How to solve the Sphinx riddles in Dragon's Dogma 2

The Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx Riddles can be both tricky to solve and annoying to complete, but some offer worthwhile reward chests for your efforts. Many of them require specific items or even NPCs to solve, and many won't be solvable until you've put plenty of hours into Dragon's Dogma 2, so don't feel like you need to rush through them. In fact, failing one riddle locks you out of the relevant chest and an achievement, but failing multiple riddles ends the quest, so you need to make sure you get them right.

You'll also learn that these five riddles are just one half of the "A Game of Wits" quest, and you'll have to find the Sphinx a second time to solve five more riddles to complete the quest. However, you go about solving the riddles, absolutely do not attack the Sphinx until you've solved all the riddles, otherwise you'll void the quest and lose any chance of getting the remaining rewards for your current playthrough. That's a lot to bear in mind before even getting on with the riddles, but it's information to help you solve the Sphinx Riddles in Dragon's Dogma 2 as smoothly as possible.

How to find the Sphinx in Dragon's Dogma 2

The Sphinx offers some very useful rewards for solving their riddles, so if you're yet to find them in the Mountain Shrine, here's how you get there. However, before setting off, I highly recommend you bring a portable portcrystal with you to make return journeys much easier!

1. First, head to the Checkpoint Rest Town and then head northeast along the main road, bearing left. Eventually you should reach a new path on your left that heads north into a mountainous area. Take this path and keep bearing left to reach the Ancient Battleground.
2. Traverse the Ancient Battleground by heading up the main path and into the ruins on top of the hill. An NPC called Oskar can be found in the battleground and will guide you through the ruins as part of a quest called 'Tolled to Rest'.
3. Get to the top of the ruined fort and look for a cave leading into the mountain called the Worldsend Cavern.
4. Get through the cavern (there will be lots of different enemies in here) and emerge into the Ancient Ruins area.
5. Run across the Ancient Ruins (there will be a Golem here which you can fight or run from) and head into the Shrine Corridor.
6. Head through the corridor then up the steps when you come out the other side to reach the Mountain Shrine and the Sphinx!

This is a good time to place a portcrystal that you can use for fast travel in Dragon's Dogma 2 with Ferrystones. And now you can speak to the infamous Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx and hear them a quest contrive for these riddles five.

How to solve the Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx Riddle of Eyes

"Our eyes are our allies, yet oft do 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."

Essentially, the riddle is asking you to go through the door shown, which leads into a mini-dungeon, and bring the best item you find to the Sphinx, and it's far easier than that sounds:

1. Go through the door and walk towards the steps, then turn around and look up. You should see a chest on a broken upper platform.
2. Use the rock steps on your left to climb up and reach the chest.
3. Open the chest to get the Sealing Phial – magical phial that can hold a person for easy transportation – and bring it to the Sphinx. That's it. You don't even need to go through the whole dungeon.

Easy if you know where to look. You'll get to keep the Sealing Phial and can loot one Wakestone from the unlocked chest.

How to solve the Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx Riddle of Madness

"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."

For this riddle, you need to present the Sphinx with the NPC you have the highest affinity level with. You must make sure it's the highest affinity level, of any NPC, so I advise picking one and giving them gifts and completing any quests for them to ensure it's above any other NPCs' affinity. If you've reached maximum affinity with a character, they should have obvious rosy cheeks.

Once you've romanced someone enough, take them to the Mountain Shrine (pick them up then use a Ferrystone to reach the portcrystal you should have placed), place them in front of the Sphinx, then talk to the Sphinx about the Riddle of Madness to present your answer. The Sphinx should deem your solution worthy and will let you at the reward chest, awarding you with one portcrystal.

How to solve the Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx Riddle of Wisdom

"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."

This is one of the stranger riddles and has an odd solution where you must find the Sphinx's "parent", which is actually a special type of Pawn. Here's what you should do:

1. Head to the village of Harve, which is roughly southwest of Vernworth.
2. Activate the Riftstone of Fellowship and enter the rift to look for Pawns.
3. Find a Pawn with any of the following monikers and add them to your party: "SphinxParent", "SphinxFather", or "SphinxMother". You can check a Pawn's moniker by hailing a Pawn and then looking at its details.
4. Go back to the Mountain Shrine, pick up the Pawn, and place them in front of the Sphinx. Now speak to the Sphinx about the Riddle of Wisdom to show them their parent.

Solving the Riddle of Wisdom lets you open a chest with 1200 Rift Crystals inside. You can now dismiss the Sphinx parent Pawn too.

How to solve the Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx Riddle of Conviction

"Life is an enigma – a lender of mortal debt. Yet lighter pack makes fleeter foot and challenge nimbly met. So grant me what you most prize, and thence elude your ponderous demise."

Sounds threatening but is actually very simple and can be exploited. The Sphinx is asking you to give it something you value, which you should definitely do. Give it a portcrystal, Ferrystone, or something limited and useful like that. The Sphinx will accept what you offer, solving the riddle. The loot chest then contains two of whatever you offered the Sphinx. For example, I gave the Sphinx one portcrystal and it gave me two back. 

The truth is that the Sphinx will actually accept anything, but obviously if you try and be clever about it and give them something rubbish, you'll be the one getting twice as much crap from the chest.

How to solve the Dragon's Dogma 2 Sphinx Riddle of Rumination

"It's ever the first we keep fond in our breat, 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."

I can't help you with this riddle as it relies on you knowing where you collected your first Seeker Token. There's a high chance it's somewhere in and around Melve or the roads in norther Vermund as you spend a lot of the early game here. Go to the right spot and you can collect a Finder's Token. Bring this to the Sphinx to solve the riddle, getting you three Ferrystones from the loot chest.

As mentioned, there are five more Sphinx riddles to solve in Dragon's Dogma 2 and we'll update this guide when we've solved those too!

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