How to complete the Drowned Hopes quest in Horizon Forbidden West?

Drowned Hopes is a side quest for Horizon Forbidden West that tasks players to find the Carja encampment, speak to a handful of scholars, and conduct investigations.

Another way to trigger the side quest involves players listening to Corend discuss a rumour about an expedition. However, the quest will require players to hold a Level 22 ranking before starting.

This guide will detail the complete walkthrough for the Drowned Hopes side quest and the rewards earned for completing it.

How to complete Drowned Hopes in Horizon Forbidden West?

There are two options from which players can start the side quest. The first is by heading directly to the Carja encampment to speak with the scholars who believe a relic they had discovered is a fake.

The second is by locating Corend (Rumour Talker) at Camp Nowhere and listening to him talk about a Carja Expedition. Starting the side quest at this location will skip the Camp Carja location and vice versa.

Nevertheless, if players start at Camp Carja, the scholars will discuss their recent discovery with Aloy, who identifies the object as part of a relic. After completing the dialogue with the scholars, players can head to a dig site at Jagged Deep Delve to handle machines threatening the area.

Once players have eliminated the machines, they can begin their investigations at the Submerged Ruins in the river nearby. Using the Focus skill, they'll find a security data console within a cave and an Ancient Trunk containing a Vault Key.

After obtaining the Vault Key, an audio log plays in the background, informing players to find three Vault Keys. Then, using the coordinates acquired from this security data console, they can travel to the following console location.

This will bring them to Devil's Slide, where they must pry open the underwater bunker door and navigate their way around the ruins. Another set of bunker doors to poke open leads to the following security data console.

There's another Ancient Trunk to loot, where players will find the following Vault Key before moving onto the final location. Finally, the last console is located at Dread Bluff, where they are a few machines in the area which they can either handle or quickly evade.

Once players have found the entrance to a Submerged Ruins, they need to locate a vent alongside the left column of the entrance. Enter the vent; this leads to the final console to examine, and an Ancient Trunk will hold the final Vault Key.

With all Vault Keys now in possession, another audio log plays. Followingly, the coordinates for the vault will be marked on the map. Fortunately, the vault's location isn't far from players' current location, so they'll need to climb their way out of the underwater ruin.

After arriving at the vault's location at Sunken Barrier, players will need to clear an underwater path blocked by some rocks. This path will direct them to the surface and straight to a facility guarded by more machines.

They can either engage or evade the machines, but there will be three consoles that require the Vault Key to operate once they've entered the facility. After using the Vault Keys at the consoles will unlock a bunker door as yet another audio log plays in the background.

Players will find a cache that they'll need to force open to loot the Mobile Cover System Prototype. They can now return to the scholars at the Carja encampment to report their findings.

This will trigger a dialogue cutscene with the scholars, where Aloy informs them of the knowledge gained from the audio logs.

Then, using the prototype and the object in possession of a scholar, Aloy can craft a new piece of gear, the Guardian Tripcaster.

After crafting the gear item, this will conclude the Drowned Hopes side quest. Players will receive the gear plus two Skill Points and 7150 XP upon completion.

We want to thank the YouTube channel WoW Quests for the complete walkthrough of the Drowned Hopes side quest for Horizon Forbidden West.

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Featured image courtesy of Guerrilla Games.