Ascend: Hand of Kul – Lore Stones Guide
Ascend: Hand of Kul houses Lore Stones scattered throughout the many areas of its much larger world. Each tablet contains short, lore-based writings regarding some of Ascend‘s key figures, the history of its world or the game’s varied features. There are a total of 48 stones to find, ranging from the very first area to the very last. Below you’ll find a list of all current Lore Stones, including: the location of each stone, its name, order in which you’ll encounter it, where to find it on the map, brief written directions and its associated lore text.
You’re required to discover all 48 Lore Stones to unlock an achievement. Visit the Achievements section of this guide for more information on achievements.
[Note: The information contained in some stones could be potential story spoilers, if you haven’t completed the story, you may want to avoid reading it.]
Location: The Sanctum
This Lore Stone can be found immediately after creating your Caos. Walk forward from your starting point, when entering the throne room, it is on the left.
“The Mighty Caos are the champions of the New Gods. They fight, die, and live again to serve their God in the eternal Crusade.”
Location: The Sanctum
This Lore Stone can be found immediately after creating your Caos. Walk forward from your starting point, when entering the throne room, it is on the right.
“The fathers of the Sanctus Brotherhood built this temple deep underground on the sacred soul pathways. Here, far from the Titan’s wrath, we remember the Gods of Dark, Light and Void, and preserve the rituals that summon the Caos.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Foothills
The first Lore Stone outside the Sanctum can be found during the opening tutorial. Continue along the path until you pass the combo dummies, it will be on the left.
“These walls are all that remain of the Crimhold, a once-great fortress destroyed by the Titan’s hordes. Like the noble men who raised its walls, it has long been reduced to ruins.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Foothills
This Lore Stone is located very close to the last. Continue southwest along the path, stop at the intersection, turn right and head up the hill.
“Over the eons, the Caos have learned to carry their knowledge, and even their possessions, from life to life through Ascension. The dark angel of their soul has somehow transcended death, and therein become one of the most powerful forces to walk the world.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Foothills
This Lore Stone can be found at the southern-most part of the map. Continue along the main path and you can’t miss it.
“The Caos are giants of towering strength, yet their divine birth allows them to channel the awesome power of their God into devastating spells.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Foothills
This Lore Stone is located at the end of the level, near the ring of stones.
“The bestial trolls are corrupt creatures, born from the blood and sorrow of the fallen. They infest this land like a plague, a constant reminder of the Titan’s dominion.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, The Arena
This stone resides along the northeast wall of the area. Follow the right wall as you enter the level and you can’t miss it.
“The Crusade stretches across all worlds and all times. Each Caos is aware of other Caos in parallel worlds mirroring their own.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimdol Wall
This Lore Stone is located just past the first altar you’ll encounter. Head north to continue down the hill and it will be in plain sight.
“The New Gods arose as the faith of mankind returned. Dominion is now their sustenance, for without the fear and prayer of humankind, they fade into dream.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Summit
This Lore Stone is nestled into a cove directly in front of the area’s entrance. Walk forward and you’ll see it.
“Men learned to worship the Titan, raising crude stone pillar on the old sacred sites. There they performed blood sacrifices to appease him and his troll children.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Summit
This stone is found directly south of the Hell’s Heart dungeon.
“The First Race littered the world with great doorways and secret chambers. Their titanic dungeons honeycomb the stone beneath the mountains, holding plunder and doom.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Crimhorn Summit
From Hell’s Heart dungeon, head east up the hill and keep your eyes on the left wall to find this stone.
“Of all living things, only the Caos can Ascend, dying in one world and rising in another. Each Ascended Champion becomes a warrior in the Crusade, an endless conflict between the Gods and the countless dimensions.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Valley of the Pilgrims
This stone lies in the middle of the main path through the level. Continue down the hill from the entrance and you cannot miss it.
“In ages past, this mysterious rock formation was sacred to Great Kul the Hunter, and the first tribes worshipped him there. It has long since been defiled by the blood of countless slaves offered in sacrifice to the Titan.”
Location: Mount Crimhorn, Hand of Kul
From the entrance of this area, immediately turn right and head up the small hill to find this stone.
“Great Kul the Hunter was accompanied on every hunt by the four Apex, his sacred wolf companions: the Shadow, the Stalker, the Seer, and the Slayer. Mighty and cunning hunters, they ensured that no prey escaped his grasp.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, The Battlements
From the entrance, after passing through the first wooden gate, follow the left wall.
“In the first days, the hill men were as wild animals and comingled with them. But the Great God Kul appeared and taught them the ways of the hunt, and raised them to be lord among the beasts.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, The Battlements
This stone can be found in a small area just north of the South Gatehouse dungeon.
“The Apex, the four Great Wolves of Kul, taught our fathers their wisdom. Like the wolf, men hunted together in packs, learning to kill for food and protection of the people. Thus the first tribes were born.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, The Gray Fane
Located just past the steps after the large area where you first encounter the ogre.
“Degenerate cults of humans worship the Titan, who they call Blood Eater. They enslave and sacrifice their brothers to sate the Titan’s ravenous appetite in the hopes that they themselves will not be devoured.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, Fortress Ur
From the level’s entrance, follow the wall on your right to the small area.
“All Caos are linked to an Ascended soul. It is the being within the being, an ageless life force that carries knowledge and power from life to life, growing ever toward Transcendence: the mastery of all three Gods.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, Fortress Ur
When approaching the level’s shrine, head left into the small walled area.
“Where the blood goes deep into the earth, where the souls of fallen warriors sleep, the savage Berserkers are born. Red of skin and drunk on the blood of the slain, they attack with sudden and vicious ferocity.”
Ruined Cliffs, Kung Gol
From the entrance, take the main path around the corner and follow the wall on the left up a small hill.
“The youngest of the litter born to Kowraifa the She-Wolf, Dakrum gloried in stealth and the hidden kill. Men called him the Shadow and still fear his prowling spirit.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, Kung Gol
Located east of the level’s altar. Look to your right as you’re leaving the village.
“These hideous mountains of flesh and muscle are centuries old, children of the Titan when he was new. Legends say it is they who devoured the once-great beasts of the hills and plains, where now there are only bones.”
Location: Ruined Cliffs, Ring of Bones
From the entrance, head left to find this stone in a human village behind the wooden wall.
“When the Titan came, the Spirit World was torn asunder, and Kul no longer walked with his people. One by one the Apex died, and the faithful interred their remains in great tombs. It is said their spirits still haunt these lands.”
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Sullan Hollow
This stone is located on the main path just south of the level’s entrance.
“Trolls spawn beneath the ground in places of great turmoil and blood, gestating from the tormented souls of the murdered dead. Cursed is the day they boiled up to hunt the flesh of men.”
Stone #23: Ghostfang Wildlands
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Sullan Hollow
Located on the main path at the southern-most part of the map. Halfway between the Underguens dungeon and the level’s exit.
“The trees of the Wildlands are said to be one organism, linked for miles by subterranean mazes of root and stone. At the center of this titanic entity stands the Tomb Tree, resting place of the Stalker.”
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Shadow Glen
From the entrance, follow the main path past the wolf caves. When the path opens up, immediately take a right and backtrack up the hill.
“The God of the Void, the Trickster, is a being from beyond time. Few comprehend his origin or motive, and those who do have gone mad, dwelling forever in a twilight of cold with no end.”
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Shadow Glen
At the level’s last shrine, as you’re looking at the level exit, head left down the hill. This stone is in the back of the small area.
“Kadin, the third cub of Kowraifa the She-Wolf, was the consummate tracker, who would unerringly find any path and follow any scent. When the hunt began, Kadin led the way.”
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Wisp Grove
Located immediately west of the level’s center shrine.
“The God of Light, Hammer of Law, He who makes of the world his Anvil, is a terrible but just master. A great Thunderbird is his messenger, and a bolt of lightning his voice.”
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Heart of Kul
Located on a small hill immediately southwest of the level’s first shrine.
“The ogres of the wood became cunning. Twisted by Witch Doctor blood magic, the Ogre Savages learned to hunt with spears and stalk their prey. Beware, for their size belies their quickness and trickery.”
Stone #28: The Goddess of Darkness
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Heart of Kul
Head past the first shrine, under the overpasses, circling up the hill. Once you cross the small stone bridge immediately turn left to find this stone across another bridge.
“The Goddess of Darkness is a being of terrible beauty, whispering to Her acolytes of fury and fear. Hers is a realm of agony and annihilation, and She takes pleasure only in the doom of all.”
Location: Ghostfang Wildlands, Glade of the Stalker
Located directly west of the entrance on the main path.
“When Caos were first made, Vor the Forgemaster bound their weapons with runic symbols. The ancient markings writhed with strange magic, giving untold powers to those who wielded them.”
Location: Arkan Moors, Lost Marsh
From the entrance, follow the right wall up a small hill.
“In the first days, the Old Gods took form and walked among the people. Great Kul strode into the hills and forests of the Highlands, where the tribes built mighty towers and multiplied under his watchful gaze.”
Location: Arkan Moors, Lost Marsh
Located just west of the last shrine in the level.
“Our elders whisper of a tower among the lakes, the once-great throne of an ancient king, now a place of great evil. Gray-eyed men come from there, speaking blasphemies, and the men they take with them are never seen again.”
Location: Arkan Moors, Fangs of Rel
Located just northwest of the shrine in the center of the map.
“Such was the faith of men that the Old Gods returned again and again to their people, to great joy. Great festivals were held on their visit, and the land overflowed with the multitude of plenty.”
Location: Arkan Moors, Gor Loch
From the entrance, this stone is located on the main path around the second corner.
“Like his wolf-mother, Orveus was born with the Sight. His vision pierced the veils between worlds and beyond, to what was becoming and might be. It is said Orveus taught magic to the first tribes, but this knowledge has been lost to time.”
Stone #34: War of the Old Gods
Location: Arkan Moors, Gor Loch
Located on the northern shore of the loch.
“Each time the Old gods returned to the world, they fell further in love with pleasure and power. Soon they began to fight for ever greater harvests of souls and blood, the sacrifice of which they found to have no equal. The Gods had discovered war.”
Location: Arkan Moors, Gor Loch
This stone is located behind a large human building south of Shadowrock Tomb.
“Human blood woke a thirst in the Old Gods that they could not quench. Great sacrifices were made to sate their terrible hunger, but their appetites were never appeased.”
Location: Arkan Moors, Tower of Broken Souls
Embedded into the wall directly west of the shrine.
“The day came when the Old Gods, drunk on human blood and redolent with slaughter, could not return to the Spirit World. Immortal but without grace, they went mad, becoming vast and mindless beasts of war. They set upon each other in rage, and the mountains trembled.”
Lcation: Arkan Moors, Well of Gloom
Located on a hill just south of the pool in the center of the map.
“Great Kul the Hunter had fought with the Gods and had drunk deeply of the blood of man. The Apex fled, and Kul, his corrupted form twisted and fallen, was God no longer. In his place, the Titan was made manifest. Bestial trolls spawned from his black blood and cast the towers of men to the ground.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Temple Gates
This stone is immediately on your left from the level’s warp stone.
“The Temple of Kul is the height of mankind’s skill with stone and mortar. Its grandeur conceals a grisly utility, for there were put to the sword countless innocents.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Temple Gates
This stone is directly outside the entrance to the Skull Pit.
“Not all trolls are ravenous beasts. Those born with the fury of fallen soldiers become Warriors, elite troll fighters skilled with the blade. Their singular intelligence desires only to slay their enemies in a silver dance of blood.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Skull Pit
Located on the right before entering the large clearing.
“Magnar the Alpha-born was the first of the Apex to stand at Kul’s side and the strongest of his brothers. Humans worship him as Death incarnate, for the slaughter that issued from his teeth and claws was unequaled.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Skull Pit
From the entrance, located on the right just after the large clearing.
“Legend has forgotten how these tablets came to be cut. The Age of Scholars is long past, and only records cut in stone remain.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Tomb of Kings
This stone is behind a wooden gate on the right as you progress through the level.
“Ours is a world of death, but we remember those who have passed before us. The stones honor our ancestors, and give comfort to their lost spirits.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Tomb of Kings
This stone is located behind a wooden gate on the left after you pass the Tomb Gatehouse dungeon.
“Our ancestors interred the sacred relics and weapons in great stone chests, holding faith that the Caos would one day return.”
Stone #44: Death of the Old Gods
Location: Valley of the Dead, Tomb of Kings
This stone is the first you’ll encounter from the entrance. From the entrance, head up the small path on the right.
“Taken by the passions of the flesh, the Old Ones consumed all the acquisitions of men. And when men could no longer sustain them, the giants turned against them and devoured mankind. And they began to devour one another’s flesh, and drink the blood, and became beasts.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Temple of Kul
From the entrance, go up the first set of stairs and head right. The stone is located in a small walled area.
“The Old Gods taught the first tribes how to summon the Caos, great engines of physical might and divine power. Seeing their glory, the Old Gods desired to walk in flesh themselves. When the Titans came, the Caos were lost, their memory hidden deep beneath the earth.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Crown of Kul
This stone is located on the left wall midway up the approach to the shrines.
“The four great wolves of Kul hold vigil for his return. From the Spirit World their souls wait and watch over the world of men.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Crown of Kul
This stone is on the back wall of the southeastern shrine area.
“The Hand of Kul contains the last link between Kul and the Spirit World. Guarded by the Apex, it ensures that Kul’s Titan form remains immortal.”
Location: Valley of the Dead, Crown of Kul
This stone is on the back wall of the northwestern shrine area.
“But the Age of Kul will come again. In the final days, the Apex will return, and Great Kul the Hunter will raise us up forever.”