While there is broad agreement that the primary energy release site in flares in solar flares is situated in the corona, there remain many open questions relating to the coupling between different atmospheric regimes and the mechanisms by which the flare energy is transported, including the relative roles of non-thermal particles and kinetic and MHD perturbations. Chromospheric ribbons represent the sites of strongest energy deposition in the lower atmospheres and map directly to the coronal magnetic topology, providing a powerful tool to understand the energy release and transport processes. In this work we use spectroscopic observations from IRIS and EIS of an X1 flare to show how the energy deposition varies within the ribbons, and how it relates to overlying magnetic topology and current flare models. We discuss how DKIST observations could be used to further advance of understanding of the flare process.