As you progress through the main quest in Act 2 of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, you’ll be able to work on the final companion quests to get their Hero of the Veilguard status. Lair of the Dragon King is Taash’s final combat-based quest, and as such, you can expect many twists and turns. Learn how to reach the eastern side of Rivain and take down the Dragon King once and for all.

Table of Contents¶

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Lair of the Shadow King Quest Location¶

Once you make your way through to the later stages of Act 2, and complete the Blood of Arlathan main quest, you’ll gain access to the final set of companion quests. You’ll need to make sure you’ve completed Taash’s previous companion quests, including Kataranda the Stormrider before Lair of the Dragon King becomes available though. Once all of this has been achieved, keep returning to The Lighthouse until you can accept the quest from Taash.

You’ll need to visit Shathaan’s home in Rivain, and you can head there directly via the world map, just to the northeast of Rivain. Following the scenes, you’ll need to select a party and find yourself back in Rivain.

Rescue Shathaan¶

Your first objective is trying to pick up Shathaan’s Trail, do so by heading to the southeast of the Winding Shoreline and pick up the scent on the boat there. Continue to follow the path to the east and you’ll need to deal with a group of Antaam, focus your attention on any ranged enemies first before taking out Warbrand Karataar. Speak with Taash once the area is clear and continue up the stairs to the southeast.

You’ll find a meltable object immediately on your left, have Taash do so and use the ladder to reach the Clifftops area quicker where another group of Antaam await in the clearing. Once dealt with, follow the path north toward the Grey Warden fort and once you reach where the Beacon is, you’ll need to take down a Anadaar Behemoth before speaking with Taash once more.

You can now, finally, have Taash create a path over to the eastern side of Rivain, unlocking a new chunk of the region to explore and some new side quests to undertake (once you’re done with this, of course). Follow the path north and down to the bottom of the ravine for yet another group of Antaam and a gear chest to loot following their demise.

Speak with Taash and have her melt the next barricade and you’ll reach the Tide Flats, the largest part of Rivain. Your destination, Sharksmouth Mountain, lies to the north, so start heading there and speak with Isabela, who is there waiting for you. Climb the ladder and follow the path all the way to the top, taking out any Antaam along the way. Just before you can enter the lair itself, a final group of Antaam will attempt to stop you, deal with them and loot the gear chest before heading inside the cave.

Find Shathaan¶

Now that you find yourself in the Dragon King’s Lair, you need to find out where he’s keeping Shathaan. Head north while making your way lower until you reach the Cave Floor area and a large group of Antaam will attack. You’ll also have to deal with fireballs raining down at the same time, so be careful as you cull more off the Dragon King’s forces. With the area clear, look for some stairs to the northwest and take them to head further into the cave.

Drop down to a lower walkway to your right and follow this north and you’ll finally catch up to Cutter, the one responsible for Shathaan’s capture. Deal with the other Antaam first before you turn your attentions to him, he’s not too much more of a threat than a regular Antaam and there’s no Armor for you to deal with first. Just be aware that he can vanish, making it hard to keep track of him at times.

Loot the chest that he drops upon his defeat and then continue up the path to the northeast where another gear chest can be looted along the way. Burn the crystals and then walk across the beams until you reach the other side and climb the ladder. You’ll find some explosives that Taash can ignite, do so, and the door that was blocking your progress a moment ago is no more. Return to said door and loot the gear chest, then follow the path to the east and into a room with another group of Antaam to take out. Climb the stairs at the back of this room and you’ll find an exit to the north, follow this path and you’ll trigger a scene.

You’ll find yourself back inside the previous room, head back down the stairs and use the lever to open the gate in front of you. Head across the beam to the other side, and then follow the path all the way around until you reach a building. Look to the right side of the entrance here to find another gear chest, then go inside and deal with the final group of Antaam. Once they’re down, continue along the path, open another gear chest, and then go forward to find the Dragon King at last.

Defeat Kaltenzahn¶

As seems to be the Dragon King’s motto, he has another dragon for you to deal with, and this is yet another High Dragon. If you’ve already defeated The Formless One then beating Kaltenzahn will get you the Bringing Down the Sky Trophy/Achievement. You may be expecting a Fire-based dragon, seeing as you’re in the Lava Caves, but Kaltenzahn is actually an Ice Dragon, and as such, is resistant to Ice and weak to Fire.

This being at least your third dragon battle by now, you should expect the general tactics for these battles. You’ll have a large arena in which to deal with the beast, it will use swipes and dives at you in melee range and its limbs will glow, indicating weak points you should aim for. As always, sticking close to Kaltenzahn is always the best plan of attack, provided you’re good at dodging.

Kaltenzahn will shoot Iceballs at you from range, can release gusts of ice from underneath it that will knock you down, leaving you susceptible to other attacks, and release a mist throughout the entire area that will make it hard to see. As always, filling the Stagger gauge will give you access to the heart when it topples, allowing you to deal massive damage.

The mist aside, Kaltenzahn isn’t overly difficult, especially compared to the other High Dragons that will usually retreat to use more powerful attacks. Once you finally defeat it, a scene will take place as you retreat from the collapsing Lava Caves. You’ll get a choice here that will impact Taash’s Hero of the Veilguard skill and armor too.