Although Lords of the Fallen (2023) is Souls-like at heart, it has enough different things going for it to make it its own game. One of the main features you’ll notice that’s different from similar games is the Umbral Lamp which is needed to progress some areas while also revealing hidden areas containing weapons, armor, and other loot. Read below to find out exactly what the Umbral Lamp is, how to use it, and what you can do with it.
The Umbral Lamp allows you to go between the land of the living and the land of the dead.
What is Umbral?¶
Before we start speaking on the uses of the Umbral Lamp, it’s important to know exactly what Umbral is and how it plays a part in the land of Mournstead. This land is interconnected with parallel realms which you’ll traverse through at the same time (with the help of the Umbral Lamp). These realms are Axiom, the land of the living, and Umbral, the land of the dead.
While Axiom has its own horrors to contend with, Umbral will have a mechanic where the longer you’re in it, the harder the enemies you’ll face. Fortunately, this is offset by a Vigor (XP) multiplier system that increases while you’re in it, so you’ll need to risk the potential of strong enemies striking you down for the reward of bonus Vigor. The only way to reach the Umbral is by using an Umbral Rift, or dying in Axiom where you’ll revive in the Umbral; die again, and you’ll die for good.
(1 of 2) You can use the Umbral Lamp to peer into the world of the dead simply by holding it out.
You can use the Umbral Lamp to peer into the world of the dead simply by holding it out. (left), But be careful not to spend too long in there otherwise you may be met by strong foes as the multiplier begins to get higher. (right)
What is the Umbral Lamp for?¶
In the opening cutscene, you’ll end up with the Umbral Lamp which will be given to you by a mysterious character. The Umbral Lamp allows you to peer into the realm of the dead (Umbral) by holding in the 
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. As you start progressing in the beginning area, you’ll begin to unlock various mechanics regarding the Lamp. With the Lamp raised, you can perform various other mechanics such as Soul Flay, Soul Siphoning, Umbral Rift, and Vestige Seedlings. Read below to find out what each one of these does.
What Is Soul Flay?¶
Soul Flay is an Umbral Ability that can be activated by locking on to a target then pressing and holding the following controls: // L + 
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/ R. Performing the Soul Flay ability requires a Soul Flay Charge (Read Soul Siphoning), but only for enemies. Environmental Soul Flays doesn’t require them.
The ability allows you to pull enemy souls out of their bodies. This in turn slows them down while also allowing you to deal Withered Health damage by attacking said souls which can make them easier to defeat. If you keep attacking their souls, the withered health will build up, and when the whole bar fills up, it will stagger the enemy allowing you to use a finisher called “Grievous Strike” that forces enemies to drop unique currencies and items.
(1 of 3) Soul Flay is good against all enemies but especially strong against the tougher enemies.
What is Withered Health?¶
Withered Health appears gray on the health bar, but unlike regular health, you won’t die if the bar fills up. However, any attack from an enemy will deplete it in one hit. On top of that, it will make healing less effective as they will heal both, regular and withered health. Another way to recover withered health is through attacking the enemy to replenish the withered health into regular health, similar to attacking to heal in Bloodborne.
What Is Soul Siphoning?¶
Soul Siphoning is an Umbral Ability that can be activated by pressing and holding the following controls: // L + 
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This allows you to siphon two valuable resources, Soul Flay Charges, and Vigor (XP). Simply hold in the above controls to absorb either of them. Soul Flay Charges can be acquired by Soul Siphoning environmental elements which are seen in the Umbral Realm, or from enemies, but this will make them aggressive and initiate combat.
(1 of 3) Soul Siphon can be used to absorb Vigor (Souls/XP), and absorb Soul Flay Charges as well as reveal parasites.
Umbral Parasites Explained¶
Some enemies will come with Umbral Parasites attached to them which grants them powerful buffs and/or extra defense. This is shown on the enemy health bar where it’ll be highlighted in blue. When you encounter such foes, use Soul Siphoning to unveil the parasite, and make them attackable (can only be hurt in Umbral). Defeat the parasite, and the enemy will lose its buffs.
What Is the Umbral Rift Ability?¶
The Umbral Rift ability can be activated by pressing the following controls: // L + 
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. You can enter an Umbral Rift any time you like, but you can only exit it by interacting with a Vestige to resurrect yourself.
Umbral Rift is one of the main features of Lords of the Fallen. You can use this to enter the land of the dead where you’ll find shortcuts, new areas, alternate paths, secrets, and powerful loot. When you enter the Umbral Rift for the first time, half your health will be withered which means you’ll need to heal it back up by attacking enemies, or your healing spells/flasks, although this is reduced otherwise one hit will make you lose all the withered part of the bar.
(1 of 3) Using the Umbral Rift Ability will put you in the Umbral realm which can open up new areas to explore, potentially with hidden loot.
What Are Vestige Seedlings?¶
Finally, you have Vestige Seedlings. First things first, Ancient Vestiges are the bonfires of the game, if you’ve played Dark Souls, you’ll know what we mean. You can rest at them which replenishes your health/healing potions, but enemies will respawn (not bosses). Then you can level up by spending your Vigor on them. Also, they act as a checkpoint where if you die then you will respawn there. So, what are Vestige Seedlings, you ask? Well, think of these as the same thing as Ancient Vestiges, but you can place them in different places provided you find a Bed of Flowers to plant them in. As you traverse the lands, the Umbral Lamp UI will flash blue when you’re near a Bed of Flowers.
You can make your own “checkpoint” with Vestige Seedlings. Simply find a Bed of Flowers, and place the seedling on it. This can be helpful against bosses, or difficult enemies.
When this occurs, hold the lamp (// L ) followed by holding down 
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to place the seed. Now, you’ll have access to what the regular Ancient Vestige has, but in an arguably better place such as nearer to a boss for example. The only downside to this is, you’ll need a Vestige Seed to do this. These can be purchased from vendors, killing mini-bosses, obtained from NPCs, or found as a rare loot drop.
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