Forlorn Hovel

An abandoned dwelling hiding ancient secrets

Forlorn Hovel

The Forlorn Hovel is part of Diablo 4's secret cow level, requiring you to find three special relics that reference Diablo II items.

Ked Bardu Fountain Clues

  • • Oxen God of the East: The only initially interactable statue
  • • Old Tablet: Contains partial text: "…spill their blood to be deemed worthy…"

The Three Relics

Discovered via datamining, these three relics reference classic Diablo II items needed for the original cow level.

Bloody Wooden Shard

(Wirt's Leg reference)

Bloodstained wood with a crudely carved "W".

Drop Zone: Kehjistan/Hawezar

Intricate Metallic Fragment

(Horadric Cube reference)

Magical metal shard from an ancient device.

Drop Zone: Dry Steppes

Musty Tome

(Tome of Town Portal reference)

Worn leather binding with faded blue dye.

Drop Zone: Scosglen/Fractured Peaks

Finding the Relics

The 666 Kill Counter

  • • Relics drop from cows with a hidden 666 kill counter per player
  • • The 666th cow guarantees a drop based on location
  • • After the guaranteed drop, relics are RNG (~1% drop rate)
  • • A 666,666 second (~7.7 days) cooldown exists between guaranteed drops

Location-Based Drops

Kehjistan/Hawezar

→ Bloody Wooden Shard

Dry Steppes

→ Intricate Metallic Fragment

Scosglen/Fractured Peaks

→ Musty Tome

Cleansing and Offering

Ritual Steps:

  1. Drop each relic briefly in the Ked Bardu Fountain to cleanse it
  2. Interact with each Oxen statue in order: East, North, West, South
  3. Offer the cleansed relics to the corresponding statues
  4. After all are offered, you receive the Strange Key

Unlocking the Forlorn Hovel

The Strange Key opens the cellar at the eastern edge of Scosglen, shaped like a cow head.

Stamina Potion from Forlorn Hovel (Click to enlarge)

Important Notes:

  • • Losing the key before use requires restarting the entire quest
  • • The Hovel stays permanently unlocked for the character who used the key
  • • Party members must teleport in if they haven't unlocked it themselves
  • • After unlocking, the first cow you kill may drop a relic (likely a bug)

Inside the Forlorn Hovel

The Hovel is filled with eerie cows and dead villagers. Your objective is simple: kill all the cows.

The Stamina Potion

  • • Reward: The last cow drops the Stamina Potion
  • • Type: Consumable (tradeable)
  • • Effect: +5% Movement Speed for ~5 minutes
  • • Easter Egg: "Powdered milk" joke referencing Diablo II

Tip: The Stamina Potion is a nostalgic nod to Diablo II, where stamina management was a crucial gameplay element.