The Black Flag Resynced Wayward Souls rift is the very first Animus Rift you can unlock, and you’ll find it right on your own doorstep: Great Inagua, the island where your hideout already sits. If you’ve been clearing side content on the island, you’ve probably already seen the shimmering entrance without knowing what it leads to. I’ll walk you through the whole thing, from the treasure chest that represents Edward’s dream to the choice near the end that actually kills you if you pick wrong.

Bookmark this guide before you head in, because I’ll be pointing out a couple of spots where the obvious move is the wrong one. And if you’re working through the rest of the island too, check out our Great Inagua hideout upgrades guide while you’re at it, since you’ll be passing right by most of those buildings on your way to this rift.

Where to Find the Black Flag Resynced Wayward Souls Rift on Great Inagua

The Wayward Souls rift sits on the southern tip of Great Inagua, and it won’t actually appear for you until you’ve finished Sequence 4, Overrun and Outnumbered. Once that’s done, the entrance opens up on the beach and you can walk straight in from the Animus Hub. This is the first of four rifts total in the game, and it’s built around a “what if” scenario, specifically what if Edward had actually kept his promise to Caroline instead of chasing wealth across the Caribbean. You’re guided through it by EGO, an Abstergo AI who genuinely believes that obeying the rules and never straying from the path is the only way anyone finds real happiness. It’s a strange, quiet little narrator for what’s otherwise a physical platforming challenge, but it colors everything you do here.

The whole rift is built around one object: a treasure chest that symbolizes Edward’s accumulated wealth, his dream, basically. The rule is simple but it never lets up. Every second you’re not physically holding this chest, you start losing health. So the entire rift becomes a rhythm of picking it up, setting it down when you have to, and rushing back to grab it again.

Solving the Steering Wheel Puzzles in the Wayward Souls Rift

Your first real task is just to follow the route and reach a boat, since that’s your transportation between the different legs of this rift. Sometimes the boat’s path gets blocked by an obstacle, and clearing it means setting the chest down, sprinting to a symbolic steering wheel, turning it to unlock the passage, then turning right back around to grab the chest again before your health drops too far. Do this correctly and you’ll restore your health the moment you’re holding the chest, so don’t panic if you take a hit or two on the way there.

A little further in, you’ll hit a section with two obstacles blocking the boat instead of one, and if all this boat hopping has you itching to get back to actual naval combat, our legendary ships guide covers every armed vessel worth hunting down once you’re back on open water. The first steering wheel is right there on your right, easy to reach, so clear that one first and head back to the chest. From there you’ll need to climb a wall and work your way across a short parkour section using the ledges and beams in front of you to reach the second wheel. Clear that one too, then get back to the chest either by using the rope on the right for a fast route down or by retracing your steps. There are no enemies anywhere in this rift, by the way, so every bit of health you lose here comes from the chest mechanic alone, never from combat.

The Leap of Faith Section of the Great Inagua Rift

After another boat ride, where you’ll actually get a bit more dialogue explaining Edward’s situation, you’ll reach a stretch with no puzzles at all, just a straight shot to the next boat. The location after that is where things get more interesting. You’ll spot a red silhouette ahead and a leap of faith animation playing off to the left, which is your cue for the next stretch. Leave the chest here and take the leap.

From the water, swim forward and climb the wall ahead of you until you spot a marker confirming you’re still on the right track. Slide down the slope that follows and jump at the end to catch a wooden beam, then look left for a wooden ladder leaning against the wall. That ladder is your way up to the last steering wheel in this section. Clear it, then use the lift on the right to grab a rope that carries you straight back to the chest. Pick it up, board the boat, and get ready, because the rift’s real test is coming up next.

The Eagle’s Warning and the Wayward Souls Trust Test

This is the part of the Black Flag Resynced Wayward Souls rift most people get wrong on their first try. By now your Wealth Accumulated meter should be completely full, which is a fitting bit of irony since Edward’s actual gold problems have a far easier fix than anything in this rift, our best money method guide covers the passive farm that funds your ship upgrades a lot faster than any treasure chest ever could. Anyway, you’ll arrive at a chasm lined with spikes and the bodies of people who clearly didn’t make it across. A voice tells you it’ll protect you if you jump, and remarkably, it actually does, a transparent floor appears under your feet the instant you commit. Keep following the red silhouette from there.

Then you’ll be told to take another leap of faith, except this time an eagle shows up and warns you not to trust it. Here’s exactly what happens on both paths. Jump anyway, and you land in a fast underwater current that drags you through a field of jellyfish. No matter how well you dodge, you’ll take repeated damage and your character dies. The actual correct move is to stay put and wait, since a boat is visibly approaching in the distance and a Wait bar in the upper left slowly fills in as it closes the gap. Let it reach you, and a group of red silhouettes confirms you made the right call before you board and continue.

Finishing the Rift and What You Get for It

The last stretch is short. A row of glowing red silhouettes leads you forward to Edward’s actual goal in this alternate timeline, getting back to Caroline and finally living the quiet life he kept promising her. Clearing the rift hands you the Lock of Hair, a rare trinket that gives you a small burst of health whenever you land a perfect parry, which is a nice passive bonus to carry into the rest of the game. It’s also worth remembering that Wayward Souls is only rift one of four. If you’re chasing everything the Rifts have to offer, our Black Flag Resynced ending explained breakdown covers how the fourth rift, True Purpose, eventually ties back into the Dark Animus and the game’s actual epilogue.

How Wayward Souls Fits Into All the Rifts in Black Flag Resynced

Wayward Souls is just the opening act. Once you clear it, the Animus Hub opens up access to Wayward Desires on a small island north of Nassau, followed later by Wayward Minds on the northwestern edge of Sacrifice Island. Each one runs the same basic idea, a “what if” version of Edward’s story narrated by EGO, but the mechanics change every time so nothing feels like a repeat of the chest puzzle you just finished. The fourth and final rift, True Purpose, sits on a small isle east of Misteriosa, and it stays locked until you’ve finished the main campaign, the epilogue, and the first three rifts. Clearing that last one is actually what kicks off the endgame confrontation with the Ego.Emotion.Agent inside the Dark Animus, so Wayward Souls is really just your introduction to a much bigger modern-day arc that Resynced built to replace the original game’s Abstergo office sequences entirely.

Wayward Souls Rift FAQ

What happens if you take the leap of faith after the eagle warns you? You land in a fast current full of jellyfish, take continuous damage no matter how you dodge, and your character dies. It’s a hard fail state, not just a damage penalty.

What’s the correct choice at the eagle’s warning? Stay where you are and wait for the boat. A Wait bar fills in the upper left corner as it approaches, and boarding it is what lets you continue safely.

When does the Wayward Souls rift unlock? After you finish Sequence 4, Overrun and Outnumbered. The entrance then opens on the southern tip of Great Inagua.

Are there any enemies in the Wayward Souls rift? No. The entire rift is puzzle and platforming based, and the only threat to your health is dropping the treasure chest for too long.

What do you get for finishing the Wayward Souls rift? The Lock of Hair, a rare trinket that restores a small amount of health every time you land a perfect parry.

That covers the entire Black Flag Resynced Wayward Souls rift from start to finish, the chest mechanic, both steering wheel sections, the eagle’s trust test, and the ending. Check out our other guides on ingametor.com if you’re working through the rest of Great Inagua or hunting down the remaining rifts.