FromSoftware really threw us into the deep end right at the start of Elden Ring. The first enemy we face is a Grafted Scion, which is specifically designed to kill you before you do anything else. It doesn't get any easier after that, as there's the terrifying Tree Sentinel roaming the starting area, and, even worse, a dude that roasts you for being maidenless. Merchant Kalé is the first friendly face we meet.
Dressed like Santa Claus, Kalé offers to sell you some useful starting gear. However, he wasn't always just a merchant. In FromSoftware's earlier drafts, he would go on to play a pivotal role, urging the Tarnished towards the Frenzied Flame, after getting consumed by rage because of what Marika and the Golden Order did to his people. Dataminer Sekiro Dubi dug this up almost four years ago, and modder Transquility has now made it playable in Elden Ring, thanks to the Merchant Kalé Questline Restored mod (thanks PC Gamer).
In the original version of the quest, Kalé would eventually move to Liurnia, and eventually Leyndell, in search of the Grand Caravan, after you defeat Godrick. Unfortunately, we already know what's awaiting him.
The Caravan of Nomadic Merchants...
