Throwing pots are some of the strongest consumables in Elden Ring, but you can only craft as many as you have empty pots to fill. Every Cracked Pot, Ritual Pot and Hefty Cracked Pot you find raises that cap by one, permanently. This guide lists every pot in the base game and Shadow of the Erdtree, which merchants sell them, and the order that gets you the most pots for the least walking.
| Cracked Pots | 20 (14 in the world, 6 from merchants) |
| Ritual Pots | 10 (8 in the world, 2 from merchants) |
| Hefty Cracked Pots | 10, all in Shadow of the Erdtree, none sold |
| What they do | Each empty pot lets you hold one more crafted throwing pot of that tier |
| Are they used up? | No, the empty pot comes back after you throw it |
| Best early source | Merchant Kalé at the Church of Elleh, 3 pots for 300 runes each |
| Missable? | No, but pots already picked up do not come back in New Game+ |
What is a Cracked Pot in Elden Ring?
A Cracked Pot is a reusable Key Item, not a consumable. On its own it does nothing: it is the empty container that every crafted throwing pot needs. Owning more empty pots is the only way to carry more Fire Pots, Lightning Pots and the rest at once. Here is how the loop works:
- Pick up or buy an empty pot. It goes into your Key Items.
- Open the crafting menu with a Crafting Kit and choose a pot recipe, for example Fire Pot. Cracked Pots make normal pots, Ritual Pots make the stronger ritual pots, and Hefty Cracked Pots make the hefty pots from the DLC.
- Throw the pot in combat. The empty container returns to your inventory, so you can craft a new one as soon as you are out of combat.
- If you keep crafted pots in the chest at a Site of Grace, your empty pots refill automatically when you rest or die.
All Cracked Pot locations
Fourteen Cracked Pots lie in the world. Jarburg and the Auriza Side Tomb are the big ones, with seven pots between them.
| Area | Pots | Where exactly |
|---|---|---|
| Stormveil Castle | 2 | In the room full of Living Jars south-west of the Secluded Cell grace |
| Groveside Cave (Limgrave) | 1 | On a corpse just past the cave entrance |
| Raya Lucaria Academy | 1 | Leave the Debate Parlor, take the stairs west; on a corpse near Living Jars |
| Caria Manor | 1 | From the Royal Moongazing Grounds grace, go back into the manor and drop down the platforms to the south-south-west; Living Jars guard it |
| Minor Erdtree (Caelid) | 1 | At the end of a tree branch that sticks out of the cliffs north-west of the tree |
| Jarburg (Liurnia) | 3 | One on a corpse at a blocked hut door north of the drop-down point, one in a hut to the north-east of it, one on a big headstone by the main road in the south |
| Leyndell, Royal Capital | 1 | One level below the Avenue Balcony grace, through a couple of doors, guarded by a Leyndell Knight |
| Auriza Side Tomb (Altus Plateau) | 4 | Spread through the tomb’s trap-chest rooms; only 2 if you started with the Cracked Pot keepsake |
Cracked Pots from merchants
| Merchant | Stock | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Merchant Kalé (Church of Elleh, Limgrave) | 3 | 300 runes each |
| Nomadic Merchant, North Limgrave | 1 | 600 runes |
| Nomadic Merchant, Castle Morne Rampart (Weeping Peninsula) | 1 | 600 runes |
| Nomadic Merchant, Caelid South | 1 | 1,500 runes (not stocked if you took the keepsake) |
The Cracked Pot keepsake gives you 3 pots at the start but removes 2 from the Auriza Side Tomb and the one sold in Caelid South, so the total stays at 20 either way.
All Ritual Pot locations
Ritual Pots are the sturdier container used for the stronger ritual pot recipes. Most of them sit next to a Giant Living Jar, so come ready for a fight.
| Area | Pots | Where exactly |
|---|---|---|
| Laskyar Ruins (Liurnia) | 1 | On a corpse in the northern part, in front of a row of pillars |
| Raya Lucaria Academy | 1 | In a chest at the end of the hall by the Schoolhouse Classroom grace, guarded by a Glintstone Sorcerer and a Giant Living Jar |
| Jarburg (Liurnia) | 2 | One on a hut roof in the north (climb the rock ledge near Jar Bairn), one on top of a big decorative jar in the south |
| Auriza Side Tomb (Altus Plateau) | 2 | Both in rooms with a Giant Living Jar, past the trap chests and the hidden room |
| Subterranean Shunning-Grounds | 1 | In the room at the top of the elevator near the Forsaken Depths grace, guarded by a Giant Living Jar |
| Giants’ Mountaintop Catacombs | 1 | Left from the boss door, down the second lift, through the guillotine hall to a small room with a Giant Living Jar; watch for frost dart traps |
| Merchant | Stock | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Pidia, Carian Servant (Caria Manor) | 1 | 1,500 runes |
| Isolated Merchant, Dragonbarrow | 1 | 3,000 runes |
All Hefty Cracked Pot locations (Shadow of the Erdtree)
Hefty Cracked Pots are DLC only and no merchant sells them. They hold the 15 hefty pot recipes, such as the Hefty Fire Pot and Hefty Rock Pot. Belurat Gaol alone has three.
| Area | Pots | Where exactly |
|---|---|---|
| Scorched Ruins (Gravesite Plain) | 1 | On a corpse on higher ground between the Gravesite Plain and Scorched Ruins graces |
| Belurat Gaol | 3 | One in a chest in the room of hanging pots, two in the maze of large jars after the broken staircase |
| Bonny Village | 2 | One on the edge of the broken bridge, one past the bridge below a shed, among many enemies |
| Bonny Gaol | 1 | Jump down onto the two hanging pots right after you enter |
| Shadow Keep | 1 | On a bed on the east side of the room before the West Rampart grace |
| Cerulean Coast | 1 | Dropped by the troll that throws sleep pots, south along the coast |
| Lamenter’s Gaol | 1 | On top of the pile of remains in the jar room, in the south-west corner |
Elden Ring pot checklist by region
Use this count to see what you still owe each region. World pickups and merchant stock are added together.
| Region | Cracked Pots | Ritual Pots | Hefty Cracked Pots |
|---|---|---|---|
| Limgrave (Kalé, North Limgrave merchant, Groveside Cave) | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Weeping Peninsula (Castle Morne Rampart merchant) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Stormveil Castle | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Liurnia (Jarburg, Raya Lucaria, Caria Manor, Laskyar Ruins, Pidia) | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Caelid and Dragonbarrow | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Altus Plateau (Auriza Side Tomb) | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Leyndell and Shunning-Grounds | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Mountaintops of the Giants | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Realm of Shadow (DLC) | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Total | 20 | 10 | 10 |
Best order to collect your pots
- Limgrave: buy 3 from Kalé the moment you reach the Church of Elleh, grab the Groveside Cave pot, and buy the North Limgrave and Castle Morne Rampart ones when you pass.
- Stormveil and Liurnia: the 2 Stormveil pots, then Jarburg for 3 Cracked and 2 Ritual Pots in one stop. Pick up Laskyar Ruins on the way.
- Raya Lucaria and Caria Manor: one of each type in the Academy, the Caria Manor pot, and Pidia’s Ritual Pot once you reach him.
- Caelid: the Minor Erdtree branch, the Caelid South merchant, and the Isolated Merchant in Dragonbarrow.
- Altus and Leyndell: the Auriza Side Tomb (4 Cracked, 2 Ritual), the Avenue Balcony pot and the Shunning-Grounds Ritual Pot.
- Late game: the Giants’ Mountaintop Catacombs Ritual Pot, then all 10 Hefty Cracked Pots in the DLC.
The Auriza Side Tomb needs a lot of backtracking through trap chests, so many players save it for when they already explore Altus for the Golden Seeds and Sacred Tears. Bring a few Stonesword Keys along the same route, and check our map fragment locations guide so Jarburg and Laskyar Ruins show up on your map. Caelid’s pots are easier once you know how to get to Caelid safely. In the DLC, combine the Hefty Cracked Pot run with the Scadutree Fragment locations, since Belurat and Bonny Village are on the same path.
FAQ
How many Cracked Pots are in Elden Ring?
20: fourteen in the world and six from merchants. On top of that there are 10 Ritual Pots in the base game and 10 Hefty Cracked Pots in Shadow of the Erdtree.
Where do you get your first Cracked Pot?
Merchant Kalé at the Church of Elleh in Limgrave sells three for 300 runes each, which is the cheapest source in the game. The first free one is on a corpse just inside Groveside Cave.
Do Cracked Pots get used up when you throw them?
No. Throwing a pot gives the empty container back, so the only limit is how many empty pots you own and the crafting materials you carry.
Can you buy more Cracked Pots?
Only six: three from Merchant Kalé and one each from three Nomadic Merchants. Ritual Pots can be bought from Pidia and the Isolated Merchant in Dragonbarrow. Hefty Cracked Pots cannot be bought at all.
Is the Cracked Pot keepsake worth it?
It gives you three pots right away, but it removes three later pots from the world and shops, so it does not raise your final total. Pick it only if you want a pot build from the first hour.
Source: every location checked against Fextralife’s Elden Ring wiki plus at least one of Game8, Shacknews and Prima Games. Where guides disagreed on exact spots, we kept only the details they share.
Further reading: Cracked Pot on the Fextralife Elden Ring wiki.