Baldur’s Gate 3: Nightsong Quest [Location, Objectives & Choices]

Being one of the many quests in Baldur’s Gate 3, Finding the Nightsong quest is important as a prominent and extensive storyline. The outcome of this quest is subject to variation based on the choices players make throughout the game, ultimately leading to substantial consequences for the overall narrative.

 

How To Find And Initiate The Quest

As previously mentioned, there are tons of ways to start the quest. These include:

• Talking to Aradin in Druid Grove
• Getting information from Liam in the Shattered Sanctum
• Freeing the druid Halsin from the Shattered Sanctum 

All these are from Act 1, and you can start the quest by any of these methods. I recommend using the first method since it is the easiest and most simple of the other options. Let’s look a little into the dialogue with Aradin.

Aradin In Druid Grove

1. Aradin can be found in Druid Grove, near the stone door towards the end of the grove.
2. His exact location is marked on the map above.
3. When dialoguing with him, make sure to pry as much information out of him as you can.
4. He won’t tell you about the Nightsong himself; you will have to be cunning in your interrogation.
5. Ask him about the contract, and he will tell you that a wizard in Baldur’s Gate will pay a huge sum for a relic.
6. After the dialogue ends, you will see that you have the Find the Nightsong quest in your journal under the Nautiloid Crash Region.

Clue At Goblin’s Camp

With the ‘Find the Nightsong’ quest in your journal, you can head to the goblin’s camp and find a clue about the quest in Baldur’s Gate 3. The poem can be found in the middle of the camp after engaging in a dialogue with a goblin. 

The goblin in question is Tracker Klagga, and you need to make him hand a poem to you. The dialogue will involve a dice roll, so in the end, it’s up to lady luck. Once you manage to get the poem, read it, and you will notice an update on the quest in your journal. 

Finding The Nightsong Walkthrough

Now it’s time to head out in search of the Nightsong. Note that the search will start from Act 2, and that too when you have reached the Thorn Mausoleum. Before this, forget about the Nightsong and enjoy your journey. 

• Once inside the Thorn Mausoleum, you need to press the three buttons under the three big paintings in the last room
• Doing so will unlock a passageway leading further into the mausoleum

Once inside the secret door, you will see a platform with a Traversal Gem at the end. Activate the Traversal Gem and make your way deeper. 

1. A cutscene will appear as the platform descents, and you will reach the Gauntlet of Shar
2. Go straight ahead, and you will reach a large hall with a statue in the center
3. If you try to reach the statue, you will be propelled by a force field
4. This forcefield is not all around the statue; in fact, some gaps can be found by solving a simple puzzle
5. There are eight mystic Thurible in the hall, and you need to extinguish all of them to find gaps in the forcefield
6. There are levers in the small rooms on each side of the hall, and these levers will cause the Thuribles to descent so you can extinguish them
7. Once they all are extinguished, the engraving of the forcefield should be visible. Now you can avoid those areas and make your way toward the statue

Interacting with the Umbral Gem as your reach close to the statue will result in a female voice telling you to follow her voice and prove your worth.

1. Follow the voice to the stone door exactly behind the Umbral Gem
2. Unlock the door and head ahead
3. There will be enemies to your left; you can either fight them or hide from them to reach the Ancient Altar
4. Interacting with the Pedestal of Reckoning, below the Ancient Altar, will result in a cutscene.

Shadowheart informs you about Lady Shar’s trials, which you must complete to progress. As you search for Nightsong’s location in Baldur’s Gate 3, you’ll also be working on her side quest. To access the Shadowfell entrance and find Nightsong, gather 4 Umbral Gems. Three can be obtained by finishing Lady Shar’s Trials, and the last one comes from defeating Yurgir.

Trials Of Lady Shar

There are three trials of Lady Shar that must be completed to find NightSong in Baldur’s Gate 3. Additionally, you cannot advance in the Gauntlet of Shar without completing these trials. The three trials of Lady Shar are: 

• Soft-step Trial
• Self-Same Trial
• Faith-Step trial

You can find the trial rooms to the west (left side) of the ancient altar. There will be enemies outside the rooms, so be prepared to fight them. 

Soft-Step 

Once inside the room, you will notice a sacrificial bowl. You must offer some blood to start the trial. After offering blood, the gates will open, allowing you to enter the trial.

1. You must sneak to the end of the maze without being seen by the shadows
2. You can use an invisibility spell and take your turns one at a time
3. Watch out for traps along the way
4. Your goal is to locate the Soft-Step Key, which is on a table inside a secret room
5. If you don’t find the key, you can try using thieves’ tools to open the final gate
6. Alternatively, you have the option to use misty steps to jump through the locked door and get the Umbral Gem

Note that you can take a shortcut to the sacrificial bowl after acquiring the Umbral Gem. You can do this by interacting with the Umbral Transporter.

Self-Same 

For the second Umbral Gem trial, you’ll face a challenge where your party duplicates itself. To make this battle easier, undress your characters before offering blood to the ritual bowl, then re-equip them just before the battle starts. Attempt the trial with only one party member to face a single enemy.

The clone team can move in and out of shadows. Hitting a clone debuffs your party member’s ability scores, which you can remove by defeating the clone. After the battle, find the Killer’s Sweetheart ring and the Umbral Gem on the floor.

Finally, interact with the Umbral Transporter for a quick escape to the Offering Bowl.

Faith-Step 

Yet again, you will have to offer some blood to activate the trial. The pattern on the floor just before the Offering Bowl is the map of the bridge. Remember that and make your way across the darkness. 

Alternatively, you can use a light spell such as Daylight to enlighten the whole path and reach the Umbral Gem. Once you have crossed the bridge, get the Umbral Gem and use the Umbral Transporter for a quick way out.

Getting The Gem From Yurgir

Yurgir is located on the east side of the Ancient Altar in a big room along with his minions.  Well, Yurgir doesn’t have the Umbral Gem himself, but the Gem is lying on the floor of the room.

So, there are two ways of getting the Umbral Gem:

1. By killing Yurgir and defeating all the enemies in the room
2. Sneaking past them and getting the Gem

The second method is simpler. It’s easier if you have misty steps. The Umbral Gem is on the opposite side of the room from the entrance. Grab the gem and exit discreetly to avoid being seen.

Alternatively, if you decide to confront Yurgir, you can engage in direct combat or deceive him into fighting his own minions by exploiting a contract loophole. It’s advisable to save scum before attempting this, as it involves dice rolls.

Treasure Room

Some extra loot never hurts, does it? Well, you can get your hands on some valuable items from the Silent Library. This library is near the trial area. You will need to defeat some enemies and solve a simple puzzle. 

1. Once you’ve defeated the enemies, press the buttons to unlock the gate leading to the Treasure Room
2. Or use thieves’ tools to break your way in
3. In the Treasure Room, interact with the pedestal
4. Place the book titled “Teachings of Loss: The Nightsinger” on it
5. This book can be found on the right at the entrance
6. Make sure to disarm the trap before acquiring the book
7. Doing so will open an area inside, head inside.

Inside, you’ll find the Dark Justiciar Helmet, Dark Justiciar Half-Plate armor, and the weapon you need to defeat the Nightsong in bg3 – the Spear of Night.

Entering ShadowFell

With all 4 Umbral Gems, proceed deeper into the Gauntlet of Shar. Upon arrival, you’ll spot another Ancient Altar. Insert the final Umbral Gem to open a stone door. Enter the room, and a cutscene will trigger.

Inside, you’ll find a fountain and a pool in the center, which is the Shadowfell entrance. Interact with it to initiate a cutscene.

Point Of No Return

As you prepare yourself to jump in the Shadowfell entrance, the in-game prompt will issue a warning. This particular part marks a point of no return for Act 2. Once you engage with the pool of water in the depths, you will be transported to a different realm.

All fast travel points and locations from Act 1 (such as Druid Grove, Underdark, Grymforge, Githyanki Creche, and others) will become inaccessible. Likewise, certain interactions and objectives may no longer be achievable. So it is recommended to proceed with caution.

NightSong’s Prison

Upon entering, you’ll find yourself in NightSong’s Prison. A cutscene will introduce Balthazar, located in the prison’s center, with Nightsong in chains. Prepare for a challenging battle against Balthazar.

Alternatively, you can defeat Balthazar before entering the Shadowfell entrance in the Gauntlet of Shar, which is an easier option. After defeating Balthazar, interact with Nightsong to trigger a cutscene. You’ll face a crucial choice: whether to save Nightsong or let NightShadow kill her. The decision is yours, and each choice has its outcome.

Saving NightSong

To follow the Nightsong story branch in Baldur’s Gate 3, pass a challenging DC 21 Charisma check. To improve your chances, consider save scumming or investing more points in Charisma.

Successfully persuading Shadowheart results in her discarding the Spear of Night. Saving Nightsong offers several rewards:

1. You receive the Moonlight Glaive.
2. Lives of Last Light Inn residents are spared.
3. Nightsong herself joins and aids you in the boss battle against General Thorm.

Nightsong is revealed as an Aasimar and one of Selune’s daughters.

Killing NightSong

If you decide to kill NightSong, ShadowHeart will land a killing blow to her. Using the Spear of Night, ShadowHeart will stab NightSong, and the Lady of Shar will reward Shadowheart for this feat.

Shadowheart will then be possessed by Lady of Shar because killing the Nightsong also fulfills her duty to the goddess. ShadowHeart will become a Dark Justicar. 

It is entirely up to you how you want to play out the NightSong quest in Baldur’s Gate 3. Whether you choose to spare Nightsong or decide to take her life, it’s your story, don’t be afraid to write a unique one. In my personal opinion, I would save NightSong since it opens up more romance options to the companions like ShadowHeart and Karlach. 

My Opinion On The Nightsong Quest

In my hundreds of hours of experience in Baldurs Gate 3, the Nightsong quest line stands alone at the top. However, I am a huge Shadowheart enthusiast, so I actively look for stuff that involves Shar or Selune for obvious reasons. My ingame Sorcerer was also inspired by the key character in this quest line, Balthazar.

The Nightsong quest line is one of the longer ones, but the amount of lore it covers is so fun to experience. If you enjoy Shadowheart’s company, cult-related lore, or a lot of XP, I definitely suggest exhausting all that this quest has to offer.

Your journey through the Gauntlet of Shar and Baldur’s Gate 3 NightSong’s Prison holds invaluable rewards and choices that shape your whole story. As you stand at this crossroads, remember that every action has its consequences, woven intricately into the tapestry of Baldur’s Gate 3. Whilst here, check out other guides on Baldurs Gate 3, such as the complete Baldur’s Gate 3 Review or the mysteries of the Strange Ox in Druid Glove.

Up Next:

• Baldurs Gate 3: Cleric Class Guide
• Baldurs Gate 3: Character Creator
• Baldurs Gate 3: Halsin Companion
• Baldurs Gate 3 Sorcerer: Best Build Guide