If you’re facing five blue pillars around a vine-covered mechanism, you’re at Duskwood Hill Ruins. Number the pillars from left to right; leave pillar 1 alone, then use the central dial to raise the groups 3–5, 2–4, then 2 and 5 until they match pillar 1. If your marker is beside a river and the puzzle is a flat grid of stones, you’re at the separate Duskwood Waterside Ruins—its solution is to place the white stone in line with the others to make a row of five.
Identify which Duskwood ruins puzzle you’re at
Duskwood has two Ancient Ruins challenges. The Hill Ruins puzzle has five vertical blue pillars and a central mechanism; the Waterside Ruins puzzle uses stones on the ground. Use the matching walkthrough below rather than applying the pillar sequence to the stone grid.
| Puzzle | How to recognize it | Location | Solution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duskwood Hill Ruins | Five blue pillars around a central dial | Duskwood, southeast of Warspike Spearmaker; the area is also described as the hills of northern Witchwoods | Raise pillar groups in three stages to match fixed pillar 1 |
| Duskwood Waterside Ruins | A flat arrangement of stones with a white stone nearby | Southwest of Duskwood Bandit Camp and east of Hernand | Place the white stone in line with the others to make a line of five |
How to solve Duskwood Hill Ruins
Find and uncover the mechanism
Look for the five blue pillars in Duskwood, southeast of Warspike Spearmaker. The central mechanism is covered in vines. Clear them with either an arrow ignited at a nearby brazier or the Blinding Flash skill. PowerPyx’s Hill Ruins walkthrough and PC Gamer’s guide describe these ways to expose the controls.
Set the pillar target
Stand facing the pillars and count from left to right. Pillar 1, at the far left, is fixed and sets the target height. Use the Stab skill on the sockets around the central pedestal to select a group, then turn the dial to raise that group. Matching pillars glow yellow; when the puzzle is complete, all five glow blue.
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Raise the groups in this order
- Raise pillars 3, 4 and 5. Use the notch that controls this group. Stop when they sit one thin tier above pillar 2; they should still be below pillar 1.
- Raise pillars 2, 3 and 4. Move to the next notch clockwise and raise the group until pillars 3 and 4 match fixed pillar 1. Check for the yellow alignment feedback.
- Raise pillars 2 and 5. Move to the next notch clockwise and raise those pillars to match the others. The solution is complete when all five pillars glow blue.
Reset only if the sequence has gone off track
If the pillars are already in confusing positions, PowerPyx says teleporting to another region and returning resets the puzzle. PC Gamer recommends reloading a previous save for a clean start. These are different fallback approaches; try one only if you need to restart rather than assuming the mechanism has a single reset method.
What completing the Hill puzzle gives you
PC Gamer reports that solving the puzzle grants an Abyss Cresset, which provides an Abyss Artifact (a skill point).
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If your marker is at Duskwood Waterside Ruins
This is the separate stone-grid challenge, not the five-pillar mechanism. It is southwest of Duskwood Bandit Camp and east of Hernand. Pick up the white stone near the Abyss Cresset and place it in line with the other stones to form a line of five. PowerPyx’s Waterside solution describes the placement; its Ancient Ruins locations and solutions guide also lists the location and answer.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.If the controls or feedback differ
The walkthroughs documenting these steps were published in March 2026, and the broader Ancient Ruins guide was accessed on October 8, 2026. They are walkthrough sources, not an official game manual or patch note, so control bindings or puzzle behavior may differ after an update or across builds. Follow the prompts shown in your game if they differ from the instructions here.
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