How do you solve the Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx riddles? You can expect to encounter plenty of strange and wonderful beasts in the classic RPG’s long-awaited sequel, but few are as captivating as the enigmatic Sphinx. This optional boss can be found in a hidden temple tucked away in a corner of the map, and there’s more to this encounter than a straightforward boss battle.
The Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx challenges the Arisen to solve a series of riddles, which must be answered correctly if you wish to avoid a deadly fight in the RPG game. Here’s what you can expect from your encounter with this mythical creature in Dragon’s Dogma 2, as well as the answers to each of their questions.
This guide contains spoilers for the Sphinx, all of its riddle answers, and its final boss fight.
How to solve the Sphinx riddles
The Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx riddles appear in the questline ‘A Game of Wits.’ These riddles require you to retrieve an item and deliver it to the Sphinx. Giving the Sphinx an incorrect item will trigger a boss fight.
You only get one chance to give the Sphinx the correct answer, or she will turn hostile and immediately fight you – and trust us, that’s not easy. There are huge rewards at stake too, including a missable achievement that you won’t get a second chance at – so instead of wracking your brains for hours to find the right answers, we’ve done the hard work for you. Trust us, we’re experts.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx location
The Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx is located in the Ancient Battleground northeast of Checkpoint Rest Town for the first five riddles, and then it moves to the Frontier Shrine to the west of Checkpoint Rest Town.
Head to the ruins and straight through, past the huge Cyclops waiting to battle you – fight him if you fancy it – and continue until you reach the Mountain Shrine atop a large cliff. The Sphinx will be waiting inside for you for the first five riddles. Isn’t she beautiful?
After completing the first five riddles, she will move to a new location. Follow the river to the west of Checkpoint Rest Town, and you’ll eventually come across the Frontier Shrine.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx riddle answers
There are five riddles to be solved at this point, each with a different answer. They all have different names, so we’ll separate them below.
The riddle of eyes
Bring the Sphinx the Sealing Phial hidden above the doorway in the room she directs you to.
“Our eyes are our allies, yet oft they betray, for eyes tell lies, so I advise, and thence do lead astray. Yet how will your eyes advise you? Venture through yonder door, and retrieve that which is of greatest value.”
The clue is pretty straightforward – the Sphinx will direct you to a door downstairs, and straight through that door is a chest. Only, the chest contains a rotten apple, and surely this can’t be the valuable item she desires?
Sure enough, turn around and you’ll spot another chest above the doorway with a Sealing Phial in it. Do not use it – these are single-use items. You’ll be rewarded with a Wakestone for handing the Sealing Phial to the Sphinx.
The riddle of madness
Use the Sealing Phial to transport the character in the game you’ve got the highest relationship with.
“Love is as twin to madness, they say. They are bound fast, as night is to day. So bring forth your most beloved to me, that I might gauge the depth of your insanity.”
There are a few criteria for this riddle. Firstly, to carry people without using the Sealing Phial, you must be a Fighter, Warrior, or Thief vocation. If you’ve not yet given any gifts in the game, give one to any NPC and then transport them to the Sphinx. Or take note of who you have been gifting to, so you don’t lose track of your strongest relationship.
For correctly identifying your “beloved”, the Sphinx will reward you with one Portcrystal.
The riddle of wisdom
Find the Capcom-created Pawns named SphinxFather or SphinxMother, recruit either of them and bring them to the Sphinx.
“The parent knows the child, yet the reverse is far from true. The child knows not the parent: such is the parent’s due. I am a lost child; for kinship do I yearn. So bring to me my “Parent”, that I might better learn.”
Capcom-created Pawns can be easily found within the rift and recruited. If you don’t have room for one of them, it does mean you’ll sadly need to say goodbye (temporarily) to one of your party. You’ll need to speak to the Sphinx when they’re standing on the platform for the riddle to be considered solved.
You’ll be rewarded with 1,200 RC for successfully bringing SphinxFather or SphinxMother to the Sphinx.
The riddle of conviction
You can give the Sphinx any item from your inventory, it will clone it, and return both to you.
“Life is an enigma – a lender of mortal debt. Yet lighter pack makes fleeter foot and challenge nimbly met. So grant to me what you most prize, and thence elude your pondrous demise.”
The Sphinx is asking you to give it your most prized possession to lighten your pack and ease your challenges. Upon being granted any possession in your inventory, it will clone the item and return both to you. We recommend something valuable like a Portcrystal to ease the Dragon’s Dogma 2 fast travel woes we’ve been experiencing. Luckily, you can’t go wrong with this riddle.
The riddle of rumination
The Sphinx is asking you to return to the first place you ever found a Seeker’s Token.
“It’s ever the first we keep fond in our breast, and ever the first that eclipses the rest. You know of the Seeker’s Tokens, I trust? Those keepsakes of a fondly remembered journey? Yet where was it that you found your first? Retrace your steps, if you can – you might make a new discovery. Seven days, shall we say, ere you return? May your journey be a pleasant one.”
There is no way to find this information in the game, you’ll need to rely on your memory and the location will likely be different for most players. If you need some help jogging your memory, we’ve noted down some of the early game areas where we found Dragon’s Dogma 2 Seeker’s Tokens. This is the first Sphinx riddle to have a time constraint, so get hunting.
When you do find the location, you’ll see what appears to be a Seeker’s Token on the spot. It’s a unique item called a Finder’s Token, and taking it back to the Sphinx will reward you with three Ferrystones.
After completing this riddle, the Sphinx will move to its second location as detailed above. This time, the order of the riddles could be randomized, but complete them in any order you choose.
The riddle of reunion
You solve the riddle of reunion by simply finding the Sphinx’s second location to the southwest of Checkpoint Rest Town.
Follow our instructions above to find her exact destination in the Frontier Shrine. By opening the first chest on the left, you’ll be rewarded with 100,000 gold.
The riddle of recollection
The Sphinx wants you to give her the amount of statues that corresponds to how many riddles you’ve answered correctly so far.
“Now, questions beget questions, and I have one for you. How many riddles have you solved thus far? My memory fails me, you see. Remind me, and make it plain. Yet yonder statues be your means. For every question aptly answered, bring one here before me.”
If this riddle appears seventh for you and you’ve answered all of the riddles before correctly, then you need to place six statues in front of the Sphinx and then interact with her again to confirm your answer. If you choose to answer other riddles before this one, change the amount of statues accordingly.
For correctly giving the Sphinx the right number of statues, you will be rewarded with an Unmaking Arrow. This is guaranteed to kill any enemy with one shot, but it is a single-use item so choose your moment wisely.
The riddle of contest
Defeat the enemy that spawns.
“Though ours is a battle of wits, tests of mettle are more to your strength. Is that not so? Come, try your arm – though he shall be your opponent, not I. However, I am not one to be amused by a simple duel. Bear this ring into battle, that I might gauge your true strength.”
The Sphinx will spawn an enemy to its left, or your right, which you must defeat. She will also force you to equip the Ring of Derision which weakens all of your attacks. We found the easiest method of doing this was to run and grab at him, causing him to lose his balance and fall from the cliff edge to his certain demise.
For defeating the foe, the Sphinx will reward you with the Ring of Ambition, which increases the experience you receive from killing enemies.
The riddle of futility
The Sphinx wants you to carry her vase to Ser Maurits in Bakbattahl, to the Mural Byway location in the north, without breaking it.
“How easily the mind unravels! Some say it’s pain that does it best, others darkness – but I say neither. Rather, I say a mind cannot be more soundly broken than when it beholds its earnest efforts laid low in a single stroke. Could you survive such despair? We shall see. Here I have an amphora destined for Ser Maurits in Battahl. Deliver it to him, but beware; it’s rather fragile.”
You’ll know that you’ve reached the correct location in Bakbattahl as a Sphinx mural marks the spot. An NPC, Ser Maurits, will start a dialogue with you, and upon the conclusion of this, your character will automatically set down the container. If it’s arrived in one piece without being broken, you’ll complete the riddle. If the vase breaks, you cannot get the achievement in this playthrough at all.
You cannot fast travel, and you should avoid getting attacked or it will break. For delivering the vase safely, you’ll be rewarded with the Eternal Bond ring, which greatly boosts your relationship level with any NPC you gift it to.
Riddle of Differentiation
To solve the Riddle of Differentiation, bring back Dante or Vergil to the Sphinx depending on the image she shows you.
“So vast is the world, and full of life; you are but one of many. Indeed, in the grand scheme, we are as distinct from one another as pebbles on a beach – yet we do so love to extol our differences. But are these differences so great? If you believe so, this next task should prove exceedingly simple. I seek this man. If men are so distinct, I’m sure you’ll find him in a trice.”
The Sphinx will show you an image of an NPC. Take note of the hair, and the scars, and grab a screenshot if you can. There are two similar NPCs, Dante, and Vergil. Dante is in Checkpoint Rest Town and has straight hair, Vergil is in Bakbattahl, and has curly hair. Again ensuring you’re a Fighter, Warrior, or Thief, pick them up and carry them to the Sphinx.
For bringing the Sphinx the correct NPC, she will reward you with the Whimsical Daydream.
How to beat the Sphinx boss fight
It turns out that after all of that, you still need to fight this tricky little lady, anyway. The Sphinx guards a huge golden chest, and she doesn’t want to give you what’s inside. Attack the Sphinx to begin the fight – it has four total health bars, so bear that in mind.
She teleports around the battlefield and fires purple projectiles every time she fans her wings, making her a tough encounter to manage, even with your Dragon’s Dogma 2 Pawns.
As you defeat the Sphinx, it will complete the A Game of Wits side quest, but she will try to fly away. Shoot her out of the air to defeat her once and for all. You’ll receive some gold and the Key of Sagacity which opens the large, gold chest. If you’re worried about missing her, use that Unmaking Arrow that you were rewarded with earlier in the quest. Of course, you could use this at the beginning of the fight to save yourself the headache, too.
The golden chest contains an Eternal Wakestone. This allows you to revive multiple people at once – perfect for resurrecting an entire morgue.
Now that you’re all caught up on the Dragon’s Dogma 2 Sphinx, check out the other Dragon’s Dogma 2 enemies you’ll encounter on your travels. You should also familiarize yourself with the Dragon’s Dogma 2 fast travel system, which can help you get to the Sphinx in record time – at a price.