Anca is one of the four named companions the Svartrau City route introduces in the first half of The Blood of Dawnwalker. She is not a combat ally in the strict sense — the Anca questline is built around a series of named choices, and the rewards are armor pieces that frame how Coen fights for the rest of the run. Two armor pieces sit behind this chain: Ancient Greaves at the end of the named four-quest arc, and the Enhanced Armor of the Arbiter full set after Infamy level 4 unlocks the side quest.
This page covers both chains and the choice points inside them.
How Anca fits into the route
Anca arrives in Svartrau City once you have completed the prologue and have enough Infamy to be inside the named-quest band. Her first named quest, Echoes of Silenced Bells, opens the line. The chain proceeds in four named quests plus one optional Infamy-gated extension.
The choice points in this chain are not flagged as branching. They look like dialogue options or treasure interactions, which is why they get missed.
Quest chain — step by step
| Step | Quest | Reward | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Echoes of Silenced Bells | 100 XP | First Anca quest. Sets up the bell-ringing mystery. |
| 2 | Between the Worlds | 200 XP | Mid-chain quest that opens the planar layer. |
| 3 | Where Old Devils Lie | 250 XP | Combat-heavy, requires the named sword to be unequipped before entering. |
| 4 | Stronger Than Achilles | 400 XP | The trap quest. Contains the Font of Life choice. |
| (5) | A Bulwark Against Darkness | 500 XP | Infamy 4 unlocked, post-main-arc side quest that opens the Arbiter Set upgrade. |
The first four quests ship the Ancient Greaves. The fifth is a separate Infamy-gated branch that opens the Armor of the Arbiter set.
The Font of Life choice
At the end of Stronger Than Achilles, when you stumble upon the Font of Life, the prompt gives you a binary option:
- Destroy the Font of Life — breaks the seal, reveals the Ancient Greaves hidden underneath, and the quest completes with the armor in your inventory. This is the clean-kill path of the Anca chain and the option that unlocks the regular Ancient Greaves reward.
- Leave the Font intact — the quest completes without the armor reward. The greaves stay locked for the rest of the save.
There is no post-hoc recovery if you leave the Font intact. The choice is one-way per file, like the vassal choices in Clean Kill vs Drink Blood Choices.
The A Bulwark Against Darkness branch
After Infamy level 4 is reached, return to Anca in Svartrau City. She will have a letter that kickstarts A Bulwark Against Darkness. To complete it:
- The quest gives you four named components — find each one in the named locations across the southern Vale.
- Return to Nareh, the named forge NPC in Svartrau.
- Nareh forges the Enhanced Armor of the Arbiter — full set (chest, greaves, gloves, helm) — from the four components.
This is a clean Infamy-gated branch. It does not interact with the vassal choices, does not lock other endings, and is independent of the Font of Life decision. You can complete it on any route.
Why the Font of Life choice matters
The Ancient Greaves are a strong day-set piece. Witchcraft ability damage, magical damage reduction, activation charge restoration from blocking, passive activation charge restoration. Without the greaves you lose a top-tier day-set slot, and the Best Builds Tier List day-set build requires them. Most first runs do not realize they have to actively destroy the Font to get the armor — the prompt looks like a flavor interaction rather than a quest stage.
Companion read-throughs
- Anca character page — character-specific details, role in the wider cast, and how the questline interacts with Brencis’s Court dynamics.
- Svartrau City — the regional anchor for the entire chain plus the A Friend Like This armor path.
- Best Gear, Armor, Weapons, Rings and Amulets — the wider legendary lineup, including the Arbiter Set details and how the Ancient Greaves fit the day-set build.
- Clean Kill vs Drink Blood Choices — the vassal-choice routes that gate the Isbrand’s Plate path which runs in parallel.
If you are routing Svartrau City for the first time, the Anca chain is the cleanest of the named companion arcs. The Font of Life choice is the only real decision, and the right answer is destroy it. The Bulwark Against Darkness branch is a free legendary-tier armor set on top, gated only by Infamy.
Sources: Eurogamer best armor walkthrough (Anca questline, Stronger Than Achilles, Font of Life destroy prompt), Method.gg Best Armor (Ancient Greaves, Armor of the Arbiter Set).