain its favor.
Hundreds of years have passed since these events, and nothing remains of the world but ruinous and war-torn battlefields and settlements where lifeless corpses, the undead, and demonic entities reside. The demi-gods exist in this dilapidated world seemingly at peace, as outright war has reached a standstill, and left to pursue their own ends as the world around them rots. The Golden Order's devout haven't given up hope for the Greater Will's return, and various traditions were established around such desperation, among them the ritualistic pilgrimage of Tarnished and their Maidens throughout the Lands Between - the remnants of what were the kingdoms of Leyndell, Liurnia, Limgrave, and the like - so they might pay penance to the Greater Will and receive its boons. The Roundtable Hold is a particular sect of Tarnished warriors who have dedicated themselves to the pursuit of the Elden Throne, as they believe that achieving such a title will allow them the ability to mend the Elden Ring, and the world with it, primarily through warfare and forceful acquisition of the shards of the Elden Ring.
You play as an unknown Tarnished warrior who is sent on pilgrimage, at the behest of the Roundtable Hold, to acquire the shards of the Elden Ring, by any means necessary, and become the Elden Lord. Along the way, you learn various truths - about the Greater Will's abandonment, about Marika and Radagon's fusing into an entirely new entity, about Ranni's fealty to another cosmic entity, which was likely her initial motivation to assassinate Godwyn, as she wished to reach her full potential as an Empyrean on her own terms, outside of the Golden Order's influence, among other things - from various characters that ultimately influence the way in which you decide to mend the Elden Ring. You are first approached by Melina, who urges any prospective Elden Lord to strive for a brighter tomorrow by allowing the world to endure without any particular meddling (standard ending). You also may choose to reinstate the Golden Order with a fundamentalist approach, so as to root out the institution's internal corruption (Goldmask ending); alternatively, you may mend the ring in the name of Those Who Live In Death, and embrace eternal undeath (Fia's ending); further still, you may condemn the world to accursed harmony by blighting all and capturing the souls of all life so all may return to the Erdtree's rotten core (Dung Eater's ending); moreover, you could wreathe the world in chaos as the Lord of Frenzied Flame, and condemn the world to destruction; and finally, you may assist Ranni the Witch in achieving her Age of Stars by becoming her consort.
now, stop saying that it doesn't have a story. It has a story, I just laid it out for you. granted, there's some speculation involved, and a lot more worldbuilding than there is actual story, but it's there if you want to engage with it.