If you’re the type of player who spends hours scouring every cliff edge, hidden cave, and abandoned ruin in your favorite open-world soulslike, you’ve probably come across vague NPC dialogue or item descriptions referencing where winds meet awaiting rest. It’s one of the most well-hidden sites in the entire game, and most players miss it even after 100+ hours of playtime. I spent three full days running in circles around the Mountaintops of the Giants before I stumbled on the hidden path by accident, so I put together this guide to save you all the frustration I went through.
Where Winds Meet Awaiting Rest: Exact Location Walkthrough
First, you’ll need to meet a few basic prerequisites before you can access this area. You have to defeat Morgott, the Omen King in Leyndell, Royal Capital, and collect the Rold Medallion he drops after his defeat. You don’t need the Haligtree Secret Medallion to reach this spot, despite what a lot of misinformed forum posts will tell you. Once you have the Rold Medallion, fast travel to the Grand Lift of Rold site of grace, ride the lift up to the Mountaintops of the Giants, and spawn at the first site of grace on the other side.
From that spawn point, head directly northeast, sticking close to the frozen cliff edge on your left. Don’t follow the main path that curves down toward the Fire Giant arena, that will take you completely off course. After about two minutes of riding on Torrent, you’ll see a broken stone bridge half-buried in snow, with a gap wide enough that you can’t walk across it. Don't forget to summon Torrent before attempting the bridge jump, because if you miss the gap you’ll fall hundreds of feet into the frozen valley below and have to run all the way back from the lift.
Once you jump across the bridge, follow the narrow, winding path up the side of the mountain. Watch out for the invisible bloodhound knights patrolling the cliff edge along this path—they hit hard enough to one-shot most players under level 90, and they won’t show up on your compass. Keep going until you see a small stone arch covered in frost, and you’ll find the site of grace right on the other side, next to a crumbling stone statue.
What Rewards You Get When You Unlock This Hidden Site
This spot is way more than just a fast travel point, it comes with a handful of unique rewards you can’t get anywhere else in the game. Even if you don’t care about 100% completion, these rewards are worth the trip, especially if you’re playing on a higher difficulty level. All the rewards are available on every playthrough, so you can come back every time you start a new game to grab them.
- 1x Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone, one of only 12 in the entire game, which lets you upgrade any standard weapon to +25, the maximum level
- Permanent fast travel point that cuts travel time between the Mountaintops of the Giants and Consecrated Snowfield by 40%, if you’ve unlocked the latter area
- Exclusive Ranni quest hint only accessible by resting at the site after 2AM in-game time, which tells you exactly where to find the Dark Moon Ring for the quest’s final step
- 3x Frozen Raisins, the only healing item in the game that cures frostbite instantly without using any FP or stamina
If you’re playing offline, you won’t get the ghost NPC cutscene with the Ranni quest hint, but all the other rewards are still available. You don’t have to beat any bosses to claim the chest with the smithing stone either, it’s sitting right next to the site of grace, unguarded, as soon as you arrive.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Searching for This Location
I made almost every possible mistake when I was first looking for this spot, so I can tell you exactly what not to do to save yourself time and lost runes. Most of these mistakes come from outdated or wrong guides that were posted right after the game first launched, before people had fully mapped out the Mountaintops of the Giants area.
First, don’t try to approach this site from the Fire Giant arena side of the mountain. The entire area is blocked by invisible walls, and you’ll spend hours running into dead ends if you try to climb up from that direction. The only working path is the one from the Grand Lift of Rold side, as we outlined earlier. Don't use the Spirit Spring near the Grand Lift to jump up the mountain either, that will take you to a dead end full of aggressive rune bears that you don’t need to fight to reach the site.
Another common mistake is waiting until you have the Haligtree Secret Medallion to look for this spot. You don’t need any special items besides the standard Rold Medallion you get from beating Morgott, so you can access this area as soon as you reach the Mountaintops of the Giants, no extra steps required. If you’re playing a new game plus run, you can even come here right after you beat Morgott to get the Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone before you fight any of the other Mountaintop bosses.
How to Use This Site to Optimize Your Playthrough
Once you unlock this site, you can use it to make your playthrough way smoother, no matter what type of build you’re running. I use it every single time I start a new game, and it cuts my total playtime by at least two hours, even if I’m not going for 100% completion.
If you’re going for a platinum trophy, this fast travel point will save you hours of running back and forth between the Mountaintops of the Giants and Consecrated Snowfield when you’re farming crafting materials and unique armaments. It’s the only fast travel point that’s within riding distance of both the frozen river rune farm and the Haligtree entrance, so you can bounce between both spots in minutes instead of 10+ minute runs each way.
If you’re doing a low-level or challenge run, the Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone you get here lets you upgrade your starting weapon to max level way earlier than you normally would, without having to beat any late-game optional bosses. That makes the mid-game boss fights like Radahn and Morgott way more manageable, even if you’re playing at level 50 or lower. If you’re rushing to get the Ranni ending for the secret achievement, the NPC hint you get here saves you from having to search the entire Lake of Rot for the Dark Moon Ring, which is one of the most frustrating parts of that quest line for new players.
Even if you’re not a completionist, this hidden spot is well worth the 10 minutes it takes to find it. The Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone alone is worth the trip, and the fast travel point will save you so much time later in the game. If you’ve been scrolling through vague forum posts trying to figure out how to find where winds meet awaiting rest, follow the steps we outlined above and you’ll be there before you know it, no endless wandering or unnecessary boss fights required.
