Freeing the True Soul
The cave in is located to the south from where you arrived in Grymforge. As you head that way, you’ll come across a pair of duergar, one of them named Elder Brithvar. If you speak to them, they’ll try to shake you down for money owed to them by Nere, but you can convince them that you’re not a true soul, and that you hate Nere and the Absolute.
If you successfully convince them, they’ll offer you a job: kill Nere and you can split his goods among the duergar and yourself. Whether or not you actually side with Brithvar, accepting this deal makes the final confrontation easier, since it gives you allies where you would normally be vastly outnumbered.
Warning
Once you start this quest, taking too many long rests will cause Nere to die in the cave in. The poison gas mentioned in the quest details alludes to the urgency of the quest. While there’s plenty to do in Grymforge, the cave in should be your priority, and you can explore the rest of the region afterwards.
As you approach the rubble, Sergeant Thrinn and the gnomes will all have plenty to say to you. If you haven’t already, the gnomes can tell you where to find Philomeen and her explosive runepowder. Thrinn will brief you on the situation, and she’ll regard you as an ally if you bring her the boots Thulla stole. Barcus, the gnome you may have saved from a windmill, will also be among the enslaved gnomes. For now though, you should head off to get the runepowder, if you haven’t already.
Find Explosives
To find Philomeen’s hiding spot, and an explosive, walk south around the dock when arriving in Grymforge, until you arrive at a pair of duergar tossing bodies into the water. Convince them to let you take over so they leave, then pick the lock on the large double doors nearby.
Head through and walk over to the northeast corner of the next room until you perceive a button on the wall.
Pushing it reveals a hidden door leading to a large room with a staircase and some suspicious puddles of acid.
Head upstairs, fighting the Ochre Jellies as you go, then take a left at the top of the staircase, heading over to a pointed cliff to the east and leaping to another cliff.
From here, you’ll find a large pair of double doors, but despite their ornate appearance they can be lockpicked.
Head inside to find a deep gnome named Philomeen threatening to set off a cache of explosive powder. If you can talk her down, she’ll offer a vial of the special powder (runepowder) in exchange for letting her go. She may also reveal that she needs to bring this extremely destructive powder to Baldur’s Gate, for reasons she can’t divulge.
It’s up to you whether or not to let her go, but if you refuse her deal she’ll set the powder ablaze, killing herself and potentially your whole party. If anyone is far enough from the blast, they’ll survive, but there seems to be no specific benefit to allowing Philomeen to destroy the cache (besides stopping her from potentially attacking Baldur’s Gate). If you agree to let her go, then enter turn-based mode, you can kill her without the risk of her blowing up the barrel of powder, which you can then loot.
Ultimately, Philomeen won’t be joining the rest of the freed gnomes, but the vial she gives you can be used to free Nere.
Blow Up the Rubble
Interact with the rubble to speak with Nere and connect minds; this is a chance to see through his eyes and see exactly how he’s been treating the gnomes trapped with him. If you have the runepowder, set it on the rubble and attack it with fire, whether it’s a cantrip, a thrown item or a burning arrow.
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