With any Soulslike title, there are many aspects you'd expect to naturally appear, ranging from complex boss encounters, mysterious and clever world design, and an abundance of lore hidden behind item descriptions and NPCs who more or less speak in riddles. And, wouldn't you know it, The Last Hero of Nostalgaia delivers on all of these but with a unique and funny twist.
In addition to the familiar tropes of the genre, you will also come across an area where you will need to find and activate Light Crystals to progress to the next region, which is a callback to Farron Keep in Dark Souls 3 or the Nokron or Siofra River areas in Elden Ring.
Overview
Wilds Warning is an area you gain access to after defeating Gnom. This region is a dense and dark forest that is challenging thanks to the metric ton of enemies placed throughout and its mazelike design. While there is no boss encounter in Wilds Warning, you will have to find and activate four Light Crystals, which is easier said than done.
Some areas are inaccessible until you activate a Light Crystal, as deadly fog prevents you from progressing any further until you light the pathway up and chase it back. Because of this, you will have to find and trigger the Light Crystals in a specific way to avoid succumbing to the fog of death. Below is a detailed guide through Wilds Warning!
Wilds Warning Light Crystal Locations
Before we dive into the guide, let's go over how you actually activate the Light Crystals. To trigger the Light Crystals, you will need a Token of Youthful Operation, which is dropped by killing a child-like enemy found within the Wilds Warning. Each Light Crystal will have one of these enemies near it, which we will include in the walkthrough.
One last note is that this area is extremely challenging. The enemies can take a beating and dish out lots of damage themselves, so please be prepared before entering. Many ambushes and mimicry happen here as well, so you should always be on guard at all times, even if we are trying our best to call out every enemy in each area.
Light Crystal 1
The first Light Crystal is the easiest to find and activate. To get to it, head up the winding pathway from the Wilds Warning Tether and into the open forest. You will see many trees and cardboard cutouts of animals populating the area. Straight ahead of you will be a stone structure. Make your way towards it.
However, be on the lookout for an imp enemy hiding in a tree in the middle of the area. To deal with them, you can either throw something at it or give the tree a whack. We recommend using the Shurikens for these enemies, as they use Access, which you can replenish with consumables in your inventory.
After dealing with the tree imp, continue to the stone structure and climb up the stairs and onto its platform. Once here, you will see a child's body and loot it to receive one Token of Youthful Operation. Next, circle the podium in front of you and prepare to fight two more imps. With the imps taken care of, proceed up the stairs and activate your first Light Crystal with your Token of Youthful Operation!
Light Crystal 2
Upon lighting the first Light Crystal, look to the left to see an elevated pathway that leads further into the woods. Make your way over to the path and follow it until you reach a doorway on the left. There will be a tree to the right of it with an imp hiding in the branches. Like before, hurl something at it or smack the tree to knock it down and finish it. After taking care of the imp, head through the door on the left.
Next, make your way up the pathway until you reach a fork in the road. Take the right path and be on the lookout for imps that will try disguising themselves as cardboard cutouts of animals. You may trigger some of them here, or you will be completely safe, so just be cautious in this section.
You should see a bonfire with skeletons and a child enemy around it. Make your way towards it and take them down. We suggest dealing with the skeletons first and then the kid, but choose whichever method is more comfortable for you and your play style. After defeating the kid, you will receive another Token of Youthful Operation.
With the Token of Youthful Operation in your possession, look towards the way you came, and then head left of the bonfire. There will be a pathway here that leads to several ramps and towards a tower. Take the ramps up, and be prepared for two imps hiding in separate trees, one on the right and one on the left. Take them out as you did the others and proceed to the next steps.
After taking care of the imps, make your way toward the tower. You will see a large number two beside the door. This indicates that this is the second of four Light Crystals. Next, enter the tower and climb the stairs. Once you arrive at the top, you will see the Light Crystal. Use your Token of Youthful Operation to activate it!
Light Crystal 3
Light Crystal number three is easily the most complex one, so let's jump straight into it. After activating the second Light Crystal, work your way back to the bonfire and follow the path straight ahead. You will eventually come across an out-of-place lemonade stand in the middle of the forest.
Proceed just past the lemonade stand and look to the right. You will see a pathway that leads to a large opening, barely covered by overgrown leaves. Head into the opening to find a door. Make your way down to the door, open it, and proceed into the next room.
Once inside the room, you will have two options: take the lift on the left or the stairs on the right. Take the stairs and follow them down into the next area (there are some fantastic shortcuts here, so be sure to explore as well). Next, look for a sign above a door that reads "NPC Village" on your right and take that. From there, look for another sign that reads "Warlock's Wilds" and take that back out into the woods and to the next step.
Now that you're back in the Wilds Warning (Warlock's Wilds) area, you will see a long pathway to your right. Follow that while being on high alert for imps that will try to assassinate you. Once you catch them in the act, they will try running away and disguising themselves as an animal. Eliminate all of them before moving on to the next step. There should be three on the ground level of this area.
With the imps eliminated, look for an opening to the right, but do not go through it. Instead, look to the right of the opening to see a ladder. Take the ladder up to a series of bridges connecting several tree houses together. Work your way across the bridges and be cautious of imps casting magic at you. Eliminate them and make your way to the last tree house. There will be a youthful enemy here. Take them down to receive a Token of Youthful Operation.
Next, hop down from the tree houses and make your way through the large opening beside the ladder you took moments ago. You will arrive in an area where you can either take a ramp up or go through another large opening. Take the ramp and follow it to the next section.
From here, you will see a wooden bridge that leads to another tower. Cross the bridge and eliminate any enemies in front of the tower. A large number three will be by the tower's entrance, signifying it is the third Light Crystal. Take the steps up and to the top of the tower to use your Token of Youthful Operation to activate the third Light Crystal!
There will be a fairy-type enemy near the tower. You can activate the Light Crystal without pulling aggro. While this enemy gives you lots of Memory (Souls) and items when defeated, please note that this encounter is tough!
Light Crystal 4
After activating the third Light Crystal, make your way back to the random lemonade stand from earlier. But now, instead of going right, go past the lemonade stand and continue following the pathway straight. You will encounter many imps and skeletons on your way, so be cautious.
Continue going straight until you pass through a section with two stone walls on either side of you. Just past this area, look to your left to see a pentagram with a child in the middle of it, surrounded by imps. Drop down and eliminate all of them, and be on the lookout for a skeleton that pops out of a tree. This encounter is one of the hardest here, so try and focus on one of them at a time. After eliminating the kid, you will receive yet another Token of Youthful Operation.
Next, you will want to look for a ramp to the right of the pentagram and take it up. From there, look to the right to see a long staircase. Take the stairs up and into the next area, which will have skeletons standing around a bonfire. Eliminate them before continuing to the next part.
With the skeletons eliminated, make your way over to the tower. You will see a large number four beside its entrance, indicating that this is the fourth and final Light Crystal. Climb the stairs and use the Token of Youthful Operation at the top to activate the last Light Crystal and open the gate to the next area!
Gate Location
Now that all four Light Crystals are activated, it's time to make your way over to the gate that has opened up. To do this, make your way down the long stairs that led you to the fourth tower and continue going straight until you come across a series of bridges. Make your way across them and be on your best guard for several skeletons and imps.
Once you cross the bridges, continue pressing forward until you come across a ramp. Take the ramp up and keep moving ahead until you reach a pathway that leads you deeper into the woods. There will be several enemies here, so be prepared for a battle.
Next, keep on the path until you are met with an open-ish area with lots of trees. There will be an incline to the left with a tree directly to the right. An imp will be in this tree. Deal with it as you have done all the others, and proceed to the final steps.
Lastly, you will fight your last batch of enemies in the following area. Eliminate them, and then look for a series of ramps to your right. Take the inclines up to reach the gate you have opened at the top, with a friendly face waiting to greet you. You can now access the next area of the game!
There are lots of goodies hidden in Wilds Warning, so we strongly urge you to explore it after you access the Tether in the following area!