Gear resets every run, but your meta-progression does not. Relics and character unlocks are how you get permanently stronger at the Roundtable Hold — the reason run five is easier than run one.
Between runs
- Relics slot into each Nightfarer to grant permanent passive bonuses — build a set that fits your playstyle.
- Spend Murk, the currency every expedition pays out, at the Small Jar Bazaar in the Roundtable Hold — on relics, on Goblets that change the colours of a Nightfarer's three relic slots (the number of slots never grows), and on the item that starts Revenant's unlock.
- Completing a Nightlord for the first time unlocks its Remembrance and tougher versions.
- Chase specific relic colours to match a character's slots — mismatched relics can't be equipped.
Long-term goals
- Unlock the whole roster so you can flex to cover any squad's missing role.
- Build a strong relic set for at least two classes you enjoy.
- Work up the Nightlord ladder toward Heolstor as your gear and relics improve.
- Every run pays out progress even on a loss — the grind always moves forward.
Prioritising unlocks
- Unlock a second and third Nightfarer early so you can cover any squad role.
- Buy a Goblet for your main before hoarding relics — the three slots stay three, but changing their colours lets more of the relics you own fit.
- Complete each Nightlord once to open its Remembrance and relic drops.
- Focus relic farming on the one or two classes you actually play.
Sources
Cross-checked on 1 October 2026 against the guides of EliteGuias and Vandal.
Six of the eight are already yours
The base-game roster is eight Nightfarers, and six are selectable from the
start: Wylder, Guardian, Ironeye, Raider, Recluse and Executor. Only two are locked: Duchess costs nothing, but
Revenant’s unlock starts with buying an item for 1,500 Murk at the Small Jar Bazaar.
| Locked Nightfarer | How it unlocks |
|---|---|
| Duchess | The Old Pocketwatch, a random drop on the post-expedition rewards screen after beating Tricephalos |
| Revenant | Requires Duchess first — a hard prerequisite, not a shortcut |
Duchess is a guaranteed drop, not a dice roll. The Old Pocketwatch drops
the first time you beat Gladius, Beast of Night — so «unlock Duchess» is really just «win the Tricephalos
expedition once». It can also turn up early as a random reward from a failed attempt, which is the only part chance
plays here.
The two DLC Nightfarers gate behind the same fight. Scholar and Undertaker, from
The Forsaken Hollows, unlock after Tricephalos too — then speak to the Iron Menial at the
Roundtable Hold, who is holding a message from the Small Jar Merchant. Which makes the first Nightlord the single most
load-bearing fight in the game’s progression: it opens three of the four locked characters.
Still to verify
Cross-checked on 5 September 2026 against Shacknews and the Fextralife wiki — which agree the Old Pocketwatch is a guaranteed drop on your first Tricephalos win, not a random one as this page previously said, and that this is now corrected above. They also agree Revenant requires Duchess first, and that Scholar and Undertaker unlock the same way. The DLC unlock is Forsaken Hollows content and will not apply without it. What is still unverified is the only thing reading cannot settle — nobody here has played it. Re-checked on 1 October 2026 against EliteGuias, Vandal and Eurogamer: Revenant’s unlock does involve a purchase, and Murk buys Goblets that recolour the three relic slots rather than new slots, so both lines now say so.