Our Dreams Divide Us Still Walkthrough - Avowed Guide - IGN (2025)

With the Envoy discovering startling revelations about the Shadows of the Past in the ruins of Naku Kubel, you've been forced to make a difficult decision for the people of Shatterscarp. Now your path finally leads to the Garden itself, hidden away in Galawain's Tusks and guarded by the dwarven Wardens of Solace Keep. Reaching it will require confrontations with both the dwarven leaders and the Steel Garrote, but as Our Dreams Divide Us Still, you'll need to choose your friends and enemies carefully.

Below, you'll find a complete Walkthrough for exploring Galawain's Tusks in search of an entrance to The Garden, including how to find its main entrance, how to reach Solace Keep, investigate the rumors of the Steel Garrote at Mt. Forja, and exploring various dungeons that culminate in another major choice to decide the fate of the Solace and its people -- as well as locations of major collectibles and points of interest along the way there.

• Jump to A Section:
• Locate the Entrance to the Garden
• Head to Solace Keep
  • Solace Keep
• Locate the Steel Garrote
  • Mt. Forja Quarry
• Mt. Forja Mines
  • Boss Fight
• Return to Solace Keep
  • Solace Keep Lava Tubes
• Major Choice Decision

Locate the Entrance to the Garden

After defending your actions at the Party Camp on the way out of Shatterscarp, you'll arrive in the incredibly hostile and ash-filled volcanic wastes of Galawain's Tusks. Friendly faces are in short supply, and the major settlement in the region is fairly far to the north.

Somewhat annoyingly, compared to Shatterscarp's multiple quests, this one will span the entirety of your time in the Tusks, and because of this the difficulty level will fluctuate depending on how far along you are. For now, you should aim to have upgrade your gear to Superb level as soon as you can, so that you can spend this quest finding materials to get to the next tier.

Things seem to be going great in the Tusks, as you'll find a group of Dwarves nearby that have imprisoned deserters, and even the prisoners don't want you getting involved in Pargrunen affairs.

Speaking of Dwarves, Marius is a good pick to bring with you during this questline, as -- despite his anxiety of returning home -- he has a lot of unique insight into this region and knows many of its people.

Heading further up the main road, you'll find the Sallow Steppe Party Camp on the side, while the road takes you up to the Southern Warden Tower. You can use this as a small base before pressing onward, as you'll be able to sell here (and buy two legendary items, plus a Treasure Map - My Loyal Shield), and pick up a quest to try and parley with the leader of the dwarven outcast leader, starting the Wardens Warding Side Quest.

Talking to the dwarves here, you'll also learn that you bear striking resemblance to Solace Keep's founder, Nandru, which indicates that he too may have been a Godlike of Sapadal. This should make things interesting when you visit.

The tower itself holds a locked door with a glowing Treasure Chest behind it, and you can find the Storage Room Key up on the second floor behind a row of barrels in the back of the room. This will allow you to loot the chest to gain some Sentinel Boots.

Be sure to check the rest of the tower for more Treasure Chests you can lockpick open, plus one you can reach by hopping down from the roof to the scaffolding below on the west side.

Leave the tower by following the main road as it curves east, and you'll soon spot a large glowing tree off in the distance. It seems the Garden's existence wasn't all that secret to begin with (thanks for the heads up, Marius).

Along the road you'll also run into Watcher Lerae, who is distraught at the disappearance of a lone Aedyran Caravan that was trying to establish trade in the region. It's gone missing, and you can find its wreckage nearby, prompting the A Cure for Rage Sidequest. This one is worth investigating early, as it will soon have you exploring a lot of the early spots in the Sallow Steppe to take out camps of Xaurips and Beetles nearby.

If you head past the ruined caravan further east away from the main cobbled road, you'll find a series of ruins plagued by all manner of Beetles, Xaurips, and Blights. Among them, the Rock Beetle can put up its guard like shielded humans, and you'll need to punch a hole in its defenses before you can take them down.

When you reach the cliff's edge of the ruins, you'll find that the Steel Garrote have already beat you here, but talking to their camp leader Hafric will confirm that the Dreamscourge has come with them, and is slowly turning all of their number insane.

This will force a confrontation, requiring you to defeat Hafric and the small contingent with him, though you'll learn that Inquisitor Lodwyn is elsewhere searching for a way to reach the Garden. Luckily, the group is only rated Superb and shouldn't be too much trouble, as long as you quickly take out their Priest, Summoner, and Wizard first.

After looting their camp (check by one of the tents near the bridge for a small Lockbox holding Corrupted Adra), approach the Bridge to the Garden. Some of the madness of the Steel Garrote's captain does ring true: the roots will open for you, Envoy.

However, you'll soon see for yourself why Lodwyn has begun to search elsewhere: The long bridge leading across a giant lake of acidic waters has crumbled. Fortunately, a broken pillar at the edge holds a clue: Nandru's Journal.

The founder of Solace Keep and fellow Godlike was aware of a more secret path to the Garden -- one that Lodwyn is no doubt searching for. This means the next lead you need to track down will be exploring the keep that Nandru built: Solace.

Before you leave, be sure to check the ledge below the bridge near the Steel Garrote Camp. The southern side has a series of ledges leading down to a corpse that holds the first of many Totem Fragments of the God of this area, Galawain. Grab the Antler of the Persevering Stag, and head back to the main road.

Head to Solace Keep

As Marius will point out, you can't miss Solace Keep: It's the giant fortress dripping with lava further up along the cliffs to the north of the Sallow Steppe and Twinedwood.

While it may look like a daunting trek past the Sallow Steppe and through the Twinedwood, you can thankfully bypass most of the area if you want by looking for the main cobbled road that curves north right where the missing caravan fell to the wayside.

This will lead you up toward the Salt Flat Farms, which have now unfortunately been abandoned to the undead by Warden's Rest, and hordes of Xaurips further north.

As you explore this area, be sure to look on the side of the first larger building guarded by skeletons to find a dead body holding a Letter to Ambassador Hylgard. It's been written by someone on the Council of Solace, and seems odd given the Wardens reluctance to outside trade, and you should definitely hang onto it.

Be wary if you wish to explore further west into the Twinedwood, as there are several Dwarven Outcast Camps that will attack if you get too close, and can put a damper on your negotiations for the Wardens Warding Sidequest. If you travel up the salt flats you can reach Amalia's Camp in the middle to try and start your negotiations (or you can wait until later in the main quest when a much easier option will present itself).

Also note that from Amalia's Camp, you can travel north to find a Shrine to Galawain among an old Godless Ruin. Just be extremely careful to sneak up to the altar on the left side and avoid the two Ogre bounty targets, as they are one of the toughest challenges you'll face in the Tusks that are best saved for later. Still, sneaking around them allows you to claim The Huntsmaster's Spoils, Galawain's Totem Core that will allow you start adding Totem Fragments at your Party Camp.

Speaking of Outcasts, heading further north along the Salt Flat Farms will lead you to a Pargrun Outcast overlooking a lengthy farmstead called Berath's Bounty overrun by Xaurips. They'll plead with you to help clear the place out, starting the A Home for Outcasts Sidequest.

Sadly, when exploring the building closest to the outcast, you'll find several bodies, and discover that the traveling merchant Marynna - who you may have run into in each region - has had her journey ended here in the Tusks.

Not far from the farms you'll find the Solace Keep Party Camp, and once again we highly suggest you put Marius into your party, or you won't get much farther in your quest to enter Solace Keep.

The Keep itself can be found across a short stone bridge, just past another tower that serves as a prison.

Beyond this prison lies the gate to Solace Keep, only you'll find that the drawbridge is raised, and the guards won't be inclined to lower it -- even if you do look like Nandru, their founder. Entry to Solace requires a Warden to vouch for you.

Luckily, with Marius in your party, you'll get that vouching (even if he's technically an outcast). Regardless of your dialogue choices, the guard will eventually relent to Marius and allow you entry.

Solace Keep

The stone fortress basically doesn't see outsiders almost ever, so your entrance will soon be the talk of the town, even more-so since you resemble their founder, Nandru. As you ride the lift up into the keep, you can get a welcoming from the guard, and find a note behind him mentioning help needed on aqueduct repairs -- more on that later.

In fact, there's a good bit to do in Solace Keep before meeting with the council. Despite the bravado of not wanting outside help, you'll find a lot of people are not only willing to talk, but ask you for help with their problems.

The Main Hall is comprised of a two-tiered open area, as well as a lower forge below the lift up to the council chamber, meaning the whole of the town is relatively small compared to the likes of Fior or Paradis. In the center, you'll find the large statue of Nandru featuring the godlike features on its face (rather cheekily, you can also drop down onto the statue from the second floor to grab Magran's Blessing growing out the top of the statue head).

On the northern side you'll find a few rooms in the Basalt Quarter that have some items in them, and the lower infirmary on the right side is where you'll find Captain Geofri. He's not too pleased to be taking over for the missing Captain Petru -- who just happens to be the Warden you might have spotted browsing Fior's markets earlier. Finding his whereabouts will start the Homecoming Sidequest.

While it's not actually part of the quest, Petru's quarters in the landing above are locked, but if you look outside the infirmary where Captain Geofri was by a stone pillar under renovation, you can find Petru's Key behind a few loose stones at the base of the pillar, and allow you to loot his room (note the animancy equipment stashed behind his bed).

The other side of the Main Hall is where you'll find the Mess Hall, including a bar area on one side, and Chef Kumitru, who will sell you a Ring that increases food restoration effectiveness. You can also speak to Petru's friend Mina, who will suggest you explore a northern tower where Petru was known to be active.

On the other end, you'll find Bounty Master Sulwin and the last five bounty targets of the game to track down around the Tusks (plus a note about Sanza's last cartographer, who went missing near a meteorite crater to the north). Just to the left of the Bounty Master is Quartermaster Yorgu, who sells the Fragments of the Spoils note with hints at the locations of the remaining Totem Fragments in the area (plus a Legendary Shield).

Over by the stairs behind the statue, you can find a lower Forge run by Forgemaster Dela. At long last, the Starmetal you've found in each region can finally be put to use here: Each of the four Starmetal fragments you've found (there's still one left in the Tusks) can be used to craft one of two weapons: A one-handed sword or arquebus rifle, and refine each of them once to create a superior version of that weapon!

Be sure to also take the stairs up to the second floor. While there's not as much to see up here, you can find a Shrine to Woedica on the southern side run by Bulti, who also sells some of the highest quality Adra, as well as a Treasure Map for The Blade that Hungers.

Over on the south side of the second floor, you can speak with Chief Engineer Gabral about the note that was posted at the entrance to the Main Hall, and undertake the Boundaries of Antiquity Sidequest to find a missing aqueduct expedition team back in the Sallow Steppe leading to an isolated and lush patch of land called the Slumbering Field.

It's well worth taking on this quest as soon as you can, as the area holds a fair amount of treasure, as well as the Ancient Memory for this region and some very interesting revelations about the area as well!

Note that there's also a distraught Warden worker nearby who has dropped their Old Hammer onto the scaffolding down below. You can drop down to get it back for them, though there's no real quest or reward for doing so (unless you press them for a bit of money).

Taking the central lift above the forge up, you'll be able to meet with the Council of Solace, which is comprised of "Komendant" Mihala and Councilor Kostya. However, when you try to warn them of the Steel Garrote's presence in the Tusks, they'll soundly dismiss your claim.

When you try to ask about a path to the Garden, you'll be similarly blocked from that line of inquiry. Despite your resemblance to Nandru, the council will remain steadfast in their refusal to aid your search (claiming that there is no other path) and it seems like you'll be at an impasse. If you still have Marius in your party, he'll suggest you may have better luck tracking down the remaining Steel Garrote, since they at least seem convinced of another path.

Councilor Kostya will escort you back to the lift, but before you follow him, you can check his room for a few interesting notes tucked away as well as a Superb Arquebus you can liberate as compensation for their lack of help.

Kostya will want to talk to you before you leave, and you'll find out that despite their treatment of you in the chamber, he's actually more opposed to Mihala's leadership than he lets on, and wants what he thinks is best for his people trapped in Solace Keep. To that end, he's interested in more direct talks with the Aedyran Ambassador -- and by extension, the Steel Garrote. He's well aware of their existence in the region, and even gives you a location: The mines below Mt. Forja. While his methods are certainly questionable, he's also become increasingly desparate to free the Wardens from their oath to a keep that has slowly become their tomb.

Locate the Steel Garrote at Mt. Forja

Exiting Solace Keep, you'll need to make your way towards Mt. Forja. This isn't the giant active volcano in the distance, rather, its the small peak in front of it, where you might have a seen a large statue head of Nandru being built into the side, just across the lava river from the Twinedwood.

Getting there will require you to take a trip through the Primordial Depths, which is full of lava fissures and rivers, Xaurip campsites, and ghostly ashen forests. Along the way north up the main road from Solace, you can also run into a panicked novice Monk from the Living Archives far in the north above the wastes. Speaking to him will start the Keep History Alive to save the Archives from an Dreamscourge outbreak.

Upon reaching the Northern Warden Tower, you'll find it under Xaurip control, and you can fight your way up to the rooftops to learn more about the missing Warden Captain Petru.

While you're here, be sure to explore to find a locked chamber on the third floor hiding a chest with a Ring of Greater Overseeing in it. You can reach it either by collecting a Twisted Iron Key on the ground floor in a Xaurip nest, or just tossing a grenade at the back wall.

Just beyond the tower, you'll find the main cobbled road crumbles away into rivers of lava as it curves to the west. You can keep heading north to investigate the Lost Village as part of Marius' Sidequest, Chorus of the Lost, or save it for later.

While you can use ice spells or grenades to create platforms across lava, there's a much easier method to continue your path to the Mt. Forja Quarry. From the broken bridge, look to the left to spot a cliffside path above the lava river with wooden boards you can knock away.

This path will take you through some Xaurip-infested territory, but as long as you head toward the large Adra Stone in the distance, you'll get back on the main path, and soon reach the Primordial Depths Party Camp. You'll have a lot more dangerous fights coming soon, so at this point you'll want to have upgraded all of your gear into the Superb level of quality, and hit at least +1 or +2 with a few pieces if possible.

Mt. Forja Quarry

To find the quarry, you need only head south from the Party Camp along a small road to find a wooden archway signaling the entrance to the quarry.

Note that if you did not take up arms against her when leaving the Emerald Stair, you'll run into Captain Aelfyr here, already in the grips of the Dreamscourge. This time, regardless of your choices, you'll be unable to avoid a confrontation. Luckily, while she is a formidable Legendary +2 opponent, she won't have any backup to help her.

She only has the basic fighter moves, and is very susceptible to bleed attacks, like those from Marius' abilities. She does hit very hard, but without any other distractions, you can simply root her in place with your abilities or use the wide open area to dance outside her reach until she falls, dropping the Death Knight Gloves as she would have if defeated earlier.

Following the minecart trail into the quarry, you'll find the Quarry Beacon and a sharp valley leading toward the mine entrance. However, as you might expect, several Steel Garrote are waiting to ambush you here, so be careful in your approach.

In order to gain the upper hand, we recommend heading up the cliffs to the left to silence a lone Arquebusier by detonating the explosive barrel next to him.

Then, return back down to the Beacon, and make your way up to the hill on the right side, where you'll find more ranged attackers waiting to fire down from above. Try and eliminate the Steel Garrote Priest from stealth before turning your attention to the melee soldiers.

Once the ambushers along the ridges have been taken care of, search the wooden platform for a golden glowing chest that holds unique boots, the Imp Catchers.

You can now turn the tables by opening fire from above on the groups of Steel Garrote in the valley below. There are several magic users among them, and you'll either want to rush them down or overwhelm them with your own ranged firepower before they can retaliate.

If you didn't get his password, you'll have to fight your way to the mines entrance, which is guarded by a lot more Steel Garrote. Even in the throes of the Dreamscourge, they'll still be formidable opponents that will try and swarm you with a variety of class archetypes that include fighters and summoners that can bring Blights into the fray.

Luckily, there's a few stashed explosive barrels around this arena that you can lure some enemies into before detonating them for easy kills.

Once the quarry area is clear, it's time to head into the mines. If these opponents felt a little too tough, now would be a good time to upgrade your gear a bit more, as it's only going to get tougher inside.

Mt. Forja Mines

The opening areas can look slightly different depending on whether you took the side entrance or not, but at most you'll only be bypassing one room full of enemies.

However, if you were able to open the side door, you'll find a mushroom-laden path leading along a high ledge past the main entrance below, over to a storeroom that holds several Treasure Chests, and includes the unique weapon, the Forge's Friend. The door beyond can only be opened from this side, meaning you can't get to it unless you got the password to use this entrance.

If you're taking the main entrance route, you'll find a large two-tiered room with a broken minecart path along the top, and a side path leading down to the bottom floor where several Steel Garrote patrol. Be sure to surprise them by detonating the explosive barrels along the bottom floor before leaping into action and clearing the rest of their group out.

After they've been eliminated, you can climb up the far side of the room either jump across the rest of the minecart track to where both paths meet up, or take the longer route up a sloping path to the right or behind the weak wooden boards - all roads lead forward.

In the next rooms where all routes lead, you'll behold a large river of lava along the far side, and many more Steel Garrote patrolling the room. Moves like Charge and shield bashes can work well to knock enemies into the lava -- so long as you don't fall in yourself.

Once the group has been defeated, don't worry about trying to cross the lava here. Instead, head through a small tunnel to the west. Stick to the left side, and you'll find a small alcove where a Steel Garrote soldier is menacing a still living Warden. Take out the aggressor with a backstab, and talk to the Warden to find out he has friends at the summit who are also in danger.

Loot the Treasure Chest by the Warden, and then look for the minecart track that leads down the tunnel to another lava-filled room. However, before you follow it, look up to the left to spy a series of ledges leading to a very tiny crawlspace tunnel you can move through to find an alternate path.

The alternate path will lead down to another Treasure Chest, and after you can dart into some tall grass while still crouched to sneak up on the next group of Steel Garrote soldiers in the lava-filled room.

There's a lot of enemies to contend with here, including many magical users and a Priest that needs to be dealt with quickly who will try and hide among the backline.

Be ready for unexpected reinforcements in the form of giant Beetles, who may run down from the nearby passageway and try to explode when they get close to both you and the Steel Garrote alike. Back up to take out these threats from afar before cleaning up the survivors.

Travel up the path where the Adra Beetles came from, and you'll find the minecart tracks lead to collapsed tunnel. Not to worry, sa a brightly lit path to the left has a weak wall you can explode the barrels nearby to open, and it will take you around and over the collapsed area to continue onwards.

While you can take a running jump across the small lava fissure in the next room to move quickly, you'll miss out on clearing out a few extra Adra Beetles and Sporelings for the experience, but the choice is up to you.

As soon as you cross over where the tunnel collapsed into the next lava-filled room, look to the right to see where the lava falls down into the previous areas. Below you will be a small rocky platform with a Magran's Blessing plant to harvest, but the real treasure is up the ledges on the far side: A Treasure Chest that holds a unique armor, the Lava-Forged Plate!

Be ready as you cross back to the main platform, as you'll likely attract the attention of a great many undead foes, including a Shade that can summon adds, Skeletons, and a Greater Lava Blight that will try and rain down fire from above.

Once the enemies are cleared out, be sure to search the workshop along the wall to find several Treasure Chests and a Letter from Kostya to Lodwyn about their secret arrangement.

Follow the path across several lava rivers, and you'll finally come to a ledge to drop down into what appears to be Lodwyn's camp. A large map of the area has been displayed on a central table, lined with stolen Pargrunen books about the Garden. Curiously, they seem to have marked Solace Keep on their map, which either indicates they are planning to march on the keep, or perhaps that it's also hiding the true secret path to the Garden.

Before you leave, be sure to loot the place for everything they've left behind, including a small Lockbox by the exit holding some Adra Ban inside.

As you exit onto Mt. Forja's summit, Sapadal will call out for what you're probably expecting: Inquisitor Lodwyn is near.

However, before you can reach her, the God of the Living Lands will lash out from the Garden in an attempt to stop Lodwyn's aim, and in doing so will confirm what many have begun to suspect all along: The Dreamscourge is a direct result of Sapadal's own power to resist the incursions of people into the Living Lands.

Whether done knowingly or not, you'll now have another important point to consider when major choices are asked of you once again. Once again, Inquisitor Lodwyn will argue the point that Sapadal needs to be destroyed. While it's worth noting that your response here doesn't have to be set in stone, you will get a unique opportunity in this meeting:

Boss Fight: Inquistor Lodwyn

The proxy battle between the gods and their servants will take on a fairly unexpected twist, as even though Lodwyn is a formidable foe in her own right, the battle will be joined by a near endless amount of swarming Dreamthralls coming in from every direction!

In reality, Lodwyn isn't even as strong as her Captain Aelfyr, as she's just barely of Legendary Quality, but the real battle is dealing with the Inquisitor while also managing all the threats coming in to catch you off guard.

Fortunately, while the Inqusitor has no real weaknesses to speak of, she's just as suceptible to getting blindsided by Dreamthralls as you are, which you can use to your advantage.

Take out the Dreamthralls that are actively attacking you or your companions, but try to dart around the others, and use abilities like the Ranger invisibility to drop threat and get the Dreamthralls to go after the boss instead. While she's fending them off, you can swing around to attack her from behind, or take potshots with ranged attacks while she's preoccupied.

This doesn't mean the Inquisitor will be cakewalk. She's got a massive firey sword that she can slam down with unblockable strikes that can also cause explosions. Keeping her at a distance is usually best, which is where Marius' root ability can help a lot. Just be ready for her to use her own teleporting magic to reposition herself, which can also leave you open to more Dreamthrall ambushes.

However, even at a distance, she can trigger quick fireball attacks. Watch her closely if she raises a gauntlet up to her face, and she'll quickly fling a fireball in your direction that can hurt.

She can even summon her own backup in the form of a Shade, only this one also carries her weapon, and can also hit hard. Quickly eliminate it at range when you see it appear, as it doesn't have too much health to last long.

As long as you keep mobile and aware of your surroundings (listen for the callouts from your Companions to know where Dreamthralls may ambush you from the sides), you need only keep the Inquisitor on the defensive and strike when she's preoccupied. Don't worry about defeating all the Dreamthralls first, you'll have plenty of time to clean up after your main adversary has been taken out.

Once Inquisitor Lodwyn falls (but will a deathguard stay dead?) you can loot her for a variety of superb items... but sadly no uniques. Be sure to clear out the rest of the Dreamthralls and loot all of them as well.

Interact with the glowing Adra monument near where you fought Inquisitor Lodwyn to try and have an honest conversation with Sapadal. You can try to be understanding, or a little more accusatory that Sapadal has been hiding the truth of the Dreamscourge from you all this time. Whether you truly believe Sapadal's madness can be cured with their freedom or not is something you'll have to soon have to make a definitive choice about.

For now, Sapadal will try and curry your favor once more with a gift -- or you can refuse it to get another Skill Point. Should you accept, you'll upgrade the Dream Touch into the Seeds of Vengeance, which not only heals and revives allies and damages enemies, but can also turn humanoid corpses into allied Dreamthralls.

Return to Solace Keep

After exiting your talk with Sapadal, some brambles will uncover a doorway back to the mines. Before you return back down the mountain, be sure to walk up along the ridge to the west. While you can't actually reach the giant stone head of Nandru (which is now covered in fungus), you can however find a Treasure Chest and a God Totem Fragment, the Hunter's Arrows of Seeking.

You should also take the time to explore the Steel Garrote base camp at the summit, as there are a lot of supplies and Treasure Chests to loot, and dropping down to a lower level you can look under a wooden awning to find a gold glowing Lockbox in a cart that holds the Dark Rebirth Ring.

Re-entering the mines, you'll find path leading back to the first lava river room, only now you'll be on the other side atop a broken pathway you can take a running jump to return back to the mine entrance. Just be ready to fight even more Dreamthralls both in the mine and now dotting the landscape of the Primordial Depths.

Your time in Galawain's Tusks is quickly nearing its end, and while you don't have to finish everything now, you may find it in your best interest to take a trip up to the Ash Forest in the north to finish the many quests up there if you haven't already - including Petru's Homecoming Quest, Marius' personal quest, finding clues to Sanza's missing Cartographer at a meteorite impact site (which also holds the last piece of starmetal), and investigating the Living Archives.

When you return to Solace Keep, the tremor caused by Sapadal has not gone unnoticed by the Wardens here. The nearby volcano has become extremely volative, raising the levels of the lava rivers glowing into the keep, and threatening the very existence of their home (along with all the rubble falling from above).

Thankfully, even in the midst of an evacuation, all the services and shopkeepers here are still available, and you should consider stockpiling up on supplies, as well as heading to the Party Camp outside to upgrade your gear to at least Superb +2 or +3 for the fights to come.

When you're ready to proceed, you'll find Mihala just outside the entrance to the Forge. The rising lava is threatening to flood all of Solace Keep, and the only thing that can save it are sluice gates under the keep itself. However, when you press Mihala that the Steel Garrote obviously had help, she'll realize the folly of sending Councilor Kostya to save the keep. It will be up to you to ensure he does the job, or put an end to him if he's doing anything but that.

To give chase, you'll find a new doorway has opened up on the other side of the forge, leading down to the lava tubes beneath the keep.

Solace Keep Lava Tubes

Entering the Lava Tubes, you'll find this final dungeon area holds a secret underground Ekidan Ruin that the keep was built over. Head down the stairs to grab some Grenades by a Treasure Chest, and keep moving onward.

Though your companions will routinely call out that you speed and urgency is required to catch up to Kostya, there's actually no real pressure or hidden timer to worry about, so be sure to explore thoroughly.

In the first large room, ignore the rushing lava off to the right, and hop up the wooden platforms to find a small alcove room with a weak wall on the left side, and some Grenades in a box. Use those Grenades you found to blast a hole open, and you'll find a Treasure Chest down a small dead-end path.

Continue through up the main room to find another high platform up on the left, and tunnel on the right leading deeper down to a chamber filled with Elder Stone and Adra Beetles you'll need to clear out.

Go up the stairs past the gooey green area to find more dead Beetles and fallen Wardens that Kostya left behind as he moved deeper into the lava tubes, and keep moving up more stairs to a small crawlspace leading to a door that takes you out to overlook a large lava-filled chasm with ruins on either side.

Drop down a ledge to where you'll find weak wooden boards concealing a passage forward to the right, but before you go, you can look left across the lava river to find an alcove with the skeletal remains of miners and a trove of Diamonds. Be extremely careful tossing ice grenades to create platforms, as missing your jump can cause you to take a lot of fire damage (drink Grog to remove the burning!).

Through the wooden boards, you'll enter an interior chamber where several Blights and Putrid Skeletons will come to life. Focus fire on the small Blights to get rid of the weaker threats before turning your attention to the Skeletons and Shade that appear.

Once you grab the Treasure Chest in this room and then exit the chamber, you'll be back out above the lava river.

Drop down and look for an opposite ledge by the falls to loot more bodies, and then carefully navigate a fallen pillar back into the ruins.

Dropping down to the bottom of this ruined tower, you'll find a few more Putrid Skeletons awakening, but you'll only have to deal with a few.

Outside this room, you can behold a small Ekidan mural, and below it are the Records of Old Solace, Part 4 to read up on.

Before leaving this room, look for a passageway on the right that circles back up to the top floor of the tower, and you'll find more items to loot up at the top with a Treasure Chest, before you head back down and out the doorway to the left.

Beyond the tower, a stairway down to the right leads to the first of two Skeleton Minibosses: Sibelius.

As a Legendary +2 quality Skeleton Mage, Sibelius can be a handful if you leave him to his own devices for too long, and the other Skeletons that appear around him will make it harder to single him out. You'll also need to isolate and eliminate the Skeleton Priest that will rise near the back of the altar, or risk having it heal back any damage you deal to Sibelius.

Sibelius is essentially immune to all poison and bleed, and also highly resistant to frost, as he uses frost magic himself to either send a powerful mortar-like shot, or a rapid salvo of ice bolts to slow you down so his other Skeletons can rip you to shreds.

Luckily, he's lightly armored and doesn't have much health, and so long as you buff yourself up with food items before engaging, you can string together a series of heavy hits and abilities to cleave out his health quickly. Try to lay on stunning moves so that he'll stay vulnerable when you close the distance, and can't use a close-range explosion.

Once he's down, take out the Shades and other Skeletons that were helping him. Hey may not have any unique equipment on him, but that doesn't mean there aren't things to loot here, starting with a small glowing Lockbox by the altar that holds Adra Ban.

Look behind the altar's lower section for some weak wooden boards, but move forward carefully, as the crawlspace in front of a Treasure Chest down here has a pressure plate trap - but you can disable it by looking for a button along the right wall as you crouch down and turn around after entering.

Up on the ledge behind the altar, there are several doors here as well. The door on the right leads to a Treasure Chest, but the door itself if trapped and will fire a poison arrow at you upon opening it. The next door is broken, while the third door holds some consumables and grenades.

However, the far left door requires 5 Lockpicks to open, but holds a Legendary Unique Bow on a table inside, the Ancient Alacrity.

To reach the far side of the chasm, you'll need to keep heading further north past where you fought Sibelius. You can spot a bridge over the lava not far ahead, but first you'll need to hang a right.

At the top of the stairs, you can find a Treasure Chest to the left, but be wary of Skeletons and Shades on the opposite ledge (you can take potshots at them from here while they try and run around to reach you).

Follow the ledges up to reach another ruined tower, along with a small table holding another book, the Records of Old Solace, Part 3. Keep following the path through the ruins and look along the rock walls to find one more book, the Records of Old Solace, Part 1.

Head down the stairs to find a door you can open at the edge of the ruins, where you can loot a glowing gold Treasure Chest with more Adra Ban, next to another book, the Records of Old Solace, Part 5. To continue on, look for a cave tunnel past the ruins and continue north.

Before you can cross the final bridge through the ruins across the lava, you'll have to deal with one more risen Skeletal Miniboss, the warrior Borodin. He's a Legendary +3 enemy, and will take a good deal of hits to take down.

While he doesn't have nearly the same kind of reinforcements as the previous miniboss, it will be in your best interest to root him in place early and run past him to deal with the lone Skeleton Priest who will run up from behind and try to support.

Unlike most fighters, Borodin not only hits hard, but has a few tricks up his sleeve. Similar to Inquisitor Lodwyn, he's able to raise one hand and fling out a firey projectile your way that can hit hard, and requires good timing to dodge effectively.

You'll also want to engage him up close extremely carefully. Not only do his swings hit for a ton of damage and are sometimes unblockable, but he'll grow in power as he takes damage. Soon, his overhead slams will begin to cause explosions when he hits the ground. These explosions will coat the area in fire that can last long after his inital swing, requiring you to reposition.

When he's getting even lower on health, his slam will spawn three separate mortars to explode in a wider arc in front of him, requiring you to fight at range if you want to avoid these huge attacks.

Once the second skeleton boss falls, you'll be free to loot his body and cross the long bridge over the lava.

Before heading up the main stairs, be sure to check the path to the left for some Treasure Chests, and a path up to a ruined tower on the right lined with brambles you can burn away to find another Treasure Chest.

Taking the main path up into the large building, you'll find a spiral staircase leading down, and then head south into an adjoining room to find a pit you'll need to dive down into the waters below (don't miss out on grabbing the Records of Old Solace, Part 2 on a table at the bottom of the staircase above the lava).

Loot the items in the water before surfacing, and just beyond this pool of water you'll find a forgotten shrine with a large Adra stone. However, the voice that calls out to you here isn't one you might expect.

Interact with the Adra, and you'll learn that youre speaking to none other than Nandru himself - the founder of Solace Keep and fellow Godlike of Sapadal. What he has to say may come as a shock to you: He wants you to kill Sapadal.

As it turns out, Nandru's entire reason for building Solace Keep was so that the Pargrunen dwarves would become unknowning jailers to Sapadal's prison, ensuring the crazed god would never be free to inflict devestation on the scale that the once lush jungle of Galawain's Tusks had seen.

It would seem the cases against freeing Sapadal have begun to grow as of late, but you still have time to decide whose council you wish to trust. At the very least, with enough Intellect you can correctly deduce which god plotted Sapadal's imprisonment and set the Maegfolc on the Ekida (which is also revealed in the Slumbering Lands). You'll also find out that the true path to the Garden is not far off, and will only open for you, a fellow Godlike of Sapadal.

Be sure to check the alcove behind the Adra for a Treasure Chest, and then head up the ramp to leave this area.

Finally, you'll be at the sluice gates that control of the flow of lava through Solace Keep. And just as you'd expect, you can find Councilor Kostya up by the winch the powers the gate, and he doesn't seem all that interested in using it.

Councilor Kostya will urge you to heed his plea, and ask that you either help him disable the winch so that Solace Keep can be destroyed, or let him do his job.

In his mind, the keep stands as a prison of tradition that is killing his people, and is willing to destroy their very home if it means an end to the laws that bind them to this land. Whille it may seem like you only have two options, there are actually three variations to either saving or destroying Solace Keep.

You can also ask your Companions what they think about the choice at hand. As with Shatterscarp, there's not really a clear right or wrong answer, and while several Companions might agree that tradition has imprisoned the Wardens, Marius will bring up a pretty salient point that even if he did escape Solace Keep, it doesn't mean the rest of his people should't be allowed to make that decision themselves, rather than having it forced on them.

As far as boss fights go, Councilor Kostya isn't all that difficult. Even with the armor and hammer, he's a councilor first and a fighter second. You can try slowing him down or rooting him in place with Marius or your own abilities and take out his Warden guards, and then quickly focus him down. He doesn't have much more to work with than standard attacks with his mace, and his health pool is fairly low.

Regardless of if you kill him or not, you can still unlock a glowing golden Treasure Chest nearby with 5 Lockpicks that holds Adra Ban, and check the book next to it for the final Records of Old Solace, Part 6.

Leaving the sluice gates behind and climbing up a ladder, you'll find yourself south of Solace Keep, which depending on your actions will be just as you left it... or overflowing with lava. You'll also be right at the Path to the Garden Beacon, and a group of twisting roots will vanish in front of you to reveal the path to the Garden you've been seeking.

Be warned: entering the door to the Garden is your major Point of No Return. Once crossed, you cannot fast travel back to Galawain's Tusks or any of the other regions. Because of this, you'll want to check in on the Wardens and Mihala before you go - who are either inside the keep or just outside it up the pathway you've now unlocked leading back to the Salt Flat Farms. The good news is that even if you chose to destroy the keep, all the major quest givers and merchants are still outside and ready to do business, so you won't miss out on anything like with Fior mes Iverno.

It goes without saying, but this is the time to finish up all of your remaining loose ends across the Living Lands. Be sure to track down and complete all remaining Side Quests (including heading back to Sanza in Paradis to deliver all the cartography notes you've collected!), find all the remaining pieces of Galawain's God Totem Fragments, complete all five of the bounties in this region, and uncover any remaining Treasure Map locations.

Once you're confident you've done all there is to do in Galawain's Tusks, it's time to head to the ominous door and have one last Party Camp before delving into The Heart of the Living Lands.