Find Alexander, the iron-fisted pot, to get two Talismans.
Complete the Elden Ring Alexander questline to get yourself two Talismans and help this iron-fisted pot out. You’ll hop all over the Lands Between to help this rotund mega-jar on his journey to becoming a noble warrior, starting with freeing him in Limgrave with a good smack. You’ll then go to Caelid, Liurnia, and beyond if you continue helping Alexander on his Elden Ring quest, and he can even offer his services as a summon for certain boss fights. If you’re ready to help Iron Fist Alexander on his quest in Elden Ring, we’ve got all the steps right here.
Here’s a map of all the Elden Ring Iron Fist Alexander questline locations to progress his adventure, as well as a breakdown of each stage of the quest:
1. Free Alexander from the ground near Saintsbridge
2. Reach the bottom of Gael Tunnel
3. Meet Alexander at Redmane Castle
4. Free Alexander again in Liurnia
5. Find Alexander bathing in lava
6. Find Alexander in Crumbling Farum Azula
7. Fight Alexander
8. (Optional) Return to Jar Bairn in Jarburg
However, you can actually skip quite a few of the following steps to make the quest a little easier – in short, start with step three, then skip freeing him in Liurnia. This quest can feasibly be started within the first hour of playing, but you won’t reach some of the required locations to meet the pot boy again for many, many hours, so make sure you refer to this guide often to see if you can progress.
Free Alexander From the Ground Near Saintsbridge
Alexander can be found very early on in the northern section of Limgrave near the Saintsbridge Site of Grace. Follow his calls for help and you’ll eventually find him wedged in the ground on top of a cliff. Speak to him and he’ll ask you to give him a wallop (hit him from the back with a weapon) to free him. Exhaust Alexander’s dialogue and he’ll tell you about his plans to head east to Caelid. This first step is not essential, and you can skip ahead to meeting Alexander at Redmane Castle to begin his quest instead, although this does serves as a nice introduction to the noble jar!
Reach the Bottom of Gael Tunnel
You’ll find the entrance to this mine dungeon in Caelid near the border with Limgrave – head south from the Shack of the Rotting, and you should come across a small Caelid Soldier camp just outside the tunnel entrance. Work your way through and head down to find a tunnel with a closed wooden door at the end. Open the door to reveal Alexander, then go through all his dialogue to progress.
Meet Alexander at Redmane Castle
Head to the fortress in southern Caelid and you’ll find Alexander there as one of the festival NPCs, so keep speaking to him until he’s got nothing new to say. You’ll find that you’re able to summon him for the boss fight where you’ll need to know how to beat Radahn in Elden Ring too, although this is optional and not necessary for the quest. Make sure that you speak to Alexander again after you’ve beaten Radahn and rested at the Site of Grace!
Free Alexander Again in Liurnia
Head to the Divine Tower in eastern Liurnia and you’ll find Alexander stuck in the ground again just to the south. To free him this time, you’ll need an Oil Pot which is a craftable item. The recipe can be obtained from one of the Elden Ring merchants in Siofra River – the Abandoned Merchant found in some ruins accessed by climbing wooden scaffolding. Exhaust Alexander’s dialogue once you’ve freed him.
While this step can be skipped – go straight to the Mount Gelmir lava pool if you do want to do so – it does serve as a good opportunity to explore Jarburg and meet Jar Bairn. Find the giant gravestones in the side of the nearby cliff to climb down and reach the village of pot people. You can find Jar Bairn sitting on some steps on a building near the Jarburg Site of Grace.
Find Alexander Bathing in Lava
From the Seethewater Termius Site of Grace in Mount Gelmir, head west towards Fort Laiedd, and then turn southwest past the fort until you reach a big lava lake. You’ll have to defeat a nearby Magma Wyrm boss, but once you’ve done that, you need to run across the lava to reach an island that you can speak to Alexander from. Exhaust his dialogue to learn that he is attempting to reinforce his jar body in the lava’s heat. After this step, you’ll also be able to summon him for the Fire Giant boss fight in the Mountaintops of the Giants, although this is optional and not necessary for the quest.
Find Alexander in Crumbling Farum Azula
Head to Crumbling Farum Azula and use a couple of Elden Ring Stonesword Keys to open a way to a lift and the Dragon Temple Lift Site of Grace. As you walk out the lift archway, you’ll spot an accidental bridge made of ruins. Turn left, run across the fountain plaza, go up the stairs, and then turn right. Hop onto the ruins to reach a rocky ledge on the other side. Press on and cross the ruins to reach a broken bridge section with Alexander on it.
Fight Alexander
Speak to him and you’ll learn that he wants to fight a warrior as great as you. Keep talking to accept his ordeal and start the fight. Sadly, you must defeat the iron-fisted pot to progress and, even if you die, you’ll have to keep challenging him over and over until you do eventually break him to end the quest. After Alexander has been defeated, speak to him and he’ll bestow upon you Alexander’s Innards and the Shard of Alexander Talisman as he dies. You can also collect the Warrior Jar Shard Talisman from his body after he is dead.
(Optional) Return to Jar Bairn in Jarburg
If you want some true closure on Iron Fist Alexander’s story, you can return to Jar Bairn and give them Alexander’s Innards. If this is the first time you’ve spoken to Jar Bairn, you’ll have to exhaust their dialogue and rest at the nearby Site of Grace to get new dialogue, so keep doing this until you get the option to give them the innards. They’ll be incredibly thankful for the gift and will say they’re ready to set out on their own warrior jar journey. Rest at the nearby Site of Grace again and Jar Bairn will leave the Jar Companion Talisman behind to end Iron Fist Alexander’s story.
Elden Ring Alexander Questline Rewards
Alexander’s quest in Elden Ring will give you quite a few rewards along the way and the end rewards are pretty good. Here’s what you get for helping the warrior jar to the end:
- Triumphant Delight Gesture: A reward for freeing Alexanding in Limgrave.
- Exalted Flesh x4: Alexander gives you one piece of Exalted Flesh for freeing him in Limgrave at the beginning of his quest, and then a further three pieces once you free him in Liurnia.
- Jar Helmet: A reward from Alexander for speaking to him in the lava pool – an upturned jar that functions as a helmet and boosts the power of throwing pots.
- Shard of Alexander Talisman: A reward for defeating Alexander at the end of his quest – it greatly boosts the attack power of weapon skills, so it’s useful for any melee builds that are invested in Ashes of War and their skills.
- Alexander’s Innards: A reward for defeating Alexander at the end of his quest – a key item that you need to give to Jar Bairn to get the Companion Jar Talisman.
- Companion Jar Talisman: Left by Jar Bairn after giving them Alexander’s Innards – it improves the potency of thrown jar items.
Given that it is a village of jars, naturally, you’ll find three throwing pots and two ritual pots lying around. Jarburg is also a rich source of all sorts of flower items found throughout the Lands Between that you may need for crafting. Remember, by following all the correct quest steps, you’ll unlock Alexander as a summon for both the Radahn and Fire Giant boss fights too.
