#and Radahn sealed the stars afterwards

[death-rebirth-senshi]

The promo does say "Marika was pushed to the brink" after Godwyn's death but also Ranni is like "someone stole a fragment of the rune of death" and "Will you become Elden Lord gamer?" so it's like. Eh?

[the-spoopy-ghost-of-raejin99]

Some smaller Elden Ring theories, idk if they've been proven/debunked elsewhere but I've just been thinking them for a bit:

The Golden Lineage seems to have a direct connection to the Crucible, specifically through Godfrey. The connection is a bit unclear, but the fact that he's had two omen children (omens are highly theorized to be connected to the Crucible) and Godwyn (who at least in death seems to have gained some odd fish/aquatic features, unclear if he had them in life but unlikely), in addition to the later generations of the Golden Lineage adopting grafting, which blends life together in a way that might be reminiscent of the Crucible. This is also in addition to the Crucible Knights specifically serving Godfrey before his exile, since afterwards they all seemed to be banished/imprisoned/found other lords individually as though their order was disbanded once Godfrey was exiled. I think this connection is specifically why grafting works for people like Godrick and Godefroy, since their connection to the Crucible might make them "malleable" in a way that they can absorb the limbs of Tarnished. Why Tarnished limbs specifically, I'm not sure, unless it's mentioned in something I missed.

Destined Death seems to be a true, natural death of both body and soul, but there was still a form of death in the Lands Between after Destined Death was sealed given the presence of catacombs and mentions of Erdtree Burials. I've seen some people say that those who die in the Lands Between will eventually return to life exactly as they were, but I think it's different from that. Many people embed themselves in the roots of the Great Tree upon death, and those particularly honored individuals who die will be given a direct Erdtree Burial, hoping to return their souls to the Erdtree. My thought is that eventually, unless you are a Demigod/God or similarly empowered individual, you will essentially still live forever but your body will eventually break down to the point where you might as well be dead (see the wandering nobles everywhere). You technically aren't dead-dead, but for all intents and purposes you are, since your body doesn't really work anymore and your mind essentially goes blank. Eventually your body makes it to the roots of either the Great Tree or Erdtree (they're literally everywhere, so even if you aren't buried there it's possible to still be near them) and gets absorbed, returning your soul to the Erdtree, where it is reborn. I think this is how death differs from Destined Death, as your soul continues to be reborn while your body acts as sustenance for the trees.

I think the only specific requirement to be an Empyrean is that your body/soul/whatever needs to be a suitable vessel for an Outer God's power, such as the Elden Ring. We see that as a god, Marika/Radagon literally houses the Elden Ring in their body, and repairing Marika's body is the same as repairing the Elden Ring. They are literally a vessel for it. Therefore, I think the ability to be a vessel like that is the specific requirement to be chosen as Empyrean. Malenia and Miquella are essentially too perfect as candidates, each of their parents being half of the current vessel, which is why they're both chosen but subject to the power of Outer Gods almost immediately upon birth (Miquella's is debatable given we don't know the specific source of his curse, but Malenia is undoubtedly cursed by an Outer God of rot). The Gloam Eyed Queen could have been a vessel for the Rune of Death, hence why she was also chosen as an Empyrean. Ranni is slightly different but I believe still works, as while it's mentioned the stars control the fate of the Carian Royal Family, out of the surviving members only Ranni's fate seems to move after Radahn's defeat. I think her immense fate essentially parallels the effect of bearing the power of an Outer God, making her a potential vessel for the Elden Ring. In each case though, they all seem to already be carrying something, be it a fate or the power/curse of another Outer God, which to me means the Fingers/Greater Will might have had to have some sort of plan to "clear" them out to make them true gods to replace Marika. At least for Ranni, that seemed to include having Radahn hold back the stars and thus her fate.