Ice Cave

Last updated: Exalt Version 2.2.0.1 (Dec 2021)
Ice Cave
Difficulty: 5Difficulty: 5Difficulty: 5Difficulty: 5Difficulty: 5

The Ice Cave is a high-level dungeon that drops from the Lord of the Lost Lands. The dungeon is a source of Potions of Mana and the Esben Necromancer UT Set.

When all major enemies are killed, it opens into The Inner Sanctum of the boss, Esben the Unwilling. Both areas feature ice tiles which make characters slide.

In Patch X.25.0.0 (Apr 2018), the dungeon received a major overhaul which redesigned the map, changed enemy behaviors, and added two new enemies.

This dungeon must be completed to earn ‘Explosive Journey‘, ‘Conqueror of the Realm‘, ‘Hero of the Nexus’ and ‘Realm of the Mad Godfame bonuses.

The Realm Eye says:
The frigid beasts that thrived during the realm’s great ice age eons ago were forced to take shelter in forming caverns of pure permafrost.
As the frozen tundra began to melt, an elder shaman from one of the many wasteland tribes became lost in the caves while performing a burial ritual.

Key

Ice Cave Key The Ice Cave Key is available in the Nexus for 100 Realm Gold.

Guide

See the Ice Cave Guide for a complete walk-through on the dungeon and all its enemies.

Contents


Layout

The dungeon is a linear series of irregular circular “rooms”. There can be 1-2 “segments” in each instance, and player will randomly spawn at the beginning on a segment and work their way towards the center room with snow floor tiles. The floor entirely consists of slippery ice with streaks of damaging Tearing Frost. The walls consist of irregular ice formations. Upon entering A Strange Presence will say: “Kill the large ones… open the way… they are meaningless…”

Ice Cave Example Layout

• 1 Segment


• 2 Segments


Note: light blue areas on map contain Tearing Frost. There is no Tearing Frost in the Inner Sanctum (see below; the light blue pixels are blocks).

The Inner Sanctum Example Layout

When all major enemies (Big Yetis, Snow Bat Mamas, Iceions, and Lizicles) are killed, A Strange Presence will say: “Innocent souls. So delicious. You have sated me. Now come, I shall give you your reward.” and reveal the portal to the Inner Sanctum in the central room with snow tiles. Esben the Unwilling appears in the center, surrounded on the cardinal sides by breakable ice cubes that serve as barriers to his shots. Eight Cursed Graves lie in a circle by the perimeter of the room. Back to top

Screenshots

Ice Cave   Esben the Unwilling


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Enemies and Environmental Hazards

Ice Cave Enemies

Ice Cave Environmental Hazards

The Inner Sanctum Enemies

The Inner Sanctum Environmental Hazards

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Boss


When Esben is killed, A Voice from Beyond says one of the following dialogue:

“FOOLS! I WILL LIVE AGAIN. Esben was just one mortal. There are many.”
“Thank you for this kindness, friends. I am free now. Take of what I have left. I hope it is enough.”
“Why don’t you have a look in that chest? Nothing cursed in there…”

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Drops of Interest

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Daily Quests

The Ice Cave is part of the Mighty Quest pool from the Tinkerer and has three associated quests.

Name Description Items Needed Reward
The Unwilling Defeat Esben the Unwilling in the Ice Cave. Mark of EsbenMark of EsbenMark of EsbenMark of Esben Mighty Quest Chest
Unsettling Foes Defeat these creepy combatants for a prize! Mark of Parasitic HorrorsMark of Parasitic HorrorsMark of EsbenMark of Davy Jones
Long Forgotten Many forgot about these ancient foes. Aye, but not me! Mark of EsbenMark of EsbenMark of GebMark of Geb

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History

The Ice Cave was added to the game in Release 27.0.0, and was the first dungeon in a long time to add a new mechanic to the game which was the slide effect on ice tiles. Some of the enemies in the dungeon was also unused content from 2012 that was finally put to use when this dungeon released.

The Ice Cave used to have this example layout before it was reworked:


The Inner Sanctum used to have this example layout before it was reworked:

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The mechanics of the dungeon remained the same, in that players needed to kill all major enemies to spawn the portal to the boss, although Iceions, Lizicles, and Tearing Frost did not exist in the original. Once the snowy room was found, many players would often remain in the room (referred as the “leech pad” by the community) while only a small number of players cleared enemies.

Before Exalt Version 2.3.2.0 (June 2022), the Ice Cave and Inner Sanctum had a difficulty rating of 4.5.

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