Corrupted And Upgraded Abilities In Sundered Explained

Wandering a vast wasteland, the mechanic Eshe discovers a cursed temple and is dragged under the sand. She finds herself both trapped and mentored by the Trapezohedron, a sinister crystalline consciousness who desires the ancient eldritch Elder Shards. In Sundered you’ll fight hordes of Lovecraftian monsters and towering bosses in search of these Elder Shards and fragments of them. What you do with them will change Eshe’s fate. Do you imbue yourself with the power of the Elder Shards, fulfilling the Trapezohedron’s plans, or resist and destroy the Elder Shards.

You have two choices with each Elder Shard in Sundered:

1. Take it to an Ability Shrine to upgrade that ability with dark power.
2. Burn it in The Incinerator, winning a bunch of the in-game currency (Shards, but not the Elder kind), plus opening up ability upgrades on the levelling tree in the Sanctuary.

There are seven abilities: The Deflecting Shield, The Leaping Device, The Valkyrie Cannon, The Propulsion Engine, The Strength Amplifier, Gravitational Boots and The Grappling Hook. Each is affected differently by how you choose to spend your Elder Shard.

1. Take the Elder Shard to an Ability Shrine

These powers are corrupting, turning Eshe more and more demoniac, like the Trapezohedron. A big advantage is you can pick and choose which ability to upgrade, by returning to your choice of Ability Shrine.

• The Deflecting Shield: Becomes Mi-go Shield, which deals a radius of damage after Eshe is hit a few times.
• The Leaping Device: Becomes Z’toggua’s Wings, which allows you to glide.
• The Valkyrie Cannon: Becomes corrupted… and more penetratingly powerful.
• The Propulsion Engine: Becomes Azathoth’s Breath, permitting a midair dash in any direction.
• The Strength Amplifier: Becomes Ghatanothoa’s Strength, a chargeable melee attack.
• Gravitational Boots: Becomes Atlach-Nacha’s Grip, allowing you to crawl up walls.
• The Grappling Hook: Becomes Eldritch Pull, giving explosive extra height off attachment points.

2. Burn the Elder Shard in The Incinerator

These powers have a white and gold, luminescent palette. They’re powers aligned against the underground monstrosities and the Trapezohedron. In addition to new Abilities becoming available in the Sanctuary, incinerating Elder Shards gives you a lot of currency shards, which can be spent on the new Ability or other levelling upgrades of your choice. But it comes with a downside: you don’t get to pick your upgrades, they just appear for purchase.

• Dominion’s Curse extends the range and power of critical hits.
• Othaloth’s Demise upgrades Eshe’s dodge roll, damaging ground enemies.
• Choi’s Despair deals extra damage on combo attacks (the third strike in a row).
• Yi-Bot’s Flaw adds damage and cool flames to downward attacks.
• Sael-Yot’s Demise unlocks an extra Perk slot, increasing the max to four.
• Salvation’s Bane upgrades The Leaping Device, adding a triple jump.
• The Purifier upgrades The Valkyrie Cannon, increasing damage with a gout of flame.

To get all the upgrades you’ll need all the Elder Shards. Here’s our guide to the location of every one of ‘em, including the hidden, secret ones.

What you choose to do with your Elder Shards will determine how Sundered ends for Eshe. Three different paths result in three different bosses. If you mix and match the dark and light powers, or don’t find and use every Elder Shard, you’ll face Nyarlathotep. Take every Elder Shard to an Ability Shrine and Eshe will be more fully joined with the Trapezohedron — the last boss becomes her own warped and twisted Humanity. Burn every Elder Shard in the Incinerator to draw out The Shining Trapezohedron itself, an opportunity to end this unholy place once and for all.

But it’s a long road, full of combat and upgrade grinding, before you’re ready to fight those monstrosities. Focus on which abilities you’d prefer, because you’ll be stuck with them. And Sundered is tough. If you need a hand getting strong enough to win the Elder Shards, check out our guide to farming upgrade shards, the main currency in Sundered.