Much like Horizon Zero Dawn, Horizon Forbidden West opens with a relatively small open-world area for players to explore. With passage to the Forbidden West inaccessible until Aloy has set in motion The Embassy between the Carja and Tenakth clans, players are encouraged to fully explore this small slice of the world before heading further west.
One side quest that the players can complete in Horizon Forbidden West can be found at the Crimson Narrows mine, in a small alcove to the northeast of Chainscrape. Here, players can find Korvud, the foreman, who tells Aloy that the mine has flooded and that two workers remain trapped in the ruins. It’s Aloy’s job to rescue the miners and drain the mine of water. This guide will escort players through the flooded mine in order to complete the quest.
Finding the Missing Miners
Enter the cavern in the cliff-face and crouch through the left passage. From here, players will encounter the flooded section of the mine; enter the water, and dive down, heading around the rock pillar and down either the left or right tunnel. While submerged, players can see yellow bars jutting out from the floor that Aloy can grab on to; use these to propel her through the water to quickly reach the end of the tunnel.
Surface to see a collapsed wooden walkway, atop which are some bickering miners sat on a crate next to a brazier. These are the two missing workers, some colorful new characters in Horizon Forbidden West, called Thorden and Lokuf; they tell Aloy that the only way to drain the mine is to find and ignite an explosive-filled minecart to clear the drainage blocking rubble.
Reaching the Minecart
After talking to the duo and getting the fuses from them, head left and into the water, propelling Aloy through another tunnel and up onto another walkway with a beam. Players can see the minecart on some broken tracks high above water level.
Swim across to the walkway under the tracks and jump up to a short ladder directly under the cart. Turn left and jump across some beams into a tight passageway leading into a large cavern.
Here are three Burrowers that can be taken out or avoided. Players can dive beneath the machines or shoot Concealing Omen mushrooms to avoid detection. Burrowers are weak to Fire damage, and their eye, resource canister, and soundshell are all excellent spots to target.
At the far end of the cavern are more broken tracks that the player can jump across using Forbidden West's improved climbing mechanics. Follow the path right and climb up into another narrow passageway. Crouch around to the left and drop down next to a fallen lamp.
Keep heading down and along the path until coming back out to the cavern with the minecart. Kick down the ladder on the ledge and use Aloy's new Pullcaster on the beam on her left.
Jump onto the beam, walk along to the other side, and jump onto the yellow ledge to reach the minecart tracks. Go right towards the cart, place the fuses and push it off the tracks. The explosion will clear the rubble and drain the mine completely.
Exiting the Mine
After draining the water, drop back down to the bottom of the cavern where three Scroungers will appear, another of Horizon Forbidden West's many new machines. Weak to Acid and Frost, they are fairly easily defeated at a distance. Shooting the resource canister on their back will deal extra damage, and using Shock ammo on the power cell at the rear will cause an elemental explosion.
After dealing with the Scroungers, use Aloy’s Pullcaster on the crates blocking the path out. Head along the tunnel and climb up to the walkway on the left. Speak to Thorden and Lokuf again before heading back the way Aloy entered. Talking to Korvud at the mine’s entrance will complete the quest.
Horizon Forbidden West is available now on PS4 and PS5.
