The Cauldron presents a captivating challenge in Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Interestingly, the quest begins in a state of limbo. When you arrive and talk to Davrin, you witness a brief cutscene that reveals the entrance is blocked, setting the stage for your next move.
Your journey involves facing the Gloom Howler, but the main obstacle is the daunting Darkspawn Horde. Once you get inside, navigating most of the Cauldron is fairly straightforward—however, surviving until the end poses a significant challenge.
For this reason, we recommend bringing a character who can prime Davrin’s detonations, but avoid using Emmrich since the Darkspawn resist necrotic damage. Our suggestions would be Bellara or Neve for controlling the crowd or Taash to boost your fire damage.
How to Enter The Cauldron
After the cutscene, proceed up the ramp and use R1/RB to summon Assan. Climb onto the lowered platform and ascend the ladder. Inside, take out the three Blight Boils from a distance, then dispose of the Darkspawn. There aren’t many, so it should be manageable. Focus on utilizing fire and heavy attacks to strip away the armor of the Greater Hurlocks to finish quickly.
This will unveil four Blight Boils that you must eliminate to gain access to the Cauldron. Move through the archway on your left and defeat the Ghouls and a single Greater Hurlock as you did earlier. Another Blight Boil will fall; be sure to take it out before enemies appear. Then follow the path all the way to the left and up the ramp that loops back.
Continue along this path until you find a ballista. Use it to target the Blight Boil on the wall; this is another step towards your goal. After that, move past the ballista and cross the wooden gap, where two smaller boils will drop. Destroy them before they spawn enemies, or fight them quickly if they appear. They produce Javinleers, so engaging them in melee will diminish their impact. After this, climb the steps at the back to reach the second Blight Boil. You’re halfway there.
Return to the central courtyard and ascend the stairs on the right. Keep climbing and go up the wooden steps. This time, ignore the ballista and enter the castle, where you’ll find one Blight Boil on the right. Be prepared for two Frenzied Berserks appearing here, but with a detonation attack and heavy hits on their armor, you should be able to overcome them.
Next, go up the left stairs on the back wall, where you’ll spot the last Blight Boil. Attack it, and then make your way back to the courtyard.
Finding the Gloom Howler
Progressing through The Cauldron is quite manageable. It features mostly linear exploration, and dialogues from Davrin or Rook, along with lore within the area, enhance the story. However, upon reaching the twin statues, check the alcove to the left for a Warden’s Signet.
Continue until you discover a room containing a Blight Boil. Once you destroy it and pass through the opening it creates, you will enter the Gloom Howler’s Lair, where you’ll face numerous Darkspawn—this serves as good practice for what’s ahead. Your main focus here should be on the Blight Boils. You must first take out the two located furthest to the left (up a ledge) and the one furthest to the right (around the corner), followed by the one in the center.
This will allow you to attack the Boil inside the left archway. Inside, destroy the Boil directly in front then continue around to the final one on the ledge. The battle concludes when you destroy this last Boil, so focus on evading enemies rather than engaging in combat as you make your way to the edge.
Defeat the Darkspawn Horde
This challenge mirrors typical ‘defeat all enemies’ missions, but there are a lot more foes to manage. Their overall numbers are shown by a health bar, which doesn’t impact the fight’s dynamics. Davrin’s support can be very helpful, and if you choose Taash, direct them to target the larger enemies, such as the Greater Hurlock Blighters or the Greater Ogre. On the other hand, if you opt for Bellara or Neve, they offer crowd control abilities like Galvanized Tear or Blizzard for thinning the weaker enemies.
You’ll quickly find yourself encircled by smaller Ghouls, making area abilities useful for taking them out swiftly. Just after you drop from the top platform, you’ll see Greater Hurlock Blighters spawning on the right. As these cause significant damage from afar, it’s crucial to take them down before larger foes can trap you.
Keep moving and aim for the Greater Hurlock Blighters since they will follow you, allowing you to lead them into area abilities. The most significant threat will be the Greater Ogre. It’s slow, so focus on clearing out as many smaller enemies as possible before confronting it, using ranged abilities against it as you go. Once you’ve dealt with all enemies, you’ll trigger a cutscene that concludes the quest, transitioning you to challenge the Gloom Howler herself.