Endings

The Blood of Dawnwalker has seven endings, and almost all of them hinge on a single conversation. The final quest — A Deal with the Devil, triggered once the three vassals are dead and Brencis calls for a parley — is where four of them branch, purely on dialogue. Two more are early endings that can end the story long before the final quest, and one is simply what happens when the clock wins. Only the four "full" endings count as saving the people of Laslea — which matters for the Duelist difficulty trophy, since the two early endings don't qualify.

How Endings Work

The practical setup: keep Esme alive in the prologue (the correct medicine — hot water, three spoonfuls of herbs), defeat Ambrus, Bakir and Xanthe, then make a manual save the moment A Deal with the Devil enters the journal and never overwrite it. Finish Lacra's and Crake's questlines first — they're the allies two endings need — then save again with both lines done. From that second save you can reach every ending in the game.

One structural note: the endings are genuinely separate quests. Doing Lacra's ending doesn't lock Crake's, and the solo path stays open regardless — you choose who to side with by initiating each ending, not by burning bridges earlier in the story.

The Four Full Endings

The Turncoat — take the deal

Betray your allies, side with Brencis, trade the valley for your family. It's the only ending that skips the final boss entirely, which makes it the natural choice for a Duelist-difficulty clear.

In the final quest, pick "I just want my family back" in the first dialogue, then confirm with "I'll do it" in the third; the second and fourth dialogues are free as long as you avoid the sword option (which instantly attacks Brencis). Brencis then asks you to mark the Manumit hideout — earn the rebels' trust through their quest chain (The Firebrand → Shadows in the Woods → Where Loyalty Lies, starting in the Briar Sloughs military camp), enter the hideout at night, and interact with the door to end it.

The same betrayal is also offered mid-fight on the other two companion paths: "I accept your offer. I'm sorry, Lacra" in hers, "Please — maybe we can come to an agreement" in Crake's.

The Folk Hero — go alone

Defeat Brencis with no ally at your side. In the final quest's first dialogue choose "Enough. Time to end this." and the fight is yours alone.

There's also a shortcut to this ending that most players never see: Brencis's castle is enterable long before the story says so. At night, Planeshift and Shadowstep take you over the castle wall — the game warns you before the top, then pulls you inside. Or use the side entrance (up a short path northwest of the Vedera Shallows shrine), either by working with Father Florin after his quest In the Name of the Father, or by looting the Side Gate Key off the miniboss Georghe, "The Rabid Duke," at Racovitza's Bandit Camp on the eastern edge of the map. Storming the castle at level 5 is a choice; it's just not a survivable one.

The Patricide — with Lacra

Defeat Brencis alongside Lacra. Complete her questline — A Friend Like This, Song of the Mountain, Hive and Seek, Our Rotten Roots (plus the optional The Night of Horrors for its trophy) — then start her ending quest Midnight Reckoning and speak to her to initiate the assault.

The Knyazmaker — with Crake

Defeat Brencis with Crake and the Manumit at your back. His line runs The Firebrand → Shadows in the Woods → Where Loyalty Lies → What Hunts the Night → What Moves the Dead → Who Pulls the Strings (plus the optional Distant Shadows and A Closer Look for The Manumit trophy), ending in Rise at Dawn and Fall Before Dusk — speak to him with the objective active to begin.

The Two Early Endings

Both end the story without the final quest, both count as finishing the game for the story trophy — and neither counts as saving Laslea, so the Duelist trophy is off the table on these routes.

A Hero They Deserve — walk away

Leave the valley and everything in it. In Briar Sloughs, west of the Coward's Path shrine, a broken bridge leads to an open gate — at night, Planeshift and Shadowstep up the canyon wall, walk the path, and choose "[leave the valley forever]". Available any time after the prologue.

Together Forever — stay in the dream

The darker of the two. During the Court activity Home Sweet Home at Silts Tower, open the door at the top floor and you're pulled into a looping dream of the prologue: two enemy groups, then an insect boss, over and over. The game nudges you toward a well at the second group — that's the escape route, and taking it completes the quest normally. To reach the ending instead, ignore the well, clear all enemies, and run the loop four full times; on the fifth cycle you talk to your family and stay in the dream with them. Forever.

The escape hatch afterward: reload the autosave from before the fourth boss kill, inspect the well in Focus Mode, follow the cave and the portal, help the priest remember in the correct order (Alin → Esme → Coen), and you're back in the open world — where an enemy attacks on sight and drops the legendary Astrologer's Ring.

The Bad Ending — Time Runs Out

Take more than 30 days after the prologue and the cutscene speaks for itself: your family dies in Brencis's castle. You can force it by waiting at a shrine past the deadline. No trophy attaches to it, free roam continues afterward, and the other endings remain reachable — what's lost is In the Nick of Time, and The Turncoat's context changes since the family you'd be bargaining for is already gone.

Which Ending for Which Purpose

For the full quest-by-quest route to the final quest, see the walkthrough; for the 30-day time strategy, the guides page. The companion characters behind the two ally endings are introduced on the characters page.