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How to solve Sanctum puzzles: twining and Gravity Pull
Sanctums lock you to a few chosen Aniimo, so the solution is usually who you twine into. Here is how twining, elements and Gravity Pull fit together, plus where the Jawling puzzle hides.
The short version
- Sanctums are instanced puzzle mini-dungeons that end in a chest, and inside them you can only twine with select Aniimo.
- Twining merges you with an Aniimo so you can use its abilities, which is how you get past obstacles and into areas you otherwise cannot reach.
- Some puzzles need an Aniimo of a specific type or element, so the creature you bring matters as much as the solution.
- The Gravity Pull talent, also called Manipulate, lifts and moves objects, which covers the physics puzzles such as replacing missing center pieces.
- The Jawling puzzle and questline start under a pile of leaves behind ruins on the northern cliff of the Sanctum First Site in the Russet Highlands.
Puzzles in Aniimo come in two places. The open world is scattered with environmental puzzles, and Sanctums pack a series of them into a dedicated instance with a reward at the end.
Almost every one of them is solved with the same two tools. Twining lets you borrow an Aniimo's abilities, and the Gravity Pull talent lets you pick things up and put them where they belong. Once you know which tool a puzzle is asking for, most of them stop being puzzles at all.
What a Sanctum is and what it asks of you
Sanctums are instanced exploration shrines and puzzle mini-dungeons. They grant rewards and are tied to world progression, so they are not optional side rooms you can ignore forever. Inside, you work through a series of environmental puzzles and claim a chest at the end.
The defining rule is that you are restricted to twining with select Aniimo. Your favourite creature from the open world may not be on the list, and the Sanctum is built around the ones that are. Read the room as a question about which of the allowed Aniimo has the ability it needs.
The exact format is not settled. Sanctums are described as cooperative dungeons that need teamwork, and also as coming in solo, partner-required and timed variants. Expect to meet more than one kind, and do not assume every Sanctum can be cleared alone or at your own pace.
Twining into the right Aniimo
Twining merges you with an Aniimo, and while you are merged you use that creature's abilities. That is the core of Sanctum solving. Certain forms and abilities interact directly with world objects, which lets you bypass exploration obstacles, solve environmental puzzles and reach areas you otherwise could not get to.
The practical habit is simple. When you hit a wall, a gap or an object you cannot affect on foot, stop asking how you get past it and start asking which Aniimo gets past it. In a Sanctum the shortlist is already made for you, because you can only twine with the creatures it allows.
Aniimo elements and type requirements
Certain environmental puzzles require an Aniimo of a specific type or element. No amount of clever positioning will substitute for the right creature, so if a puzzle seems impossible, the likeliest answer is that you are twined into the wrong one.
Burning vines to reach hidden nests is the best known example, and it has its own guide on this site. The same logic applies everywhere: match the element to the obstacle, then twine.
Gravity Pull and the physics pieces
Not every puzzle is about borrowing an ability. The open world also has physics-based environmental puzzles, and the most common shape is a structure with its center piece missing. Your job is to find the piece and put it back.
That is what the Gravity Pull talent is for. It is also called Manipulate, so if you see either name, it is the same thing. It lets you lift and move objects, which is exactly what replacing a missing center piece needs. If a puzzle has loose objects lying around and an obvious empty slot, reach for Gravity Pull before you reach for a different Aniimo.
Twining
- Merges you with an Aniimo
- Uses that creature's abilities on world objects
- Bypasses obstacles and reaches inaccessible areas
- Sanctums restrict you to select Aniimo
Gravity Pull
- A talent also called Manipulate
- Lifts and moves objects
- Used for open world environmental puzzles
Finding the Jawling puzzle at the Sanctum First Site
The Jawling puzzle is one of the open world's environmental puzzles, and it comes with a questline. It is in the Russet Highlands, at the Sanctum First Site.
The entrance is easy to walk past. Go to the northern cliff of the Sanctum First Site, find the ruins there, and look behind them. The way in is under a pile of leaves. If you are searching the ruins themselves and finding nothing, you are one step short: it is the leaves behind them you want.
Where to start
Before you enter a Sanctum, look at which Aniimo it lets you twine with, because the answer to each room is usually one of their abilities. Outside, try the element test first, then Gravity Pull for anything with a missing piece. For the Jawling questline, go to the northern cliff of the Sanctum First Site in the Russet Highlands and check under the leaves behind the ruins.
Most of this page was re-checked against the released game on 2 October 2026. The rest has not been re-confirmed since release.
