After 60+ hours shepherding my cult through the base game and every update, the Woolhaven expansion dropped — and it’s massive. This beginner guide covers everything you need to know before venturing into the frozen mountain.
Table of Contents
- How to Access Woolhaven
- Winter Survival Basics
- Ranching Guide
- New Dungeons and Combat
- New Buildings and Decorations
- Pro Tips
- FAQ
Quick Answer
- Requirements: Defeat all four bishops (Leshy, Heket, Kallamar, and Shamura)
- Activation: Interact with the new shrine and offer four items including Sin
- Content size: Nearly as long as the base game — expect 15-25 hours
- Price: $16.99 on all platforms
How to Access Woolhaven
Woolhaven isn’t accessible until you’ve completed the main storyline. After defeating the four bishops — Leshy, Heket, Kallamar, and Shamura — a new shrine appears to the right of your cult’s stairs.
To fully unlock the DLC, you’ll need to make four offerings in a specific order:
- Bones — Easy to stockpile from crusades
- Gold — 100 coins should suffice
- Follower Meat — Time to sacrifice someone (or use the butcher station)
- Sin — Fill a follower’s Sin Bar through rituals like Rite of Lust or structures like the Drinkhouse
Important: Once you activate Woolhaven, your save file will only work if the DLC remains installed. Back up your save before proceeding if you’re unsure.
Winter Survival Basics
Woolhaven introduces harsh winter mechanics that can devastate your cult if you’re unprepared. Your followers will suffer from frostbite and illness if left in the cold, and crops will freeze and die.
The Rotburn Furnace
Your first priority is building a Rotburn Furnace. This structure keeps your entire base warm regardless of placement, but it needs Rotburn as fuel. You’ll find Rotburn during crusades in the Woolhaven dungeons.
Keep a stockpile of at least 30-50 Rotburn at all times. Running out during a blizzard is a death sentence for your followers.
New Resources to Gather
- Rotburn: Fuel for heating structures
- Charged Shards: Powers the warm baths
- Cursed Yewbark: Crafting material for dark structures
- Pure Yewbark: Crafting material for holy structures
- Wool: From ranching — used for warm clothing
Keeping Followers Warm
Beyond the Rotburn Furnace, you can build warm baths (using Charged Shards) and craft warm outfits for your followers. Prioritize these upgrades before pushing deep into the mountain dungeons.
Ranching Guide
Ranching is Woolhaven’s biggest new mechanic. You can breed animals at your cult base for wool, warmth, and — when desperate — meat.
Getting Started with Ranching
Progress through the Woolhaven story until you unlock ranching from Yngya. You’ll need to:
- Build the Ranch structure
- Purchase your first animals from Baraq (he takes Wool as currency)
- Assign followers to care for the animals
Animal Management
Animals provide different resources:
- Sheep: Wool (your primary resource)
- Livestock: Meat during food shortages
- Special animals: Tame and ride certain creatures
Wolf Warning: Wolves will attack your ranch. Build Wolf Traps around the perimeter and bait them with meat. Losing animals to wolf attacks can cripple your wool production.
New Dungeons and Combat
Woolhaven adds two massive new dungeons filled with Rot-corrupted enemies. These are significantly harder than the base game’s dungeons — don’t rush in unprepared.
New Weapons
The expansion introduces Bludgeons and Flails as new weapon types, along with the Bow and Rope Dart. The Bow and Rope Dart require completing specific story segments to unlock — they aren’t random drops.
Dungeon Tips
- Enemies deal more damage and have higher HP than base game foes
- The Rot mechanic adds environmental hazards — avoid glowing pools
- Stock up on Tarot cards before entering
- Retreat and rebuild if a run goes badly — the dungeons aren’t going anywhere
New Buildings and Decorations
Woolhaven is packed with new content:
- 17 new buildings — Including ranch structures, heating systems, and Woolhaven-specific crafting stations
- 68 new decorations — Winter and mountain themed items
- 52 new follower forms — Including wolves, reindeer, polar bears, and more
- New fleeces, outfits, tarot cards, relics, and curses
The sheer volume of new stuff makes Woolhaven feel like a proper expansion rather than DLC.
Pro Tips
- Stockpile before starting: Have 50+ bones, plenty of gold, and excess food before accessing Woolhaven
- Don’t neglect your base: Winter affects your main cult area too — build heating early
- Smash Frozen Ancestors: Those ice blocks with figures inside drop rare materials
- Ranch early: Wool becomes essential for crafting and trading
- Save Sin-generating followers: You’ll need more Sin offerings throughout the expansion
- Upgrade the Training Ground: New combat challenges help you master the new weapons
- Check Baraq’s shop regularly: He sells rare animals you can’t get elsewhere
FAQ
Can I play Woolhaven before beating the main game?
No. You must defeat all four bishops first. The shrine won’t appear until you’ve completed the base game storyline.
How long is the Woolhaven expansion?
The developers say it’s nearly as long as the base game. Expect 15-25 hours depending on your playstyle and difficulty settings.
What happens if my followers freeze?
Followers exposed to cold will get frostbite, become sick, and eventually die. Build the Rotburn Furnace as your first priority.
Can I go back to the main game areas?
Yes. Woolhaven is an expansion, not a replacement. All base game content remains accessible.
Is the DLC on all platforms?
Yes. Woolhaven is available on PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One/Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.
Summary
Cult of the Lamb: Woolhaven is a substantial expansion that adds winter survival, ranching, two new dungeons, and a mountain of new content. Focus on building heat structures first, get your ranch running for wool production, and take your time exploring the new story content. The difficulty spike is real — don’t rush the dungeons until you’re properly equipped.
At $16.99 for what amounts to nearly a second game’s worth of content, Woolhaven is an easy recommendation for anyone who enjoyed the base game.
