Overlord 2: Advice (All upgrades and crystals)

Life upgrades:
(1) Nordburg Town – next to the southern Netherworld Gate. Found by the time you get the first Spell Stone, right behind the wooden barricade.
(2) Everlight Reef – At the northern edge of the map, next to the northeastern Underdark Gate. Deliver the artifact to the ship and transport it to the central island with a more accessible central gate.
(3) Nordburg Town (City of Nordberg) – an icy lake in the north. Use blue minions to carry the artifact to the raft and ferry it to the city portal.
(4) Wasteland (Wasteland) – a small magical pool next to halfling zombie houses (northeast) has a passage further along this pool to the artifact. If you came there to complete the quest to find the Heart of the Tower, then the endless magic slugs will stop respawning (will be replaced by endless hordes of zombies), so just use the blue minions to drain the pool and take the artifact.
(5) Empire Hills – Destroy the barricade in the moat by going further after using the second Underdark catapult. One of the side barriers leads to a health artifact. Unlike the nearby dark crystal, you don’t need wolf-mounted minions to get it.
Mana Upgrades:
(1) Nordburg Sanctuary Cave – at the Fairy Queen statue. Destroy the magic stone that falls from her statue and transfer the artifact to the Underdark Gate.
(2) Everlight Jungle – after you defeat the Spider Boss in the Temple, this artifact will be at the very top of your long climb. Use the Overlord to open a secret room. Also, this secret room is one of the best methods of making money (especially by teleporting between the Temple and the second gate of the enslaved Nordberg).
(3) Nordburg – get a hive of green minions and order the green ones to destroy the poisonous wall in the western part of the city. The passage will lead you to an artifact that was visible even outside the gates of Nordberg.
(4) Wasteland (Wasteland) – near the place where the magical pools are scattered at the Gate of the Underdark, use red minions to go through the fire, bypass the magical pool and get an artifact.
(5) Wasteland Sanctuary (Wasteland Shelter) – go to the gate with the blue minions. There is a whirlpool to the northwest of the Underground Gate in which this artifact is located. It’s easy to miss on the way back and forth, especially since you fight the Salamander King on the way back..
Minion Totem Upgrades:
(15) – This is the initial horde size required to progress through the game and is available as soon as you start playing as an adult Overlord. Each additional command artifact you collect will increase the size of the horde by 5 minions.
(20) – Nordburg (Nordberg) – next to the bridge, where the view of the city opens up and Gnarl remembers the city 13 years ago, shortly after you got the spell stone in Nordberg Vault. Make sure that the minions with the artifact reach the gate after the scene with the spell stone ends, or you will not receive an upgrade (bug).
(25) – Nordburg (Nordberg) – After receiving the red hive, you will be notified of the discovery of the excavation site (and Borius, the bold mayor). Next to the minecart rails connecting the Underdark Gate and the excavation site is a pile of piled stones that hides an artifact underneath. To get it, you need to stop the trolley at the turn of the rail track and order the red minion to light the explosives lying in it.
(30) – Everlight Reef – In the inner dock of the central island. Increase the speed of the ship to maximum and ram the stone blockage. The artifact must be moved to the ship and delivered to the gates of the central island. To ram the blockage you will need an elven ship.
(35) – Everlight Town Resort – North of the Underdark Gate with a spider icon on the map.
(40) – Empire Harbor – Near the Underdark Gate at the slave camp.
(45) – Wasteland (Wasteland) – in the northwestern part of the zombie settlement, just behind the rotating stone. This zombie settlement is located next to the Vault entrance..
(50) – Armor Upgrade – Infernal Helm increases the size of the horde by five. This is the only way to recruit a horde of 50 minions.
Forge Stones (for weapon and armor upgrades):
Nordburg – Behind the fire barricade in the part of the city where the first ballista is located. Southeastern part.
Everlight Jungle – Near the seated goddess statue, next to the Underdark Gate.
Empire Harbor – On a rampart in a fortress with a catapult.
Spell Catalysts:
(1) Nordburg Commune – within the elven community.
(2) Everlight Temple Perimeter – near the entrance to the sanctuary, where the blue keystone is located, where Fey sets up a trap with a cave troll.
(3) Wastelands (Wasteland) – Near the first halfling houses. In order to get the catalyst, you need green minions.
(4) Everlight Town Resort (Resort City of Eternal Light) – in the southern edge of the city you need to cross the water with the blue minions and take the catalyst from the island.
(5) Empire Heartland – at Senator Dreyrius’s villa.
(6) Empire Sewers – near the Underdark Gate. Blue minions are needed to get the catalyst..
(7) Wastelands (Wasteland) – in the southwest, at the top of a ruined staircase near the shore of a large magical pool. It takes blue minions to get to this pool.
(8) Wastelands Sanctuary Depths – After the destruction of the first sanctuary, the catalyst can be found near the Underdark Gate.
(9) Empire Hills – Behind the first catapult of the Underdark is a tent, a respawning soldier and Gargantuan in a small clearing. The catalyst is nearby.
Dark crystals (common crystals drop randomly from magic creatures):
1 – Throne Room of the Tower, on the side balcony.
2 – the location of the Minion Dwellings in the Tower. In a dead end next to the blue minion hive.
3 – the location of Minion Dwellings in the Tower. Near the rope bridge at the hive of red minions.
4 – private chambers in the Tower. On a gabled balcony.
5 – Tower Forge, next to giant mechs.
6 – Nordberg Vault Cave. Near the place where you first find red minions.
7 – City of Nordberg. After using explosives to open the gate to Nordberg, send the cart to the gate again and detonate it – a stone blockage will open on the side of the gate.
8 – Everlight Reef (Reef of Eternal Light). There are flooded ruins next to the red keystone that the Overlord cannot reach due to the depth of the water. Get there with blue minions.
9 – Everlight Reef (Reef of Eternal Light). After you have placed the yellow keystone on the pedestal, go down to the sandbank, where many fat mutant half-mermaids / half-fish-hedgehogs hang out. From the portals of the red and brown minions next to the yellow keystone, walk one flight of stairs down to the sandbank. Stop at the bottom of the steps, turn right and send minions for the dark crystal.
10 – Everlight Jungle (Jungle of Eternal Light). Find the green minions for the first time and after passing two fat elves mowing under the Mother Goddess, reach the northern edge of the map and send the minions for crystal along the coast of the deep bay to the end.
11 – Everlight Facility – at the northern edge of the Factory (ground level), west of the pandas. Use minions to push the platform.
12 – Everlight Facility – East wing of the Factory. A cave that leads outside to some kind of dumping site.
13 – Everlight Facility – after using the possession stone and entering the body of a minion, reach a small gate opened by five minions next to a green hive. The gate leads to the room with the crystal.
14 – Everlight Temple – in a secret room at the top of the temple after you have destroyed the Spider Boss.
15 – Everlight Town Resort (Resort City of Eternal Light). Find the cobweb next to the Underdark Gate. Send green minions on top of the spiders to get to the top..
16 – Everlight Town Resort (Resort City of Eternal Light). Use the blue minions to reach the island where the spell catalyst is also located. Let them cross the little bridge until the end.
17 – Nordburg (Nordberg). Find the ballista in the northeastern part of the city, near where you defeated Borius and head north through the gate. There is a crystal at the end of the path where you started playing as a little Overlord.
18 – Empire Harbor (Imperial Dock). In the ground corner of the fortress with a catapult.
19 – Empire Heartland. Kill Gargantuan after destroying all the Guardians on the main road to obtain the crystal.
20 – Empire Sewer (Imperial Sewer). Near the Underdark Gate. Next to the raft you used to cross the river, under the grate. Use the blue minions to drag the raft and send them for the crystal.
21 – Empire Sewer (Imperial Sewer). There is a platform next to the room where you used the crane to loot four blue minions that requires 20 minions to press..
22 – Wasteland (Wasteland). The nook is directly north of the Underdark Gate (Gate 1). This crystal can be obtained when you receive blue minions.
23 – Wasteland (Wasteland). In the northwestern part of the map next to the zombie settlement, which is located near the entrance to the Wasteland Hideout.
24 – Wasteland (Wasteland). The northern settlement of zombies near the magical pool, where the artifact of life is located. The crystal is located behind one of the shacks.
25 – Wasteland (Wasteland). Near a large lake of magical “radioactive waste”. The crystal is located in the northeastern part of the lake.
26 – Wasteland (Wasteland). While escaping the Imperial forces, you will reach an S-shaped turn on a cliff. There is a climb at the top of this southwest-pointing turn that only minions can climb. The crystal is on the side of the road in front of where you slide down to the entrance to the Vault.
27 – Wasteland Sanctuary. On the way to the exit after destroying all four shrines, there is a red hollow where archers with fire arrows stand. Behind them is a path leading to the exit from the Vault. The crystal is right on the trail.
28 – Wasteland Sanctuary Town (one-time chance). On the way back to the Fairy Queen after destroying the sanctuaries in the city, there is a spot where minions push two statues to protect the Overlord from the arrows of the archers. Immediately after this place, you will find a lone centurion at a fork in several stairs and alleys. Climb the stairs leading up to the elven box. The crystal is hidden there, among a pile of broken things. If you have already completed the quest about the Heart of the Tower and obtained the last Mistress, then you cannot get back to this location and take the crystal.
29 – Empire Hills (Imperial Hills). Behind the second Underdark catapult, next to the health artifact. Use minions on wolves to get to the platform across the moat.
30 – Empire City (Imperial City). On one of the ramparts at the gate to the palace of Solarius.