Valor Mortis: The Shrike's Anthem Quest Guide -- All Four Verse Locations

The Shrike's Anthem is a collectible-focused side quest in Valor Mortis that sends players through the Outskirts in search of four scattered verses. The task is easy to begin, but several of its objectives are tucked into houses that can be missed while pushing forward through the chapter. Completing the hunt awards the Tiny Whisker's Gift, an item worth 3,000 Catalysts that can support character leveling or be spent on another purchase of your choosing.

This guide covers where to start The Shrike's Anthem, the most direct route to all four verses, and the environmental clues to watch for at every stop. For the cleanest run, begin at the Island of Whispers Lantern and follow the chapter's main path between each detour. The four verses are collected by interacting with nests, rather than defeating a special boss or solving a separate puzzle.

How to start The Shrike's Anthem

The quest begins in the Outskirts at the Island of Whispers Lantern. Look for a sunken house close to the lantern and cross over it. On the ground nearby, there is a piece of paper that can be interacted with. Reading or examining that paper activates The Shrike's Anthem and establishes the objective: locate four verses of the Shrike's song hidden around the area.

It is worth picking up the paper before progressing far into the level. The verses are positioned along a route that broadly follows the chapter's natural direction, so starting the mission early lets you collect them in sequence. Although the quest does not require an elaborate scavenger hunt across multiple regions, some nests sit in side rooms or off-path buildings where it is possible to run past them.

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Once the quest is active, use the Island of Whispers Lantern as the reference point for the walkthrough below. The first verse is only a short distance ahead, while the later ones take advantage of bridges, partially flooded structures, and an elevated interior section with walkable rafters.

Verse 1 location: House beside the dead horse

From the Island of Whispers Lantern, continue along the straightforward path leading onward through the Outskirts. Do not travel very far before watching for a door on the left that leads into a house. The clearest landmark is the dead horse outside the building. If you see the horse, you have found the correct structure.

Enter the house through the door beside it. Inside is the first nest for The Shrike's Anthem. Interact with this nest to obtain the first verse.

This opening collectible establishes the pattern for the remainder of the quest. Nests can blend into the worn-down interiors and clutter of the Outskirts, so it pays to inspect rooms rather than treating each building as scenery. The first house is especially simple to identify because of the deceased horse outside, making it a useful checkpoint if you are retracing your steps after missing the verse.

• Starting reference: Island of Whispers Lantern.
• Direction: Follow the main route a short way forward.
• Landmark: A house on the left with a dead horse outside.
• Objective: Enter and interact with the nest indoors.

Verse 2 location: Small room in the large building

After collecting the first verse, continue onward until you cross the bridge leading toward the next area. Enemies roam around this section, so clear them out before beginning your search. Removing nearby threats makes it easier to inspect the environment and avoids being interrupted while moving into the building that contains the next nest.

Look to the left side of the area for a large building. Go inside, then search for a smaller room within the structure. The second nest is located in that room, rather than sitting in the most obvious central path through the building. Interact with it to collect the second verse of the Shrike's song.

The important distinction here is that reaching the large building is not the end of the step. The nest is in an interior side space, so players who enter only briefly and leave through the most direct exit may miss it. Take a moment to check the rooms branching off the main interior before moving on.

Because the previous verse is close to the Island of Whispers Lantern, this second stop should not be difficult to revisit if necessary. Still, completing it while moving through the bridge area keeps the quest's route efficient and prevents a return trip through enemies and flooded ruins later.

• From verse 1: Cross the bridge to the next zone.
• Preparation: Deal with the enemies roaming the area.
• Landmark: The large building on the left.
• Objective: Find the small room inside and examine its nest.

Verse 3 location: Two connected sunken houses by the water

Continue through the same large building after picking up the second verse. As you leave it, the route opens out near the water. This is where the third verse requires a little more attention to traversal than the first two, since the nest is not located directly on the usual walkway.

On the right side of the path, look for a sunken house that can be reached by jumping over. Make the jump onto that first flooded structure. From there, leap again into the house immediately beside it. The third nest is in this second house.

Interact with the nest to receive the third verse. If the route seems unclear, remember the key sequence: exit near the water, turn attention right, jump to one sunken house, and then jump into the neighboring building. The collectible is not in the first house used for the crossing, but in the adjacent one.

This is likely the easiest verse to overlook when following the chapter at speed, as it depends on recognizing that the water-side ruins are traversable. The buildings may appear to be part of the background at first glance, but they form a short optional jumping route. Before leaving the waterfront stretch, make sure the third entry has been added to your quest progress.

• From verse 2: Continue through the large building and exit near the water.
• Direction: Check the right-hand side of the outdoor path.
• Traversal: Jump to a sunken house, then into the house directly beside it.
• Objective: Interact with the nest in the second house.

Verse 4 location: Rafter path and hidden room

With three verses collected, continue beyond the sunken houses. The final nest appears shortly afterward, though reaching it means moving higher into a large building. Follow the route as it ascends through the structure until you arrive at an area with rafters that can be walked across.

Rather than simply continuing along the most obvious direction, use the rafters to reach a room that sits off the main route. This side room contains the fourth and final nest. Interact with it to obtain the last verse, which immediately completes The Shrike's Anthem.

The elevated setting is the major clue for this last collectible. If you are searching at ground level or exploring only the main rooms below, you are not yet in the correct place. Keep advancing upward until the rafter section appears, then carefully look for the accessible room away from the usual path. The final nest is waiting there.

As with the other entries, no separate combination, combat encounter, or item requirement is needed once you locate the nest. The challenge is purely one of observation and route awareness. The quest's four verses are spaced in a logical progression through the Outskirts, culminating in the hidden room above the level's normal interior route.

• From verse 3: Continue onward and ascend through the next large building.
• Landmark: A section of walkable rafters.
• Direction: Cross toward the room away from the main route.
• Objective: Interact with the fourth nest to finish the quest.

The Shrike's Anthem reward: Tiny Whisker's Gift

Collecting the fourth verse completes The Shrike's Anthem and grants the Tiny Whisker's Gift. Its value is 3,000 Catalysts. Those Catalysts can be used to level up your character or put toward another purchase, giving the side quest a practical reward beyond simply clearing an entry from the quest list.

For players progressing through Valor Mortis, the reward makes The Shrike's Anthem worth handling as soon as the route permits. Since all four nests are situated through the same stretch of the Outskirts and can be picked up in one forward-moving trip, there is little reason to postpone the search. The only real risk is overlooking the side rooms and traversal detours that hold verses two, three, and four.

Quick all-verse route recap

1. At the Island of Whispers Lantern, cross the nearby sunken house and interact with the paper on the ground to begin the quest.
2. Move forward to the house on the left marked by a dead horse outside. The first nest is inside.
3. Cross the bridge, clear the enemies, and enter the large building on the left. Search its small interior room for the second nest.
4. Exit near the water, jump right onto a sunken house, then jump into the neighboring house to reach the third nest.
5. Advance to the next large building, climb until you reach its rafters, and cross into the off-route room containing the fourth nest.
6. Collect the Tiny Whisker's Gift and use its 3,000 Catalysts for leveling or another purchase.

Following this order keeps every objective on a single route from the Island of Whispers Lantern through the Outskirts. Check each nest before pressing on, and The Shrike's Anthem will be complete by the time you reach the rafter-side room.