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Unofficial guide · Launch edition · Last checked Confirmed Reported Conflict After unlock

Mandate Encampment guide: Bells, bosses, collectibles and missable tales

Mandate Encampment is the fifth of eight regions, after Pangzhen and before Meigu Lake. Reported · Gamersky PowerPyx counts 60 collectible locations here, and one tale can fail if you beat the last boss too early. Reported · PowerPyx

Dark cavern settlement with warm lantern light, hanging chains and wooden scaffolding stacked around a central tower.
A cavern settlement with hanging chains and scaffolding around a central tower, from the official media gallery. Atmosphere only; the shot is not matched to a named spot in Mandate Encampment. Image: S-GAME / official website media gallery

Spoiler note: this page names bosses, rewards and quests from the middle of the story. Boss names sit in a fold. It does not describe story events.

Quick answers

Do not miss

  • Do the Baishan Sect body step before you beat Yubi, or Secrets of the Baishan Sect fails. Reported · PowerPyx
  • Do not kill the friendly NPCs that turn hostile until you hold the Shattered Hero's Courage. Their Memory Flower drops are described as buggy. Reported · PowerPyx
  • Step into the Training Grounds Depths portal for The Herald's Illusion. Reported · PowerPyx

This is a launch-day page. Only PowerPyx covers this region's collectibles; Fextralife's Mandate Encampment page is empty and Game8 lists only the bosses. Each claim carries its source, and single-source claims say so.

How you get here and how you leave

You arrive from Pangzhen, covered in the Heart's Trail walkthrough. The next stop is Meigu Lake, and the whole map is on map and regions. Sources do not print one agreed chapter name for this region, so we use none here. Conflict · Gamersky

The route · sources
Getting in
PowerPyx's walkthrough starts the region at the Sunset Path Bell, straight ahead after you follow the cave out. Its Pangzhen page lists a Mandate Encampment Outer Gate Key in the well after Gu Wanyue, and the Pangzhen walkthrough ends by pointing on to this region.
Reported · PowerPyx
Key items on the way
Four key items shape the route: four Guardian Idol Fragments (Head, Arm, Torso, Leg), the Mandate Valley Gate Key, Moji's House Key and the Illusory Pipa Backplate.
Reported · PowerPyx
Getting out
PowerPyx ends the region at the Training Grounds Depths Bell, where you only need to enter the portal for The Herald's Illusion and can come back later. It then lists the clean-up visits that wait on later items and moves on to Meigu Lake.
Reported · PowerPyx
Key items · reported
Item Where
Guardian Idol Fragment: Head On the ground beside the giant statue head, just below the stairs after the Sunset Path Bell and the Banyan tree.
Guardian Idol Fragment: Arm On a small shrine after you cross to the right-hand bridge from the Cliffside Walkway Overlook Bell.
Mandate Valley Gate Key On the ground by the archers, up the giant ladder beyond the shrine bridge.
Moji's House Key At the end of the river past the Tower Rear Exit Bell; PowerPyx also uses this spot for a Xue, Admirer of Heroes objective.
Guardian Idol Fragment: Torso In the building to the left of the road below the Road to the Training Grounds Bell.
Guardian Idol Fragment: Leg By the tree in the arena where Wu Lengshuang is fought; with all four it becomes the Guardian Idol.
Illusory Pipa Backplate In the building at the Yubi arena (see the Meigu Lake page for what the pipa is for).

Reported · PC Gamer

Bells in Mandate Encampment

There are 17, and PowerPyx names all of them. See saving and fast travel for how Bells work.

Bells in order · reported
Bell What is here
Sunset Path First Bell, straight ahead out of the cave. Stairs up and a grapple to the right lead to the Banyan tree.
Cliffside Walkway Entrance Up a ladder on the first scaffolding.
Cliffside Walkway Overlook Past the elevator and a wall run. A Blackstone Fragment, an Idol fragment and the Valley Gate Key are close.
Mass Grave Past the locked door; a Memory Flower sits right behind it and a friendly NPC fights below.
Moji's Cenotaph Across the second broken bridge, after the first Xue cave.
Beneath the Watchtower By a barricade; the second watchtower holds a Blackstone Fragment.
Battlefield Ruins Before the Wan Jun fight; a Memory Flower is down the ravine and a Bashpole floor hides a medicine.
Main Encampment Gate Inside the arena where Wan Jun is fought.
Dovecote In the camp. The woman who starts Daughter of the Dark Sect stands here, with flowers and Amber nearby.
Three Towers After the Red fight.
Tower Rear Exit Beside the Chief Disciple arena; the river leads on to Moji's House Key.
Road to the Training Grounds Next to the Idol Torso trail and a Xue objective. Do not rush the Training Grounds boss from here.
Path of the Baishan's Fall After the thumb ring and rooftop fight; an Amber and a Memory Flower follow.
The Confinement End of the ridge, at the Wu Lengshuang arena.
Behind the Encampment Waterfall A buggy Memory Flower NPC and the Hero's Courage material are ahead; a clean-up room is here too.
Training Grounds At the door before the Yubi arena.
Training Grounds Depths The portal for The Herald's Illusion is here.

Reported · PowerPyx Names are PowerPyx's. The notes beside each Bell are our own summary of its walkthrough.

Bosses in Mandate Encampment

Names are in a fold because they are story spoilers. Game8 also lists a Training Grounds Key as a Chief Disciple reward, which PowerPyx does not mention; PowerPyx has you unlock the Training Grounds door from the Bell. PowerPyx's trophy guide marks the Chief Disciple and Yubi optional, and the Steam names for them are on our boss list.

Spoiler · show Mandate Encampment bosses
Bosses · reported
Boss Where Notes
Corpse-Eating Xue Arena after the Mass Grave Bell; beating him starts Xue, Admirer of Heroes Game8 lists no reward. A Memory Flower sits on the plateau beyond the arena.
Wan Jun, The Coppermaul Arena at the Main Encampment Gate Bell Drops the Bashpole Phantom Edge (both guides). The edge breaks the floors that hide extra items.
Red, The Mysterious Swordswoman Above the Dovecote, as the last step of Daughter of the Dark Sect Game8 lists no reward.
Chief Disciple of the Seven-Stars Formation Arena near the Three Towers and Tower Rear Exit Bells Drops Swordsman's Summon (PowerPyx, Game8). Game8 adds a Training Grounds Key. A Memory Flower lies in the arena.
Wu Lengshuang, The Soft Sword Arena at The Confinement Bell Drops the Soft Snake Sword and a Blackstone Fragment (PowerPyx); Game8 confirms the sword.
Yubi, No. 21 Swordfighter Puppet Behind the Training Grounds Bell Drops Baishan Stormswords and the Broken Vessel (both guides). Finish the Baishan Sect body step first, or Secrets of the Baishan Sect fails.

Reported · PowerPyx The Chief Disciple's full name is a Steam achievement. Confirmed · Steam See the boss list for attack notes where we have them.

Side tales and what can fail

Listed by how soon each can go wrong. Full notes are on side tales. The Last of Baishan is a Steam achievement for completing the first one. Confirmed · Steam Community

Tales · reported
Tale Window Reward Flag Status
Secrets of the Baishan Sect Accept it before Bai Chilian; in Mandate Encampment, do the body-in-the-flowers step before beating the Training Grounds boss. The Last of Baishan achievement. Missable Reported · PowerPyx
The Undying Heroic Spirit Do the Pangzhen clean-up before pushing on in Mandate Encampment; do not kill the Memory Flower enemies there until done. Shattered Hero's Courage key item; Hero's Courage tempering material at the end. Not flagged Reported · PowerPyx
The Herald's Illusion Entering the portal is enough for now; PowerPyx lists it among the purple-icon quests due before Mirage Estate. Puppet's Tongue and Crystal Puppet Eye [Yin]. Missable Reported · PowerPyx
Xue, Admirer of Heroes Starts right after that fight; PowerPyx also lists a Pangzhen hand-in for the Sha-Chi Headscarf. Sha-Chi Headscarf (not tied to the tale by PowerPyx). Not flagged Reported · PowerPyx
Daughter of the Dark Sect First visit. Not stated. Not flagged Reported · PowerPyx
The warnings in detail · sources
Baishan Sect and Yubi
Do the Secrets of the Baishan Sect body step (the body in the field of flowers past The Confinement) before beating Yubi. PowerPyx says that killing the Training Grounds boss first fails the tale, and also tells you not to defeat that boss before progressing the tale.
Reported · PowerPyx
Hero's Courage
To collect the Memory Flowers that enemies drop in this region, PowerPyx wants you to take the Shattered Hero's Courage first. You get it in Pangzhen from the Purple-Robed Wolf Leader near the Myst's Tavern Bell, and only after the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Stars Formation has fallen. It calls those drops buggy and advises a backup save.
Reported · PowerPyx
Unconfirmed flower
PowerPyx adds an unnumbered possible Memory Flower: a friendly NPC fighting enemies below Mass Grave apparently drops one, but did not on its run, so it advises waiting until you hold the Shattered Hero's Courage.
Reported · PowerPyx

The endings page lists the quests that must be done before Mirage Estate, including The Herald's Illusion from this region.

People worth knowing

More on merchants and NPCs.

People · reported
Who Where What they do
Xue After the Corpse-Eating Xue fight Starts Xue, Admirer of Heroes (three objectives, hand-in in Pangzhen).
Woman at the Dovecote Bell Talk to her near the building Starts Daughter of the Dark Sect, which ends at the Red fight.
Purple-Robed Wolf Leader Pangzhen, near the Myst's Tavern Bell Gives the Shattered Hero's Courage after the Chief Disciple falls.
Friendly NPCs that turn hostile Mass Grave, Three Towers, the Baishan path and the waterfall Their kills drop Memory Flowers; the drops are described as buggy.

Reported · PowerPyx PowerPyx gives no names for the Dovecote woman. There is no Quick Hand Zhang hideout in this region by PowerPyx's count of 0 treasures.

Collectibles in Mandate Encampment

Counts and the points worth knowing only; the full lists are on their own pages.

PowerPyx header counts · reported
Category Header What the walkthrough names
Bells 17 All 17 named in the walkthrough
Weapons and Phantom Edges 4 4 named
Accessories and medicines 6 5 named; PowerPyx says 1 is missing
Challenge locations 1 The Banyan tree
Sha-Chi Amber Shards 4 3 labelled Amber, 1 labelled Sha-Chi Fragment
Blackstone Shards 4 4 named
Memory Flowers 19 17 numbered; PowerPyx says 2 are missing
Tales 2 2 numbered; two more objectives sit in the route
Tempering materials 3 3 named
Treasures 0 None

Reported · PowerPyx Only PowerPyx prints counts for this region. Fextralife has no Mandate Encampment text yet and Game8 covers only the bosses, so there is no second count to compare. The header reaches 4 Amber only if the fragment it labels 'Sha-Chi Fragment' counts as Amber.

Worth knowing · sources
Amber so far on our list
PowerPyx lists three Mandate Encampment fragments; no second guide covers them yet.
Reported · PowerPyx
Blackstone so far on our list
PowerPyx lists four Blackstone Fragments in Mandate Encampment; no other guide covers the area yet.
Reported · PowerPyx
Banyan tree
The third Banyan tree is near the start of the Mandate Encampment. Both guides agree on the region; only PowerPyx gives the route and the boss.
Reported · PowerPyx
Tempering materials
Three tempering materials are listed: Plain Sword Tassel, Hero's Courage and Enhanced Chainsaw.
Reported · PowerPyx

Our Amber list shows three fragments here; the fourth in PowerPyx's header is the one at the Path of the Baishan's Fall Bell, after you defeat the enemies that come out of the tree. Full lists: Sha-Chi Amber Fragments, Blackstone Fragments, Memory Flowers, Banyan's Hearts and the collectibles overview. Reported · PowerPyx

Weapons, Phantom Edges and accessories

Where each one comes from, in our own words. Effects and upgrades are on weapons, Phantom Edges and accessories.

Weapons and Phantom Edges · reported
Item Type Where
Bashpole Phantom Edge Reward for Wan Jun, The Coppermaul.
Swordsman's Summon Phantom Edge Reward for the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Stars Formation.
Soft Snake Sword Weapon Reward for Wu Lengshuang, The Soft Sword.
Baishan Stormswords Weapon Reward for Yubi, No. 21 Swordfighter Puppet.

Reported · PowerPyx Both guides give every one of these as a boss reward. Steam spells the twin blades Baishan Stormsword (singular); PowerPyx writes Stormswords. Soft Snake Sword and Baishan Stormsword are on Steam's achievement list, the Bashpole too.

Accessories and medicines · reported
Item Where
Phantom Remedy (medicine) Break the floor with the Bashpole near the Battlefield Ruins Bell and go down the stairs.
Nameless Thumb Ring Chest upstairs in the building below the Road to the Training Grounds Bell.
Guardian Idol Combine the four Guardian Idol Fragments; the last (Leg) is by the tree in the Wu Lengshuang arena.
Broken Vessel Reward for Yubi.
Lament Draught (medicine) By the balcony upstairs in the Yubi building, next to a Memory Flower.

Reported · PowerPyx PowerPyx itself says one accessory or medicine is still missing from its page. Single source.

What we're checking

Questions

How many collectibles are in Mandate Encampment?

PowerPyx's header counts 60 collectible locations: 17 Bells, 4 weapons and Phantom Edges, 6 accessories and medicines, 1 challenge location, 4 Sha-Chi Amber Shards, 4 Blackstone Shards and 19 Memory Flowers. Its walkthrough names only 17 flowers and 5 accessories and medicines, and says the rest are missing. It is the only guide with counts for this region.

Reported · PowerPyx
What can you miss in Mandate Encampment?

Finish the Secrets of the Baishan Sect body step before you beat Yubi, or the tale fails. Hold off killing the friendly NPCs that turn hostile until you have the Shattered Hero's Courage, because PowerPyx calls their Memory Flower drops buggy. Enter the Herald's Illusion portal before you move on, as PowerPyx lists it among the quests due before Mirage Estate.

Reported · PowerPyx
Where is the Banyan tree in Mandate Encampment?

From the Sunset Path Bell go up the stairs and grapple onto the cliff on the right. The tree is in the middle of that area, and PC Gamer also puts it near the start of the region. PowerPyx says the trial ends with a rematch against Iron Fiend and Stone Hand, Iron Fever.

Reported · PowerPyx
How do you get the Guardian Idol accessory?

Collect the four Guardian Idol Fragments (Head, Arm, Torso, Leg). PowerPyx finds the first beside the giant statue head near the start, the second on a small shrine past the Cliffside Walkway Overlook Bell, the third in the building below the Road to the Training Grounds Bell and the last by the tree in Wu Lengshuang's arena.

Reported · PowerPyx

Sources and checks

Official and store pages

Press, reviews and data sites