FIGHTER STRONGHOLD QUESTS

If you are a Fighter, Barbarian, or Monk, when you have completed the The De'Arnise Keep has been Invaded quest, Nalia offers you the keep as your stronghold. If you accept, you are automatically transported into Level 1 of the Keep where you meet with the Major Domo who will give you your tasks.

As the lord of the land your job is to rule the keep and surrounding lands. If you make popular decisions, the people will like you more. And vise versa, of course – if you make too many unpopular decisions, they will come to hate you and you risk losing your stronghold to a peasant revolt.

You should come back to the keep every week or so. At these times, the Major Domo will want you to make an important decision.

After each decision, you can speak to some of your servants to learn how popular you are with the commoners. Metigo the Butler will be at 13 on Level 1 of the Keep and Olma the Cook is in the kitchen at 10. Talira the Maid in the library upstairs on Level 2 at 2. And finally, Captain Cernick will be outside in the courtyard at 6. If they say they are proud to serve such a fine master, the people like you. If they say they are ashamed of being in your service, you are not well liked. If they tell you they are resigning, you are very close to losing your stronghold.

Initial Decisions

Once you have taken over the keep, the Major Domo instructs you on your work. He will take care of the daily business at the keep but you will need to come back every couple of weeks (so he says – but do come back at least once a week!) to make major decisions. As things are now, the keep should net you about 500 GP every week.

At this time, the only major decision you can make is to raise extra taxes, if you so wish. However, this will make you less popular with the peasants.

In fact, you can raise extra taxes as many times as you wish. Or rather, you can do it until your peasants storm the castle and kick you out! ;-) Each time earns you 1,000 GP.

If you don't let Nalia join your party, she will be with the Major Domo.

First Task: The Angry Merchant

One week after you have taken over the keep, go back and speak to the Major Domo. He will tell you that a rather angry merchant is here to see you. The merchant's caravan was robbed by bandits, and of course this is your fault since it happened on your land! Allow the merchant to come and speak to you.

1. The merchant demands reparations for his stolen goods and a guarantee that such a thing will never happen again. Otherwise, he will stop travelling through your land, and also foreclose on every farmhold he holds a debt for.
   
   
2. The Major Domo tells you that many would be upset if their farms were foreclosed, and that you will need mercenaries to combat the bandits.
   
   
3. First, the merchant. You can choose to pay him the 1,000 GP he demands, pay him 500 GP, or nothing at all. If you don't pay him, you can pay off the debts of your farmers. The more you pay him, the happier will the people be.
   
   
4. Second, the bandits. You can choose to pay 500 GP or 250 GP to hire mercenaries, or nothing at all. Again, the more you pay, the merrier the people.
   
   
5. You receive 15,000 XP if you pay 500 GP to hire mercenaries. If you also have the merchant executed for trying to threaten you, you get 15,500 XP but you will also be a lot less popular among your people.
   
   If you spend less than 500 GP on mercenaries, you get nothing. My suggestion therefore is to pay the merchant at least some reparations and cough up the 500 GP to have the bandits cleared out.

Second Task: The Thieving Guard

When you return a week later, the Major Domo tells you that Captain Cernick, leader of the guard, wishes to speak to you. It turns out that Lastin, one of the guards, has been stealing from you. You can decide to listen to Lastin's side of the story to learn that he has been stealing to pay for medicine to his wife.

• If you order Lastin executed, you gain no XP and the people will like you less.
  
  
• If you order him expelled from the guard, you still gain no XP, but the people won't hate you for it.
  
  
• You gain 15,500 XP for forgiving Lastin and letting him remain with the guard.
  
  
• If you want to pay for the medicine, it costs you 500 GP. You can then decide to have him executed anyway (no experience), boot him from the guard (11,500 XP), or let him stay on probation (15,500 XP). Need I tell you what the people will like best? :-)

Third Task: The Priest of Tempus

A week or so later, the Major Domo will tell you that a Cleric of Tempus is here to see you. Agree to see the man, and he introduces himself as Bolumir.

Bolumir offers to set up a temple and shop on the castle. You have three options:

• Turn him away rudely: You get no XP.
  
  
• Turn him away politely: The party gets 11,500 XP.
  
  
• Accept: The party gains 15,500 XP and he sets up a shop in the former Golem room at 11 on Level 2 of the Keep. You can now buy and sell from his shop; click here for shop inventory.

The better you treat Bolumir, the better your people will like you.

Fourth Task: Lord Roenall Wants your Keep

One week after the previous task, when you are travelling outdoors, you will be approached by a messenger sent from the keep. He tells you that you must return to the keep immediately; Lord Roenall is waiting to see you! So:

1. Return to the De'Arnise Keep and speak to the Major Domo. He asks you if you want to speak to Lord Farthington Roenall.
   
   
2. If you refuse speaking to him, one of his guards enter instead and tells you to give up the keep – as a non-noble, you have no right to it! Otherwise, the Roenalls will kick you out!
   
   
3. If you accept to speak to Lord Roenall, he essentially tells you the same thing. But you have the option of giving up "his" land peacefully.
   
   
4. If you tell him he can have the keep, you simply lose your stronghold. So...
   
   
5. Of course you should tell his lordship to get off your land. Lord Roenall threatens you that he will return with a strong force before stomping off.
   
   
6. If you decide to hang on to your keep, the Major Domo will be worried that the Roenalls may sooner or later attempt to take it by force. But you have a few more weeks to worry about this. ;-)

Fifth Task: The Maid and her Suitors

Return to your keep about four days later, and the Major Domo will want you to make another important decision. Chanelle, one of the maids at the keep, has no less than two suitors. If you refuse to see them, you gain nothing except your people's loathing, so agree to see them all.

Her two suitors are a poor ranger named Jessup and a rich landowner called Malvolio. In the classical fashion of such romances, Chanelle loves the poor ranger. You get to decide who she should marry:

• If you pick "None of the above", you gain no experience and your people will like you less.
  
  
• If you pick Malvolio, he offers you a gift for your "wise" decision. If you accept the gift, you gain 500 GP but no experience and your people will like you a lot less. If you don't accept his gift, you gain 11,500 XP and you people will "only" like you somewhat less.
  
  
• For picking Jessup you get 15,500 XP. But then there is the matter that the late Lord De'Arnise promised them a dowry. You can give them nothing, a small dowry of 100 GP, or a large dowry of 500 GP. The larger the dowry, the better your people will like you.

Sixth Task: The Moneylenders

Four days later, visit the keep again. The Major Domo will tell you that a couple of people want to talk to you. Accept to speak to them, and they turn out to be moneylenders who claim that the late Lord De'Arnise owed them 2,000 GP. However, the Major Domo is very suspicious that their loan document is a forgery.

Nonetheless, they threaten that if you refuse to pay, or if "something" happens to them, they or their partners will claim all debts owed to them by your farmers. So, your options are:

• Pay them 2,000 GP. No experience for this solution.
  
  
• Pay them a partial sum of 1,000 GP. They accept. But you gain no experience.
  
  
• Throw them out. You will then have to decide if you want to help your farmers pay their debt to the moneylenders:
  
  
  • Give nothing: You get no experience.
    
    
  • Give 500 GP: You get 11,500 XP.
    
    
  • Give 1,000 GP: You get 15,500 XP.
    
    
• Have the moneylenders executed. Again, you will have to decide how much (if anything) you will give to cover your farmers' debt. The XP rewards are the same as above but you get the smug satisfaction of ridding Amn of these two crooks. ;-)

Seventh Task: The Flood

Four days later, when you are travelling outdoors, the Keep Messenger meets you once again. This time there has been a terrible flood on your lands, and you must come back as soon as possible to speak to the Major Domo.

Do so. He calls in spokespeople for the locals. First you have to choose how much you'll pay for rebuilding the farms, and then how much you'll cough up to repair the dikes.

• Refuse to pay the farmers: No experience, and the people will be very unhappy.
  
  
• Offer to pay a part of the expense: The party gains 4,500 XP.
  
  
  • Pay 1,000 GP: The party gets no more experience.
    
    
  • Pay 2,000 GP: The party gains another 2,500 XP.
    
    
  • Pay 3,000 GP: The party gains another 4,500 XP.
    
    
  • Pay 4,000 GP: The party gains another 6,500 XP.
    
    
  • Relent and pay the full amount: The party gains another 8,500 XP.
    
    
• Offer to pay the full amount of 5,000 GP: The party gains 15,500 XP.

As for the dikes, you can refuse to pay for repairing them, or you can shell out 2,000 GP. You get no extra experience either way but if you don't pay for repairing the dikes, the people will be a lot less happy with their ruler.

Eighth Task: Invasion!

One week later, when you are travelling outdoors, you are again approached by the Keep Messenger. This time he warns you that the Roenalls are preparing to invade your lands! You must return to the keep immediately, he says.

1. Return with haste and speak to the Major Domo. He summons Captain Cernick who tells you that the Roenalls have broken your defensive line and are at the gate. You must come yourself and defend the castle! He in particular tells you that if you can kill Lord Roenall, his forces will scatter.
   
   
2. So, get out to the gate and go all out for the self-assured lord. I have never had too much trouble with him. In one game Nalia killed him outright with a Chromatic Orb; you might call that poetic justice. ;-)
   
   
3. Once the battle is won, you are automatically transported back into the keep. The Major Domo praises you as the defender of the land and declares you their ruler forever! The party gains 50,000 XP.
   
   
4. If you wish, you can go outside again and loot Lord Roenall's body for Full Plate Mail +1, a Bastard Sword +1, a Large Shield, and a bit of gold. It's not like he'll be needing it. ;-)

And that is that for the Fighter stronghold.

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