Elden Ring guide: Heretical Rise Tower, how to find the invisible snow bridge

Elden Ring’s Heretical Rise Tower has one of the game’s most confusing puzzles, mostly because you can’t see the solution, even after you’ve found it. The Heretical Rise Tower is located in the middle of the Mountaintops of Giants and is sealed by a gate and a riddle that requires you to find an alternate entrance to the tower using an invisible bridge.

We’ve put together a walkthrough to help you find this hidden pathway and access the upper balcony of the Heretical Rise Tower.

How to find the invisible bridge

Image: From Software via Polygon

The bridge is located across the valley to the north of the tower. To get to the starting point, go to the Freezing Lake Site of Grace and head west up the cliff. You’ll see a large outcropping of rocks with several skeletons on top of it and a few in front. Jump up the rocks and kill the skeleton archers, then move south to the area that overhangs the valley.

The start of the bridge

Image: From Software via Polygon

The bridge is now directly in front of you, so you’ll just have to walk forward and trust the process. If you don’t quite feel safe stepping toward the abyss, you could also equip a bow and fire arrows at your feet. If the arrow seems to float, then you’re good to step there; if it sails down to the snow below, it isn’t quite safe.

Image: From Software via Polygon

The bridge’s path

The bridge will guide you all the way up to the base of the tower, which you can see clinging to the cliff to your south; however, that’s not where you actually need to go. Instead, about two-thirds of the way across, you’ll need to turn left where you’ll find an invisible staircase that leads up to the tower’s balcony.

Image: From Software via Polygon

To find this staircase, you’ll almost certainly have to shoot arrows or throw Ruin Fragments at it. There is a slight mist that appears around the stairs, making the journey a little more certain.

Once you’re successfully ascending, just follow the stairs up to the balcony above on your right.

How to complete the tower

Once inside you’ll quickly be ambushed by several tiny stone gargoyle enemies. After you kill them, head to the bottom of the tower and open its locked door before returning to the room you first entered. Next, head up the stairs to the tower’s upper level where you’ll find an elevator. Ride the elevator up, then walk out the door where you’ll find another enemy to kill. Take that one out and continue your way up to a chest that contains the Founding Rain of Stars spell, and you’ll have successfully completed the Heretical Rise tower.