Of Ash and Steel is an RPG where you are completely on your own. Finding locations can be a pain to deal with, especially when the hints you get are too vague. That is why finding the headquarters of the Freemen can be quite challenging. However, I already have a walkthrough published on how to reach that place.
Now that you are at the location, you cannot get the protection that easily. You will need to participate in the Trials of Resolve to join the Freemen. Then you will get all the protection you need. However, there will be a series of quests during the trials, so be prepared, as it is going to be difficult and time-consuming. Here, I will guide you on how to complete Joining the Free Hunters in Of Ash and Steel easily.
If you want more information on the game, head over to its official Steam page.
Disclaimer
Of Ash and Steel is an open-world RPG where your choices matter. While dialogue options may not have a huge impact on your relationships with other characters, you still need to be careful with the decisions you make. In the previous quest, you were asked to speak with the leaders of both the Freemen and the Order. I chose to side with the Freemen for their protection, so this walkthrough is based on that choice.
Table of contents
Initiation Fee
Once you agree to undergo the trials, you will be tasked with bringing five mauler hides to Kurt. To do this quest, you will need to unlock the Carcass Skinning skill in the survival tab. This can only be unlocked by a master, and there are quite a few of them. One is at the tavern you crossed to reach the Freemen. You can learn this skill from him.
Also, on your way, you may have noticed some maulers. You can kill them and then take their hides. However, they are not the younger ones, so it may take some time and a lot of effort to kill them. While you can still get the hides by killing them, there is a better way.
Important Note
During the Joining the Free Hunters quest in Of Ash and Steel, Robas may not be at his usual spot. If that happens, head to Kurt’s house and go to the second floor, where you’ll find a ladder. Climb up and rest until morning. After you do that, the NPC should appear, and you’ll be able to buy hides from him.
You will not have to engage in a fight with them, as you can simply buy them. Head down from where you came from, and from the notice board, turn right. There will be an NPC right by the camp. Talk to him, and he will sell his hides to you for 50 gold. However, do note that he will give you two poor hides for 50 gold. That said, you can buy as many hides from him as you want.
As you will have to buy six hides from him, I recommend buying two more. Don’t worry, you will get your money back. Now head back up, and when you reach the entrance with two signs of Freemen, talk to the NPC Mackie. This will start a quest, Hides For Mackie. Give him the three hides he needs, and the quest will be over.
Now head over to Kurt and give him the hides. With that, the quest Initiation Fee will be over, and the next one, Joining The Free Hunters, will be triggered.
Talk To The Falcons
You now need to find three of the falcons and talk to them. Each one of them will give you a task to complete. Upon completing those tasks, you will get three feathers.
Falcon Of Herbalists
In order to find the first Falcon, head down, and there will be a house right next to the notice board. Get inside the house, and there will be a herbalist inside. He is the Falcon of Herbalists. Do note that this herbalist has the Diagram for Dexterity Potion, which is a legendary item and increases your skill points by one permanently. He is selling it for only 500 gold, so if you have spare money, make sure to buy it.
That said, it requires Masterful Survival skill, which you are extremely unlikely to have. Regarding the task, the herbalist will ask you to bring a frost patalaphor (what, did you skip the word? read it :p), and you will get a feather from him.
To find this flower, you need to get out of the headquarters. Go out, cross the wooden bridge, and follow the path ahead. Keep following the path, and you will eventually cross a small pond. From there, head north, climb the rocks, and go toward the windmill. Cross the windmill and keep heading straight until you reach the lake.
Important Note
After you pick up the quest item underwater, be careful not to die. Your stamina drains quickly while swimming, so make sure the bar is full before you dive. You definitely don’t want to get the item and then lose it because of a bug that can cause the flower to disappear. This doesn’t happen to everyone, but it could happen to you, so stay cautious.
Now you will notice a pier to the right (a fisherman will also be there). From there, jump into the water on the north side and dive. Just a little to the right, you will see a glowing blue light. That is the frost patalaphor. Pick it up and take it back to the herbalist. Give it to him to get the feather.
Falcon Of Craftsmen
Now exit the house and take a left. Follow the path ahead and then take another left. Keep going straight, and when you cross an inclined path, head to the north-east path. The next falcon will either be inside the house or sitting beside the cart. Start a conversation with Morgus, and he will ask you to cut a strip from a rag that almost resembles a flag.
This may seem like an easy task from the description, but believe me, it is not. To complete this task, head back and take a sharp right. Follow the path ahead and then take a left. When the path ends, head to the right and follow the path leading downward.
When you reach the bottom, get into the river and head north. Keep going, and when you see ground on the north-west side, get out of the river. Continue moving forward, ensuring you walk slightly to the west.
Shortly after, you will notice a giant tower. That is where you need to go. Make your way to the tower and then follow the path to its left. Keep following the path, and eventually you will come across some stone stairs. Go up, and then head up from the stairs to your right. The tower will be on your left.
You will also notice a cluster of bricks to the west. Climb that, then climb the wooden plank facing upward. Next, climb the stone wall, head north, and then climb the stone wall to the right. Now sprint and jump to the other side. After that, sprint and jump again to reach the tower.
How To Reach The Top Of The Tower
Important Note
This parkour section isn’t easy. It took me more than a dozen tries to reach the top, so it’s very likely you’ll struggle a bit too. If you fall to the ground, it’s an instant death, which means you’ll have to load your latest save and possibly end up far from where you were. If you don’t want to lose progress, manually save your game when you jump onto the barrel and climb the wooden platform above.
Now comes the hardest part of this quest. Jump onto the box to your left and climb to the platform above. Then jump onto the barrel and climb to the next platform. Sprint and climb onto the wooden platform to the right. Walk forward a little and jump to the next one. Do the same for the following platform, then jump onto the wooden platform ahead.
Important Note
Now that you’re inside the tower, save your game again. You don’t want to repeat the previous section if you fall, so it’s best to save multiple times. This will spare you a lot of effort and time. After saving, don’t worry too much about falling, since it won’t affect your progress as much anymore.
Sprint and jump to the other side, then jump to the next wooden platform. You might think the platforming ends here, but unfortunately, it does not. Head inside and make your way to the north side of the tower. Climb the wooden platform to your right. After that, jump onto the platform to your left, then jump again to the next one.
To your northwest, you will see a platform covered in vines. Jump onto it, then jump onto the platform to your left. There are two final platforms ahead, so jump onto both and then climb the wall. Now head to the right to reach the flag. Along the way, pick up the Nimbleroot flower, then approach the flag and cut it.
How To Get Down
Getting down from the tower isn’t too difficult, but it can be deadly if you’re not careful. After cutting the flag, save your game, then drop down onto the platforms. The fall damage in this game isn’t very high, so you should be fine even if you fall farther than intended, but stay cautious. Once you reach the top of the planks in the middle of the tower, you can jump down without any trouble. Follow this route to descend safely, and make sure to save manually along the way so you don’t lose any progress.
Now make your way down, and along the path, you will meet two NPCs. One of them will ask you to bring a piece of the flag for a nimblekin who was injured. You can choose to help or refuse. If you choose to help them, then go back up and help cut the flag once again.
However, if you choose not to help them, then one of the NPCs will kill the one who is injured and then try to kill you. He is using a rapier, so this fight is going to be a tough one. Keep your stamina in check and make sure not to step when he does the leap attack. Once you have defeated him, loot both bodies for some gold. You should be able to get 140 Gold and a couple of weapons. After that, return to Morgus and give him the piece of the flag. He will then reward you with a feather.
Falcon Of Hunters
Now go down, take a sharp right, follow the path, and then take another right. From the notice board, head right and follow the path going uphill. There, you will need to talk to the blacksmith, and he will offer you your next task. He will ask you to choose one envelope out of the four. You have to select only one among the four and complete it.
Red one takes the longest, and in my opinion, the black one is the easiest one. However, I will provide details on everyone regarding how to solve them, so if you want to select a different one, go on.
Black Envelope
I selected the black envelope first, and to solve it, you need to head out. From the wooden bridge that connects to the entrance of the village, jump down from the left side into the river. Make sure you jump to the left while facing away from the village.
You can also just head left from the notice board and follow the path to continue ahead in the river (make sure to head left while facing away from the board). Move forward and keep following the river until you see a wooden bridge above you. From there, take a U-turn to the left, continue ahead, and drop down.
Now follow the path to the right. Shortly after, you will see a massive log lying across the river. Use it to reach the other side. Continue along the path, and you will come across a bandit camp.
I chose to defeat the bandits for extra loot, but you can ignore them if you prefer. Keep following the path, and you will soon enter a cave. Inside the cave, you will encounter a Black Woodwalker. Defeat it to obtain the Black Bug Mandible.
White Envelope
To solve the riddle in this envelope, head back to the lake where you found Frost Patalaphor. Go around the lake near the mill, and you will find a watchtower marked with the Freemen symbol. If you are having trouble finding it, follow the path I explained earlier. From that point, go to the east side and follow the path ahead. The watchtower will be on the right side of the path.
Now, while facing the watchtower, head right, then move to the left side. The path may look blocked at first, but you can climb over and reach the other side. There you will find an NPC with his hands tied. You can choose to help him or simply continue with the quest.
Whatever you decide, follow the path to your right, and eventually you will come across a Tailless Mauler near a smuggler’s pig. Defeat it to obtain the Tailless Mauler Fang, the second animal trophy.
Green Envelope
To solve the riddle in this envelope, head out of the village and follow the path ahead. Stay on the east side as you continue. When the path splits in two, take the left route. Keep following it, then take a right. Take another right shortly after and continue along the path.
Eventually, you will reach the Place of Fire, where the Ash Turtle will be waiting. Defeat the turtle, collect the trophy, and then it is time to select the final one, the red envelope.
Red Envelope
Now, to solve the riddle in this envelope, head out of the village and follow the path. When you see a dark blue stone on the left side, that is your cue to step off the path and head slightly west. Drop down, then follow the path to the right. When the path divides, take the left route. Continue following it, and you will eventually come across a chapel.
From there, head left because you need to reach the other side of the river. There will be some Stingers in the area, but you are looking for a specific kind. Search for the Green Stinger and defeat it. After defeating it, collect the trophy and return to the Falcon of Hunters.
Speak with him, and you will now have all three feathers. Once you have them, head back to Kurt. You will then only need to complete one final trial, the Trial of the Tree.
Disclaimer
If you want to become a freeman, you can ignore this message. But if you’re unsure about your decision, remember that this is a point of no return. If you’d rather side with the Order, now is the time to turn around and head back to the city.
The Final Trial – The Trial Of The Tree
Before starting this trial, you should know that this is a point of no return. If you want to join the Freemen, you can start the trial immediately. However, if you intend to side with the Order, there is still time to change your mind, because once you begin the trial, you will no longer be able to join them. After completing the Trial of the Tree, you will officially be counted among the Freemen.
To start the trial, go down the path, and when you see a house with a door facing north, take a right. There will also be a cart nearby. Follow the path ahead, then take a left, and climb down the ladder. After that, head downward, follow the path, and you will eventually reach the location where the trial is held.
Interact with the tree in the center. Then, a cutscene will commence, and after that, you will have to talk to Kurt. Go up the stairs, take a right, and talk to him. After that, the quest Joining the Free Hunters in Of Ash and Steel will conclude. You will have completed all the trials, bringing Act One to an end. Act Two will begin immediately afterward.
For more interesting articles related to indie games, check out the links below:
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Obaid Ur Rehman is a lifelong gaming enthusiast with a deep passion for writing about video games. While he enjoys all genres, he specializes in RPGs and Soulslike titles. After tackling some of the toughest bosses, he often unwinds with a cozy game to relax. Outside of gaming, Obaid enjoys watching anime, bingeing TV series, or staying active at the gym.
