The Chimney

The Chimney is a Catacomb that houses a strange and powerful device energized by the powerful crystals of Yaesha. If you can catch it as it descends through a deadly spiral, the crystal that powers this incredible device is a rich reward!

Objective

Clear the way for the Heart Seed to reach the bottom of The Chimney.

Reward

Heart Seed
Downward Spiral

After you enter the dungeon, work your way to a World Shard in front of a very impressive device in the center of a huge chamber, The Chimney. At the top of the central platform near the World Shard is the Heart Seed, a large crystal held firmly within a stone and metal setting. The entire chamber crackles with the energy of Yaesha's crystals...except for the area around the Heart Seed.

Just in front of the Heart Seed is the lever that lowers the device...but don't pull it yet:

Threats

Descending The Chimney can be incredibly difficult, especially for new characters. Besides falling off of ledges, there are three things that will kill you as you descend.

First, notice that the Heart Seed dampens the deadly, electrical energy that fills the chamber. It's obvious where the safe zone ends:

Stepping into the electrified area is deadly, so don't do it! As the Heart Seed descends, the safe section descends with it. You'll have to keep up, but you also don't want to outrun it.

Another important thing to notice are the black crystals set on pedestals at regular intervals along the rail of the spiral passage down:

After you pull the lever, these crystals periodically energize and discharge violently. These electrical discharges cause significant damage to anything standing nearby. When a black crystal starts to glow, stay away!

Finally, notice that burial nooks line the wall along the downward path. Root Zombies emerge from these and attack as you approach:

In short, you're going to have to move quickly—but not too quickly—down the path while avoiding exploding crystals and fighting zombies that hate you.

Making Life Easier

Before you pull the lever, you can largely eliminate one of these threats, the exploding crystals. You can destroy these by shooting them:

You'll notice several points along the path where the wall has crumbled. Use these spots to see and shoot almost all of the crystals along the path:

Remember to check the walkways on both sides of the central platform!

Next, you don't want to run out of Stamina as Root Zombies or the electrified floor are catching up to you. Using items or consumables to boost your Stamina will help you. Perhaps the best item to equip is the Bisected Ring, which provides infinite Stamina. You could also drink some of Mudtooth's Stew. Use whatever you can to make sure you don't run out of steam on the way down.

After you've destroyed all of the black crystals you can see and have equipped what you need to keep you moving, you're ready to make the descent down The Chimney.

The Descent

To kick things off, pull the lever on the central platform to start the Heart Seed on its slow descent. As the Heart Seed moves, it dampens the energy in the chamber just above and below it. You'll have to stay in this safe zone by descending through The Chimney at roughly the same rate as the Heart Seed. Oh, and pulling the lever also awakens the Root Zombies, who immediately start crawling out of the burial nooks.

After pulling the lever, run off of the central platform and turn left to head down the spiraling path. Kill or evade the Root Zombies and continue down. Again, be careful not to outrun the safe zone or to move slowly enough that the safe zone passes you. If you start seeing electrical arcs and hearing the crackle all around you, it's time to move!

Also be on the lookout for any black crystals that you missed before you pulled the lever. When they begin to glow, they're energizing and will explosively discharge soon:

Either shoot the crystals to destroy them or evade past the explosive arcs. Note that the crystals keep recharging and discharging again and again, so shooting them keeps that problem solved.

As you descend the first couple of levels, look for some giant roots growing through the wall on the other side of the chamber. If you look carefully, you can see a glowing, purple item resting on an orange root nodule tucked between these huge roots:

The nodule is a bit hard to see, so if there's a lot going on and you miss it don't worry. Once you complete the quest here, you can leave The Chimney and return to do this when it's much safer. Why should you shoot this orange root nodule? Because you want the Downward Spiral Amulet that's resting on it. Shoot the nodule to free the amulet now, but you'll pick it up later.

Shortly after you pass under these giant roots, you'll have to walk across one of them to get to another central platform. Look at the tangled roots in the center to see three more orange root nodules. These stop the progress of the Heart Seed and block your way forward:

If you've cleared the crystals along this path and have killed all of the pursuing enemies, take advantage of the stable safe zone to use your Relic, guzzle Consumables, reload, and generally get ready for the next leg of the gauntlet. When you're ready, shoot all three orange root nodules to clear the way and resume.

Once the Heart Seed is moving again, continue around the central path to a hole in the floor. Drop down to the platform below and follow it to a giant root. Run across the root and through the hole in the outer wall of The Chimney:

This leads to a passage that continues around. Wait for the floor to be safe (you'll know it is when the electrical arcs disappear), then proceed. Before long, you'll see a hole in the ceiling with an item on the floor just below it:

That's the Downward Spiral that you dropped earlier, so pick it up and continue on. Remember, the Heart Seed is still moving and this passage won't be safe for long, so don't dally!

Soon, the passage opens back onto the spiraling path on the outside wall of The Chimney. Keep descending, always being wary of energized crystals, Root Zombies, and the ever-shifting safe zone.

Eventually, you'll reach the bottom of the chamber. This is a large, open space with four crystals surrounding the Heart Seed elevator in the center. Be prepared for a fight!

As you get to the bottom, you'll be swarmed with Root enemies emerging from the burial nooks all around this bottom chamber. They'll keep coming, so just get them under control enough to concentrate on the bottom of the descending device. Once again, orange root nodules the device from reaching the bottom, so you'll have to destroy them:

Once the Heart Seed is moving, keep the enemies at bay while it reaches the bottom. When it does, it sends out a burst of energy that kills any remaining enemies and deenergizes The Chimney and, most importantly, gives you a "Quest Complete!"

You'll notice that the Heart Seed is glowing orange and is your final reward, so go pick it up!

Leave the dungeon by using the nearby World Stone Shard. If you didn't shoot the orange root nodule to free the Downward Spiral earlier, leave the dungeon and re-enter it. You'll have to fight your way through the dungeon to get to the spiral path, but now that you have the Heart Seed, the chamber is safe. You can walk down the path at your leisure to free the amulet.

Congratulations! You've survived The Chimney!