Dark Souls 3 Road of Sacrifices – Find Orbeck of Vinheim, Horace and Anri of Astora

The Road of Sacrifices area has a lot to explore and a ton of loot to find, along with two more NPCs.

This guide offers a walkthrough of the Road of Sacrifices in Dark Souls 3. In this area you will meet Horace and Anri of Astora, giving you the option to join the Blue Sentinels, recruit Orbeck of Vinheim, find Farron Coal along with the Sellsword and Fallen Knight armor sets, pick up the Great Club and Exile Greatsword and quite a bit more as you progress toward the Crystal Sage boss battle.

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Road of Sacrifices

Light the Road of Sacrifices bonfire, then head around the corner to the left. There’s an enemy ahead sitting by the tree. As you approach it will sprout wings and aggressively attack you. If you’re quick you can kill the enemy before the wings sprout and avoid any attacks. If you’re not fast enough, wait for the initial attack burst to end, then attack to bring it down.

Continue down the hill to the right of the tree and circle around to the left to find another enemy. Take out the enemy, then collect the Shriving Stone from the corpse. Turn around and head toward the fallen wagons ahead to find another corpse between the carriages. Collect the Soul of an Unknown Traveler, then continue ahead to see three more enemies waiting for you and a fourth down the path to the left. If you don’t wish to engage all three at once, used ranged attacks to lure them away.

The larger enemy in the back will cast a poison cloud around him and call for backup with a loud scream. When this happens at least one more enemy will fly down and attack. There’s also a cave just above where an enemy patrols and may jump down to join the fight. Once again, it’s easiest to simply use ranged attacks to draw them away individually so you don’t have to face more than one at a time.

Head down the path behind the larger enemy and follow it around the mountain to the right. Drop down to the area below and circle around to the left before you head through the archway. A strong Brigand enemy attacks from the area below. Wait until the enemy adds a regeneration power to his blade by holding it in front of him. As soon as you see this, move in and attack relentlessly, leaving only enough stamina to dodge away after your barrage. Repeat this process and the enemy should go down fairly easily, leaving behind his Butcher Knife weapon.

Once the enemy is down, continue down the path to the lower area to find a Brigand Axe weapon on the corpse hanging over the edge of the cliff. A little further down the path there’s another corpse that holds the Brigand Hood, Brigand Armor, Brigand Gauntlets and Brigand Trousers. At the very end of the path you’ll find a corpse holding the Brigand Twindaggers weapon.

Collect the loot then head back up and continue through the archway. There are several enemies directly ahead, but before you engage circle around to the left and move across the bridge to find another corpse that holds a Titanite Shard. If you didn’t kill the enemy that patrols this cave before, you will have to deal with it now.

Finish off the enemy then head back in the opposite direction to engage the enemies that were directly ahead before. There’s one normal enemy ahead, as well as a caller that will cast poison and call in more enemies. This time if you let the caller scream three more enemies will appear and rush toward you, making for a very difficult fight. If this happens retreat to the lower area where you fought the Brigand and hope that they come down one at a time (which is likely).

There’s another enemy to the left of the caller, so be prepared for a tough battle if you just rush in to fight them all at once. Loot the corpse on the hill where the caller was standing to find an Ember, then head through the next archway and down the hill to find the Halfway Fortress bonfire. Next to the bonfire you’ll find Horace and Anri of Astora. Anri will give you some information about the areas ahead, while Horace will give you a Blue Sentinels covenant badge.

Once you leave the area, Horace and Anri will disappear. When this happens you can had back to the Firelink Shrine and speak with the man who has no name (yet) who’s usually sitting near the Fire Keeper. Speak with him several times and he will give you some clues that will be useful later. Continue to speak with him and you’ll obtain a Heavy Gem. In addition, Sirris of the Sunless Realms is now found sitting near the Fire Keeper, but at this point she doesn’t have much to say.

Continue through the opening ahead and make your way down the hill. Two enemies with cut down trees attack on the path below. You can target them with ranged attacks from the higher path if you want to avoid fighting them both at once. There are several more enemies at the bottom of the hill. If you circle around to the right there’s one last enemy and an undead hound guarding a corpse that holds a Titanite Shard.

From the top of the hill where you fought the first two enemies, you can drop down to the lower ledge and use these ledges as steps to get to the bottom as well. On the second step you’ll find a corpse holding a Soul of an Unknown Traveler. Taking the alternate route places you to the far side of the other enemies, with three toadstool enemies directly ahead. These enemies create poison clouds, then slowly move toward you, so it’s best to use ranged attacks from higher ground instead of engaging all three at once.

After the first set of toadstools there’s a larger enemy sitting on the ground near the right wall. It has a cross on its back and tends to blend into the scenery if you’re not paying attention. This enemy moves quickly and inflicts a lot of damage. Dodge until it attacks, then quickly counter attack as much as you can until it recovers.

Just beyond this enemy are three more toadstools. If you went down the longer path, you need to head to the right to engage these same enemies. Watch out for the small crabs patrolling the water in the middle. Head through the opening to the far right, then around the corner to the left. Directly ahead there’s a knight waiting to engage you. If you move down the path to the right of the knight there’s a corpse at the end holding a Sellsword Helm, Sellsword Armor, Sellsword Gauntlet and Sellsword Trousers.

Collect the gear then turn around and use ranged attacks on the knight below. In the area just behind the knight corpses hold a Sellsword Twinblades and a Farron Coal at the very end of the path. Killing the knight doesn’t drop any loot, so if you move down the far right path where the Sellsword gear set is found, you can use a ranged attack to hit the knight in the back of the head. This causes him to run up toward your location. Wait until he rounds the corner, then drop down to the area below and move toward the item corpses. With proper timing the knight will remain in the upper area and you won’t have to fight him at all.

If you end up having to fight the knight, be wary of his range. He can attack from a good distance away using his great sword and will occasionally swing up to three or four times before he stops. He also has a shield that will block most of your attacks. The best course of action is to move in and out of his range until he attacks, then dodge to his back side and go for a back stab. If you can’t line up a back stab, you should still be hitting him at least two or three time between each of his attacks or combos.

Once the knight is down, or you fool the knight and collect all the loot, head back to main watery area. Head back to the hill where you originally came down and continue past it to find another group of enemies holding cut down trees as well as more toadstool enemies. In the area closest to the hill where the first set of toadstools are located, there’s a corpse laying against the rocky side of the hill that holds a Titanite Shard.

Be careful as you move through this area as many enemies can sneak up on you or are laying on the ground and hard to spot. Continue past the corpse with the Titanite Shard and move around the corner to the right to find a group of toadstools surrounding another corpse. Kill the enemies and loot the corpse to obtain another Titanite Shard.

Up the hill directly ahead are a few more tree-holding undead and a Twin Dragon Greatshield. On the far side there’s a broken archway. To the right of the archway is a corpse that holds a Fading Soul. Head through the archway and up to the right to find the Crucifixion Woods bonfire. Look over the edge of the cliff toward the water to see a giant crab and a few smaller crabs.

Scattered throughout the watery swamp area you’ll find a Grass Crest Shield, six Green Blossoms, a Great Swamp Pyromancy Tome (give this to Cornyx back at the Firelink Shrine), a Conjurator Hood, Conjurator Robe, Conjurator Manchettes and Conjurator Boots, and a Fallen Knight Helm, Fallen Knight Armor, Fallen Knight Gauntlets and Fallen Knight Trousers. The smaller crabs are easy to kill, but if you kill both giant crabs you obtain a Great Swamp Ring. Most of their attacks are telegraphed and fairly easy to dodge, but if you don’t kill them moderately fast, they will burrow underground and completely regenerate their health. It’s important to constantly attack between the crab’s attack to avoid having to start the fight over.

On the far left side of the watery area there’s an entrance into a basement area of the castle-like structure. One of the larger enemies guards this small room and waits to the right of the entrance. Move inside to get its attention, then fight it out in the open water area where you have more room to maneuver. Once the enemy is down, head back into the room and loot the corpses to find a Sage Ring on one corpse and a Sorcerer Hood, Sorcerer Robe, Sorcerer Gloves and Sorcerer Trousers on the other corpse.

On the land in the far left corner you’ll find two corpses and a knight. One corpse holds a Golden Falcon Shield, but you can only reach by going through the castle-like structure, while the other corpse holds a Large Soul of an Unknown Traveler. Up the stairs here are two stronger enemies, one wielding an Exile Greatsword and another with a Great Club. If you get the attention of one, both will attack.

Back up into the water so you can separate the two, then only attack the one who is closest. Most weapons allow you to stun these enemies long enough to stop them from attacking until your stamina is low. However, pay close attention to the one wielding the Great Club because he will take a knee and use a healing spell to regenerate health. When this happens quickly move toward him and attack to interrupt the spell and score some free damage. Each enemy drops their weapon upon defeat, allowing you to collect the Great Club and Exile Greatsword.

Head up the stairs and ignore the ladder to the right so you can collect the two Homeward Bones on the balcony on the far side. With the items in-hand head down the ladder and light the Farron Keep bonfire below. Just beyond you will enter Farron Keep, which may be your next destination so remember this location. However, for now head back to the Crucifixion Woods bonfire so you can complete this area before moving on.

There are some castle-like ruins very close to the Crucifixion Woods bonfire. To the right of the ruins there’s a corpse that holds the Soul of an Unknown Traveler. If you continue down this path there’s a fire burning ahead, but two of the larger enemies with crosses strapped to their backs are sitting by the fire so be careful as you approach. There are also several lesser enemies in the area to make things even more fun.

Next to the first there’s a corpse holding an Ember, and down the path to the left there’s another corpse holding an Estus Shard. Circle back around to the left side of the ruins and head inside. There are a number of enemies inside the ruins. This includes a sorcerer who will use ranged magic against you, as well as a number of easy to kill enemies who will swarm in your direction once you’ve been spotted. Stay near the hole in the wall entrance so you can move back outside should you start to get overwhelmed.

Once the first room has been cleared, look to the right of the stairs to find a corpse in the corner that holds a Heretic’s Staff weapon. Head up the stairs and across the bridge. Just inside the entrance into the adjacent building there’s an enemy waiting to the right. Take him out then continue down the stairs and around the corner to the left to find a Crystal Lizard ahead.

When attacking the Crystal Lizard be careful because there’s another enemy around the corner at the end of the corridor. Kill the Crystal Lizard to obtain a Crystal Gem, then head around the corner to find another sorcerer and a second enemy up the stair ahead. Take them out so you don’t have to deal with them later, then head out the opening here and down the path to find the item corpse you couldn’t reach before. Drop down and collect the Golden Falcon Shield you missed before.

Circle around and head back to where you entered the second building. If you’re standing in the entrance coming from the bridge, right is the way you just went. This time go left and move around the corner and up the long flight of stairs. Head into the room to the right to find a sorcerer NPC, Orbeck of Vinheim. If you have a high enough Intelligence stat (10 or higher) you can ask to learn sorceries and send him back to Firelink Shrine (where he’s found to the right of the blacksmith), otherwise he will simply send you away.

Head across to the far side of the room and move down the half stairs to find a corpse that holds two Blue Bug Pellets. Collect the item, then head back to the entrance by the bridge. This time go left (straight if you’re standing at the entrance) and into the next room. There are a number of enemies here, including two on the right side, two on the left side and two sorcerers on the far end of the room. Take the room one side at a time, leaving the sorcerers for last if you can avoid getting their attention. As soon as they start attacking you should focus on them so you don’t have to avoid their ranged attacks while dealing with other enemies.

On the left side of the room there’s a summon sign about halfway down that will summon Eygon of Carim who will help you for a short time if you completed his quest in the Undead Settlement side area. There’s also an item corpse on the right side of the room, if you didn’t get it when you were upstairs, but the stairs are broken so you can’t access it from this side.

Clear the enemies and continue through exit on the far side of the room. Up the next hill you will enter the boss battle against the Crystal Sage. If you have trouble with the group of enemies in the previous room, summon Eygon of Carim to help. If the enemies were no trouble, wait until they’re down before you summon Eygon so you have him fresh for the boss battle. Either way he should survive until the boss battle.

Continue on to the Crystal Sage boss battle or head back to our Dark Souls 3 walkthrough and guide!


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Author
Bryan Dawson
Bryan Dawson has an extensive background in the gaming industry, having worked as a journalist for various publications for nearly 20 years and participating in a multitude of competitive fighting game events. He has authored over a dozen strategy guides for Prima Games, worked as a consultant on numerous gaming-related TV and web shows and was the Operations Manager for the fighting game division of the IGN Pro League.