Shattered Sanctum – Baldur’s Gate 3

This walkthrough will guide you through the Shattered Sanctum, a once-holy site that has been overrun (and run-down) by a huge Goblin army. The massive structure has tons of things to do and secrets to find, and is the location of not one, but two companions, Halsin and Minthara.

Map

Legend

Points of Interest
1 – Entrance Checkpoint
2 – True Soul Gut
3 – Roah Moonglow
4 – Priestess Gut’s Chapel
5 – Torture Chamber
6 – Bloodied Shrine
7 – Prison
8 – Brakkal
9 – Spider Pit
10 – Heavy Oak Doors
11 – Dror Ragzlin
12 – Treasure Chamber
13 – Minthara
14 – Butchery Table
15 – Worg Cell
16 – Halsin’s Cell
17 – Prison Cell
18 – Priestess Gut’s Quarters
19 – Priestess Gut’s Cell
20 – Stone Discs Puzzle
21 – Lever
22 – Secret Door

Exits
A – Exits to Goblin Camp
B – Burrow Hole
C – Rocky Crevice
D – Door to Defiled Temple
E – Cave Passage
F – Door to Worg Pens
G – Mysterious Hole
H – Ladder to Underdark

Points of Interest

1 – Entrance Checkpoint

When you first enter the sanctum, you will be greeted by several Goblins at a checkpoint. If you freed Sazza earlier (as part of the quest Save the Goblin Sazza), then she will be here to vouch for you. Drow characters can also enter without trouble. Otherwise, you will need to pass a DC-15 Intimidation or Deception check to get through. If you use Deception, and if you have a Charlatan (like Astarion) in your party, then you’ll gain the “Very Important Parasite” inspiration.

Alternatively, if you choose to fight the Goblins, there will be six of them, including two snipers. If you’re level 3+, then they shouldn’t pose too much of a problem. Just be aware that if they use the war drum at their position, then they’ll call in four more Goblins, making the battle a little more complicated. Killing the Goblins here will not automatically make the rest of the Goblins hostile, allowing you to take them out if need be and still explore the sanctum unbothered.

2 – True Soul Gut

One of the first sights you will see is High Priestess Gut at her altar. When you speak to her, she will offer you a brand. Accepting it allows you to become, well, Branded, which can open up a few unique dialogue options in the Shattered Sanctum. Gut won’t mind if you refuse the brand.

Regardless of whether or not you accept Gut’s brand, you’ll receive a vision. After which, provided you don’t start a fight with Gut, she will invite you into her chapel (#4) in order to conduct a procedure to help “cure” you. Naturally, you should be wary of her “generosity.”

Chances are, if you side against the goblins, then you’ll kill Gut here, in her chapel (#4), her quarters (#18), or in her private cell (#19). When you loot her corpse, you’ll find the Absolute’s Talisman, the Absolute’s Warbrand, a Mind Flayer Parasite Specimen, and the Priestess’ Key, which can unlock the door to Gut’s chapel (#4) and the door to the Defiled Temple (Exit D).

If you kill Gut in her quarters (#18) or her cell (#19), then she’ll also drop a Padlock Key, which supposedly can be used to free yourself from her bindings, but we’ve never seen a case where it was necessary. If Gut doesn’t drop the Padlock Key, then you’ll find it on her bed (#18).

3 – Roah Moonglow and Her Storeroom

Outside the storeroom here you’ll meet Roah Moonglow, a halfling who has decided doing business (including, perhaps, slave-trading) with the goblins is the best course of action. She’ll act as a shopkeeper. If you beat a passive DC-5 History check, then you’ll recognize that she’s with the Zhentarim.

Perhaps more interesting than Roah is her storeroom. The guards won’t let you in, but the room isn’t very secure. You can enter it by jumping down from the rafters, or by going through the rocky crevice in the Defiled Temple (Exit C), or by jumping through the broken wall on the southern side of Priestess Gut’s chapel (#4).

The storeroom is filled with 5 Smokepowder Barrels, which are supremely useful explosives that deal tons of damage and can be used in a variety of ways, if you can tolerate their high weight (perhaps by giving the barrels to a Fighter or Barbarian). Of particular note: if you plan on going to the Underdark after this, these barrels can be extremely useful when you reach the Grymforge, in a certain location where explosives may be required.

Also worth noting is a heavy chest filled with gold requiring a DC-18 Sleight of Hand check to open.

4 – Priestess Gut’s Chapel

Once you’ve spoken to Priestess Gut in the entrance hall (#2), she will meet you here, in what appears to be a starkly-adorned room, where she will attempt to “help” you. The nature of her help is more than a little suspicious, though. Firstly, she will force your party to split, and you will have to direct the other three members out of the door before she will continue dialog with you. Then, she will probe your mind and offer you a concoction to drink.

If you try to block her out of your mind, refuse the drink (which a successful passive DC-10 Arcana check can identify as Werejackal Blood, a sleeping potion), or drink it while having elvish ancestry that makes you immune to sleep effects, Gut will take offense and attack. Otherwise, if you let her into your mind, drink the potion, and it takes effect, you will find yourself cuffed in a cell in the cell adjacent to her quarters (#19).

5 – Torture Chamber / Liam

In this room, you will come across a scene of torture. Liam, one of Aridin’s band who came to the sanctum with the Druid Halsin in search of an artifact, has been tied up to a torture rack and is being “worked on” by Torturer Spike, who is trying to get information about where the Emerald Grove is.

When you get close enough, you will be given several options for how to proceed. Firstly, you can convince Spike to leave with a successful DC-20 Deception check, or by using your Illithid Powers. More indirectly, you can also convince him to let you torture Liam in private with a successful DC-15 Performance, DC-10 Insight, or Detect Thoughts (DC-9 Intelligence) check, which gives you room to operate outside of the Spike’s view and free Liam. You are also given the option of actually torturing Liam first in several dialog paths, letting you do a variety of things to him before, eventually, Spike will walk away, still giving you room to free Liam.

If you did torture Liam, you will need to give him a healing potion to fix him up before doing anything else. After that, Liam can be freed either by unlocking the torture rack with the Torturer’s Key (carried by Spike) or with a DC-12 Sleight of Hand check (DC-7 for Rogues), or you can convince him with a DC-5 Persuasion check to let you break his thumb so that his hand can squeeze out of the chains. Throughout this whole process, and after you free him, you will be able to glean information about both Halsin and the mysterious Nightsong artifact from him. This will trigger or update the quest Find the Nightsong.

After freeing Liam, he will escape the sanctum and find his way back to the Emerald Grove without issue. After a Long Rest, you should be able to spot him there near where Aridin and his other crew members are hanging out (assuming they’re still there). Liam will be sleeping, so you won’t be able to check up on him or demand a reward. Aridin won’t comment on him at all.

Also worth noting is the magic “Jagged Spear” lying in the room, and the fact that you can speak to the rats using Speak with Animals, though they have little to say.

6 – Bloodied Shrine / Abdirak

In this chamber, you can meet Abdirak. If you beat a passive DC-10 Religion check, then you’ll realize he’s a follower of Loviathar, Goddess of Pain. And Abdirak certainly lives his faith. After a brief conversation, he will offer the player a chance to partake in a ritual of pain — which might be a bit more than a purely spiritual experience for him (and you).

Provided you have enough health (since he needs a “fresh canvas”), you can agree to partake in the ritual, at which point he will ask you to “face the wall,” requiring you to look to the east against the wall and wait for a moment. At this point, Abdirak will hit you with a mace, and you’ll enter dialog to see how you resist (or whether you give up). Consistently passing DC-10 Constitution checks to hold in your pain, or selecting the Monk-specific options, will let you continue, but will not grant you the boon Abdirak provides at the end. However, succeeding in DC-5 Performance checks or DC-10 Intimidation checks, or using Bard dialog options, will be exactly what he wants to hear.

Note: If you face the wall without wearing armor, then you’ll gain the condition Ardent Apostle (+4 to Performance and Intimidation checks) for the duration of the ritual.

This process will repeat 3 times, with a similar dialog choice after each. If you want Loviatar’s Love — a very powerful consistent buff — you will need to continue selecting the Performance, Intimidation, or Bard-exclusive dialog.

After the third time, Abdirak will give you a break. If you did well during the trial — as in, loudly and happily accepting punishment — he will reward you by blessing you with Loviatar’s Love, which gives you +2 to Attack Rolls and Wisdom Saving Throws for 3 turns when you drop below 30% maximum health. If you have an Acolyte (like Shadowheart) in your party, then you’ll also earn the “A Kiss without Mercy” inspiration. If you resisted using Constitution or Monk-specific dialog, then Abdirak will be disappointed and give you nothing (except, maybe, some lasting scars).

Abdirak’s mace, Loviatar’s Scourge, is also available for the taking if you are willing to kill or pickpocket the pain enthusiast.

7 – Prison / Volo

After encountering him near the entrance to the Goblin Camp, you will find Volo once again locked in a cage by Gribbo, who is very proud of her… uh… ‘pidgeon’. Now, Gribbo isn’t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, leading to a wealth of options for freeing Volo.

You can either convince Gribbo using your Illithid Powers, use Deception or Intimidation (with a DC of 10), detect her thoughts using the Detect Thoughts spell (requiring a DC-9 Intelligence check) and play into her fears, steal her key or unlock the cage yourself with a DC-10 Sleight of Hand check, trick her with a fake bag of gold if you are a Rogue, spend 250 gold to buy him outright, or just flat-out kill Gribbo and take her key.

All this to say: Volo is very easy to free. Good thing, too, since he can find his way back to your camp, if you tell him to, making for a… uh… very “knowledgeable” camp companion. You’ll need to free Volo from his cage for the quest Rescue Volo.

8 – Brakkal

Locked in a dingy cage here, you’ll meet the goblin Brakkal. If you talk to him, then you’ll learn that he’s remained loyal to Maglubiyet, the traditional goblin deity, rather than flocking to the Absolute like everyone else. If you beat a passive DC-7 Religion check, then you’ll learn more about Maglubiyet.

If you opt to free this alleged heretic, you will need to take out the other nearby goblins, at which point you can head to his cage. Be careful, though! As a passive DC-10 Perception check will demonstrate, the cage is trapped. To safely free Brakkal, you’ll either need to use the Cage Key carried by Warrior Clack to open the cage, or else you’ll need to beat a DC-15 Sleight of Hand check to disarm the trap and a DC-10 Sleight of Hand check to pick the lock. Once freed, Brakkal will thank you, and then head off in search of a new tribe. You won’t see him again.

If you talk to Brakkal before freeing him, and if you have an Acolyte (like Shadowheart) in your party, then you’ll gain the “Saving the Heretic” inspiration.

9 – Spider Pit

The first time you approach the spider pit, you might see the goblins Druk and Bez on the walkway spanning over it yelling at a human named Smythin. If you don’t do anything, then Druk will push Smythin into the pit, and he’ll die on impact. Saving Smythin is tricky, if you don’t want to anger all of the goblins in the sanctum. You’ll either need to one-shot the goblins while stealthed, or use something like Minor Illusion to distract them and lure them away from where everyone else can see them. If you save Smythin, then he’ll thank you and run away, and you’ll never see him again. If you have a Folk Hero (like Wyll) in your party, then saving Smythin will gain you the “Saved by a Thread” inspiration.

On the southern side of the pit, you’ll find a gate leading into the pit. This is where Druk and Bez are normally stationed. The gate will start out locked, but you can open it by pulling the lever right next to it, or you can beat a DC-10 Sleight of Hand check to pick its lock. You can also enter the pit via the tunnel leading out of Priestess Gut’s cell (Exit E).

Note: If you kill Warrior Druk, then he’ll drop a Grubby Key. You can use this key to unlock the heavy oak doors to the northeast (#10).

Inside the pit, you’ll encounter two Giant Spiders, who will be hostile unless you had previously cast Speak with Animals. If you can understand the spiders, then you can convince them to leave you alone with a successful DC-10 Deception or Persuasion check, causing them to go after the goblins. If you do this, then try to stay away from them until they initiate combat with the goblins; otherwise they will still view you as potential pray.

10 – Heavy Oak Doors

These doors will start out locked. You can open them with the Grubby Key (carried by Warrior Druk, #9), or you can pick the lock by passing a DC-10 Sleight of Hand check.

11 – Dror Ragzlin

Coming into a large chamber, you will find Dror Ragzlin about to perform a ritual. Evidently, from what you can tell, to perform Speak with Dead on a mind flayer corpse — seemingly one from the same ship that you were imprisoned upon. And you are sure it will recognize you.

Ragzlin will quickly realize that you are a “True Soul,” as he is one as well, and this will open up several options for you. Firstly, you can simply sit in and watch, letting Ragzlin do the ritual himself, getting a few answers. Or, you can overpower him, using your connection as a True Soul, in order to cause him to speak how you want, asking questions you want answered. It will be about the same if you ask to be the one to speak with the mind flayer yourself. Finally, of course, you can always simply attack Ragzlin, spoiling his ritual entirely.

Note: If you lead the ritual yourself, and if Ragzlin doesn’t suspect anything, and if you have a Charlatan (like Astarion) in your party, then you’ll gain the “Devil’s Advocate” inspiration.

If you let Ragzlin go through with the ritual without violence, then he will accuse you of not being a True Soul after the ritual ends. A successful DC-10 Persuasion or Intimidation check will remove that suspicion, and he will ask you to speak with Minthara (#13), but failing a check or refusing will initiate combat. This fight can be pretty tricky, although can be made easier if you remember you can push enemies into abysses or down into the spider pit (#9). Also pay attention to the war drums, which can draw in up to four more goblins.

After the fight, you can loot Faithbreaker, Dror Ragzlin’s Key (which opens the door to his treasure room, #12), and a Mind Flayer Parasite Specimen off his corpse. If you initiated combat before he started the ritual, you can also perform it yourself, casting Speak with Dead on the mind flayer corpse to get some information for yourself.

Note: Killing Dror Ragzlin will cause most of the other goblins inside and outside the sanctum to turn hostile, and Roah Moonglow (#3) to leave, so you might want to save him for last.

12 – Treasure Chamber

Behind and above Dror Ragzlin’s throne is a quite impressive loot pile, behind a locked door. The key is on Ragzlin himself (#11), which you can attain via murder or pickpocketing, or you can open the lock with a DC-20 Sleight of Hand check.

Within the treasure pile is an amulet which grants a sleep-imposing healing spell, the Gloves of the Growling Underdog, the Springstep Boots, and a piece of Infernal Iron, which can be used to assist Karlach in her quest to cool her heart down.

13 – Minthara

Minthara is a potential companion you can recruit to your party, if you are willing to do some pretty heinous stuff to get her. When you speak with her the first time, she will ask you some questions: most notably, she wants to know where the Emerald Grove is located. You can tell her, deceive her with a DC-5 Deception check, or simply refuse, but it makes little difference.

Minthara will then entreat you to join her on assaulting the Emerald Grove, which you can either agree to or not. If you do, you can take a Long Rest, and then head to the Grove, where you can decide what to tell Zevlor, either betraying him and the Tieflings and Druids, or betraying Minthara and putting an end to her goblin assault. If you choose the former, then Wyll and Karlach will leave your party. Welcome to an evil playthrough.

Alternatively, you can put a stop to Minthara in the Shattered Sanctum, which is almost certainly a safer option for the Grove. Combat with her can be tricky, as she has many abilities to prevent action and a few minions to help her, but ultimately will reward you with quite a few magic items and useful supplies.

You can keep Minthara as a potential companion regardless of what you choose to do here. If you go against her and the goblins, and you fight her, then just use non-lethal damage to knock her out. As long as Minthara survives Act 1, you’ll meet her again in Act 2 when you reach Moonrise Towers.

If you saved the Goblin Sazza from the Emerald Grove earlier, then she will be here as well. Without your intervention, she will be sentenced to death by Spider Pit (#9), but if you vouch for her she will be thankful, and may even take your side against Minthara if you choose to fight her (not that she can contribute much).

14 – Butchery Table

On the table here, you’ll find a Prison Key. It’ll unlock the nearby prison cell (#17). Beastmaster Zurk and Butcher Vrak will hang out by the table. If you kill Zurk, then you’ll find Linebreaker Boots on his corpse. Inside the wooden chest right next to the table, you’ll discover the Beastmaster’s Chain.

15 – Worg Cell

Two worgs are being kept in this cell. If you let them loose (by pulling the lever next to the cell door), then they’ll turn hostile, even if you’re friendly with the goblins. And if the worgs attack you, then the goblins in the area will attack you as well.

16 – Halsin’s Cell

You will come across a Cave Bear locked behind some bars, being tormented by a group of Goblin children. Astute players will realize immediately that this bear is more than meets the eye — it is actually the Druid Halsin, in wild form. Halsin is a potential companion, should you help him here.

For this encounter, Speak with Animals is useful, as it will allow you to understand Halsin even in his bear form, but regardless, the calculation is simple: if you try to defend the bear/Halsin, he will be on your side when he, shortly after the dialog ends, breaks out of his cell. If you antagonize the bear/Halsin, he will target you as an enemy.

Should you side with the bear, he will help you clear out the goblins and worgs in the room, and then he will transform back into his Wood Elf form. He will tell you that he can help you on your quest, if you can do something for him first: he wants all three Goblin leaders dead: Priestess Gut (#2), Dror Ragzlin (#11), and Minthara (#13). You will be able to do this on your own, or with him (in bear form) by your side, but until you do, he will insist that you must. If the goblins are all killed, though, Halsin will be ready to join your party (after a celebration and some errands back at the Emerald Grove).

17 – Prison Cell

This is where you’ll get sent if the goblins catch you thieving. The cell door will start out locked. You can open it with a Prison Key, which is carried by Warrior Plig, who sometimes guards the door, and which can also be found on the butchery table (#14). You can also pick the lock by passing a DC-15 Sleight of Hand check.

You won’t find much of interest inside the cell, other than an escape hole leading back to the Sanctum (Exit G).

18 – Priestess Gut’s Quarters

This part of the Defiled Temple is being watched by Polma, High Priestess Gut’s ogre bodyguard.

If Gut isn’t in the quarters with her, then Polma will just patrol the area, and stop you if you try to enter. But if you can beat a DC-22 check on Deception, Intimidation or Persuasion, then she’ll let you roam freely. Those are tough DCs to crack, but the game seems to be slightly broken here, and you can just keep talking to Polma and trying the checks until you succeed. You can also bribe Polma with an excessive amount of gold, or you can attack her. Polma is big and tough and level 5, but with four against one, the battle shouldn’t be too bad.

If High Priestess Gut is in the quarters with Polma, that means Gut locked one of your characters in her cell (#19). For that case Polma and Gut will attack you on sight, which is a difficult fight for a solo character, and you’re probably better off breaking the floor in the cell and escaping into the spider pit (Exit E).

Either way, you’ll find three things of interest inside Gut’s bedroom: an Amulet of Misty Step, a Recipe of Elixir of Arcane Cultivation, and a Selunite Journal (which will give you a hint for the Stone Discs puzzle, #20). If Gut went to her quarters, then she’ll be carrying a Padlock Key. Otherwise, the key will be in her bedroom as well. The Padlock Key supposedly can be used to unlock your chains if you’re sent to Gut’s cell (#19), but we’ve never seen a case where it was needed.

If you beat a passive DC-13 Perception check, then you’ll also notice a hidden pouch on the western side of the quarters, by the altar. It’ll have some random treasure items inside.

19 – Priestess Gut’s Cell

Priestess Gut’s cell is a dilapidated room where Gut will attempt to hold you, if things go her way (they won’t for long). If you agreed to drink what Priestess Gut offered you in her room (#4), and you aren’t of elven lineage, than you will be knocked unconscious and wake up bound within this cell.

You can escape your shackles with a successful DC-12 Acrobatics or DC-20 Strength check (with Barbarians having the option to do the latter in front of Gut, rather than waiting for her to leave). If you fail your check, then Korrilla Hearthflame, an emissary from the devil Raphael, will make an appearance. She’ll free you and kill Gut, and then she’ll disappear, back to wherever she came from.

Once you are free, or if you enter the cell without having been knocked out first, you can destroy the floor by either hitting it directly, or by hitting the cage above it, which will open up an entrance to the Spider Pit (Exit E).

Also worth noting is the Scroll of Hold Person in the cell, which can prove incredibly useful in escaping Gut and her bodyguard Polma, if you are trapped.

20 – Stone Discs Puzzle

When you reach the stone discs on the floor here, if you found the Selunite Journal earlier (in Gut’s quarters, #18), then you’ll recognize the discs as the locking mechanism mentioned there. Otherwise, you’ll have to beat a passive DC-15 Investigation check to realize that the discs can be rotated. But even failing all of the above, you’ll still be able to interact with the discs.

The stone discs form a puzzle. To solve it, you’ll need to rotate the discs so the full moons (the white circles) are at the top, and the new moons (the dark circles) are on the bottom, in the highlighted circle. Doing so will open the secret door to the north (#22). If you have a Sage (like Gale) in your party, then solving the puzzle will also earn you “The Phases Unfold” inspiration.

If puzzles aren’t your thing, then you can also open the secret door by detecting and operating the lever just to the north (#21).

21 – Lever

The lever here will start out hidden. You can detect it with a passive DC-15 Perception check. Then to use the lever, you’ll need to pass a DC-15 Sleight of Hand check. Pulling the lever will open the secret door to the north (#22), opening the way to the Underdark (via Exit H). This is an alternative way of opening the secret door if you don’t want to deal with the Stone Discs Puzzle (#20).

22 – Secret Door

This door can be opened by solving the Stone Discs Puzzle (#20) or by detecting and pulling the nearby lever (#21).

Exits

A – Goblin Camp

There are four exits that lead back to the Goblin Camp, where you likely came from:

1. Heavy Oak Doors. This is the main entrance into the sanctum.
2. Collapsed Corridor (Rafters). You’ll create this entrance if you destroy some loose stones outside in the Goblin Camp.
3. Passageway.
4. Burrow Hole (Rafters). You’ll need to beat a passive DC-5 Perception check to detect this hole. Only tiny creatures (such as those of a small race with the Reduce spell active) or creatures in gaseous form can use this exit.

B – Burrow Hole

You’ll need to beat a passive DC-5 Perception check to detect this hole. Only tiny creatures (such as those of a small race with the Reduce spell active) or creatures in gaseous form can use this exit.

C – Rocky Crevice

You’ll need to beat a passive DC-5 Perception check to detect this exit. Only small creatures (such as those of a small race, or those of a large race with the Reduce spell active) or creatures in gaseous form can use this exit.

D – Door to the Defiled Temple

This is the door to the Defiled Temple, which Priestess Gut has made her home (and which leads on to the Underdark). It can be picked with a DC-10 Sleight of Hand check (using Thieves’ Tools), or can be opened with the Priestess’ Key, which Gut carries on her.

E – Cave Passage

This exit will move you between the tunnel beneath Priestess Gut’s cell (#19) and the interior of the spider pit (#9).

F – Door to Worg Pens

This is the door to the Worg Pens, and it is guarded by four Goblins. On the other side of the door, you will be able to find the Druid Halsin imprisoned, currently in the form of a bear.

G – Mysterious Hole

Initially, you’ll only see this exit from inside the prison cell in the Worg Pens (#17). When you look at the hole, you’ll discover the remains of a prisoner who was digging his way out when the tunnel collapsed on him. If you pass a DC-5 Investigation check, then you’ll notice a crooked heart on his shoe. After you pull the prisoner out of the hole, if you use Speak with Dead on him, then you’ll learn that his son put the heart on his shoe so he’d always remember him.

With the prisoner out of the hole, you’ll be able to use it yourself — but it will start out only allowing small creatures and gaseous forms to go through. To enlarge the opening, you’ll just need to attack it. Once “destroyed,” the hole will be big enough for any creature to use.

When you go through the escape tunnel, you’ll end up back in the Shattered Sanctum, and both entrances into the tunnel will start showing up on your map.

H – Ladder to the Underdark

The ladder here will take you down to the Selûnite Outpost in the Underdark.

Where to go Next

After you are done with the Shattered Sanctum, you can go to the following places:

• The Underdark: By getting through the Stone Disc Puzzle in the Defiled Temple, you will be able to continue forth into the Underdark, a huge subterranean cave system with lots to explore, and a meaningful path of progression.
• The Goblin Camp: You can head back where you came from and use the Goblin Camp to progress through the Mountain Path, if you wish. Useful if you’ve decided to turn the Sanctum into a Goblin burial ground and want to finish the job.

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