Cult Stashes are unlockable crates that give you different forms of utility, like healing items and ammo, in Alan Wake 2. Cult Stash locations on the map in Alan Wake 2 are important to find because some stashes have important equipment like Crossbows and other weapons that will help you in the later chapters. All 22 of the Cult Stashes are spread across the three main areas of Alan Wake 2. The areas are Cauldron Lake, Watery, and Bright Falls.
Before You Start: Some of the Locations require you to have Bolt Cutters, which will be unlocked in Chapter: Return 5 – Old Gods.
Key Takeaways
There are a total of 22 Cult Stashes in Alan Wake 2.
You can find five stashes in Cauldron Lake, eight stashes in Watery, and nine stashes in Bright Falls.
Cult stashes require different puzzle-solving, key-finding, and mathematical methods to open them.
Some Cult Stashes reward you with Crossbow and Inventory satchels.
Where Are All The Cult Stashes Located In Alan Wake 2?
Cauldron Lake has Five Cult Stashes, Watery has 8 Stashes, and finally, Bright Falls has a whopping Nine Stashes hidden across the areas.
Most of the Cult Stashes will only require you to solve puzzles. Once you are able to solve these puzzles or solutions, you will get the utilities from the Cult Stash.
Important: Mid-way through the game at Return 3 – Local Girl, you need to head to the Kalevala Knights Workshop and unlock the door to see the marked Cult Stashes of all areas on a desk board as seen above.
All 22 Cult Stash Locations In Alan Wake
The following is a comparison table of all 22 Cult Stashes, along with their areas and location:
Area
Stash Number
Chapter Required
Objective
Cauldron Lake
1st
Return 1 - Invitation
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock
Cauldron Lake
2nd
Return 2 - The Heart
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons
Cauldron Lake
3rd
Return 2 - The Heart
Follow the Arrows To Find The Key
Cauldron Lake
4th
Return 2 - The Heart
Solve the Math Problem (Code: 658)
Cauldron Lake
5th
End Of Return 5 - Old God
Find The Key (Requires Bolt Cutters)
Watery
1st
Return 3 - Local Girl
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons
Watery
2nd
Return 3 - Local Girl
Figure out the combination code (Code: 527)
Watery
3rd
Return 3 - Local Girl
Figure out the combination code (Code: 147)
Watery
4th
Return 3 - Local Girl
Find The Key (Smiling Statue Hint)
Watery
5th
Return 3 - Local Girl
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock
Watery
6th
Return 3 - Local Girl
Find The Key (Defeat Boss)
Watery
7th
Return 3 - Local Girl
Solve the Math Problem (Code: 496)
Watery
8th
Return 5 - Old Gods
Figure out the combination code (Code: 542)
Bright Falls
1st
Return 4 - No Chance
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons
Bright Falls
2nd
Return 4 - No Chance
Solve the Math Problem (Code: 177)
Bright Falls
3rd
Return 5 - Old Gods
Find The Key
Bright Falls
4th
Return 5 - Old Gods
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock By Following Glow Arrows
Bright Falls
5th
Return 5 - Old Gods
Find The Key
Bright Falls
6th
Return 5 - Old Gods
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons
Bright Falls
7th
Return 5 - Old Gods
Figure out the combination code (Code: 697)
Bright Falls
8th
Return 5 - Old Gods
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock
Bright Falls
9th
Return 6 - Old Gods
Figure out the combination code (Code: 146)
All 5 Cauldron Lake Cult Stashes
Cauldron has one of the easiest stashes to get since only one of them requires Bolt Cutters, which is the last stash. You can easily start your search for each Cult Stash at Cauldron Lake through the map provided above.
1st Stash
Chapter
Objective
Return 1 – Invitation
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock
The Stash can be found in front of small cabins whose locations are southwest of the Murder Point on the map for the Cult Stash in Alan Wake 2.
In order to complete the puzzle, you must synchronize the right symbols at the right place.
First Dial should be two diagonal triangles facing each other’s points.
Second, you should make an hourglass shape.
Third should have the points of the two triangles away from each other in a horizontal lane.
2nd Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 2 – The Heart
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons.
Head toward the South after defeating the boss and after the flood recedes. Moves forward through the logs and under them to get to the locations of the Cult Stash in Alan Wake 2 through the map.
Interact with the lock and see the sequence of the lit-up green buttons.
Copy and Press it to unlock.
You will get an entire row of inventory space as a reward.
3rd Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 2 – The Heart
Follow the Arrows To Find The Key
For the second Stash, you will have to head toward the Streamside and Lakeside area. There, you will find a campsite toward the north with the Cult Stash.
Open your Flashlight from the Witch Sign.
Follow the glowing arrows that appear.
Retrieve the Key from the rock.
Use the map to get back to the campsite locations and use the key to open the Cult Stash.
4th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 2 – The Heart
Maths
Move forward the south of the Private Cabin near the lake.
There will be maths problems on the nearby trees.
The answer will be 658.
Enter the code 6-5-8 into the Cult Stash.
5th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
End Of Return 5 – Old God
Find The Key
The location is situated at the Rental Cabins.
You will need Bolt Cutters to get through the gates.
Go through all the cabins to find a fallen tree and go ahead to find a Tree with a glowing number 2.
The Key will be behind the 2 Numbered Tree.
All 8 Watery Clut Stashes
Most of the Clut Stashes can be found during the Return 3 – Local Girl except the last 8th Clut Stash.
1st Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons
Travel toward the East Woods, and the Stash box will be found behind some boxes outside the Elderwood Palace Lodge.
Again, copy the pattern of the flashing buttons.
2nd Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Figure out the combination code
The 2nd Stash location can be found in the crossbow shooting range outside the Break Room Hut.
Look toward the right of the Cult Stash, and you will see numbered cards bolted in.
The solution for the objective is 5-2-7.
You will get a Crossbow.
3rd Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Figure out the combination code
The next Stash location is near the Ferris Wheel in the Coffee World.
Look at the numbers at the Striped Ferries Wheel’s Compartments
The numbers will be 1-4-7; add it into the Cult Stash to open.
4th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Find The Key
The next Clut Stash location is toward the Huotari Well on the west of Coffee World.
When you see the question “What Hides Behind A Smile?” it is a hint to find a smiling statue.
Once you find the Creepy Smiling Statue, the Key will be behind it.
5th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock
You will have to head to the Northwest of the Lighthouse in Watery.
From there, find the Glowing Roman Numerals.
The numbers go respectively from I, II, and III, so you enter the symbols written behind the Roman Numerals respectively.
6th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Find The Key
Defeat the Boss at Watery so that the Floods Recede, and you can access the south side of the Trailer Park.
Move toward the pole with a meter electric box attached to it.
Head up the ramp and box to get the key to unlock the Clut Stash.
7th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 3 – Local Girl
Maths
In order to get the 7th Stash, head to the Southeast end of the pier of Watery.
The Downtown will have an algebraic equation for you, which you can skip because the answer is 4-9-6.
8th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Figure out the combination code
Head to the Kalevala KnightsWorkshop, go to the back, and gain access to the Cult Stash.
You will need the Bolt Cutters for it.
For the puzzle, you must simply count the spare parts in the backyard.
The answer and the code will be 5-4-2.
All 9 Bright Falls Stashes
The final location of the three main areas is Bright Falls. You will need to at Chapter: Return 4 – No Chance to Start and eventually be at Return 6 – Scratch. These are mostly the end-game collectibles.
1st Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 4 – No Chance
Memorize and copy the once-lit buttons
Move up from the break room and toward the Northwest of Bunker Woods.
The Stash will be behind a rock.
After that, do the simple mimic of the buttons.
2nd Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 4 – No Chance
Maths
The location of the Cult Stash is just South of the Break Room and right behind an abandoned truck.
The answer to the math problem is 1-7-7.
3rd Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Find The Key
Head toward the Southwest of the Valhalla Nursing Home to the left.
Hold up the Torch.
Follow till you rock with an arrow pointing down.
4th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock By Following Glow Arrows
After leaving Valhalla Nursing Home, head to the Break Room before the Ranger Station.
There, follow the glowing arrows until you find the right sequences of the symbols to unlock the Cult Stash.
5th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Find The Key
Head toward the West North-West of Ranger Station to find the Cult Stash.
Get to the Ranger Station, and right beside the Chimney, you will find the Key.
6th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Memorize and copy the once-lit button
Travel to Elderwood Palace Lounge.
Towards the Front, you will locate a White Van.
Copy the pattern of the lit-up buttons.
7th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Figure out the combination code
Move into the shed of the Sea-Food Diner and use the Bolt Cutters to break into the Dock.
The code to open the Cult Stash is 6-9-7.
You will get another row of inventory as a reward.
8th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 5 – Old Gods
Open Cult Symbolic Padlock
Head to the Oh Deer Diner, and right in front of it, you will see yourself a yard.
Once you find it, add the symbols around the park.
9th Stash
Chapter Required
Objective
Return 6- Old Gods
Figure out the combination code
Head to the Sheriff’s Office, according to the main storyline.
Get access to the evidence room with the Bolt Cutters.
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