The 11-chapter route
Valor Mortis runs through 11 chapters on one critical path. This is the route spine: use it to orient yourself, then open the linked quest or boss page for the detailed sequence.
| Chapter | Main area and side content | Boss or milestone |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Revival | Opening battlefield; the Oathbound begins here | Scripted General Lothaire encounter |
| 2. Regroup | Valley of Ashes; An Unheard Farewell and the Pistol | General Lothaire rematch |
| 3. Rendezvous | Fallen Village; The Scarecrow, Rapier, Blunderbuss | The Iron Marshall |
| 4. Dark Descent | Old Mine and caverns; Homesick | Sphinx, Devourer of the Unworthy |
| 5. Crime | Shipyard and Vale of Wrath; The Deserter | Slaughtermill |
| 6. Punishment | Village Church and surrounding areas; The Curious Case of Seamus Diggory, Till Death, Claymore | Anna, the Bride Drowned in Tears at the chapter start |
| 7. Witch Hunt | High Justicar Aurelius at the start; Laudanum and The Shrike’s Anthem | Experiment 83 at the chapter end |
| 8. Blasphemy | City of Orphans; Monster Hunt and Misericorde | The Orphan |
| 9. In Ruins | University and Fortress; Shield becomes usable; The Emissary can be completed | Captain Raphael of the Nephtis Superioris |
| 10. Shackled | Castle; final Oathbound Guardsman and Shield upgrade path | Bastien Beaufort and the Oathbound conclusion |
| 11. Reflection | Distorted Abandoned Church | Entity, Voice of the Void |
What to finish on the way
The route is linear, but several long-running objectives cross chapter boundaries:
- The Oathbound starts in Chapter 1 and ends in Chapter 10. You need the Pistol and later traversal tools, including Shield, to reach all seven Guardsmen. Use the Oathbound locations guide instead of trying to force every encounter on the first visit.
- An Unheard Farewell begins in Chapter 2 and also contains the Pistol pickup. The full quest route separates the weapon from the final truth-or-lie reward.
- The Scarecrow belongs to the Fallen Village in Chapter 3. Use the dedicated quest guide when you are ready to follow its item hand-ins.
- Monster Hunt begins from Tribunal Square in the City of Orphans. The drawing route is much easier to follow as one continuous checklist than as a series of return trips.
- The Emissary can be started in Chapter 2, but its poison crossing needs Shield from late-game University/Castle progression. The quest walkthrough explains why the chapter labels conflict across published guides.
Bosses are mandatory, but optional areas are limited
PowerPyx identifies 10 main bosses and states that Valor Mortis has no optional bosses or optional side areas. The campaign still contains side quests, hidden upgrades, and branches that can be missed during a first pass, so “no optional area” does not mean “nothing to find.”
Combat order remains the same after the October 28, 2026 update. The October 23 patch changed enemy hitboxes and damage windows rather than the chapter sequence, so route instructions remain usable while very old combat timing may not.
After the credits
Completing Chapter 11 returns you near the final Lantern with free access to previous regions. That post-credits state is the cleanup window for missed side quests, collectibles, Ambers, and combat trophies.
If you are aiming for 100%, move from this route to the trophy roadmap and keep the Amber checklist open while exploring.