The giants that walk the Lands Between in Elden Ring are sporting a massive hole in their stomachs, and the reasoning behind it is more than simple design. In Elden Ring, the massive giants that are frequently seen in the Lands Between have what looks like a stone covered in roots in place of where their stomachs would be. In truth, these are not actually giants but trolls, known to be lesser descendants of giants in the game’s lore. The reasoning for this hole is up to player speculation, but there are some in-game and lore-based hints as to why they may have the open space.
Trolls can be encountered as soon as the Tarnished commences their journey in Elden Ring‘s opening area of Limgrave, the first region players will encounter as they bid to become Elden Lord. These menacing foes can pose a serious threat early on, and can be found wandering the Lands Between either alone or in groups. Trolls can also be found seemingly in the service of Elden Ring‘s human enemies, impaled by huge spikes and chained to giant tombs on wheels, which they are forced to carry. Like the other enemies in the game, their backstory and origin aren’t made immediately apparent while playing. In order to figure out the role of these creatures, players must explore the Lands Between and search for clues.
Several easy-to-miss items in Elden Ring provide hints of what could have happened to cause the trolls these massive holes. The first is called the Troll’s Golden Sword, which is described in-game as a “sword given to the lesser giants who fought for the Erdtree during the War against the Giants long ago.” The evidence that the lesser giants are the trolls being referred to here comes from a second item called the Troll’s Hammer, which explicitly mentions how the “trolls are descended from the giants, and these were supposedly once used as ceremonial smithing tools.” It is possible that, like the fire giants of old, trolls had their second face, but it was removed from them by the will of Queen Marika to enforce their loyalty to the Greater Will.
The Origins Of Elden Ring’s Trolls
Another possibility for the origin of the trolls’ stomach hole may connect to Elden Ring‘s Fire Giant. Rather than allow such an option to remain and potentially cause more harm like their giant brethren did in the previous war, it could’ve been removed. The Lands Between is also chock full of beautiful trees and small forested areas, so it would be a brutal end to see it all set ablaze by lesser giants for any reason.
It’s also possible that the trolls may have become slaves to humans. While there are aggressive trolls out there in Elden Ring, there are also several cases of trolls in the game that have spikes through their stomachs where the holes are. These spikes connect to wagons or other equipment that they drag as a part of manual labor while bound to slavery. This could have been utilized as a means to ensure their indentured existence to their assigned task and purpose. While there is no exact in-game confirmation as to why they have such large holes in their stomach, the potential of what could have been there had it not been ripped away cannot be ignored. Be it for war, to save nature, or to ensure slavery, the true purpose of the trolls’ stomach cavity remains a mystery.
