The Karst Cave (Chapter 7) is the underground world crafted by the ancestors. Little Giants are by far the most common enemy, Fire-Lighters and Two-Faced Men fill the tunnels, and the rematch with Maddened Ascetic (rematch) leads to the final boss, the Usurper.
See Maps#The regions for all regions and Chapters#The Karst Cave (chapter 7) for this chapter's story.
Sub-areas and carriage stops#
Only area 1 is used. Two stops exist: Secret Tunnel of Thanatos and Relics of the Ancestors. Both disappear as soon as the Usurper dies, because his death completes the hide quest 71003; the second one can never be shown (see Hidden mechanics).
Map entry: Karst Cave (site 700). In-game blurb: a short text about ancestors, exiled souls whispering secrets and sleepers lost in memory (summarised).
| Stop | Site id | Opens when (quest) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secret Tunnel of Thanatos | 701 | quest 55032 | stops being offered once the Usurper has died (quest 71003) |
| Relics of the Ancestors | 702 | quest 73002 | end of the Usurper's defeat cutscene; but quest 71003 is already complete by then, so this stop never appears |
The scene itself contains 4 carriage point(s): point 1 (area 1, direction 2, transfer flag); point 2 (area 1, direction 2, transfer flag); point 3 (area 1, direction 1, transfer flag); point 4 (area 1, direction 1, transfer flag).
Altars#
Altars 1 to 5 complete quest 74001 once quest 75035 is done. This ties with Ichthyosauria for the most altar rows.
| Altar (save id) | Needs quest | Resting completes quest |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 75035 | 74001 |
| 2 | 75035 | 74001 |
| 3 | 75035 | 74001 |
| 4 | 75035 | 74001 |
| 5 | 75035 | 74001 |
Enemies#
Placement rows of the story table (Maps#hm-content-per-chapter-count-of-placements-in-the). Levels are the range over the rows for each journey (New Game Plus enemy scaling); each type has its own page under Enemies.
| Enemy | Rows | Area(s) | Level journey 1 | Journey 2 | Journey 3 | Journey 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Little Giant | 23 | 1 | 18 | 50 | 68 | 80 |
| Dog | 9 | 1 | 18 | 55 | 73 | 85 |
| Fire-Lighter | 9 | 1 | 18 | 50 | 68 | 80 |
| Two-Faced Man | 7 | 1 | 18 | 50 | 68 | 80 |
| Machete Horse | 2 | 1 | 18 | 50 | 68 | 80 |
| Boar Man | 2 | 1 | 18 | 50 | 68 | 80 |
| Black Sprite | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Claw Horse | 1 | 1 | 18 | 50 | 68 | 80 |
| Big Eyeball | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Bosses#
The Usurper (story monster 7001, final boss, flags 91007 and 91107) and the Maddened Ascetic (rematch) (7010).
| Boss | Story monster id | Area | Level (journeys 1-4) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usurper | 7001 | 1 | 18/50/65/89 |
| Maddened Ascetic (rematch) | 7010 | 1 | 18/50/68/80 |
NPCs and characters#
Almost every party member is placed here: Viola (four rows), Norwood (three), Benita and Jerold, plus Viola's father (model 20042, internal name). Black Sprite stalls 7056 and 7057 sell supplies.
| Character | Rows | Area(s) | Monster ids (first 8) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Viola | 4 | 1 | 7060, 7061, 7064, 7075 |
| Benita | 1 | 1 | 7076 |
| Norwood | 3 | 1 | 7062, 7066, 7074 |
| Jerold | 1 | 1 | 7082 |
| Old Monk (internal name) | 1 | 1 | 7063 |
| Viola's Father (internal name) | 1 | 1 | 7065 |
| Light Mote (internal name) | 2 | 1 | 7080, 7081 |
| Coachman (internal name) | 2 | 1 | 7077, 7078 |
Merchant stock lists defined for this chapter: 7056, 7057 (see Chapter merchants and Merchants; the 19xx lists are the carriage lists in Carriage supplies).
Items lying around#
The story item table has 66 pickup slots in this chapter. The table adds up the amounts per journey; the item or amount of a slot can change with the journey (World mechanics#Scene pickups and the journey).
| Item | Type | Journey 1 | Journey 2 | Journey 3 | Journey 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glimmering Pink Bud | Key items | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Condensation Honey | Key items | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| The First Seed | Trophies | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Bone Fragment | Currencies | 199 | 199 | 199 | 199 |
| Big Bone | Currencies | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 |
| Dominator Crystal | Currencies | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Fractured Body | Currencies | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Filthy Core | Currencies | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Immundus Crystal | Immundus | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Immundus Diamond | Immundus | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Elixir of Energy | Consumables | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Petrification Powder | Consumables | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Elixir of Epiphany | Consumables | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Fully Recovery Potion | Consumables | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Shriveled Holy Fruit | Consumables | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Ancient Silver Key | Consumables | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Elixir of Recovery | Consumables | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Potion of Wealth | Consumables | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Wildfire | Throwables | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
| Fire Jar | Throwables | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
| Huge Fang | Throwables | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Active Symbiote | Materials | 12 | 15 | 15 | 15 |
| Tender Fungus | Materials | 6 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Twilight Weed | Materials | 6 | 6 | 8 | 9 |
| Blackwater Rubble | Materials | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Eroded Rock | Materials | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| Blackwater Debris | Materials | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Blackwater Crystal | Materials | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Documents found here (same in every journey unless shown above): A Broken Note, An Anonymous Letter, Careless Handwriting, Diary of a Prison Guard, Eckhart's Diary Part Five, Eckhart's Diary Part Three, Eckhart's Diary Part Two, Illegible Research Report, Scribbled Sketch, The Diary of the Guard, Yellowing Pages. See Documents.
26 of the 66 slots change their item or amount between journeys 1 and 4.
Secrets and scenery#
All four carriage points have the transfer flag, and the chapter has four elevators.
| Object | Count | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Walls | 4 | by wall type, 3 are quest walls that appear or vanish with story flags and 1 is a boss-arena wall |
| Doors | 8 | 1 Trick, 7 Metal; 0 need a quest flag first; 0 are switchable (open and close) |
| Gates | 1 | 1 Stone |
| Ladder kicks (stair kick) | 1 | 1 Metal; completes quest(s) 72501 |
| Elevators | 4 | elevator 1: 2 floors (Small wood); elevator 2: 2 floors (Wood); elevator 3: 2 floors (Small wood); elevator 4: 2 floors (Stone) |
| Crates | 9 | each smashed crate completes its own quest flag (e.g. 72101, 72102, 72103) |
| Stairs / ladders | 11 | scene staircases with their own audio reverb tags |
Heggies (frogs)#
The Karst Cave hides five Heggies (model 90008); finishing one makes a Dominator Crystal appear. Rules, costs, rewards and the achievements they count toward are in Heggie offerings#How the game works and Heggie offerings#Rewards.
The five Heggies of this region:
| Frog id | Start mood | Gift that raises mood (+1) | Gift that lowers mood (-1) | Neutral gift | Gifts needed to finish | Cheapest total cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7069 (area 1) | 2 | 15 Sanity offered (costs 7.5) | 30 x Bone Fragment | 1 x Anthozoan Bones | 3 | 22.5 Sanity |
| 7070 (area 1) | 2 | 30 x Bone Fragment | 2 x Health Potion | 1 x Anthozoan Bones | 3 | 90 x Bone Fragment |
| 7071 (area 1) | 2 | 30 x Bone Fragment | 1 x Anthozoan Bones | 2 x Health Potion | 3 | 90 x Bone Fragment |
| 7072 (area 1) | 2 | 1 x Anthozoan Bones | 2 x Health Potion | 30 x Bone Fragment | 3 | 3 x Anthozoan Bones |
| 7073 (area 1) | 2 | 2 x Health Potion | 30 x Bone Fragment | 1 x Anthozoan Bones | 3 | 6 x Health Potion |
Hidden mechanics#
- The stops vanish when the Usurper dies. Both Karst Cave stops are hidden by quest 71003. The Usurper's own row (
ES_StoryMonster7001) completes it, together with 71001 and 71002, so after that point neither stop can be selected on the map. - Relics of the Ancestors can never be picked. It needs quest 73002, the end of the Usurper's defeat cutscene (
ES_StoryMovie88 completes it), and that comes after the Usurper has already completed the hide quest 71003. A hide flag beats a show flag (World mechanics#The quest-flag system) and no quest reverts 71003, so the stop never shows (inferred fromfs_savestory.lua:3320-3350; not tested in game). See also Maps#Stops and what unlocks them. - Quest 55032 (from Katib) is what opens the first stop. A Katib dialog row (
ES_StoryDialog53255) completes it; see Katib#hm-quest-55032-opens-a-stop-elsewhere-it-is. - Pickups are re-rolled by journey. Items found only in journey 1: none. Items that only appear from a later journey on: none. Items whose total amount differs between journey 1 and journey 4: Active Symbiote (12 to 15), Big Bone (7 to 13), Elixir of Epiphany (2 to 3), Elixir of Recovery (1 to 3), Eroded Rock (2 to 8), Filthy Core (2 to 5), Fire Jar (3 to 5), Fractured Body (3 to 6), Fully Recovery Potion (2 to 3), Huge Fang (3 to 4), Petrification Powder (2 to 4), Potion of Wealth (1 to 3), Shriveled Holy Fruit (2 to 3), Tender Fungus (6 to 9), Twilight Weed (6 to 9), Wildfire (6 to 8). The columns that switch are explained in World mechanics#Scene pickups and the journey.
- No Dark Mist walls here. Rebounding black-fog walls exist only in chapters 1 to 5 (World mechanics#Walls).
New Game Plus and Arcade#
Enemy level range by journey over all placements, bosses included: journey 1 1-18, journey 2 1-55, journey 3 1-73, journey 4 1-89. The journey value is capped at 4 (BattleData.GameLoopMax = 4; see Maps#hm-enemy-levels-scale-by-journey-not-by-region).
The Arcade copy of this region is story 1007 (stage 11010). Arcade always uses the journey 1 data. Its table has MonsterCount2 = 55, MonsterCount3 = 61 (kill targets for two score grades, inferred) and StandardTime = 540 (par time, inferred). See Arcade mode and New Game Plus.
Sources#
es_siteinfo.luaSiteId 700-702 (EnableQuestId 55032, 73002; HideQuestId 71003);es_storymonster.lua7001 (completes 71001 to 71003);es_storymovie.lua88 (completes 73002, 73716, 73009);es_storyquest.lua73002 (comment: boss defeat cutscene finished);es_storysave.luaStoryId 7 SaveId 1-5;es_storycarriage.luaStoryId 7 (Transfer 1).gamedata/structdata/exportdata/es_siteinfo.luarows for SiteId 700-799;es_storydata.luarow for StoryId 7;es_storymonster.lua,es_storyitem.lua(StoryId 7),es_storywall.lua,es_storydoor.lua,es_storygate.lua,es_storystairkick.lua,es_storyelevator.lua,es_storycrate.lua,es_storyfrog.lua,es_storysave.lua,es_storycarriage.luafiltered by StoryId 7.- Code shared by every region page (journey columns and clamp, rebounding walls, altar quests, stop visibility, Heggie rules): see the Sources of World mechanics, Maps and Heggie offerings.