What is Roundtable Hold in Elden Ring? Hub area explained

gamepur.com:

Roundtable Hold is an area in Elden Ring’s world that players will be acquainted with early on in their playthrough. Like the Hunter’s Dream in Bloodborne, Roundtable Hold serves as Elden Ring’s central hub, though it is quite different from the Hunter’s Dream or the hubs in other FromSoftware games. Here, players can meet NPCs, upgrade their equipment, and interact with other players.

Although it serves as a hub area for Elden Ring, Roundtable Hold isn’t exactly part of its landscape, and isn’t accessible through the world map. Elden Ring players can only reach Roundtable Hold by fast travel, and only after they have unlocked it by interacting with Melina. At the heart of the Hold is the round table it is named after, which serves as an unsubtle reference to the Arthurian myth much of Elden Ring’s lore draws inspiration from.

A number of Elden Ring NPCs will appear in Roundtable Hold after they’ve been encountered in the outside world. Those include Blacksmith Hewg, Corhyn, D the Hunter (who will lead you to a Bloodborne-inspired combat encounter), Diallos, Fia, and Roderika. Hewg and Corhyn will notably help you upgrade your arsenal by providing crafting services and access to new skills. There are other merchants and quests to discover at Roundtable Hold, and even some unexpected encounters with less-than-friendly characters.