At the bottom of the ancient ruins in The Blood of Dawnwalker, Anca’s questline ends at a stone bowl called the Font of Life. There is only enough left in it for one person, and the game hands you three ways to settle that. Two of them pay out in gear or a perk. One of them pays out purely in story.
Quick answer: Pick “If it’s alright with you – I’ll use it” for the Witchcraft perk Font of Life (passive human health regeneration during the day), “We should just destroy it” for the Legendary Ancient Greaves, or “Go ahead. Make what you will with it” to let Anca drink, which cures her scars, strips her witchcraft, and changes her epilogue scenes but gives Coen nothing.
All 3 Font of Life endings compared
Every option closes the quest and pays the same base reward. The difference is what you walk out with.
| Choice | Dialogue option | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Coen drinks | “If it’s alright with you – I’ll use it” | Unlocks the Font of Life perk in the Witchcraft tree: passive regeneration of human health during the day. This is the only way to get it. |
| Anca drinks | “Go ahead. Make what you will with it” | Her runes and scars vanish and the nightmares stop, but she loses her witchcraft. No item or perk for Coen; it alters scenes in the epilogue. |
| Destroy it | “We should just destroy it” | You and Anca push the pedestal over, exposing a hidden niche holding the Ancient Greaves (Legendary Heavy Trousers, Level 17, 163 Armour). |
The Ancient Greaves carry Witchcraft ability damage, Activation Charge restoration from blocks, passive Activation Charge restoration, and magical damage reduction. Coen’s perk stacks neatly with the Runic Enchantment chestpiece you pick up at the end of Where Old Devils Lie, since that legendary armor leans on lifesteal and has no armor value at all.
Make a manual save before you touch the font
The decision is final for that playthrough. The Font of Life perk in particular cannot be picked up anywhere else in the game, so skipping it here means skipping it entirely. If you want to see all three outcomes, open the pause menu in the chamber before you speak the deciding line and drop a manual save.
Reloading that save drops you back in the room with all three options still open, so a single visit is enough to see each ending play out before you commit.
How to start Stronger Than Achilles
Stronger Than Achilles is a side quest given by Anca, and it begins the moment Where Old Devils Lie wraps up, while you are still inside the ruins. It is a daytime quest, it has no fail state, and it is not missable. The full chain runs Echoes of Silenced Bells, then Most Precious Thing (optional), then Between the Words, then Where Old Devils Lie, then this.
The opening stretch is linear. Follow the objective marker down through the torchlit stone rooms, cut through the undead that block each doorway, and keep going until you reach a wide circular chamber where Anca stops beside a pillar.
The idol trial: who gives the blood
Investigating the blood-stained lion-headed idol reveals that the door ahead only opens for a blood sacrifice. You choose whether Coen puts his arm in the mouth or hands the job to Anca. There is no lasting damage either way — Coen can heal straight afterwards with food.
| Option pair | What happens |
|---|---|
| “Alright… Wish me luck.” then “Keep still” | Coen sees the bloodletting through alone. Best option for Anca’s romance. |
| “Alright… Wish me luck.” then “Take your hand out” | Coen starts it, Anca finishes the cut for him. |
| “Hell no. I’m not doing that.” then “If you think that’s the best.” | Anca performs the sacrifice instead. |
Once the door opens, Anca talks through why the Ancients built trials this painful. Answer however you like; the exchange has no mechanical effect.
Clearing the rest of the ruins
Note: Anca admits along the way that she wanted the font’s power for herself, which is why the conversation at the bowl gets pointed.
How to confirm the quest paid out
After the choice, speak to Anca to leave the ruins, then have the final conversation with her back at the inn. Completion awards 500 XP and one skill point on every path, plus the bronze Sins of the Past trophy, which closes out Anca’s questline.
Check the payout in two places. If Coen drank, Font of Life appears as a perk in the Witchcraft tree, described as granting passive regeneration of human health. If you destroyed the pedestal, the Ancient Greaves show up in your inventory as Legendary Heavy Trousers at Level 17. If Anca drank and you see neither, nothing has gone wrong — that outcome simply has no item attached.
What the choice does not affect
Taking the font for Coen does not lock you out of romancing Anca. The romance is decided by dialogue elsewhere in her questline and by the conversation at the inn afterwards, where you need to say there is a conversation you still need to finish, beg to differ when she says there is nothing to add, and then either tell her you love her or keep it platonic. The romance scene is optional and does not change the game’s endings or other quests.
If you are building for combat, Coen’s perk is the pick, since day-time regeneration cuts down on healing items during long fights. If you care more about how Anca’s story lands, hand her the font — it is the only outcome that changes what happens to her later.
