In Baldur's Gate 3 Freeing the Loyal Nere is an Act 1 side quest set in the Underdark. As part of it, you need to rescue a follower of Absolute from the rubble by finding explosives, and then decide which side to take - the Dvergar rebels or the drow.
In this guide, you will learn how to start the quest, remove the rubble and blind the Absolute, and whether you should bring Nera's head to the myconids or whether it is better to team up with him and kill Razor. We will also tell you about the third option for ending the task, which allows you to kill the guards before the drow is freed and persuade him to leave the cult.
Completing the quest “Free Loyal Nere”
How to start a task
First of all, you need to get to Grimforge. We described in detail how to do this in the mission guide "Save the Dwarves at Grimforge". This quest is closely intertwined with Nere's quest, so we will often refer to it. Having arrived at this location and talked with Morghal, follow the road south to go into a spacious cave, where a group of gnome slaves are splitting stones, trying to clear the rubble (X: -635, Y: 312).
Chat with Trinn, who is standing near the collapse. She will tell you that a drow named Nere is on the other side of the rubble. If you took the boots from Tula, you can immediately give them to the sergeant to complete the corresponding task and receive a reward. Then interact with the stones just ahead to create a telepathic connection with Nere - this will lead to the beginning of the task and the start of the timer.
Important: If, after accepting this quest, you take two long rests in the camp or leave Grimforge twice, you will fail the mission, since the dwarves will be able to clear the rubble themselves. But Nere will already be dead by then. The Dvergar will leave the ruins, taking all the slaves with them. As a result, you will fail the task of rescuing them.
How to clear a rubble
Your main task in this task will be to clear the rubble, which is an interactive object that has 44 hit points and is immune to all types of damage, with the exception of force (vulnerable) and piercing (resistant). It also has the “Medium Strength” trait, which means that in order to cause damage to it, you need to deal at least 22 units of damage at a time.
Thus, the best choice for its destruction would be to use explosives, namely:
- Vial of Rune Powder - Obtained from Philomina, who is located in the northeast corner of the map. We told you in detail where to find it, in quest to save the gnomes.
- Barrel of rune powder - can be stolen from Philomina or taken by force. Creates a huge explosion, so it is recommended to move a safe distance away from the collapse.
- Two bags of black powder - they can be found in Philomina's hiding place. We told you in detail where to find them in the quest to save the gnomes.
- Black Powder Barrel - can be found while exploring the world, for example, in Waukeen Orphanage or Vault of the Zhentarim. However, it is unlikely that you placed the keg in your inventory when exploring these locations, and it is not recommended to go to them again, as you may fail the quest.
Let's add that you can also try to use your abilities to destroy the blockage yourself. For example, Otherworldly discharge, which a sorcerer can use from level 1, is capable of causing a fair amount of damage, but be careful as you may accidentally hit the gnomes.
Before blowing up the rubble, we advise you to perform a couple more actions that can make your life much easier in the future.
Talk to Razor and blind the Absolute
Talk to Elder Britvar (X: -626, Y: 354), which can be found north of the rubble area. He will consider you Faithful. If you agree with this, then Razor and Kur will immediately attack you. Therefore, say that you are not a follower of the Absolute and pass a Deception check (10) - this will give you access to creating an alliance with the rebel Dvergar.
Razor will say that Nere owes him money, so he will want us to get it out of him. Agree with his proposal (you can try to convince him to pay you half of the debt). In this case, he will join you in battle with the followers of the Absolute.
The elder will also advise you to get rid of the All-Seeing Eye, if you have not already destroyed it. To do this, go to some place where there are no prying eyes, for example, you can go down the stairs next to Britvar to the lower platform (X: -648, Y: 370), wait until Danna leaves, and then attack the purple eye (one hit on it should be enough).
Elder Britvar refuses to talk
If you try to talk to the elder, but he constantly chases you away, then remove any gunpowder from your inventory, and then try to talk to the dvergar again.
This bug can also happen if you first interacted with Kur, and not with Razor. In this case, we can only advise you to load an earlier save, where you have not yet talked with this couple, and then click on Razor first.
Eliminate Nere's minions early
If you plan to fight Nere, you can make the battle much easier by dealing with his allies in the form of the Absolute followers before the rubble is detonated. At the same time, do not touch the Dvergar rebels with whom you previously made a deal.
Note: You can also deal with both the cultists and the elder and his allies in advance. Then there may not be a final battle at all, if you also manage to “become friends” with Nera.
Of course, attacking all these cultists head-on is not the best idea, so we advise you to kill them from afar from a high point. To do this, go to the cliff (X: -619, Y: 350), located slightly ahead of Razor and jump over to the other side. Then climb higher along the stone ledges.
Split up your group and leave one or two melee fighters below, near the edge of the cliff, so that they can fight off enemies that climb up to you if necessary, or go down to finish off hidden opponents. Place shooters and spellcasters on the stairs, where they can freely shoot at the cultists.
First of all, it is better to deal with the mind lords Fonmara and Dunnol, who can also attack from afar. By the way, warriors standing a little lower can throw various objects, so don’t forget to use this. In the end, you will have to kill all the enemies.
How to deal with Nere in Baldur's Gate 3
So, having explosives (gunpowder) in your hands, teaming up with Razor and/or killing all the servants of the Absolute, you can undermine the blockage. In some cases, you will need to be well prepared, as you may have a difficult battle ahead. Next, go to the rubble and throw a bottle of rune powder or two bags of black powder near it. The gnomes will immediately run away from the stones. Also move away to a safe distance, and then shoot the bomb with a fire arrow or a spell.
Immediately after the explosion, Beldren will appear from the opened passage, followed by Nere. A cut-scene will begin in which the drow will immediately throw Mirna into the lava (you won’t be able to save her; even if you kill Nere before the video starts, the dwarf will simply disappear later). Now if you remain silent or say “Finish the slaves, Faithful. In the name of the Absolute"
, then Nere will kill all the dwarves, which will lead to the failure of the mission to save them. If you do not want to allow this, then select the answer “Stop! There will be no more innocent victims today, Nere."
. Next, a plot fork awaits you.
Kill Nere and bring back his head
If you urged Nere not to kill the dwarves, he will order Trinn to cut out your heart. At this moment, Razor may intervene in the conversation and demand his gold from the drow. If you talked with the elder earlier and made a deal with him, you can now choose a side - Nere or Britvar. In this case, choose the second one.
Note: If earlier it was not possible to come to an agreement with Britvar, now he will still agree to support Nere again, so you will have to fight with both groups.
If you did not deal with Absolute's minions earlier, then now you will have to fight with Nere, Trinn, the corsair Greymon (if alive), Daltar, Drar, the mind lord Fonmara and the mind lord Dunnol. You should quickly deal with the crossbowwoman Drar standing at the top, as her shots can throw your characters into the lava. Even before the battle begins, place your long-range fighter near her.
Next, deal with the psionics and Nere, since they pose the greatest danger. If they take control of the gnomes, then try not to maim them. Under no circumstances push Nere into the lava, no matter how much you would like to, because then you will not be able to take valuable things and his head from his corpse.
When the battle is over, if you made a deal with Razor, then talk to him or Kur, and then choose an answer “What about the slaves?”
and pass an Intimidation or Persuasion check (10) to free the dwarves. Also take 400 gold from him. Be sure to chat with Beldren to complete the mission to save the shorties.
Now interact with Nere's corpse. If you take on the task "Bring the head to Nera" from Glot or Spav, you can now cut off the head of a drow by passing a Strength check (10). Next, examine the body to take from it:
- The Scream Blade is a rapier of unusual rarity.
- The Falling Night Steps are very rare boots with the Misty Step.
- Broken moon lantern.
- An illithid parasite specimen.
Next, don’t forget to take Nera’s head to the myconid colony. As a reward from Spav you will receive the Messenger's Amulet (+2 to persuasion checks), and from Glot you will receive the Champion's Chain amulet (+2 to intimidation checks).
Take Nere's side
If you allow Nera to deal with the gnomes after his release, he will treat you favorably and ask for your help in destroying his former minions. Otherwise, you will be able to take his side only if you made a deal with Britvar, which we described above, or if you kill all the Dvergar before clearing the rubble.
If you went against Britvar, then you will have to fight with him, as well as Kur, the corsair Greymon (if alive), Morghal, Orgarth, Danna and Thadd. This battle will not be as difficult as with Nere, especially if the drow did not manage to kill his minions. Just pre-position your marksmen and spellcasters at the top, and leave your tank damage dealers at the bottom.
After the battle is over, chat with Nere and choose an answer “Instill in Nera the thought: “The dwarves need to be freed””
, passing a Wisdom check (15). In this case, you will not fail the mission to save them. Otherwise he will kill all the slaves.
Chat with the drow again. He will note that the Absolute task has not yet been completed. Answer him: “It’s a pity, of course, but what does this have to do with me?”
or “And what is this task?”
. He will want us to convey the sad news to the general. Select "I'll do everything. Where can I look for a general?
. Nere will explain that we need to go through the shadow-cursed lands. He had a Moon Lantern that could repel the curse, but it was destroyed in the rubble. Ask: “If that’s the case, how can I get to the general safely?”
and Nere will give you a flute, with which you can call a guide who can lead you to the Lunar Towers.
At the end tell me “Okay, I’ll tell the general what happened here.”
. The conversation will end here, and as a reward, in addition to the flute, you will receive a Sample of the Illithid Parasite. Nere will decide to go to Balthazar in another Shar temple and try to kill him in order to appropriate all the merits of the necromancer. Of course, he will not cope with it, so he will die and turn into a zombie. There is no way to save him.
How to convince Nere to leave Absolute
We advise you to first kill all the Dvergars, and only then free Nere from under the rubble, so that you don’t have to fight anyone at all (however, this is not necessary and you can simply move along the same path that we discussed above, reaching the conversation about the Lunar Towers). During the conversation, Nere will be surprised that all his henchmen are dead and will consider that this is our doing. After saving or killing the gnomes, make a Deception check (10).
Chat with Nere again and choose the same answers as in the previous section. When he finishes talking about the guide, choose the following answers:
- I'd rather go on my own, I don't need your help.
- Explain that the Absolute is only a cover for the mind flayers, and you are now protected from them.
- “The real truth. It's all just a conspiracy led by illithids and... tax collectors" (requires a 10 Deception check) or "I was kidnapped by illithids. And after that I began to hear the Absolute” (requires a Persuasion check of 10).
- “But you don’t have to do it anymore. Run, give up the Absolute" (requires a Persuasion check of 10) or "There have been numerous sects in the history of the worlds. You're just another victim" (requires a History check of 10) or use detect thoughts (11).
If you manage to convince Nere, you will receive from him Dagger +1. Plus, you'll get inspired "The People's Hero: Broken Chains". You won't see Nere again. At least we didn't find him anywhere.
As for the best outcome for the hero in terms of rewards, we advise you to choose the option of killing Nere. Since in this case you can take good items from his corpse, take the head to the myconids and get a lot of gold coins.
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