Before Wyzeman feels confident to join the gang Echoes of Aincradyou must complete the Cave Diving main story quest to make your way through the Teardrop Cave once more in search of specific upgrade materials to make your journey to Tolbana a little easier for the party.
You'll start the mission from Horunka Village and work your way through the area back to Teardrop Cave, fighting enemies of all kinds as you venture towards the objective and dealing with a pretty tough boss fight at the end of it all. Here's what you need to know about the Cave Diving mission!
How to complete The Cave Diving Quest
When the group is ready to make their way to the Tolbana, Wyzeman suggests you head out back to Teardrop Cave in search of materials to help you raise some weapons for him so he can finally join you as a true teammate.
Accept the quest from Horunka Village, but make sure you have stocked up on Holy Water before you go, as you have many Paralysis to cure forward. Once you're back in the overworld again, check your map and make your way to Thieve's Gutter safe area in the southern part of the map, as this is the closest warp point to the mission objective. Teleport if you can, or get there to unlock the map if not.
From the safe area, follow the path around the mountain, going northwest and then south around the mountain to the entrance to Teardrop Cave. The path is full of enemies though, so fight your way to the entrance of the Teardrop Cave where you'll face a mini-boss, the Dire Strife Wolf.
Dire Strife Wolf Fight
This boss is your first clue that you need look for the paralysis status effectwhich will cause your character to fall to the ground and be completely unable to fight or defend against monsters. Use your holy water to dispel the paralysis meter on your character before it reaches the top to prevent them from getting hit.
Paralysis also damages your character, so not only do you need to dispel the disease itself, but you'll likely need to heal yourself afterwards. Iori will be with you in this part of the game, so use her healing ability liberally and your mix of healing items from your bag to keep you afloat. Depending on your difficulty level, the Dire Strife Wolf may be the first real resistance you encounter from a boss in Echoes of Aincrad.
If the fight continues for a little while, you might see Dire Strife Wolf summon hordes of wolves to join the battlefield, making it one hell of a distraction. You'll want to target the Dire Strife Wolf here and set your partner on Free Mode to deal with the mobs while you continue to drop the boss. That said, if you have any Sword skills that can hit multiple targetsnow might be a good time to use them, as you can beat the wolves from the mob and The Dire Strife Wolf boss in one hit without using multiple parts of your SP.
However, this becomes more difficult since Dire Strife Wolf reincarnates into a second phase after it goes down the first time, but it's missing its head. That means there's a large pocket of electricity exposed, making paralysis all the more real threat this time around.
The wolf will pounce around the battlefield and you are more prone to paralysis as it goes, meaning it can pounce on your character and deal some serious damage if they've succumbed to their paralysis and fallen. If you need a moment to heal or use holy water, have your partner distract the boss so you can refill yourself as needed.
As long as you can stay away from the electrified area where the Dire Strife Wolf's head once was during the first phase of this boss fight in Echoes of Aincrad, you will be able to dispatch it in no time with careful use of your strongest weapons for which you have mastered the strongest sword skills. Keep your distance as much as possible and stay away from the main stump to succeed in the fight against the Dire Strife Wolf.
When it finally goes down, pick up the loot it drops (which will be a mix of weapons you can use as soon as you get back to Horunka and can trade out, Col, and a variety of crafting materials), continue into the Teardrop Cave when you're done. Follow the path down to the first terminal and activate it and complete the Cave Diving quest in Echoes of Aincrad.
