Enshrouded Shroud Lairs: Locations & Rewards
The map has 13 Shroud Lairs in 7 regions, two or fewer in each. The one you meet first is in the Springlands: the Gem Forge quest sends you into Springlands lair 1 to kill a Fell Banshee at its heart and bring back a gem. Break the yellow bulbs inside for Archaic Essence; the tier follows the region.
- Lairs13on the map in 7 regions
- FirstSpringlandsGem Forge quest
- Essence per bulb5–20small to large
- Named guards2Fell Critter Queen, Fell Sicklescythe
A Shroud Lair is a cave the Fell have taken: a winding passage inside the Shroud, bulbs of Archaic Essence on the walls, and something with a boss bar at the end. You can skip most of them, but the first one is a quest, and the Essence from the rest feeds the Gem Forge.
Two kinds of source on this page, kept apart. Pin places, regions and the two named guards come from the wiki's map. Chests, Fell Banshee spawn points, bulb loot and the quest come from the 1.0 game files. The Shroud timer and the Fell Curse are in the Shroud guide; the enemy itself is on the Fell Banshee page.
Where the lairs are
13 pins, 2 in Springlands, 2 in Revelwood, 1 in Blackmire, 2 in Nomad Highlands, 2 in Kindlewastes, 2 in Albaneve Summits, 2 in Veilwater Basin. "Enemies" is the typical enemy level of the region (the middle 80 percent of its spawn points). Cinder's Cradle has lairs in the 1.0 files (its Archaic Essence is Archaic Essence VII) but the wiki has no pin there, so we show none.
| Region | Lairs | Enemies | Essence from its bulbs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Springlands | 2 | 3–9 | Archaic Essence I |
| Revelwood | 2 | 11–15 | Archaic Essence II |
| Blackmire | 1 | 14–34 | Archaic Essence II |
| Nomad Highlands | 2 | 16–20 | Archaic Essence III |
| Kindlewastes | 2 | 21–27 | Archaic Essence IV |
| Albaneve Summits | 2 | 28–35 | Archaic Essence V |
| Veilwater Basin | 2 | 37–45 | Archaic Essence VI |
Blackmire
The wiki puts one lair "in the Blackmire". The item text files Archaic Essence by the big regions only, so we show Revelwood's tier for it; that is our reading, not a line in the files.
All 13 lairs with their numbers
| Lair | Enemies | Chests within 150 m | Banshee spawns within 150 m | Guard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springlands lair 1 | 3–9 | 4 | 3 | none named |
| Springlands lair 2 | 3–9 | 9 | 2 | none named |
| Revelwood lair 1 | 11–15 | 2 | 0 | none named |
| Revelwood lair 2 | 11–15 | 7 | 4 | none named |
| Blackmire lair | 14–34 | 4 | 2 | none named |
| Nomad Highlands lair 1 | 16–20 | 3 | 1 | none named |
| Nomad Highlands lair 2 | 16–20 | 12 | 2 | none named |
| Kindlewastes lair 1 | 21–27 | 6 | 2 | none named |
| Kindlewastes lair 2 | 21–27 | 1 | 2 | Fell Critter Queen |
| Albaneve Summits lair 1 | 28–35 | 2 | 0 | none named |
| Albaneve Summits lair 2 | 28–35 | 6 | 1 | Fell Sicklescythe |
| Veilwater Basin lair 1 | 37–45 | 1 | 0 | none named |
| Veilwater Basin lair 2 | 37–45 | 23 | 2 | none named |
Clear the first one: the Gem Forge quest
The Alchemist's quest Finding And Using A Gem Forge is the one that puts you in a lair. Its steps in the 1.0 journal, in order:
- Find The Gem Forge. Gem Forge, Springlands.
- Clear And Investigate The Gem Forge. Gem Forge, Springlands.
- Find Out Where The Intruders Came From. Shroud Lair, Springlands.
- Explore The Shroud Lair. Heart of the Lair, Springlands.
- Defeat And Loot The Fell Banshee. Heart of the Lair, Springlands.
- Use The Gem Forge. Gem Forge, Springlands.
- The lair is Springlands lair 1 (enemies 3–9). 4 chests lie within 150 m of the pin and 3 Fell Banshee spawn points.
- Take the gem and a weapon back to the Gem Forge; the quest rewards Archaic Essence I and Gem of Bleeding.
- Inside the Shroud your Flame timer runs: see the Shroud guide before you go in.
Clear the others
Every other lair is the same plan: go in along the passage, break the bulbs for Essence, and kill whatever holds the heart. 2 of the 13 pins name their guard, both on the wiki's map: Fell Critter Queen at Kindlewastes lair 2 and Fell Sicklescythe at Albaneve Summits lair 2.
The Fell Banshee is the one to prepare for. From the wiki's notes on the enemy (not checked against the 1.0 files): It fires two fast magic bolts that deal Shroud damage and home in on you if you run; Break line of sight with terrain, walls or rubble before the bolts land, or close in and dodge forward as it casts so the bolts hit the ground behind you; Ranged and magic weapons are the easy option; it floats out of melee reach a lot.
10 of the 13 lairs have a Fell Banshee spawn point within 150 m of the pin; Revelwood lair 1, Albaneve Summits lair 1, Veilwater Basin lair 1 have none. A spawn point is a place the game can put one, so check the area on the Banshee map before you count on it.
Bring the right damage
The Banshee casts Shroud damage and floats out of melee reach. The enemies page lists what each enemy takes.
What a lair gives
Archaic Essence. The yellow bulbs drop it: a small bulb gives 5 to 10, a large one 15 to 20 (1.0 loot files). The tier follows the region. The item text calls it "a radiant whirl of energy that is needed to insert gems into weaponry".
| Essence | Lairs in | Small bulb | Medium bulb | Large bulb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archaic Essence I | Springlands | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
| Archaic Essence II | Revelwood | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
| Archaic Essence III | Nomad Highlands | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
| Archaic Essence IV | Kindlewastes | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
| Archaic Essence V | Albaneve Summits | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
| Archaic Essence VI | Veilwater Basin | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
| Archaic Essence VII | Cinder's Cradle | 5–10 | 10–15 | 15–20 |
- Gems. The Banshee carries the gems the wiki lists as its unique drops: Gem of Bleeding (Springlands), Gem of Hopeful Embers (Revelwood), Gem of Agility (Nomad Highlands), Gem of Corruption (Nomad Highlands).
- Other drops of the Banshee (wiki): Aerated Banshee Gel 1–4, Torn Cloth 2, Runes 0–11, Legendary Runes 1–2.
- Chests. Most lairs have chests within 150 m. The richest is Veilwater Basin lair 2 with 23. Full counts are in the folded table above and on the chest map.
- Weapons. The wiki's pre-1.0 data lists 8 weapons with the source "Shroud Lair Loot": Abysswalker, Crown Crusher, Eclipsed Blade, Final Gambit, Half-Light Halos, Oracle's Everblue, Voidcaller, Winged Shadow. 8 of them exist under that name in the 1.0 files; the files do not say which container holds them, so treat this as the wiki's claim.
Common mistakes
Do not read "within 150 m" as "inside the lair". A pin is a point and a lair is a cave; the chest counts are chests near the pin.
Do not go in without Shroud time. The lairs sit in the Shroud, so your Flame timer and Fell Curse apply: the Shroud guide has the numbers.
Do not expect a gem every time. The gems are the Banshee's unique drops by region (wiki), not a reward for every bulb.
Related guides
Enshrouded Shroud (1.0): Timer, Fell Curse, Altars
Enshrouded 1.0 Shroud guide: your Shroud timer at every Flame level, what adds time, the Fell Curse and its tonic, and Flame Altars inside the Shroud.
Enshrouded Magic Chest (1.0): Slots, Recipes, Range
All 5 Magic Chests in Enshrouded 1.0, 24 to 72 slots: recipes, where to craft them, how to upgrade or enchant a placed chest, and what is known about their range.