There are a lot of hidden secrets scattered across the vast world of Horizon Forbidden West. Relic Ruins are some of the biggest puzzle areas that players will encounter and, although some of them are tough to complete, their XP rewards are worth it for those looking to expand their abilities through the game’s elaborate skill tree.
There are nine Relic Ruins in total with the first becoming available to the player in the early hours of the game once Aloy arrives in the Daunt. It’s worth pointing out that some Relic Ruins will require the player to have unlocked specific gear, so if they don’t have it when they first discover them, there’s no penalty for playing on until the gear is acquired and coming back later.
This guide is a work in progress, check back later for more puzzle solutions!
More Horizon Forbidden West guides:
Explorer and Guided Mode Explained | Horizon Forbidden West Difficulty Trophies | ‘Reached the Daunt’ Trophy Guide | How to Get God of War Face Paint | Best Skills to Get First | Relic Ruins Locations and Puzzle Solutions | How to Upgrade the Resource Pouch | All Tallneck Locations
Relic Ruins: The Daunt
The first Relic Ruins are located in the Daunt, just south of Chainscrape. Enter the ruins from the north and push the crate deeper into the structure so that Aloy can climb onto it and grab the yellow handhold on the outcropping on the right. Aloy will remark that the door before her is locked and that she needs a key. Exit to the balcony to the left of the door and continue on the path.
Jump to the next balcony and drop below into the main area of the next room to the left of the balcony. After dropping down, scan the data point and get the code, 1705, for later. Use the Pullcaster to grab the crate from the floor above and then use it again on the ventilation shaft on the opposite wall and the metal beam next to it. Push the crate so that Aloy can climb onto the beam and then into the ventilation shaft. Crawl through and then jump down into the next room.
After falling into the next room, turn around and use the Pullcaster to destroy the wall, linking the two rooms together. Turn around and drop into the basement and follow the winding hallway until Aloy hits a dead end. From there, use the Pullcaster again on the ceiling to open a space for the crate from the previous room. Run back upstairs and push the crate into the newly created hole in the ground.
Push the crate down the hall towards the yellow handhold on the far end. The hold is easily reached by Aloy without the crate, but as soon as she grabs it, it breaks and can’t be used. Jump onto the crate and then follow the climbing path until Aloy is on the roof. Jump down to the balcony to the left and grab the key. Return to the locked door with the key in hand and enter the code 1705 from before to open the ruins.
Relic Ruins: No Man’s Land
The next ruins are located to the southwest of Barren Light. Enter the ruins from the southeast and go to the open area with a crate tucked away in a broken section of the wall. Grab the crate with the Pullcaster and then push it to the opposite corner underneath a yellow climbable railing. Jump on the crate and use it to get Aloy to the roof of the structure.
Run around the roof to the left and ignite the Firegleam that’s attached to the wall. Once it’s blown a hole into the wall, drop down into the room with water in the center. From there, use the Pullcaster on the wall (the Pullcaster area should be partially submerged underwater) to make another hole. Enter the hole, run to the right and follow the hallway until Aloy reaches another Firegleam which she should ignite.
Grab the energy canister from the now exposed room and take it back to the room with the water. Bring it to the charging station in the right corner and leave it there. Use the Pullcaster to make it to the floor above the charging station and enter the room on the wall opposite of where the charging station was. Players will see a crate partially exposed which they should grab with the Pullcaster.
After moving the crate closer to Aloy, leave the room and go back into the larger room with the water. Don’t jump back down, instead, use the Pullcaster to grab the now moveable crate on the opposite side of the room and drag it across the floor and into the water below. Follow the crate and jump down into the water as well.
Push the crate so that it’s next to the charging station and then place the fully charged energy canister on top of the crate. Push the crate with the canister on top of it to the other side of the room and then grab the canister from the top. Put the energy canister into the slot and then scan the data point for the door code, 2204.
Push the crate to the opposite end of the wall that had the charging station on it where the player should see some yellow railings for Aloy to climb on. Climb up, drop to the ground below, then enter the code, 2204, and use the key.
Relic Ruins: Restless Weald
The Restless Weald Relic Ruins are located to the northwest of the Plainsong settlement. Go to the northern end of it and push the Railcar away from the building to the end of its track. Leave the car and then use the switch which changes the direction of the tracks. Return to the Railcar and push it back towards the ruins. Once the Railcar has been pushed as far as it can go, jump on top of it and then climb onto the building.
Jump to the large yellow rope and walk across it to the next section of the ruins. The key is on the structure connected to the yellow rope on the far side after Aloy finishes walking across. Grab it, then jump off the structure to the southwest and find a ladder that needs to be knocked down with an arrow. Knock it down and then use the environment to platform over to it and climb onto the next level.
Scan the data point directly next to the door for the number code, 1923, and use the code and the key to open the door. Once it opens, jump and grab the yellow zipline and fall into the next section.
Once in the new area, ignite the Firegleam on the far wall and leave the ruins. Go back to where Aloy left the Railcar and push it all the way to the end of its track again away from the ruins. Use the switch once more to change the track and push the car into the newly-opened hole in the wall. Jump on top of the Railcar and use the railings to jump across the gap to grab the Ornament.
Relic Ruins: Dry Yearn
The Dry Yearn Relic Ruins are located to the west of Plainsong across the mountains. Enter the ruins from the east and immediately activate the Vine Cutter Module on the left side of the room. This will dissolve the vines revealing a crate that Aloy should grab and pull into the main, large room. Push the crate to the far west wall, deeper into the ruins until it can’t go any farther. Jump onto it and use the crate to get to the next level by turning around and climbing up.
Use the yellow crank on the platform to open the giant metal door and then quickly run down into the next room before the door closes. Once inside, keep running and use the Pullcaster on the far wall to open up a hole revealing a Railcar. Pull the Railcar as far as it can go towards the door that just closed and use the Pullcaster to pull down the three metal beams on the northern wall next to the now-closed door. Jump on the Railcar and then to and across the bars to find the key.
With the key in hand, jump back onto the Railcar and to the platform with the locked door and use the key to open it. Enter the next room and use the Pullcaster to open the vent. Crawl through the vent until Aloy eventually needs to kick open another vent revealing a small room with Firegleam on one wall. Ignite it, then go through the hole and use the yellow crank from before to open the giant metal door again. Run to the next room once more but move the Railcar so that it braces the door open.
In the second room, jump on top of the railcar and then climb the yellow railings on the metal door up and to the left. The player will find one more wall that can be broken using the Pullcaster. Break it, then follow its path until the player finds the Ornament at its end.
Relic Ruins: The Stillsands
The Stillsands Relic Ruins are located in the southwestern deserts of Horizon Forbidden West‘s map. Enter the ruins from the north and rappel down into the large main room. Walk forward and use the Pullcaster to grab the crate from the ledge to the left. Push the crate to the northwest corner of the room and ignite the Firegleam to reveal another room. Push the crate into the newly opened room.
Once inside, jump on the crate and up to the ledge above where the player will see a yellow crank. Turn the crank, then jump back down to the floor below as water starts rushing in. Aloy will remark how the water isn’t able to rise because of the drain, so push the crate into the drain slot on the wall and let the water fill the area.
Swim back into the main room and head towards the staircase on the eastern wall. The stairs are buried in sand a handful of steps up, but the ruins’ key will be waiting for the player halfway up in the sand. Turn around and swim back to the northwest corner to the locked door. Use the key to open it and then pull the crate that’s inside the newly opened room into the water of the main room. Swim across the room to the broken escalator and, once you’re standing on solid ground, use the Pullcaster to bring the crate towards you.
Continue on the solid ground south and use the Pullcaster once more to move the floating crate to you until it goes as far as it can towards the southern wall. Jump on the crate and then off it to reach a yellow railing on the southern balcony above Aloy. Continue climbing all the way to the top of the building where the Ornament sits.
Relic Ruins: Runner’s Wild
The Runner’s Wild Relic Ruins are located to the southwest of the IOTA Cauldron on the north edge of the map. Enter the ruins from the northwest and use the Pullcaster to pull down the crate sitting on a ledge on the southern end of the structure. Hop onto the crate and use it to climb to the yellow railing above it. Climb up the building and then around its left side until dropping down into a moss-covered brick room.
Ignite the Firegleam on the southwest wall and pull the crate on the other side into the mossy room. From there, use the Pullcaster to rip down the other wall in the room and continue pushing the crate northwest. Once it hits the far wall, jump onto the crate and then onto yellow railings and climb onto the roof of the structure. Push the new crate on the roof down to the wooden shingles below and then down again into the starting area. Jump down with it and turn around and push the newly dropped crate into the nook, flat against the raised level mossy area.
Jump up to the raised level and use the Pullcaster to tear down the northeast wall revealing the original crate. Push the first crate on top of the second crate and pull both of them up the ramp on the opposite side of the room and into the room where Aloy ignited the Firegleam earlier. Now, she can climb up both crates and reach some yellow railings. Climb all the way up the structure to the key which sits in the room above. Pick it up and then head back downstairs.
Push the stacked crates all the way down the northeastern hallway and then double back to the broken section of the east wall in the hallway that Aloy just pushed the crates down. Climb over it and then use the key to open the locked door. Go inside the room and use the Pullcaster to destroy the southwest wall. Pull the top crate into the room and then back out the previously locked door.
Continue pushing the crate forward and up the ramp opposite the door until the floor evens out. Jump up onto the crate and climb the yellow railings on the wall of the structure all the way up. The Ornament sits inside the topmost room.
Relic Ruins: The Long Coast
The Long Coast Relic Ruins are south of the Stand of the Sentinels Tallneck. Enter the ruins from the south and find a pool of knee-high, rust-colored water. From there, climb the ledge to the east and find the yellow railing on the northeast wall of the building. Climb up it onto a rusted walkway. Follow the path the walkway sets forth and then jump onto the yellow pegs sticking out of the wall at the end of the walkway. Climb the pegs to the right until Aloy grabs onto a yellow railing at the end of the pegs. Shimmy all the way to the right and then jump down into the room with the Firegleam below.
Ignite the Firegleam and enter the next room. Turn around and look into the room Aloy just left: there should be an opening in the wall that reveals a switch. Use the Pullcaster to throw the switch and then head deeper into the room that the Firegleam opened. Look up for a grapple point that the Pullcaster can latch onto and then zip to it. From there, jump across to a new moss-covered rusted ledge.
Aloy remarks about the crate on the ledge and should then use her Pullcaster to drag the crate off of the ledge, dropping it to the ground below. Drop down with the crate and then push it off the western ledge down into the water from before. After pushing it down, jump over it and swim to the solid ground to the west of the now floating crate. Use the Pullcaster to bring the crate towards Aloy and then continue pushing it west up the ramp and through the open door directly behind her.
Once inside the room, push the crate onto the lift that’s tucked away on the left side, unfortunately, there’s no power. Luckily, Aloy can fix that. Leave the elevator area and head to the northern end of the room, climbing all the way up the stairs to the right. At the top, she’ll find a fully charged battery which she’ll need to bring all the way back down to the lift. Quickly put the battery in the slot and then hop on the elevator and press the button to make it rise.
Push the crate out of the elevator a little way and then leave it to jump over the destroyed wall on the right. Continue to the right until finding yellow climbing holds: have Aloy climb all the way to the top of the structure. At the top of the tower, walk to the other side and to the edge of an Assassin’s Creed-style perch that sticks out from it. Jump off the perch and use the glider to head to the east. Glide eastward to a lonely crate down below.
In the area with the crate, turn to the western wall and ignite the Firegleam on it. Push the crate through the newly formed hole in the wall and off the ledge into the elevator room from before. Jump down with it, call the elevator, and load the crate into the lift. Before sending it up, run up the stairs to the second level and jump to the first abandoned crate. Push it into the open elevator shaft so that it lands on the roof of the lift. Jump back down and ride the elevator up with the second crate. Push the second crate out of the doors, then jump onto it.
Using the crate’s added height, grab onto the yellow railing and have Aloy pull herself up to the roof of the elevator that has the first crate on it. Climb onto that crate and then up to more yellow climbing holds. Climb all the way to the top of the structure and then grab the Ornament.
Relic Ruins: Isle of Spires
The Isle of Spires Relic Ruins are located on the far west island. Enter them by climbing up the side of the structure zipping to a grapple point on the northeast side of the building with the Pullcaster. Climb all the way up and walk into the building. Head to the southwest, past the powered-down elevator, and down the hall. Then turn to the right and continue down the hall past two doorways on Aloy’s left. Turn left into the final doorway and walk past the other battery receiver into a room with a ceiling vent. Use the Pullcaster to open the vent, then climb into it.
Crawl through the vents until dropping down into a room with a battery charger and Firegleam on one wall. Ignite it and head through the open hole. Make something of a U-turn and go into the room directly next to the Firegleam room on the north side. Pick up the drained battery inside and take it to the charger in the Firegleam room. Once charged, quickly take the battery to the elevator and power it up. Enter the lift and head down.
Leave the elevator and walk to the southern wall of the room. Turn to Aloy’s right and use the Pullcaster to grab a floating crate and bring it towards her. Pull the crate back towards the elevator and then push it west into the other pool of water in the room. Swim to the western shore and, once on solid ground, use the Pullcaster to once again drag the crate towards Aloy. Hop on the crate and then look to the south wall: there should be an opening in it revealing a locked ladder. Use an arrow while standing on the crate to knock the ladder down by shooting through the hole in the wall.
Jump back to the west platform and activate the Vine Cutter Module to clear away vines blocking Aloy’s path. Walk through the opening created by removing the vines and swim towards the newly downed ladder. Climb the ladder and then the yellow handholds, jumping across the way to the platform behind Aloy that has the Ruins’ key. Snag the key and then jump back into the water and swim west.
Once in the bigger room filled with water, swim to the locked door on the eastern wall and use the key to open it. Scan the purple data point next to the door and use the code 2109109 to open the door and grab the Ornament.
