Hub 3: Wolf Chapel

''The savagery and cunning of the wolf are worshipped here. To triumph here, one must match the ferocity of the enemies encountered.''

Key puzzle switch
You appear in a room with another set of tripartite portals, which lead to the other two chapels and the Seminary. Venturing out into the open area, you will face numerous centaurs and slaughtaurs. It is a good idea to dispatch the crowd on the plateau before taking on the next swarm in the lowlands ahead. Be aware that there is a staircase connecting the lowlands and plateau, and it is possible for the centaurs to climb up. You must also be wary of slaughtaur shots. By staying on the high ground, you should be able to take them out without difficulty. As you make your way westwards, you will come to another plateau and stairs, and of course more centaurs and slaughtaurs to fight. If you need replenishment, there are crystal vials next to the cliff-face to the northeast of the map. Blue mana containers can be found by the western cliff-face and strewn about.

Having cleared the open terrain of centaurs, it is time to explore and take stock. The map is dominated by a single large, squat, stone building — the Wolf chapel itself. It has barred windows which greet you with strange sights: an execution chamber, and dark bishops waiting quietly in a store-room. The stone doors are sealed shut for now (they must be opened by switches). To the southwest, on the inverted corner by the lowlands, there is a single wooden door by which you can enter. Inside is a small chamber with a bullhead switch, guarded by a few dark bishops. Pulling the switch opens the main entrance, located on the south wall, east of your current location. This leads into the chapels nave, which is heavily guarded by green chaos serpents. It is best to fight them from a distance, and step inside only after most of the crowd is dealt with. Within the nave, there are quartz flasks and combined mana containers to pick up. There are more sealed stone doors, but also a pair of wooden doors which can be opened on the eastern wall. The northeast wooden door leads to a pair of chambers guarded by slaughtaurs; the first holds blue mana, while the second has green mana, fléchettes, and a barred side-entrance. The southeast wooden door is where you must go. Within its chamber are dark bishops guarding a chain switch, the first puzzle switch on this level. Pull it, and you will be told that “one ninth of the puzzle has been solved on the monastery”. In addition, this switch partially unlocks the other two chapels, allowing you to progress further.

Assuming you have not been to the other chapels yet, this is all that can be done for now. You should make your way back east to the tripartite portals. The portal directly facing you leads to the Dragon Chapel, which is the next visit by convention.

Post Dragon Chapel
You will hear some of the stone doors open, providing further access into the chapel. Closest to the portals is the eastern postern, which leads into the chambers with slaughtaurs, mana, and fléchettes; if you have not cleared this area already, you should do so now. Within the pillared nave, the central eastern door has opened, leading into the store-room containing fléchettes and dark bishops, another area to clear. More importantly, the western postern and western nave door are now open, both letting you into a series of inner chambers connected by a corridor. You may take either entrance; the advantage of the postern is that it lets you skip past the pitfall chamber, as well as sneak up on enemies.

Assuming you are taking the main route from the nave, you will first enter a chamber with a deep pit, with dark bishops lurking below. Upon noticing you, they will rise up and attack (clearing the eastern chamber is enough to trigger this). Once these are dealt with (using a ranged weapon), you can proceed. There is a small platform in the midst of the pit which you can hop across, but it’s safer to stick to the ledge running around the perimeter. There is green mana on the far side, and a wooden door to the right/north; this connects to the looping corridor, which is guarded by ettins (as always, try not to get surrounded). There are many more wooden doors on either side of the corridor, and to the left/west you will see the open postern gate. If you entered the corridor via the postern, the southeastern wooden door, second on your right going straight in, leads to the pit. Describing the outer doors as you proceed north from the pit chamber:


 * 1 & 2: a vestry guarded by dark bishops, containing discs of repulsion and mana
 * 3 & 4: an execution chamber with a couple of dark bishops
 * the open postern
 * 5: two connected rooms with pillars containing the puzzle switch

The connected rooms west of the pit chamber, next to the postern, is where you must go. There are more dark bishops, but otherwise, you will reach the puzzle switch easily enough. Pulling it will solve the fourth part of the puzzle (almost halfway there), and that is when things get interesting — a few moments later, the torches light and the pillars lower, unleashing enemies. The switch room will surround you with ettins, while the two pillars in the next room release dark bishops. After the melee, you can pick up blue mana and quartz flasks from the opened pillars. In the second room, the opened northeast pillar will bring you up to an alcove containing an ettin and an Icon of the Defender.

With the switch pulled, your main task in this area is complete. The inner doors of the corridor all lead to the same central area, with ettins, dark bishops, crystal vials, and a fiery altar; clearing this chamber is optional. The postern gate to the west conveniently leads outside.

From here, you may head back to the nave or to the portals. If you have not yet visited the Griffin chapel, you should make for its portal. If you are following the conventional order (and visited all three), you should re-enter the nave via the main entrance and proceed onwards.

Post Griffin Chapel
Back in the pillared nave, the northern stone door has finally opened, unleashing a centaur. Within is a shadowy corridor flanked by a transept, consisting of two side-chambers. The side-chambers to your left and right (east and west) offer goodies, which may be useful for the fight looming ahead. As you enter, ettins burst through the stained glass windows in the ceiling (this scripted event is a fan favorite). There are Discs of Repulsion to pick up, and the lefthand/western chamber has a wooden door. Beyond this is a room with several more ettins, along with a decent cache: crystal vials, two Quartz Flasks, and a combined mana container.

The main corridor is lined with stained glass windows. As you approach the blue mana container, these will shatter, releasing more ettins. I would recommend pulling back to the entrance, so you can mow down the crowd more easily. Behind each window is a quartz flask. Beyond, the corridor leads to a large, open chancel, built like a theater, where the main battle will take place. You are first greeted by a slaughtaur on the steps ahead, with centaurs on the upper and lower tiers on either side. Your best bet is to quickly approach and strike the slaughtaur, and then pull back. This should alert the centaurs and lure them into the corridor, where they can be dispatched more easily; the cleric will find fléchettes useful at this juncture. Be wary of the slaughtaur, its shots are dangerous in close quarters. Once these are dealt with, you can venture into the chancel, where the dark bishops will begin attacking. You should stay on the high ground, maneuvering around the upper tier, relying on a ranged weapon to deal with the dark bishops (though this is still not the main battle).

Once the coast is clear, you should explore a bit. The chancel is large and gloomy, with semicircular tiers overlooking a main staging area, with a staircase descending down the center. There are many goodies to collect, which will help prepare you for the upcoming battle. Along the edge of the tiers is green mana, with blue mana against the wall just below. Out in the open, between the two columns, is more mana along with crystal vials. You will see a Krater of Might situated in a niche on the far wall, but you cannot reach it yet. There is also a strange symbol illuminated on the floor, which will come into play later. The eastern and western triangular columns contain Dragonskin Bracers and a Banishment Device respectively. More importantly, you must reach these triangular platforms to progress. To get there, you must ascend to the upper tier, and make a running leap from the edge onto each platform (the mage can make the jump without using Boots of Speed, although it is tricky). Once you have set foot on both, a message will appear: “one ninth of the puzzle has been solved on the monastery”. You should now drop down to ground level, and prepare for the grand finale, as a host of dark bishops teleports in all around you. At the same time, the symbol on the floor rises up, and the chancel lights up (except for a strange deep shadow cast on the symbol and staircase).

The general strategy for the main battle is to keep moving, keep your distance, use the columns as cover, and hit the dark bishops with the best you have got. To switch sides, you will have to jump over or squeeze past the raised symbol. When the green shots converge on you, you should duck behind a column, and then attack from the other side. As always, make sure not to get surrounded, and do not let the dark bishops get too close. Do not be afraid to use your ultimate weapon here, this is a great opportunity to use maximum firepower, especially since you will be able to refill mana afterwards. Once you have slain the bulk of your enemies, you can switch down to a less powerful ranged attack to mop up the rest. Keeping Quartz Flasks handy is a prudent idea in case you run into trouble.

Once you have emerged victorious, be sure to gather any crystal vials and mana still left over (such as on the raised, darkened symbol). Now that the symbol has risen, you can reach the (previously inaccessible) Krater of Might in its niche and reap your reward. Assuming you have done the other tasks and pulled the puzzle switches, this should complete the chapel. From here, you may simply head back down the corridor, through the nave, and back to the portals. Dive into the portal facing you to return to the Dragon Chapel, where the last piece of the puzzle awaits you.

Player spawns
This level contains eight spawn points:
 * 1) facing west. (thing 254)
 * 2) facing south. (thing 255)
 * 3) facing east. (thing 256)
 * 4) facing south-west. (thing 257)
 * 5) facing south. (thing 379)
 * 6) facing south. (thing 380)
 * 7) facing north-east. (thing 381)
 * 8) facing south. (thing 382)

Things
This level contains the following numbers of things per skill level:

Trivia

 * The illuminated symbol on the northern chancel resembles an inverted 'Church rune' as seen on Silent Refectory.
 * Wolves often appear in mythology and folklore as a metaphor for violence, cruelty, and danger, e.g. the "big bad wolf".
 * Indo-European Paganism associated the wolf with the warrior. In fact, there may have been initiation rituals in which warriors donned wolf-skins, which was believed to impart them with the strength and aggression of the wolf. This in turn might have given rise to the legend of the werewolf. However, the myth may have deeper roots, dating back to the Lykaia festival of Ancient Greece held in Arcadia, which in turn influenced the Roman festival of Lupercalia.
 * In the listing of levels, the Wolf Chapel is map19, separate from the rest of the chapels (maps 14-16). This suggests that the Wolf Chapel was a later addition, perhaps displacing the Deathwind Chapel's role in the second puzzle.