As someone who has spent a lot of time wandering the Roundtable Hold and running Nightlord expeditions in Elden Ring Nightreign, I was relieved to find that unlocking The Forsaken Hollows expansion is far more straightforward than some of FromSoftware’s older secrets. In 2026, the process still follows the same clear checklist, and it does not require hunting for invisible NPCs or deciphering cryptic item descriptions. I only had to meet two progression requirements, then visit the right door in the Roundtable Hold. Once I did, a new chapel opened up, and the expansion content began to appear in a way that felt natural rather than hidden. Here is exactly how I unlocked The Forsaken Hollows, what I found behind the door, and what I wish I had known before I started.

The Two Unlock Conditions I Had to Meet

The first requirement was to defeat two different Nightlord expeditions. The first Tricephalos expedition counts toward this, so I did not need to avoid it or save it for later. For my second clear, I chose Augur because it felt like the gentlest route among the early options. That recommendation is worth repeating: if you want an easier second win, Augur is a sensible target. I treated the two victories as a simple progression gate rather than a challenge to optimize, and that kept the process stress-free.

The second requirement was to unlock both the Undertaker and the Scholar Nightfarers. These are not optional flavor unlocks for this expansion; they are part of the access condition. I made sure both characters were available before I started checking the Roundtable Hold for changes. If you are returning to Nightreign after a break, this is the step I would verify first, because it is easy to assume you have everything when one Nightfarer is still missing.

Requirement	What I Did
Defeat two different Nightlord expeditions	Cleared Tricephalos and chose Augur for my second victory
Include the first Tricephalos expedition	Counted my initial clear toward the total
Unlock both Undertaker and Scholar Nightfarers	Confirmed both were available before checking the door
Visit the Small Jar Merchant in the east wing	Found the door behind him opened into a chapel

Where the New Door Appears

Once both conditions were met, I headed to the Small Jar Merchant in the east wing of the Roundtable Hold. The change is not subtle once you know where to look: the door behind him opens into a chapel. That chapel is the gateway to the new expansion content. I liked this approach because it keeps the unlock inside a familiar hub without turning the process into a scavenger hunt. There is no need to inspect every corner of the world map or wait for a random event. The Roundtable Hold simply reflects that I had completed the necessary steps.

If the door is still closed, I would not panic. I would double-check that both Nightfarers are unlocked, then confirm that I have two distinct Nightlord expedition clears rather than two attempts at the same one. The requirement is about different expeditions, not just repeated victories. For me, the first Tricephalos clear plus a second clear against Augur was enough.

What Opens Up After the Chapel Door

After the chapel opened, I gained access to the new shifting earth event called The Great Hollow and the expedition for the Balancers boss. That was the moment the expansion stopped feeling like a rumor and became part of my active rotation. The Great Hollow fits the expansion’s name well: it feels like the world is shifting around a hidden, forsaken space, and the Balancers expedition gives the new content a clear focal point. I appreciated that the unlock did not dump everything on me at once. Instead, it added new routes and objectives that I could approach at my own pace.

🙂 The key unlocks I noticed were:

• The chapel behind the Small Jar Merchant became accessible.

• The shifting earth event The Great Hollow became available.

• The Balancers boss expedition entered my selection pool.

• Expansion content began appearing in Deep of Night under the right conditions.

A Note About Deep of Night and Matchmaking

One detail I am glad I checked before jumping into Deep of Night is that expansion content there depends on matchmaking with other DLC owners. In other words, owning The Forsaken Hollows myself was not always enough to guarantee that DLC content would appear in a random session. When I played with people I knew who also owned the expansion, the chances were much more predictable. With randoms, it is not guaranteed. That does not make Deep of Night inaccessible, but it does mean I should set expectations before blaming the game for not showing new content.

For me, the safest approach was to coordinate with friends who owned the expansion rather than rely entirely on random matchmaking. If you are playing solo or with strangers, you can still enjoy the chapel unlock, The Great Hollow, and the Balancers expedition, but Deep of Night may not always reflect the expansion. That distinction is important because it prevents confusion later.

My Practical Route for Returning Players

If I were starting this unlock process again in 2026, I would follow this order:

1. Check whether both Undertaker and Scholar are unlocked.

2. Clear two different Nightlord expeditions, including the first Tricephalos run.

3. Pick Augur for the second clear if I want a smoother route.

4. Return to the Roundtable Hold and visit the Small Jar Merchant in the east wing.

5. Confirm that the door behind him has opened into a chapel.

6. Look for The Great Hollow and the Balancers expedition.

7. Coordinate with other DLC owners before expecting expansion content in Deep of Night.

Overall, unlocking The Forsaken Hollows was one of the more player-friendly DLC access flows I have seen from FromSoftware. It respects my time, uses existing progression systems, and places the payoff in a hub I already visit. The chapel door behind the Small Jar Merchant is the final signal that everything is ready. Once that door opened, I knew I could stop preparing and start exploring the new content.