You know the lovely hug lady in Elden Ring? The one at Roundtable Hold who offers you a much-needed warm embrace in a world of bitter cold?
As it turns out, she’s evil. Whatever you do, do not hug her.
Well, maybe “evil” is a bit of a strong word. Fia the Deathbed Companion seems as if she truly does want to offer you a shoulder to cry Tarnished tears on in The Lands Between, but perhaps unbeknownst to herself enacts a brutal toll on you for accepting her kindness.
After you hug Fia, you’ll get a consumable item called Baldachin’s Blessing. While this is something the game makes very clear, what you might not notice is the 5% hit to your vitality that accompanies it (cheers, VG247).
A lot of people will probably think that 5% is a minuscule, nigh trivial amount of health to lose in a video game. This, however, is a video game made by veteran studio FromSoftware — 5% could well be the difference between life and death.
Fortunately, there is a way to remove the curse. If you use Baldachin’s Blessing — the item Fia gives you after embracing her — the small red square beneath your health, FP, and stamina bars will disappear, signaling the removal of the debuff.
The only downside is that you need to spend FP to use this item, which will also increase your poise, making it more difficult for enemies to knock you over. Basically, the entire cycle ends with you regaining your normal HP meter while trading some FP for a small boost to your balance. The problem is that most people don’t even know they’re cursed, let alone that they can cure themselves.
There is an argument to be made for certain builds benefiting from increased poise in specific boss battles, but in the vast, vast majority of cases, hugging Fia will only end badly for you.
As the Elden Ring player warns in the screenshot a few paragraphs above, “be wary of trap” when you approach the hug lady — her hugs often come at a devastating cost.
In related news, streamers are already beating bosses in Elden Ring using Ring Fit controllers. If you’re a normal person who struggles with doing the same using regular controllers, don’t forget to bookmark our Elden Ring complete guide and walkthrough.
Written by Cian Maher on behalf of GLHF.
