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So, you've finished off a decent chunk of Ashbourne Village. Salt and Sacrifice is just getting started - that was only the beginning. You'll be traveling to Bol Gerahn next, the arid plains of the south populated with giant trees and the worst peerage system you've ever laid eyes on.

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Here, you'll find the valuable Magnesin Supply, which, like the Grappling Hook, will allow you to traverse new areas and open up useful shortcuts. In addition, you'll face some pretty devious bosses. Here's the route you should take through the area and some goodies you can pick up on the side.

How To Get To Bol Gerahn

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To get the Rune combination necessary to enter Bol Gerahn, you’ll need to speak with the talking tree above the gatehouse in Ashbourne Village. If you do this after devouring at least one Named Mage’s heart, it will give you the rune combination.

Once that is complete, you can travel to Bol Gerahn through the rune portal in Pardoner’s Vale.

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Desolate Plain And Praying Giants

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You’ll begin your journey through Bol Gerahn in Desolate Plain. Head to the east until you come across a talking head in a small booth - exhaust their dialogue and then continue on, ignoring the sealed door. You’ll find a Surface Forager and Surface Ranger - these are common enemies in Bol Gerahn. When you find a mixture of them, defeat the Rangers first as they’re more dangerous.

You can ignore the door to the right; it only leads to the upper level that you’ll get to anyway. If you do explore the small cavern for loot, beware the Baroness who will fall on top of you, dealing lots of damage.

Use the two grapple points to head north and you’ll come to the Praying Giants area. Use the stairs and then the wooden platforms attached to the gigantic tree to make your way up the area. Be careful when ascending the long ladder as there is a Ranger waiting at the top to snipe you.

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At some point, you’ll be able to grapple over to the wall on the east. You can wall-jump up to the platforms that are just out of reach and then find some rare ores in the narrow cavern off to the side. They’ll lead to the top of the area and your eventual goal to the west either way. Plus, there's an obelisk to be found for convenience.

When you start moving to the west again, you’ll find a bag with a Shimmering Bud inside.

Eventually, you’ll reach more solid ground and an obelisk to grab. Move ahead and you’ll face the first boss of the area, the Hate-Cursed Matriarch.

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How To Beat The Hate-Cursed Matriarch

Salt and Sacrifice Hate-Cursed Matriarch Nameplate

The Hate-Cursed Matriarch isn't too tough to beat, as long as you learn her moves' telegraphs. Her hardest-hitting moves utilize lightning, and it's easy to learn what to expect by the way she waves her spear around.

The Hate-Cursed Matriarch Attacks

  • Forward Strike: The Matriarch lunges forward slightly with her forelegs. Easily dodged.
  • Forward Smash: The boss strikes down with her spear. Easily dodged.
  • Leap: This is a gap-closer that deals damage. Usually easy to avoid, but you can be caught by it when trying to roll away to heal.
  • Lightning Strikes: The Matriarch spins her spear in the air, gathering lightning. Highly-telegraphed lightning strikes will then appear on the floor in a line. Dodge out of them to avoid getting hit - it's best to roll through the lightning, not away from it.
  • Lightning Burst: The Matriarch gathers some static electricity while raising her spear in the air, followed by a short-range burst that you'll have to roll through or run away from.
  • Static Shock: The boss raises her spear in the air and starts shooting tendrils of electricity forwards. Roll through the Matriarch to avoid this.

The Hate-Cursed Matriarch Strategy

  • The moves you should be looking to punish are the slow melee attacks that the boss uses, and whenever she uses Lightning Strikes or Static Shock - if you're in a position to get behind her quickly. She's easily struck during these attacks.
  • Punish Lightning Burst by rolling away and getting a quick ranged shot off.
  • Stay well-healed at all times - the Matriarch is an aggressive boss and has enough tools to catch you during your healing animation. Consider bringing Bloodberries to the fight for quicker, short bursts of healing.

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Obtain The Magnesin Supply

Salt and Sacrifice Magnesin Supply Corpse

From the boss arena, head to the west and then drop down the platforms. Grab the obelisk and head further to the east. You’ll end up platforming across another giant tree. Knock down the nearby shortcut ladder and drop down the platforms.

Head through the building to the west, drop down the sheer cliffside and re-enter the building through the door to the east. Be careful of Baroness attacks from the ceiling - there are two in here. If you look at the top of the room, you can see a series of breakable platforms that you can leap across quickly to reach a sack containing a valuable Exotic Strand. This is where the second Baroness attacks, so be careful.

The corpse at the end of this room has the Magnesin Supply - take it. This item is used to activate the pulleys that allow you to move around areas quickly, and unlock new ones.

When you find a Magnesin pulley, you can only activate the end that has plants growing on it.

Opening the door to the right will unlock the pathway to the bottom of the Praying Giants area, creating a full loop. Heading back and activating the pulley outside to the west will let you activate a second pulley that leads straight back to Desolate Plain.

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Creeping Caves And Forsaken Gulch

Salt and Sacrifice Creeping Cave Sealed Door

To make progress and access the next area you will first need to access Bol Gerahn Temple, an area locked behind sealed doors that requires you to devour two Named Mage hearts.

Luckily for us, we have access to two of them right now. The first is the heart of the Aeromancer, Aur Cyrus. The second heart is that of the Terramancer, Sto'h Karrig. The hunt for this mage begins inside the Creeping Caves, which is locked behind a sealed door that opens once you’ve devoured the Aeromancer’s heart.

For full fight strategies and hunt locations, check out this guide.

Be wary as you make your way through the Creeping Caves, as the Den Priests within have a devastating spinning attack and the Creeping Sires will leap at you to pin you down for a ton of damage. Move slowly around them and be ready to dodge.

When you reach a long, horizontal Magnesin pulley, drop down momentarily to find a sack containing some valuable Twin Ashpyr. Be prepared for a sudden Baroness attack once you finally use the pulley, and then continue through the caves.

Eventually, you’ll come to some ledges that look like you can wall jump up. You can't, it's the other half of a shortcut you'll unlock later. Carry on until you have to choose between continuing west and dropping down to a huge cavern with stalactites on the ceiling. Drop down, and grapple across the ceiling of the cavern to get some Twin Ashpyrs.

Head further down, being wary of enemies and collecting loot as you go, until you can only go west. You’ll find the start of the Named Terramancer Hunt here, right before a door that leads to the next area, Forsaken Gulch. There is a chest a little bit above the start of the hunt that contains a Shimmering Bud and a Runed Mace, and you’ll need to do some platforming over breakable platforms and avoid a trap to open it.

Salt and Sacrifice Forsaken Gulch

With two mages down, you can now explore the Forsaken Gulch area and unlock the sealed door to the northwest that leads to Bol Gerahn Temple. There isn't much to find in Forsaken Gulch, just some enemies and an obelisk to the east that you should grab for convenience.

Inside Bol Gerahn Temple, you’ll fight The Tireless Exalted.

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How To Beat The Tireless Exalted

Salt and Sacrifice Tireless Exalted Nameplate

Fighting The Tireless Exalted can be very difficult as he uses instant-death attacks that will punish players who are used to tanking attacks instead of avoiding them.

Tireless Exalted Attacks

  • Death Censer: This is the boss's main attack you need to look out for. Tireless Exalted will hold his censer aloft, summoning three white spirits that slowly home in on you. These spirits don't do damage, but they will start a buildup of a status effect that you can see underneath your stats in the top-left. When this bar fills, you will die automatically. Roll through the spirits.
  • Censer Smash: Tireless Exalted smashes the censer on the ground in front of him. This has a wonky hitbox and is hard to avoid.
  • Staff Smash: Similar to the Censer Smash, but with increased range. There's a small safe area very close to the boss that you can use to keep attacking, but it's very inconsistent.
  • Staff Pound: An easily-avoided move that has the Exalted pounding the base of his staff on the ground. Just roll away.
  • Staff Pound (Death Wisps): When very low on health, the Staff Pound move will now summon a barrage of homing wisps that all contribute to the status buildup that kills you automatically. You need to avoid this attack as a point of priority.

Tireless Exalted Strategy

  • Getting used to the timing of the Death Censer spirits and the Staff Pound wisps is of utmost importance here. Unfortunately, you don't get much practice with the wisps as he only uses this attack when very low on health, and when he's low on health and it only takes a few hits to be killed instantly.
  • You can take three death spirits without instantly dying. You could use this to tank one of the Death Censer barrages while attacking constantly.
  • The timing and hitboxes on Tireless Exalted's physical attacks are wonky and hard to avoid, but not that powerful. Keep your healing up.
  • Save your ranged attacks for the last moments of the fight and use them to finish the boss off. Not only will this save you Irona Ore on failed attempts, but staying at range is a great way to more easily roll through the Death Wisps used at the end of the fight.

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Bol Gerahn Temple

Salt and Sacrifice Filthy Key Location Bol Gerahn Temple

Now that you have access to the rest of the temple thanks to your victory over Tireless Exalted, you can explore. Your final goal is the very top of the temple where you’ll find a very long staircase. Open the sack at the top of the stairs to get the Filthy Key.

Be very cautious when exploring the temple, as there are Tomb Servants who wield staves that can emit the same death wisps as the Tireless Exalted could.

As you climb the temple you’ll find doors on the eastern side. These will open shortcuts to the Desolate Plain and Praying Giants areas, and also grant you access to a new area - Unclean Oasis. Halfway up, you’ll also encounter the starting point for the Necromancer Hunt. Just to the left of the hunt is a sack with a Steel Key inside - you’ll need to do a little platforming to get it.

Below the Necromancer Hunt starting point is a grappling point you can use to reach a door. You can open this with the Filthy Key. Inside you’ll find a stone room full of corpses. Drop to the lowest level, make your way across, and kill the Verdant Guard there. Wall jump up the west side of the wall, make your way to the wooden platform to the east, avoid the trap, and then reach the topmost level.

Here, you’ll find a guard sitting against a wall. Talk to them and you’ll gain access to Corvius’ Mire, the next area in the game.

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EVERYTHING BELOW THIS POINT IS OPTIONAL

Bol Gerahn Temple Upper Layer

Salt and Sacrifice East side of Bol Gerahn Temple

Once you have defeated enough mages, you’ll be able to access the very top level of the Bol Gerahn Temple through the sealed door. Inside, you can start the Thaumamancer Hunt. At the very top of the temple, you’ll find chests that contain the Healer’s Set and more valuable loot.

In the northwestern-most part of the Temple you can find a tricky platforming puzzle that features breakable floors and the Grappling Hook. At the top, you’ll find the Altarstone Glaive, the Ochre Tome of Fates, and Inquisitor Amben if you talked to them in Ashbourne Village. Exhaust their dialogue to get them to move on.

Salt and Sacrifice Blighttaker Zix

On the west side of the temple you’ll find an extremely tricky platforming puzzle that needs you to leap over breakable platforms while also dodging a spinning blade. This may take a lot of trial-and-error before you get the timing down.

On the other side you’ll find a Sunfire Toadstool and a locked door that requires the Steel Key from lower in the temple. Behind the door you’ll be able to loot some Voidepyr and Shroud Tokens. On top of the third platform you can talk to Blighttaker Zix who will let you join the Shroud Alliance that allows you to invade other players. He will open up the Treacher’s Grotto at the bottom of Pardoner’s Vale.

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Unclean Oasis

Salt and Sacrifice Unclean Oasis NPC

Head to the Unclean Oasis (which can be accessed through an eastern exit half-way up the temple) and leap across the breakable platforms. You’ll end up at the top of a narrow passage in Creeping Caves. Hop across the gap and explore the cavern above. You can find a shortcut to Desolate Plain, a Blueblossom, and Inquisitor Selet if you gave them a Guiltless Shard in Ashbourne Village. Give them another one.

In the Unclean Oasis itself, you can find a Dragon’s Tongue on the bottom level and talk to a man who is tracking a Blueheart if you fall from the third platform along the top. Exhaust his dialogue to unlock Inquisition Hunts.

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Optional Tasks

Salt and Sacrifice Inquisitor
  • You can find the Sanguimancer Hunt once you have the Luminstone from Corvius’ Mire. It’s located in the room on the west of the ground floor of Bol Gerahn Temple.
  • Once you’ve defeated all five mages in the area, you can enter through the sealed door to the west of Forsaked Gulch. Inside, you’ll find two Nameless Mage hunts, one for the Necromancer, and one for the Sanguimancer.
  • Once you've felled all the mages in the area, the sealed door next to the Thaumamancer clue location can be opened. You'll find two chests behind it containing some crafting materials, the Palatine Vanguard, and the Palatine Set.

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NEXT: Salt And Sacrifice: Complete Guide And Walkthrough