Summary

• Navigating through the Shadow-Cursed Lands in Baldur's Gate 3 is challenging without the right light source or strategy.
• Consider getting the Moonlantern or pixie blessing to avoid the Necrotic debuff and survive the cursed realm easier.
• Player choice and exploration are key in Baldur's Gate 3, offering various paths and outcomes to enhance the gameplay experience.

Baldur's Gate 3 is a really complex game, and part of what makes it so great is the abundance of player choice and all the different routes one can take. This is especially true at the end of Act 1 into Act 2 when players are forced to march through a cursed realm of the Shadow-Cursed Lands to reach the Last Light Inn and eventually Moonrise Towers to start Act 2.

[Warning: This article contains spoilers for the end of Act 1 in Baldur's Gate 3]

By now, many veteran BG3 players likely know all of the options when it comes to this potentially confounding portion of the game, whether that be a guided tour by the strangest BG3 NPC Kar'niss or obtaining the Moonlantern to prevent the Necrotic debuff from being in the darkness. That said, some players like me probably had no idea what to do and didn't want to look up guides to avoid spoilers. Ultimately, because I'm stubborn and hard-headed and also sometimes forget to listen to more important parts of the lore, I just brute-forced my way through this portion of the game.

You Can Get Through The Shadow-Cursed Lands With A Regular Torch

Jumping The Entire Way

When introduced to the Shadow-Cursed lands, players are meant to quickly go from brazier to brazier to avoid the Shadow Curse. This annoying debuff does 2d4 necrotic damage every turn when without a suitable light source. While a traditional torch is fine in the earlier portions of the run, things get a lot darker as one makes their way through the area, and a regular light source just won't cut it after the Last Light Inn. What's worse, if a companion succumbs to the curse, they'll become a Shadow-Cursed Undead with reduced stats and won't be able to use spells or weapon actions.

Another downside to the area is that if one has never been there before, it's easy to become lost. Without the aid of a superior magical light source like the Moonlantern, it's all too easy to get caught in really dark areas and then be ambushed by shades and other enemies that can easily wipe out the party. As I trudged through this area, Karlach and others quickly widdled away as I frantically loaded my last save and tried different routes to get through.

In the end, I resorted to using the Jump skill virtually the entire way through the Shadow-Cursed lands, skipping every optional encounter and loot. By the time we made it to Moonrise, my entire party was a damaged husk of the potent team that entered that accursed place. That said, there are much easier ways to do it than I did.

The Shadow-Cursed Lands Is Easy With The Right Items

Don't Be Like Me, There's A Better Way

To start, there are actually two different ways to enter the Shadow-Cursed Lands. While most people probably end up taking the elevator in Grymforge, I think that taking the Mountain route is probably the better way to go. For one, if you're into Lae'zel, you can help her complete the Githyanki Creche quest to learn more about her and the lore — as well as partake in some side quests that offer decent early-game rewards.

Players should still make an effort to visit Grymforge to build the Adamantine Forge items if they take the Mountain route.

The biggest tip here is to, of course, get the Moonlantern from the Karniss, the multi-eyed half-spider half-man. This can be looted off his dead corpse, or, for those that took the evil route and wiped out the Emerald Grove, it's possible to be polite and get an easy tour to Moonrise with the aid of the drider. Keep in mind that taking this route ends up killing the Pixie. An alternative is to take the "good" route and take the Moonlatern back to the Last Light Inn with the Harper's quest and inspect the Moonlantern to earn the pixie blessing instead (which is arguably better).

Another tip is that Shadowheart is a must-bring companion on this trek. In addition to her natural resistance in the early part of the area, spells like radiance of the dawn absolutely melt enemies in the Shadow-Cursed Lands, making things much easier to get through. Those who opt out of using the half-elf would be smart to add her to the party and allocate her points to Light Domain Cleric to make this part of the game easier.

Baldur's Gate 3 Puts The Power In Player's Hands

It's Not Straightforward, But That's What Makes It Great

The path to Moonrise Towers isn't the only time where there are multiple different paths one can take for the same quest in Baldur's Gate 3. Before I started writing and playing the game to its fullest, a lot of this stuff was honestly lost on me — and I would have never realized some of these alternative paths or possibilities in so many scenarios and sidequests. The depth in which the community has explored all possible scenarios is truly impressive, and it often influences me on subsequent playthroughs.

My first Durge run was the first time I realized you could actually side with Kar'niss, as you can probably deduce that I'm not the most compromising person in the world. This led to the eventuality of the drider skittering up the side of Moonrise Towers, and I pondered with my friends whether we could find him later and kill him (yes, I'm that savage).

Although upon first approach, the punishing Shadow-Cursed Lands feels like a weird step-up in difficulty or an overly obtuse section, unlocking the Moonlantern and figuring out how to survive in the darkness is just part of what makes the Baldur's Gate 3 experience rewarding to players. Rather than close hand-holding, the game enables players to explore their surroundings, and even if they lack attention to detail like me, it's still possible to have a lot of fun with the game and do things your own way, even if it's the dumbest way to go about things.