The Highroad Cave in Elden Ring is an early-game location that offers a chance for adventure, but it’s also swarming with enemies. At the end of your journey through the dungeon, you’ll face a formidable foe, the Guardian Golem.
Visiting the cave early on is highly recommended as it provides an opportunity to acquire valuable Smithing Stones for weapon upgrades and various crafting materials. Moreover, once inside, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the cave’s remarkable beauty.
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Highroad Cave Items
Here are some of the items you can find in Highroad Cave:
- Arteria Leaf
- Land Octopus Ovary
- Cave Moss
- Golden Rune
- Smithing Stones
- Silver Firefly
- Furlcalling Finger Remedy
- Shamshir Curved Sword
- Blue Dancer Charm
Navigating Highroad Cave
To reach the Highroad Cave, travel to Limgrave and head south from the Saintsbridge Site of Grace. Utilize the Spirit Spring to have Torrent jump over the Land Octopus’ enemies. Before the river comes to an end, you’ll discover the cave on the left side, as indicated on the map below.
Enter the cave and collect the Site of Grace. From here, carefully make your way down into the tunnels. On your right, you’ll find the first platform, along with some Cave Moss. It’s advisable to have a lantern handy since the tunnels can be quite dark.
Once you’ve reached the bottom, proceed further into the cave. Be cautious of the pit ahead and eliminate the wolves lurking around. On the other side of the pit, you’ll encounter a slope. Descend and remain vigilant as more wolves await, including one guarding a Golden Rune.
Return to the earlier pit and look down to spot additional platforms that lead downward. Once you reach the bottom, two routes await you. On the left, you’ll find a dead end with some Cave Moss. On the right, you can descend further and face more wolves.
You’ll come across two more connecting routes, so feel free to choose either one. Clear out the wolves and collect the Arteria Leaf and more Cave Moss.
Head right once again and discover one of Elden Ring’s most stunning caves. Here, a waterfall and gigantic pillars await, but be prepared to encounter a swarm of bats. Proceed left until you can drop down, defeat the flying foe, and pillage a Smithing Stone (1) from a nearby corpse.
Descend into the waterfall and then turn left. Here, you’ll encounter more bats and land octopuses, along with another corpse containing a Smithing Stone. Continue ahead to find additional octopuses and another Golden Rune.
Double back, hop down, and sprint jump across the waterfall gap. Be cautious of bats as you loot the Shamshir curved sword from a corpse.
From here, turn left and ascend the broken pillars, being wary of any land octopuses you encounter. At the top, a room awaits. As you enter, a ceiling-dwelling octopus will drop down. Defeat it to access the tunnel behind it.
Next, go through the small tunnel to the right, previously obscured by the land octopus, and collect the Furlcalling Finger Remedy. Proceed to the right and drop down into the waterfall. In the next room, you’ll find numerous Silver Fireflies to gather, along with a yellow mist that you must traverse to confront the Guardian Golem.
Conquering the Highroad Cave Guardian Golem
The Highroad Cave Guardian Golem is similar to other golems you may have encountered before. Its weapon of choice is an axe, and most of its attacks revolve around this weapon.
One of the golem’s frequently used moves involves sweeping its axe across the room in alternating directions. Due to its immense size and the limited arena space, you must be vigilant and dodge these attacks to preserve your HP.
The Guardian Golem also performs multiple ground slams with its axe, causing shockwaves through the floor. To avoid these, maintain distance from the golem or dodge if you’re feeling confident.
The most devastating axe attack occurs when the golem executes an overhead slam. You can capitalize on this opportunity by attacking while the golem slowly raises its axe, but be aware that the shockwave generated by this slam is the most substantial. Therefore, make sure to position yourself at the edge of the arena before it strikes.
Additionally, the golem can breathe fire. While similar to the Erdtree Burial Watchdog’s fire-breathing attack in Stormfoot Catacombs and Impaler’s Catacombs, the golem’s area of effect is significantly larger.
Evade the fire-breathing attack by swiftly running away until it subsides. Although a hit from this attack is not catastrophic, it’s still best to avoid it.
Once you successfully defeat the Guardian Golem, it will drop the Blue Dancer Charm. This talisman enhances your attack power based on your equipment load, making it particularly useful if you prefer a lightweight approach.
For more insights on The Lands Between and further guidance, check out our Elden Ring walkthrough.
Remember to equip yourself adequately and strategize wisely before embarking on this challenging adventure. Good luck!
