Baldur’s Gate 3 – How To Reach Moonrise Towers

There are many locations in the massive world of Baldur’s Gate 3. One of the places that you’ll visit is Moonrise Towers, an important landmark since that’s the main objective in Act 2. However, there are various paths that you can take to get to your destination. Our guide discusses how you can reach the Baldur’s Gate 3 Moonrise Towers area by way of the overland route or the Underdark.

How to Reach Moonrise Towers in Baldur’s Gate 3

Our Baldur’s Gate 3 Moonrise Towers guide focuses on two main paths that lead to it. Bear in mind that you can still explore Act 1 zones at your leisure. However, once you advance further into the Shadow-Cursed Lands, the other branch of the quest will count as completed, too. Bear in mind that this region has debilitating magic that will quickly deplete the HP of your characters. To survive, you need to find a way to protect yourself from the Shadow Curse.

The Overland Route Through the Mountain Pass

The first option to reach the Moonrise Towers in Baldur’s Gate 3 is by taking the overland route. Here’s a quick summary:

• Make sure that you have the Spider’s Lute. This comes from Minthara. She’ll give it to you if you sided with her/romanced her, or you can loot it from her corpse if you saved the Tieflings instead.
• You can go to the Mountain Pass by checking the canyon east of the Goblin Camp, or by following the stone bridge west of the Githyanki Patrol/Risen Road.
• You’ll arrive at Rosymorn Monastery Trail, which is also an important place if you’re planning to complete Lae’zel’s Githyanki Creche quest.
• The idea is to follow the winding path northwest to a ravine with decaying plants and dead animals. You might also spot the Wizard Elmnister, Gale’s mentor, which advances the Wizard of Waterdeep quest.
• Enter the zone transition to reach the Shadow-Cursed Lands.

Follow the quest objective and talk to the NPCs. Soon, you’ll be introduced to your guide, a Drider named Kar’niss. You need to convince him by playing a tune using the Spider’s Lute. Only then will he realize that you’ve been sent by Minthara (whether she’s alive or not). Kar’niss carries a Moonlantern, which negates the curse as long as you’re within its aura. Continue following the group and you’ll arrive at Moonrise Towers eventually.

The Underdark and Grymforge Route

The second option if you want to reach the Baldur’s Gate 3 Moonrise Towers is to check the Underdark/Grymforge route. Here’s a quick summary:

• There are several ways to reach the Underdark. For instance, there’s the Selune/Moon Puzzle in the Goblin Camp/Shattered Sanctum. There’s also the portal in Auntie Ethel’s lair.
• You can do a bunch of quests in the Underdark, but our main goal leads us to the center of the zone. There’s a ship that lets you sail to the Grymforge, the base of operations of the Duergar slavers.
• And, yes, there are many activities in Grymforge, too. For instance, you can defeat the Grym boss in the Adamantine Forge, or collect Infernal Iron for Karlach. But, if you just want to head to the Shadow-Cursed Lands, there’s an elevator across the corridor with the waypoint.
• You’ll emerge from ruins and, soon enough, you’ll meet the Harpers. They’ll take you to Last Light Inn to meet Jaheira. You can recruit Jaheira later in the game, but there are some important requirements to consider.

Differences Between the Two Routes

As far as the differences are concerned, your trek will mostly boil down to how soon you can reach Moonrise Towers and which tasks you’re meant to do:

• The overland route is faster, since those places are readily accessible. You also end up in Moonrise Towers if you stick with Kar’niss. But, the Underdark/Grymforge route does bring you to Last Light Inn sooner.
• If you picked the overland route, you’ll follow Kar’niss and the other cultists to Moonrise Towers. They’ll get ambushed along the road. You have the option to keep your cover, or to eliminate Kar’niss during the fight.
• If you picked the underground route, the Harpers will let you reposition your party to prepare for the ambush, letting you take out Kar’niss a lot easier.

Either option is viable if you want to reach Moonrise Towers in Baldur’s Gate 3. What’s important is that you acquire a means of negating the Shadow Curse in the region. Only then will you be able to explore other interesting locations and landmarks.