Horizon Zero Dawn Power Cell Locations: All 5 Cells and the Shield-Weaver Armor

Horizon Zero Dawn Power Cell Locations: All 5 Cells and the Shield-Weaver Armor

There are five Power Cells in Horizon Zero Dawn, and collecting all five completes the Ancient Armory side quest and unlocks the Shield-Weaver outfit, which IGN describes as a powerful armor that renders Aloy nearly invincible for a set amount of time. Four of the five Power Cell locations sit inside story-critical areas, while the first — the Underground Bunker — can be found while exploring the open world after completing the prologue, so the real challenge is timing rather than navigation. In story order they are: the prologue Underground Bunker, the All-Mother Temple during "The Womb of the Mountain," Maker's End tower, The Grave Hoard, and GAIA Prime during "The Mountain That Fell."

The All-Mother cell is the one players most often skip. If you do, the temple stays shut until "The Heart of the Nora" near the end of the story.

All 5 Horizon Zero Dawn Power Cell Locations at a Glance

The Ancient Armory quest does not appear in your Side Quests menu until you pick up any one cell, so players who never grab one may never see the quest at all. No cell is permanently missable, but the All-Mother cell forces a long wait if you skip it.

Cell 1 is the only one you can grab in open free roam, since the ruins are open from the moment the prologue ends. Cells 3 and 4 can be collected during their missions or by returning afterward. Cells 2 and 5 are tied to mission states.

Get the All-Mother Temple Cell

The All-Mother Temple gates close temporarily after "The Womb of the Mountain"; Mother's Watch re-opens in the course of the main storyline, and you can get back into the temple as part of "The Heart of the Nora" mission. You also cannot fast-travel directly to the temple, so plan a walk-in from Mother's Watch, the nearest settlement.

For the pickup itself, cross the hall to the locked door and move through the open ventilation duct beside it. The cell is inside. If you already cleared the mission without grabbing it, mark the temple on your map and return once "The Heart of the Nora" begins. The cell will still be there.

Find the Hidden GAIA Prime Cell

This cell sits off the critical path, which is why so many players finish "The Mountain That Fell" without it. Before following the objective marker deeper into the mountain, turn left and head north. Climb the rubble into the blue-lit cave and look for the cell on a shelf in the back room.

The area cannot be entered before "The Mountain That Fell" because the climbing steps are missing, so there is no point trying early. The key instruction is simple: do not follow the objective marker immediately when you reach the split.

Reach the Ancient Armory and Solve Both Puzzles

With all five cells in hand, the Ancient Armory is north-west of the Nora Hunting Grounds, near an antenna. Climb the rock face beside it and drop down into the cavern behind the tower.

Two puzzles gate the Shield-Weaver.

1. Five wheels (hours of the day), left to right: set them to noon, 3 o'clock, six, nine, midnight. Set the five wheels, left to right, to noon, 3 o'clock, six, nine and midnight.
2. Directional dials: turn them right, left, top, right, left.

Solve both and the armor is yours.

Claim the Shield-Weaver and What It Actually Does

The outfit arrives as a Shield-Weaver Outfit Box in your inventory - open it to equip the armor. Completing the quest also unlocks the "Got the Shield-Weaver" trophy.

The shield behaves like a second health bar. It absorbs heavy damage, blinks red and sounds a high-pitched alarm when nearly depleted, then recharges after a few seconds out of fire. It has no modification slots, so you cannot slot weave mods into it - what you see is what you get. Treat it as a rechargeable buffer rather than literal invincibility, and duck into cover when the alarm sounds.

Power Cell Pickup Mistakes to Avoid

Power Cells are not saved instantly. If you die before reaching the next checkpoint, you must pick the cell up again, so grab one and move on rather than lingering in a dangerous ruin.

According to PowerPyx, Power Cells carry a green icon that makes them easier to spot, so scan rooms before leaving. On Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered (PS5 and PC, 31 October), an optional accessibility feature uses sound and haptics to flag interactable pickups, which helps with cells tucked into corners. The Remastered release also bundles The Frozen Wilds, so a fresh playthrough covers the full base game plus the expansion.

The Route That Gets You the Shield-Weaver in One Playthrough

If you want the armor with minimal backtracking, build the route into your main story run. Grab Cell 1 from the Underground Bunker the first time free roam opens up. Take Cell 2 during "The Womb of the Mountain" before the temple gates close. Collect Cell 3 at the top of Maker's End tower and Cell 4 behind the electronic lock in The Grave Hoard. Then, in "The Mountain That Fell," take the left detour into the blue-lit cave for Cell 5 before you follow the marker.

With all five banked, head north-west of the Nora Hunting Grounds, solve the clock wheels and the directional dials, open the outfit box, and the Shield-Weaver is yours. One clean story run, no temple wait, no second trip.

Sources

• IGN, "Power Cell Locations" (Power Cell 01–05 pages), "Ancient Armory" and "Shield-Weaver" wiki pages; PowerPyx, "Horizon Zero Dawn All Power Cell Locations"; PlayStation Blog, "Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered launches on PS5 & PC October 31"; Wikipedia, "Horizon Zero Dawn"
• PowerPyx, "Horizon Zero Dawn - All Power Cell Locations"
• PlayStation Blog, "Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered launches October 31"
• Wikipedia, "Horizon Zero Dawn"