Of Ash and Steel, an RPG inspired by the Gothic series, was recently released. While the game is not perfect, it provides an enjoyable experience. Those who like games where there is little hand-holding, and you are on your own, will especially enjoy it. For more information regarding the game, head over to its Steam page.
There are many quests in this game, and almost all of them are quite challenging. As mentioned before, the game will not help you much, and you will be on your own. Because of this, you may have trouble completing the quests. One such troublesome quest is Knee Deep In The Ground in Of Ash and Steel, where you are tasked with finding treasure for a person named Mix.
Important Note
Before you start the quest, it is worth noting that you need at least three shovels to progress. Three shovels are required to dig the treasure spots, so if you don’t have them, you won’t be able to complete this quest. That said, shovels aren’t that hard to find, as just doing a little exploration, I managed to find five of them. You may also find some around Nerest’s house.
Table of contents
How To Start Knee-Deep In The Ground
You may have already talked to Mix by now, but if you have not found him yet, do not worry, because I will tell you exactly where he is. He is not too far away from Nerest’s house. From the puddle, go ahead and follow the path to your left. Keep following the path, and eventually you will come across some ruins. This is where Mix is. You can also find some items, such as an Old Claymore, in the ruins.
Mix will be on the north side, leaning against a brick wall. Talk to him to start the Knee Deep in the Ground quest in Of Ash and Steel. Now you have to find treasure in three different places. Finding the first two is not that difficult, but the last one can be quite troublesome. However, I will tell you how to find all of them with complete ease.
I highly recommend starting and completing this quest during the day. That is because you may not find certain NPCs during the night, and you need their help in completing the quest. As you would want the woocutters and Mix to do most of the combat for you, completing it in a day is necessary.
Cave In The Hollow
The first location you have to explore is the cave in the hollow, which is not that far away. Facing toward Mix, follow the path to your left, and eventually, on the west side, you will notice a cave. However, there will be some monsters on the way. They will not be that strong, but if they attack you together, it can be a pain to deal with. So bring them to Mix, as he is extremely strong.
He will one-shot those monsters, so after defeating them, head inside the cave. There will be one more monster inside, a Woodwalker, which has a massive pool of health. You can fight it, but I will not recommend that. This monster hits like a truck and takes damage like a tank. So lead it toward Mix, and he will take care of the rest. If by any chance Mix is knocked out, he will not fight again. If that happens, the monster will not have much health left, so you can finish it off.
However, if it still has a lot of health left, run back to the cave, as it is unlikely to follow you. Head inside to the end and use your shovel to dig up the treasure. Open the chest, and you will get Camp Supplies, 3x Torch, and 30 Gold.
Windmill In The Abandoned Village
After finding the first treasure, it is time to head to the abandoned village. This is where you may have found some stashes for Fox. Go back to where Mix is and, facing him, head right. Follow the path ahead, cross the wooden bridge, and keep going. Eventually, you will reach the entrance of the abandoned village.
From there, head straight and keep following that path. You will then eventually notice a purple light outside a home. From there, take a left, and the windmill will be right in front of you. There will also be a monster, a Young Woodwalker, that will not be difficult to defeat. In order to dig up the treasure, you have to defeat this monster. Do so, and then look behind the windmill.
The spot to dig will be right next to the plant at the back side of the windmill, closer to the east side. Then use your shovel there to dig up the treasure. After that, open the chest, and you will get 2x Lockpick and 50 gold.
Ruins Near The Woodcutter’s Camp
Now that you have found two of the three treasures, it is time to find the most difficult one. You need to head over to the other side of the river. For that, facing away from the windmill, start heading to the right. Follow the path to the right and then head left. You will come across a fishing spot.
Keep going straight from there, and eventually you will come across a wooden bridge. After crossing it, turn left and follow the path until the end. At the end, you will see a plank. Use it to go to the other side. Now take a step back, sprint, and then jump to reach the other side. Then climb to the north side, and you will reach the top.
Even if you fall to the bottom, there is no need to worry. You can simply climb your way up. After getting to the top, follow the path ahead, and you will find the woodcutter’s camp. Keep following the path ahead, and you will come across a pretty strong monster. At this level, you will not be able to defeat it, but luckily, there is a way to defeat it quite easily.
How To Defeat Rover
Rover is one of the strongest monsters you can find in the early game, and it is by no means meant to be defeated by you yet. However, because NPCs can help you in combat in this game, this fight will become pretty easy. Aggro Rover and lead it to the woodcutters’ camp.
Woodcutters are extremely strong, and they will not have any trouble defeating this abomination. The only challenging part will be leading Rover to the camp. Once you successfully do that, lead it to the NPCs, and they will start attacking it. If three of them attack it at once, Rover will not stand a chance.
However, try to get the last hit, as that way you will get the maximum EXP. If not, you will only get 10. Once Rover has been defeated, inspect its body, and you will receive 10 Raw Meat.
Finding The Treasure
Now go back to where it was before and from there take a right. There will be some rat monsters, and as mentioned before, you need to defeat any nearby enemy to dig the treasure.
Take the rats back to the woodcutters, as they are quite high-leveled. Once they are dead, head back to the ruins, go up the stairs, enter inside, and then go left. The treasure will be inside this small room, so start digging. Then open the chest, and you will get 5x Peasant Lass and 100 Gold.
After that, head back to Mix and get your half. With this, the quest Knee-Deep in the Ground in Of Ash and Steel will be over, and you will be rewarded with 90 Gold and 300 EXP.
For more interesting articles related to indie games, check out the links below:
- Into Indie Games Homepage
- Demonschool Complete Walkthrough
- Constance Complete Walkthrough Hub
- Winter Burrow Review
- The Berlin Apartment Review
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.
