History — The Descent
The Descent turns the Underworld from a flat farm into something you go down into. Open it from Endgame ▾ The Descent. A Descent is a seeded, un-mappable dive: floor by floor, the enemies are drawn from the run's own seed, so no guide — not even this wiki — can lay it out for you.
The Three Strata
Three Strata stack beneath the Underworld, each opened only by proving yourself in the one above — reach depth 10 in a Stratum, and hold the required Covenant rank, to unlock the next.
| Stratum | Enemy level | Unlocks at |
|---|---|---|
| I — The Ashen Reach | 1,000+ | Any deep-capable character |
| II — The Hollow Vaults | 1,600+ | Covenant rank 2 + depth 10 in the Reach |
| III — The Sunless Heart | 2,200+ | Covenant rank 3 + depth 10 in the Vaults |
Your Oath Shapes the Dive
Your Covenant flavours the whole descent. The deeper and more corrupt you are, the more the Deepsworn thrive on the extra damage; the Wardens instead lean on their ward to endure. Every fifth floor is guarded by a Stratum Guardian — a wall that a well-built, well-oathed character can break, and an ill-prepared one cannot.
Rewards
Banking a Descent pays gold, Dark Crystal shards, experience, Covenant reputation (the Descent is the main way to climb your oath), and a push against the Blight Tide — the deeper the Stratum and the further you bank, the greater every reward. The Descent is not a detour from the war; it is one of its fronts.