A free beta is available for Mortal Shell right now on the Epic Games Store, with the beta featuring three distinct boss battles.
During the tutorial, you’ll face off against Hadern. After entering Falgrim Outskirts, you have the opportunity to fight an optional miniboss called Ven Noctivagu.
It’s easy to miss this battle as his location is hidden, but if you want to make the most out of our Mortal Shell beta experience, you’re going to want to track him down and beat him.
How to Beat Ven Noctivagu in Mortal Shell
The first question you might have when it comes to Ven Noctivagu is where is his location in Mortal Shell? Once you enter the Falgrim Outskirts area, you’ll have the opportunity to fight two enemies around a campfire.
Once you’ve dealt with these foes, take a look over to your right. There, you’ll see a small hole covered with branches. You can use your weapon to slice through these branches, opening up the entry to Ven Noctivagu’s lair.
Before you fight Ven Noctivagu, we recommend getting acquainted with the game if you aren’t already. For example, going around Falgrim beating enemies, picking up helpful items along the way, and purchasing items from Vlaas like a Roasted Rat or two.
After that, you can return whenever you feel comfortable to fight Ven Noctivagu. You can fight Ven using your first Shell, Harros, or you can continue into the Catacombs and unlock a new Shell called Tiel.
If you prefer fighting with a Shell that specializes in speed and stamina, you’ll want to switch over to Tiel before returning to fight Ven Noctivagu. If you’re comfortable with Harros, feel free to stick with Harros. The choice is yours.
Personally, we recommend switching to Tiel for this fight because Tiel has access to a larger pool of stamina and his dodge is perfect for avoiding Ven’s quick swipe attacks.
When you enter Ven’s lair, you’ll want to have your harden ability ready as Ven likes to jump at his foes and when he goes for the throat, he can deal a lot of damage.
When playing as Harros, keep a close eye on your stamina when dodging Ven’s attacks. If you run out of stamina, you’re going to be in a bit of a pinch.
To mitigate losing stamina as Harros, you can also watch your harden ability and use it to both avoid Ven’s next attack and give yourself time to regenerate the stamina needed to launch into your next attack.
If you get knocked out of your Shell during the fight, don’t panic. Just scurry over to your Shell and re-enter it. When you do, you’ll find that your health and stamina have been fully replenished.
Keep in mind though that after you re-enter your Shell, the next death blow will send you back to where you spawn into Falgrim. You can fight Ven as often as needed until you eventually beat him, he won’t disappear if you fail to beat him the first time.
While fighting as Tiel, note that Tiel can’t take as much damage as Harros which means you need to be twice as careful avoiding Ven’s “I’m going to rip your throat out” attack. If you see him rearing up to launch at you either have your harden ability ready to go or be prepared to dodge as quickly as possible.
Once you beat Ven Noctivagu you’ll earn a few rewards including a Glimpse of Affection which can be redeemed for 4 Glimpses, and an Unknown Effigy which will later be revealed to you as belonging to Tiel.
With the Effigy of Harros, you can switch Shells into Harros. With the Effigy of Tiel, you can switch Shells into Tiel.
You can also collect a piece of lore inside Ven Noctivagu’s hideout which reads:
“He summoned me to his tower. Showed me things I’d rather forget. I can’t explain why he chose me, but he said there’s a way to heal this affliction. So, don’t think I’m running off. He knew all about you, too. We’ll see each other again. Believe me. Somehow, it’s as if I witnessed my entire life transpire in the blink of an eye. I know what that sounds like, but it’s true.”
Related: How to Heal in Mortal Shell
Now that you’ve bested Ven Noctivagu, you’re well on your way to the beta’s final boss, Enslaved Grisha. Looking for a little Mortal Shell help? We’ve got a few other guides that we think you should check out!
- Can You Beat Hadern in the Mortal Shell Beta?
- All Items and Their Uses in the Mortal Shell Beta
- How to Save in the Mortal Shell Beta
