The Fortress

Where the endgame begins. A Precursor Tower raises the Fortress on your Atlas, and two Arbiters wait at the end of the road.

Start: Your first steps on the Atlas0 of 4 lessons read

The road to the Arbiter of Divinity

Ten stops, in order. Tick each one when you've done it in game. The Fortress has two pinnacles, not one.

0 of 10 done in game.

  1. Stop 1

    Your first map

    Take Doryani's Waystone at the Ziggurat Refuge and run it in the Map Device.

    You complete your first map from the Map Device.

    Taught in Your first steps on the Atlas

  2. Stop 2

    Precursor Tower

    Clear it and light the Precursor Beacon at the top. 4 Atlas points and a Tablet.

    The Beacon is lit and the Fortress shows on your Atlas.

    Taught in Your first steps on the Atlas

  3. Stop 3

    Ancient Gateway

    Pull the levers in four wings and light its Beacon. It leads to the Burning Monolith, where one Crisis Fragment already sits in the sealed gate.

    The Ancient Gateway's Beacon is lit.

    Taught in Through the Fortress to the Arbiter of Ash

  4. Stop 4

    Western and Eastern Gateways

    Beat the Precursor Separator and the Precursor Refiner.

    Both Gateway bosses are dead.

    Taught in Through the Fortress to the Arbiter of Ash

  5. Stop 5

    Enigma Chambers

    Count Geonor drops the Ancient Crisis Fragment, and Doryani, Royal Thaumaturge the Weathered one. Be there when they die.

    You're holding both fragments.

    Taught in Through the Fortress to the Arbiter of Ash

  6. Stop 6

    Arbiter of Ash

    At the Burning Monolith. Unlocks the Fortress centre.

    The Arbiter of Ash is dead.

    Taught in Through the Fortress to the Arbiter of Ash

  7. Stop 7

    Patriarch and Matriarch Halls

    Two tier 15 maps. Phyx drops the Origin Spark and Phya the Origin Cradle.

    You're holding the Spark and the Cradle.

    Taught in The road to the Arbiter of Divinity

  8. Stop 8

    Origin Core

    Combine them at the Precursor Reactor in the Origin Tower.

    The Origin Core is in your inventory.

    Taught in The road to the Arbiter of Divinity

  9. Stop 9

    Arbiter of Divinity

    At the Origin Tower summit. Your first kill is the quest kill.

    The quest kill is done.

    Taught in The road to the Arbiter of Divinity

  10. Stop 10

    Complete the Fortress

    Kill him again with a non-quest Origin Core.

    Your Fortress maps all show completed.

    Taught in The road to the Arbiter of Divinity

Arbiter of Ash

Fought at the Burning Monolith with three Crisis Fragments. Since 0.5.5 he has fire resistance and cold vulnerability. He always drops a unique, such as Morior Invictus or Prism of Belief.

Quest fight level 74, repeat fights 82. The wiki says repeat fragments come from City Citadels.

Arbiter of Divinity

Fought at the Origin Tower summit with an Origin Core. Since 0.5.5 he has lightning resistance and fire vulnerability. He always drops one of six uniques, among them the three Decrees.

Quest fight level 79, repeat fights 82. Spark and Cradle can be bought on the Currency Exchange.

Lessons

  1. Your first steps on the AtlasThe Ziggurat Refuge, your first map and Tower, and how Atlas points work.Up next
  2. Waystones and TabletsIdentifying, tiering and reading Waystones, and filling Tablet slots.Open
  3. Through the Fortress to the Arbiter of AshThe Gateways, the Enigma Chambers, the Crisis Fragments and the first Arbiter.Open
  4. The road to the Arbiter of DivinityThe Halls, the Origin Core, the second Arbiter and finishing the Fortress.Open
  5. The BeaconPass it to light up the test node on the map.After the lessons

What the Fortress gives your Atlas tree

  • 1 per Fortress map. Each Fortress map leaves a Precursor Relay at its boss.
  • 4 per Precursor Tower. There are eight on the Fortress walls. The wiki says the Halls give 6.
  • One kill finishes it. Since 0.5.5, an Arbiter of Divinity kill with a non-quest Origin Core completes the whole Fortress, points included. Older guides say five kills.
  • No respec. Atlas points can't be refunded; nodes with a choice can be switched any time.
Read: the Atlas tree, points and first nodes
Read “Through the Fortress to the Arbiter of Ash” as text

Enter through the Ancient Gateway

The Ancient Gateway is the way in. Pull the levers in its four wings, reach the central platform, and light the Beacon. That opens the road to the Burning Monolith.

Find the sealed gate

At the Burning Monolith, Doryani meets you at a gate sealed by three Crisis Fragments. One is already in it. The other two are behind the Western and Eastern Gateways.

Clear the Western and Eastern Gateways

Both are lever maps with a boss at the end: the Precursor Separator in the West and the Precursor Refiner in the East. Beat them and ride the elevator on to the Enigma Chambers.

One guide suggests tier 6 Waystones or higher for these.

Take the fragments from the Enigma Chambers

In the Western Enigma Chamber, Count Geonor drops the Ancient Crisis Fragment. In the Eastern one, Doryani, Royal Thaumaturge drops the Weathered fragment. He is a boss, not your friendly Doryani.

If it goes wrong: Since 0.5.5c you must be there when each boss dies to pick up its fragment. Don't let a party member finish it while you're away.

Beat the Arbiter of Ash

Put the fragments in the gate and fight him at the Burning Monolith. Since 0.5.5 he has fire resistance and cold vulnerability. Stand in the clear strip when flaming gales fill the arena, and get inside a ring of Flame Seeds before the rest explodes.

In phase two he plunges his sword into a cold or a dark sphere. Cold chills the ground; dark ground stops life and energy shield recovery.

Know what he drops, and how to fight him again

He always drops a unique, such as Morior Invictus or Prism of Belief, and can drop the Arbiter's Ignition support. Beating him unlocks the Fortress centre and the next part of the Atlas tree. For repeat fights you need all three fragments, which the wiki says come from City Citadels.

Since 0.5.5, the Bring Me Your Leader notable can drop Crisis Fragments in high-level areas.