Your Flask of Crimson Tears and Flask of Cerulean Tears are the most important upgrades in Elden Ring, and they run on two items: Golden Seeds add charges, Sacred Tears make every sip heal more. This guide covers how many of each you need, where every Sacred Tear is, the Golden Seeds region by region, and a fast early route that gets your flasks strong before Stormveil Castle.
| Golden Seeds needed | 30 (4 → 14 flask charges) |
| Golden Seeds in the game | 40+ in the base game, so you never need all of them |
| Sacred Tears needed | 12 (flask potency +0 → +12) |
| Sacred Tears in the game | 12, all inside churches |
| Where to use them | Any Site of Grace → Flasks menu |
| Shadow of the Erdtree | No seeds or tears in the DLC map; upgrade with Scadutree Fragments instead |
Map: Sacred Tears and Golden Seeds
How Golden Seeds and Sacred Tears work
Rest at any Site of Grace and pick Flasks. Increase flask uses spends Golden Seeds, Strengthen flasks spends Sacred Tears. Both upgrades apply to the Crimson and Cerulean flasks together, and you can move charges between the two at any grace with Allocate flask uses. Sacred Tears do not affect the Flask of Wondrous Physick; that one is filled with Crystal Tears (see our best Crystal Tear combos).
Each extra charge costs more seeds than the last, so the whole path to 14 charges costs 30 Golden Seeds:
| Flask charges | Seeds per upgrade | Running total |
|---|---|---|
| 4 → 5 → 6 | 1 each | 2 |
| 6 → 7 → 8 | 2 each | 6 |
| 8 → 9 → 10 | 3 each | 12 |
| 10 → 11 → 12 | 4 each | 20 |
| 12 → 13 → 14 | 5 each | 30 |
Sacred Tears are simpler: one tear per level, +12 is the cap, and there are exactly 12 in the world. Missing even one means your flask never reaches full potency, so the list below is worth following to the end.
All 12 Sacred Tear locations
Every Sacred Tear sits inside a church, usually on the floor in front of the statue or altar. Look for the glowing item pickup as soon as you walk in.
| # | Region | Church | When you can grab it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Limgrave | Third Church of Marika (Mistwood, northeast) | Opening hours; also holds the Flask of Wondrous Physick |
| 2 | Weeping Peninsula | Callu Baptismal Church | Early game |
| 3 | Weeping Peninsula | Church of Pilgrimage | Early game |
| 4 | Weeping Peninsula | Fourth Church of Marika | Early game |
| 5 | Liurnia of the Lakes | Church of Irith | Southern Liurnia |
| 6 | Liurnia of the Lakes | Bellum Church | Northern Liurnia, along Bellum Highway |
| 7 | Liurnia of the Lakes | Church of Inhibition | Northeast Liurnia, near Frenzied Flame Village |
| 8 | Caelid | Church of the Plague | Mid game; watch for Scarlet Rot enemies |
| 9 | Altus Plateau | Second Church of Marika | After reaching Altus |
| 10 | Altus Plateau | Stormcaller Church | After reaching Altus |
| 11 | Mountaintops of the Giants | First Church of Marika | Late game, after the Grand Lift of Rold |
| 12 | Mountaintops of the Giants | Church of Repose | Late game |
Golden Seed locations by region
Most Golden Seeds come from golden saplings: small glowing trees you can see from far away that drop a seed when you walk up and interact with them. The rest are boss rewards, mostly Ulcerated and Putrid Tree Spirits in catacombs and hidden cellars. You only need 30, so skip the awkward ones.
Limgrave and Weeping Peninsula
- Golden sapling on the road up Stormhill toward Stormhill Shack.
- Golden sapling in Mistwood, on the approach to Fort Haight.
- Dropped by Kenneth Haight if you kill him (most players help him at Fort Haight instead).
- Golden sapling on the Weeping Peninsula, along the road toward Castle Morne.
- Drop from the Ulcerated Tree Spirit in Fringefolk Hero’s Grave (Stranded Graveyard, Chariot tunnels).
Stormveil Castle
- Golden sapling on the castle grounds, close to where Nepheli Loux waits after the first part of her quest.
- Drop from the Ulcerated Tree Spirit in the hidden cellar below the castle .
Liurnia of the Lakes
- Golden sapling in Academy Gate Town.
- Golden sapling on the broken bridge north of the Main Academy Gate.
- Golden sapling west of the Raya Lucaria Academy courtyard.
- Golden sapling on the upper level of Caria Manor.
- Golden sapling southwest of the Ravine-Veiled Village.
Caelid
- Golden sapling on the path to the Bestial Sanctum.
- Golden sapling in the northern part of Sellia, Town of Sorcery.
- Golden sapling south of the road to Redmane Castle.
- Drop from the Putrid Tree Spirit in the War-Dead Catacombs.
Altus Plateau and Mt. Gelmir
- Golden sapling southeast of Windmill Village.
- Golden sapling north of the Altus Highway Junction grace.
- Golden sapling northwest of the Altus Minor Erdtree.
- Golden sapling on Erdtree-Gazing Hill, north of the Lux Ruins.
- Golden sapling on the road up to Mt. Gelmir, plus one more northwest of Volcano Manor.
Leyndell, Royal Capital and its outskirts
The capital is the richest area for seeds: around six of them, from golden saplings near the western gate and the northwestern streets, a sapling southeast of the West Capital Rampart grace, and Lesser Ulcerated Tree Spirits on the Outer Wall and north of the Avenue Balcony. If you are short on seeds when you reach Morgott, explore the capital before the fight.
Underground and late game
- Siofra River: golden sapling north of the Worshippers’ Woods grace.
- Ainsel River and Nokstella, Eternal City: three seeds in total, one in Nokstella’s northwest section.
- Lake of Rot: Putrid Tree Spirit by the rotten waterfall near the Grand Cloister.
- Mountaintops of the Giants and Consecrated Snowfield: about six, including the Ulcerated Tree Spirit in Giant’s Mountaintop Catacombs.
- Crumbling Farum Azula: two golden saplings.
- Mohgwyn Palace: two, one on the island in the southern blood lake.
- Miquella’s Haligtree and Elphael: two, one from the Ulcerated Tree Spirit below Elphael’s second rot lake.
Fast early-game flask route
Before you fight Margit or Godrick, a short loop through Limgrave and the Weeping Peninsula gives you a big head start:
- Third Church of Marika: Sacred Tear and the Flask of Wondrous Physick.
- Mistwood and Stormhill saplings: 2 Golden Seeds, enough for 6 charges.
- Cross the Bridge of Sacrifice and visit Callu Baptismal Church, Church of Pilgrimage and the Fourth Church of Marika: 3 Sacred Tears, plus the sapling on the road to Castle Morne (a third seed, halfway to the 7th charge).
That is roughly +4 flask potency and 6 charges before your first Shardbearer. Add the Fringefolk Hero’s Grave seed for a 7th charge. Either way it makes the early bosses far more forgiving.
Tips
- Golden saplings glow and are visible from a distance; scan the horizon with Torrent before you move on.
- Flask upgrades carry over into New Game+, so you only collect seeds and tears once.
- Casters should shift charges to Cerulean once Intelligence or Faith is high; melee builds usually run 10+ Crimson.
- Go into Shadow of the Erdtree with maxed flasks: the DLC adds no new seeds or tears.
FAQ
How many Golden Seeds do I need to max my flasks?
30 Golden Seeds take you from 4 to the maximum of 14 flask charges. The base game has more than 40, so you can skip the hardest ones.
How many Sacred Tears are in Elden Ring?
Exactly 12, one per upgrade, for a maximum flask potency of +12. All of them are in churches.
Do Sacred Tears upgrade the Flask of Wondrous Physick?
No. Sacred Tears and Golden Seeds only affect the Crimson and Cerulean flasks. The Physick flask takes Crystal Tears.
Are there Golden Seeds in Shadow of the Erdtree?
No. The DLC uses Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ashes instead. Max your flasks in the base game before you enter the Land of Shadow.
Plan the bosses you will use those flasks on with the boss checklist, and see the endings guide for what waits at the end. Source: locations and upgrade costs checked against Fextralife’s Elden Ring wiki.
Further reading: Golden Seed and Sacred Tear on the Fextralife Elden Ring wiki.