If you’ve spent dozens of hours exploring Enshrouded’s misty valleys and half-buried ancient ruins, you’ve probably stumbled on a few unmarked quests that don’t pop up in your default quest log. a rising tide enshrouded is exactly that kind of hidden content, and most players walk right past its trigger point without even noticing it exists. I missed it twice during my first two playthroughs, only finding it after I started digging into leftover NPC dialogue to fill out my lore collection for a community post I was writing. This guide breaks down every step you need to take to start, finish, and get the most out of this underrated quest.
How to Trigger a Rising Tide Enshrouded Without Spoiling Story Beats
The quest trigger is located in the tiny, unmarked fishing village west of the Revelwood Ancient Spire, perched on a cliff overlooking the northern coastal shroud. You won’t see any quest markers on your map for this location until you talk to the right NPC, so you’ll have to seek it out intentionally. The quest giver is an elderly fisherman named Hals, who stands on the upper wooden dock of the village, staring out at the water.
You don’t need to clear the nearby Shroud area first to unlock the quest, but you do need to complete the main story quest where you rescue the carpenter NPC from the small Shroud dungeon east of the first spire. If you show up to the village before rescuing the carpenter, Hals will only complain about rough tides and refuse to give you any quests. I made that mistake on my first run, showed up at level 8 and left empty handed, only getting the quest prompt when I returned at level 17 after wrapping up the carpenter rescue arc.
Once you talk to Hals with the carpenter unlocked, he’ll explain that his old fishing boat was damaged in a recent Shroud storm, and he needs your help fixing it to retrieve a family heirloom trapped on a sunken buoy offshore. That’s the official start of the quest, and you’ll get a faint grey marker on your map for the relevant locations from that point on.
Key Quest Steps to Avoid Getting Stuck Mid-Playthrough
Once you’ve triggered a rising tide enshrouded, the quest steps are fairly straightforward, but there are a few easy-to-miss details that can leave you stuck for hours if you don’t know what to look for. I’ve broken down the core required steps below, plus a few tricks to speed up your progress:
Enchanted driftwood only spawns during in-game rainstorms, so if you show up to the shoreline on a sunny day, you won’t find any no matter how long you search. For example, I waited around 20 in-game minutes for rain once before I realized I could fast travel to another region and come back to reset the weather, which cuts the wait time down to a minute or two. You don’t have to collect all three driftwood pieces in one trip either, you can store the ones you find and come back for the rest later if the rain stops mid-collection.
Bring at least one fire-based weapon for the scavenger fight, because most of the enemies that spawn during the boat sequence are weak to fire and will go down in 2-3 hits instead of 8-10. I forgot this on my first attempt, used a regular iron sword, and almost died when the third wave spawned two brute Shroud enemies that could knock me off the boat with a single hit. You should also bring 2-3 healing potions, because there’s nowhere to hide on the small boat to regenerate health.
Exclusive Rewards You Only Get for Completing This Quest
Most players don’t even know a rising tide enshrouded exists, so the rewards feel extra special, and a few of them are completely unobtainable anywhere else in the game. The first reward you’ll get is the Tidecaller Amulet, a rare accessory that reduces stamina cost for swimming and gliding by 20% permanently. I use the Tidecaller Amulet on every new playthrough now, it makes crossing the large northern lake to get to the Kindlewastes so much faster, no more stopping to catch my breath mid-swim.
The Tidecaller Amulet can’t be found anywhere else in the game, even in legendary chests or as a drop from world bosses, so it’s a pretty rare flex if you play co-op with friends. You’ll also get 5 rare shimmering fish, which you can use to cook Tide Stew, a food item that gives you a 30% experience boost for 30 minutes. That’s the highest XP boost food in the game right now, and it’s perfect for grinding levels when you’re trying to unlock higher tier crafting recipes.
You can only get the shimmering fish from this quest, they don’t spawn in any fishing spots even if you use the highest tier golden fishing rod. You’ll also unlock a hidden lore entry that explains why the Shroud started spreading along the coastal regions first, which ties into the main story’s reveal about the ancient civilization that used to occupy the land. If you turn in any extra enchanted driftwood you collected, Hals will also give you an extra 100 gold, which is a nice bonus for mid-game players saving up for better base building materials.
Common Mistakes That Lock You Out of This Quest Permanently
There are a few easy mistakes you can make early in your playthrough that will make this quest completely unplayable, and there’s no fix for most of them besides starting a new save. The biggest mistake is fully clearing the northern Revelwood Shroud shoreline before picking up the quest. If you burn all the Shroud roots in that area, the enchanted driftwood stops spawning entirely, and you won’t be able to collect the required materials to progress the quest.
Never fully clear the northern Revelwood Shroud shore before picking up this quest, or you’ll lock yourself out of it permanently. I’ve seen at least 15 posts on the official Enshrouded subreddit from players who accidentally cleared the shoreline before picking up the quest, and the devs haven’t added a way to fix that issue as of the latest patch. Another common mistake is accidentally killing Hals when you’re testing area of effect weapons near the village, since there’s no other NPC that gives this quest.
You also shouldn’t leave the boat fight early to go heal, because if you’re more than 10 meters away from the boat for longer than 10 seconds, the boat will get destroyed by the Shroud enemies, and you’ll have to restart the entire quest from scratch. If you’re struggling with the fight, you can bring a co-op partner to help, the enemies will scale slightly, but having an extra person to fight off the waves makes the sequence way easier.
Hidden quests like this are part of what makes Enshrouded’s world feel so lived in and full of surprises, and a rising tide enshrouded is one of the most rewarding small quests you can complete in the early to mid game. You don’t have to be a high level to finish it, and the rewards will make your entire playthrough much smoother, especially if you love exploring every corner of the map. If you haven’t picked it up yet, swing by the fishing village the next time you’re in the Revelwood area, you won’t regret it.