Elden Ring is filled with wonder and gloomy places like caves and dungeons, and traversing through them during the night becomes difficult. Though torches are the traditional way of lighting up the path, lanterns are a more practical approach. With the waist-worn lantern, you have free hands to wield the sword and shield.
Lantern is a new addition to the game, used as an alternative to the torch. It is worn around the waist and illuminates the surroundings. This is one of the reusable tools that can aid you throughout the game. Acquiring Lantern is the tricky bit, but this Elden Ring guide has everything covered.
Elden Ring gives you two ways of finding the Lantern. Merchant NPCs sell lanterns for a cost of 1,800 Runes. You can purchase it from either the Isolated Merchant or the Nomadic Merchant.
Buy Lantern from The Isolated Merchant
The Isolated Merchant is your first go-to person for getting the hand lantern in Elden Ring. He’s located inside the Isolated Merchant’s Shack, just below the Witchbane Ruins, in the southwestern part of the Weeping Peninsula—southern Limgrave.
To reach the Isolated Merchant’s Shack, start at the First Step of Grace and proceed southeast toward the Bridge of Sacrifice.
Make your way through the Bridge and continue your path south of the plane until you find yourself at a crossroads. From here, you must travel west to the path on your right side leading to Ailing Village. Continue west from the village and see a big church called the Church of Pilgrimage.
Now, head south and into the valley down below, and you should eventually reach the Isolated Merchant’s Shack, just south of Witchbane Ruins.
Buy Lantern from The Nomadic Merchant
The other merchant is located east of Liurna near the Lake Shore. This site is north of Limgrave, just on the other side of Stormveil Castle, and can be accessed by battling and defeating Godrick.
If you do not have access to the castle yet, you can still reach it by skirting it. To do this, you need to get to the Stormhill Shack Site of Grace, then head north, following the path that leads to the castle’s bridge. Now, follow the dirt path below it until you reach the old finger reader next to another broken bridge.
Keep traveling north along the trail until you reach the edge. To the west of it, you should find another trail below you, which you can drop down to. This trail should lead you to the other side, where you can climb up again and continue heading north.
Now, follow the path next to the mountain until you reach the Lake-Facing Cliffs Site of Grace. From that point on, follow the path northwest of it, and you should eventually reach the Liurna Lake Shore Site of Grace and, hence, the Nomadic Merchant.
How to Use the Lantern in Elden Ring
After you have obtained the lantern, open your menu and head to the Equipment section. From there, you can put your lantern into one of your Quick Slots next to your flasks. You can then leave the menu and switch to the lantern from your flasks, which you can turn on by pressing the corresponding button (the USE button on PlayStation).
The lantern in Elden Ring doesn’t use any resources to keep burning, so it’s up to you if you want to keep it on all the time, but do remember that if you die, it’ll be turned off automatically and you’ll have to turn it back on again manually.
