How to Complete An Unheard Farewell
To complete An Unheard Farewell in Valor Mortis, accept the carriage passenger’s request near Guidepost, investigate the cave off the moving lift at The Climb, collect the letter and return to report. Finishing the quest awards Sleight of Hand Amber and the Aggressive Reconnaissance achievement.
Starting Location and Required Abilities
The quest starts in Chapter 2: Regroup, in the Valley of Ashes. Follow the route from the Guidepost Lantern until you reach the open area beyond the first Grenadier. Look for the man calling from a carriage window: this is the adjutant who wants you to find his missing scouts.
You need Fire Transmutation to clear the golden vines on the cave route. Fire is obtained in the opening section, and the Pistol is a required pickup inside a train car during the bridge platforming section. As you continue toward The Climb, you will use shooting to free the lift and Fire to open the passage beyond its central landing.
Find the Scouts and Return With the Letter
- Choose Help when speaking to the man at the carriage window beyond the first Grenadier near Guidepost. Accepting his request begins An Unheard Farewell and gives you the missing scouts to investigate.
- Collect the Pistol from the train car on the left during the bridge platforming section. This is a required pickup for progressing along the route toward The Climb.
- Climb the exit ladder in the cave after the lift near The Climb. Reaching the top automatically advances this part of the quest, so you can continue toward the upper cliff route.
- Shoot the Nephtoglobin spots at the second lift-release point after climbing the cliff. Freeing this upper section lets you use the lift to reach the passage partway through the shaft.
- Jump from the moving lift onto the central platform partway through the shaft. You need to leave the lift while it is travelling, so watch for the landing between its endpoints instead of riding all the way down.
- Burn the golden vines opposite the path you originally followed. Clearing this barrier opens the side passage that leads into the scouts’ cave.
- Defeat the Risen Soldier miniboss beyond the vines. Clearing this encounter lets you investigate the cave and collect the letter needed for your report.
- Pick up the Letter to All Commanding Officers of the Line Infantry after the fight. Make this your priority before leaving the cave, rather than heading straight back after defeating the miniboss.
- Kick down the shortcut ladder when you reach the top of the area along the Demolished Path route. This opens the way back to the starting Lantern and the adjutant’s carriage.
- Report back to the adjutant at the carriage and finish his dialogue. This completes the quest and grants Sleight of Hand Amber and Aggressive Reconnaissance; the response options and their extra rewards are explained below.
Quest Ending Spoilers: Tell the Truth or Lie
The following choices reveal what happens after you report the scouts’ fate. Both answers award Sleight of Hand Amber and complete the quest for Aggressive Reconnaissance. Your response changes the extra reward you can collect after resting.
| Response | Reward and Follow-up |
|---|---|
| Tell the truth | Receive Sleight of Hand Amber. Rest at a Lantern, then return to the carriage to collect an Epic Catalyst Clot from the ground nearby. |
| Lie | Receive Sleight of Hand Amber. After resting, return to the cave where you found the scouts to find the adjutant’s corpse and collect Remnant’s Return. |
Tell the truth if you prefer to collect the bonus near the carriage. Lying gives you a reason to revisit the scouts’ cave after resting. Remnant’s Return lets you recover Catalysts dropped on death without travelling back to the place where you lost them.
Using Sleight of Hand Amber
Sleight of Hand makes reloading and weapon switching 1.2 times as fast. Open the level-up menu at a Lantern to equip the Amber and use its passive effect. It is a useful reward to try if you regularly switch weapons or find yourself exposed while reloading.
Lift Trouble and an Unfinished Quest
If you cannot reach the scouts’ cave, finish opening the upper lift route before trying the central landing again. The entrance is partway through the shaft, behind the golden vines opposite your original path. If the quest remains active after the fight, check that you collected the letter and returned to finish the adjutant’s conversation.
For another attempt at the cave encounter, keep enough Endurance available to dodge. Attacking, dodging, blocking and sprinting use Endurance, which regenerates over time. Resting at a Lantern restores Health and Nephtoglobin, but also revives regular enemies along your route.