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Hornsent is an NPC inElden Ring:Shadow of the Erdtreewhom you meet fairly early in the DLC. Initially, he helps you locate Miquella’s Crosses throughout the Land of Shadow, but he also has an elaborate quest that is spanned across the entire campaign.
Hornsent’s quest also coincides with Hornsent Grandam, who can be found in a secret room near the ‘Small Private Altar’ Site of Grace in Belurat, Tower Settlement. There are also a few important choices that you will need to make as you progress through the quest.
Meet Hornsent At The Three-Path Cross Site Of Grace
Immediately after reaching the Land of Shadow,travel a little north past the Furnace Golemto get to the ‘Three-Path Cross’ Site of Grace. This is where you will come across Hornsent and Redmane Freyja. Continue to exhaust Hornsent’s dialogue until you getCross Map.
Complete Belurat, Tower Settlement And Castle Ensis
The next thing thatyou will need to do is to kill theDivine Beast Dancing Lion.
Before entering Belurat, Tower Settlement,speak withSir Ansbachif you wish to progress his quest. You will also find Sir Moore here, who is needed toget one of the new Cookbooksin Shadow of the Erdtree.
Once you have defeated the boss,be sure to collect theDivine Beast Head. You then need to acquire theStoreroom Key. Use it toopen a room past the bridge next to the‘Small Private Altar’ Site of Grace tofind Hornsent Grandam.
If she does not respond,be sure to equip the Divine Beast Head, and exhaust her dialogue to get the Scorpion Stew. In case she does not, rest at the nearby Site of Grace before speaking to her again. Travel to the ‘Three-Path Cross’ Site of Grace, and give the Scorpion Stew to Hornsent for some additional dialogue and threeFurnace Visage. This step istotally optionalanddoes not affect the quest at all.
Nowtravel to Castle Ensistodefeat Rellana, Twin Moon Knight. This should allow you to access the ‘Highroad Cross’ Site of Grace. If you do not want to deal with Rellana for whatever reason, you shouldbe able to reach this Site of Grace via Elder’s HovelnearFort of Reprimand— after activating aSealed Spiritspring.
You need to meet Hornsent at the ‘Highroad Cross’ Site of Grace to get theNew Cross Map. After that,speak with Needle Knight Leda, andask her about Hornsent.
you’re able to alsogive him the Scorpion Stew hereif you did not do it previously at the ‘Three-Path Cross’ Site of Grace.
Break The Great Rune
To progress the quest,you will need tobreak the Great Rune. To do so, you simply need to enter one of three areas:
The simplest one to reach from your current position is Shadow Keep. You simply need tohead north from the‘Highroad Cross’ Site of Grace, past the Furnace Golem toward the Shadow Keep gate. As you near the entrance, you will get a message on the screen that reads:
Somewhere, a great rune has broken, And so too has a powerful charm.
We have explained more about this in a separate guide, butthis essentially means that you’re able to access a new area past the Cerulean Coast. This is where you will meet Miquella’s alter-ego, St. Trina, andcomplete Thiollier’s quest.
This also means that Miquella’sspell on his followershasbeen lifted. Once this happens, the behavior of NPCs in the Land of Shadow changes. We recommendspeaking with all of themto getnew dialogueas well asextra lore.
Return to the ‘Highroad Cross’ Site of Grace to speak with Hornsent and Needle Knight Leda once more.
Defeat The Golden Hippopotamus
You need tosummon Hornsent before fighting the Golden Hippopotamus— the summon sign is on the right side of the boss arena. It is a very simple boss who isweak against Fire and Lightning. We have a detailed guide on how todefeat the Golden Hippopotamusif you need help dealing with it.
After defeating the boss, return to the ‘Highroad Cross’ Site of Grace to speak with Hornsent as well as Needle Knight Leda.Continue to exhaust their dialogueuntil Leda asks you toname someone that she should eliminate. You can either name Hornsent right away or keep on resting at the nearby Site of Grace until Leda decides on Hornsent herself. At this point, Hornsent should disappear from this Site of Grace.
Help Hornsent Defeat Leda
Keep on progressing through Shadow Keep until yougo past two Black Knights in the dining room. A little ahead, you will find an area with burning boats all around.Continue forwardto see a path going downon the right side. This is where you will see two summon signs:
Defeat Messmer The Impaler
Progress through the entirety of Shadow Keep until you canfight Messmer the Impaler, past the ‘Dark Chamber Entrance’ Site of Grace. You need to verify thatyou summon Hornsent for this fight. If you are having trouble finding his summon sign, it should be on the right side after entering the boss arena.
Messmer is veryweak against FrostandHoly damage.Hornsent makes the fight very manageable on his own, but if you can summon theMimic Tear Ashes, it completely trivializes the fight.
If somehow Hornsent dies before Messmer, you’re able to eitherrestart the fight or find him back at the‘Highroad Cross’ Site of Grace to continue his quest.
After defeating Messmer, rest at the ‘Messmer’s Dark Chamber’ Site of Grace and exhaust his dialogue. You should also visitHornsent GrandaminBelurat,Tower Settlementto inform her about Messmer being dead. She will reward you with Gourmet Scorpion Stew, but this step of the quest is completely optional.
Invasion Near Church Of The Bud
To complete the last step of the quest, you will need tohead over to the Church of the Bud. you’re able to get there from the ‘Storehouse, First Floor’ Site of Grace. Simplyhead down the elevator on the left sideandcontinue to follow the path to reach the Ancient Ruins of Rauh. Go past the Furnace Golem in the distance until you reachRomina, Saint of the Bud. You do not want to be in the area with the Sealed Spiritspring.
Before you get to her, however,you will be invaded by Hornsent. He does not have a lot of HP, so it should not be a tough fight in any way. Defeat him to get:
Return to Hornsent GrandaminBelurat,Tower Settlementone last time toget the Gourmet Scorpion Stew. At this point, she will stop responding even if you are wearing the Divine Beast Head. Again, it is not directly related to Hornsent’s quest, but it is something to keep in mind.
