Ranni's quest: Blaidd (SPOILERS)

[Artimise Flare]

Dunno how many people would see this as a spoiler but I'm going to hide it as if it is for anyone reading.

Pardon the mildly melodramatic writing below.

So...I completed Ranni's quest line up to the point where I put a ring on it. I was kinda feeling a ways about having to kill him just before the lake of rot, but didn't realize that the Invader and actual NPC apparently are not one and the same. Ranni ascended to the stars and i returned to her tower to see if anything had changed. Low and behold my boy is there, and I was for a fleeting moment happy that I had not killed one of my favorite characters.

Then he attacked me, and i remembered that he has no will of his own, and something akin to the clone troopers in Star Wars, his desires and such have been overwritten by the demands of the Fingers to serve retribution upon Ranni for daring to disobey them.

I ran, instead of killing him. To my understanding, there is no way to save him. So I now have to choose to let him be and wander and suffer like Radahn did in Caelid, or treat him like old yeller and grant him the mercy of at least a warriors death.

I've heard Fromsoft games tend to be pretty tragic, but dang, why did they have to do best boy dirty like this :(. What did ya'll do? Did you take him out to pasture, or did you leave him be?

[Sparhawk 59]

There is no way to avoid killing Blaidd in Elden Ring. You will need to fight Blaidd before visiting the Lake of Rot if you are following Ranni's questline. This is a part of the quest, so you must complete it or you will not be able to progress

[SVΛ]

Originally posted by Sparhawk 57:

He already fought the baleful shadow that takes on the appearance of Blaidd.

OP, on my first playthrough, I killed him for his goodies and to see how the questline progresses. Should I ever get around to doing a second playthrough, I'll probably spare him and hope that Ranni's ending can free him from the control of the Greater Will post-game.

[Winnie]

killing him is much more merciful than letting him live without any purpose, he would "hollow" himself or in this game, becomes mad

[Lord Bob]

Originally posted by Artimise Flare:

What did ya'll do?

Usually I put him out of his misery, simply to get his gear.

Originally posted by Sparhawk 57:

There is no way to avoid killing Blaidd in Elden Ring. You will need to fight Blaidd before visiting the Lake of Rot if you are following Ranni's questline. This is a part of the quest, so you must complete it or you will not be able to progress

The Baleful Shadow invading in front of the entrance to the Lake of Rot is not Blaidd.

Killing Blaidd at any point in the game is entirely optional and does not influence progressing Rannis quest.

[lazyoldman]

That's a good question though. Assuming you let Blaidd be in his mindless rage, then go on to complete the story with whatever ending. Maybe he recovers if you become Elden Lord and exercise your own magical influence?