Caves
Caves are the eleven deep sites explored through the Delving skill — one per biome, plus the Amber Door hidden beyond the Sundered Vale. Each biome cave opens as a second reward for fully clearing its biome, sitting beyond the Guardian fight, and offers cave materials, gems, and a handful of uncraftable, best-in-slot gear pieces found nowhere else.
For the full mechanics of running caves (torches, injuries, XP, drop layers), see Delving. This page lists the caves themselves and their signature unique drops.
Unlocking a cave
[edit | edit source]A cave opens once its biome is 100% cleared — the same milestone that unlocks the next biome. Each cave also has a Delving level requirement that staggers up the biome chain, from level 1 in the Grasslands to level 90 in the Sundered Vale. A cave's difficulty sits between its biome's patrol and its Guardian, so it is a step up from casual patrolling but short of a boss fight.
The eleven caves
[edit | edit source]| Biome | Cave | Delving level | Difficulty | Unique gear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grasslands | Sunlit Grotto | 1 | 30 | Glowworm Lantern |
| Redwood Wilds | Rootway Hollow | 10 | 70 | Cavern Charm (trinket) |
| Murkwater Swamp | Drowned Cavern | 20 | 100 | Flickerfang Spear (weapon) |
| Cavern Depths | Echoing Deep | 30 | 130 | Mosslit Crown (head) |
| Scorched Badlands | Cinder Vault | 40 | 170 | Emberglass Idol |
| Coral Shallows | Tidewrack Cave | 50 | 195 | Pearlscale Vest (chest) |
| Frozen Wastes | Glacier Hollow | 60 | 220 | Stalker's Greaves (legs) |
| Ashen Peaks | Ashen Gallery | 70 | 260 | Aegis of the Deep (shield) |
| Skyreach Plateau | Skyvein Chasm | 80 | 310 | Glowstone Talisman (trinket) |
| the Sundered Vale | Vale Abyss | 90 | 380 | Fang of the Depths (weapon) |
| the Sundered Vale | The Amber Door | 95 | 450 | Echo of the First Warden |
The Amber Door
[edit | edit source]The Amber Door is an eleventh cave — a second, deeper site in the Sundered Vale that opens only once you hold The Sigil, the reward for completing the Chronicles. It does not burn an ordinary Torch: each delve consumes a Deeplight Lantern instead. Its unique drop, the Echo of the First Warden, is a live-effect relic — while held, roughly every fifth dig runs itself for free.
Cave uniques
[edit | edit source]Every cave now holds a unique — a rare drop (about 0.2% per winning run) that cannot be crafted, bought, or found anywhere else. The gear uniques below are best-in-slot for their tier, making them the endgame completionist chase. The Sunlit Grotto (Glowworm Lantern) and Cinder Vault (Emberglass Idol) each gained a unique as well, and the Amber Door drops the relic Echo of the First Warden.
| Unique | Slot | From cave | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cavern Charm | Trinket | Rootway Hollow | An early-game trinket (attack and defense). |
| Flickerfang Spear | Weapon | Drowned Cavern | A strong mid-game weapon. |
| Mosslit Crown | Head | Echoing Deep | Crown of living glow moss. |
| Pearlscale Vest | Chest | Tidewrack Cave | Cave-pearl-scaled hide armor. |
| Stalker's Greaves | Legs | Glacier Hollow | The finest legwear known. |
| Aegis of the Deep | Shield | Ashen Gallery | No shield surpasses it. |
| Glowstone Talisman | Trinket | Skyvein Chasm | Tops the Amber Pendant; no trinket surpasses it. |
| Fang of the Depths | Weapon | Vale Abyss | The mightiest weapon in the game. |
Cave loot
[edit | edit source]Beyond the uniques, every cave pays out:
- Cave materials (common) — Stalactite Chip, Glow Moss, Cave Pearl, and Echo Shard; sellable and used later in crafting.
- Gems (uncommon) — Rough Garnet, Deep Sapphire, Ember Topaz, and Sky Opal, tiering up by depth; pure Amber income.
- Expedition Set pieces — caves drop the biome's set pieces at a higher rate than patrols.
- Arena Artifacts — a biome's cave is the only source of its Arena Artifact, the key used at the Arenas. A dry streak is now capped: if the artifact hasn't dropped in 20 winning runs, the 20th run guarantees it. See Delving.
- Dig Site Maps — caves are the best drop rate for a biome's Excavation map.
