Outward: The Soroboreans DLC brings tons of new content to the vast world of Aurai along with a brand new area, the Antique Plateau. If you’ve just gotten off the caravan, you might be surprised to find ominous green fog floating around some of the new locations. As you might expect, green fog isn’t a good sign, but this is no Dark Souls poison mist. In Outward: The Soroboreans, this green fog is a part of a unique new mechanic called “Corruption.”
Corruption has lore implications in the world of Outward that you’ll discover as you venture through the Antique Plateau, but there are some important things you’re going to want to know before venturing into the green fog. Here’s everything you need to know.
What is corruption?
Corruption is a new stat introduced in The Soroboreans DLC. In addition to food, drink, and sleep, you can track your corruption percentage in your vitals menu, underneath Needs. You will accrue corruption whenever you are standing in green pools of corruption fog. Staying in the corruption fog for approximately 4 minutes will increase your corruption level by 25%. You can also gain corruption from various foods, potions, and Hex Mage spells. If you sleep in a Scourge Cocoon or are attacked by corrupted enemies, you will also gain corruption. Different corruption levels will incur different effects for your character.
The effects of corruption
| Corruption Level | Negative Effects | Positive Effects |
| Pure: 0% corruption | N/A | N/A |
| Tainted: 25% corruption | -Hunger increases 100% faster -Lightning resistances decrease by 25% | N/A |
| Corrupted: 50% corruption | -Hunger increases 100% faster -Lightning resistances decrease by 50% | -Decay resistance increases by 15% -Decay and Frost damage increases by 15% |
| Defiled: 75% corruption | -Hungry (max health decreases three times as fast) -Hunger increases 100% faster -Lightning resistances decrease by 50% -Physical and impact resistance decreases by 30% -Attack speed decreases by 10% -Chance for a Corruption Spirit to spawn | -Decay resistance increases by 15% -Decay and Frost damage increases by 15% -Decay damage increases by 50% |
Getting rid of corruption
You can reduce your corruption levels by taking these following potions:
- Innocence potion
- Purity potion
- Sanctification potion
You can also cast Cleanse on yourself to reduce your corruption levels.
In addition, The Soroboreans introduces new foods (like Fresh Cream, of all things), equipment, and potions that can be crafted to boost corruption resistances. The best potion for this is the Quartz Potion, which increases corruption resistance by 50%.
Of course, you might not always want to avoid corruption, especially if you are going for a magic build that specializes in decay spells. Whatever you’re going for, you don’t want to walk into the green fog unprepared and uninformed.
