Valor Mortis: Homesick Side Quest Walkthrough in the Caverns

Homesick is an optional side quest in the Caverns, the region tied to Chapter IV, DARK DESCENT. It traces a family that was left waiting underground, and it plays out in three short stops: a camp with a letter, a body holding a Death Notice, and a return walk to the same camp. Finishing it pays out Catalysts and an Amber.

Quick answer: Pick up the Longing Wife Letter at the family camp, take the Death Notice from the body in the beached rowboat, then walk back to the camp’s bedroll. The quest closes on its own for 2,000 Catalysts and the Bottomless Well Amber.

See where Homesick plays out on the Valor Mortis map, and follow the rest of the chapter in the Chapter IV walkthrough.

Where Homesick starts in the Caverns

You reach the Caverns from the Abandoned Church, following the path to the caves and through the iron grille that opens once you have the Cave Grotto Key. When the grille unlocks, the game confirms it with “The door was opened with Cave Grotto Key”. The Caverns hold a run of Lanterns named Last Sunlight, Weeping Ledge, Old Mine, Mine Cart Route and Ancient Lair, and Homesick takes place in the first stretch of the region, before you reach the Old Mine.

The region is dark and crawling with flesh creatures and Napoleonic soldiers. Watch for the blue ghostly memories that flicker to life around the environment, since they mark where the family’s story unfolds.

Step 1: Find the family camp and the Longing Wife Letter

Early in the Caverns, follow the tunnel until you reach a small camp lit by a campfire, with a cooking pot hanging from a tripod. A bedroll sits on the ground and a wooden crate stands beside it.

As you arrive, a blue ghostly scene plays out, showing a mother comforting her child on the bedroll. It is a memory of the family who once lived here.

Ghostly mother and child at the camp — The ghostly mother and child by the campfire mark the family camp where Homesick begins. Image: One More Level / via @RoyalGaming-RG

Pick up the letter resting on the crate. It is the Longing Wife Letter, written by a woman named Weronika to her husband, telling him their children are wasting away with longing and asking when he will get them out from under the ground. The banner “HOMESICK / NEW SIDE QUEST” appears, and the journal notes you have found the remains of a family waiting for a father who never returned.

Step 2: Take the Death Notice from the rowboat

Carry on through the caves. The path descends to flooded caverns with rowboats on the water, and another blue memory shows fishermen hauling their boats ashore.

Look for a rowboat pulled up onto the rocky shore of an underground pool, with a small lantern on its bow. A body lies inside it.

Death Notice in the rowboat — The Death Notice sits with the body in the beached rowboat on the flooded cavern shore. Image: One More Level / via @RoyalGaming-RG

Use “[E] TAKE” to lift the Death Notice from the body. It is a short medical note stating the patient had typhus, that the condition was terminal, and that he sent his fondest regards to his loved ones. He carried no papers and gave no surname, only his wife’s name, Weronika. The banner “QUEST UPDATE / HOMESICK” appears, followed by “NEW ENTRY ADDED TO THE JOURNAL”, and the journal now explains the father did not abandon his family. He was hurrying back when illness took him, and his letter should be read where his family rests.

An ornate red chest stands on a cloth among the crates close to the boat. Use “[E] OPEN (HOLD)” to claim the Lucky Shot Amber while you are here.

Step 3: Return to the family camp to finish the quest

Head back to the same camp from the first step, the one with the tripod cooking pot, the bedroll and the crates. There is no button prompt for the hand-in. Walk up to the bedroll and crates, and William speaks to the family on his own, delivering the father’s message.

Back at the family camp — Returning to the family camp with the Death Notice closes Homesick without any button prompt. Image: One More Level / via @RoyalGaming-RG

The banner “HOMESICK / QUEST COMPLETE” appears alongside “[Tab] VIEW QUEST”. Your Catalyst counter climbs by 2,000, and a “Bottomless Well” toast slides in on the right. The journal signs off the quest by noting the father’s letter was read at the family’s camp, and that this was all that could be done for them. You can check its state at any time under QUESTS > SIDE QUESTS > Homesick.

Homesick reward: Bottomless Well Amber

Bottomless Well is an Amber, and its description reads “Slowly regenerates lost Nephtoglobin over time.” It has three ranks, and picking up another copy raises the rank of the one you already hold. That makes this copy worth taking even if you already found Bottomless Well earlier in a chest in The Battlefield.

Ambers only take effect once equipped in an Amber slot at a Lantern, so slot Bottomless Well before you expect its regeneration to work.