[Major Spoilers] All NPC Quest Guide

[Lightbearer]

This guide only covers their locations (aside from Owl/Levine), but the vast majority of the time the items they are looking for are rare drops from enemies in that zone. When I mention a save point I'm going from left to right unless otherwise noted. A teleporter save shows up as a green save icon on the map.

It's pretty common to run into issues with certain NPCs not moving locations. If you're having any problems, and you likely will at some point, try the following:

- Double-check that your quest log is updated after meeting with them
- Exhaust their dialogue multiple times
- Save/reload or teleport to make sure that they have changed locations
- If they are not appearing at their next location revisit the previous one(s)
- Completely exit the game and restart
- The formatting options on Steam aren't great, so make sure you didn't skip a step

Highly recommend you use this guide in conjunction with @demajen's phenomenal map located at his personal website https://www.demajen.co.uk/ or from the Afterimage Discord pinned comment. There is also an Google (Excel) sheet with every item in the game if you're looking for something specific. The map pretty much renders this guide moot, but I'm going to keep it up in case anyone wants to consult both.

Alice (Quest: Happiness)

Alice is one of the first NPCs you meet in Resting Town and her quests are extremely straightforward. However, there is a very late game quest that requires two rare items: 1) Clovers and 2) Rainbow Eggs. You'll come across a handful throughout your game and I highly recommend you do not sell them as it is one of the few things that will lock you out of a 100% play through. I expect this to be patched in the future.

Nicole (Quest: Persistence)

Resting Town
- To the right of the teleporter save past Alice (cook)
Emerald Falls
- Next to teleporter save
- For most players you can have any cooked meal in your inventory
- If you have cooked meals in your inventory and the quest is not proceeding you can return to Alice, cook all the available dishes, and it will satisfy this step. Whether this is a bug or not remains unclear
Whispering Forest
- From second save point, far NE corner that connects to Albedo Tower
- Interact with teapot to turn on cups
- You need to touch the cups in a specific order to solve the puzzle
- Solution from left-to-right is 21543
Goliath Fall
- Past the boss room of the Occult Prime of Anemo and Geo at the top of the castle
Resting Town
- To the right of the teleporter save she will be collapsed; speak with her

This will conclude Nicole's quest, but there is one more step. Go SE of the teapot puzzle in Whispering Forest and there will be a golden light. It is next to a pit (environmental hazard) filled with thorns and left of the entrance to Albedo Tower. Touch it to get an accessory and key item

Emily (Quest: Tasty Trip)

Forest Foregone
- From the teleporter save point, go left, then go all the way up and into the desert area, and look to the right under a ledge
Whispering Forest
- First save by the Manta dock
The Columns
- Third (far right) save point
Field of Pyro
- Next to teleporter save
Returns to Resting Town

Rosalia (Quest: Faraway)

Town of the Exiled
- After beating Auss, the Lunatic Mastermage she will speak with you. Next, go to her inn, which is directly west of the teleporter save. It's also NW of the woman who is looking for her boyfriend Linke. It has 2 entrances. Talk to her when you arrive
Albedo Tower
- She will be at the bottom-left entrance to Albedo Tower. Specifically, she'll be to the left of the upside-down door that is the "proper" entrance to the tower. If you're looking at the map it's directly below the bottomest area where Whsipering Forest (maroon) and Albedo Tower (blue) connect
Forest Foregone
- She will be to the left of the giant turtle NPC, which is located to the left of the bottom entrance to Silent Coast
Silent Coast
- Go to the beach before the dock to find her remains

Patt (Quest: Gift)

The Columns
- Requires defeating Auss in Town of the Exiled
- From the third (far right) save point go left, up, left, and down
- Examine the book, Patt will give you the Mysterious Rod you can equip
- Equip it and kill enemies until it breaks. Some people have reported that repeatedly using the rod's special attack to kill enemies speeds up the process. The exact number of enemies you need to kill remains unclear, but you will get a text pop-up when it breaks
- Much later in the game when you have the soul invade ability from the Owl/Levine quest line come back and soul invade the book
- Defeat Patt, the Twisted and you will receive the Silent Rod, which is a one-handed sword (not sub-weapon!)

Ethan (Quest: Belief)

Ashen Canyon
- First meeting on the bridge to the left of the Crystallised Wolf boss where you gain access to the Manta
Town of the Exiled
- Return to his house directly NE of the teleporter save
Silent Coast
- To the far left of the boat that takes you to Field of Hydro
Town of the Exiled
- Return to his house
Heart of Veins
- To the left of the boss arena he'll be near the cliff out of his wheelchair

Karsa (Quest: Legend)

Resting Path
- To the left of the bottom-most save point
Ashen Canyon
- Take the first path down (crouch/jump) from the uppermost Town of the Exiled entrance
- Or, go NW and upward from the first teleporter save
Holy Grounds
- To the right of the Manta dock; or, left of the first save point
- Beneath the teleporter save by the large clock talk to him a second time
Albedo Tower
- Start from the main (upside-down) entrance at the bottom-left of the tower. Go up one level and on the left-hand side you'll see he's being attacked by enemies
- Or, start at the teleporter save, go left, fall down, go right, fall down, go left, and finally go down and you'll end up above him
Heart of Veins
- He's to the left of the teleporter save point on the same island
Emerald Falls
- From the third (bottom) save point go NW. He's in a previous blocked off room on the left-hand side that is now open. It is not the pathway where you need to slide, it's above that one

Mia (Quest: Fresh Scent)

Sky Palace
From the Albedo Tower portal drop down from the bridge. Go left, break the wall, and continue to go left. She will be right next to the save point. Nearly all of the enemies in the area drop ingredients for her dishes.

The one that might be the most challenging to find is the Sky Snail dropped by the Anemoling. They look like tornados with arms and appear exclusively in the upper area close to the Anemo Goliath save point.

Owl/Levine (Quest: Request, Activation, Unseal, Freedom)

Holy Grounds
- Owl's default location is at the top of the Archives (library). From the teleporter save go all the way up and then to the left
- Talk to him after all the plot conversation to accept his quest
- He will give you Note of the Owl for Stanley
Town of the Exiled
- Talk to Stanley in his store. The entrance is through Auss's house (the boss of the area) you unlocked earlier in the game. It's also directly SW from the teleporter save
- Buy the Pure Orb from Stanley's shop for $1,314
- Stanley will give you Note of the Antique Dealer that details the locations of 4 items you need to collect:
1) Binding String (Spider Monkey Pitcher or Warrior drop in Emerald Falls)
2) Ever-burning Crystal (beat Chroma, the Prismatic Flame in Scorchwhere)
3) Firmamental Feather (Anemo Scout and Anemo Rider drop in Sky Palace)
4) Water of Equilibrium (topmost room in Silent Coast on the left-hand side)
Holy Grounds
- Return to Owl with all the items and he will give you the Grey Orb artifact
Town of Exile
- Kill a bunch of enemies until the Grey Orb turns gold. Dialogue will pop-up when you've completed this step
Holy Grounds
- Return to Owl who is not in his regular location. He is below the teleporter save near the bottom of the Archives next to the Candelabra of Desire. You will need to defeat Valos, The First Knight to access that area
- Owl will have you soul invade the Candelabra of Desire. Attack the link (not the owl, not sure what happens if you attack him) until it breaks
- Soul invade the Primeval Orb and the Archive of Soul at the top of the Archive. You have to do it in this order (orb > book). The save point and all 3 artifacts you need to soul invade are in the same vertical line from a map perspective
- Once you've soul invaded all 3 artifacts return to Owl who is now at his normal location at the top of the Archives
- You'll now gain the soul invade ability (Owl's Peeking in your Afterimage tab) which is required for several endings, Patt's quest, and alleviating the nightmares of the Anemo Goliath

Stanley (Quest: Travel)

Finishing Owl's quest line is a prerequisite to beginning this quest line. Out of all the quests this one can be the most headache-inducing since he can show up in a different order than what is listed in the quest log. I recommend you try to do his entire quest line in one sitting to minimize potential problems or bugs.

Holy Grounds
- To the left of the first save point by the Manta dock. He will be speaking with Owl
Town of Exile
- Go to his store and speak with the magic broom that will inform you he left to explore the world and collect new antiques
Goliath Fall
- Go left from the teleporter save and they will be on the stairs before the Reaping Scythe, the Crimson Hollow boss arena
Scorchwhere
- Top left save point, the Solar Birthplace where you get the super jump ability
Emerald Falls
- Go to the final area of Karsa's quest (Legends)
Forest Foregone
- From the teleporter save, go left, and then go up into the desert. Now, go all the way to the far left and he'll be in an alcove
Town of the Exiled
- Return to his store and he'll be back and sell you some very nice new items

Movement Abilities

Since this question gets asked a lot here is the location of the triple jump and super jump. You'll be be visiting these areas if you're doing all the NPC quests so below are more detailed directions.

Triple Jump

The progression path is Albedo Tower > Sky Palace > Heart of Veins. Once you're in Sky Palace open your map. See that big chunk on the upper left-hand side? That's the part that connects to Heart of Veins. From the Sky Palace teleporter save head left over the bridge. In that open area take the NE path upward. It will snake around upward and to the left and you'll be able to reach Heart of Veins.

From there just follow the currents until you hit the next teleporter save. Continue to go left and you'll eventually reach the boss (Loss, the Broken Wings) and be rewarded the triple jump afterimage (Right Wing-Feather of Windwalker).

Super Jump

You need two key items to proceed:
1) The Sorrow glyph from Sunken Sanctum, which is located in an area directly below the first save point, and
2) The Eye of Gongor afterimage that cures petrification. Defeat Gongor, the Eldricht Fusion in Whispering Forest

Directions:
- Go to to the far right in Field of Hydro. The Sorrow glyph opens the gate
- Before interacting with the rock pick up the Frozen Scythe to the far right
- Interact with the rock (Phoenix NPC) and agree to have him take you to Solar Birthplace, which is a previously blocked off area in NW Scorchwhere
- You will be reward the super jump afterimage (Reminiscence of the Sun)

If you don't want to permanently lock yourself out of this area and accidentally miss key items be sure to 1) touch the save point and 2) knock down all the 1-way barriers.

If any of the directions are unclear let me know and I'll provide more detail. And, if anything is patently incorrect please comment so I can edit the guide.

[Schlangan]

Concerning Stanley and the Travel quest;
There is a step that must be validated before the broom appears in the shop : you need to encounter Stanley and Owl between the stingray and the first save point at the bottom of Holy Grounds.

[Lightbearer]

Unfortunately, that's where this quest can be a little buggy. Meeting Stanley by the Manta docks is not technically part of the quest in the log. And, some people have been able to do the quest and never see this encounter. Others were able to run into Stanley completely out of the sequence that is listed in the log. So, I've put a heads-up at the beginning of that section that it's probably in your best interest to head to the Manta dock first. I've reached out to the developers, but not heard back yet.

The bottom line -- out of all of the quest this might be the one where you're likely to run into some sort of problem.

[Requin des bois]

Hi, I have problems regarding Owl quest.
When I first met him, he offered to do a ritual on Renee. I was thinking that it could lead to some boss, and prefered delay. I have now explored much more, and have gone back to the ritual.
I have all 3 memory shards, and he performed the ritual where I'm attacked by someone then Owl advices to go in another place (Sunken Sanctum maybe?).

I've seen that you must then purchase an orb from Stanley.
Problem is that I already purchased everything he has (at least until now) and I have no orb in my inventory...
Speaking to Owl or Stanley does not seem to help.

Any idea?



Oh, and regarding Patt's quest, I have spoken with him and I remember he gave me some stuff, but I cannot find it anymore in my inventory (seems that your have to equip it so it can break). What's the name?

[Lightbearer]

Owl is involved in the greatest number of quest lines in the game. First thing to do is open your quest log and see which ones are still incomplete that involve him.

I'm guessing the quests "Request" or "Activation" are still open for you. Let me know so I can provide you with more assistance.

Just note that everything involving the Memory Shards is a different quest unrelated to Renee's endings in Sanctum.

For Patt the item is called "Mysterious Rod".

[Requin des bois]

So far, I have Memories (do not know the true name in English) that is ongoing (go in divine rooms).
In completed, I have In need of help (find Owl in holy grounds) and that's it. :/

Thanks for the Patt's staff, actually that was the one I have equipped...shame on me, the description indicates it is given by a spirit...

[RealLifeTsundere]

Very nice guide!

[The bugs are back.]

Thanks for this.

[joeb00m]

Thanks for the guide.

I've followed the steps for persistence and after finding Nicole at the top of goliath falls I can't find the item. I used the demajen map and its not there. Has it been moved or have I missed something?

[Lightbearer]

Did you go back to Resting Town and find her collapsed? Are you talking about the items (Prism Ring, Blood-stained Magic Book) that appear near the entrance to Albedo Tower once her quest is complete in the log?

[joeb00m]

Publicado originalmente por Lightbearer:

Did you go back to Resting Town and find her collapsed? Are you talking about the items (Prism Ring, Blood-stained Magic Book) that appear near the entrance to Albedo Tower once her quest is complete in the log?

I've managed to sort it. I hadn't gone back to Resting Town. Thanks for the guide

[Lightbearer]

Good to hear, glad everything worked out.

[brutalnerd]

I am guessing I have locked myself out of the happiness quest due to selling my rainbow eggs and clovers? The spreadsheet says they're only from chests? This majorly sucks if there is definitely no enemy drop. A whole new play through to make a recipe....?? I thought Alice's quests were over (well that she didn't have any really), but once you buy her finite items she gets new dialogue.

Lightbearer I would definitely add her to the list for future achievement hunters.

[Lightbearer]

Demajen's information isn't totally accurate. The mimic chests drop clovers. I have no idea if those enemies re-spawn or not, so it doesn't really help with you current situation. Rainbow eggs are only found in chests to my knowledge.

In terms of options you should report this on the Discord under the #bug sub-thread. Their game design philosophy is that nothing should be missable. I'm sure they'd appreciate this information for a future patch. They're super busy, but they have been able to fix other people's save files in the past.

[Cristmas]

In Nicole`s quest, she doesnt require specific meal, you just need to do an ACTION of cooking.
I just did this step, cooked all avaible dishes and count them (before and after), and she didnt even take one from me.
So, looks like any dish will do, as long as you actually cook it (not just found it in the world).

[Lightbearer]

Appreciate you taking the time to experiment with this quest. That's what I had originally written in the guide that any cooked meal would work for Nicole. However, I had multiple people tell me that the quest wouldn't proceed even though they had some cooked meals in their inventory. The only thing that worked for them was my suggestion to go back to Alice and cook everything that's available. Whether it's a certain # of cooked meals, a specific one, any meal, or a bug on their end I have no idea.

In my personal play through it seemed like she was fine with whatever. I've edited the guide for clarity so people don't end up wasting time/money cooking dishes they don't need unless they get stuck.