Elemental rods are one of the many collectibles found in Marvel's Midnight Suns, but what exactly do you do with them? They can be found in various areas around the Abbey but unless you progress with a particular side quest, they won't be of much use to you. In this guide, I'll show you where to find all the elemental rods, what tasks you need to complete and, ultimately, what they're used for. Beware of a few spoilers.
How to start the elemental rod quest
In the opening hours of Midnight Suns, you'll come across what's essentially a shrine celebrating Agatha Harkness, but you can't interact with it at first. Sara will eventually tell you to visit it and low and behold, you can see her ghost. She'll take you to find a Word of Power—yup, just like Skyrim—which gives you the ability to open doors. She'll then disappear and ask you to find her in the library the following night.
Once the next day arrives and Midnight Suns' adventures are over, you'll be able to go to the library and use Open to get inside. You'll find Agatha and she'll direct you to read Wanda's notes which give you information about the elemental rods. Agatha will then take you to an altar where you'll get one of your first Arcane Keys and you'll see four plinths where you can set each type of elemental rod.
Elemental rod locations
Helpfully, Wanda's notes will give you the location of an elemental rod once per day. If you don't fancy reading through the following list and want to find them at a slower pace, I suggest you keep heading back to the library each day for the location of a new rod.
You can find the rods before accepting the quest, so don't worry if you've picked a few up already—they'll just sit in your inventory until needed. So, let's take a look at where to find the rods.
- Fire rod: The Fire rod can be found in the Chapel area of the Abbey itself.
- Water rod: To the west of the Abbey is the grotto, and you'll find the Water rod by the swimming pool.
- Earth rod: At Hunter's Folly, in the tomb. Once acquired, use the Word of Power 'Open' to open the door to the tomb and you'll find the Earth rod inside.
- Air rod: Once you've met Agatha in the library, she'll take you to the altar and from there you can access the Whispering Wood where you'll find the Air rod.
What are elemental rods used for?
Once you've collected and placed all four elemental rods you'll receive another Moon Seal which you can use to open a Blood Gate near the Standing Stones, which is to the east of the Abbey. This will unlock the Trial of the Elder Gods: Atum and you'll be able to retry this challenge once per night if you fail. Complete it, and you'll learn a new Word of Power that lets you explore more of the Abbey grounds.
