Baldur's Gate 3 Goblin Camp guide
The Goblin Camp in Baldur's Gate 3 is a dense area filled with quests and combat - here's what you need to know!
Much of the opening act of Baldur's Gate 3 revolves around the Goblin Camp. There's no greater hive of scum and villainy for miles around, but it's exactly where your party needs to go if they're ever going to get out of their predicament.
There are multiple side quests, companion quests, and, of course, main quests that the Goblin Camp plays a key role in. However, you will have to walk a tightrope between compromising your morals and not antagonising the goblins into starting a fight before you're ready to take them on.
Whatever direction you want to take your adventure in though, the Goblin Camp is just the kind of story-rich, decision-filled area that makes Baldur's Gate 3 so brilliant. Here's where to find it, how to get inside, and just some of the important things you can do once you enter!
Where to find the Goblin Camp in Baldur's Gate 3
You can find the Goblin Camp to the west of the Druid Grove, past the old bridge and Blighted Village.
Basically, go out of the Grove and head west in a straight line where possible, hanging south when presented with a fork in the road. First, after crossing a bridge over the river, you reach the Blighted Village, which you can walk around freely if you pass a speech check.
Walk through the Blighted Village still heading west and exit out the other side, and the Goblin Camp is just across the bridge at the bottom of the hill — you can practically see it from the last house in the village.
However, because of the almost inevitable combat involved, we'd recommend you take on some side quests in the eastern side of the Wilderness map before you try tackling the Goblin Camp; aim for being around Level 4 before you enter.
How to enter the Goblin Camp in Baldur's Gate 3
So now you know where to go, but one does not simply walk into the Goblin Camp. You have a few options for how to get in, though:
- Fight your way in - Not recommended due to the sheer number of enemies
- Pass a dialogue check at the door - These rolls are very tough (you need to hit a 15), but it's obviously possible if you want to save and reload. Failing them will start a fight, however
- Use your Ilithid powers at the door - This is "free" in the short term, but using the tadpole's power may have longer term consequences you're not fully aware of at this point. Plus you can only use it once per long rest
- Rescue Sazza, the goblin prisoner in the Grove - However you want the quest series to play out, this is a good option which nets you a free enchanted weapon at the end of the quest
- Sneak in the back way from the north - This is basically the same as the first option, but sneaky
What to do in the Goblin Camp in Baldur's Gate 3
Inside the Goblin Camp, things can change very quickly, so I'd recommend saving often if you like how an interaction turned out. This way you won't lose too much progress if things take an unexpected turn and you want to reload.
As you enter the camp, you get some snippets of wider story that I won't spoil, but are definitely worth seeing. Then, as you enter the courtyard, there's a merchant to talk to and trade with; as well as Volo, the bard from the Grove, and the Owlbear cub you hopefully met earlier, both of whom could use your help out of a predicament.
Before you head inside, remember to activate the waypoint in the top-right corner in case you need to fast travel. But be careful, the goblins lurking around the rune will try to fight you unless you entered the camp peacefully. Once you're done exploring, the main tasks at hand are through the large doors inside the main temple.
Volo is in need of a rescue, so after you speak to him to outside to advance the first part of the quest you can then find him inside the temple building, on the right-hand side of the area. Here you need to pass another speech check or defeat his guard to set him free. This allows him to join your camp for further adventures. A similar exchange with the goblins guarding the Owl Bear cub outside will net you another camp follower who is much, much cuter than Volo.
Next to Volo in the torture chamber is Liam, a member of the lost raiding party. If you can persuade his captors to leave and set him free, Liam sneaks back to the Grove while also giving you valuable information on the camp.
In the top right-hand corner, you find Sazza the goblin prisoner if you helped her escape the Grove and return to the camp. Talk to Nightwarden Minthara and you can actually choose to turn against the druids and refugees at this point and join a goblin raiding party to sack the settlement. This is a great twist for would-be evil characters (and will even gain you a small approval bump from Astarion, the jerk), but most players will likely take things in a different direction. Whatever your intention, you can agree to help Minthara in conversation to avoid a fight, even if you would never join her raid in a million years!
After this conversation, Minthara will leave to attack the Grove. So if you want to defeat all of the goblin leaders in one place, I recommend doing this last. Or you could just attack her immediately before she leaves.
Inside the Goblin Camp is of course where you find the head druid, Halsin, in the Worg Pens through the ornate door in the top right-hand corner of the temple, next to Nightwarden Minthara. Since most people will be here to save the day, you will probably want to make a beeline for Halsin. But be warned, freeing him will turn the rest of the camp hostile. So it's best to poke around first.
Whether at the behest of Halsin, Wyll, or just because you want to help the Grove, one of your main tasks in the Goblin Camp is to defeat the three leaders. These are Priestess Gut, Dror Ragzlin the Goblin King and Nightwarden Minthara the Drow.
The easiest to deal with is Priestess Gut. When you speak to her, she will offer you the mark of the Absolute. This allows you to benefit from equipment intended followers of the Absolute, but, again, could have unintended consequences in future. Either way, she will invite you into her private room to discuss the tadpole.
However this conversation shakes out, Gut will betray your party, so I'd recommend shutting her door and attacking her with your full party to take her out before she can call for reinforcements. This takes care of one of the goblin leaders, but also saves the rest of the Camp from being hostile towards you.
Next, you can either systematically make your way around the rest of the camp and defeat the other enemies, or rescue Halsin to get his help. Either way, the best strategy is to try and keep the fights with Dror Ragzlin and Minthara contained in their own areas.
With Dror Ragzlin, on either side of his room there are ladders which lead up into the rafters. If you've got a lot of ranged characters you can use this vantage point to consistently have the high ground. Just deal with the goblin mages quickly, because they have access to spells with can push you off the beams.
Nightwarden Minthara is much more straightforward because she's flanked by fewer goons. Make sure to focus your attention on her specifically, because she can deal huge amounts of damage if not contained with a Hold Person spell or similar.
Finally, in the back of Priestess Gut's private room is a door you can open with her key. This leads to another, forgotten temple, which eventually leads to a whole new area I won't spoil. However, taking this path is a brilliant way to escape the Goblin Camp without fighting the swarm of enemies at the door after you've defeated all three leaders.