Palia Shot in the Dark Quest Guide | Hunt Infected Creatures

Shot in the Dark is one of the trio of quests in Palia available after The Nature of Shadows. Each quest unlocks a different method of acquiring infected creatures, also known as shade creatures, in the Elderwood. This is how to finish Shot in the Dark and unlock the ability to hunt infected Muujin, Shmole, and Ogopuu in Palia.

Palia | Shot in the Dark Quest Walkthrough

After The Nature of Shadows you have the option to select which method (hunting, fishing, or insect catching) to use to provide living specimens to Subira. If you select hunting you'll begin Shot in the Dark. You'll be able to do this quest later if you select one of the other methods.

Once the dialogue is done, head out to find Hassian. He's typically found in Kilima Valley during the day and in Hideaway Bluffs in Bahari Bay during the evening and night. If you have a good relationship, especially a romance, with him you'll experience a worried hunter looking out for your safety. 

Since you're going to help Subira regardless of Hassian's opinion, he agrees to invent arrows that will let you hunt the infected creatures in the Elderwood. If you're doing Shot in the Dark right after Nature of Shadows, you'll need to gather three different items:

• Ancient Wood x5
• Palium Bar x1
• Infected Essence x10

If you're doing Shot in the Dark to unlock hunting, but have already supplied Subira with her additional specimens, you'll need to provide Hassian with a different set of items. He still mentions Palium in his dialogue, but it's not included in his Material List. 

Some of the requirements are listed under alternate names. We list them with the commonly used item titles below:

• Sapwood x1
• Heartwood x1
• Flow Wood x1
• Ancient Wood x1
• Stone x1
• Flint x1
• Clay x1
• Whitestone x1
• Infected Essence (also known as Echo) x10

When you have all the materials needed, return to Hassian. He'll put together a new arrow, the Elderwood Arrow, that works on shade prey. He'll give you 20 arrows to start off your hunt, as well as the recipe. 

Elderwood Arrow x20 Crafting Recipe

• Ancient Wood x5
• Palium Bar x1 
• Infected Essence x10

Compared to the Elderwood Lure and Elderwood Smoke Bomb, the arrows are the cheapest to make. If you didn't pick hunting for Subira's animal specimens, Shot in the Dark will end here. If you did the second part of the quest begins.

You now need to hunt shade creatures in the Elderwood for the Watcher. 

• Infected creatures from the Elderwood x5
• Infected Essence x50

The best way to see that a creature is infected is if the colors are muddled by a black smoke and goop drips upwards from their body. Muujin are the hardest to tell due to their already dark coloring, but the easiest to hunt. You can find them right near the entrance to the Elderwood from Bahari Bay. 

Shmole are found throughout the caves as well as the rocks near the ocean in Mauvais Way. Ogopuu can be found in most areas of the map, but are partial to Mitana Grove, Mauvais Way, and De Mer Dock. These guys will throw slime balls at you, slowing you down if hit, while they run away. They dive in the water and disappear in whirlpools. Hunting them in groups can be a good idea to ensure you land that final shot, especially due to other arrows, like the Slowdown Arrow, not having any effect. 

You don't need to hunt five different types of creatures. You can take out five infected Muujin and call it a day. All Subira needs is five samples. Once you have them return to her in the Elderwood Central Stables. This completes the main quest Shot in the Dark, earning you 25 Renown and 10 friendship with Subira. 

After her dialogue you'll be set on a new task in One Step Behind. You'll also get the opportunity to start the quests for infected bug hunting and fishing. 

• Bugging Out
• Something Fishy

Since One Step Behind can bring you to different parts of the Elderwood, I strongly suggest unlocking all methods of acquiring shade creatures before continuing with the story.