This is a walkthrough for the Errand, The Oldgrowth in Horizon Forbidden West. It’ll navigate you through the necessary steps to finding Lao and defeating the Apex Clawstrider.

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Aloy meets Shael for the first time.

Quest Giver	Starting Location	Prerequisite	Level	Rewards
Shael	Plainsong	Complete [Cradle of Echoes]	15	2,750 1 Utaru Harvester

Description¶

An Utaru hunting party was slaughtered by a Clawstrider in The Oldgrowth. The forest won’t be safe until the machine is dealt with.

Objectives¶

1. Go to The Oldgrowth
2. Recover the Utaru Hunters’ Seed Pouches
3. How To Kill the Clawstrider

Go to The Oldgrowth¶

Once you’ve arrived at Plainsong, speak with Shael, then head north to reach The Old Growth. However, if you would like further backstory on this Errand, then you can speak with one of the survivors, Ven, who can be found just below. As you arrive you’ll need to deal with Two Apex Burrowers and Two Apex Scrappers. The Apex Burrowers have no elemental weakness, so you’ll want to focus on hitting their weak points which are its Resource Container, Eye, Soundshell and Body. Apex Scrappers are weak to Shock Ammo and are most vulnerable at the back (Plasma Cell).

Where To Find The Utaru Hunters’ Seed Pouches¶

After clearing out the Machines, examine the corpse which can be found on a nearby rock to acquire their Seed Pouch, then scan for footprints by holding in R3 to activate you focus. Press R2 over the tracks to highlight it, then follow it along and keep collecting Seed Pouches from the corpes along the way. Eventually you’ll reach a cliff that you’ll want to climb up via the nearby Grapple Point.

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(1 of 4) Defeat the Burrowers and Apex Scrappers

Follow the path ahead and you’ll find multiple Skydrifters which you’ll need to take down before you can continue. These Machines are weak to Frost Ammo and have several weak points, but you’ll have an easier time aiming for the Tracking Container/Booster, as it’s more exposed.

How To Kill the Clawstrider¶

Once you’ve taken out the Skydrifers, enter the nearby Crevice and you’ll meet Lao. However, your rescue is interrupted by an Apex Clawstrider. You should be able to approach and perform a Stealth Strike, then you’ll want to switch over to Shock Ammo and aim for the Resource Container or Razor Tail. After you’ve defeated the Clawstrider, speak with Lao, then return to Shael in Plainsong to bring this Errand to a close.