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Arsilthus
August 6, 2026 at 10:34 PM
Restored the article screenshots that were dropped during this run's rewrite
Arsilthus is the setting of The Relic: First Guardian. Once a prosperous realm, it was transformed into an apocalyptic wasteland by the destruction of a great relic and now lies in ruins. Its atmosphere is dark and haunting, enriched by Korean folklore and ancient mythology, and it falls to the player to mend the shattered land and honour the memories of those who came before.
The developers describe Arsilthus as a vast, interconnected semi-open world rather than a single seamless map or a series of closed levels. It is filled with forgotten ruins, hidden dungeons, and atmospheric landscapes, and it rewards players who venture off the beaten path with ancient artifacts, secret encounters, and pieces of lost lore buried in its ruined regions.
Visibility is deliberately restricted. Arsilthus is a dark world where you rely on small, flickering lights to find your way, so exploration is slow and careful by design. Fog density across the earlier chapters was reduced after launch to improve visual clarity.
The world is divided into chapters. At least three have been confirmed through patch notes, each with its own regions and encounters. The chapters are not standalone levels: field structure and traversal flow connect them, and progression moves forward through them.
Chapter | What Is Confirmed |
|---|---|
Chapter 1 | The opening region. Contains the Edens, a Tailor event sequence, and the First Relic Awakening Shard. Received field-structure, lighting, and framerate work after launch |
Chapter 2 | Includes a plains area that was reworked for traversal and lighting. Site of the large-scale battles that drove post-launch performance fixes |
Chapter 3 | Confirmed to exist, with its own field structure and traversal flow reworked before launch and crafting materials added afterwards |
Individual places have been named through official patch notes and add-on descriptions rather than through a published world map, so this list is partial.
Location | Details |
|---|---|
Bloodrock Cave | A cave area; an invisible wall reported here was removed after launch |
Silversilver Mine | A mine where ambient monster audio kept playing with no monsters present until it was fixed |
Shadow of the King | A dungeon that received fixes in an early patch |
Sanctuary of the Forgotten Light | A dungeon added by the paid add-on, reached through its own questline near the second fast travel point |
The Edens | An area within Chapter 1 that received framerate improvements |
The Swamp Lantern | A world event whose marker was repaired after launch |
Exploration is a progression system, not just scenery. Completing narrative events rewards sealing stones that open hidden dungeons, which ties advancement to discovery rather than to experience points. Abandoned campsites yield currency, world chests drop crafting materials, and Elemental Shard materials are scattered across the map. Ancient Memories found in the world supply the relic energy used to equip skills. Spawn points and fast travel points structure movement through the world. Field and lore pages carry voice-over that plays while the game pauses, delivering much of the story in place.
A premium printed map of Arsilthus is included with the physical PlayStation 5 release; see Editions and Pre-Order Bonus.
