If you’ve spent any time running co-op missions in The First Descendant, you’ve probably seen high-level players zip across the battlefield with Ines, the stealth-focused speedster who can wipe entire waves of enemies before they even spot her. I spent three days grinding her unlock requirements last month after getting tired of being the slowest player on my Void Intercept runs, so I’ve got all the details you need to skip the frustration. If you’re wondering how to get Ines in The First Descendant, this guide breaks down every requirement, farm hack, and mistake I made so you can add her to your roster in as little as two hours of focused play.
Core Requirements to Get Ines in The First Descendant
Before you start farming any materials, make sure you meet the base prerequisites to unlock her first. You’ll need to be at least Player Rank 25 and have completed the main story mission “Void Chasm” to unlock the related bounties and material drops. If you’re below rank 25, you can grind quick story missions or public events to rank up fast in a couple of hours. Once you hit the rank threshold, you’ll need the following materials to complete the unlock at the character vendor in Albion:
Don’t make the same mistake I did my first day of farming: lower level missions only drop gray-tier generic Void Essence, which doesn’t count towards the Stealth-specific requirement. I wasted an hour running level 20 missions and walked away with zero usable essence, so stick to level 30+ content from the start.
Fastest Farming Routes for Ines Unlock Materials
If you’re focused on how to get Ines in The First Descendant as fast as possible, these optimized farming routes will cut your grind time in half. For Void Essence (Stealth), the best mission to run is “Shadow Run” on the western edge of the Veles region. It’s a short 6-minute stealth mission that you can run solo or with a 2-person team, and each clear drops 8 to 12 Stealth Void Essence. At that rate, you’ll get all 120 you need in 10 to 15 runs, which takes roughly an hour total. Run Shadow Run on repeat for the fastest Stealth Void Essence farm in the game right now.
For Ines Character Shards, skip Normal and Medium difficulty bounty runs entirely. Hard difficulty gives 20 shards per clear, so you only need two runs to get all 40 required. If you don’t have a regular team to run with, use the in-game matchmaking filter for “Ines: Trace Retrieval” to find groups fast. Most players running this bounty are also farming for shards, so they’ll be focused on clearing fast instead of messing around. Prioritize Hard difficulty bounty runs to cut your shard farm time by 50%.
The Stealth Core Module is the only one-time requirement on the list. The Hard difficulty Void Intercept: Viper fight can be tricky if you’re undergeared, but you don’t need a meta team to clear it. Bring a support character with shield buffs like Kyle to counter Viper’s poison spit attack, and you’ll clear the fight in 10 minutes or less. You only have to do this once, so it’s worth waiting 2 minutes for a full team instead of wasting 30 minutes wiping solo.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Trying to Unlock Ines
One of the most frustrating errors you can make when working out how to get Ines in The First Descendant is forgetting to pick up the weekly bounty first before running the Trace Retrieval missions. I did this on my first day of farming, ran the bounty twice, and got zero shards because I didn’t accept the quest from the character vendor in Albion first. Always accept the weekly bounty first before running any Trace Retrieval missions to avoid wasting your time.
Another common mistake is selling excess Stealth Void Essence for credits before you unlock Ines. A lot of players sell extra essence for quick credit boosts, but if you end up needing a few extra pieces to hit the 120 requirement, you’ll have to regrind missions you already completed. Hold onto all Stealth Void Essence until you’ve fully unlocked her, even if you think you have more than enough. Never sell Stealth Void Essence before you finish unlocking Ines.
Don’t waste time farming materials before you hit Player Rank 25 either. Even if you collect all the required materials early, the unlock option won’t appear in your character menu until you hit the rank threshold. If you’re a few ranks away, focus on ranking up first instead of wasting time farming materials you can’t use yet. It’s also not worth trying to run the Hard Viper fight below rank 25, since you’ll get one-shot by her basic attacks even with high-tier gear.
What to Do Right After You Unlock Ines
Now that you know how to get Ines in The First Descendant, you’ll want to make the most of her kit right out of the gate. First, level her up to at least level 20 before taking her into high-level co-op missions. Her base stats at level 1 are extremely low, and you’ll get one-shot by even basic enemies if you jump into endgame content too early. You can use leftover experience modules from other characters to level her up in minutes, so you don’t have to grind low-level missions to get her up to speed.
Equip the Shadow Step signature module first to maximize her stealth potential. This module reduces her stealth cooldown by 40%, which lets her stay hidden almost constantly during missions. It’s the main reason she’s so strong for speed runs and stealth-focused content, so it should be the first module you add to her loadout. If you have extra Ines Character Shards left after unlocking her, use them to unlock her first passive skill, Silent Takedown. Unlock the Silent Takedown passive as soon as possible for elite fights. This skill lets her kill elite enemies with one melee attack while stealth is active, which makes clearing high-level missions way faster.
Take her for a few test runs in solo Shadow Run missions first to get used to her playstyle. Her movement is a lot faster than most starting characters, and it takes a few runs to get used to her stealth activation timing. Once you’re comfortable with her kit, you’ll find she cuts your Void Intercept run times almost in half, and she’s one of the strongest characters for both solo farming and co-op boss fights.
Unlocking Ines doesn’t have to be a multi-day grind if you follow the right steps and avoid the common pitfalls most new players fall into. I’ve used her to cut my Void Intercept run times almost in half, and she’s become my go-to character for both solo farming and co-op boss fights. If you’ve been putting in the work to figure out how to get Ines in The First Descendant, these tips will help you add her to your roster faster than you think, so you can start dominating missions with her unique stealth kit too.