Road of Sacrifices is a Location in Dark Souls 3. It is a wooded area, marked by crumbling ruins and a murky swamp inhabited by crustaceans of varying size. Damp and fetid, as rotted as it is alive, this road demands perseverance but offers rewards to those seeking the arcane arts.
General Information
- Previous: Undead Settlement
- Next: Cathedral of the Deep, Farron Keep
- Recommended Levels: 30-45
- Bosses: Crystal Sage
- Bonfires: Road of Sacrifices, Halfway Fortress, Crucifixion Woods, Crystal Sage, Farron Keep, Keep Ruins, Farron Keep Perimeter, Old Wolf of Farron, Abyss Watchers
Road of Sacrifices Map
Video Playthrough
Part 1
Part 2
NPCs in the area
- Eygon of Carim (Summon)
- Orbeck of Vinheim
- Holy Knight Hodrick (Summon)
- Anri of Astora
- Horace the Hushed
- Blue Sentinels Covenant
Bosses
Items
Consumables
- 2x Blue Bug Pellet
- 4x Green Blossom
- 2x Ember
- 1x Fading Soul
- 2x Soul of an Unknown Traveler
Weapons
- Brigand Axe
- Grass Crest Shield
- Twin Dragon Greatshield
- Heretic's Staff
- Golden Falcon Shield
- Brigand Twindaggers
- Sellsword Twinblades
- Great Club
- Exile Greatsword
Armor
Upgrade Materials
- 1x Crystal Gem
- 2x Twinkling Titanite
- 1x Shriving Stone
- 4x Titanite Shard
- 1x Estus Shard
Enemy Drops
- Corvian Greatknife (Corvians)
- Great Corvian Scythe (Corvians)
- Storyteller's Staff (Corvian Storytellers)
- Pike (Lycanthrope Hunters)
- Titanite Shard (Lycanthropes, Great Crabs)
- Ember (Lycanthropes)
- Bloodred Moss Clump (Lesser Crabs)
- Purple Moss Clump (Lesser Crabs)
- Great Swamp Ring (Great Crab)
- Butcher Knife (Madwoman)
- Xanthous Crown (Yellowfinger Heysel)
- Heysel Pick (Yellowfinger Heysel)
Keys & Other
- Braille Divine Tome of Carim
- Farron Coal
- Great Swamp Pyromancy Tome
- Ring of Sacrifice
- Sage Ring
- Morne's Ring
- Great Swamp Ring (drop)
- Lingering Dragoncrest Ring +1 (NG+)
Enemies
- Black Knight
- Corvian
- Corvian Storyteller
- Lycanthrope Hunter
- Lycanthrope
- Poisonhorn Bug
- Lesser Crab
- Great Crab
- Madwoman
- Evangelist (after defeating Crystal Sage)
- Holy Knight Hodrick (Mad Phantom)
- Yellowfinger Heysel (Invader)
Notes
- This area limits you to summoning one co-op partner. However, consuming Dried Fingers allows you to summon a second co-op partner.
- Just beyond this area is a PVP covenant, the Watchdogs of Farron. This covenant is tasked with stopping invaders in the swamp and surrounding areas. If you plan on participating in the covenant, it is imperative that you do not level your character or upgrade your weapons too high. If you do so, you will find that you cannot be summoned. A level of 25 and a maximum weapon upgrade of +3 has been demonstrated to result in many summons.
- (Speculation) This area resembles the Darkroot Garden from Dark Souls 1. This would imply that the Undead Settlement is the old Undead Burg.
Full Road of Sacrifices Walkthrough
Click here to go to a speedrun. Click here for Lore and Speculation on this area.
Entering the Woods
From the Bonfire proceed forward along the right wall. To your left, you will encounter an enemy that sprouts feathered wings. After defeating it, you can drop down to your left to take on another of these winged beasts. At the left end of this path, there is a corpse with a Shriving Stone. If you turn around and head opposite of this corpse you will encounter another winged undead by a tree along a cliff. Proceeding to the overturned coach you can loot a Soul of an Unknown Traveler and beyond that, you will see two more of these enemies. To your left is a third caster enemy and behind it a narrow ledge you can follow and drop down to a lower level. Head to the left where you can find a corpse with a Brigand Axe and beyond an enemy NPC. Kill her to obtain her Butcher Knife. Continue down this path to loot the complete Brigand Set and Brigand Twindaggers at its end.
Make your way back to and continue straight through the archway. If you head left past the archway you can take a ramp up to a narrow stone bridge and encounter two winged enemies. A corpse along this cavern path has a Titanite Shard 1x. Returning to the archway, if you make a right and proceed to a tree at the end, you can drop down to a ledge below and follow it to an area where two undead dogs lie in ambush. On a corpse here you will find a Braille Divine Tome of Carim as well as a corpse with Morne's Ring.
Anri, Horace, and the Blue Sentinels
Head up the skinny ramp to arrive at the opening where you will find a scythe-wielding winged enemy. You can drop down here where three more of the winged foes lurk. Continue up to the mound where the caster monster is, and loot a corpse here for an Ember 1x. Cross the stone bridge here where a winged enemy is and continue through the large doorway into the next area. Straight ahead you will find a Bonfire, and 2 NPCs: Anri of Astora and Horace the Hushed. Speaking to Horace will gain you the Blue Sentinels covenant item.
Proceed through the arch into the next wooded area. Follow the path around to the left where you will encounter 2 hollows wielding tree limbs as spears. If you proceed along the left wall you can drop down to a lower level where you will find some poison Brumers (returning from previous titles - formerly referred to as "mushroom monsters", they're actually a variety of bug). They are not particularly dangerous on their own but can inflict poison with their mist. If you keep moving forward around a bend you will find several around a corpse. Dispatch them to loot a Titanite Shard 1x. Nearby, next to some crosses, you'll find another corpse with another Titanite Shard. At the base of a tree nearby you can loot the Twin Dragon Greatshield. Several branch-wielding hollows are nearby, so be mindful against being ganged up on. You can loot the surrounding area for a Fading Soul 1x. Look above and you will notice a broken stone archway, both of its pillars are adjacent to small raised land/platforms. One of the platforms has a bonfire.
If you are in Ember mode you can find a purple summon spirit on the path where you can summon the Mound-Maker Holy Knight Hodrick for a duel. He is a tough fight but will engage other enemies near.
After defeating him continue along the natural wall on the left and drop down to a lower level. In the corner where you land, you can loot an Estus Shard 1x. Straight ahead you will see a blazing fire with 2 large crucified hollows around it. You can loot an Ember 1x from a corpse by this fire.
Back at the previous bonfire, you can drop down the ledges on the right side for another Soul of an Unknown Traveler.
Exploring the Ruins and Swamp
Continue through and wrap around to the right alongside the crumbling ruins. You will find a hole broken in one of the walls. Enter the ruins to find several hollows. Your target is the chime ringing hollow, if he rings the alarm before you kill him the squatted/unengaged hollows will rise and attack you. You can loot a corpse beneath an overhang here for the Heretic Staff. Go up the stairs to find two more seated hollows on your right.
Step outside across the stone bridge to the next structure. Inside the doorway straight ahead you will encounter a hollow with a spear and shield. To the left, you can exit the opening and take the stairs down, head right up the stairs, and then your first right into an open archway. To the left, you will find Orbeck of Vinheim, an NPC who sells Sorceries, and further beyond him you can loot a Blue Bug Pellet. If you return to the doorway where you met the spear and shield hollow and go right to the end of the hall, and make a left down the stairs you will find a Crystal Lizard. At the end of the hallway, you can make a right into another room, where a hollow is waiting to ambush you immediately to your right. If you go up the stairs to the left in this room, you will run into a spear and shield wielding hollow as well as a sorcerer hollow that casts Soul Spear. If you go through the doorway and drop down to your right you can find a Ring of Sacrifice on the ledge. You can drop down here to the next landing. If you go back inside the ruins here and continue along the ground floor you come to a room with several hollows. Behind a pillar here you can find the summon sign of Eygon of Carim.
In this room, you can drop down a hole in the floor by a pillar to a flooded room where a crucified hollow will leap in attack. Defeat him and loot the Sorcerer Set and Sage Ring. Exit to the exterior and into the swamp and go left to reenter the ruins.
If you choose to explore the swamp, you will find that there are several small crab enemies here, as well as a Green Blossom nearby. If you're in Ember form, you will be invaded by Dark Spirit Yellowfinger Heysel. There's a large swampy area, full of water and crabs and giant crabs (one of them, the one closest to the Farron Keep entrance, drops the Great Swamp Ring). Before the giant crab at the base of a tree, is a corpse with the Grass Crest Shield. Also in the swamp are another Titanite Shard and a Bloodred Moss Clump.
The giant crabs are intimdating, but the key to beating them is in positioning. Melee characters should try to stay directly in front of them as much as possible, as their attacks from the front are the easiest to dodge and punish. Remember to keep an eye on their claws and mouths for bubbles, avoiding these attacks before getting in a few of your own. Rinse and repeat until the crab dies, but watch out - if the crab suddenly stops moving, it will dive under the surface and regain their health.
The Entrance to Farron Keep
Continuing back through the castle and swamp is another ruined castle which is being defended by two NPCs who you can defeat to obtain a Great Club and Exile Greatsword. After killing these two NPCs, the Exile Armor Set can be bought from the Shrine Handmaid. Enter castle to find Homeward Bone 2x on a corpse dead ahead and go down the ladder to find the beginning of Farron Keep and a Bonfire.
Tome and Coal
In the swamp area nearby ruins, you can loot the Great Swamp Pyromancy Tome at the base of a large tree as well as the Conjurator Set. There is another Giant Crab in this immediate area. On the shore, you will encounter a crucified hollow and a poison Brumer. Past them you can enter into the nearby ruins Beyond you come to a grated door, you can enter into the ruins. To the right is a grated door that can be unlocked from the other side. To the left head down the hallway, and keep right to find the Sellsword Set on a corpse at the end.
You can drop down here to the ground floor and loot the Sellsword Twinblades from a corpse. On the staircase guarding the entrance you circumvented will be a Black Knight wielding a deadly Black Knight Greatsword. This weapon deals a lot of damage, so be sure to time the moves and plan your attacks carefully here. Once defeated you can find the Farron Coal at the end.
Boss Fight: Crystal Sage
Return to the ruins and in the room where you summoned Eygon you can exit to the ascending path and through a tall doorway to engage the area boss, Crystal Sage.
Once the boss is defeated you can light the Bonfire here. If you exit the boss arena to the left you will come to a path that becomes a narrow ledge. To your left you can spot a Crystal Lizard which you can drop down to pursue. If you take the next right (a little hard to see) there is a second Crystal Lizard right in front of you. If you progress further you will encounter some cage carrying large hollows. Drop down to take on a large caster standing in front of a fire. You can loot a nearby corpse for the Herald Set.
Cross the stone bridge here and light the Bonfire on the other side which brings you to the Cathedral of the Deep.
Or head back to the swamp area and proceed to Farron Keep.
Road of Sacrifices Map
Video Walkthrough
Road Of Sacrifices Video Walkthrough, Part 2 (Farron Keep Bonfire to Crystal Sage)
Speed Run Walkthrough
A fast walkthrough of how to get to the end of the level the fastest, picking up only essential items follows:
Road of Sacrifices Speedrun Video
From the Road of Sacrifices Bonfire go straight and make a left and continue past the overturned carriage. On the left follow the path down until you get to a broken wall gate. On your right there is a tree where you fall down to a ledge/path. Follow it picking up the goodies and you'll come back near the end of the level. Follow the stone path stairs down to the next bonfire. From the Halfway Fortress bonfire, run down the path and head into the woods to get the Crucifixion Woods bonfire. From there head into the stone building and climb the stairs, go straight and take the lil side path on your left to talk to Orbeck of Vinheim. Then drop down and follow the dirt path to the boss (this takes you to Cathedral of the Deep). From Crucifixion Woods bonfire go into the swamp find where the giant crabs are and head diagonally left to reach 2 NPCs. Bypass them and head inside, take the ladder down and light the bonfire. (this takes you to Farron Keep)
| Locations |
Anor Londo ♦ Archdragon Peak ♦ Catacombs of Carthus ♦ Cathedral of the Deep ♦ Cemetery of Ash ♦ Church of Yorshka ♦ Consumed King's Garden ♦ Farron Keep ♦ Firelink Shrine ♦ Grand Archives ♦ High Wall of Lothric ♦ Irithyll Dungeon ♦ Irithyll of the Boreal Valley ♦ Kiln of the First Flame ♦ Lothric Castle ♦ Painted World of Ariandel ♦ Profaned Capital ♦ Smouldering Lake ♦ The Dreg Heap ♦ The Ringed City (Location) ♦ Undead Settlement ♦ Untended Graves |
AnonymousWhat triggers the darker sky/atmosphere here while still being able to be invaded?
I had the dark sky but wasn't able to be invaded..
I have invaded people with 'dark sky/atmosphere'. What did they do different?
- Anonymous
I don’t have much a problem with this area. I like the unsettling anxiety that I’ll be invaded at any time (and get annihilated because I am never built for PVP.) It’s the deranged logger gank squads I hate with clear and unbridled passion. Die. Die die die die die DIE. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
- Anonymous
My ears are bleeding after going through the first section of this area.
- Anonymous
If you solely went by Fextralife comments on location pages, you would think the Souls games are among the worst designed games of all time. Nearly every page has people complaining about difficulty. Did y'all forget what game you were playing?
- Anonymous
Seriously some people come here clueless, the land are converging, the kingdoms overlapped over and over, this is what's left of what once was Darkroot Garden and Farron's Keep is Darkroot Basin, which was Olacile before and Drangleic after. You literally have every item from the area: Dusk's Antiquated Set, Dusk Crown, Pharis Hat, Artorias Wolf's Ring and a Black Knight to boot, but you still whine and fall into denial. Go play something else.
- Anonymous
I really like invading here with Obscuring Ring and a Greatbow. Fire a shot, then move across the map so the arrow comes at them from a completely different direction.
- Anonymous
One of the wettest swamps we've ever seen, from the standpoint of water.
- Anonymous
Why does everyone compare them with chained ogre when these guys are clearly a reskin of Father Gascoine's final phase?)
- Anonymous
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can you still get invaded after killing abyss watchers and letting the magician boss live?
- Anonymous
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I'd love to just get through this area without getting invaded for one ****en run but nahh you ****en dogs gotta get in everybodies business
- Anonymous
Just to make sure no one missed any collectibles and since the comment mentioning this is already sunken so deep down here, under "Exploring the Ruins and Swamp", at the part where you "go up the stairs to the left in this room, you will run into a spear and shield wielding hollow as well as a sorcerer hollow", there is a massive damaged section of the wall halfway up this staircase. Follow the path behind it to drop to some small ledges for a Golden Falcon Shield.
Dropping again will land you to the area with the 2 NPCs near the Farron Keep bonfire.
- Anonymous
For anyone who may be having difficulty overcoming the two NPCs defending the entrance of Farron Keep: Attempt to dodge their attacks until you come across a pit with a ladder leading downwards. If you remain grappled onto the ladder, they should both leap after you, and proceed to fall to their deaths. Based on my experience with them, I still was rewarded with both the their weaponry and souls. Hopefully this will help someone.
- Anonymous
Ok, shoutout to all Newcomers(or idiots) out there:
If you are invaded by certain covenents and your invader starts to rightout attack Heysel: thats not a mistake; thats helping/evening the odds.
Please stop attacking/backstabbing us.
After Heysel(or Hodrick therefore) is done for, our fight starts. Before that we are cooperating.
Thanks in advance and all the best to you and your journey!
- Anonymous
You think aldrich faithfuls are usually trash? Blues tend to be dumb?... Introducing watchdogs of farron.. the pinnacle of both...
- Anonymous
In what way does Road of Sacrifices resemble Darkroot Garden?? What, the fact that they both have trees? That's a ridiculous speculation.
- Anonymous
I dunno who thinks that the Road of Sacrifices looks like Darkroot Garden, but they're wrong.
- Anonymous
I have over 300 hours in this game and just found out about the "Crucifixion Woods" bonfire
Yeah it's an annoying area. BUT 6 of the best weapons (Exile, Great club, GS, Heysels, Black Knight GS, Farron GS), 4 extremly useful Rings (Lingering, Swamp, Sage, Havel), 4 armor sets, two estus shards and one bone ash can be found there plus lots of other awesome stuff! If you did tons of playthroughs you will notice the boost this area gives you each time.
- Anonymous
wow, a poison swamp filled with mobs. what a great, fresh, unused unique idea
- Anonymous
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This area has no redeeming qualities. The enemies suck, and are badly placed. The layout is convoluded and full of dead ends, the boss is mediocre at best and a ganky pain at worst. The swamp part is just a massive*****move on the part of the devs. ***** the Road of Sacrifices, this is why I hate starting new playthroughs.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
I summoned Hodrick and ran around the map until Longfinger Kirk invaded. Kirk began attacking him, then one of the giant crabs came over and obliterated them both.
does anyone else have their swamp area lighting all whited out after beating gael and giving the blood of the dark soul to the lady painter? I can see everything just fine, except the colours all wacked out
- Anonymous
I have so much trouble finding and having the right interactions with NPCe. How would find things like the Holy Knight without reading online? I don't want to read spoilers
- Anonymous
If you're going for the ring achievement, don't forget about Chloranthy Ring +2 on NG++. From the Road of Sacrifice bonfire, go straight down, take a left after the two wagons to the first storyteller (Corvian with a staff that puts out poison mist). Kill him and look down behind him. The ring is below him on a ledge.
- Anonymous
Just want to point out an omission. You can find the Golden Falcon Shield to the left of the ruins where you find Orbeck, with you facing away from said ruins. You'll want to start right at the stairs/exit below the Ring of Sacrifice on the balcony and just follow the rock wall left. The shield looks cool, at least.
- Anonymous
Note that the two Exile NPCs can be injured by the (giant) crabs. They'll still target you first though, but prepare for collateral damage. :3
- Anonymous
This part of the game makes me want to kill myself, even though I'd just respawn at a bonfire after the eternal loading screen. Thanks Dark Souls
- Anonymous
You can without a doubt parry this boss. Please fix. For proof: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QayiIrKKVYc Watch this video and skip to the Crystal Sage section. His one melee combo can be parried and riposted with ease.
- Anonymous
These days invading the swamp at SL20-30 gives you about a 70% chance of running into heavily twinked players camping with password summoned phantoms. If you're running non-twink equipment at SL20-30 and you beat one of them give yourself a serious pat on the back, because you just shattered someone's power fantasy with some serious David and Goliath shit.
- Anonymous
I'm playing my second character and I accidentally stumbled upon a funny way to kill the exile warriors.. I was running away from them and decided I'd go down the ladder that leads to the farron keep bonfire, and they jumped down after me and died...
- Anonymous
doing low level fight clubs with endgame gear there is griefing in my op. it prevents people from farming sword grass how it is meant to be and not by killing late game dozens of ghrus. Sorry...but I will bust every fight club there. No mercy for griefers.
- Anonymous
Has anybody else noticed that at some point while progressing the ringed city (it happened to me before breaking fillianores shell) that the darksign sun completely disappears from the entire road of sacrifices to abyss watchers area and changes back to the old look it had before defeating the 3 lords of cinder? I went up to the bridge above the wolf of farron before doing the dlcs and the darksign sun was there as normal, now after the dlcs it's gone permanently but only from that area of the game, it stays in the high wall, undead settlement and cathedral of the deep. I don't get why this happens?
- Anonymous
Like this comment or I will kill myself...again...and again...
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Storyteller's Staff is now included on item list as enemy drop (from Corvian Storyteller)
- Anonymous
This is by far the best area to use the dried finger. Much better than pontiff imo
- Anonymous
Large part of the ambient sound (wind, insects ect.) seems to be missing in the PC version as someone has stated. Can somebody confirm this?
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
WTF!!! darkspirit long finger kirk just invaded me in roads of sacrifice/Crucifixion Woods
definitely darkspirit longfinger kirk - had the full armor set sheild and sword - was not a player def AI
I was up near crystal sage entrance path and then my white soap stone went grey, then farmed a bit and headed back to bonfire. He came at me near the Crucifixion Woods bonfire.
I even saved a clip to my xbox
got to be a bug right?
my setup: sl20, blue sentinels cov, crystal sage still alive, both npc near farron entrance still alive, i summoned hodrick and he died to area monsters
- Anonymous
For some reason, after going through Road of Sacrifices and sitting at the Halfway Fortress bonfire, I always get 50 souls. This always happened tome since the launch. Does it happen to anyone else?
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
Anyone else have an extremely annoying glitch where the entirety of the woods and fair swamp just freeze the game and refuse to load the character afterword?
Further evidence of this being Darkroot Wood comes from Farron Keep, which i suggest is Darkroot Basin: Abyss watchers are from Artorias, who had his fall in oolacile, pre-Darkroot Wood. The Ghru Elders drop the Stone Greatshield, which comes from the Stone Knights of Darkroot. A special set drop Pharis's set, which was last seen in Darkroot, and the Old Wolf seems related to Sif
- Anonymous
This area is aptly named. I got stuck here for about 2 hours because of all the double invasions, especially the ones that would run into crowds of enemies every time I got the upper hand (I see that strategy is as effective as it was in DS2, lol). Exploring is tough if you've got no seeds. Good place to start learning the PvP meta I guess?
I cannot help but find similarities between Corvians and old Crow enemies from the Painted World of Ariamis. Corvian Storytellers are telling the tale of an "old painted world". Some Corvians wield scythes resembling that of Priscilla, their description states the same. The space and time of Dark Souls universe cracked and went into oblivion, what could possibly demolish Ariamis. And here we are: its indigenous creatures are crawling around the no man's land. I would not be surprised if the painting is laying somewhere nearby, shattered into pieces. It disappeared from Anor Londo, after all.
- Anonymous
What is the white root hanging out of the ground below the first enemy here anyone or have any idea
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
This road's purpose was to deliver 'food' from the Undead Settlement to Aldrich in his cathedral, hence the name.
- Anonymous
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There is an NPC that will invade you when stepping close to the crab closest to the Crucifixion Forest bonfire. It drops Xanthous Crown and Heysel Pick :) Might want to add it so people who want to get every item can follow area guides like these.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
there is a summon sign in the area under Orbeck, I belive its Eygon of Carim
- Anonymous
I get massive lag and my fps drops immensely just by being in here.Is it only for me?
- Anonymous
there's two items in the little area where you fight the two unkindled that are together before farron keep... one is a soul, the other is up on a ledge. anyone know how to get to the one on the ledge/what it is?
- Anonymous
It won't work in this location. No homeward bone or coiled sword fragment are allowed here, it seems.
- Anonymous
the door opposite the black knight, is it ever explained what is through there? or how to get to that location, ive tried everything, seems to be self contained. maybe extremely round about.
- Anonymous
odd thing is I never found the crystal sage, I looked everywhere and it does say it is required, but I never found him and I am still progressing
- Anonymous
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There is a bonfire just before the hole entrance to the ruins area.
- Anonymous
i am playing with 2 friends and in this area it seems like you can only summon 1 phantom, our other signs dissapeared then.
- Anonymous
Am I the only one crashing when respawning at the blue sentinel bonfire ?
- Anonymous
If you kill the first big crab on the right side (near the black knight ruins) you get a Great Swamp Ring which "boosts Pyromancy"
- Anonymous
Very similar to the forest from dark souls 1leading to qu sith
"Explore area to find 3 (or 4? I cant remeber) alters with flames on" I can confirm it's three, just checked.
- Anonymous
Chloranthy ring +2 over the edge near the fifth or sixth bird brain
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