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Baldur's Gate 3 is rife with challenging battles, and tricky quests. However, saving the Grymforge Gnomes is probably one of the hardest. They are watched by a city full of Duergar, and a Drow named True Soul Nere. Furthermore, the only way to save them appears to be a confrontation with their oppressors.
Baldur's Gate 3: How To Activate Arcane Tower Elevator
Feed the power generator.Luckily, there are several things you can do to make saving the Grymforge Gnomes easier. Keep reading for tips on where to find allies, how to clear the cave-in, tactics for fighting True Soul Nere, and what rewards you can expect for being heroic.
Updated by Abigail Angell on December 29th, 2023: With the game's release on Xbox, and its accolade as game of the year, we've come back to many of our Baldur's Gate 3 articles to check them for completeness. As a result, it was realized that two additional reward items result from the quest "Save the Grymforge Gnomes." These, along with their location, have now been added to the article.
Baldur's Gate 3
- Released
- August 3, 2023
- Developer(s)
- Larian Studios
Where To Start The Quest
Picking up the Save the Grymforge Gnomes quest can be done in a couple of ways. The first is by helping an injured gnome in the Myconid colony named Thulla. The others are through speaking with the enslaved gnome named Lunkbug at the cave-in site. If you freed Barcus Wroot in the Blighted Village, you'll find him here and can pick up the quest that way as well.
How To Help Thulla
Thulla is found near Spaw in the Ebonlake Grotto, and is suffering from Poison. To help her, you'll need to use one of the following:
- An Antidote
- The Duergar Antidote
- A Paladin's Lay on Hands
- The Lesser Restoration spell
However, it appears that if you complete the Defeat the Duergar Intruders Quest or travel to Grymforge before helping her, she will die.
Once you've helped her, she will give you her Boots of Speed. Alternatively, you can take them from her corpse.
The Boots of Speed are not only a useful magic item in themselves, but showing them to the Duergar on the way to Grymforge will also allow you to proceed without a fight.
Baldur’s Gate 3: Where To Find The Harper Stash In Grymforge
Be aware of those Monster Chests!How To Clear The Cave In
After speaking with Lunkbug or Sergent Thrinn, you'll learn that clearing the cave-in is the next step in the quest - after all, there are surviving slaves trapped inside along with True Soul Nere. To clear the cave-in, Lunkbug suggests getting help from a runaway slave named Philomeen after you pass a Persuasion check. According to him, she has large amounts of powerful explosives.
You can also clear the cave-in with another explosive you may have on hand, such as two Smokepowder Bombs or the Shatter spell. This allows you to save the Runepowder for future use or provides a solution if you don't find it.
Where To Find Philomeen
Philomeen can be found through a door behind the Duergar disposing of corpses in Grymforge. To get inside, you'll need to convince the Duergar to leave and then lockpick the door. The area beyond is large, with several perception checks for avoiding ambushes and locating secret passageways, but Philomeen is at the very end of the secret area.
Baldur's Gate 3: Where To Find Smokepowder Reserve In Grymforge (Philomeen Location)
Looking for Smokepowder to free True Soul Nere from the rubble in Baldur's Gate 3? Here is a guide to help!How To Save The Grymforge Gnomes From Nere
Unfortunately, saving the gnomes caught in the cave has the nasty side effect of also rescuing True Soul Nere. He immediately tries to kill all the gnomes for their perceived incompetence, and can't be talked out of it. To save the gnomes, you'll need to stop him from killing them by interrupting, and then kill him and his loyal Duergar in battle. Don't clear the cave-in until you're fully rested up, because this is a difficult fight.
How To Recruit Elder Brithvar
By default, all the Duergar side with Nere in the fight. However, you can recruit some of them to your side by speaking with Elder Brithvar. This must be done before clearing the cave-in. Find Elder Brithvar on the balcony to the North of the cave-in, who is speaking with a fellow disgruntled worker about not being paid by Nere. A little prodding will get him and a couple of others to fight Nere alongside you, making the fight significantly easier.
How To Beat Nere
Once the fight has started, you will see several things - the gnomes are fleeing in panic, and many of the Duergar are pulling out crossbows. Because of the open nature of the area in front of the cave-in, there is very little cover to avoid taking constant ranged damage. If you aren't careful, this fight will feel more like a firing squad than a rescue.
To eliminate this chip damage and get breathing room to take out the melee combatants, you can utilize magical covers such as Darkness or Fog Cloud. Both spells are relatively common scrolls if you don't have a caster who knows them, or you can use an Arrow of Darkness for a similar effect. For best results, place the cover in the area just in front of the cave-in, and use your movement to dance in and out of it as needed.
Once you've burst down Nere and the other melee fighters, rush the ranged enemies to give them a disadvantage on hitting you. This will hopefully allow you to reduce the incoming damage to your party down to manageable levels.
Baldur's Gate 3: How To Get Mithril Ore
To craft superior gear in Baldur's Gate 3, you'll want to collect some Mithril ore down in the Underdark. Here's where to find it.Rewards For Saving The Grymforge Gnomes
Once you've saved the Grymforge Gnomes, you'll get some gold from Lunkbug. Additionally, you'll learn that some of the group's friends have been taken to Moonrise Towers. If Barcus Wroot is still alive, he will announce his plan to rescue Wulbren, who is one of the Gnomes taken there. Conversing further with Barcus allows you the chance to recruit him, which will come in handy down the road.
Finally, you'll find three items on Nere's body:
If you promised to kill Nere for the Myconids, then you can also decapitate him to receive Nere's head.
