Arriving back at the Dragon's Bounty, Squawkers is very eager to sample the treats you have bought him. If for any reason you should refuse to give him his treats, he will peck you, causing enormous damage at low levels that will likely kill you. However, he does not become instantly hostile, allowing you to 'correct your mistake' and give the poor parrot his crackers.
When you do, he has new 'dialogue' for you.
"Squawkers... happy... New sailor... Squawkers will give you power..."
Additionally, bringing rarer food items from across Dayle can give you the ability to get extra, free levels, so its well worth investing in that Cartography stat, as treasure hunting is the only way you will find most of these.
Once you have spent any doubloons you have, you are free to warp back to your flag at the top of Grassun Harbour, and progress onward, first checking out the ominous church-like building that was blocked off before by boss fog.
Inside is the typical layout of a church, with several rows of pews and a preacher at the end. A stain-glass window overlooking the preacher depicts the visage of Mattas, the pilgrim you saw in the opening cutscene, and talking to his white and gold-clad clergyman gives you some insight on this character. As you approach them, you see an obelisk depicting a strange diamond shape to their left, which seems to shimmer slightly in the light.
The preacher seems ambivalent about your presence: "You, stand still. I sense mischief and chaos within your bones... And yet, potential brews over the edges... You are incomplete, but with careful moulding, you could become something truly special..."
"What say you, mysterious one? Do you have a thirst for the teachings of the New Age?"
Say Yes: "Wise indeed for one so young. Join with me, and make a pact in the name of our savior, Mattas the favoured."
This is the first of the new Pact system in Dark Seas, essentially replacing covenants, but also offering some new features. Every pact in the game (only five overall) has a unique tattoo, and this one, for the Followers of the New Age, will grant you 1.5x increased magicka, which continues to scale with every Pact tier. At 2, you get 1.75x, and at 3, you get 2x.
You also get the special weapon Revelatory Staff, which is a golden rod affixed with a miniaturised version of the obelisk next to the preacher. It is primarily a catalyst for New Age Charms, but can also be used as a striking weapon, with a neat damage critical for a direct hit from the pinpoint-obelisk. (REQUIRES 28 ZEAL, 15 DEXTERITY)
It is also, strangely enough, a crucial item for this covenant, which is somewhat comparable to the Gravelords and Ratbros that has come before it. The preacher, who goes yet-unnamed, will explain the workings of the Pact to you.
"Our revered savior, Mattas, has seen the truth of the world. It is a dismal, corrupted age, filled with treachery, deceit, and sin. By the will of the New Age gods, he has commanded us, his pilgrims, to spread the seed of rebirth amongst the world, and wipe out the heretical filth. This is where you, new blood, are of use. I beseech thee, travel beyond your realm, and let bloom the doom of our cursed kin."
He does not offer any more dialogue at this time, giving you only the 'Cleansing Incense' item, which will serve as one of few invasion items in Dark Seas.
The description reads: Incense commonly used as part of rituals performed in the name of the church of the New Age. Whilst commonly burnt by heretics, true devout zealots will inhale the holy incense, allowing its trans-dimensional abilities to seep through one's veins.
Basically, this is the surprise Darkwraith covenant, as it appears all good and holy from the outside, but inside operatives will realise that the New Age is doing some truly-insidious shit. 'Raiding another realm' will transport you to any neighbouring player's world who sits at a higher level than your own. You do not have access to healing items or spells of any kind, but in case you were worried this meant a disadvantage to you, fear not. Upon entrance, you will drive your Revelatory Staff into a nearby point in the ground, unleashing a wave of pulsating misty-red in all directions, and activating the 'Sinner's Recompense' effect. Essentially, whilst this staff remains fixed to the ground, every enemy in the invadees world will be super-buffed, becoming more agile, and more dangerous, as well as more aggressive from further distances.
All that you, as the invader, need do is to defend the obelisk until the player is dead. However, if the obelisk is destroyed by the player, and you are unable to replant it at a safe distance, you will lose. If you prevail however, you are rewarded with the covenant item, 'Seed of the New Age', which has the description: Token of a victory against a sinner, taken by the maniacal zealots of the New Age Church. Once desiring of the knowledge to bring great prosperity and health to his race, the savior Mattas saw the depraved nature of his fellow humans, and in an act of worship to his vengeful gods, sought to destroy them all. With such ambition, he retreated to his shrine in the Frigid Bay, his hatred for all living things whipping up a snowstorm from which none may escape.
The worst thing is, Followers of the New Age invade indiscriminately, meaning you can invade, and be invaded by, fellow Pact-makers. This covenant is, truly, the Lawless Chaos of the game. Fortunately, there are other pacts that somewhat keep these guys in-check, who you'll meet later on
Yep, lore overload I know, but all of this is important to know going forward. He does also sell the following New Age Charms:
Restoration (same as listed in C1, 3'000 doubloons)
Embodiment of Mattas: Grants a limitless stamina bar for ten seconds, but also drains health by one quarter with every cast. (5'000 doubloons)
Curative Radiance: Heals any affliction or poison at the cost of a full Magicka bar (5'000 doubloons)
Heavenly Pierce: Sends out a javelin made of the misty-red, the damage scaling with Zeal and oddly enough, Prowess (7'000 doubloons)
Chaotic Plunder: This one is troll-bait. Essentially, it allows you to steal health from any allied phantoms on your side, at the cost of turning them immediately into an enemy phantom. It sounds incredibly dickish, and... it is. It is an embodiment of the callous, loathsome nature of Mattas' order. (15'000 doubloons)
Covenant rewards:
10 Seeds - Ring of the Devout (your HP stat will change to mirror whatever your Zeal stat is): Ring of the missionary clergy who serve under the chaotic pilgrim Mattas. The steel that forged this ring is cold, just like the frigid waters where their savior makes his home.
25 Seeds - Missionary Set: Cloak/Gauntlets/Leggings of the missionaries who travel around Dayle to spread the word of the New Age revelatory, Mattas. Although these are primarily holy men, they are well-aware of the unpopular nature of their gospel, and as such, these garbs are protected underneath by light steel plating.
50 Seeds (max): Whisper of Devastation: New Age Charm comparable to the Divine Pillars of Light from DaS3, only this spell releases pillars of misty-red, which can build-up Frigid Blood, the third, not yet encountered affliction. Frigid Blood is perhaps the most cruel of all afflictions, as it blocks out all contact to the outside world, meaning no summons, invasions or player messages/ghosts whilst afflicted. This may seem tame in comparison to the others, but later bosses are cripplingly hard without some kind of assistance.
The description for this Charm reads: Charm utilised by the highest-ranking clergy of Mattas' devastation cult. No longer disguised by any illusion of holiness, this incantation serves one, and only one purpose: the annihilation of all living things.
By now, you probably have a good idea of why it was a mistake to come into this church unprepared. If, by some error of judgement you say no to the preacher, things get ugly quick.
Say no: "I see. You are foolish, and will perish just like the rest."
At this point, the preacher aggroes, immediately unleashing a cast of Whisper of Devastation upon you, with a Revelatory Staff in one hand, and a silvery rapier in one hand. Unfortunately, for unknown reasons, he is immortal at this point, and will kill you pretty quickly. The obelisk that sat beside him also activates, unleashing a red aura that will rapidly build up Frigid Blood if you don't move out of its radius.
So yeah, stay away from the Church if you don't have a taste for doom-mongering.
Continuing on past the church, you walk through a parting in the hedges, and enter a new area.
- WINDING CLIFF PATH -
Compared to the relative hell that was Grassun Harbour, the cliff path is a much more tame affair, featuring only a few dangerous enemies, and mostly-serving as a junction point for several critical paths. As the name suggests, the plethora of paths in this area lead you alongside a towering drop down the cliffs into the ocean, so in the interest of staying alive, you might want to keep away from the edge.
At the centre of the main junction, a new NPC called Adventurer Patricia awaits. She is dressed in light, low-armoured attire, with a map outstretched between her hands.
"Ahoy there. I'm Patricia, a treasure hunter. Do your eyes sparkle with the gleam of treasure, just as mine? Then you're in luck. Just past this broken tree stump here is a great horde of treasure. And it's all yours!"
Immediately, warning bells are set off, and you may find yourself itching to strike her down. If you hold off, she has more to say.
"What are you waiting for? Down the steps, just over there! A truly astounding bounty. I hear it shimmers like the moon over the sea."
If for some reason you actually listen to this NPC and head down onto the sandy beach, you will be in for the fight of your life as what appeared to be a set of stones sunk into the sand leers up and reveals itself to actually be an enormous, grey sea serpent. This miniboss has a large pool of health, with a variety of damaging attacks which vary from slashing at you with a pair of sharpened claws to straight-up breathing a torrent of stagnant water in your face. It is also difficult to escape from the encounter once triggered, as attempting to scale back up the cliff will result in Patricia rolling a boulder down the Cliffside to crush you. If you do, however, kill the serpent, you get a fair loot.
Opal Eye: Roughly-cut gemstone recovered from the belly of a dwelling sea serpent. It's original owner remains a mystery, but the awesome power of the trinket should more than make up for its tumultuous keeper.
If you place it in the trinket spot, you get a HUGE boost in equipment load, essentially allowing you to wear even the heaviest armour and still dodge at mid-speed.
Coming back to Patricia, she is immediately defensive.
"What? You think I knew about that beast down on the beach? How dare you! Why, I ought to cut you down for your slanderous tongue!"
"Well, forget it. Everybody runs their mouth once or twice. It's inevitable. Here, a token of my appreciation for your apology."
Ring of a Sea of Flame: Ring bearing a soothing warmth. Although bearing a grandiose name, it is a fairly-uninspired make, likely only mythical in title.
Despite the description's claims, the ring does give you a moderate damage resistance to fire.
Patricia continues: "I'm certain there's bound to be more treasure about, so I'll keep my eyes peeled. Hehehehe." (LOOPS)
If you attack her, she goes down with very little fight, dropping only a Bag of Salt for your troubles. So, despite her treacherous nature, you're probably better off keeping her alive.
Exploration of this area nets you the following items:
3x Dead Jellyfish
2x Dayle Ale
4x Salt Pouch
Traveller's Set: Brown trench coat with grey leggings and a feathered hat. Description reads: Light armour worn by travellers to the region of Dayle. It seems strange for the well-versed men and women who wear these robes to visit Dayle, especially with their attire being so open to attack by the many different enemies that lurk in the region's shadows.
Salty Sea Bow: Longbow scented with the faint damp of the rough seas of Dayle. Due to its proximity to Grassun Keep, it is likely ths bow was used to rain down arrows on enemy ships sailing far beneath the cliff side. (REQUIRES 25 DEXTERITY)
16x Iron Arrow
4x Firefly Napalm
5x Amber Talisman: Used to prevent Spirit Bottle recovery for two minutes. (Lloyd's through and through)
Peasant Plow: Spear-class weapon very similar to the Four-Pronged Plow from DaS1. Description reads: Plow used for farming in the countryside regions of Dayle. Although better used to stack hay, this agricultural tool can nevertheless be used to pierce flesh to great effect.
As for enemies, this is what you're up against:
Cliffside Bandits: Cloak and dagger types who ambush you from the shrubbery and try to split you open with their hunting knives. They also have throwing daggers and bows for long-range combat. They have a 15% chance of dropping upgrade materials, so they are well worth farming in some capacity.
Mystic Shard: Mysterious fragment of rock that glistens a different colour depending on the time of day. Despite being somewhat fragile in its base state, such material could easily be used to create alloys for weapon enhancement, and any smith with calibre to their work should be able to complete such a process.
To upgrade weapons, you should talk to Samuel, back on the Dragon's Bounty, but for now, you forage on.
Imperial Squires: Elite mook of the level. Think Imperial Guardsmen, only these enemies have more health, agility and wield long, silver pikes and can perform a unique death animation on you where they lift you up in the air and toss you over their shoulder. They have a rare chance to drop their weapon.
Imperial Pike: Ceremonial weapon used by squires of King Podrice, Dayle's tyrannous ruler. This weapon is forged of the purest metal alloys found in Dayle, and will not shatter even under the wailing winds of a hurricane. Perhaps this is why such warriors have claimed the title of unbreakable.
Gulls: Like the gaol bats, these bloodthirsty birds will swoop in on you at certain points when you are close to a Cliffside. However, they are essentially harmless fodder for your blade, bearing no affliction and acting as little more than a distraction against the tougher enemies.
When you have cleared the level, you have the option of three paths. One leads you around a decaying cliffside, with dead trees grown into the rock and a diseased, sickly appearance. The second continues onwards across the hill towards a large sea inlet. The last will take you down through a valley and towards a distant settlement.