A Seeker at the Gates

A Seeker at the Gates

The Main Quest A Seeker at the Gates in Horizon Zero Dawn will take Aloy outside of the Sacred Land of the Nora tribe so she may unravel the conspiracy against her.

• Recommended Level: 8
• Rewards: 6000 XP, 1 Skill Point

First things first though, Aloy needs to test our her new equipment on a machine. Before even doing that, you may want to head to the Ruins to the east to find some Collectibles.

Test the Override Device on a Machine

To leave the Embrace, Aloy must travel to the gates to the north. Luckily, there’s a Strider site conveniently on the way. Performing an override requires the same process as performing a Silent Strike. Sneak up on machines in the tall grass and get one’s attention with Lure Call. Once it’s close enough, hold Triangle instead of R1 to perform an override.

Some machines, like the Strider, will serve as an efficient mount for Aloy. Others, like Watchers, can only assist by attacking other machines on sight. All over-ridden machines are poor at stealth however, and will alert enemies to their presence if you call them over, even if you’re hiding out of sight. Enemies won’t see you still, but they will attack your mount or machine familiar. You can Override more than one machine at a time, but there is a cooldown for the ability.

To learn how to Override more machines, you must find Cauldrons on the map and clear them. These areas are dungeon-like in design and can be challenging to clear.

If you find you really enjoy the Override system, you can use skill points to purchase upgrades to it in the skill tree.

Talk to Varl and Go through the Gates of the Embrace

Once you’re satisfied with your new equipment, head to the Main Embrace Gate to talk to Varl, the War-Chief’s son.

He’ll point you in the right direction, to Mother’s Crown to speak with Marea. He warns you the path there may not be easy, as it has seen an up-tick in corrupted machines and other dangers. Varl will also ask you to seek out what happened to Sona, the War-Chief, as he is unable to leave his post at the gates of the Embrace. It’s recommended to do that Main Quest, The War Chief’s Trail, on the way to Mother’s Crown. If you do this first, continue on to the next task after you’ve completed The War Chief’s Trail.

Talk to Marea at Mother’s Crown

Hunt on the way to Mother’s Crown, whether coming from the gates or the end of The War Chief’s Trail. It’s a lot of area to cover, and there are plenty of animals and machines ripe with resources. Before entering, override a Strider so you can call it after you speak with Marea.

Marea will call to you as soon as you enter Mother’s Crown. She’ll tell you the Carja will probably open the gates if the Corrupted Machines are cleared from the surrounded areas. Aloy is expected to clear them by herself, but she’s confident she won’t have trouble with it.

Talk with her a little longer to learn more about the surrounding areas, and how to take down the corrupted machines a bit easier.

Clear the Corrupted Zones

Make sure you’re stocked up with all the ammo and medicine you need before you go on. Corrupted Machines are much more difficult to clear than normal ones, and they leave behind seething puddles of corruption that injure you if you get to close. Call your Strider if you have one, and ride it close to the battle site, but not so close that they Corrupted Machine will see you. It will help you fight!

Consider laying down a series of Shock Wires (and Blast Wires if you have them) before engaging the Corrupted Machines. Then, equip fire arrows and start shooting. They’re extra vulnerable to fire damage, so they should go down fairly quickly if your aim is good, but if they get too close you can rely on the the Shock Wires to stop them in their tracks.

Once you’ve cleared the first area, travel to the next, again making sure you’re well stocked, and perform the same strategy.

The last site, the Carja Border Fort, is not only overrun by Corrupted Machines, but it has the Corrupter here as well.

Again, lay down Shock Wires before you engage, and follow the same strategy you used to defeat your first Corrupter in The Womb of the Mountain. Overheat it with fire arrows, then target the the small device that reveals on top.

After defeating all of the machines, the Carja will gladly open their gates for you. Your next quest, if you haven’t finished Revenge of the Nora, will be The City of the Sun, which requires you to finally travel to Meridian.

Up Next: The War-Chief’s Trail

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