Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse blends the ability-gated exploration of Metroidvania with the procedurally generated gameplay of roguelikes to keep you moving through a shifting world. There are multiple biomes in the game, but when you start, the only one you can access is the Ruins.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about Ruins, along with the boss fight at the end of the zone.
For more information about the game, check out their Steam page here.
Table of contents
Ruins Zone Overview
Ruins is the first accessible biome in Never Grave. It consists of three unique areas called Area 1, Area 2 & Area 3. There’s also a Ruins – Depth zone that you must unlock by completing the previous areas, and an alternate optional area called the Flooded Zone that replaces Area 2 or 3. The difficulty increases with each Area you complete, with Area 1 being the easiest while Area 3 is the hardest.
To progress through the biome, you’ll have to complete each Area and find the portal that leads to the corresponding Area’s Nexus. Once there, you have to use another portal to reach the Ruins – Depths, where you’ll find the Traveler and a locked gate.
Talk to the Traveler and interact with the gate to remove an instance of the lock. You need to interact with the gate a total of three times from each Area’s Nexus to open the gate. Once you go through the gate, you’ll find the biome boss, the Crimson Warden.
Essential Village Upgrades
You’ll be able to access the Village as soon as you enter the Church for the first time. While there are very few options available early on, you should prioritize a few key upgrades to make your runs through the Ruins more efficient.
Here are the Facilities you need to have in your Village early on, along with what they do:
| Facilities | Required Materials | What it Does |
|---|---|---|
| Pillar of Combat | 2 Stone | Grants access to Combat skill tree. |
| Pillar of Survival | 5 Stone | Grants access to the Survival Skill Tree. |
| Rustic Dining Table | 4 Wood | Let’s you prepare and eat food. |
| Planter | 3 Stone | Can be used to plant seeds and grow produce. |
| Water Pump | 5 Stone, 3 Wood | A water source that periodically provides a Watering Can to irrigate your crops. |
| Witch’s Cauldron | 15 Stone, 2 Wood | Used to craft items and food through alchemy. It will automatically craft up to three items. |
| Shipping Box | 5 Stone, 6 Tomato | Once its production gauge is full, items inside are shipped in exchange for money. |
| Research Station | 3 Wood | A crafting table for the Inventor to handle Blueprints. |
Don’t worry, all of these upgrades are pretty much required for progression, and you’ll naturally build them as you keep going on runs. But when it comes to Pillar of Combat and Survival upgrades, you have a bit more freedom. Here are the skills we recommend picking up.
Recommended Pillar of Combat Upgrades
| Sword Mastery | Increases Normal Attack damage | 2/5 |
| Sneak Attack | Deal more damage to enemies from behind | 3/5 |
| Mana Absorption | Increases MP restoration when hitting an enemy with Normal Attack | 1/4 |
Recommended Pillar of Survival Upgrades
| Stamina | Increases maximum HP | 2/6 |
| Resilience | Increases maximum Flask capacity | 2/5 |
| Reserve Flask | Increases maximum Flask capacity | 1/3 |
Some of these upgrades will require materials that you can only craft using the Witch’s Cauldron. Once you unlock the upgrades mentioned above, your runs through the Ruins will get much easier.
How to Unlock the Celestial Plume (Air Dash)
Celestial Plume is the first Artifact that you unlock in the game, giving you the ability to use Air Dash. This is a major traversal ability that lets you dodge enemy attacks mid-air and reach previously inaccessible areas.
To unlock this ability, you’ll have to complete the Area 1 and 2 of the Ruins and return to the Village. The next time you’re about to enter the Ruins, talk to Sleepy Sister near the Ruins Portal. She’ll mention an Elder Statue somewhere in a tight passage.
Enter the Ruins and complete the first Area. When you enter Area 2, explore every section you can until you find a statue holding a plume. Check the image above to see what it looks like.
You’ll have to find your way to the statue and pick up the item in its hands to unlock the Celestial Plume ability.
How to Beat the Crimson Warden
The Crimson Warden is the final boss of the Ruins and is found in Ruins – Depths, after you unlock its gates by clearing Area 1, Area 2, and Area 3. It’s extremely tanky, but can be stunlocked and has a relatively simple set of moves.
The boss has three hit boxes: his two hands and his face. Hitting the face deals the most damage and can stun the boss, but it’s also riskier as you’ll be in the center of the arena. Hitting hand deals less damage but is the safer option.
At the start of the fight, he’ll only attack using one of his hands. He’ll either do a fist slam or swipe with one of his arms. As long as you stay on the outer side of his arm, you’ll be safe and can keep attacking it.
When you see the boss slam the arena with both hands, look at the top of the screen for falling debris. After a brief delay, three boulders will fall from the ceiling, but they are very easy to dodge.
He can also shoot a barrage of lasers from his eye. When he starts preparing this attack, get as far away from the boss as possible and dodge the lasers as they fly toward you. You can use your Spells to hit the boss from a distance during this move.
Once the boss’s HP drops to around half, he’ll summon some minions along with a dog you can possess. You can use the possessed unit to attack the boss’s face and stun him.
During this phase, the boss will also have a new move where he fires a giant laser beam horizontally across the arena. Run toward the source of the laser to avoid taking damage.
Keep attacking the boss, preferably at his face and he should go down without much trouble.
Reward for Beating the Crimson Warden
After defeating the Crimson Warden and returning to the Church, talk to the Head Sister to get the blueprint for the Arctic Breath Spell. You’ll also unlock some new Furniture for the Village. The Inventor will also make it possible to build more Facilities in the Village by this point.
But the biggest reward for beating the boss is unlocking the next biome, the Gardens.
This concludes our guide for Never Grave: The Witch and The Curse. For more interesting articles related to indie games, check out the links below:
- Into Indie Games Homepage
- Esoteric Ebb Complete Walkthrough Hub
- Resident Evil Requiem – Walkthrough Hub
- Tales Of Berseria Remastered – Walkthrough Hub
- Mewgenics Guides Hub
Muhit Rahman lives off two things: gaming marathons and endless cups of tea. He writes guides, reviews, and occasionally forgets that real life doesn’t come with checkpoints. His favorite genres are Soulslike and Metroidvania, with Dark Souls III, Hollow Knight, and Dota 2 forever holding top spots on his all-time list.
