The “Keystone of Terror Investigation”serves as a pivotal mid-game quest in Hell Is Us, guiding players on a mission to locate the second keystone necessary for unlocking the entrance to Lake Cynon. Despite what may initially seem like a straightforward endeavor, obtaining the keystone involves navigating a complex web of challenges, largely due to the game’s sparse hints about its location.
Players must engage in various activities, including solving intricate puzzles, assisting several NPCs, and discovering hidden secrets linked to the enigmatic Blood Queen. Throughout this investigation, you will need to explore multiple sites.
If you’re seeking assistance to successfully complete this investigation, look no further.Here’s a comprehensive walkthrough for the Keystone of Terror investigation in Hell Is Us.
Locating Caspian Fran
The initial objective to retrieve the Keystone of Terror is to locate Caspian Fran, who possesses critical insights regarding the keystone’s location. Caspian can be found in Talju, an area accessible after completing the Lake Cynon dungeon.
Utilize fast travel to Talju and progress west from your APC’s parking area. Soon, you will spot a pharmacy marked with a prominent green cross. Just past this, the town hall will be situated on your left. Enter the town hall to speak with Caspian Fran.
When you connect with Caspian Fran, inquire about the Terror symbol. He will offer to share crucial information, but only if you assist him in finding his son.
Finding Lukhan Fran
Caspian reveals that his son often visits the playground at the town’s edge, accompanied by his dog, Sam. Thus, your task now is to locate the playground in Talju.
Starting from your meeting point with Caspian Fran, head northwest past Vanderlyn Trust until you reach Talju Elementary School. If you find yourself at a barn, you’ve ventured too far.
At Talju Elementary, closely examine the vicinity for the nearby playground, which indicates Lukhan’s location. You can discover Lukhan in the maintenance shed adjacent to the school. The accompanying red arrow image indicates his precise whereabouts.
Once you’ve located Lukhan, hand him the walkie-talkie that Caspian previously provided. This allows him to reassure his father of his safety.
After a brief cutscene, return to Caspian, who has one final request: eliminate the foes in the Town Hall parking lot.
Confronting the Town Hall Enemies
Caspian will provide you with a key to access the security booth located at the rear of the Town Hall, positioned near a large green sign emblazoned with soldiers.
Enter the security booth, interact with the computer, and select “Open Gate” to gain access.
Upon defeating the enemies in the Town Hall parking lot, Caspian will finally divulge essential information about the Terror symbol that connects to the Keystone of Terror. He will inform you that clues can be found in Marastan, thus unlocking Marastan as a new fast-travel point.
Armed with this new information, you can now depart from Talju. Return to your APC and fast-travel to Marastan to proceed with the next steps of the Keystone of Terror investigation.
Uncovering Clues in Marastan
While the Keystone of Terror is not located in Marastan, players will gather vital information concerning its whereabouts by investigating the Blood Queen, the grand statue in Marastan.
Your first task is to find Talis in Marastan, who possesses a key required to unlock the gate leading to the Blood Queen statue.
Follow the road that ascends into the village of Marastan, ultimately arriving at a man standing on a balcony, shouting down at you.
Ascend the ladder to reach Talis, who will require you to defeat the enemies positioned near the church. Upon successfully dispatching the foes, he will grant you the key you need to access the Blood Queen statue.
After obtaining the key, locate the gate on the town’s southwest side.Proceed through this gate, enter the tunnel, and take the first left. Continue straight until you arrive at a tall ladder.
Climbing the ladder will lead you to a room featuring a telescope and two inscriptions that can be examined with your drone. Observing through the telescope reveals a closed stone door in the distance.
The critical inscription reads: “When eastward face the six, its secrets you will glean.” This serves as an essential clue for solving a nearby puzzle and bringing you closer to locating the Keystone of Terror.
Solving the Graveyard Eagle Puzzle in Marastan
The inscription previously noted indicates that “when the eastward face the six, its secrets you will glean.”This refers to the graveyard puzzle situated near Marastan’s entrance.
To tackle the graveyard puzzle, locate the site atop the significant hill leading towards Marastan, where you will discover six eagle statues that can be rotated.
Following the clue obtained from the Blood Queen statue, rotate each of the six eagle statues to make them face east. Utilize your compass to identify the correct eastern direction.
Upon aligning all eagle statues to the east, a loud thundering sound will echo, and an opening will manifest, leading underground. Venture through this opening.
Your main task here is straightforward: retrieve three Tablet Fragments. Each fragment is relatively easy to spot, as they are marked by a glowing yellow item located at the end of the hallways.
Be prepared for combat, as a few enemies lurk in this compact dungeon. Note that there’s a locked door that you may come across; however, it can be ignored for now as it doesn’t contain a Tablet Fragment and only becomes relevant later through a Good Deed.
Once you collect all three Tablet Fragments, it’s time to utilize them. Remember that stone door you glimpsed through the telescope while inside the Blood Queen statue? That’s your intended destination for the Tablet Fragments.
With the three Tablet Fragment tiles in your possession, you can now unlock the stone door leading to further clues about the Keystone of Terror’s location. To find the stone door, head north from your APC’s parking spot and continue straight until you arrive at a large platform.
The center of the platform is the placement spot for the Tablet Fragments, but ensure they are arranged in the correct order:
- Upper right: Horn (Tablet Fragment – Square)
- Bottom Right: Plant (Tablet Fragment – Oblique)
- Upper Left: Pickaxe and Eye with Teardrop (Tablet Fragment – Angled)
After correctly positioning the tiles, four pillars adorned with various symbols will emerge from the ground. Your new objective is to rotate these pillars so they align with the symbols on the red tiles at the center.
Align each pillar to match the symbol on the red tiles, ensuring the correct symbols point toward the platform’s center, akin to the Hermit mystery in Acasa Marshes.
Successfully turning the pillars will unlock the massive stone door, granting access to a room filled with enemies and another puzzle waiting to be solved.
Solving the Blood Queen Coffin Puzzle
Within this room, the answer to the Blood Queen coffin puzzle lies visibly in the center, where turnstiles display a medley of symbols. Your goal is to establish the correct sequence of these symbols.
The answer can be gleaned from the murals adorning the walls. Each mural presents a symbol, and the correct sequence proceeds from left to right. For instance, begin with the left mural and conclude with the mural on the far right (as viewed from the turnstile puzzle).
The correct symbol order is Crossing Swords, Crown, Eye, Tower, as illustrated in the accompanying image.
Inputting the right order will force the coffin situated in the middle of the room to open, revealing a lootable item: the Sword of the Blood Queen.
This sword will grant you access to the substantial tower in Senedra Forest. Therefore, it’s time to fast-travel to Senedra Forest to continue your exploration in the Keystone of Terror investigation.
Completing the Arcas Spire
Equipped with the Sword of the Blood Queen, your next step is to unlock the tower within Senedra Forest, which is identified as Arcas Spire. To reach this location, head east from the trenches within Senedra Forest.
Upon arrival at the tower, insert the Sword of the Blood Queen into the designated slot on the door’s right side. This action will unlock the entrance, enabling you to enter the spire.
In contrast to the dungeon in Lake Cynon, Arcas Spire features a straightforward layout characterized by a linear pathway throughout. The only notable challenge lies in the cage puzzle positioned near the conclusion.
Continue along the main route until you encounter the cage puzzle. Refer to the following section for guidance on solving this particular challenge.
Solving the Cage Puzzle in Arcas Spire
The cage puzzle can be challenging as it depletes your health and necessitates solid memory retention. The mechanics work as follows: standing on tiles that inflict damage will activate gates below, allowing access to a lever inside.
However, note that only specific tiles correspond to each gate, and the gate remains open only temporarily. Hence, strategy is key for solving this puzzle.
Each cage reveals a symbol behind it, which aids in identifying which tiles will open which gate.
Pillars scattered throughout the room feature matching symbols behind each gate. Examining these pillars reveals which tiles are linked to each symbol. This task can prove tricky as it demands keen memory or frequent backtracking.
- Moon: C1, D3, F3
- Serpent Heads: E1, E3, F4
- Fire: A4, D4, F2
- Eye: C3, C4, E4
- Skull: B1, B2, F1
- Towers: A1, B4, D1
Activating any of these tiles will open the corresponding cage. However, be cautious as they inflict significant damage while also releasing nearby enemies.
I recommend ignoring these foes and rushing to the bottom level to activate the gate’s lever promptly. Remember, once a gate is opened, it gradually closes.
To mitigate the damage from the tiles, ensure you have health packs accessible. Fortunately, a save point is conveniently nearby, so if you perish, you’ll return swiftly.
After successfully activating all levers, the immense door on the upper floor will unlock. Proceed through this door and ascend the staircase to reach the outside, where a Timeloop awaits.
Entering the Timeloop in Arcas Spire
Your primary objective here is to defeat all Timeloop Guardians in the exterior area to gain entry into the Timeloop and confront the boss. Upon vanquishing this boss, you will be rewarded with the Keystone of Terror.
To streamline this process, utilize your Guardian Detector, as it will guide you towards the nearest Timeloop Guardian. Once all Guardians are defeated, a loud notification will signal that the Timeloop is now accessible.
Enter the Timeloop, interact with your drone, and deploy an Amine Prism-Theta to definitively close the Timeloop.
Upon completion of this task, a lootable item will manifest on the ground, and interacting with it will transport you to the boss arena.
Defeating the Terror Boss
The Terror boss presents considerable difficulty primarily due to its low visibility within the arena. It is often shrouded in darkness, complicating movement and navigation.
To successfully defeat the Terror boss, pay attention to large stone pillars that display distinct characteristics. These pillars glow green and exhibit movement. If you hear screams intensifying in volume, it indicates proximity to one of these pillars.
Your main goal is to locate and approach these pillars repeatedly to summon the boss. After identifying the fourth or fifth pillar, the Terror boss will emerge; this is your opportunity to deal damage and diminish its health bar.
Eventually, the Terror boss will vanish, necessitating a repetition of the earlier steps. However, this time, expect additional obstacles and mini-enemies that complicate the search for the glowing stone pillars.
Fortunately, these enemies can generally be vanquished in a few hits, and the hazardous obstacles can be dodged. Utilize dodge rolls as needed to bypass dangers.
Continue to spot and approach the glowing green stone pillars. After locating enough of them, the Terror boss will reappear. Focus your attacks during these encounters to whittle down its health effectively.
The pattern repeats with the added complexity of a maze forming, which you must navigate in darkness while battling enemies and avoiding perilous obstacles.
For this segment, maintain your gaze upward when scanning for the glowing green pillars, as this perspective can enhance visibility. Nevertheless, remain vigilant to avoid damage from surrounding threats.
Ultimately, you only need to find the glowing green pillar once more. Upon approaching it, the Terror boss will once again materialize. Defeat it, and the Keystone of Terror will be yours!
Utilizing the Keystone of Terror
The Keystone of Terror is to be inserted in the dungeon at Lake Cynon, alongside the Keystone of Grief. This entrance is marked by a large locked door featuring four faces, with each representing a distinct emotion: Grief (Blue), Ecstasy (Yellow), Rage (Red), and Terror (Green).
If you recall, the shrine is located beyond the water wheel puzzle on the ground floor.
After positioning the Keystone of Terror correctly, the Keystone of Terror Investigation will conclude. You are now poised to seek out the remaining keystones: the Keystone of Rage and the Keystone of Ecstasy, both of which are critical components in the overarching narrative of Hell Is Us.
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