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Ancient Soil is a main quest inAvowed. It’s one of the most critical points of no return in the game. You’ll team up with Giatta to venture into Naku Tedek, where you’ll search for a massive Adra pillar hidden deep within the Ancient Soil, hoping to uncover the source of the Dreamscourge.
Along the way, you’ll discover something crucial about yourself. But let’s not spoil it just yet! In this guide, we’ll walk you through the key moments, the choices that shape your path, and the consequences of accepting or rejecting your Godlike power, plus the ending choices involving Paradis or Thirdborn.
Important Notes Before Starting Ancient Soil
Spoiler ahead.
Ancient Soil isa major point of no returnin Avowed, so verify you’re fully prepared before starting the quest. Here’swhat you need to take into consideration before taking on this quest:
How To Reach Naku Tedek
Bring Giatta along for this quest. She can shock electric generators to open doors and provide healing for yourparty.
The closest Fast Travel point to Naku Tedek isthe River Fork Beacon. From there, cross the river toreach Belderreno’s Lair.you may enter and defeat it for a bounty if you’re up for a challenge. To the left of the lair,look for a path with rock ledges and scaffolding.
Climb all the way up until you reacha building marked with an orange shield symbol. Nearby Xaurips will likely notice you and attack, so be ready for a fight.
After clearing the area,check the collapsed wall with wooden supports.Below the second orange shield,you’ll find a generator.Use an Electric Lily Seed or have Giatta activate it with her ability. Backtrack to the previously locked door. It will now be open, and inside, you may loot a purple chest.
Once you’re done looting the chest, head back to the main road andclimb the scaffolding on the left to reach the Naku Tedek Grounds.There’s plenty to collect here, so take your time exploring the domes and grab anything that looks useful.
Don’t forget to stop by the Naku Tedek Party Camp.Unlocking it adds a new fast travel and resting point to your map. Keep going past the camp and you’ll find a sloping path that leads down to a graveyard. This is where you can progress on the questMapping the Living Lands: Emerald Stair.
Before heading into Naku Tedek itself, make sure tovisit Merchant Alyssa. She sells some Awakened Adras and aWarmage’s Robe.
you may also chat with the Priestess of Berath nearby to learn more about the lore. When you’re ready, take the stairs next to the priestess and go through the door toenter Naku Tedek.
Explore The Depths Of Naku Tedek
As soon as you enter the temple, you’ll spot a massive Adra in the center. On either side of it aretwo purple-lit rooms:
Loot the area for useful items like an Eye of Rymrgand, Electric Lily Seed, Magran’s Fury, and an Essence Potion.
You’ll also come across Luminous Alfons here. Talk to him to pick up the side quest A Relic from the Ashes.
Next,interact with the animancy equipment near the Adra. Giatta will handle the calibration, unlocking a nearby door. Head through it to find a giant tree branch leading downward.Don’t jump straight to the bottom just yet.
Instead,look to the left for some ledgeswhere you may pick up another Eye of Rymrgand.
Then,return to the main branch and head right to find an alcove with a chest.
Once you’ve looted everything, drop to the lowest level to continue.
Don’t worry if you miss the jump to the root and fall to the bottom. If that happens, just take the spiral staircase back up and give it another try.
Once you reach the bottom, you’ll find two paths. One leads to a purple area, and the other to a locked room with an orange shield above it.Let’s head toward the locked room first.
Look to the left of the door for another shield and generator.Shock the generator to unlock the door, leading you into a room with water and a tree root.On the table to the left, you’ll find a Health Potion. To reach the far tree branch, you can eitheruse your Frost spells or throw an Eye of Rymrgand to freeze the water.Once you’re on the branch, jump to the Eye of Rymrgand on the wall to collect it.
Return to the branch and make your way upward.Follow the path to find a chest you may unlock with 3 Lockpicks. Near it, on the table, is a Fine Dagger and the Effigy Necklace—a Totem Fragment.
Next,head back to the previousroom andmake your way toward the purple-lit area.You’ll encounter two orange shields, a generator, a Sporeling Bruiser, and a Sporeling Corruptor. Defeat the enemies and loot the Lockbox.Shock the generator to open the next door.
You’re now ina corridor filled with red water that deals damageif you stand in it. First, grab the Eye of Rymrgand on the left wall, thenburn the brambles on your left. Jump into the alcove andloot the chest inside.
Now,freeze the waterusing Frost spells or an Eye of Rymrgand to cross safely. If you don’t have a way to freeze the water, just sprint through, but be cautious. There arepressure plates near the end of the hallthat trigger lightning traps. Kai will warn you about this.
After crossing the water, continue through the open door intoa room with a large mural.On the table, you’ll find a Forgotten Soul Pod and a Common Dagger. Look down, and you’ll notice Skeletons moving around. Get a head start by attacking them from the upper level with ranged weapons or abilities.Prioritize the Scourge Skeleton Priest, then the Enchanter,followed by the Barbarian and Skeleton Minions.
To the left of the mural isa locked room with an orange shield.Between the room and the mural,you’ll find a generator behind a broken wall and some roots.Shock it to open the door. Inside, loot a Healing Potion, a chest, and Hylea’s Talons.
Head back to the previous room and descend the stairsto find an electrified waterlogged room. There’s a hole in the middle begging you to dive down, but don’t rush. First,use ice platforms to cross safely and avoid electrocution.
At the far end, loot the Eye of Rymrgand. To your right, you’ll spotan orange glowing shield and a generator. If you look up, you’ll see another shield near a trap that drops electrical darts into the water. This is the reason why the water is electrified.Shock the generator to stop the darts from falling and restore the water to its normal state.
As you make your way back to the beginning of the flooded room, when you reachthe narrow hallway with roots on each side. Climb up to the right alcove to find a purple Sarcophagus. On the opposite side, you’ll find a Common Dagger and an Essence Potion.
Now that the electricity is gone,you can safely dive into the hole with broken grates.
Grab the Krakenhorn at the bottom, then surface in a new room full of Sporelings.Defeat them and shock the generator to open the sealed doorleading to a room with deep water.
Stand by the doorframe and create ice platforms to reach the other side, picking up the Eye of Rymrgand along the way. Follow the tree root upward and enter a purple room witha gold-glowing Sarcophagus.Loot it to getThe Packmule’s Burden, a unique ring that increases your carry capacity by +25.
Dive through the water tunnel again to return to the main path, where you found the generator to disable the electric darts. Before entering the next door,look for a cracked wall between two doors. Throw a grenade to burst it down and loot the treasure chest inside.
Head through the next door and follow the path intoa room with an abomination impaled by the Giant’s Slumber spearin the center. Be sure toloot the room before pulling the spear out. Removing it will shut the door and spawn two Spectres, a Greater Calamity Blight, and several Skeletons.
The Spectres explode upon death, so stay clear of the blast radius.Stay on the move throughout the fight, as the enemies are fast, and you don’t want them cornering you. Once you’ve defeated all the enemies, the sealed door will open.
Cylia Boss Fight
Descend the stairs, and you’ll noticean alcove just a bit above. you’re able to jump to it to open a chest containing various materials and a Health Potion. Loot the Soul Sponge at the bottom of the stairs, then continue down until you reach a giant Sporeling named Cylia, dancing in front of the Adra Pillar with a Delemgan Scourge and some Xaurips.
There’s a Xaurip Shaman among them, sofocus on eliminating the Shaman first. Afterward, take care of the rest of the enemies andleave Cylia for last. While Cylia can buff its allies with shields and healing, it doesn’t do so quickly, allowing you to clear the others without much trouble, especially if your gear is of Exceptional quality.
Cylia has resistance to Frost and Poison, but with its low HP, it’s easy to take down. Just be wary of its wall slam, small-area explosion, and poison volleys.
Should You Accept Godlike Power In Naku Tedek?
After defeating the enemies,interact with the Adra.For the first time,you’ll see the being behind The Voice: Sapadal.Speak to Sapadal to learn of its connection to you, the Godless, and The Living Land.
Sapadal will ask you to find it in The Garden beyond the poisoned sea. But for now, you’ll have two choices: Accept Sapadal’s power or reject it.
Your choice doesn’t impact the story’s ending.It just changes how you play. So you may choose whatever you like.
Return To Fior Mes Iverno
Before heading back to Fior, there are a few items to loot. To the left of the Adra pillar, you’ll find a pool of water. Create ice platforms to reach the ledge. Once there,climb up and you’ll find a Lockbox.
Next, turn your attention tothe room with three orange-glowing shields. You need to power up three generators. The first isto the right of the door.
The second isbelow the bridgeleading to the Adra.
The third isbehind a tunnelto the right of the door.
After activating all three, the door to the sealed room will open, whereyou can loot a Margran’s Blessing and a chest.
With that done, you’ve finished with Naku Tedek’s Depths. As you leave, you’ll notice Fior in flames. Depending on your actions with the Steel Garrote camp behind the waterfall, things may look very different here.
Fior Mes Iverno Burned
If you didn’t clear out the Steel Garrote camp,they’ll burn Fior Mes Iverno to the ground. Your next step in the Ancient Soil quest will be tosearch for survivors. Along the way, you’ll encounter hostile Steel Garrote members.
The survivors are hiding out at the Abandoned Farms.To find out what to do next, talk to Vidarro, Quilicci, and Yatzli. While you’re there, make sure tograb the Debt of Blood side quest by chatting with Vemas Rogera. This quest is only available if Fior Mes Iverno is lost to the Steel Garrote.
If you reach this scenario,Fior will be out of reach for the rest of the game. Plus, most of the side quests in and around Fior will fail automatically.
Fior Mes Iverno Saved
If you took care of the Steel Garrote camp earlier, your return to Fior will be much easier.You won’t have to deal with any hostile Steel Garrote members since they’re all dead, so feel free to loot their bodies and the unfortunate Fior Rangers for some useful items.
As you approach the city,you’ll run into Ranger Tezallo of Fior and Lieutenant Bodcg from the Steel Garrote. You’ll have a few dialogue options, but it ultimately comes down to two choices: Execute Lieutenant Bodcg or send him back in chains to the Embassy. The real question is,should you kill Lieutenant Bodcg?
It’s actually better not to kill Lieutenant Bodcg.Killing him means you miss out on any chance to question him further about the Steel Garrote and Lodwyn’s plans. Plus, your companions will also approve of sparing him.
With that settled, it’s time to enter the city.
Thirdborn Or Paradis: Where To Send The Animancers?
As soon as you step into the city,you’ll meet Vidarro, Quilicci, and Yatzli. Talk to them and go through all the dialogue options until Vidarro and Quilicci start discussingwhere to relocate the animancers. Both the choices have their pros and cons, so read on and see what future you want for the survivors.
Quilicci suggests moving the survivors to Thirdborn, a place where they can practice their craft without restrictions. If you choose Thirdborn, Fior’s survivors will head there in search of a fresh start.
However, if you let Ryngrim sever the Adra and drain the essence from random people in Shadows of the Past,some of the Fior mes Iverno survivors will die unexpectedly. You’ll learn about this when you speak to Quilicci in the Residential District.
Governor Vidarro proposes moving the survivors to Paradis, a place where they can hide in plain sight of the Aedyrans.The animancers won’t be able to continue their craft.But it’s a safer option since no one will suspect the Fior people have relocated there. If you return to Paradis, you’ll find the governor at the city gates, andhe’ll reward you with 500 gold.
If you decide to send the Fior mes Iverno people to Paradis and later choose to make the Living Lands independent, things take a rough turn in The Siege of Paradis.The governor will open up about how his people have to hide, and some are even missing.
The Paradisians don’t accept animancers either.The Fior survivors’ agricultural knowledge earns them respect, and this gradually helps mend relations with the Paradisians and Aedyrans. Butthey can no longer practice Animancy.
