Baldur's Gate 3: Complete Guide - All Quests & Achievements (Act 1)

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This Baldur’s Gate 3 series covers how to do  all major quests and missable content in order   so that all achievements or trophies, choices,  and major rewards will be available. We will be   striving to get the most optimal or good outcome  for all companions, recruit the most allies,   obtain all Legendary Weapons and Armor, and  have an overall satisfying playthrough. For   best results, follow this series from  the start of Part 1. Spoilers will be   limited to important information and as usual,  useful timestamps can be found in the video   description. In these earlier videos, I will  also be giving some pointers for newer players   that are not as familiar with the mechanics  of Baldur’s Gate 3. That being said, there   should be plenty of useful information for even  experienced players with multiple playthroughs. Part 1 of this series will take  us through the entirety of Act 1,   including the Nautiloid Crash Region,  The Underdark, and The Mountain Pass. To start, we are going to play on Tactician  Difficulty for the Critical Hit achievement,   and choose the custom character origin. I  have been told that there is a method to get   the “No One Left Behind” achievement  with the Dark Urge Origin. However,   because I have not personally tested this, we  will not be covering it in this guide series. You can choose whichever starting class and  race you want, but I will also be explaining   my own playstyle and builds for this character  and others as we progress through the game,   in case you want to follow along or copy anything.  For my part, I will be playing as a High Half-Elf   Sorcerer. I went with Sorcerer for multiple  reasons. Their primary trait is Charisma,   making them good at negotiations, which will make  achieving good outcomes much easier. In addition,   Sorcerers gain access to metamagic. More  specifically, we will have access to twinned   spell, which, when combined with Haste, will make  combat encounters MUCH easier starting at level 5. The reason why I chose half-elf is that  they get the Civil Militia feature,   which grants proficiency with shields. Humans also  get this feature and it is great for spellcasters. I will be taking the utility spell Light as  my High Elf cantrip, and for my four sorcerer   cantrips I will be getting bone chill, ray  of frost, shocking grasp, and fire bolt. For starting spells I will be  taking Mage Armor and Magic Missile. For the subclass, I’ll be going  with Storm Sorcery as it is the   strongest sorcerer subclass and  provides additional combat spells. The Guild Artisan background will provide  us with Insight and Persuasion proficiency,   both of which will help us in negotiations.  If all this stuff is new to you, don’t worry,   everything will be explained in due time. For ability points, I have adjusted them so  that both Dexterity and Charisma are at 16,   and Constitution is at 14. As a Sorcerer,  Charisma will determine the effectiveness   of our spells. Meanwhile, both Dexterity and  Constitution will improve our survivability. Finally, we will select Skill Proficiencies.  Intimidation and Deception are both worth taking. From there, all that’s left is  to customize the appearance of   both your Character and your  Guardian, and venture forth. As a sorcerer, the first thing we will do  every adventuring day is use Mage Armor.   This will raise our AC or Armor Class up to  16, making us significantly hard to hit with   targeted attacks. The spell will use a level  1 spell slot, which we currently have two of. In this first room, we can interact with the  Nursery to perform our first Skill ability   check. In this case, it is the investigation  skill being used. For any ability check,   we roll a 20-sided die, also known as a D20,  then add our modifier to get the result. For me,   that modifier is 0. If the total is equal to  or higher than the particular skill check’s   difficulty class, or DC, we will succeed, if  it is less than the DC, we fail. In this case,   the DC is 10. Don’t worry if you fail this  check, as it is ultimately of little importance. We can use the nearby alien device to restore our  spell slots or other resources, then move on to   the next room. Feel free to look around and loot  bodies and other containers. To highlight things   that are generally worth interacting with, hold  the Alt button on Keyboard/mouse, or right stick   click on a controller. This is a very useful  mechanic to start taking advantage of early on. We can activate a lift in this  room and ride it up to find a   person with an open cranium and this is  an opportunity to get a temporary ally,   called “Us” that can also be found later in the  game. To get it, you must choose the dialogue   option where you try to help, then succeed  in one of 3 ability checks. For my character,   Dexterity gets the highest bonus, +3,  so I will use that to free the brain. Saving “Us” is not required for any achievements,  but if you really want this little brain guy as a   companion, you can save the game before rolling  the ability check. That way, if you fail,   you can load that save and try again. This is  known as save-scumming, and in order to get   all achievements and ideal outcomes, it may be  necessary to do on occasion. That being said,   we will play in a way that gives us the best odds  of success so that save scumming is rarely needed. After prying the brain free, you can mutilate it  to make it more docile, but this is unnecessary. Up ahead we will meet our first major  companion, Lae’zel the Githyanki. In   addition, after speaking with her,  we get our first combat encounter,   and this is a good time to  explain the basic mechanics. Combat is turn based. The order that characters  take their turn in is determined by their   initiative roll. In general, characters with  higher dexterity will have higher initiative,   and get to go before the characters with  lower initiative. Since all my characters   are grouped up in the initiative order,  their turns take place simultaneously,   allowing for better coordination of attacks. During each turn, a character is allowed to move  a certain distance, determined by their movement   speed. Generally this is 30 ft. A character also  gets 1 Action, which is typically required for   primary weapon attacks and most spells, and one  bonus action, which is required for more minor   actions, such as shove, using a potion,  and jump, although jump also requires 10   ft of movement speed. You can see what resources  different abilities require by hovering over them.  For this combat encounter, I am going to  start by using my two melee fighters to   attack different targets, then clean up  with my sorcerer, using magic missile. After the fight, we’ll use the restoration  device, then continue towards the helm. In this next room there are two unconscious  thralls that we can defeat to get some free   experience points. In addition, another potential  companion, Shadowheart, is trapped in the nearby   mindflayer pod. To free her, head through the  door to the east. The first body on the ground   has a key which we will use in short order. Near  the back end of this area is a console that you   can interact with for a short cutscene. There  is also a second body with an Eldritch Rune,   which we need to free Shadowheart.  You can also grab the green brain jar,   which has a purely lore-based use  quite a bit later in the game. Returning to the room with Shadowheart, we  can open the elaborate reliquary chest with   the gold key for some loot, grab the brain  jar, then go to free Shadowheart. To do this,   interact with the nearby console  and insert the Eldritch Rune. You   may want to save before this skill check as  failing it could mean losing Shadowheart as   a companion. This is very unlikely though, as  you only need to meet a DC of 2 to succeed. Once Shadowheart is free, speak with  and allow her to join the party. Before moving on, you can open Shadowheart’s  spellbook and switch out the Shield of Faith   spell with Bless, which is a fantastic  support spell for combat. Looking at Bless,   you might notice that it lasts for 10 turns and  requires concentration. A character can only   concentrate on one spell at a time, so if you cast  any other spell that also requires concentration,   it will end the previous spell that was being  concentrated on. We will also want to prepare   the Command Spell on Shadowheart and also have  Lae’zel pick up some large objects to use later. Once ready, move south towards the Helm. Here, we will want to have Lae’zel place the  large objects she picked up in front of the door,   in order to block off any enemies  that may try to come through it. Before going in, we can prepare for combat  by entering turn-based mode. On a controller,   do this by pressing the right trigger, then  selecting the turn-based mode option. This   allows us to efficiently use various buff  spells or abilities with short durations,   such as bless, before entering  a combat encounter. For now,   all we really have is Shadowheart’s  Bless, which can target up to 3 allies. We can then use another character’s action  to activate the nearby alien device,   replenishing the level 1 spell slot that  Shadowheart used to cast Bless. A good rule   to follow is to save the game before every  combat encounter, so we will do that here. Next, exit turn-based mode so  all characters stay grouped up,   then quickly enter the helm through the sphincter  door before Bless has a chance to wear off. There is an achievement for defeating Commander  Zhalk, the fiend fighting the Mind Flayer,   it’s called “Devil’s in the Details”. However,  on Tactician difficulty, this will most-likely   require some save-scumming. First, we will  want to have Lae’zel place the large chest   in front of the door, in order to stall the  enemies that will try to come through it,   and then move towards Zhalk as quickly  as possible. Next, we will want to save,   then have Shadowheart cast Command: Drop on Zhalk,  and it will need to succeed. If it does not,   we will need to revert to the previous  save. Once Zhalk drops his Everburn Blade,   we can have Lae’zel pick it up and equip it.  Then start beating on Zhalk her next turn,   while the rest of our party cleans up the weaker  enemies, before joining in to help. We will want   to save throughout this process, as hitting  Zhalk most of the time will be necessary for   success. Also, we need to get the final blow  on Zhalk for the achievement. Because of that,   it is recommended to save 1 spell slot  on our Sorcerer for Magic Missile. At 11 turns remaining before the Nautiloid  crashes, two Cambions will enter the turn   order. The chest will only block them for  1 or 2 turns. At this point, Zhalk will   hopefully be at half health or less. Once Zhalk  is down to his last 10 or so points of health,   we will want to have our sorcerer basically within  reach of the transponder. We will save the game,   then, assuming Zhalk is not defeated  by the Mind Flayer, we can finish the   job on our sorcerer with a magic missile,  then run or fly to the transponder. All it   takes is one character interacting with  the transponder for everyone to escape. If getting this achievement on tactician proves  too annoying or difficult, a similar strategy can   be used on a different character with the easiest  difficulty setting, and it should be far easier. Just be warned that if you turn the difficulty  down to easy on this playthrough to defeat   Commander Zhalk, then continue playing on the same  save and turn the difficulty back to Tactician,   you won’t be able to get the Critical Hit  achievement for beating the game on Tactician. After the cutscene, we’ll  awaken to a new adventuring day,   so put on any daily buffs, such  as mage armor, before continuing. Our first objective will be to recruit  all companions in the beach area,   starting with Shadowheart nearby. We’ll speak through her dialogue and team up. If  you earned enough XP on the Nautiloid, you should   reach level 2, which will make the next encounter  significantly easier. Shadowheart doesn’t get much   at level 2, but if you are playing a sorcerer  you will be able to choose a new spell,   and I highly recommend Shield as it’s a great  defensive spell. In addition you will get to   choose two metamagic options. For this, twin spell  is a must, and distant spell also comes in handy. Moving on, feel free to loot the coastline  up towards the northeast. You’ll find   camping supplies, along with at  least one set of thieves' tools. Once ready, we’ll head west for the next  combat encounter with some Intellect   Devourers. Up to this point we haven’t been  able to initiate combat on our own terms,   so let’s quickly cover how to surprise our  enemy, which will give us a huge advantage. Get everyone into sneak mode by  clicking shift + C on keyboard mouse,   or by holding the down button on the d-pad if  using a controller. Save the game just in case,   then move closer to the enemies. Enter turn-based  mode to have better control, then move in for   an attack on the enemy while staying out of  sight, ranged attacks often work best for this. If you successfully hit the enemy while  sneaking, they and any nearby enemies   will get the Surprised condition. Surprise  basically causes the affected creature to   have their first turn in combat skipped,  giving the ambushers a huge advantage. Also note that any allies that are also  sneaking will probably not be automatically   entered into the combat encounter. You will have  to switch over to them and either exit hiding,   or launch an attack at the enemy  to get them in the turn order. Another tip for combat encounters is to end  your turn while staying back and out of sight   of enemies. This will force them to waste their  action on dashing in order to close the distance. By making use of surprise mechanics and playing   tactically, this otherwise difficult early  encounter is handled with relative ease. If you need to heal after the encounter, you can  expend a short rest. Short rests heal half of each   character’s hitpoint maximum, and restore certain  resources depending on the class. One example   being the channel divinity charges of a Cleric.  You get two short rests per adventuring day,   and both are replenished when taking  a long rest, but more on that later. Before moving on, make sure to loot  the surrounding bodies and containers   as there should be some useful  items, such as a potion of speed. Next, we’ll head further west to recruit our  second companion, Astarion the Rogue. After a   small altercation, Astarion will apologize  for the misunderstanding. You can accept   Astarion’s apology, or reject it. Accepting his  apology will gain approval from Shadowheart,   and this is a good time to explain the approval  system. Different companions will either approve   or disapprove of specific actions you take,  most of which occur through dialogue choices. Each companion reacts differently,  and for Shadowheart, she approves   of discretion above all else. On the other  hand, Astarion mostly approves of cruelty,   but regardless, we should be  able to get him to tow the line. Ultimately, the approval system is a  crucial mechanic in Baldur’s Gate 3,   and raising approval with companions will  cause them to open up and share personal   information about their past, motivations,  and willingness to engage in romance. If   you are ever worried about how a companion  might react to a choice you are about to make,   just save the game beforehand so  that you can go back if needed. I will do my best to point out  key opportunities for raising   companion approval when possible,  as well as how to avoid disapproval. Here is where we are at on the map  just to help everyone follow along. Before moving on, we can interact  with the frightened boar. A successful   animal handling check here will result in  gaining more approval from Shadowheart. Whenever we do an ability check, we will want  to take advantage of the Guidance spell from   Shadowheart. It is a cantrip so it will  not consume any spell slots, and it adds   an additional 4 sided die or D4 to our skill  checks, increasing the likelihood of success. Next, we can briefly move west, jumping down  to a secluded area near the coastline. There,   a boulder can be shuffled out of the way by  Shadowheart to reveal a chest. Inside you’ll   find two potions of speed, valuables, and a map  and book from the Harper faction. Be sure to   read any books or notes you come across, as they  will all contribute to the Bookworm achievement,   and can provide important information for quests  or add markers on your map for supply caches. Next, we’ll move north into the crashed  nautiloid, where an encounter with a   dying Mind Flayer awaits. You can try  to learn more about the mind flayer,   at the risk of having your brain eaten, or just  finish it off instead. I recommend the latter. Loot the mind flayer for a chance at another  potion of speed, then move east to find and   loot a final mind flayer, at this point you  should have a handful of Potions of Speed.   These are extremely strong and we can save them  for particularly difficult combat encounters. Moving on, we will head north to the  Ancient Sigil Circle. Save your game   before interacting with it, as  this is where a 3rd companion,   Gale, can either be saved or lost at the  roll of a die. Depending on your class,   you may get to choose a special ability check  to save Gale, such as charisma with Sorcerers. Gale is a kind-hearted, if a bit overconfident  Wizard that approves of those who make peace,   avoid conflict, and help the innocent. In short,   he will be very easy to get along  with and gain the approval of. After saving Gale, agree to team up and  increase his level to 2. As a wizard,   subclass selection becomes available at level 2,  and I’ve always liked the Divination Subclass, as   it gives access to the Portent subclass feature.  Portent gives Gale two pre-rolled D20s that can   be used to replace any attack roll or saving  throw made by a nearby creature during combat. I also really like taking the Longstrider spell on  Gale as soon as possible. This spell can be cast   as a ritual. What that means is that if you use  it out of combat and while not in turn-based-mode,   it does not consume a spell slot. This  means Gale can give all his companions   and himself the Longstrider buff, which  increases movement speed by 10 ft per turn,   and it lasts until taking a long rest.  Gale is also a spellcaster without any   form of physical armor, so make sure to  use Mage Armor on him before moving on. Before finding the last beach-bound  companion, we will head a short distance   west to loot some goblins. From there, move  north. There is a patch of burning ground,   which you can either jump over,  or neutralize with ice or water. The only thing we want up here at this moment  is a shovel, which can be found stuck in a dirt   mound. Shovels allow us to dig up chests from  dirt mounds, which often contain useful loot. From there, we will head back east to find  Lae’zel, trapped by tieflings and in need of   rescue. In order to get the “Leave No One Behind”  achievement, we cannot harm the tieflings. So   insead, use deception to trick the tieflings into  leaving peacefully. Some classes, such as monks,   will have access to alternative ability  checks in order to resolve things peacefully. In any case, once we’ve peacefully gotten rid  of the tieflings, we can free Lae’zel. We can   tell her she needs to say “please” in order  to score some easy approval points with both   Astarion and Shadowheart. Afterwards, shoot  out the bottom of the trap to free Lae’zel. Shadowheart will disapprove of teaming up  with Lae’zel. But there is a pretty simple   trick to avoid companion disapproval. Simply take  control of the character that will disapprove,   ungroup them from the rest of the party  (this is done by clicking G on keyboard,   or through the party interface when using a  controller), and then move them a fair distance   from the interaction. Doing so will prevent  that companion from registering your actions,   thereby avoiding the loss in approval.  Just make sure that you remember to group   everyone back up afterwards, so as to  keep the party moving as a single unit. When you agree to join forces with  Lae’zel, she will tell you to make   room in your party. At this point,  you can either make room for her,   or have her go wait at camp instead. I am  going to make room by telling Astarion to   return to camp. Although companions may pout  or complain about it, telling them to return   to camp will not have any impact on their  approval or anything else for that matter. I had Lae’zel join the party, increased her level  to 2, and had Gale cast Longstrider on her. We’ll   make sure the party is all grouped up and move  east towards the Chapel Ruins. Upon arrival you’ll   be accosted by several looters. You can attack  them, or talk your way out of the situation. This is a good point to take a long rest,   for story and companion approval  purposes if nothing else. At the camp, it’s a good idea to  speak with your companions. If you   speak with Shadowheart and agree that  finding a healer is the top priority,   you’ll gain some approval with  both Gale and Shadowheart. We can also speak with Shadowheart and choose the  “we should get to know each other more” option,   then choose “if you’re not comfortable, I won’t  press you.” to gain additional approval points. With Astarion, he should offer to stay  up and keep watch, picking “Thank you.   I’ll sleep better for that.” will get  you some approval points with him. With Lae’zel, you can ask her if  she knows much about Mind Flayers,   and following that, about what happens if  a cure isn’t found. Finally, you can say   “That’s not going to happen, We will find a  cure.” to get some approval points with her. For Gale, he should start the  conversation with “Go to hell”.   Responding with “and a good evening to  you too.” will get you some approval. When taking a long rest, you can either  use camp supplies for a full long rest,   or save camp supplies and take a partial  long rest instead. For my situation,   a partial long rest will be just fine, and  we will be taking another long rest soon. A quick bonus tip I have is to make a  manual or permanent save at the start   of each adventuring day, they serve as  excellent checkpoints to load back to. We will start the new adventuring day  by getting all of our buffs in order. Once that is taken care of we will leave  camp and venture into the Chapel Ruins. You   can shoot down the nearby foundation block  with a ranged attack. Don’t enter just yet,   but this will open a hole down into the  ruins. There is a group of enemies that   will need to be taken care of, and  we are going to get the jump on them. Group up around the entrance and  have the group enter sneak mode,   then toggle turn-based-mode and jump in. We are  going to strategically position our characters   around the sides of the door so that they  stay out of sight. Position the wooden chest   in the way of the door so as to block anyone  trying to walk in, then save the game and end   everyone’s turn. If all goes right, no one will  discover your party in the time that passes. At this point, select one of your  characters with ranged attack options   and hit one of the enemies from hiding, this  will cause all the enemies to be surprised. Next, have another character with the firebolt  spell hit the oil barrel just beyond the door.   This will cause an explosion that will decimate  the enemies numbers and lead to very easy cleanup. There is also another enemy in the chamber to the  north that we can get the drop on. In addition,   there are plenty of food or camp  supplies on the nearby table. Loot all of the fallen enemies, then  move to the southernmost room in this   area. There are plenty of books  to find and read in this area,   but what we are mainly looking for is the  lever on the southern wall of the chamber.   Pulling it will open a new passage leading to  the west, which is where we are heading next. After looting everything in the immediate  vicinity of this new area, you’ll want to   split off from your group and go through the  door to the south. I also recommend saving   before doing this. Do not loot the central  sarcophagus, as it is trapped. Instead,   loot the smaller entombments near the room’s  periphery first. One of these containers will   have a shield, which I will be equipping to my  sorcerer. Gale can also make use of the shield. Another of these containers will have a soul coin,   which a companion that we have  yet to meet can make use of. Once you’ve looted all the surrounding containers,   position yourself between the central  sarcophagus and the room where the   rest of your companions are. Approach the  sarcophagus, then enter turn based mode. Loot the engraved key and Watcher’s  Guide magic spear from the sarcophagus,   then skirt around the grease that appears on the  ground, and return to your companions, using dash   if necessary. Upon leaving turn based mode, the  room will be inundated with fire and explosions. At this point, we will group the  party back up and go through the   door to the north, which we now have the key for. To the west is a small room with a sarcophagus  where another soul coin can be found. There   is also a book of the dead gods, which if  you manage to open and successfully read,   will gain some approval with Shadowheart and  inspiration for both Gale and Shadowheart. Next up, we’ll have to face off with  a group of skeletons. I am going to   position and hide my characters  to prepare and get the jump. Once you are ready, enter turn-based mode  and have a character interact with the button   in the northwest corner of the room. This  will open a door to a secret room nearby,   as well as unleash a handful  of reanimated skeletons. You should be able to get a surprise attack  on them to initiate the combat encounter. After the encounter, head into that newly opened  room and open the Sarcophagus. We’ll meet a   new helpful NPC by the name of Withers.  Answer Withers’ question sufficiently,   and he’ll head off to our camp. Before  going there ourselves, let’s loot Withers’   sarcophagus for yet another Soul Coin, along  with some valuables. In the nearby heavy chest,   we will also find The Amulet of Lost Voices, which  allows the wearer to cast speak with dead at will. At this point we will take our second  Long Rest. The first thing I recommend   doing is to take control of Shadowheart  and speak with Withers in the west-most   room. Ask Withers “what kind of services  can a skeleton offer?” then speak through   the rest of his dialogue. You should  be able to speak with Withers again   and change Shadowheart’s class for 100 gold.  You can also do this with any other character. I am going to switch Shadowheart to a  Light Domain cleric and optimize her   ability score points. Light Domain clerics are  all around incredible. The light domain spells,   warding flare subclass feature, and  radiance of dawn channel divinity   that they gain at level two all make  for an extremely formidable combatant. After handling that, we can  speak with our companions. It doesn’t seem like there is any  approval to be gained with Shadowheart,   Gale, or Lae’zel, but all of them  should have new things to say. Astarion, on the other hand, will ask how  you would want to go out if you were to   become a mind flayer. If you say “Not sure.  How would you like to go?” then follow it up   with “Decapitation sounds good, actually.”  you will get some approval points with him. Afterwards, we can take our long rest,   and this time I will be using camp supplies  to gain all the benefits of a full long rest. After performing our morning rituals,  we will fast travel back to the Roadside   Cliffs and head north past a broken  carriage. There is a battle up ahead,   so I am going to have Shadowheart  bless everyone but herself,   then have the party climb the nearby hill  to the north for a good vantage point. There are quite a few enemies in this  encounter, but fortunately we will also   have plenty of allies to back us up, so we can  lean on them in order to conserve resources,   just do enough to keep them all from dying. The  Bugbear is capable of dealing a lot of damage,   so I always prioritize defeating him first. Once the raiding party has been dealt with, visit  the nearby Ancient Sigil Circle to activate a new   fast travel point. Then, loot all of the  bodies for sellable loot and a shield,   which we can equip Gale with. Za’krug the Goblin  boss should also have the Gloves of Power on him,   which are good when equipped by  Lae’zel or any other martial class. There are a good deal of important tasks  to take care of in the Druid Grove,   saving several tieflings among them. A short distance in we will find Zevlor, a  tiefling, arguing with a human mercenary by   the name of Aradin. Personally, I used  persuasion to resolve the conflict,   but whatever you choose to do, try  and stay on the tieflings’ good side.   Resolving the conflict peacefully will gain  us approval from both Shadowheart and Gale. After that, we’ll head up and around the southwest  bend to the gate lookout. Here we’ll find Arka,   grieving over a fallen ally. Don’t worry,  this is one tiefling that cannot be saved,   so him dying won’t stop us from getting the “No  One Left Behind” achievement. Saying “You need to   avenge this - spill some goblin blood” will get us  approval points with both Shadowheart and Lae’zel Next, we’ll head further east to the Grove’s  highpoint. Here, we’ll need to save a tiefling,   Nadira, from a Bugbear Assassin. Given  that it’s only one enemy, I am personally   conserving spell slots and other resources  for this fight. After defeating the Bugbear,   we can speak with Nadira and trick  her into giving us another Soul Coin,   which will also give us more  approval with Shadowheart. At this point we should be able to gain our  3rd level on most if not all characters. I   will be taking Thunderwave on my Sorcerer  as it’s a very useful first level spell,   and it will help us get an achievement  pretty easily later on. I will also be   taking Quickened Spell as my 3rd metamagic option. Full spellcasters, such as sorcerers, wizards,  and clerics, gain the ability to cast level 2   spells at level 3. They also gain two  level 2 spell slots. And this is a good   time to explain how leveled spells work.  Leveled spells require a spell slot to   cast. A level 2 spell can only be cast with a  level 2 spell slot or higher. A level 1 spell,   on the other hand, can be cast with a level 1  spell slot or higher. If you cast a spell using   a higher level spell slot, it will often have  additional or augmented effects. For example,   when we cast magic missile, a level  1 spell, using a level 2 spell slot,   it will fire off an additional missile, for  a total of 4. That being said, some spells   do not grant additional benefits when cast at a  higher level, a prime example being mage armor. With that covered, let’s get back on topic. Fighters gain their subclass at  level 3, and Battle Master is,   in my opinion, the strongest of the  3. It gives the fighter Manoeuvres,   which can have all sorts of special effects.  The Manoeuvres I personally like to start   off with are Distracting Strike, Precision  Attack, and Pushing Attack. That being said,   you are free to look through the options  and choose whichever ones you like best. For the Cleric, level 3 gives access to  new spells and spell slots to cast with. Finally, Gale will get to learn 2 more  spells, and I’m going to take and prepare   both Misty Step and Shatter, but again, I  don’t think either of these are must-haves. We can Short Rest here if needed, then head north  deeper into the grove. A short distance in we’ll   find Arron the trader, and we can sell our goods  to him. A higher Charisma will get you better   prices on purchases, and more money for wares  that you are selling. When it comes to selling,   any junk, jewels, and common weapons and  armor can go. We will hang on to magic items,   such as The Watcher’s Guide, as well as  any Soul Coins, infernal iron, and elixirs. Also, there is an easy way to accumulate wealth  and magic items, but it’s definitely gaming   the system. First, save the game before trying  this. Then, what we’ll need to do is toggle on   non-lethal attacks in the passives tab. Then, for  best results, sneak attack the merchant we want to   get loot off of with a character that we aren’t  using to interact and buy stuff with. In this   case, we will attack Arron with Gale from hiding.  At that point, whittle the merchant’s health down   until they are knocked out. Just make sure to  exclusively use melee attacks once the merchant   is at low health as ranged attacks and spells  will kill, even if non-lethal is toggled on. Once the merchant has been knocked out, you can  loot back all the items you sold the merchant,   plus any unique magic items the merchant  had for sale. Note that this cannot be done   with all merchants, at least not without  incurring backlash from nearby guards,   but I’ll be sure to point out any merchants  that this can be done with. And don’t worry,   so long as the merchant isn’t killed, they  will wake back up after the next long rest,   and will only be mad at the first  character that attacked them. Personally, I’ll be taking just the  magic items to equip my characters,   and sending the remaining valuables back to camp.   We can always go grab it from the camp  stash whenever we need stuff to sell. Moving northwest, we can find and speak with  Zevlor in the hideout beyond the stone door.   He will task us to both find and speak with  Kagha, on behalf of the Tiefling refugees. Right outside of the hideout we can speak  with Aradin and learn about an artifact,   called The Nightsong. This will start  a quest called “Find the Nightsong”. Up the ladder, to the east, a man  named Barth will be threatening Meli,   a child tiefling that stole his amulet. To  make everyone happy, we first need to say   “You better do what he says, boy.” Then succeed  on a very easy Persuasion check. And finally,   we’ll say “I want an answer - why’d you steal  it?” This will result in Meli coming clean,   and also have Barth willingly give  Meli the amulet out of charity. We can also find Auntie Ethel nearby, and we don’t  want to attack her at all, as she has an important   quest, which will come up later. Also, telling  her about our tadpole condition will result in   disapproval from Shadowheart. That being said,  we definitely want to browse her shop. She   should have 3 Elixirs of Hill Giant Strength for  sale, and these are replenished after each long   rest. They are totally worth the gold and greatly  enhance the combat effectiveness of strength-based   characters, such as Lae’zel. They also last  the entire adventuring day. Throughout act 1,   we will want to return to Auntie Ethel to  get these 3 elixirs after every Long Rest,   and use them on our martial characters  as part of our morning preparations. The final important character down in this area  is Dammon the blacksmith, and we also want to   leave him unharmed. We can ask him about both his  craft and his wares, but that’s about all for now. To the northwest is a prison, but it’s  best if we avoid going there for now. Instead, find and speak with Zorru nearby.  Lae’zel will want to interrogate him,   and it is up to you on how much  you choose to moderate Lae’zel’s   behavior. Lae’zel will disapprove of  you stepping in, but Shadowheart will   approve. The opposite is true if you allow  Lae’zel to take charge or back her up. If we sneak and break into the storage  room behind Zorru, we will find another   tiefling by the name of Pandirna. If we are  willing to use a second-level spell, we can   actually cure Pandirna’s paralysis by casting  lesser restoration on her with Shadowheart,   but this is not necessary. There is  some loot to be found in this room,   but it’s totally optional and we won’t  lose any achievements if we avoid it. Up to the west we will find another recruitable  companion, Wyll the Warlock. To avoid Gale’s   disapproval, we can choose the “I’m looking to  cure this infection. I suggest we partner up.”   dialogue option. I have no need for a warlock,  so I am going to tell Wyll to wait back at camp. We can also speak with Asharak and tell a story  to the children. Though, again, totally optional. I have an important warning here, you may notice  the “Strange Ox”. Feel free to investigate,   just don’t attack or kill the Strange Ox, as  this can seriously bug out a companion questline. We will definitely want to go speak with Rolan  and his siblings to the south, and convince them   to stay and fight as this is a critical step to  getting the “No One Left Behind” achievement. Moving deeper into the grove, be wary of the boy  to the east named Mattis. Most of the supposed   “magic items” he sells are fake and have no effect  whatsoever. In addition, while browsing his wares,   a tiefling child will try to pickpocket you  and run away. Personally I think it’s best   to just avoid the encounter altogether, but  if you are in the mood for some shenanigans,   then go for it, just try not to make an  enemy of the tieflings in the process. We’ll move on south towards the heart of  the grove, where an altercation between   the tieflings and druids takes place. After the  exchange, we can speak with Locke and Komira,   and agree to rescue their child, Arabella.  This will get us some approval with Gale. The druids will let us by easily enough,  at which point we can make our way west   to the sanctuary of the grove. It probably goes  without saying, but stealing the Idol of Silvanus   from the center of the grove will have negative  consequences, and so we will not be doing that. Lae’zel is going to disapprove of our  actions here, so consider leaving her   outside for the initial confrontation. Within  the sanctuary, we will need to convince Kagha   to spare Arabella and let her go free. I  suggest saving before any skill checks,   as failing badly enough will result  in Arabella’s death, which again,   would disqualify us from the “No One Left  Behind Achievement”. Saving Arabella will   gain approval from both Gale and Shadowheart,  and disapproval from Lae’zel if she is present. That being said, we can bring Lae’zel back  in after Arabella is safe, then speak with   Kagha. Picking the “You’re protecting your own -  sometimes cruelty is required.” option will earn   some approval from both Lae’zel and Shadowheart,  though probably for different reasons. Kagha will give us an ultimatum to  lead the Tieflings out of the grove,   to which we can noncommittally reply  “Then it seems I’d best speak to Zevlor.” At this point we can speak  with Shadowheart about 1,   possibly 2 things. First, if she gets  frightened by the Wolves in the grove,   we can talk to her and say “I’ll try to avoid  wolves in the future, where possible.” to earn   some approval. In addition, we can ask her  about a mysterious wound that plagues her. Also, once Shadowheart’s approval goes above  40 points, (High) approval, we can initiate a   romance with her if we want, and this is a good  place to explain romance in Baldur’s Gate 3. Most companions are easy to romance once approval  is high enough. But be careful, only so many   romances can be maintained in Act 1, and to the  best of my knowledge the limit is 2. In addition,   pursuing certain romances will immediately close  off other specific romances. The most relevant   example is that romancing Shadowheart (and  possibly any other companion besides Lae’zel)   will close off the option of romancing Lae’zel.  In addition, only one romance can be maintained   beyond Act 2, so one romance will need to  be chosen well before the end of the game. I can’t say who has the best romance,  but I will say that the only companion   we need to romance for an Achievement is  Karlach, who we haven’t recruited yet,   but we’ll get there soon enough. In  any case, because of that reason,   I will be romancing Karlach in the  long-term for this guide series. Fortunately, initiating a romance with Shadowheart  here will not close off the option to romance   Karlach. That being said, there is a point later  in Act 1 where you can initiate a romance with   any companion you are on good terms with. If you  want to have as many options as possible there and   then, do not initiate a romance with Shadowheart  (or other companions) through normal dialogue. Hopefully that was a sufficient  explanation on romance, but you   can reach out to me in the comments  if you have specific questions. Moving on, at this point, Gale will  probably have a new conversation   where we can earn some approval. The  options we want to pick when they come   up are “That’s very gratifying to  hear.” and “I’d be happy to help.” Next, we’ll head northwest into the  Servant’s Quarters. In the west corner,   behind the bookshelf, is Kagha’s Chest. It can  be unlocked with just a 10 DC lockpick check,   and inside we’ll find a note and a  book. Reading this will give us a   lead on where to find evidence that  will expose Kagha’s shady dealings. For now, we will bide our time and move  northeast to the Druid’s Chambers. Here we   can speak with Nettie the healer. Honesty here is  the best option. After explaining the situation,   Nettie will bring us to the back room for further  assessment. In the conversation that follows,   eventually saying “I swear” to Nettie  will earn us some approval with Lae’zel   and Shadowheart. Following this, we can agree to  find Halsin the druid, then return back outside. To the south, we can get Tuffet  the bear to move off the lift with   a successful animal handling check. This  will allow the lift to operate normally. Moving northeast we can meet Volo the bard,   and he will eventually inform us of  his intent to visit the Goblin Camp. Moving down a new path to the northeast, we can  go down the southern path first to find Alfira,   another bard. And it’s a good idea for us to save  here because this is an opportunity to gain free   proficiency in playing an instrument, which will  make getting the Busker achievement a lot easier. To get this proficiency, we want to say  “Let me see if I can help.” when it comes   up as a dialogue choice. Then say “Hand me  that lute. We can perform together.” Two   performance checks will follow, and passing  these checks will earn you both the Lute,   and the ability to play it, along  with some approval from Gale. We can then equip the lute and play it  anywhere. When played in populated areas,   nearby NPCs will crowd around. If  we succeed in the performance check,   then one or more of the NPCs will each toss us a  coin once we stop playing. Earning 100 gold this   way will get us the Busker achievement, and  this is most easily done later in the game,   during Act 3, but feel free to  start working towards it now. Next, we will head northeast towards the beach,  and it’s a good idea for us to save here. A   tiefling boy by the name of Mirkon is standing  near the water. A pretty rough encounter is   coming up, and so we may want to position one  or two companions up at the vantage point to   the south. I am also going to have Shadowheart  cast Bless on multiple allies, including Mirkon. When we speak with Mirkon, we can avoid  the trap by saying “You shouldn’t be   standing out in the water. It’s  dangerous.” then “I don’t hear   anything. Come back to shore.” This  will lead into a combat encounter. Like I said before, this encounter is a tough  one, so using leveled spells and resources   is completely reasonable and probably  necessary to save Mirkon. For this fight,   it is crucial that we interrupt any harpies  singing their Luring Song, as it can cause us,   our companions, and even Mirkon, to  involuntarily move towards the harpies,   and be otherwise incapacitated. Magic Missile is  a great option to interrupt a harpies singing,   because it has a chance to disrupt the singing  with each of the missiles that hit. Something   else to watch out for is any Harpy that blocks  Mirkon’s escape route. To prevent them from   striking Mirkon as he runs by, they will either  need to be defeated or have their reaction spent.   This can be accomplished by having a character run  in and back out of melee range. That will result   in the harpy using its attack of opportunity  on one of our characters, rather than Mirkon. As a reminder, we need to save Mirkon in order  to get the “No One Left Behind” achievement. After the fight we can speak with Mirkon. If  we’re nice, he will tell us how we can find   another tiefling child named Mol. Gale will also  have something to say about the encounter as well. We can explore and loot the beach area  if we want, then head back to Arabella’s   parents in the grove. Speaking with them,  we’ll be rewarded with Komira’s Locket. Up to the west we can find Doni, speaking  the passphrase to Doni will get him to   reveal a concealed hatch. Inside, we  can find Mol. She is willing to trade,   and we can even invest in her  up and coming business. However,   we should also avoid getting involved in her plot  to steal the Idol of Silvanus from the Druids. With that done, we just have one more task to  handle at the makeshift prison before leaving   the grove. Before going there, we will want  to consider ungrouping Lae’zel from the party   and leaving her behind a few paces as she will  disapprove of what we are about to do. In one of   the prison cages we will find Sazza the Goblin,  and we must save her to get the “She Cannot Be   Caged!” achievement. To do that, we will “step  between the crossbow and the goblin”. We will then   need to talk Arka out of the revenge killing. This  will gain approval from both Gale and Shadowheart. Before calling Lae’zel back, we will speak  with Sazza and agree to help her escape,   then pick the lock, speak with Sazza  again, and tell her to follow us. At this point we can group the party back up  and jump to a secluded area just east of the   prison cages. Here, we’ll find the entrance to an  underground escape route. Before doing anything,   we will need to deactivate the bear  statue guarding the path. To do that,   we can take control of a character that Sazza  is not following, split off from the group,   and hide. Then, we’ll sneak over to and interact  with the Rune of the Bear when the goblins are not   looking that way. These goblins will attack  us, even if Sazza is with us, so at this   point we can just attack them from hiding to get  surprise. Overall this encounter is not difficult. Afterwards, we can use a healing  spell or throw a healing potion   directly on the unconscious Findal  to revive him. Just know that if   Sazza is within view we will need to  convince him to look the other way. Up to the southeast there is a Rune of the Eagle  that we will want to deactivate. There are also a   few Oil Barrels that we can pick up and send back  to camp for later use. We will want to do this   before trying to lockpick or disarm the trapped  chest nearby. Within the chest is another magic   item, the Nature’s Snare staff. There are also  useful items in the other containers nearby. From here, we’ll head to the southern exit, which  will lead us outside of the Druid Grove. Sazza   will plan to meet us later, near the goblin camp,  before leaving our company for the time being. Next, we will jump up to the rocky hillside  towards the south, then head towards the   highest point. Upon approaching the campfire,  we should meet a new character by the name   of Raphael. If he doesn’t show up, make sure  all party members are present and try again. Look for the dialogue choice  that starts with “You’re mad   if…” as this will gain us approval  with both Lae’zel and Shadowheart. After the encounter, we can speak  with our companions about Raphael. With Shadowheart, if we say “He’s a devil.  We shouldn’t trust him - simple as that.” and   then “I’m not going to just change my mind. We  can’t trust Raphael.” Shadowheart will approve. With Gale, we can gain some  approval by saying “And how   do you propose we beat a devil at his  own game?” when the option comes up. With Astarion, we can say “We’ll have to  cross that bridge when we come to it.”   then “We’re not his playthings - we’ll  show him that.” to gain some approval. With Wyll, we can gain approval by  saying “Spare me the parables - I’ve   no intention of bargaining with the likes of him.” Lae’zel only offers the opportunity to  lose approval when discussing the topic,   but no ways to gain approval, so tread carefully. Before leaving this area, we can grab the Silver  Pendant off the nearby Skeleton. When equipped,   it will allow us to cast the Guidance Cantrip at  will. This allows us to use Guidance for skill   checks while speaking with Shadowheart,  and can be combined with Shadowheart’s   enhanced ability spell for a better chance  at succeeding on difficult skill checks. At this point, we can go ahead  and take our 3rd Long Rest.   There is a lot to discuss with our  various companions at this stage. Speaking with Shadowheart, we can get  some approval by making a risky play,   so saving is recommended. First, we’ll want to say  “You know, this could be our last night together.”   Then we’ll need to do the Illithid Wisdom skill  check to probe her thoughts. If we succeed,   we should get a new option “Once this is all over,  we should find a tavern and celebrate properly.”   and this is what will get us the boost in  approval. That being said, if we fail the Illithid   skill check, Shadowheart will become aware  of our probing, and will strongly disapprove. When speaking with Astarion, he may  attempt to initiate a romance. Certain   dialogue options have the chance to  reveal more about Astarion’s nature,   if we succeed at a passive insight check. It is  up to you if you want to engage in this romance,   just keep the discussion from earlier  about how romance works in mind. With Lae’zel, she will tell us a little more  about the Githyanki, but it won’t get us any   approval. If it hasn’t already been done, we  can ask Lae’zel “Are you sure a creche is our   only path to a cure?” followed by “That kind of  wisdom is very valuable.” to earn some approval. To get some approval with Wyll, we can say  “Something’s special about us. Or at least,   about our tadpoles.” when the  opportunity presents itself. At this point we can also speak with Withers  and unlock the ability to recruit Hirelings.   These are basically generic companions that  can fulfill almost any role in the party,   but that serve no significance to the story. After the long rest, we’ll carry  out our morning preparations,   and perhaps pay Auntie Ethel another visit  for more Elixirs of Hill Giant Strength. Once ready, we’ll head west from the Druid grove.  Following the path towards the northwest will lead   us to a dying dwarf and his two companions.  We can use our ilithid powers here, but it   has no benefit here, and we have limited uses  of it per day, so we are better off saving it. Eventually we should be presented with  several options. Saying “Forget the   owlbear. You’re still alive - so go.” will  gain approval from Shadowheart. But saying   “You need to find the beast and avenge your  brother.” will gain approval from Lae’zel,   along with extra bodies to fight the Owlbear.  Lae’zel approval is harder to come by,   plus the extra help for the owlbear is very  nice, so I went with the second option. Before going to the cave, we can loot the  dead dwarf and either block out or accept   the Mind Flayer parasite that emerges from  him. Neither option will have detrimental   consequences. We’ll be sure to grab the Shaft  of a Broken Spear from the body, then move into   the owlbear cave. Speak with Andrick near the  cave entrance and the two will head inside. Once more, we can gain some approval  from Lae’zel by choosing to attack the   Owlbear when it approaches. Shadowheart,  however, will disapprove if she is nearby. In order to get all achievements, and to not be  a monster, we need to make sure the owlbear cub   survives the encounter, and let it live after  the fact. Just focus all attacks on the grown   owlbear to make sure it is defeated before either  of the NPC allies can kill the cub. Brynna should   command the Owlbear to halt on each of her turns,  which will make the encounter much much easier. Once again, we will let the  Owlbear cub live when prompted,   and this will gain approval  with both Gale and Shadowheart. After the fight, we can speak with the  two absolute cultists and send them on   their way. The Head of a Broken Spear can  be taken from the Owlbear and combined with   the previously acquired shaft to form  the Vision of the Absolute magic spear. Before moving on, we will want to grab the  Owlbear Egg and send it back to camp. It is   technically in the category of camp supplies,  but has a neat and unique use with a specific   NPC we will meet later on. Because of that,  we will want to make sure that we don’t use   it whenever taking a long rest. The Oak Father’s  Embrace magic armor is also on a nearby skeleton. Near the bottom of the cave we’ll  find a hidden shrine to Selune,   and a magically sealed chest. It’s a good  idea for us to save, then jump over to the   area with the statue. Moving near the southern  wall will trigger a passive perception check,   and succeeding will reveal a Selunite  Prayer sheet. We can pick it up,   return to the sealed chest, then read the prayer  from our inventory to dispel the magic seal. Upon opening the chest, Shadowheart will  begin to argue against it. If we ask why,   we will be presented with the opportunity to  learn a good deal more about her, through an   insight check. The DC is fairly high at 15, so it  may take some inspiration points or save-scumming. Upon success, Shadowheart will reveal herself as  a worshiper of Shar, and it’s best if we let it   slide for now. After this revelation, trying  to take the contents of the Selunite chest   will prompt a sleight of hand check to hide it  from Shadowheart. Failing the check while near   Shadowheart will get us disapproval, but failing  it while away from her carries no repercussions. Once we’ve learned about  Shadowheart’s Shar worship,   we will gain new conversation starters and  the opportunity to gain a ton of approval.  First, we’ll pick the “I want to talk about  your Shar worship.” We can follow this with   “I have no problems with Shar worshippers, if  that’s what concerns you.” It’s a super easy   persuasion check that we should have no problem  passing. That alone will get us some approval,   but let’s go for more. We will start with  “Remind me.”, then “Fascinating. Please,   continue.”, followed with “When you put it  like that, it seems strangely comforting.” and   finally “I’d be lying if I said it didn’t sound  convincing. You should tell me more some time.” Next, we can say “I want to get to know  you more, Shadowheart.” followed by “Tell   me something about yourself besides  Shar, besides tadpoles.” and finally,   “You’ll have to point out night  orchids to me if we ever pass some.” Last but not least, we can ask “Why were you in   pain before?” and follow it up with “Is  there anything I can do to help with it.” All of that together should raise Shadowheart’s  approval of us by a total of 16 points. Next up, we will head northwest of the owlbear  cave to find a new furry companion. Scratch the   dog will be guarding his fallen master. A  successful perception or animal handling   check will allow us to befriend the canine.  We can pet him and tell him to follow us.   When Scratch refuses, we can respond by  holding out our hand so he can follow our   scent to camp later. Doing this is necessary  for us to get multiple achievements later on. From there, we can jump across the river  bed to the north to go find Karlach,   our final recruitable companion for Act  1. We’ll find her up along the river,   east from where we crossed over. Along  the way we can grab the Toll Collector’s   Key. We’ll play nice and agree to team up with  Karlach in order to fight the individuals that   are hunting her. They’re pretty tough though,  and it’s best if we don’t face them just yet. Given that our party is full, Karlach will  head to our camp instead, and now is a   good time to show how we can turn Karlach  into the strongest character in the game. I had a hard time picking between  switching out Gale or Lae’zel for Karlach,   and ultimately switched out Lae’zel.  This is because, in the near future,   we are going to take many actions that  Lae’zel will either disapprove of, or be   indifferent to. Meanwhile, we will gain a lot of  approval with Gale by keeping him in the party. To unlock Karlach’s true potential, we will need  to change her class over to Monk through Withers.   For ability points, we will plan to keep Karlach  juiced up with Giant Strength Elixirs each day,   because of that, she doesn’t need any points  in Strength. We can then redistribute the rest   of her points so that she has 16 in Dexterity, 15  in Constitution, and 17 in Wisdom. These may seem   somewhat random, but the reasoning behind this  distribution will become clear as we progress.   All that’s left is to level Karlach up, and take  the Way of the Open Hand subclass at level 3. The reason why Karlach is so strong as a monk is   because of a somewhat hidden interaction  between Soul Coins and unarmed strikes. When Karlach uses a Soul Coin, she  gains the Infernal Fury buff until   the next long rest. Even though it  is not mentioned in the description,   this buff gives Karlach’s unarmed attacks  an additional 2d4 fire damage. Combined   with the effects from an Elixir of Hill  Giant Strength, Karlach’s unarmed strikes   deal a whopping 8 to 19 damage, and it’s  going to increase significantly at level 4. Leaving the camp, we’re going to backtrack  a little bit, jumping back across the river.   Karlach will eventually confront us about  not going to fight the people hunting her,   but we can just reassure her that we will go  do it. Moving on, we will head south towards   the Blighted Village. Along the way,  we will find an exsanguinated boar. A   successful medicine check will reveal that  the board was likely killed by a vampire. There are several bodies to scavenge for  supplies in this area, and we will want to   save before heading west into the village. Upon  entry, we will be ambushed by a pack of goblins.   To talk our way out of the fight, we can say  “There'll be no skewering happening here. Now   let me pass.” This will need to be followed  by a successful speech check. Using either   Persuasion or Intimidation will increase  approval with both Shadowheart and Gale. Upon our arrival at the Blighted Village,   we can either lockpick or destroy the  nearby chest to get the Haste Helm,   which provides the wearer with a substantial  boost in movement speed at the start of combat. We may need to speak with Gale and give him  a magical artifact. We should give him one   we don’t use, such as Dragon’s Grasp or The  Watcher’s Guide, as it will be destroyed and   lost forever. On the upside, we will get 10  points of approval with Gale out of the deal. Next, we’ll go to the southwestern house.  There, we’ll meet a group of Ogres,   led by Lump the Enlightened. Lump the Enlightened  has the Warped Headband of Intellect, which is a   useful Magic Item. That being said, we can save  ourselves from a tough fight right now and make   the Ogre’s our formidable allies instead. Not  to mention, we can always get the crown from   Lump later on. To do this, we’ll start with a  deception check. After that, we can say “I notice   you don’t bear a brand of your own.” and then  “Forget goblins. You should be fighting for me.” At this point, we can pay Lump 500 gold  or entice him with large battles through   a difficult persuasion check. The deception path  for gaining their alliance is best to be avoided.   Persuading the Ogre’s to form an alliance will  gain approval with both Shadowheart and Karlach.   We can loot the barrels in the southwest  corner of the room for some camp supplies,   and the bookshelf for a diary that will  trigger a cutscene with Shadowheart when read. Next, we’ll go into the dilapidated potions  shop that is right next to the Fast Travel   point. There are several useful potions  sitting out, including two antidotes,   which we will want to grab and save for later  use. Afterwards, we can go to the basement   through a wooden hatch behind the counter. There  are lots of useful potions and alchemy reagents   to be looted down here. After stocking up,  we’ll pull the lever along the north wall,   hidden behind a stack of wooden crates.  This will open up a secret path nearby. Heading down that way, we’ll enter a cave with  multiple caskets. All but one of them is trapped   and will trigger a very pesky encounter if opened.  Because of that, we will only be opening the one   casket along the southern rock wall. Inside is the  Scroll of Summon Quasit, amongst other items. This   scroll summons a unique familiar or companion, and  so we don’t want to just use it. Instead, we can   give it to Gale to permanently learn. If your main  character is a wizard, they can learn it instead. All we need to do then is prepare and cast  it. Doing so will earn us the “Rude, Crude,   and Full of Attitude” achievement, as well as  summon Shovel, a Quasit companion. Following along   the southern wall, we’ll reach an Ornate Mirror,  which we can interact with. To successfully pass   the mirror, we can start by telling it our name.  Next, we’ll say “Yes, an ally! I’m an ally of   your master’s.” Next, we’ll say “Szass Tam is  a foul, wretched creature.” and then “To clean   a wound?” and finally “I’d look for whatever  spell will rid me of this worm in my head.” Passing through the mirror we will enter  a secret lab. There are several items we   will want to make sure we grab and keep on hand  for future use. The first two are the Scroll of   Feather Fall and Basilisk Oil. Next, we’ll grab  the Rusted Key from the chamber to the west. In   the chest near the stuffed bear are several  more useful spell scrolls. Towards the east   we will find the Bracers of Defense in a gilded  chest, and these are great for Karlach. There   are also plenty of unique books that can be read  for progress towards the Bookworm achievement. Finally, we’ll ungroup from the party and open  the iron gate to the east. Enter turn-based mode   and grab The Necromancy of Thay book,  then use jump and sprint to escape the   trapped room before exiting turn-based  mode. We can’t use this book right now,   but we will definitely want to  hang on to it for later use. At this point we can return to the surface level  of the Blighted Village. We will find and interact   with the water well to the northwest of the fast  travel point. Either a successful investigation   check or tossing a coin into the well will  allow us to enter the cave system beneath it. The first thing we’ll want to do is travel  southwest along the bottom path to a work   area. We are mainly after the Spiderstep Boots  here, and we will want to equip these to a   character with the ability to push enemies, such  as Karlach or anyone with the Thunderwave spell. We can save the game, then head northwest  deeper into the cave system, while staying   off of the spiderwebs. Having everyone hide  is recommended, and the Quasit can also turn   invisible or be dismissed. There are 3 Phase  Spiders and two Ettercaps that will need to   be eliminated, and we can get surprise on  the first group from this vantage point. We will want to hit the Ettercaps with firebolt  or some other fire damage to remove the infested   condition, which can spread to our melee  combatants. This is also the first combat   encounter since we recruited Karlach and turned  her into the monk, and the amount of damage   she can deal in a turn when powered by a soul  coin and using flurry of blows is staggering. After the encounter we can loot the surrounding  area before heading further west into the cave,   and once again we will want to make sure  everyone is sneaking. We’re going to get   the “Pest Control” achievement here by  punting the Phase Spider Matriarch into   the green Chasm below, and it is  a good idea for us to save here. I am going to be using Karlach for  this as she has Flurry of Blows:   Push. What we will need to do is first make  sure she has the Spiderstep Boots on. Next,   ungroup Karlach from the party, make sure she  is hiding, and then wait at the edge of the   spiderweb bridge until the Matriarch walks  towards the south end of her patrol path. At this point we can move across the spiderweb  bridge and use the rock formation as cover. As   soon as the Matriarch turns around, we’ll have  Karlach jump to the next spiderweb bridge,   just behind the Matriarch, and then enter  turn-based mode as soon as possible. We   should be able to sneak and position ourselves so  that our push attack will push the matriarch into   the chasm. Saving once more before attacking is a  good idea just in case of a catastrophic failure,   where we aren’t able to get the Matriarch to  fall into the Chasm before its first turn. All that’s left is to go for the push attack,  in this case a pushing fury of blows. Once the   Matriarch has been dealt with, we can  have the rest of the party move in to   sneak attack the remaining two phase spiders,  cleaning up the encounter with relative ease. After the encounter we can take a short rest if  needed and otherwise heal up. I don’t think I’ve   mentioned it before, but healing potions can  actually be thrown on the ground between two   or more characters to heal them all with that  single potion, maximizing healing efficiency. Once ready, we’ll head down near the chasm  and pick up the Dark Amethyst. We can then   go to read the Necromancy of Thay book, and  we may want to put some distance between   ourselves and the rest of the party, as  both Gale and Karlach will disapprove of   us reading it. We should keep Shadowheart  with us though, as she won’t disapprove,   and she can help us with either the  Guidance or Resistance cantrips. We will need to insert the Dark  Amethyst into the book’s mouth,   and we’ll want to save before proceeding  through the following skill checks,   as succeeding in them will  provide several major benefits. First, we will open the book. Following  this, we’ll need to complete a series of   checks. If we are a spellcaster, the  example here being a sorcerer, we can   perform a series of easier skill checks to read  the book. If our class has no arcane aptitude,   we will instead need to perform a series of  more difficult Wisdom saving throws. If you   need to do the saving throws, Shadowheart  can help with the Resistance cantrip,   which functions similarly to Guidance, but  for saving throws instead of skill checks. Successfully completing all 3 skill  checks or saving throws will accomplish   multiple things. First off, it will allow our  character to cast Speak With Dead at will,   without consuming any spell slots and also give us  a permanent +1 bonus to Wisdom checks. Secondly,   Gale should gain a point of inspiration.  And finally, this sets us up to complete   multiple related objectives in Act 3 of  the game, all of which are beneficial. Next, we’re going to make a small detour  to get a very strong pair of magic boots,   along with several other great magic items.  We’ll make sure the party is all grouped up,   then cast Featherfall on everyone using the scroll  we found earlier. Before featherfall wears off,   we’ll jump headlong into the green  chasm, which will trigger a cutscene. We’ll want to have everyone hide as soon  as the cutscene ends to avoid detection by   the nearby minotaurs, which are very  strong and should be avoided. Next,   we can loot the Poisoner’s Robes off the Phase  Spider Matriarch and then start moving south. It is a good idea for us to save, as there is a  weakened minotaur that we can get the drop on in   turn-based mode, and defeating it will get us  a nice 75 experience points. Around this time   we will also receive some incoming telepathic  messages, but it’s nothing to get concerned over. If we try to approach the gate to the south we  are going to get zapped and die. So instead,   we will sneak around the gates with one  character, preferably one with ranged   attacks. Before stepping on the bridge, ungroup  the selected character from the party, hide, and   enter turn-based mode. Approach the blood stain on  the ground and jump southwest to the rocky ledge. From here we can easily  infiltrate the Selunite outpost,   eliminating any Torchstalks in our  path from a distance. Once inside,   we can destroy the moonstone and open the gate.  There are multiple useful items in this outpost,   including a basic greatsword that we will  want to pick up and save for later use,   along with several oil barrels. These will be  critical for our success in an upcoming encounter,   so it's a good idea for us to distribute as many  as we can across the party without getting anyone   encumbered. Ideally we will have at least 9 oil  barrels. To that end, an easy way to reduce the   amount of weight on a character is by sending  all of their camping supplies back to camp. We’ll move into the east room to  activate the fast travel point,   then use a high strength character like  Karlach to jump up into a hidden area. We   will want to clear this room of explosive  barrels as the opulent chest is trapped.   Inside the opulent chest is the Luminous Armor,  which I don’t exaggerate in saying is extremely   overpowered and borderline broken on  a Light Cleric such as Shadowheart. Behind the DC20 locked gate nearby there is  another chest with a DC15 lock on it. Inside   is the Helmet of Smiting, which is specific  to Paladins and honestly not that great. Moving on, we will head north, back out  of the outpost. Moving towards the west   we will find a magic sword planted in stone.  Either Religion or Strength can be used to try   and pull the sword free, and everyone in the  party can take a crack at it. Because of that,   it is unlikely that inspiration or save  scumming will be necessary. It’s called   Phalar Aluve and it’s a neat magic sword,  but not really one that we can make use of. Next up, we’ll save the game, then head  north down the inclined path. We should   clear the timmask spores with ranged attacks  to prevent confusion, then send one character   out ahead of the pack. Karlach is a good  choice since monks have great mobility. Be ready to steer clear of a monster burrowing  underground, getting to the side of the ramp.   The game should automatically switch to turn-based  mode, and we will end everyone’s turn once we are   positioned and ready. Once the Bulette is on  the field we can use Karlach to stack all the   oil barrels that we have around it in a circle.  After that, we will disengage and retreat, using   step of the wind: dash if necessary. We will then  use a character with firebolt to set off the oil   barrels. 9 Oil barrels appears to be just enough  to defeat the Bulette in a single strike, or make   it so weak that one or two casts of Magic Missile  will finish the job. If needed, consider using a   potion of speed on 1 or more characters to ensure  the Bulette is defeated before it takes its turn. We really want to take the Bulette out as  quickly as possible, because it is a tank   that can deal extreme amounts of damage. In  addition, it will retreat and burrow back   under the ground within 2 or 3 rounds of combat,  only to heal and later emerge at other locations. Defeating the Bulette will give us a  nice 150 XP and it will also drop the   Bloodguzzler Garb, which we can put on Karlach. Afterwards, we will continue north, clearing out  the field of Firestalks and Timmask spores in our   way. Across the field, to the northwest, we will  arrive at the Myconid Colony. Although uncanny,   these humanoid fungi are easy enough to make  peace with through various skill checks.   Peacefully resolving the encounter will gain us  approval with Gale, Shadowheart, and Karlach. Moving into the colony, we will  activate the fast travel point,   then move up towards the Sovereign. Along the  way, we can speak with Thulla, a Deep Gnome   that has been poisoned. Thanks to the antidotes we  picked up earlier, we should be able to cure her,   gaining more approval from Gale and Karlach.  In addition, if we agree to help rescue Thula’s   fellow gnomes she will give us the Boots of Speed,  which are great on just about any character. They   essentially allow the wearer to do an enhanced  dash for a bonus action, rather than an action. Just ahead, we can talk with the Sovereign Spaw  and agree to help defeat the Duergar. We won’t   be doing this until a bit later, but we can accept  the quest now without issue. Before leaving here,   we can grab one last useful magic  item from Blurg to the east. It’s   best if we limit our interactions  to trading for now. Specifically,   we will want the Psychic Spark necklace, which  will boost the Magic Missile spell for the wearer. We will resume our journeys in the underdark  later on. For now, let’s fast travel back to   the Blighted Village. If you need to take a  long rest, you can, but I still have enough   resources to keep going, and I like to make  the Soul Coins last as long as possible,   given that they are very limited. If you  are taking a long rest now, just skip ahead   in the timestamps to the next long rest and  come back to this point in the video after. We will next head into the northeast  building after picking the locked   door. Many of the containers in this  workshop contain thieves’ tools and trap   disarm toolkits. Just be wary of the Wooden  Chest on the ground level as it is trapped. If the trap is set off it will destroy  the ladder nearby, so it’s wise for us   to climb the ladder and loot the top area  first. There is a smoke powder barrel that   we will definitely want to grab and save  for later. Within the locked wooden chest   there is a piece of Infernal Iron, which  we will need for Karlach’s personal quest. Within the trapped chest is  the Highcliff’s Blueprints,   and we can read it to start the “Finish  the Masterwork Weapon” quest. Once we get   the required Sussar Bark we can return  to the forge here to make the weapon. Moving on, we’ll save the game,  then move west to the Windmill.   For the purpose of gaining more allies,  we need to rescue the gnome in distress,   and diplomacy is our best option here.  We will want to say “Release the Gnome   at once”. We can use our illithid power here  for an easy skill check, but we are better   off saving it for an encounter that is coming  up. Any of the other skill checks can work,   and if we have a Potion of Mind Reading, we  can perform a relatively easy Detect Thoughts   skill check. Succeeding in it will open up a  new dialogue option to peacefully resolve the   encounter, and unlock the “No Penny Required”  achievement if we haven’t gotten it already. Afterwards, we can head around to the back of  the windmill and go down the Wooden Hatch. We   can grab the Speedy Lightfeet boots  from the chest. This is medium armor,   so Shadowheart is the only character  currently in our group that can use   it. We can also grab a Smokepowder  Satchel from the Heavy Backpack. Be very careful at this next step. Returning to  the surface, we will need to pull the ‘Brake’   Lever to stop the windmill from spinning.  Pulling the ‘Release’ Lever will result   in a funny cutscene, but will also kill our  Gnome friend. After stopping the windmill,   we can go speak with the Gnome, Barcus Wroot,  and free him. He will be a little cranky and   frustrated, but showing kindness is the way to  go. Barcus will offer up his heavy backpack,   which we already found, and explain his  current situation before leaving. We will   catch up with him later, for now, we should  have gotten enough experience to reach level 4. Level 4 is a big milestone, as each character  will get to choose a Feat, along with other   upgrades. As a sorcerer, we get to learn a new  cantrip, and unless you don’t already have light,   there aren’t any that we absolutely need, so  I’ll just be taking minor illusion. Spells   are a different story, and I’ll be taking Misty  Step, which is very useful. Moving on to feats,   you might feel overwhelmed by the  many options. Out of them all,   Alert is one of the most immediately useful, as  it will prevent us from ever being surprised,   and almost always allow us to go first  in combat, which is a huge advantage.   There are a few exceptions to this, but for  Sorcerer, Alert is definitely the way to go. Moving on to Gale, we can learn the Light Cantrip.  For spells, Enhance Leap is another very useful   spell that can be cast as a ritual, where it does  not take a spell slot when cast outside of combat.   Shield is also very nice to have, and we’ll want  to have that prepared. Again, Alert is probably   the best option for our Feat, in fact, multiple  characters having Alert compounds the benefit,   as it will put them next to each other in the  turn-order, allowing for coordinated tactics. For Shadowheart, we can learn the Thaumaturgy  cantrip, which comes in handy if we ever need   to pass an intimidation check on her.  We will also be taking the Alert feat. And finally we have Karlach. We will NOT  be taking the Alert feat on her. Instead,   we want the Tavern Brawler feat. This  essentially doubles the effect of our   strength modifier for all attack and  damage rolls with unarmed strikes. We can also add a point to Constitution,  rounding it up from 15 to an even 16,   which will raise our modifier  for that stat from +2 to +3. Before moving on, we will make a quick stop at  the Emerald Grove. When speaking with Dammon,   he’ll recognize the Infernal Engine in Karlach’s  chest. Given the piece of infernal iron we found   earlier, Dammon can improve the infernal engine.  This will give Karlach the Heart of Iron feature,   granting her advantage on saving throws  against being charmed. We will also gain   10 points of approval with her, and can get  another 10 points by speaking with her and   saying “I still can’t touch you, though...”  followed by “Of course I do.” Doing this may   limit our romance options with some other  characters, however, so keep that in mind. Around this time, Gale will also need to consume  another magic artifact. Once again, we will   need to give up a magic item to be destroyed,  such as The Watcher’s Guide. And once again,   we will get 10 points of approval with Gale  for doing it, as well as progress his quest. We can return to the Blighted Village and exit  to the north. There is some noise coming from   the building to the east, and we will want to  save before investigating, and you should know   that this encounter is entirely optional, with the  reward being limited to around 100 XP and a couple   hundred gold. We can choose to enter the hut, but  doing so will get us disapproval from both Karlach   and Shadowheart, so we might want to move them  back a good distance before doing that, then bring   them back mid dialogue. This combat encounter  can be handled with mostly cantrips and a couple   flurry of blows from Karlach. Followed by a round  of healing potions for anyone that was damaged. We can get a +1 Dagger to the north by passing  one of 3 skill checks, then continue moving   northwest. If we succeed in a survival check near  the bridge, a diggable mound of dirt will appear.   Even if we fail the check, we can manually dig in  that area with a shovel to get the chest anyways. Moving further north, we’ll jump  across the broken bridge. Around   this point Gale will require a 3rd  magic item to consume. Fortunately,   this is the last one we will need to give him,  and I am going to give up the Helm of Smiting. Afterwards, Gale will have more to say. We can say   “Go on. You’re among friends.” to  gain some approval. Following this,   we will eventually need to say “We’ve come this  far together and we’ll continue on together.   That is how it will be.” in order to keep  Gale from leaving the party permanently. There is also a chance that Gale does  not ask for a magical artifact at this   time. If that happens, don’t worry,  it just means he will ask later on. Once that is resolved, we can head along the  eastern road, stumbling upon a gruesome scene.   We will want to strike the initial Hyena to  stop it from turning into a Gnoll. We will   also want to target and kill the one standing  Hyena from running to grab reinforcements,   which would make this encounter  significantly more difficult,   and this must be done on the first turn  of combat. The remaining Hyenas are fairly   easy to deal with, as long as it’s done  before they can transform into gnolls. Hyenas drop Hyena Ears, which can be turned  into additional potions of speed. To do this,   pick up all the ears, then pull up the inventory  screen and navigate to the Alchemy tab. We can   click “Extract All Ingredients”, then open the  Potions drop down and find Potion of Speed. It   requires the Ashes of Hyena Ear and Any Salt.  At this point we should be able to craft 1 or 2,   but we will be getting more Hyena  Ears as we continue adventuring. We’ll make sure to loot and read the  Shipment Orders, which are found on   the Dead Caravan Agent, starting the  “Find the Missing Shipment” quest. Next,   we will hide and sneak our way up north  to get the drop on several gnolls. Once again, we will want to make sure we  pick up all of those valuable Hyena Ears,   then continue northeast. There is another pack  of Gnolls to the north, attacking a pair of   Humans. This fight can be fairly difficult.  However, we can make it much easier. First,   we should have the entire party enter hiding.  We can then move all of our ranged attackers   to the elevated position towards the  northeast, and attack the gnolls from   hiding to gain surprise. We just want to make  sure we don’t attack the Gnoll named Flind. This is because we can gain Flind, the  Gnoll Warlord as a temporary ally if we   avoid attacking her and also stand near her, and  we will do this with Karlach. On the first turn   that Flind is not surprised, she will engage  in a conversation of sorts with whoever is   nearest to her. What we want to do is “search  her mind for the source of the Voice.” next,   we will “Explore her memories, seeking a nearby  target for the hunger.” and finally, we can do   an Illithid Wisdom check “You are of the same  pack - command her to devour the other gnolls.” Doing this will make the fight far easier,   allowing us to conserve resources. Once  we are down to the last 1 or 2 enemies,   we can start chipping away at Flind while  she is distracted by those remaining enemies. After the fight, we will be approached by  Rugan, one of the few survivors from the   caravan. We should stay on good terms with  him for now, and he will tell us how to   access a hidden underground hub nearby. At that  point, if we succeed on an intimidation check,   we can also get some extra gold from Rugan  with no negative consequences. There are   many Gnoll ears to be looted off the surrounding  bodies. There are also 2 magic items to be had,   those being the Speedy Reply and Shattered Flail.  Next, we will want to save the game, then distract   Rugan and Olly by playing our instrument  while standing a fair distance away from   the Caravan Strongbox. We should be able sneak  with Karlach, steal the lockbox, then quickly   return to camp to avoid turning Rugan hostile.  For now, we do not want to open the lockbox. At this point we can move west towards Waukeen’s  Rest, activating the nearby fast travel point. It   is not necessary, but the non-combat encounter  at Waukeen’s Rest is relevant to Wyll’s story,   so we can trade him out for Shadowheart  before continuing. I opted not to do this,   as it seemed to complicate the  sequence of events and caused   me to miss out on additional  approval with Karlach and Gale. Moving into Waukeen’s rest, we’ll find that the  entire complex has been set ablaze. It is best   if we get a strength-based character, such as  Karlach, to help break down the main entrance.   If Wyll is in the party, he can open the door  on his own, without the need of a skill check. We will need to rush up to the top floor and break   down the broken door to the east.  This will free Counsellor Florrick,   an essential character. We will then want  to wait for everyone to clear the area,   before blasting away the broken door to the west  with ranged attacks. This will cause the building   to start burning in earnest, and so we will want  to complete these next steps in turn-based mode. First, we can use step of the wind  dash on Karlach and hop towards Benryn,   and free him from the wreckage. We can  then say “Come on, follow me.” Next,   we will bust down the broken door directly to  the south to open an escape path for Benryn. There is also a magic item in the room  to the north, which is also engulfed in   flames. We can use ray of frost on Gale  and any other spellcaster with the attack   to temporarily douse the flames, allowing  Karlach to jump in and pick up the locked   chest containing the magic item, it’s  in the northwest corner of the room. Once everyone is in a safe space, we can  escape with Benryn out the south door to   safety. We can ask Benryn about a dowry to  start a very small side quest related to it. Heading downstairs, we can  talk to Counselor Florrick,   and agree to rescue the kidnapped Duke Ravengard.  This will gain us approval with Gale and Karlach,   along with our choice of rare magic weapon.  Personally I think the Spellsparkler is   the best choice. It synergizes with Magic  Missile to deal a lot of additional damage. We can also lockpick or punch open  the chest that we pulled from the   fire earlier. Inside we is  the Hamarhraft magic maul. Next, we can go grab the dowry from  the small building to the northwest.   We will need to interact with the stack  of hay and succeed on a perception check   to get it. Once we have the Dowry, we can  return it to Benryn to complete his quest. Now we’ll head into the building  further to the northwest. Upon entering,   we will need to say the passphrase that Rugan gave   us to a sentry standing guard. We can then  enter the basement through the nearby hatch. There are plenty of camp supplies  scattered throughout this room. Once ready,   we’ll head through the locked wardrobe  into a hideout. The first thing we will   want to do here is go speak with  Zarys. We can go ahead and give   her the Caravan Lockbox for now, as  we’ll be getting it back in moment. Next, we will go speak with Oskar Fevras, and  agree to buying his freedom. Next, we’ll speak   with Brem, and ask him about buying Fevras.  We can talk him down from his starting 1000   gold price point to a more acceptable  600 gold. This will get us some approval   with Gale and Karlach. We can get a bit  more, but we may want to send Shadowheart   to stand a fair distance away, to avoid  disapproval from her. Speaking with Oskar,   we can spare him another 200 gold to gain  more approval with our kindhearted companions. Now that Oskar is free, we can set about getting  our money back and a lot of useful Smokepowder   Barrels. First, we can sell whatever items we want  to Brem in order to recoup our gold, and we will   also want to grab a potion of invisibility  off of him if we don’t already have one. We can then turn on non-lethal damage  and save the game, then position Gale up   behind Zarys. Finally we will have Gale  enter hiding and then go to turn-based   mode. We will also want to have everyone  else hiding so that we can get surprise,   although for some reason this  doesn’t always work consistently. Karlach can start things off by knocking out  Brem. Gale can follow by launching Zarys off the   high point with thunderwave. This should put her  within a few HP of being knocked out. From here,   we will just start knocking everyone unconscious  with Karlach’s punches. Once that is done,   we can reclaim all the stuff we sold to Brem,  as well as some new and useful magic items,   especially those gloves of thievery. We  can also get the strongbox back from Zarys,   and loot everything that isn’t nailed down,  including the 10 or 11 smokepowder barrels. Afterwards, we can speak with Rugan and free him. Next we are going to head north, deeper into  the Zhentarim hideout, to get some choice items.   Before entering hostile territory we will have  Karlach hide, Gale cast enhanced leap on Karlach,   and we will also have Karlach take the potion  of invisibility. We should enter turn-based mode   right after doing this, then have Shadowheart  cast Guidance on Karlach, and use Step of the   Wind Dash on Karlach. This will allow us to  jump very far up to 10 times in a single turn. Saving frequently is a good idea  here, in case things go sideways. We will need to lockpick a 20 DC lock  to access the room to the northeast.   Inside we will find our first very  rare item, the Abyss Beckoners,   which are unfortunately not that  good for anyone in our group. There is a second room to the west, with a DC  15 lock in the way. There are two chests here,   and both are trapped. Rather than stick  around trying to safely open them,   we can just pick both up, then exit  turn-based mode and quickly return to   camp. After regrouping with the rest of the  party, we can disarm and unlock the chests. One of the chests will contain some valuables,   whereas the other will contain a piece of  infernal iron and more gold. Dammon won’t   be able to use the infernal iron until we get  to act 2, so we’ll just hold onto it for now. The last thing we are going to do before a long  rest is take down those pesky false Paladin’s   of Tyr. We will move east from Waukeen’s Rest,  crossing over a battle scarred bridge. We can   then sneak onto the roof of the Paladin’s base of  operations to get the drop on them. There is also   a Soul Coin on the ground up here, and if we pick  it, we will get some new dialogue with Karlach. To get some approval with Karlach,   we can say “Intriguing. Next time we’re  in battle, we’ll make sure you get one.” Anders is the biggest threat  in this combat encounter,   and while we can talk with him to initiate the  fight, we are much better off getting surprise   instead. While normally fairly difficult, we  should be strong enough to handle this fight   with relative ease, even if the game bugs  out a little and doesn’t give us surprise. Afterwards, Karlach will come speak with  us, then proceed to tear the place apart   while leaving behind a trail of fire. This is  a good time for us to get everyone else out,   so as to avoid collateral damage. We can  loot the nearby gnoll bodies for Hyena Ears   and activate the fast travel point to the  northwest while Karlach wears herself out. Once Karlach calms down a little, we  can speak with her and say “Hot.” to   get more approval. After the fires are  all out, we can go loot all the bodies,   getting the Sword of Justice magic  greatsword from Anders. We can also   loot a good amount of camp supplies from  the surrounding boxes and containers. We can then go into the basement through  the wooden hatch. The key we got quite a   bit earlier before recruiting Karlach should  open up the pair of doors down here. There   is a lot of loot in this area, but most of the  good stuff is behind a secret door. To open it,   we will have to have a character  sit in each of the stone chairs. A third can jump into the newly accessible room,   avoiding the pressure plate trap that would  otherwise fill this area with poison. The one   magic item we can get here are the Gloves  of Heroism, stashed within a wooden chest.   These are meant to be worn by a Paladin and are  especially good on Oath of Vengeance Paladins. After sufficiently looting this area, we  can return to camp for a well-deserved long   rest. Wyll is going to confront Karlach.  To resolve things, we will want to say   “You’ve got it all wrong…” followed by “Stand  down. You saw what I saw…” and finally “Gods,   you’re stubborn. Karlach’s not a devil, and you  know it.” Everyone nearby will approve of this. Once everyone is settled down, we  can speak with Karlach about Wyll,   and with Wyll about Duke Ravengard’s  abduction. Saying “Then the choice is clear:   we should rescue Duke Ravengard.” will earn  us some approval. To earn more approval,   we can ask Wyll what it was like being  the son of Duke, and follow it up with   “Good wine? I’ll toast to that.” We can also ask  Wyll how he became the Blade of the Frontiers,   and follow it with “What act could be finer  than saving a life? You must have felt proud.” At this point, if we speak with Astarion,   he will inform us of his condition,  which we will let slide for now. After taking a full long rest, we can  speak with Wyll to get some ominous   foreshadowing of things to come. Scratch the  dog should also have shown up at our camp,   and we can pet him to earn some approval  with any nearby companions, besides Astarion. At this point, I am going to give everyone  Longstrider with Gale, and save a spell   slot by having Gale cast Mage Armor on my  sorcerer, then switch him out for Lae’zel. Our   relationship with Gale should be exceptional  at this point, which is more than enough. We can level up Lae’zel and either give her the  Alert or Great Weapon Master feat. I will be   giving her the Alert feat first, and get Great  Weapon Master later, upon reaching level 6. As soon as we leave camp, Shadowheart will want to  speak with us. She will tell us about her goals,   and we can respond with “Thank you for  sharing.” to get some easy approval. After this, we can head to Auntie Ethel at  the Druid Grove to pick up those Elixirs of   Hill Giant Strength, as well as a potion  of Invisibility if we don’t already have   one. We are going to use it to get  a Legendary Greatsword for Lae’zel,   and this is sort of an exploit and I’ve decided  that it is worth doing. Check the pinned comment   for this video as I will immediately update it if  this exploit ever gets patched out of the game. Doing this exploit has both  positives and negatives. Clearly,   the Legendary Greatsword is a positive,  and it’s perfect for Lae’zel. Also,   the quest to get this sword the normal way  can bug out in other ways, making the sword   unobtainable. Doing this will prevent that  from happening. Finally, by the time we can   get this sword through normal means, we will  likely have a better sword, and probably won’t   have Lae’zel in the party anymore, so in my  opinion, this is her time to shine with it. The only real negatives are that doing this  exploit may require a bit of save-scumming   before success, but we can do some things  to improve our odds. It also causes Lae’zel   to have some new dialogue that normally  doesn’t become available until Act 3,   which can be confusing, but we will avoid  that dialogue interaction. All that said,   doing this won’t lock us off from any  major questlines, allies, or achievements. If you don’t want to do this  exploit, you don’t have to,   and it won’t meaningfully alter your playthrough. For everyone else, the first thing we’ll need to  do for this sword is have Lae’zel stay at camp,   don’t worry, this is just until we get the sword.   If we have her in the party when  we do this, she will turn hostile. We will then want to go speak with Withers  and recruit a hireling. We need a fighter,   and at the time of making this video it takes  like half a minute for the game to leave the   recruitment screen when you click “venture  forth”, so just be patient. As a bonus,   recruiting a hireling will give us  the “Outsourcing” achievement. When   we go to level them up, we’ll need to  take the Battle Master subclass with   Disarming Attack as one of the maneuvers and  Precision Attack as the other. For the feat,   we will want to get an ability score improvement  and increase strength to 18 and Dexterity to 14. Next, we will travel to Waukeen’s Rest and  move a short distance west. We can speak   with Ellyka nearby, but unfortunately  there is no way to gain her as an ally. We will head down to the south side  of the bridge and, after a cutscene,   plan our attack, starting with saving the game. For anyone opting not to do this,  you can go ahead and just confront   the Githyanki head-on, and  skip to the next timestamp. Entering turn-based mode, we will position  everyone in a square formation. Next,   we’ll have Shadowheart cast Bless on the fighter,  and anyone else. We will also have the fighter   use an Elixir of Hill Giant Strength, and  trust me it’s worth it. Finally, we should   be able to throw a potion of invisibility at the  center of our party, turning everyone invisible. Next, we will exit turn-based mode, have everyone  hide, quickly move towards Kith’rak Voss,   the one with the Legendary Sword, and then enter  turn-based mode. Using Precision Attack should   increase our chance to hit all the way  up to 98%. All that’s left to do is save,   then hit Voss with a Disarming Attack. We should  be able to see if Voss failed the saving throw   against the disarming attack and dropped the  Legendary Sword the moment before the dialogue   encounter starts. If he doesn’t drop it, we  will need to load back to the previous save   and try again. In theory, we should have right  around a 25% chance of success. In practice,   I got the sword to drop 7 times out of  23 attempts, which is around a 30% rate   of success. This is a lot better than  using Command Drop with Shadowheart,   which only has a 9% chance of success,  but seemed to be much less in practice. Once we see that the weapon has dropped, we  will immediately want to save the game. Believe   it or not, we can actually peacefully get out of  this fight and still earn all the associated XP,   as long as we pass a series of skill checks. We  can start with any of the skill checks besides   sleight of hand, and fighters have a special  option to just bypass this first skill check. Next, we’ll say “You’ll need to start from  the beginning…” and follow it with an Arcana   skill check. After succeeding in this, we’ll  follow it with a Wisdom skill check. Finally,   we will go with the intimidation option, and  success in this will earn some approval from   Shadowheart. Surprisingly, Lae’zel would  also approve of this if she were here. The game might act a little buggy after  the confrontation. The githyanki will   be hostile and start to attack,  but will leave shortly after,   granting us all the XP we would get for  defeating them, while sparing our resources. If we made Voss drop his  weapon, we can pick it up,   the Legendary Silver Sword of the Astral  Plane is ours for the taking. Understandably,   this weapon only reaches its full potential  when wielded by a Githyanki. Fortunately we   have Lae’zel to fill that role. We can speak with  and dismiss the hireling, then return to camp. Now here is the spoilery part related to  the Silver Sword. When speaking to Lae’zel,   we will have the option to talk to her about it.  This dialogue was intended for Act 3 of the game,   so it probably won’t make sense, and can also  lead to some pretty big spoilers. Because of that,   we are best off avoiding that  line of discussion for now. However, we can tell Lae’zel about the encounter  with Kith’rak Voss, and then get her back in   the party and equip her with the Silver Sword,  bringing her damage per attack up considerably. There is one last thing to account for  this sequence skip of sorts. When we   leave camp with Lae’zel, we do not want to  speak with her as she will have a dialogue   icon above her head. This is just about  the silver sword, and we can turn it back   to being an optional dialogue if we just  return to camp, and then leave once more. Okay, with all of that out of the way,  we can loot the nearby flaming fists   for some sellable loot. We will want to  avoid going west for now, as that will   trigger some story advancements  that we are not yet ready for. Instead, we will fast travel to the Blighted  Village, and move south-southeast. Here we   will find Auntie Ethel arguing with two men.  We can say “How about you all just calm down.”   followed by “Ethel, what did you do to their  sister?” to earn some approval with Karlach. Following this, we will speak with Demir  and Johl. If we ask for more information,   we will get several new dialogue options. If we  say “Let me- I’ll bring Mayrina Home '' it will   get us approval from Karlach, but disapproval from  Lae’zel and Shadowheart. If we say “You’re on your   own. I have enough problems.” we will get approval  from both Lae’zel and Shadowheart. Likewise,   if we have access to the Sorcerer-specific  option, it can be followed by “Trust a more   experienced soul. I’ll find your sister.” to  get approval from Shadowheart and Lae’zel. Unfortunately, regardless of our choices,   there is no saving these two brothers  from their own recklessness. We will move   southwest to activate the fast travel  point for this area. That being said,   we won’t actually want to confront Auntie Ethel  at her tea-house until after we reach level 5. A short distance in we can attempt a skill  check to reveal the true nature of this apparent   paradise. Sorcerers will have the option to do  an easier skill check, whereas non-arcane classes   will have to settle for a DC20 investigation  check. The best part about succeeding here   is that we will get a pretty funny interaction  up ahead and can gain some approval out of it. Upon success, we will see that this is actually  a swamp. Continuing west, we will run into some   redcaps. We can speak with one and “Take a deep  breath and say ‘BAA’.” to get some approval with   Shadowheart and Karlach. We can actually repeat  this interaction once more for even more approval. Moving further west, stay out of the water  to avoid traps and the damage over time that   results. If you do get hit by traps, use  a healing potion to stop the bleeding. At   this point my approval with Shadowheart is maxed  out. Once our approval is maxed with a companion,   we will no longer be notified if and  when they approve of our actions. In any case, we can go ahead and take out the  Redcaps. If we position well and gain surprise,   the Redcaps will hardly have time  to do anything before we are able   to clean them up with Karlach and Lae’zel. A little further west we will activate the  Riverside Teahouse fast travel point, and   discover evidence of Demir’s demise. We will come  back here once we’ve gotten a little stronger,   and I’ll take a moment here to stress that we  must conserve resources so that we have some   Ki points on Karlach, 3 sorcery points,  and Lae’zel’s Soulbreaker at that time,   which will be before our next long  rest. For now, let’s head east,   while doing our best to avoid stepping  in deep water, which is full of traps. After jumping across some stones, we should  arrive at a decrepit druid sanctuary. We will   want to save here, and it’s also a good idea  to equip Karlach with the Ring of Flinging. Once again, we will want to get surprise on the  enemies here. The Mud Mephits are the biggest   and most annoying threats, as they can summon  additional Mephits. They also explode upon death,   so we want to avoid melee if possible. Magic  missile definitely comes in handy here,   helping us clean up the partially  damaged and/or distant Mephits. Also,   I’m planning on taking a short rest after this  encounter, and so will be using resources that   recharge on a short rest, such as Ki points,  Superiority Dice, and Channel Divinity. After the encounter, we can take a short rest  if needed, then loot one of the Wood Woads to   get a magic shield. In addition, we can find  the Sparkle Hands in the nearby chest. I prefer   to use these on Karlach over the Bracers  of defense, as they further increase her   already amazing damage potential. Finally,  we can loot and read the Letter to Kagha   stashed in a hidden Wooden Crevice, and this  will progress the “Investigate Kagha” quest. Back at the grove, we can use a Potion  of Animal Speaking and talk to Timber   the squirrel for a fun interaction  on our way to the grove’s sanctuary. Within the Sanctuary, we will confront Kagha with  the evidence we found, triggering a cutscene.   During this, we will want to say “Take this  letter, Rath. It will explain everything.” Afterwards, we will have one of 2 choices,   so you may want to wait and watch  this next part before doing anything. For one outcome, we can use either detect thoughts  or persuasion to convince Kagha to mend her ways.   If we do this, Kagha will fight with us against  the Shadow Druids. If we make this choice, we can   ultimately get the title or tag of Faithwarden,  as well as the Pale Oak Rare Magic Staff. On the other hand, we can just fight Kagha,  defeating her along with the Shadow Druids.   This is the less noble outcome, but we can get  the Broodmother’s Revenge Necklace from Kagha,   which is pretty good on martial characters,  and will only get better in late game. HOWEVER, there is what I would call a secret  3rd outcome, where we get the Necklace, Staff,   and title of Faithwarden. It will just cost  us 200 gold if we are not already a druid. To do this, first we will need to  convince Kagha to mend her ways,   and fight the Shadow Druids. Following this,  we will need to make sure Kagha dies during   the combat encounter that ensues. Even if we  are the ones that deal the final blow to Kagah,   at least at the time of making this video,  the other friendly druids don’t seem to take   notice or care. We can use a potion  of speed to hasten the heavy hitters,   making the task much easier. After Kagha is  dead, we will want to loot the Broodmother’s   Revenge necklace off of her during combat,  then clean up the remaining enemies. Right after the fight, we will need to go  to Withers and change the class of our main   character or avatar to druid. Once we’ve done  that, we can return to the grove and speak   with Rath. In Kagha’s absence, he will pronounce  us Faithwarden and give us the Pale Oak Staff. Afterwards, we can return to Withers and change  our class back from Druid, and reapply our buffs.   Make sure to get back the same skill proficiencies  that we had before the switch, and also raise the   primary stat, in the case of a Sorcerer, Charisma,  to +17. Trust me this will make sense later on. Before we leave the druid grove, we can report the  news to Zevlor, then agree to eliminate the goblin   threat. We will be rewarded with the Hellrider’s  Pride gloves, which we can equip on Shadowheart.   We can also go up the nearby ladder, meet  Lakrisa, and make a bet concerning the Goblins. Speaking of Goblins, it’s about time we went  to deal with them. After fast traveling to   the Blighted Village, we will head west.  Across the bridge, we will meet up with   Sazza. If we allow her to run ahead of us,  she’ll talk to the other goblins for us. As we turn north and head towards the Goblin Camp  entrance, there will be a cutscene. Afterwards,   we may need to defuse tensions between Shadowheart  and Lae’zel before heading into the Goblin Camp. Since we already have Shadowheart at max  approval, we can bring in Astarion here   to get some approval with him,  but it’s not really necessary. There are several things we will want to do in the  outer area of the Goblin Camp, before moving to   the interior. To start, Grat the Trader actually  has some pretty nice items, such as the Returning   Pike, Swirsey Shoes, Boots of Aid and Comfort,  and Gloves of Archery. For now, I am just going   to sell him anything I wouldn’t be sad about  losing, with the plan to knock him out later. Next, we will send Karlach a short distance away,   then check on Volo. Saying “Boo!  Get off the stage!” will get us   approval with Lae’zel and Astarion, but  disapproval with Karlach if she’s nearby. We can leave behind Astarion and Lae’zel, then  find a group of Gobin Children around a body   up to the east. If we speak to the Goblin  named “Eight” and ask him what the man did   to deserve his treatment, we can follow it  up with “Sorry for your loss.” to get some   approval with Karlach. This will get disapproval  from both Astarion and Lae’zel if they are around. Afterwards, we can call everyone back and approach  Crusher. To gain a nice amount of approval with   everyone, we will say “I don’t just think so;  it’s a fact.” followed by the intimidation   check “How about you kiss my feet instead”, and  finally “You better kiss my foot. Now.” We can   also get a really good ring here. We will follow  Crusher out to the entrance bridge of the camp. Once completely outside, we’ll hide and  take him out with a couple of punches.   We can get Crusher’s Ring off the  body, and this is actually one of   the best rings for a martial class, as it  gives an extra 10 feet of movement speed. Next, we’ll return near the fast  travel point and make our way up   the ladders to a grassy plateau.  We’ll have to watch out for traps,   but there is a locked chest we can open to  get the Glowing Shield, which is pretty nice. We can then move northwest and dig  up a chest, before entering hiding,   and jump down a fair distance  away from the sleeping bugbears. Speaking with Booyahg Piddle to the south,   we can get a funny interaction. Given that we are  eventually going to eliminate everyone out here,   we can start by having Karlach sneakily  punch all the goblins and bugbears up here. Next, we will want to use a Potion of  Animal Speaking if we haven’t already,   then go speak with Krolla  near the camp’s entrance,   eventually telling her “This is cruel.  I won’t be part of it.” After that,   we will want to speak with the Owlbear cub,  telling it we have a camp where it can stay. We can then speak with Krolla again,   and say “I’m leaving - and the owlbear’s  coming with me.” following this, we’ll need   to succeed in an intimidation or persuasion  check to guarantee the Owlbear’s safety. At this point, we’re going to go back to  camp to swap Astarion out for Shadowheart.   The goal here is to get some XP by wiping out the  goblins in the camp’s exterior, get the headband   of intellect from Lump, and get all our stuff back  from the trader. All while conserving resources. To do that, we will have everyone but Lae’zel move  to the top area of the ruins. We will make sure   Lae’zel has Lump’s Warhorn, along with plenty of  mobility items equipped. Because she has the Alert   feat, she should also be going first in combat.  It’s a good idea to save here, then we can use   her githyanki psionics: jump, and, with non-lethal  toggled on, we will knock the trader unconscious. At the start of combat, we can grab all our  stuff off the trader, use Lump’s warhorn,   then jump up to the elevated area behind  the trader. At this point we can get into   combat on our other characters. Karlach  can do massive ranged damage by throwing   the returning pike at enemies  below her. As combat goes on,   we can get Lae’zel back to the rest of the group,  and have her chip in with ranged bow attacks. We will eventually need to turn on Lump  and the other Ogre’s part way through   the combat. Once Lump is defeated, we can  get the Headband of Intellect from him,   and this will make Shadowheart’s  firebolt cantrip more effective. Now we can enter the main temple, where  Sazza will be waiting to introduce us.   We will catch up with her later, but we have  some other tasks that need tending to first. First, we will go to the southwest  corner and speak with Roah Moonglow.  We can sell her a bunch of stuff to get  gold and perhaps a set of Chain Mail +1   for Lae’zel. We will also want to grab another  potion of invisibility and save it for later. Afterwards, we can go ahead and  save, then knock the trader out,   along with her fellow guards and the Goblin that  patrols this area. We just need to make sure the   Goblin doesn’t bang on the drum nearby, or we  will be in a lot of trouble. Also, we really   want to make sure we don’t kill Roah Moonglow or  her guards, as she can return later in the game. We can break down the door that  the guards were in front of to   get more explosive barrels, along  with gold from a nearby chest. In the room to the north is the entrance to  the Priestess Quarters. After defeating the   Ogre standing guard, we can grab the Amulet of  Misty step from a chest in the southern room,   which we will want to save for a specific  encounter before our next long rest. Down the   path to the east is a room with a puzzle. It can  be solved by turning the Stone Discs so that all   the dark circles are in the small circle of light  on the southern disc. Solving the puzzle will open   up a secret tunnel that leads to the Selunite  outpost in the Underdark, which is pretty neat. We will be heading back to the underdark soon,  but for now let’s finish up in the Goblin Camp. In the southeast corner of the shattered sanctum,   we’ll find a prisoner being tortured.  If we succeed in a high deception check,   the guards will just leave. Then, we  can free and question the prisoner. A little further north, we’ll find Abdirak,  and can engage in his services. We can get   a great perk here if we put on a good show.  We will let Abdirak know that we are curious,   then face the wall. We can respond  to the hits with either performance   or intimidation checks. If we succeed on them all,   we will get the Loviatar’s Love condition, which  is permanent and provides bonuses at low health. After that, we can go find Volo one room over.  We will just need to convince Gribbo to leave,   then open Volo’s Cage. In exchange for  freeing him, Volo is willing to join our camp. Moving to the back of the southernmost room,  we can lockpick a door to the treasure chamber,   where we’ll find several magic items,  an infernal iron, and about 500 gold. To get a little more XP, we can save,  go to the west room of the Sanctum,   defeat the nearby goblins, and free Brakkal,  a Goblin that hasn’t fallen for the absolute.   We will just need to disarm the trap on  the cage first. We can also go interact   with Dror Ragzlin to the northeast, but  it isn’t necessary. If you do go for it,   make sure to save beforehand, as  the encounter can turn hostile. We will eventually make our way over to the  northeast corner of the sanctum, leave Lae’zel a   bit back, and speak to Minthara. To get the “She  Cannot Be Caged!” achievement, we will need to   save Sazza by saying “She’s telling the truth. She  didn’t know.” This will gain approval from Karlach   and disapproval from Lae’zel if she’s nearby. We  will also get the Assassin’s Touch magic dagger. We will then want to move Karlach a fair  distance away, before telling Minthara “I’ll   get it done.” Karlach will severely disapprove  of this if she is nearby when we say this. The   only reason we are doing this is to eventually  get the “She Cannot Be Caged!” achievement,   which means we can’t do anything to  hurt Sazza. After Minthara leaves,   we can hide and open the nearby Gilded  Chest for The Watersparkers Boots. After reassuring Karlach that we have a plan to  save the grove, we’ll head east into the Worg   Pens. Here, we'll defeat the Goblins and free  the Bear from the prison cell. We need to make   sure the Goblin kids don’t escape, as they will go  alert the rest of the Goblin camp. The bear turns   out to be Halsin, leader of the druid grove, and  after the fight we can agree to rescue the grove. At this point we should be at level 5, and  we get some major upgrades here. First,   on sorcerer we should definitely learn the Haste  spell. Using it with the twinned spell metamagic,   we can buff up both Karlach  and Lae’zel for big fights. This will be even better now that Karlach and  Lae’zel are both getting the extra attack feature.   In addition, Monks get the stunning strike attack  at level 5, which is great for boss fights. Lae’zel will also be getting  misty step as a racial feature,   and we will want to save this for a specific  encounter before our next long rest. Finally, we are getting Spirit  Guardians and Fireball on Shadowheart,   both of which are incredible spells. Rescuing the grove will require a  long rest first, so before doing that,   let’s use the rest of our resources to go  take care of Auntie Ethel. Just southwest   of the Riverside Teahouse fast travel point  is a Gur named Gandrel. For now, we will make   sure not to tell him where to find Astarion,  which will gain some approval from Karlach. Further northwest is Auntie Ethel’s Teahouse.  We can leave Lae’zel a short distance back, then   speak with Auntie Ethel. Before we say anything to  her, we can hit the trade option and buy another 3   Elixirs of Hill Giant Strength. We could get the  Hag’s Eye here through specific dialogue choices,   which is a permanent condition, but in my  opinion the benefits are not worth the costs. So instead, we can refuse to apologize to  Ethel, then say “That’s Mayrina? I have   some bad news for her.” and follow it up  with “Auntie Ethel killed your brothers.”   This will gain approval from Karlach and  disapproval from Lae’zel if she’s nearby. Our goal here, as usual, is to gain  the most benefits possible, as well as   save everyone we can, and this will require  fulfilling a specific set of circumstances. Once the fight starts, we will want to  damage the hag until she is at low health,   then let her live and escape  down into her lair on her turn. After scavenging for useful potions, we  will follow the Hag into her lair. There   is a gnarled wooden door within the first room.  We will need to persuade the door to open for us,   at which point it will be revealed as nothing  more than an illusion that we can walk through. The overgrown tunnel has multiple enemies in it,   but they are really just brainwashed  victims. Because of that, we can group   up and throw down a potion of invisibility to  turn us all invisible. We can then sneak past   them and jump through a waterfall to the west,  quickly moving further in to avoid detection. Next, we’ll have to navigate a gauntlet  of traps. The easiest way I’ve found of   doing this is to have everyone jump  down to this first vine, group up,   and then throw down a potion of featherfall,  or cast it with a spell scroll. Either way,   we can then have everyone jump down straight  to the end of the traps, avoiding all of them. Once everyone is there, we can short  rest if available and save the game.   We are going for the best outcome here,  and that will require some sneaky tactics. We will have Shadowheart, Lae’zel, and  Karlach stay back and hidden. With just   our main character, we will enter the heart of  the lair to confront the Hag. In order for all   of this to work, we will need to be at the  start of the turn order when combat begins.   With a high dexterity and the Alert feat, that  should be accomplished fairly consistently. Once that is done, we can save  the game, then plan our next move.  We will equip Karlach with the Amulet  of Misty Step, and Lae’zel with the   Silver Pendant. Keeping everyone hidden and  separated, then position Shadowheart so that   she is close enough to cast guiding bolt on  Auntie Ethel, but still a fair distance back. We will now try to stun Auntie Ethel with both  Karlach and Lae’zel. A potion of invisibility   to turn them both invisible will reduce the  chance of needing to save-scum, but isn’t   100% necessary. Depending on where Auntie Ethel is  looking, even misty step might not be necessary. Starting with Lae’zel, we’ll sneak around  Auntie Ethel to get within close distance,   using misty step if necessary. We can then  use the Soulbreaker attack to enter combat   and hit her with it, regardless of our  turn order. If that fails to stun the Hag,   we can repeat the process with  Karlach’s stunning strike. Once we’ve successfully stunned the hag, we can  cast twinned haste on both Lae’zel and Karlach.   Our goal here is to severely damage, but not kill,  the hag. We will also want to move both Karlach   and Lae’zel just a few steps away from the hag  at the end of their turns. A bonus will be if we   can also cast Guidance on our main character  with Lae’zel. We want the hag to have around   20 HP or less at the start of her next turn, but  the closer to 0 health, the better. We will also   want to make sure our main character is the  closest one to the hag before her next turn. If the hag is damaged badly enough, she  will try to bargain with us on her turn.   The specific state we are trying to  get to is where Shadowheart is not   stuck in the conversation where the Hag is  bargaining, and can instead act freely. We   will want to save once we’ve gotten that set  of circumstances, in case something goes wrong. Next, we will speak with the Hag, starting  with “What I want is Mayrina - alive and   free.” We will then want to pass the  Intimidation check “If you want to live,   hand over Mayrina and this power. Right now.”  Succeeding on this check will get us approval   from both Karlach and Lae’zel. Right after  succeeding we will switch over to Shadowheart,   quickly select the piece of Hag  Hair that gives us our primary stat,   for Sorcerer that is Charisma, and then  eliminate Auntie Ethel with a guiding bolt. Once we’ve pulled off that crazy set of  circumstances, we will definitely want   to make a save, and probably consume  the Hag Hair on our main character.. Lae’zel may come on to us at this point if we  speak with her, so long as we haven’t spent an   evening with anyone else yet, and it is up to us  if we want to engage or not. Doing this will close   off any potential romance with Shadowheart,  and possibly other companions, so it may be   best to just not speak with Lae’zel for now,  as we can always bring the subject up later. Speaking with Mayrina, we can  question her decision-making,   but kindness is always a good way to go with  these things. Mayrina will offer us her locket,   and I am not sure if taking it is  a good or bad thing, but it is not   really useful as a piece of equipment or  for selling, so I told Mayrina to keep it. Going through the wooden door to the north,  there are several things we will want to grab,   including a Potion of Speed, The Ever-Seeing  Eye, Bitter Divorce, and Staff of Crones. There   are also more useful potions in the nearby Wicker  Chest. We can use the nearby mushroom circle to   return to the surface, and head a short distance  north to join Mayrina at her husband’s coffin. If we tell Mayrina about the Bitter Divorce  Wand, we can then point it at the coffin to   bring him back. Giving Mayrina the wand will  earn some approval with Karlach and finish up   Mayrina’s quest in act one. We still have  a couple loose ends to tie up here though. Returning to the Hag’s lair, we can speak  with and free the few of her victims that are,   for the most part, still mentally and  physically intact. Those being Efrin the Dwarf,   Lorin the Wood Elf, and the Halfling known  as “Mask of Regret”. We can speak with the   other “Mask” NPCs, but unfortunately, they  are all too far gone, and cannot be saved. We can now return to camp and speak with  Volo. If we allow him to examine us,   he will start working on a possible cure for  the tadpole, and also give us the Blazer of   Benevolence. If Gale has not already requested  a 3rd magic item, he should at this point,   and I am going to give him the Spiderstep  boots, which we won’t have any more use for. Again, we will say “Go on. You’re  among friends.” to earn some approval,   and then eventually say we  will continue on together. We’re finally ready to first equip the Silver  Pendant, then take a long rest. After a cutscene,   we must pass either a persuasion or medicine check  with Lae’zel in order to keep everyone alive,   and this is where that Silver Pendant comes  in handy, allowing us to cast Guidance. This will be followed by another fairly  important sequence, which I won’t spoil,   but play it however you want, there  are no wrong choices to be made. And here’s a quick warning to wait on  morning preparations after the long rest. The next morning we can speak with Volo to  get a useful upgrade. Doing so will result   in disapproval from Lae’zel, Karlach,  and Astarion, however. Fortunately,   we can avoid that disapproval by getting them all  in the party and having them leave camp while we   undergo Volo’s operation. At the end of it, we  will get Volo’s Ersatz Eye, which will slightly   alter our appearance, and permanently grant us  See Invisibility, which is extremely useful. What we do next depends on how we want to  handle companion romance, and which companions   we want to romance. This will require a bit of  spoilers, but I think the tradeoff is worth it. At the Tiefling Party, which will occur after we  defend the grove, Wyll is the only companion that   we can initiate a romance with and then still  initiate a romance with a second companion. If we want to maintain a romance between  any other two characters going into Act 2,   such as Karlach and Shadowheart,  it would be necessary to initiate   a romance with both before defending  the druid grove from the Goblin Raid. That being said, if we want to have the  option of romancing any of our companions   during the Tiefling Party, and again, we can  only pick one and get permanently closed off   from romancing any other companions  (besides Wyll), then we must avoid   initiating a romance with any companions  before defending the druid grove. For the purpose of this guide series,  I am going to assume that most people   will want to maintain a romance  with both Karlach and Shadowheart. To that end, let’s cover the remaining Long Rests  we will need to complete before returning to the   Druid Grove. We will also want the Silver  Pendant equipped for these long rests. For the first of these Long Rests,  which should center around Wyll and   Karlach, we will want to say “Just who in  the Nine Hells are you?”. We can then say   “You better not lay a damned finger  on Karlach.” to get approval from any   nearby companions. After Mizora leaves,  we can speak to Karlach and say “He’s a   good man. Maybe the best of us.” to get  more approval if it isn’t already maxed. We can also speak to Wyll, eventually  telling him “You should get out of this   pact.” and “We can beat her, if we put our worms  together.” to gain a good amount of approval. Finally, we can explore any remaining  dialogue options with Wyll, being either   neutral or flattering, to get even more approval.  If you’ve been following this walkthrough closely,   approval with Wyll should be nearly maxed out,  despite being stuck at camp the entire time. When we go to bed, there will be another encounter  with the Dream Visitor. This encounter may play   out slightly differently depending on if we’ve  opened ourselves up to any Mind Flayer Parasites. The next morning, we can speak with our  companions about the dream visitor. With Lae’zel,   we can say “I distrust the visitor,  too…” for more approval from her. The next Long Rest will start  uneventfully, but there will be   an encounter with Astarion once we go to bed.  To get the “Just a Nibble” achievement here,   we will need to start by saying “Why didn’t  you tell me?” followed by “I do. I believe   you.” and then “Fine. But not a drop more than  you need.” All of this will get us approval. In   order to avoid dying, we will need to pass an  easy persuasion or less easy strength check. We can speak with Astarion the next  morning and learn more about his condition. If you want to romance just a single Companion,  or if you specifically want to romance Wyll,   then don’t take any more Long Rests  before defending the Druid Grove. If you do want to romance any other two  companions, such as Shadowheart and Karlack,   make sure to initiate a romance with whoever  your second romance choice is through dialogue   before the next Long Rest. With Shadowheart,  that dialogue option is “I can’t help but feel   you and I might have missed a chance to connect.”  followed by “I’d like that. Just lead the way.” If you have questions on how  to romance another companion,   feel free to ask in the comments,  and I will do my best to help. After doing that, the next one or two Long  Rests should be when the Act 1 romance   scenes with Karlach and Shadowheart (or another  compatible companion) occur. Around this time,   if we’re romancing Karlach, we can say “I’d  like to try cooling you down somehow…” then   hit her with a Ray of Frost to get a  small additional romance scene. We can   also speak with any other companion we  romanced about the time spent together. Also around this time, Scratch will bring us  a ball. Passing one of the skill checks will   get us the ball. We can then throw  it for Scratch to earn the “Fetch   Quest” achievement. If you are avoiding any  Romance before defending the Druid Grove,   then this will occur after the Tiefling  Party or one of the Long Rests thereafter. At this point, we will go ahead and defend the  Druid Grove. As far as preparing for the day,   this is going to be a pretty short one,  only lasting for the battle at the grove.   Because of that, I will only be using one  Elixir of Hill Giant Strength on Karlach,   and will not be using another on  Lae’zel, nor will I be using a Soul   Coin on Karlach. We can also bring  a few barrels of explosives with us. Upon leaving camp, Shadowheart will want  to share an important memory with us via   tadpole connection. A successful passive  religion check will result in additional   information regarding the memory, but it is  not critical that we succeed. Saying “Thank   you for sharing that with me.” will earn us  more approval, if it isn’t already maxed out. Arriving at the druid grove, we can warn Zevlor  of the impending Goblin raid, and we will want to   make sure we side with Zevlor. We can plan for  the attack by planting Oil Barrels and perhaps   even a few Smokepowder barrels at specific  locations. It is in our best interest to save   some smokepowder barrels for future use, although  we should have plenty stocked up at this point. Arka is in the biggest danger here,   so we will want to prepare Sanctuary on  Shadowheart, and position her next to Arka. We can save, then interact with the  War Horn. When speaking to Minthara,   we will say “No. This grove  is under my protection.” We will want to start the battle by setting  off as many explosive barrels as possible,   as well as having Shadowheart cast Sanctuary on  Arka, to prevent her from being killed by one of   the spiders. After that, we can use everything  we have to clean up the remaining attackers. Once the goblin raiding party has been  wiped out, Zevlor will give a speech and   Halsin will return. Halsin will speak to us,  and we can inform Halsin of Kagha’s death,   and plan for what comes next. Also, at this point  we can’t go back to the Goblin Camp, as Sazza   will be there and also hostile. For her associated  achievement, we need to make sure she stays alive. We’ll make sure to loot everything off  of Minthara, then go to the grove’s   sanctuary for our reward. Rath will give  us the Rune of the Wolf when spoken to,   and we can go to the northern chambers to use it. We can also grab the Mindflayer Parasite  Specimen while here and decide whether to   open our mind to it, which will allow us to  start upgrading our Illithid powers. Some of   our companions will definitely disapprove  of it, and we can always do it later. Back to the issue at hand, we can insert  the Rune of the Wolf into the empty socket,   then activate all four runes to reveal a  staircase to a hidden vault. Within the   vault we will find the Robe of Summer, Sorrow,  a rare magic glaive, and other useful supplies. Once we’re ready for the tiefling  party, we can take our long rest. This is where anyone that did not initiate  any companion romance up to this point can   make all romance options for  Act 1 available. To do this,   we will need to speak with our  companions in a specific order,   picking specific dialogue options, and  equipping the Silver Pendant is a good idea too. We will need to start by speaking with  Wyll, first saying “Are you all right?”,   followed by “We have won this day!  Danger is for tomorrow.” and then   “I want to dance with you.” This will  earn us some approval. Following this,   we need to pass a Persuasion check with Wyll  in order to initiate a romance with him. Next, we will speak with Gale, and  start by saying “I’m sure you’re   welcome.” followed by “I like the sound  of ‘magical.’ What do you have planned?”. We can then go to Lae’zel and say “You might still  persuade me to share the night with you instead.” Karlach is up next, and we will  say “I’d really like that.” Astarion is the second to last, and we’ll have  to start with “It’s not that bad. Think of all   the goblins you killed.” Following that, we  will “Take his bottle and try the wine.” and   then say “Knowing you, it probably is.”  To earn some approval we can say “Maybe.   If you say ‘please’” We will then need to pass a  persuasion check, and respond with “Good boy!...” Last but not least, we can speak with Shadowheart,  and start with “Refugees?” followed by “Are   you worried Shar won’t approve?” then “I’d be  glad to.” and “Maybe those plans could change,   for the right person…” and finally “I’ll  find you later, once the camp’s asleep.” If you want to have all act 1 romance scenes  available on a single save file, you can create   a manual save here and label it accordingly. We  can then speak with all the other people at camp   if we want. Once we decide to go to bed, we will  get to pick who it is that we want to spend the   night with. For the purposes of this guide series  and getting all achievements, we will be picking   Karlach. The only choices we need to stay away  from during the romance scene are those that imply   we are not romantically interested in Karlach.  Besides those, we can play it however we want. For those of us that already initiated companion  romances before defending the Druid Grove,   we’ll be given the option to think  about any of the characters we are   successfully maintaining a  romantic relationship with. After the long rest, Halsin will speak  to us, helping us plan our next steps.   Saying “I never thought I’d say this, but  it sounds like the Underdark is the safer   route.” will get us approval with Shadowheart  if it isn’t already maxed out. We can then   agree to Halsin joining the camp, which is  necessary for a major quest down the road. Before moving on let’s go ahead and  cover the remaining Long Rests in Act   1 for story and achievement purposes, so  that we can then take Long Rests whenever   needed for resources, without worrying  about missing something important. The next long rest will feature an altercation  between Shadowheart and Lae’zel. We will need   to succeed on a persuasion check with  Shadowheart, or else Lae’zel will be   permanently lost as a companion. The morning  after, we can speak with both Shadowheart and   Lae’zel about the commotion, but they should  start getting along better at this point. At the next long rest, we will be approached  by the Owlbear Cub when we go to bed. We will   first need to succeed on an Animal Handling  check, and saving is recommended. Then,   we can fetch a piece of food and toss it  to the owlbear. This will get us approval   with our nearby companions. The cub will  run away, but don’t worry, that’s normal. Moving on to the penultimate Long  Rest, the owlbear cub will return   once more, and this time we can perform  either a survival or medicine check to   heal it. Success here will guarantee  that the Owlbear cub joins the camp. Just one more left. After going to bed for this  final Long Rest, we’ll be awakened by a sound,   which we will need to hurry towards. After  calling out to the two pets, we can perform an   animal handling check to learn about their budding  friendship. We can then pet Scratch, and following   this, pet the Owlbear Cub. Doing so will unlock  the “You Have Two Hands for a Reason” achievement. The next morning, Scratch will bring us  a bone if he hasn’t already, and he will   start bringing us more things every so often. At  this point, we should also get the Find Familiar:   Scratch spell. Which can summon Scratch  once per short rest as a companion with   a talent for finding secrets. And don’t  worry, if Scratch is defeated in combat,   he won’t actually die, and can  be resummoned after a short rest. With that all taken care of, we can  go ahead and prepare for the day,   then fast travel to the Myconid  Colony in the Underdark. The first thing we’ll do is speak with Blurg.  We can start with “I’ve never heard of the   Society of Brilliance.” and follow it with “A  mind flayer infected me with a tadpole.” then   explain the whole story. At this point we’ll be  introduced to a new NPC by the name of Omeluum. If we speak peacefully with Omeluum, they  will eventually give us a quest. While here,   we can also check if Blurg  has any Hill Giant Fingers,   which can be used to make more  elixirs of Hill Giant Strength. Moving southwest, Sovereign Glut will  ask if they can join us on our quest   to defeat the Duergar invaders. We  can speak with Derryth Bonecloak,   and agree to help find her husband Baelen.  She sells some useful items that we will want,   such as the Caustic Band, Ring of Jumping,  and any Elixirs of Giant Strength. Moving on, we can find Baelen to the west.  There will be some bibberbangs along the way,   and a combination of firebolt and ray of  frost can deal with the obstacle quickly. We will want to avoid destroying any of the  bibberbangs down the vines and to the north,   however, as Baelen is stuck right in the  middle of them. He will warn us as we approach,   and we can send Karlach to get his pack. We  can jump up on the rocks jutting out from   the western wall to avoid the bibberbangs,  then jump directly where Baelen’s pack is.   All that is left to do is to throw it near  him, then retrace our steps back to safety. While here, we can also get the rare  and valuable Noblestalk Mushroom,   of which there is only one in the entire  Underdark. The single noblestalk is sitting   near the northeast cave wall. We can enter  turn-based mode, use the Jump spell on Karlach,   and use Step of the Wind: Dash on Karlach to make  reaching the Noblestalk without setting off any   Bibberbangs far easier. We will discuss who the  Noblestalk can be given to later in this video,   and the consequences of each choice. So, for  now, we do not want to give it to anyone. We can speak with Baelen for a small reward, then  group back up and return south. Moving southwest   we’ll need to defeat several Hook Horrors,  and getting the jump on them is definitely   recommended, and I cannot emphasize enough  how powerful Karlach is with the Returning   Pike here. There is also a mad drow by the  name of Filro, and we will need to defeat him. He will drop a scribbled note referring to the  Adamantine Forge, as well as an Ice Crystal,   which is a crafting component for a  very rare magic staff. Running along   the bark to the northeast we can  take a piece of Sussar Tree Bark. We will find a tombstone to the south, but  we should leave it alone for the time being,   at least if we want to get a unique  and hidden interaction later on. Moving northeast we can look over the  beach where the Duergar attacked. We will   leave Karlach up here to provide  cover with her returning pike,   while we move the rest of  the party towards the beach. We will be confronted by Gekh Coal at the  beach. We can convince him that we are an ally,   and even show him that we have the boots  he is looking for. We can then clear the   area and have Karlach dispatch Gekh from  a safe distance with the Returning Pike,   using a potion of speed if necessary. At  this point, we can have the rest of the   party move in to help damage, reveal,  and push the remaining duergar into   the open where Karlach can hit them. Gekh  drops the Exterminator Axe when defeated. After Sovereign Glut sees that the Duergar are all  gone, he will ask us to help defeat the current   ruling Sovereign back at the Myconid colony.  Instead of that, I put an end to Sovereign Glut. After grouping back up, we’ll head down to  the beach, activate the fast travel point,   then continue moving southeast. After  jumping a small gap, we will go up the   staircase to the southwest. This area  is under protection by arcane turrets,   but we can lower these defenses by activating  the power generator on the bottom floor. As a Monk, Karlach is the best choice for  this task. We can separate her from the   group and hide. Entering turn-based mode,  we’ll Dash, then use Step of the Wind:   Dash. This will allow us to jump a  total of 15 times in a single turn,   which we can use to move south, past all of the  arcane turrets. We can then hop along the giant   mushrooms to the west, eventually reaching  the lower garden area of the Arcane Tower. We will want to grab a Sussur  Bloom from under the nearby tree,   then enter the Arcane Tower. We can  insert the Sussar Blossom into the   power generator to activate the arcane  elevator and lower the tower's defenses. At this point, we can bring the rest of the party  into the tower, through an open window near the   main entrance. We will descend two floors on the  elevator to meet back up with Karlach. On this   bottom level, there is a chest containing the  Uncovered Mysteries rare magic necklace. Also,   be sure to check the barrels and  crates in this tower, as they can   contain useful potions. The rows of books on  bookshelves can also contain spell scrolls. Ascending one floor, we will find the  mushrooms we need for Omeluum’s quest.   The Timaask Spores in the northwest corner of  the room, and the Tongues of Madness in the   southeast. There is also a threadbare book on  a shelf along the west wall that we must read,   it should say “How can I trust? How will I ever  know?” This is the first of several command   phrases that we will want our character  to read before going to the top floor. Ascending another floor, we will be back on  the entrance level, where we can loot the   crates for potions or ingredients. There is  the “Evil’s Ascent” book sitting on a stand   in the northeast corner, and it will give us  another command phrase when read. In addition,   there is the Chest of the Mundane sitting on  the northern balcony. The contents appear to   be mundane things, but are actually revealed  to be magical when looted. This includes the   Mystra’s Grace boots, which will allow us to  cast Feather Fall at will. The Chest of the   Mundane is certainly an interesting  enough item to be sent back to camp. Going to the next floor up, we’ll find  the Mage’s Friend in a bedside chest,   a useful Magic Ring for certain skill checks.  This tower also contains many unique books,   all of which will contribute  to the “Bookworm” achievement. There are several other tasks for us  on this floor. On a table near the   elevator is a Torn-Out Paper, containing  another command phrase. Right next to it   is a githyanki text cipher, which we  will want to both read and pick up. In the southeast corner we will want to  read the “To the Grey” page on the ground,   “The Roads to Darkness” and the Handwritten  Letter on the table, as well as the Engraved   Githyanki Disc up on the shelf. Upon reading  it, Lae’zel will speak to us, and we should   convince her to tell us what it says, and  then to consider what it could mean if true. After this, we will want to save the  game, just in case we missed something,   then take the elevator to the top  floor. When spoken to by Bernard,   we should recognize the stanza and reply with ‘Or  art thou friend, a rescue from my lonely wake?’. Be careful when reading command phrases to  Bernard, as the wrong one can turn him hostile. The phrase beginning with “The silence  stretches on…” will have Bernard give us a hug. The phrase beginning with “How can I trust?...”  will have Bernard give us the Guiding Light Ring. The final phrase is one we probably  shouldn’t speak. “There is a light in   every living thing.” will turn Bernard and  the nearby sets of animated armor hostile. Bernard drops a unique magic halberd,  Light of Creation, when defeated,   but we don’t actually have to defeat or  make Bernard permanently hostile to get   the halberd. Instead, we can first  equip Shadowheart with the Guiding   Light Ring. This will reveal a button on the  elevator that takes us to the basement level. Once the whole group is there, we can ungroup  Shadowheart and return to the top floor alone.   After saving the game, we can use Command: Drop  on Bernard. It has a good chance of succeeding,   which will result in the Light of Creation  halberd being dropped. We can then pick it up,   which will cause everyone to become  temporarily hostile. However, we will   simply disengage and return to the basement,  fleeing from combat if necessary. In my case,   this just ended the combat and returned  Bernard and the others to neutral status. Within the basement we will find more books and  spell scrolls, along with some Basilisk Oil,   which we will want to save for later.  There is also The Sparkswall magic ring   in a gilded chest and the Staff of Arcane  Blessing leaning against a shelf nearby,   which is great on Shadowheart and really  buffs the power of her Bless spell. Next, we’ll fast travel to the Selunite  Outpost, then exit through the window   to the west. We will want any characters  without the Alert Feat, such as Karlach,   to stay back and in hiding here, as there  is an unavoidable ambush to the southwest. Quickly saving, we can head further west,  springing the trap. After a short cutscene,   we will face off with a Spectator. This is another  boss that we really want to stun before it gets   its own turn. That is because the Spectator will  call in reinforcements at the first opportunity. Upon defeat, the Spectator will drop the very  rare Spectator Eyes necklace. At this point,   we can throw a basilisk oil onto the nearby  petrified drow with 20 HP to free him. He is   very likely to turn hostile in any exchanges that  follow, and that suits us just fine. Upon defeat,   he will drop The Blast Pendant necklace, Memory  Shard, and Icy Helve. The Icy Helve is the second   component we’ve gotten now for the Icy weapon,  and we will be getting the final piece very soon. One last thing, down to the northwest,  past several clouds of noxious fumes,   we can burn through some webs and lockpick a  chest to get some Drow Studded Leather Armour. To complete the masterwork weapon quest, we will  want to make sure we have a regular greatsword on   hand, then fast travel to the Blighted Village.  Going to the blacksmith's forge, we can activate   the Melting Furnace, then stoke the flames with  the Bellows. We will next need to insert the   Sussar Bark into the furnace, and follow it with  a dagger, sickle, or greatsword. After a cutscene,   we will get the completed Sussar weapon, as well  as some experience for completing the quest. For a bit of an easter egg, if we read  the Handwritten Note at the Arcane Tower,   we can actually return to the tombstone  just south of the Sussar Tree fast travel   point for a new interaction. If  we have some Autumncrocus we can   place it near the tombstone in  memory of Lenore’s best dog. To my knowledge, that is the majority of important  things to do in this section of the Underdark. We   won’t want to speak with anyone back at the  Myconid Colony until just after a long rest,   but feel free to explore anywhere else you’d like,  then take a long rest to get back resources. Given   that we already long-rested through all major  events, we shouldn’t have anything new to do. After the long rest we can return to the  Myconid Colony and speak with Sovereign   Spaw, we want to choose the specific  dialogue choice “The duergar are slain;   the rot has been purged.” as this  will give us a very useful buff.   We can also accept the Sovereign’s request  for us to go deal with a Drow named Nere. Take note of the Bliss Spores,  which will add 1d6 to basically   any d20 rolls we make before our  next long rest, which is great. Next, we’ll want to equip both the Headband  of Intellect, and the Mage’s Friend Ring.   We will then go speak with Omeluum, letting  them know we found the mushrooms they were   looking for. Drinking the potion, we will  need to make a series of saving throws,   and Shadowheart can help out here with the  Resistance Cantrip. Succeeding all the saving   throws will negate any negative effects,  and instead will result in the unlocking   of a new mind flayer power. It is called  Survival Instinct and can be used once per   short rest to protect a creature against  being knocked unconscious for 3 turns. Because of the failure, Omeluum will  consider giving us a Ring of Mind-Shielding,   but requires some convincing.  To peacefully gain the ring,   we can say “How about I tell you more about  that nautiloid? Every last detail.” and   must follow it by succeeding in either a  performance or intelligence skill check. After that, we will be able to purchase  some useful magic items from Omeluum,   including a Pearl of Power Amulet, Boots  of Stormy Clamour, and Ring of Salving. To the west, we can speak with Derryth to get the  Gloves of Uninhibited Kushigo, and we will also   need to decide who to give the Noblestalk Mushroom  to. Giving it to Baelen will return him to his old   abusive self, so we probably don’t want to do  that. Giving the Noblestalk to Shadowheart will   help her memories begin returning, and open up the  possibility of some further story developments for   her later on. Giving the Noblestalk to Derryth  will earn her gratitude, and she will be able to   sell 3 more Noblestalks when we meet her in Act  3. From what I have seen, if we give Derryth the   Noblestalk in Act 1, it is likely that we will  not be able to give Shadowheart one of the new   Noblestalks we are able to purchase from Derryth  in Act 3. Because of that, the best option for   anyone interested in Shadowheart’s story would be  to give it to her instead of Derryth. That being   said, at the time of making this video, there  is a trick that we can do to give it to both   Shadowheart and Derryth. Check the pinned comment  as I will update it if this bug gets patched,   and in that case I would suggest giving the lone  Noblestalk to Shadowheart if you really care   about her storyline, or Derryth if you really  want her shop to be fully functional in Act 3. In any case, the way we can do this is by  speaking with Shadowheart while we have   the Noblestalk in our inventory. We can  then say “You should eat the noblestalk,   Shadowheart - perhaps it could restore your  memories.” Before saying anything else, we   can switch control to one of our other companions,  and send the Noblestalk back to camp. Right after,   we will switch back to our MC and pick either the  Persuasion or Intimidation check. Upon success,   Shadowheart will act as if she ate the  Noblestalk and update her quest accordingly. We can then go back to our camp and grab the  Noblestalk from our stash. A good way of checking   if the exploit still works is by speaking  with Shadowheart. If everything worked out,   we should not have the option of telling  her to eat the Noblestalk. At that point,   we can give the Noblestalk to Derryth. Be  warned, if we pickpocket the Noblestalk   back out of her inventory, it will be  as if we never gave it to her at all. Within the now-opened cave to our  immediate north, we’ll find a drow   body. The final component of the craftable  weapon, Icy Metal, can be looted off the body,   along with a book on Flumph Mating Rituals.  An investigation check will reveal the true,   coded contents of the book. Combining the 3 Icy  components will craft the very rare magic staff,   Mourning Frost. It can be nice on Shadowheart  to give her the Ray of Frost cantrip,   but I’m not sure it beats the benefits  provided by the Staff of Arcane Blessing. We’ll be sure to loot everything else in  this cave, including the Rare Magic hood,   Shadow of Menzoberranzan, then fast  travel to the Underdark - Beach. There,   we’ll want to save, then take the  Underdark Duergar Boat across the lake. We will be intercepted by another  boat full of Duergar, and can use the   information we got from Gekh to pass without  incident. Upon our arrival to the Grymforge,   we can pretend to be true-souls, and  decline the request for gold that follows. I also want to give a warning, that upon our  arrival here, we will be on a timer of sorts   to free True Soul Nere. We will need to free  and deal with him before leaving this area or   taking a long rest, otherwise he could die, which  will result in the Deep Gnome slaves being lost. Once free to move around, we go to an  elevated spot a short distance south,   enter turn-based mode, then cast a spell  like summon familiar: scratch or any other   leveled spell. As a Storm Sorcerer, this  will allow us to use tempestuous magic:   flight to fly up to the elevated ledge  nearby. You may need to use Tactical Camera,   which can be toggled with the O key, to  be able to see the ledge and fly to it. Up here, we’ll find an Idol of Shar,  along with a chest containing The Protecty   Sparkswall rare magic robes. It is very good  and thematically fitting for a Storm Sorcerer,   and pairs exceptionally well  with The Spellsparkler staff. We can fast travel to Grymforge to get back  down, and give the Idol of Shar to Shadowheart   for some unique dialogue, along with a massive  boost in approval if it’s not already maxed. Next, we can equip the Headband of Intellect,  then speak with Stonemason Kith to the north.   If we agree to help him, then pass  all 3 of the following skill checks,   he will give us a free piece of Infernal  alloy, which I believe is similar to infernal   iron. We can also trade with Kith, and he  occasionally has useful stuff on offer. Moving further north, we can loot Dark  Justiciar skeletons for some unique items,   also triggering an interaction with  Shadowheart. Avoid saying they are   better off dead if you want to  avoid some major disapproval. Further north, we’ll find Herdmaster Skarjall.  We can agree to help him get the Rothes working,   then, after succeeding in an animal handling  check, encourage the Rothes to turn on the   Dwarves. While they have sellable loot,  none of the dwarves have anything unique,   so pushing them off the edge is  a completely valid strategy. We   will just need to be careful not to end  up on the receiving end of that tactic. Afterwards, we can interact with the Rothe  and have them destroy the rubble. This path   leads to the Adamantine Forge, which  we will go to after dealing with Nere. For now, If we back track a short distance, then  move out west, we’ll come to a ledge overlooking 3   chests. These are all mimics, and we can use the  Returning Pike on Karlach to make short work of   them from this vantage point. We will just want to  step back from the ledge before ending our turn,   to avoid getting lashed by any of the  mimics. If they end up hiding behind walls,   magic missile can be used to clean them up. There  is also a locked and trapped chest to the north,   across a gap, and it contains the  Real Sparky Sparkswall Shield. We can then circle around to the south to safely  reach that area. One of the mimics will contain   the Wondrous Gloves. We can then interact  with a toy chest at the bottom of this area   to reveal a trapped chest that we will want  to equip the Gloves of Thievery to disarm.   The chest will contain a Scroll of Evidence,  which contains some interesting information. Moving a short distance east of the fast travel  point, then turning north, we can speak with   the dwarves near a bunch of gnome bodies.  We can then perform a couple skill checks   to get the Fetish of Callarduran Smoothhands,  a magic ring without setting off any alarms. Next, we can unlock the door to the east and  click the button in the northeast corner,   opening a secret passage. Walking into the  next room, we’ll be ambushed by several   Ochre Jellies. While easy to hit, they  are fairly tanky and can hit hard. It is   best to take them down one at a time, then  retreat to cover to avoid their attacks. After the fight, we can move up to the northeast,  and make use of that rare ring we just got.  Before entering the contemplation chamber, we  will ungroup from the party, equip the ring,   turn ourselves invisible, then sneak up and around  the Gnome named Philomeen to steal the Runepowder   Barrel. Philomeen will be left with no other  option than to let us have it. After a short   conversation, she should leave without further  incident. This Runepowder Barrel is basically a   nuke, and could come in handy at some point.  But for now I’ll just send it back to camp. South of the fast travel point we  can speak with Elder Brithvar. We   will need to make sure we move close to  him before initiating a conversation,   or else he may bug out and refuse to speak with  us. We can use a combination of deception and   persuasion checks to form an alliance  against True Soul Nere. Brithvar will   ask us to eliminate the scrying eye, but  as far as I can tell this is unnecessary. Further south we can speak with Sergeant  Thrinn and give her the Boots of Speed,   don’t worry, we will be getting these back  in a moment. We can then either get the   Bracing Band or Armor of the Uninhibited  Kushigo. Neither are particularly good,   but I went with the armor  given that it is part of a set. Next, we will ungroup one  character from the party,   and have them go to camp alone to grab  a smokepowder barrel. We will place it   near the rubble, short rest if  needed, save, and blow it up. After blowing open the rubble, Nere will emerge.  We will tell him to stop killing the gnomes,   then say “That’s your cue, Brithvar. It’s  time you got paid.” and side with Brithvar. At the start of combat we can cast twin haste   on Karlach and Lae’zel to help  them take down threats faster. We will want to prioritize defeating  or stunning the Mind Masters,   as they can dominate our characters, which is  really detrimental. Nere takes priority if he   is going before Karlach in the turn  order. With haste and action surge,   Lae’zel should be able to take  him down in a single turn. Also,   don’t stand near the lava or other edges, as  that is a good way for us to get instant killed. After the first fight, Brithvar will  try to extort us. We can either do   some skill checks for a fair deal  and the freedom of the gnomes,   or we can just attack him. Given that he and  his fellow rebels have some unique magic items,   I went with the latter. There is also no need to  wait until after the initial bout ends to do this,   we can just start attacking them once  Nere’s forces are almost entirely defeated. Once all fighting has ceased,  we can speak with Barcus Wroot,   and convince him to rest at our camp. We can also  speak with Beldron to witness a happy reunion,   and agree to free Wulbren from Moonrise Towers. There are a ton of magic items scattered across  the bodies, including the Bow of the Banshee,   Jorgoral’s Greatsword, Shining Staver-of-Skulls,  Cap of Wrath, Deep Delver, Ring of Absolute Force,   Boots of Speed, Nere’s Head, Sword  of Screams, and the Disintegrating   Night Walkers, which are a great mobility  item. There is also a Broken Moonlantern,   which we can investigate for information,  but is otherwise unimportant to succeed in. We can also cross the chamber  to the southwest and go out the   doors on the other side to catch  a glimpse of a future destination. East of the fast travel point, we will  need to defeat some remaining Duergar,   then speak with Skickpit and tell him  to join the others at the dig site. If you want to fully explore the  long route to the adamantine forge,   return to the path that was opened by the  Rothes, north of the fast travel point. But   I am going to simplify this section by having  Karlach go solo to grab the bare essentials. Starting at the dig site, we can  cross a beam over a stream of magma,   then jump east up to an elevated area. From there,  we can jump north up to an even higher area,   and continue moving north until reaching a pair of  iron doors. After picking the lock, we can move to   the back of this room and loot a Shield Mould off  the skeleton there. If we go through the locked   doors to the south we will trigger a combat  encounter that I personally prefer to avoid. In any case, we can return south, use the feather  fall boots, then jump back down to where we came   from. We’ll grab the Splint Mould, then head  south west to activate the fast travel point   here. Only two pieces of gear can be made from  the Adamantine Forge, and I will be getting a   shield and the Splint armor. Given that, we just  need to get some mithral to make the armor with. For that, we will start by heading southwest,  and dispatching the sets of animated armor.   By the way, I am a huge fan of chucking  them into the lava below. Afterwards,   we can send one character to harvest the  mithral vein located west of the lava Karlach can make use of the  featherfall boots again here,   jumping south down to the ruins in the middle  of a lava lake, where an adamantine chest is   located. Once we crack the DC20 lock we will  be rewarded with a Magic and Sentient Amulet   that has specific benefits for Monks. We can  fight the roaming Lava Elementa if we want,   but it doesn’t drop anything unique,  and we’ve got some tough fights ahead. Next, we can save, then regroup at the fast travel  point and head down the central staircase towards   the forge. Half way down there is a path leading  northeast to a second Mithral vein. We will want   to be careful as there is an ambush here. It’s  a good idea to send one character with the Alert   feat in while everyone else hangs back. Once  the ambushers emerge, we can have the rest of   the party join the fray. The mephits explode,  so we will want to stick to ranged attacks when   possible. Also, some will use the heat metal  spell against us, which can make us drop our   weapons. Because of that, we’ll want to make  sure we don’t leave our legendary sword behind. After the fight, we can harvest the mithral,   and we should also be getting  to level 6 right about now. At this level, storm Sorcerers get  access to several spells for free,   including Thunderwave. Because of this, we  can switch out Thunderwave as a learned spell   for something else, such as counterspell. We  also learn one additional spell of our choice,   as usual, and Lightning Bolt  is always nice to have on hand. Shadowheart will gain an additional channel   divinity charge, as well  as Improved Warding Flare. As a monk, Karlach gets a huge upgrade at level  6. Unarmed attacks are now considered magical   for the purpose of overcoming resistances, and we  can toggle passives that add additional necrotic,   psychic, or radiant damage to each  punch. We also get wholeness of body,   which we can use once per short rest to  really crank up our damage potential. Fighters like Lae’zel gain  an extra feat at level 6,   and we’ll be taking Great Weapon Master, or  Alert, whichever one we don’t already have. To prepare for the upcoming boss fight, and  to get the “A Grym Fate” achievement, we will   want to equip Lae’zel with a two-handed Blunt  Weapon, and the Hammarhraft is a good choice. Next, we’ll move everyone down to the Forge.  We can insert the Splint Mould into the Mould   Chamber, then put a piece of Mithral Ore in the  crucible. Once everyone is a safe distance back,   we can pull the Forge Lever.  Because the crucible is cold,   the only effect this will  have is to lower the platform. We definitely want to wait on opening the  lava valve until we are ready for a fight,   and positioning is really important here.  Lae’zel and Karlach should be positioned   up on the platform near the lava tube.  Shadowheart can stand near the valve. And   we will want to move to a position as far away  as possible on our sorcerer. Before doing that,   we can enter turn-based mode and cast twin  haste on both Karlach and Lae’zel. In addition,   Shadowheart can give everyone the  upgraded bless thanks to her staff. Once that is done, we will position our  sorcerer far from Karlach and Lae’zel,   near the Forge Lever, then pass one turn.  At this point, we will save the game in case   things go catastrophically wrong. Finally,  we can use Wholeness of Body on Karlach,   then direct Shadowheart to open  the valve and start the fight. To begin, we can use two Flurry of Blows:  Topple on the Grym, to hopefully knock it   prone. It is immune to stun, so stunning strikes  are wasted on it. Assuming it is knocked prone,   we will proceed to hit the Grym as many times as  possible. We need to defeat it without the use of   the Forge Hammer in order to get the associated  achievement. To that end, we will next hit the   Grym with Lae’zel. We can toggle on the All In  passive to deal more damage, but it will lower   our chance to hit. This can be compensated for by  using something like an oil of accuracy, as well   as the Precision Attack maneuver. If we do this  all correctly and most or all of our attacks hit,   we can defeat the Grym before it even has a  chance to act and make our lives miserable. It drops the Very Rare  Grymskull Helm when defeated,   which is great on Lae’zel. In addition, we can  have Shadowheart open the lava valve back up,   then pull the Forge Lever with another  character. This will craft a specific   item depending on what mould we used. In our  case, it was the Splint armor. The Adamantine   Splint armor is very rare heavy armor,  and an incredible upgrade for Lae’zel. We can make one more piece of Adamantine gear, and  while the Medium Scale armor is certainly good,   I actually prefer the Luminous armor  on Shadowheart. So I will instead be   making an Adamantine Shield for Shadowheart  to use. We can pull the mould ejection lever,   insert the desired mould, put a piece of mithral  in the crucible, then repeat the smithing process. At this point we can return to the Myconid  Colony and report our success to both Thulla   and the Sovereign. We will be rewarded  with the Envoy’s Amulet. We will also   get the title of Kin Spirit if we tell the  Sovereign that we’ve defeated Sovereign Glut,   though I am not entirely sure what that does. We can go ahead and take another long rest. There,  we can speak with Barcus Wroot, and assure him   that we will both rescue his friend Wulbren, and  stop the destructive plot of the Ironhand Gnomes. Our next major destination is The Mountain  Pass, but there is a somewhat hidden location   in the Underdark that was previously  overlooked, so let’s go there first. We will start at the Underdark - Beach fast travel  point and head south to the Torchstalk field,   near the Arcane Tower. Heading east across the  field, we can spot a climbable cragged rock   across a small chasm. We will want to destroy  the torchstalk sitting near the cragged rock,   then jump across and head on  down to the Festering Cove. Quick note, as far as I know, this  area is completely separate and has   no bearing on the rest of the game,  so you can play it however you want. We’ll want to equip the Headband  of Intellect before proceeding.  This small location is populated with a clan  of Kuo-Toa. If we pass a DC 20 Arcana check,   we will then have the option of a new  persuasion check. Passing that check,   we can decide the fate of BOOOAL and the  Kuo-Toa. Saying “I’ll just kill you and   claim it for myself.” will earn approval with  everyone and make for an easier encounter. Defeating BOOOAL will lead to a new conversation  with the potential for some funny companion   comments. Regardless of what we say, the Kuo-Toa  will remain dedicated to exercising violence in   our name. We can have our cake and eat it  too by knocking everyone unconscious with   non-lethal attacks. Pooldripp the Zealous  will have the Rare Magic Sickle of BOOOAL. Before leaving, we can jump across the  mushrooms to the northeast, after clearing   away the Torchstalks, and open or smash the  trapped chest to get the Slippery Chain Shirt. We can reach the Mountain Pass by fast traveling  to Waukeen’s Rest, and heading west, past the   location where we previously encountered  Kith’rak Voss and his Githyanki Knights. A short distance into the Mountain  Pass, Lae’zel will speak with us,   and we can agree to her request. A little  further north, we can find Lady Esther near   a small camp. Before exchanging any  words, it’s a good idea to trade and   buy any useful potions. As for unique magic  items, we will be getting those in a moment. After telling her story, Lady Esther will  ask us to retrieve a Githyanki egg from the   creche. Somewhat predictably, Lae’zel will  not be a fan of this idea. If we have it,   we can “produce the owlbear egg.” instead,   and perform a skill check to have Esther  accept it in place of the githyanki egg. Alternatively, we could say “My friend  is right: what you suggest is revolting   and you need to die.” This will get  us 1 point of approval from Lae’zel,   but turn Esther permanently hostile, so I  would say the Owlbear Egg path is preferable. In either case, we will want to use non-lethal  attacks to knock out Esther. The really useful   items we can get off of her are the Gloves  of Cinder and Sizzle and The Graceful Cloth,   both of which are pretty great on  Karlach, and the Periapt of Wound Closure,   which is great on any character in need  of a lot of healing. That being said,   there is an argument to be made that the Sparkle  Hands are better than the Gloves of Cinder. If we want, there are several undead that can  be fought to the west. We can enter hiding,   and watch out for the repulsion mines as we move  in to get the drop on them. The Death Shepards are   the highest priority targets, since they can  revive dead allies. Ideally, after initiating   surprise, we can use Shadowheart’s Radiance  of the Dawn ability to wipe out most of the   undead. Then clean up with Karlach and Lae’zel  before the stragglers have a chance to react. Before leaving, we can grab the  plate armor off of the Zealots,   which sell for a good amount of coin.  Further west is another entrance to   the Shadow-Cursed Lands, so we won’t be  heading that way, at least not for now. We will instead backtrack a short distance,  before heading north towards a large cable   cart. If we pass a strength check  to get the Cable Cart moving,   it will make the trip down to the monastery  quicker, otherwise we can just walk and hop   our way down the side path. Also, everyone can  take a crack at this skill check and we will   definitely want to keep our inspiration  points for a skill challenge up ahead. Moving further northeast, we will arrive  at the Rosymorn Monastery. Soon after,   we will catch our first glimpse of the  Githyanki inhabiting it. After a cutscene,   we can jump into the monastery through a broken  window to the west. Be warned that killing the   Kobolds here with fire damage will cause them to  explode. To get around this issue with Karlach,   we can toggle non-lethal, so that they  are just Knocked out, and do not explode. One of the Kobold Looter’s  will have the Ceremonial Mace,   which we need to solve a puzzle  coming up. Moving further north,   we will exit back out of the Monastery, then  jump and climb our way up to the rooftops. There are multiple Gremishka waiting in ambush,   beyond the wooden barricade and  through the door to the west. We don’t have to fight them, but they aren’t  too difficult, so long as we can get surprise,   or at least avoid being surprised, and  refrain from casting spells around them. Afterwards, we will move further east, jump a gap,  and climb up the vines to the south. This will put   us in contact with two Giant Eagles, which we can  use animal handling to avoid fighting. Personally,   I like to fight these eagles, because they drop  the materials used to make potions of flying,   which are very useful. We might even want  to leave the Ancient Giant Eagle alive   long enough to call in more Giant Ealges for  more XP and more Feathers. That being said,   there are a lot of eagles that will join the  fight, and it can make for a dodgy encounter,   especially if we stand near any  high ledges to get knocked off from. Once the eagles have been dealt with,   we can grab the Ceremonial Warhammer,  which is sitting in the giant nest. We will ungroup Karlach from the party,  then send everyone else down the vines we   previously climbed up. We can then use the  featherfall boots on Karlach and jump east   to a painted chest containing the Holy Lance  Helm, which is pretty good on Shadowheart. Next, we’ll jump down near the crumbling  wall and regroup. Breaking through the wall,   we’ll find a Guardian of Faith standing sentry  over the Ceremonial Battleaxe. I’ve found the   best way to deal with the Guardian  is by having Shadowheart cast Sacred   Flame on it repeatedly, from a distance,  while everyone else stays out of combat. Once the guardian is down, we can grab  the Ceremonial Battleaxe, then head west,   past the climbable vines, and over the gap.  To the north is the room where we will make   use of the ceremonial weapons we’ve gathered,  placing them on the appropriate pedestals. The mace goes to the southeast,  warhammer to the northeast,   and battleaxe to the southwest. Completing  this puzzle will give us the Morninglord’s   Radiance until our next long rest,  and will open the nearby chamber,   allowing us to grab the Dawnmaster’s Crest,  which we will want to hang onto for later use. There is also an Old Key nearby that we can grab,   though I am not sure what  it’s supposed to be used for. Once we’ve finished exploring the  Monastery, we can return near the   room with the Guardian of Faith, then hop  down the ruined staircase nearby. We’ll   break through the barricade, then  head for the Monastery’s entrance. Entering the Creche, we will be stopped  by a githyanki standing guard. We can   allow Lae’zel to answer, which will get  approval from Lae’zel and disapproval from   Shadowheart, but we get so much approval from  Shadowheart that it probably doesn’t matter. Moving ahead, we will eventually reach a junction,   with a fast travel point to the east. We can go  south from there to find a Githyanki Merchant,   and this is one of those Merchants that we can  knock out. She has some really good magic items,   such as the Daredevil Gloves, Gloves  of Dexterity, and Amulet of Branding. Returning to the junction, we can  find the Classroom to the north.   We can talk down the instructor  here from killing Youth Varrl,   if we manage to succeed on a DC 21 persuasion  check. Afterwards, we can speak with Varrl and   persuade him to part with another disc of  Githyanki text on Prince Orpheus. We can   then ask Lae’zel about it for more approval. We  can also talk to her about the training room,   and say “That’s… incredible. I have no  doubt they deserved it.” for more approval. To the west of the junction,  there is a portrait of Vlaakith,   which we can draw on if we don’t  mind some disapproval from Lae’zel. To the northwest is the Hatchery.  We can go speak with Varsh Ko’kuu,   and he may tell us to leave. Even so, if we  speak to him again we can try to persuade him   to willingly give us the egg. After succeeding  at the persuasion, we can say “I’ll find another   creche. One that’s more forgiving.” to earn  approval from Lae’zel, among other companions. This will get us a pair of boots  that grant immunity to acid,   allowing us to safely retrieve the lone  egg. We have the option of crushing the egg,   but we should probably just pick it up  and send it back to camp. Afterwards,   we can speak with Lae’zel about the  hatchery for even more approval. Leaving the hatchery, we can find  the Zaith’isk in the room at the   end of the southwest hallway. Once  there, we’ll need to speak with the   Ghustil. Allowing Lae’zel to take the  lead will get us some more approval. We will want Shadowheart to have Enhance Ability  and for Karlach to have the Silver Pendant   equipped. This is so that we can get both guidance  and advantage on the skill checks to come. Upon interacting with the Zaith’isk, we should  save, then we can allow Lae’zel to take the lead   for even more approval, and we will avoid  getting any detrimental effects on our MC. This is probably the worst skill challenge  in the game, because it basically requires   a natural 20 or critical success to succeed  on most of the checks, and there are real   negative consequences for failing the checks,  so save scumming is almost always necessary. That being said, if we Persuade Lae’zel to leave  the Zaith’isk at the first chance, we will get   approval, and she will not suffer any permanent  side effects. To put it bluntly, the longer   Lae’zel stays in the Zaith’isk, the more negative  and permanent conditions she will receive. If we don’t convince Lae’zel to leave the  Zaith’isk until the final set of dialogue options,   there will be a DC30 arcana skill check  to draw on a new Illithid power. For most,   the only way to succeed here is by rolling a  natural 20, a critical success. If we do succeed,   we will get the Awakened feature, which  allows the use of all Illithid Powers as   a bonus action. It’s really nice if we  use Illithid Powers. That being said,   Lae’zel will suffer from Weakened  Intelligence and Weakened Wisdom. Because I don’t use Illithid Powers, I persuaded   Lae’zel to leave the Zaith’isk as soon as  possible. But choose however you want here,   besides Lae’zel getting a few reduced stats  that aren’t important for the fighter class,   getting the Awakened power won’t  interfere with anything else. What is very important is to save the game  immediately after we successfully get the   outcome we want, so that we don’t have to  do it again if something else goes wrong. Regardless of our choice, we will need to use  deception on the Ghustil to avoid a combat   encounter. Afterwards, we can speak with  Lae’zel and agree to go see the inquisitor. For that, we will return to the fast travel  point and go down the hall to the northeast.   After a short cutscene, we will need to get the  Gith Shard from Kith’rak Therezzyn. If we just   show her the Artifact, she will open the way  to the Inquisitor. We will gain approval from   Lae’zel and disapproval from basically everyone  else, but that will be easy enough to recover. Upon our arrival at the Inquisitor’s chamber,   we can prepare for combat before speaking  with him. Entering turn-based mode,   we can cast twin haste on Lae’zel and  Karlach, and Spirit Guardians on Shadowheart. Speaking with the Inquisitor, we will  want to start with “Shouldn’t you be   more concerned with the mind flayer  invasion?” followed by “How will this   weapon stop the Mind Flayers?”  and “I won’t let you take it.” When Lae’zel contests this decision,  we can say “Remember the Zaith’isk?   These gith can’t be trusted.”  Gaining approval from everyone. Finally, we can say “We are keeping the artefact.”  We can use brand the weak on the Inquisitor,   making him weak to Bludgeoning damage  from Karlach’s attacks. Even without that,   this fight is pretty easy with the amount of  damage we are capable of in a single turn. After the fight, Vlaakith will show up  and Lae’zel will approve of us kneeling   in respect. Following this, we will want to say  “Neither. It is mine by rights.” As a side note,   If we start questioning Vlaakith’s godhood,  she will instantly kill all of us, which can   be funny to experience as long  as a save is made beforehand. That aside, we can basically lie and say “I will  do as you wish.” for more approval from Lae’zel,   and a small bit of disapproval from Karlach and  Shadowheart, but again, we can get that back.   Let’s use the planecaster before looting  the place, just to get it out of the way. We can loot the area here, finding another  githyanki disc on one of the bodies. Once ready,   we will enter the beckoning cave.  Despite what we’ve said to Vlaakith,   we can use diplomacy and learn a lot during  this interaction. If we betray the Dream   Visitor when given the option, it won’t  kill them, but it will sew more distrust. Instead, we can refuse to betray the Dream  Visitor, then learn more about Vlaakith’s   deceptions. Afterwards, we will want to tell  Lae’zel “Actually, I learned a few things.   Your queen is lying to you.” and then open our  mind to Lae’zel so she can see for herself. After leaving the prism, we can speak with Lae’zel   again and say “An impressive show  of faith…” to earn more approval. We will also be getting to 7th Level around  this time. For sorcerers, ice storm can be a   very useful spell. Shadowheart will gain Wall  of Fire as one of her Domain Spells, which is   very strong in certain encounters. Lae’zel will  gain two more maneuvers, and I like Manoeuvering   Attack and Trip Attack. Finally, as a monk,  Karlach will gain some new defensive features. Now onto the looting. This area has quite  a few magic items. In the central room   there is the Circlet of Psionic Revenge  alongside a Potion of Angelic Slumber,   Diadem of Arcane Synergy, Strange Conduit  Ring, which can be good on Lae’zel when she   is concentrating on the Hunter’s Mark  spell granted by The Grymskull Helm,   and Gloves of Belligerent Skies,  which are very good on Shadowheart. In the east room we’ll find the Necklace of  Elemental Augmentation and The Skinburster.   Finally, in the west room are the Hoarfrost  Boots. There are also two statues that we   can interact with. We will need to turn each  one 3 times. The statue on the left is rusty,   and so requires a very high strength  check to turn. Even if we fail,   we can use the grease spell or throw a bottle  of grease on the statue to get it unstuck. After turning each statue 3 times, a passage  will open to a secret chamber. Beyond this   first barrier, there are traps that will fling  us into a chasm if not carefully disarmed,   and we’ll want to ungroup the party  and do this in turn-based mode. After disarming the first trap,  we’ll need to bypass the second   barrier by going through a small cave. We  can destroy the energy source along the way,   but will want to disarm the next trap  before regrouping with the party. The last energy source we’ll need to  destroy is off the side of the path,   partway down in the chasm. Once we’ve gotten past all the defenses, we  will arrive at the holding chamber for the   Legendary Mace, Blood of Lathander. If we just  take the Mace, it will trigger a self-destruct   sequence that we will need to either stop by  destroying the four Solar Machines that rise   up from the surrounding chasm, or otherwise  escape from the Monastery before it implodes. Alternatively, we can interact with the Crest  Panel and insert the Dawnmaster’s Crest that   we got earlier, which will allow the Blood of  Lathander to be claimed without consequence.   Either way, we will get the Achievement  “Taking Blood”. The Blood of Lathander   might not be as good for hitting stuff as the  Silver Sword, but it is very good on Shadowheart,   especially in the Shadow-Cursed  Lands, where we will be heading soon. We could fast travel out of this  chamber to the Trielta Crags,   but there are still some unique  items we can get here. First,   if we head back to the Inquisitor’s chamber  and leave through the southern exit,   we will encounter Kith’rak Therezzyn. She will  drop the Soulbreaker Greatsword when defeated. Over in the Infirmary, we will find Gish  Umr’a’ac, who will drop the ring of elemental   infusion when defeated, as well as The Ghustil,  who will drop the Aberration Hunters’ Amulet. Finally, near the main entrance, we’ll find  Gish Far’aag, who will drop the Ring of Arcane   Synergy. On top of all that, we will get around  1200 experience in total if we go around and   defeat all the Githyanki in the creche. That  being said, anything beyond grabbing the Blood   of Lathander is completely optional and will  have no impact on the story or achievements   if we don’t do it. We will need to complete  a long rest before leaving Mountain Pass,   though, so we might as well get some loot  and XP out of our remaining resources. Once ready to take a long rest, we will  fast travel to the Underdark Grymforge,   which is intentionally in a different  region. This should trigger a long rest,   and once we go to bed, an  encounter with Kith’rak Voss. This is a pivotal moment in Lae’zel’s story,  and where we can get the Achievement relating   to her. If Lae’zel has seen enough  evidence of Vlaakith’s deception,   we can allow her to take the lead, and  she will listen to Voss’s proposition. Eventually, we’ll get multiple dialogue options.  Again, if Lae’zel has enough distrust in Vlaakith,   we can let her decide the path  forward for herself. Otherwise,   we will want to push her towards siding with  Voss. Upon forming an alliance with Voss,   we will unlock “The Lich-Queen’s Wrath”  achievement. We can speak with Lae’zel about the   encounter after Voss leaves, and at this point,  our approval rating with her should be maxed out. The next morning, we can leave  camp, which will transport us   to the Grymforge. From there, we can  head east to the Wrought Iron Gate,   and take it to the Shadow-Cursed Lands,  progressing the story into Act 2. That will have to wait until the next  part of this series, but in the meantime,   we’ve done basically everything important  in Act 1, to the point where you can   explore freely. Just avoid killing  any friendly NPCs. Speaking of which,   the merchants should all have restocked and  with better items now that we are level 7. If you have any questions, you can reach out in  the comments, where I will do my best to help.   If you want to watch part 2, you can find  it over on my channel, and if you’re new,   consider subscribing, you’re helping me feed my  cat, her name’s Marshmallow. Have a great day,   if you’re here today, have a great Wednesday,  and as always, thanks for watching.
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Channel: Its Shatter
Views: 157,261
Rating: undefined out of 5
Keywords: Baldur, baldurs, gate, baldurs gate 3, bg3, rare, magic, legendary, items, item, npcs, choices, weapon, weapons, armor, amulet, ring, hidden, secret, its, where, find, get, how, do, unlock, open, class, cleric, level, npc, NPC, options, build, sub, ability, character, romance, quest, side, companion, miss, balders, epic, all, gold, the, approve, disapprove, system, explained, combat, tips, tricks, complete, full, walkthrough, entire, quests, in, order, 100%, trophies, achievements, BG3, act 1, act, under, dark, mountainpass, grimforge, glitch, exploit, early, of
Id: eTh_P9sH2t8
Channel Id: undefined
Length: 219min 56sec (13196 seconds)
Published: Wed Nov 15 2023
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