Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is a cRPG by Owlcat Games and an indirect sequel to the studio’s previous work, Pathfinder: Kingmaker. The game thrusts players in the midst of a century-long war against the demons of Abyss that pour from the Worldwound.
In addition to gathering a ragtag party of misfits and leading a massive Crusade against the demonic hordes, players will get to learn more about the conflict itself, including the many secrets lost during the bloody battles of the Four Crusades.
One of those secrets is a relic dating all the way to the Fourth Mendevian Crusade: a holy sword named Radiance that belonged to a heroine named Yaniel. Ironically, it is unlocked at the very beginning of the game, just past the prologue, but your journey to bring the weapon to its maximum potential will span almost the entirety of the game.
If you miss a step, you will not be able to continue upgrading the sword so make sure to bring Radiance along to corresponding areas!
TL/DR:
- Acquire Radiance in the Shield Maze (prologue) – button combination is Yellow, Blue, Red, Yellow
- Talk to Joran Vhane outside Defender Heart’s Inn before storming the Gray Garrison (Act I)
- Talk to Joran Vhane in Drezen Citadel during the siege (Act II)
- Show the sword to Yaniel in Midnight Fane (Act III)
- Take Radiance with you to Iz (Act V)
Acquiring Radiance – Shield Maze, Prologue
When the demon lord Deskari comes to crush the party in Kenabres, our motley crew of a mythic hero, a half-elf shaman and a paladin of Iomedae find themselves stuck in the caves underneath the city. The way out lies through the aptly named Shield Maze, a half-ruined series of passages and catacombs infested with cultists, demons and feral mongrels.
Accompanied by your new mongrel party member, you will enter Shield Maze to experience the first true taste of Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. Shortly after, you can find four portraits on one of the walls – they could be easily overlooked as simple decorations if not for the fact that two portraits repeat.
Remember that combination of colors: Yellow, Blue, Red, Yellow, and continue crawling through the dungeon. You can find the puzzle itself at the upper left part of Shield Maze. Simply press the buttons in the correct order, and proceed through the opened hidden door to claim your prize.
Seelah, your Paladin companion, will immediately recognize Radiance and offer you a short overview of its history. Pick the item up, wrap your business in the Maze and venture forth.
Once you exit the map, you will never be able to return to the Shield Maze so make sure to explore the area thoroughly! Kenabres awaits!
Scabbard for Radiance – Talking to Joran Vhane in Kenabres
Once you are done with the Shield Maze, you will find yourself fighting your way out of the Gray Garrison and then eventually stopping at the relative safety of the Defender’s Heart Inn. The location will serve as your hub in Kenabres and house your companions, a few vendors, an NPC that allows you to re-spec and more.
Outside, you can find a dwarven blacksmith named Joran Vhane. Show him Radiance, and he will promise to make a new scabbard for the sword. Note that this interaction doesn’t actually upgrade Radiance at that moment but it is required to proceed further.
Once you save him, you can also show Radiance to the Storyteller to learn more about the sword and its previous wielder, the half-elf crusader named Yaniel.
Radiance-wise, there is nothing else to do in Kenabres. Simply progress through the Burning City, recruit your available companions, unlock a variety of Mythic Paths, commence the attack on the Gray Garrison and decide the fate of the Wardstone to proceed. Don’t forget to grab the Elven Notes while you are fighting through the Gray Garrison!
Acquiring Radiance +2 – Talking to Joran Vhane in Drezen Citadel
Your first chance to actually upgrade the sword comes during the siege of Drezen at the very end of Act II. Fight your way through the city and its demonic occupants to enter the keep and proceed deeper inside.
Having followed his traitorous brother, Joran Vhane found his way into the Drezen Keep. And even though you now fight for the opposite sides, he will still give you the scabbard he promised when prompted, bringing the sword one step closer to its full potential. There is no way to avoid fighting the proud dwarf, so your path forward lies across Joran’s corpse. As far as Act II is concerned, you are all done. Wrap up the Siege of Drezen, recover the Sword of Valor and claim your destiny.
While you are exploring the keep, you will also run into “Yaniel” and will be able to show her the sword for a bit of flavor.
Note: PF: WotR patch 1.3.0 allows players to upgrade Radiance with the scabbard even if the sword is not on the characters:
- We added the possibility to improve Radiance with the scabbard made by Joran Vhane for the cases when you left the sword in your personal chest before meeting him. For those who have missed this upgrade, it will be applied retroactively if you haven’t gone to Midnight Fane yet.
Getting Radiance +4 – Talking to Yaniel in Midnight Fane
The next upgrade for Radiance comes at the very end of Act III, during the main quest “On the Cusp of the Abyss”. The Mythic hero, their party and Queen Galfrey will need to take on the Midnight Fane, a rift into the Abyss located deep underneath Drezen.
As you explore the dungeon, you will run into Minagho and a number of Crusaders that have been imprisoned and tortured by demons. Among them you will find Yaniel, the previous owner of Radiance and a heroine of the Crusades.
If you have not missed previous upgrades, Radiance will power up again when given to her. The half-elf will make a comment about the sword and return its upgraded version to you.
Or, remembering your lesson from Drezen where you already met a “Yaniel”, you can use the sword to kill her and receive an entirely different upgrade for it, corrupting the sword in the process. Check out the screenshots below to compare the two versions of the sword.
Getting Radiance +6 – The Final Upgrade (Iz)
The final upgrade to Radiance comes during one of the main quests of Act V, Heart of the Fallen Land. Once you wrap your business in Iz, you get a chance to face the demon lord Deskari.
Bringing the sword along is enough to trigger the last upgrade. If you had it equipped, be warned – after the upgrade it will automatically land in your inventory, so slap it back into the appropriate character’s hand!
This is it, your journey to acquiring Radiance +6 is complete.
