Deepwoken Depths Layer 2 Floor 1

Layer 2 is the Depths endgame wing beneath Scyphozia. Floor 1 — the Ethironal Shrine / Eternal Gale route — is where most players earn Kyrsan Medallions, Gale Wax, Union tools, Ethiron’s Gaze, and the confidence to push New Kyrsa later. This guide focuses on Floor 1 essentials: how to enter with a Light Hook, what to prepare after a Layer 1 escape, how to move as a party, and how loot / wipe rules actually work. Pair it with Depths Escape, Lives, Wipes, and Echoes, and Farming.

Entry methods and Light Hook

Castle Light (recommended) — At Power 15+, talk to Klaris Llfiend, Mother of Lights in Castle Light. She sends up to five players down with a Light Hook. While the hook has charge, dying ejects you to Layer 1 instead of wiping. Manual hook use also ejects you but deletes chest loot from that run (enemy drops such as claws or schematics are often exceptions). Fresh hooks start around 20 minutes of protection. Time out of Layer 2 recharges the hook; completing a floor via Klaris’s retrieval hook refreshes it fully. Delving deeper toward New Kyrsa can clamp remaining time (commonly down toward 10 minutes) — read the hook tooltip before you commit.

Void entry — Jumping a void threshold can drop you into Layer 2 without Klaris insurance. Higher risk, sometimes used by veterans for routing or XP rules. Do not void enter on a stained life while learning.

Ignition Union Deepdrill — Origin-gated faster routing from Chariot Spire. Powerful for repeats once you know Floor 1 cold; not the teaching path.

Learn Castle Light first. Every other method assumes you already survive Gale winds, parasites, and Chaser.

The ESSENTIAL Guide to BEATING Layer 2 Floor 1

Preparation after Layer 1 escape

Before your first serious Floor 1:

1. Stabilize a Power 15+ PvE-capable kit with sustain and mobility — see Builds.
2. Clear enough Depths Escape reps that Cathedral routing is muscle memory.
3. Bank food, medical tools, and anti-insanity options from Lives, Wipes, and Echoes habits.
4. Empty junk inventory so medallions, journals, and Gale Wax can be picked up.
5. Agree on party roles: caller, loot lead, parasite watcher, Chaser bait.
6. Confirm everyone understands hook rules — one panicked manual hook can wipe the run’s chest value.

Optional goals for early clears: Union Hook talent, Ethiron’s Gaze, Diver Journals, Gale Wax crafting unlocks (Wormwater Lantern, Delver’s Boots), and Deepshore Fossil turn-ins for Klaris. You do not need every side objective on attempt one.

Floor 1 essentials

Expect a key climb near spawn, gated interiors, wind pressure, parasite timers, and named objectives scattered across the shrine exterior and caves. Core landmarks players hunt:

• Key and door sequence — Do not wander into elite dens before the route opens.
• Galewax Room — Side value for wax and tiny chests that can roll Enchant Stones.
• Union Hook / Ignition NPCs — Talent and Origin progression.
• Ethiron’s Gaze / spear style unlocks — Build-defining for some kits.
• Firfire Village — Bloodrend trainer access after Chaser credit (see Players: Attunements).
• Generators, Bonekeeper, Frontier Furnace — Progression nodes toward Chaser and Deepdrill paths.

Chaser is the Floor 1 climax for most Castle Light runs. Defeat him, then either take Klaris’s retrieval hook with loot or drop deeper toward Floor 2 / New Kyrsa if your hook budget and skill allow. Deeper delves are a separate skill ceiling — master Floor 1 loops before you ego into Scion timing.

Parasites stack toward a kill timer. Cleanse or hook before the fifth stacks your panic. Strong winds punish greed near cliffs — move with the caller, not the loot sparkle.

Party tips

• Cap parties at Klaris’s limit and fill with people who already escaped Layer 1 cleanly.
• Assign one player to watch parasite counts and hook timers out loud.
• Split only on known safe forks; reunites waste minutes and hook charge.
• Let the weakest PvE player hold the Light Hook discipline talk before drop.
• Do not start Chaser if two players are already dying to trash — reset via hook while charge remains.
• Share medallion ethics before the run (who loots which chests) to avoid after-fight drama.

Solo Floor 1 is possible for experienced delvers. Learning solos should still happen with hook charge and a build that can self-peel parasites.

Loot, farms, and why Floor 1 matters

Kyrsan Medallions from Floor 1 / 2 loops convert at Klaris into Enchant Stones — the backbone of Enchanting and the reason Layer 2 is the best long-term farm for many accounts. Gale Wax, schematics, and talent unlocks also gate comfortable repeats. Treat early runs as tuition: even a hook escape with journals and one talent learned is a win.

Common Floor 1 failures

• Entering below Power 15 without understanding void risk
• Ignoring hook recharge and dropping on a near-empty timer
• Manual hooking with a full inventory of unbanked chest loot
• Chasing side rooms until parasites max
• Starting Chaser while stained and tilted from Layer 1
• Bringing a pure Chime glass kit with no PvE sustain

Suggested first-week plan

1. Escape Layer 1 until it feels boring.
2. Drop Castle Light with friends, learn key path, leave via hook if needed.
3. Repeat until Chaser is consistent.
4. Add Galewax and journal objectives.
5. Convert medallions into stones and upgrade the PvE weapon.
6. Only then plan Floor 2 / New Kyrsa timing.

Layer 2 Floor 1 is a course, not a coin flip. Prepare from Layer 1, respect the Light Hook, move as a unit, and let medallion income fund the rest of your account.