Beneath the world in Act I of Baldur’s Gate 3 lies an intricate cave system known as the Underdark. While you might otherwise avoid underground locales because of their spooky nature, it would behoove you to know how to navigate the Underdark to complete both side and main quests in Baldur’s Gate 3. Here’s a guide on where each of the Underdark’s four entrances are and
Underdark has four discoverable entrances in Act I. Here are their locations and how to access them.
Underdark Entrance 1: Overgrown Tunnel
Below Auntie Ethel’s house of horrors (X: -47 Y: 266)—A.K.A. the Riverside Teahouse in the Sunlit Wetlands—lies an entrance to the Underdark. Most of the steps inside this entrance double for the instructions necessary to complete the Save Mayrina side quest. Make your way into the secret entrance in Ethel’s fireplace to reach the Overgrown Tunnel. Pick up the Whispering Mask on the table downstairs. Convince the spirit inside the Gnarled Door to let you inside the next room. Next, use the Protection from Evil and Good spell before wearing the Whispering Mask to avoid getting possessed and walk inside the nearby waterfall. South of the waterfall is another gnarled door that you can reach by climbing down a ladder and jumping across a platform. Activate a Mushroom Circle behind the second Gnarled Door and violà, you’ve been teleported inside the Underdark.
Be warned: The Overgrown Tunnel is laden with traps so tread carefully.
Underdark Entrance 2: Defiled Temple
The Defiled Temple is located inside the Goblin Camp’s Shattered Sanctum (X: 253 Y: -7). To access this Underdark entrance, you’ll need to find a way inside the Goblin Priestess Gut’s private room via lockpicking. Once you make it inside the room, pick up the Amulet of Misty Step (X: 386 Y: 8) and Selûnite Journal. These items will help you later! Deeper inside the Defiled Temple is a Moon tile puzzle that, once solved, will let you inside the Underdark. Read the Selûnite Journal reveals the hint that you’ll need to rotate the tiles so that the bottom of the puzzle’s four circles are blacked out. Make sure you’re facing the puzzle so that the circle with seven white stars inside it is on “top.” Here’s how you can solve the moonlight puzzle
- Rotate bottom circle
- Rotate right circle
- Rotate bottom circle
- Rotate top circle
- Rotate right circle
If all that is too confusing, you can access the Underdark by alternative means by passing a perception check by hidden lever (X: 442 Y: 64) and lockpicking it open. Solving this conundrum either way will reveal a hidden doorway into the Underdark.
Underdark Entrance 3: Whispering Depths
In Blighted Village, a location rife with worthwhile treasures is, yet another entrance into the Underdark. Unlike the aforementioned entrances, all you’ll need to do to access this entry point by jump into a hole in the ground and fight some spider monsters along the way. The well in the middle of the village (X: 24 Y: 401) will lead you into the spider-infested Whispering Depths. Once you’ve exterminated the spider problem, cast Feather Fall on your party and jump into the giant chasm between the spider bridge to safely descend into the Underdark.
Underdark Entrance 4: Zhentarim Hideout
In the very flammable Waukeen’s Rest inn, is a barn doorway blocked by some boxes. After moving the boxes aside and entering the doorway, you’re greeted by a man named Salazon who’s guarding yet another doorway. He’s also primed to burn you and himself alive with a fire spell if you don’t know the secret password. You can acquire this password before meeting Salazon as a reward for saving an NPC named Rugan in the Find the Missing Shipment quest line, using the Speak with Dead spell on his charred corpse if you fail to save him, or by using the Detect Thoughts spell ono Salazon and giving him the answer. If all else fails, you can go full evil and murder Salazon and take the key he would have given you to enter the Zhentarim Hideout.
Zhentarim Hideout is a hidden black market smuggling alcove with, you guessed it, another hidden entrance into the Underdark. Behind an illusionary wall (X: 268 Y: -190) is an elevator that you can unlock using Thieves’ Tools and ride down into the Underdark.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is available on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and PC via Steam.
