Wondering how to get the true ending in Dread Fields? To achieve the ultimate survival route in Podoba Interactive’s slow-burn rural horror, you must go beyond your daily farming chores and actively cleanse the land's pagan curse. This requires saving all your livestock, destroying three hidden wooden masks in the forest, crafting a protective wreath from 13 "cat's eye" flowers, and using the Golden Key to shatter the cursed glass before the final night consumes you.
If you’ve been scrolling through Fandom wikis or Reddit threads, you’ve probably seen vague advice like "just find the key and smash the mirror." That shallow guidance will get your farm animals slaughtered and lock you out of the game's best conclusion. Read on for our definitive, step-by-step walkthrough on exactly how to get the true ending in Dread Fields, ensuring your Eastern European homestead survives the shadow.
The Anatomy of a Cursed Farm
"Life in the big city has become too tiring and stressful," the protagonist laments at the start of Dread Fields. You buy an isolated house with a small farm from a strange old man, hoping that physical labor and fresh air will bring happiness. Instead, you get a grueling battle against an ancient, localized evil.
The genius of Dread Fields lies in its mid-2000s PS1-retro styled graphics and its deceptive gameplay loop. By day, it is a lightweight farming simulator. You must milk the cow, mow the grass, carry water from the well, and feed the chickens with grain from a bag. If you fail to maintain the farm, the game punishes you with failed states before the horror even peaks. By night, the game shifts into disquieting tension, marked by cult sacrifices, living dead girls wandering the tree line, and a shadow entity hunting you.
There are three primary conclusions to your rural nightmare. The first is "The Flee Ending", which triggers if you have "0/3 Masks Destroyed" and simply run away, resulting in the "Farm Lost" state. The second is the "Sole Survivor" route, achieved with "1-2 Masks Destroyed", where you live but your "Animals Perish". Finally, there is the "Purified Land (True)" ending, which requires "3/3 Masks Destroyed" and "13 Cat's Eyes Gathered".
Checklist: How to Get the True Ending in Dread Fields
To break the cycle of the "Sole Survivor" ending—where you escape but find your rooster violently killed and your cow mutilated—you must treat the game as a time-management puzzle. The true ending demands that you balance your mandatory rural chores with aggressive exploration of the surrounding forest.
Here is your master checklist for the Purified Land route:
- Maintain the Farm: Complete all daily chores (milking, fetching water, picking eggs, chopping wood) to keep the animals alive and your sanity meter stable.
- The Woodcutter's Axe: Located near the chopping block on Day 1. You need this not just for firewood, but as your primary weapon against the cursed items.
- 13 Cat's Eye Flowers: Tall yellow flora hidden in the forest. Required to protect your pet cat.
- 3 Pagan Masks: Creepy wooden artifacts left by the former owner, acting as anchors for the shadow entity.
- The Golden Key: A late-game item required to unlock the hidden room behind the main house's bookshelf.
Step 1: How to Get the True Ending in Dread Fields via the Cat's Eye Wreath
The most obscure puzzle in the game involves your pet cat. On the third night, the shadow entity will attempt to possess the cat to bypass the salt lines at your doors. If the cat dies, the true ending is permanently locked.
The game’s lore explicitly tells you to "Gather 13 tall yellow flowers known as cat's eyes from the forest." These flowers spawn randomly but are heavily concentrated near the fallen trees on the northern edge of the map. Once collected, you must "Weave the flowers into a protective wreath." Do this at the crafting table on your porch. The crucial step is to "Place the wreath on the farm cat's head before nightfall."
When the entity arrives that night, it will peer through the window. Because of the floral arrangement, "The shadow is perplexed by the multi-eyed creature," buying you the time you need to survive until morning without losing your feline companion. This single interaction is where 90% of blind playthroughs fail.
Hunting the Pagan Masks
While you are scouring the tree line for yellow flowers, you must also hunt down the three pagan masks. These wooden artifacts generate a low, humming audio cue when you are near them. You cannot pick them up; you must destroy them in the environment using the woodcutter's axe.
- Mask 1 (The Well): Usually found leaning against the stone base of the old water well. Smash it immediately after drawing water on Day 2.
- Mask 2 (The Forest Edge): Located deep in the woods, near the area where the living dead girls wander. Do not approach the girls; crouch-walk past their patrol route, find the mask mounted on a dead oak tree, and destroy it.
- Mask 3 (The House): Hidden behind the bookshelf in the main hallway. You will notice the collider on the closet is slightly misaligned (a clever environmental hint by Podoba Interactive). Move the shelf to reveal the mask.
You need to locate the "Pagan Masks" and "Find and destroy all 3". Concurrently, you must hunt for the "Cat's Eyes" and "Harvest 13 yellow blooms". Later, you will uncover the "Golden Key" which is "Hidden near the old well". Finally, to deal with "The Glass", you must remember that it "Requires the woodcutter's axe". Balancing "Chores 30% / Exploration 70%" is the only way to survive.
The Final Night: How to Get the True Ending in Dread Fields
By the time the final night falls, the skybox turns a bruised, unnatural hue, and the farm becomes progressively more deranged. If you have kept the animals fed, placed the wreath on the cat, and shattered the three masks, the shadow entity will be severely weakened, though still lethal.
Now, you must secure the Golden Key. It spawns inside a hollowed-out log near the forest's edge, but only if the three masks are destroyed. Grab the key and sprint back to the house. The shadow will be actively hunting you in the yard—do not look back, and do not waste stamina.
Once inside, as the clock ticks down, you must "Gather the last cat's eye." With the axe in hand, "Break the third mask." Head back to the main house and "Use the Golden Key." Finally, step into the hidden room and "Break the glass to banish the shadow." This sequence must be executed flawlessly.
The glass in question is a large, ornate mirror that acts as the entity's tether to the physical world. Hitting it with the axe triggers the final cinematic: the mirror shatters, the shadow dissolves into ash, and the morning sun rises over a quiet, truly peaceful Eastern European farm. You have achieved the Purified Land ending.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I get the true ending if my rooster dies? No. If you fail to lock the chicken coop or miss feeding them with grain, the shadow will kill your rooster on Night 2. Any animal death instantly locks you into the neutral or bad ending routes.
Where is the shovel in Dread Fields? Many players waste time looking for a shovel based on early demo builds. In the release version, the shovel is located behind the barn, but it is only necessary for a specific neutral ending path (burying cursed items), not the true ending.
Do I have to catch fish to survive? Fishing is part of your daily chores to maintain your hunger meter. While skipping fishing for one day won't kill you, neglecting your routine drains your stamina, making it impossible to outrun the shadow in the forest.
How long does a full playthrough take? A standard blind run takes about 1 hour. However, finding all the secrets, gathering the 13 cat's eyes, and executing the true ending route will likely push your playtime closer to 1.5 or 2 hours.
Sources
- Podoba Interactive. Dread Fields. PC (Steam), 2026.
- Finger Guns. "Dread Fields Review (PC) - A Murder Most Fowl." May 2026.
- Steam Community Hub. Dread Fields Player Guides and Patch Notes. May 2026.