Lords of the Fallen Co-op: How to Play With a Friend

To play Lords of the Fallen in co-op, rest at any Vestige, open the Multiplayer menu, set a password and share it with your friend, and make sure both of you have the same progression setting selected; leave the password empty if you want random matchmaking instead. Co-op is for two players, works across PlayStation, Xbox and PC, and since Version 2.0 it can share story progress for both players. A friend who does not own the game can even join through the Free Friend's Pass.

This guide follows CI Games' official Co-op Update notes and Co-op FAQ from 2026, the Version 2.0 and 2.5 patch notes, and the Fextralife online page, all checked in November 2026.

How to Start a Co-op Session, Step by Step

Everything starts at a Vestige, the game's checkpoint shrines. The April 2026 Co-op Update simplified the flow to three requirements: a Vestige, a shared password and matching progression settings. Here is the full sequence for playing with a specific friend.

1. Both players rest at an activated Vestige and choose the Multiplayer option.
2. Pick the same co-op mode: Shared Progression or the standard, non-shared mode (some patch notes call it Casual Progression).
3. Both players enter the same unique password. A password also keeps unknown players out of your session, a feature added with the second-anniversary update in October 2025.
4. The host beckons and the guest joins. Fextralife lists the menu entries as Beckon Lampbearer, Beckon Friend, Accompany Lampbearer and Slaughter Lampbearer, the last one being the PvP invasion option.
5. To play with a stranger instead, leave the password field empty and use matchmaking.

Two compatibility rules trip people up. First, since Version 2.5 both players must be on the same difficulty mode, Legacy or Veteran, to connect at all. Second, if you choose Shared Progression, you must also be on the same New Game cycle and within one main boss of each other.

Shared Progression vs Standard Co-op

Lords of the Fallen launched in October 2023 with what the developers call Seamless Co-op: a guest could stay in the host's world as long as both wanted. In April 2025, Version 2.0 added Full Shared-Progression Co-op, where both players save all mainline progress during the session. Both modes still exist, and choosing the right one matters.

• Shared Progression: best for two friends playing the campaign together. Quest items, key items, boss rewards such as Remembrances and items from treasure chests go to both players. You need the same NG level and a similar number of main bosses defeated, within a margin of one.
• Non-Shared (standard) co-op: best for helping someone through one area or boss. Story progress does not carry over to the guest; the guest keeps experience and non-quest items only.

What happens to the guest's own save is the part most people worry about. In Shared Progression, the guest's areas, quest items and side quests are overridden to match the host's world. The original solo save is not deleted: under Load Game you will see two saves for the character, your solo save and a Shared Progression save labeled with the host's name. Pick the solo one to continue exactly where you left off.

One more detail from the official FAQ: in Shared Progression, guests should also be able to use Remembrances, the boss items you trade with Molhu for gear. In standard co-op, some rewards stay tied to the host's progression, so if you are mainly helping a friend through a boss, expect the Remembrance to land in their world rather than yours. A sensible rule is to use Shared Progression for a full campaign together and standard co-op for quick help sessions with players who are at a different point in the story.

Keep your pace in sync between sessions. If one of you keeps playing alone and defeats more main bosses, your progress may drift outside the one-boss margin and you will no longer be able to connect in Shared Progression until the other catches up.

What Guests Can and Cannot Do

The 2026 Co-op Update gave guests far more freedom. In Shared Progression, the guest always has Full Privileges. In standard co-op, the host can choose between Full and Limited Privileges.

• Full Privileges: the guest can skip cutscenes, rest and warp between Vestiges, begin boss battles, plant Vestige Seeds, upgrade equipment (Sanguinarix, Umbral Lamp and weapons), socket upgrade items, use a Rebirth Chrysalis and trade with vendors.
• Limited Privileges: the guest can rest at Vestiges, upgrade equipment, socket items, use a Rebirth Chrysalis and trade with vendors, but cannot skip cutscenes, warp, start boss fights or plant seeds.
• Never allowed for guests: cleansing beacons, entering the Umbral without the host, using shrines or offering Remembrances, using the mirror in Skyrest, leaving the Umbral via an effigy, starting the Crucible or Echoes of Battle, and avenging other Lampbearers.

The same update fixed several long-standing co-op bugs, including guests being unable to socket Umbral Eyes into the lamp or runes into weapons, and a bug that multiplied a character's level after using a Rebirth Chrysalis in co-op. If you are rethinking your stats mid-campaign, our guide to respeccing covers the rest of that process.

Loot, Vigor, Reviving and Death

Version 2.0 changed rewards so co-op no longer feels like a favor to the host. Both players can revive each other and both collect the full Vigor and loot in all online sessions. That was not always the case: CI Games' 2024 beginner tips still warned that both players died if the host fell.

• Shared pickups: in Shared Progression, quest items, key items, boss rewards and chest contents go to both players when one of you picks them up. Other drops must be collected by each player.
• Death: loot is not lost when you die in co-op; it stays where it dropped and you can collect it after reviving.
• Respawning: only one active Vestige or Vestige Seed is used at a time, and both players respawn at the most recently placed one, regardless of who planted it.
• Leaving: if the guest leaves, the host keeps playing; if the host leaves, the session ends and both return to their own worlds at their last Vestige.

Co-op also does not stop you from beckoning NPC helpers before a boss, so a pair of players plus a summon is possible on most fights. The full boss order is a handy checklist for keeping both players within the one-boss margin.

The Free Friend's Pass

One of the best features added in Version 2.0 is the Free Friend's Pass. A friend who does not own Lords of the Fallen can download it, create a character, play the full tutorial area solo, and then join a friend who owns the full game for the entire adventure, from the first area to the final boss, in either co-op mode.

There are a few catches. Progress saving can be limited depending on the session type, and if a Free Friend's Pass player quits to the main menu, progress is not saved. The September 2026 hotfix (Version 2.5.624) also closed a loophole that let pass players load saves created with the full game. If your friend enjoys it, buying the full game is the way to keep a permanent save.

Invasions, Crossplay and Connection Problems

PvP invasions used to be a constant risk while online. Since update 2.0.51 in July 2025, invasions are optional and switched off by default in the gameplay settings, so a co-op session will not be interrupted unless you opt in. The switch sits in the Multiplayer settings; the September 2026 hotfix notes refer to it as the Crimson Rituals option, which brings up an Allow Invasions prompt when you change it. Friends who want to spar can still duel by entering the same password while one of them steps into an invasion zone.

Cross-platform co-op works through password matchmaking, which is how a PC player and a console player find each other. Our crossplay explainer covers which modes support it and why progress does not carry between platforms. If you still cannot connect, CI Games' FAQ suggests checking the basics:

• Both players chose the same co-op mode and typed the identical password.
• Both are on the same difficulty mode, Legacy or Veteran.
• For Shared Progression, both are on the same NG level and within one main boss.
• Ping restrictions in the settings are not blocking the connection.
• On PlayStation, online play requires a PlayStation Plus membership, per Fextralife's online guide.

Co-op is also the gentlest way to lower the challenge without touching any settings; the difficulty guide compares it with the game's other options.

Getting Vigor Delivered In Game

Co-op sessions are also how the store delivers its Vigor and armor service: Vigor is dropped in game for you to collect, no account information is needed, and the listing quotes same-day delivery after an email from the store. It supports PlayStation, Xbox and Steam, and the item options listed on the page include all weapons, all armor, all amulets, all rings, Vigor and all Umbral Eyes.

For modded saves and the other listings, see the Lords of the Fallen hub.

Frequently Asked Questions