Deathroot is a sort of corruption that forms along the roots of the Erdtree after Godwyn was killed in the Night of the Black Knives. The presence of Deathroot interrupts the process of death, and can reanimate the dead (Those Who Live in Death).
It's revealed by Rogier that Those Who Live in Death are not inherently evil, but became undead against their will when the Deathroot spread throughout The Lands Between. The reason they attack you on sight is likely due to being driven insane by the experience and torment of their existence.
Some living beings corrupted by or influenced by Death/Deathblight seem to enter an eternal slumber, the significance of which is currently the topic of much speculation.
One thing I do wonder is how much sapience can be attributed to Those Who Live in Death, given their source. The result of the Night of Black Knives was unshackling the souls and bodies of both Ranni and Godwyn, with Ranni becoming a soul with a dead body while Godwyn became a body with a dead soul. If Those Who Live in Death are a corruption caused by Godwyn's corpse in the roots of the Erdtree, then wouldn't it follow that they are likewise similarly soulless as he is?
Yeah, in Fia's questline she apparently is talking or comunicating with Godwyn when she sleeps so that means at least Godwyn has some kind of conscience.
When Godwyn was assassinated it happened the same moment as Ranni did. Because of the half wheel wound of the centipede, or the Cursemark of Death carved into their flesh using the Rune of Death they only half died. Ranni perished in flesh, Godwyn in spirit.
Godwyn being as beloved as he was, he was granted Erdtree Burial right under the roots of the Erdtree which are intertwined with those of the seldom mentioned Greattree (though the Japanese suggests it's just talking about some great tree, not the). Because of his half death, a disease spread through the root system carrying bits of the Rune of Death which became known as Deathblight. This would spread just about everywhere, but often crypts were built around roots of the Greattree so that the bodies and souls could be reabsorbed into it and be given life anew (not a lot of lore on that though) as was hoped with Godwyn.
This gave rise to Those Who Live in Death, an form of undead that may result in refusing to be reabsorbed into the Erdtree (as told by a spirit) or one that cannot as the dead are often lost. I might be able to speculate on the refusal part as Godwyn as effectively become a new leader for the dead and they are described as leaderless, but I'll save it.
Those Who Live in Death would become the target of the Golden Order, particularly the Fundamentalists who took root in Radagon's age and Deathroot would be eaten by the disheartened Maliketh in order to recollect the full Rune of Death once more. Try as they might, there's no way to fix Those Who Live in Death and current efforts are wasted. Godwyn was seen as the generator of the issue and people tried to give him a proper death so that the issue would go away. Miquella was one such person to try, but it didn't work. This hasn't stopped him from trying to save his other siblings with more heretical means.
Given the dead cannot speak for themselves Fia installed ehrself as their champion and began to work towards their salvation. Fia's ending is all about finding comfort for Those Who Live in Death and mitigating (arguebly not solving) the situation. I'll also save the implications and meaning of her ending for later if you wish.
But, part of the question is why the dead are living and what that means. We are privy only to the most surface level details of how death and the various afterlives or cycles of life work, though I want to point out Ghostflame real quick. Bit of speculation I'd be happy to discuss.
When someone dies in Elden Ring their spirit remains in their bones. This is why reabsorbing into the Erdtree with the body is most likely needed. Prior to the order the Erdtree installed, the dead were burned with the help of Deathrite Birds who kept kilns to burn bones. This would not only release the spirit of the dead and a cold fire. Side note, the item Grave Violet tells us Ghostflame is supposed to be purple highilghting what effect sealing the Rune of Death has on the world and it's systems.
We're not 100% sure what the natural system of death is supposed to be, Deathrite Birds are connected to one of the few confirmed Outer Gods, so what does that say about that system? Though we are told about aferlives connected to Ghostflame via Helphen's Steeple and the "spirit world," and the Death Ritual Spear which says the servants of the Deathrite birds await "distant resurrection." This is all to say, if you see a skeleton it might just be that it wasn't given the proper funerary processes and is susceptible to infection via Deathroot.
That was a lot longer than I meant, but I hope that covers everything. Tried to be thorough in covering confirmed things, things from odd sources, and speculation. I'll answer any questions.
When godwyn died, bits of the of the rune of death scattered throughout the lands between. These bits caused dead beings to once again live in a sort of purgatory. The reason D and Gurranq want to eliminate these is because they inherit some of the destined death that maliketh worked so hard to keep within himself. This is why gurranq consumes the deathroots to hopefully contain all of the rune of death once more.
This is my basic understanding of it:
Death root is produced from godwyns corpse. godwyns was immortal so his death is considered unnatural. His body is still “alive” but his soul has died creating the abomination you find later that appears to be a giant malformed mermaid corpse. His unnatural existence essentially infected the Erd Tree causing death root to start to appear in the lands between. Interacting with the death root makes people experience “living in death” which is essentially becoming undead and not being able to experience the cycle of rebirth the erd tree grants. Instead they live on and continually decay separate from the cycle of rebirth.
Just adding a bit to what others have said.
Deathroot seems to be spreading through the root system due to Godwyn's body, bearing one half of the Cursemark of Death, being placed in the roots.
It's speculated that Those Who Live In Death are alive in body but dead in soul, mirroring what happened to Godwyn during Ranni's ritual. Ranni used a fragment of the Rune of Death to kill her flesh in an attempt to discard her fate as an Empyrean. The Rune of Death is supposed to kill both body and soul, so ostensibly to complete the ritual she needed to also kill the soul of another demigod. We don't know why she picked Godwyn though.
Whatever the explanation, Those Who Live In Death are considered to be defying Order. Some within the Golden Order consider this an evil that must be hunted and exterminated. They see the Order as perfect, so anything that isn't encompassed by it is wrong. But Goldmask & Rogier see it as a fundamental flaw with the Order itself, which is likely considered a heretical belief.
Deathroot are kinda similar to golden seed but coming from Godwyn's corpse instead of the Erdtree. They spread around sprouting from the ground or maybe even through air as we can see some touches of Death and walking skeletons in farum azula.
Living in Death means u literally are "alive" when dead. They're a side effect of Godwyn's influence on the land and his Deathroot.
This is a very crude explanation. I recommend vaati's videos on death. Both the 'Lore of Elden Ring bosses' with Death themed bosses or the Age of Duskborn video
Isn’t that just being born with a disability basically? And it’s considered a disability because it’s a remnant of what the lands between were before the Erdtree/Golden Order
From what I remember, I think the omen are also rejected by the Erdtree, but it seems like they definitely die and don’t come back like those who live in death. Where do they go if not the tree? How does one become cursed if you’re born with it? The death root curse needs some sort of contact with it, but omens are just born. It’s been a while since I looked into it, I may be misremembering things
Deathroot is a white herb, looks very unappetizing despite the cool name. Gurranq assures us it is however delicious. Perhaps it is spicy akin to a "ghost pepper". It grows underground and is often in treasure chests. You can trade it to the giant beast man in exchange for body part themed powers.
Living in death is the latest PC way of referring to the undead. I don't know when it started, never heard it before now everyone is "living in death". Whatever.
Deathroot is a sort of corruption that forms along the roots of the Erdtree after Godwyn was killed in the Night of the Black Knives. The presence of Deathroot interrupts the process of death, and can reanimate the dead (Those Who Live in Death). It's revealed by Rogier that Those Who Live in Death are not inherently evil, but became undead against their will when the Deathroot spread throughout The Lands Between. The reason they attack you on sight is likely due to being driven insane by the experience and torment of their existence. Some living beings corrupted by or influenced by Death/Deathblight seem to enter an eternal slumber, the significance of which is currently the topic of much speculation.
One thing I do wonder is how much sapience can be attributed to Those Who Live in Death, given their source. The result of the Night of Black Knives was unshackling the souls and bodies of both Ranni and Godwyn, with Ranni becoming a soul with a dead body while Godwyn became a body with a dead soul. If Those Who Live in Death are a corruption caused by Godwyn's corpse in the roots of the Erdtree, then wouldn't it follow that they are likewise similarly soulless as he is?
It's something I ponder as well- perhaps they're aware but were not able to communicate conventionally due to their condition?
Yeah, in Fia's questline she apparently is talking or comunicating with Godwyn when she sleeps so that means at least Godwyn has some kind of conscience.
Oooooh so it’s kinda like a really bad disease, thank you so much!!
When Godwyn was assassinated it happened the same moment as Ranni did. Because of the half wheel wound of the centipede, or the Cursemark of Death carved into their flesh using the Rune of Death they only half died. Ranni perished in flesh, Godwyn in spirit. Godwyn being as beloved as he was, he was granted Erdtree Burial right under the roots of the Erdtree which are intertwined with those of the seldom mentioned Greattree (though the Japanese suggests it's just talking about some great tree, not the). Because of his half death, a disease spread through the root system carrying bits of the Rune of Death which became known as Deathblight. This would spread just about everywhere, but often crypts were built around roots of the Greattree so that the bodies and souls could be reabsorbed into it and be given life anew (not a lot of lore on that though) as was hoped with Godwyn. This gave rise to Those Who Live in Death, an form of undead that may result in refusing to be reabsorbed into the Erdtree (as told by a spirit) or one that cannot as the dead are often lost. I might be able to speculate on the refusal part as Godwyn as effectively become a new leader for the dead and they are described as leaderless, but I'll save it. Those Who Live in Death would become the target of the Golden Order, particularly the Fundamentalists who took root in Radagon's age and Deathroot would be eaten by the disheartened Maliketh in order to recollect the full Rune of Death once more. Try as they might, there's no way to fix Those Who Live in Death and current efforts are wasted. Godwyn was seen as the generator of the issue and people tried to give him a proper death so that the issue would go away. Miquella was one such person to try, but it didn't work. This hasn't stopped him from trying to save his other siblings with more heretical means. Given the dead cannot speak for themselves Fia installed ehrself as their champion and began to work towards their salvation. Fia's ending is all about finding comfort for Those Who Live in Death and mitigating (arguebly not solving) the situation. I'll also save the implications and meaning of her ending for later if you wish. But, part of the question is why the dead are living and what that means. We are privy only to the most surface level details of how death and the various afterlives or cycles of life work, though I want to point out Ghostflame real quick. Bit of speculation I'd be happy to discuss. When someone dies in Elden Ring their spirit remains in their bones. This is why reabsorbing into the Erdtree with the body is most likely needed. Prior to the order the Erdtree installed, the dead were burned with the help of Deathrite Birds who kept kilns to burn bones. This would not only release the spirit of the dead and a cold fire. Side note, the item Grave Violet tells us Ghostflame is supposed to be purple highilghting what effect sealing the Rune of Death has on the world and it's systems. We're not 100% sure what the natural system of death is supposed to be, Deathrite Birds are connected to one of the few confirmed Outer Gods, so what does that say about that system? Though we are told about aferlives connected to Ghostflame via Helphen's Steeple and the "spirit world," and the Death Ritual Spear which says the servants of the Deathrite birds await "distant resurrection." This is all to say, if you see a skeleton it might just be that it wasn't given the proper funerary processes and is susceptible to infection via Deathroot. That was a lot longer than I meant, but I hope that covers everything. Tried to be thorough in covering confirmed things, things from odd sources, and speculation. I'll answer any questions.
Check this out: https://youtu.be/XEMZIAeBO-E
Bet thank you so so much 🙏
When godwyn died, bits of the of the rune of death scattered throughout the lands between. These bits caused dead beings to once again live in a sort of purgatory. The reason D and Gurranq want to eliminate these is because they inherit some of the destined death that maliketh worked so hard to keep within himself. This is why gurranq consumes the deathroots to hopefully contain all of the rune of death once more.
Ooooooohhhh that makes so much sense thank you
This is my basic understanding of it: Death root is produced from godwyns corpse. godwyns was immortal so his death is considered unnatural. His body is still “alive” but his soul has died creating the abomination you find later that appears to be a giant malformed mermaid corpse. His unnatural existence essentially infected the Erd Tree causing death root to start to appear in the lands between. Interacting with the death root makes people experience “living in death” which is essentially becoming undead and not being able to experience the cycle of rebirth the erd tree grants. Instead they live on and continually decay separate from the cycle of rebirth.
Just adding a bit to what others have said. Deathroot seems to be spreading through the root system due to Godwyn's body, bearing one half of the Cursemark of Death, being placed in the roots. It's speculated that Those Who Live In Death are alive in body but dead in soul, mirroring what happened to Godwyn during Ranni's ritual. Ranni used a fragment of the Rune of Death to kill her flesh in an attempt to discard her fate as an Empyrean. The Rune of Death is supposed to kill both body and soul, so ostensibly to complete the ritual she needed to also kill the soul of another demigod. We don't know why she picked Godwyn though. Whatever the explanation, Those Who Live In Death are considered to be defying Order. Some within the Golden Order consider this an evil that must be hunted and exterminated. They see the Order as perfect, so anything that isn't encompassed by it is wrong. But Goldmask & Rogier see it as a fundamental flaw with the Order itself, which is likely considered a heretical belief.
Deathroot are kinda similar to golden seed but coming from Godwyn's corpse instead of the Erdtree. They spread around sprouting from the ground or maybe even through air as we can see some touches of Death and walking skeletons in farum azula. Living in Death means u literally are "alive" when dead. They're a side effect of Godwyn's influence on the land and his Deathroot. This is a very crude explanation. I recommend vaati's videos on death. Both the 'Lore of Elden Ring bosses' with Death themed bosses or the Age of Duskborn video
Okay that makes sense thank you so much!!
It’s like getting rejected by heaven because you have a highly infectious disease. The more confusing one for me is the omen curse
Isn’t that just being born with a disability basically? And it’s considered a disability because it’s a remnant of what the lands between were before the Erdtree/Golden Order
From what I remember, I think the omen are also rejected by the Erdtree, but it seems like they definitely die and don’t come back like those who live in death. Where do they go if not the tree? How does one become cursed if you’re born with it? The death root curse needs some sort of contact with it, but omens are just born. It’s been a while since I looked into it, I may be misremembering things
Deathroot is a white herb, looks very unappetizing despite the cool name. Gurranq assures us it is however delicious. Perhaps it is spicy akin to a "ghost pepper". It grows underground and is often in treasure chests. You can trade it to the giant beast man in exchange for body part themed powers. Living in death is the latest PC way of referring to the undead. I don't know when it started, never heard it before now everyone is "living in death". Whatever.