Seek Protection from the Shadow Curse

Seek Protection from the Shadow Curse is a sub-quest of Infiltrate Moonrise Towers in Act Two of Baldur's Gate 3. It can be started by approaching the elevator in Grymforge or entering the Shadow-Cursed Lands.
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==Objectives==
Objectives and journal entries may vary pending story decisions and outcomes.
== Walkthrough ==
=== The Shadow Curse ===
After entering into the Shadow-Cursed Lands, the party are presented with an abundance of torches, and encouraged to carry them by either a Harper or a goblin depending on how was resolved. The reason why becomes abundantly clear as the party are exposed to the shadows and take that doubles with every turn. The party must find a way to traverse the area safely.
It is technically possible to travel through the Shadow-Cursed Lands with only torches. When approaching Moonrise Towers, the curse is too powerful and begins causing Necrotic damage, however. If a party member loses all their hitpoints while cursed, they gain the status and, if they aren't helped, are resurrected as an undead creature and attack the party. The party member can be saved by defeating them and then resurrecting them.
=== The convoy of the Cult of the Absolute ===
If the party used the Mountain Pass route, as part of , then a goblin greets them and asks if they are the True Soul the goblin is expecting. The goblin tells the party to grab a torch, stick to the light as much as possible, and go to the rendezvous point to wait for the guide to Moonrise Towers. This starts .
If approaching the rendezvous point, an orc named asks if they have what is needed to summon the guide. To summon the Drider guide, Vez explains that a special lyre is needed - the . This lyre can be looted off corpse if she was killed or knocked out during , gifted by Minthara if she was sided with during , or by rescuing in and siding with him. Once the lyre has been produced, a Performance check (DC 16) is prompted, but the result is the same whether it's passed or failed - the guide just makes a snide comment if it was played poorly. If the party do not have the lyre, then they can summon the guide using illithid powers (Wisdom DC 14). Additionally, Barbarians, Sorcerers, Bards, Clerics, and Paladins all have special dialogue to summon the guide.
The guide in question is a Drider named . He owns a functioning and has been tasked with shuttling cultist initiates to Moonrise Towers. He'll ferry the party to Moonrise. Once agreeing, Kar'niss takes off and the party must remain in the glow of his Moonlantern to stave off the shadow curse.
During the trek, a group of Harpers ambush the convoy. The part can betray the convoy and help the Harpers, or fight alongside the convoy in the hopes of being more convincing at Moonrise. If siding with the Harpers, they take the drider's Moonlantern and refer the party to the Last Light Inn. If avoiding making hostile at the Inn, then the party can get the Moonlantern by speaking with . If sticking with the convoy, then Kar'niss safely guides the party to the front entrance to Moonrise Towers. 
If the party had already been at the Last Light Inn and avoided making Jaheira hostile at the Inn and sided with the Harpers, the harpers will question the party after defeating the convoy and demand "Jaheira's godsend" explain their presence: the party can either blame the ambush for ruining their infiltration (persuasion DC16) or lie that they were captured by the convoy (deception dc16). Failing either will turn the ambushing Harpers hostile(only them). Succeeding either will lead to the Harpers handing over the .
==== Finishing the drider's convoy ====
Kar'niss brings the party to Moonrise Towers safely, as promised, but he doesn't relinquish his Moonlantern. In order to acquire the Moonlantern, the party must earn it by appeasing a specific disciple, . After a cutscene with Z'rell and , the party are tasked to dispatch some goblins and then meet with Z'rell upstairs. Speak to her, and she telepathically connects with the party to see how the goblins died. Next, she tries to figure out if the party are loyal to the Absolute. The player character can attempt to distract her with romantic thoughts of their love interest (Persuasion DC 14), fill their mind with fake love for the Absolute (Deception DC 14), distract her with their hunger for power, or use a special dialogue for Monks, Rogues, or Fighters.
If successful, Z'rell gives the party a new task - track down , a servant of Thorm's who the cult has lost contact with. He was last seen at the Thorm Mausoleum. Z'rell gives the party a key to his room and instructs them to take a Moonlantern and touch nothing else. Thorm's room is on the same floor, past the library. The Moonlantern is in a box near a wooden desk in the centre of the room (just south of the telescope).
=== Performing an ambush together with the Harpers ===
If the party used the elevator in Grymforge as part of , they encounter some Harper Scouts, led by Harper . The Harpers are suspicious and order the party forward, when a harper named is overwhelmed by a Shadow and transformed by the shadow curse. A fight breaks out between the newly transformed Yonas, seven Shadows, and the Harpers.
After the battle, Lassandra thanks the party and urges them to carry a torch, as it's enough for the edges of the Shadow-Cursed Land. She tells them there is one place safe from the curse, the Last Light Inn, and marks it on the map. If avoiding hostility with , she introduces the party to Isobel who grants a Blessing of to stave off the lesser affects of the curse. By this conversation when the speaking with Jaheira inside the inn the cultist will no longer be present near the exit of the mountain pass to start the sub-quest . If the party protects Isobel in , a group of Harpers led by Harper state they are preparing to ambush a cultist convoy. The party can either go with the group immediately or catch up with them later, as the ambush site is marked on their map. Talk to Branthos at the ambush site to begin.
==== Fighting the way through ====
Once the convoy arrives, the party has a choice to attack immediately or hang back. If the party chooses to stay hidden and keep watching, the drider kills Brawler Vez, one of the goblins in the convoy. From there, the party can either signal the Harpers or the Harpers start the encounter themselves. After the fight, loot the drider's corpse to get his Moonlantern.
==== Talking With Kar'niss ====
Alternatively, the party can choose to clear their throat and make themselves known. This choice can be made after initially choosing to stay hidden and waiting for Kar'niss to kill one of the goblins. The drider recognizes them as a True Soul and asks how they survived the shadows. Through dialogue options, the party can choose to turn on the Harpers and fight alongside Kar'niss, signal the Harpers to attack, or attempt trick Kar'niss into handing over the Moonlantern without combat. 
If the party talks to the Harpers conducting the ambush first, they can hatch a plan to have the party talk to Kar'niss first, using the tadpole to keep him off his guard. When Kar'niss arrives, he will ask how they have survived:
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He can then be convinced to handover the Moonlantern:
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If Kar'niss demands the party follow him, the party member can insist further:
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If both checks are passed, Kar'niss and the convoy reluctantly walk into the shadows and succumb to the shadow curse, avoiding a combat encounter and earning the praise of the Harpers. If the convoy is defeated in this way, they can later be found in Shadow-Cursed Undead form in Reithwin Town south of the statue of Ketheric Thorm that houses the Sharran Sanctuary.
=== The lantern's power ===
If the party gains Kar'niss' lantern, a pixie speaks out to them and begs for her freedom. If the party frees her (by equipping the lantern then using the action Inspect Moonlantern), she introduces herself as . In return for freeing her, the party can ask for her help with the shadow curse. She grants them a Filigreed Feywild Bell, which grants a Pixie Blessing that staves off the curse. In comparison to the Moonlantern, which has a limited range and takes up a weapon slot, the blessing affects all party members and requires nothing to be equipped.
== Quest rewards ==
* - If Dolly Thrice is released from Kar'niss' Moonlantern.
* - Either looted from Kar'niss or taken from Balthazar's room.
== Footnotes ==
Category:Quests
Category:Main Quest