The de'Arnise Hold is an area in Amn that's accessible in Shadows of Amn. It contains the de'Arnise Keep, which occupies most of the map from its center to the northwestern corner, and the nearby palisade. The keep is the ancestral estate of the de'Arnise family and is the center of interest of Nalia de'Arnise's companion quest, as it has recently been besieged by Trolls and Yuan-ti.
The current state of the Keep is post-invasion. The keep is damaged and defiled. Victims of the internal slaughter are evident, with corpses impaled and hung on posts by the main entrance to the keep - a grisly warning for any who may try and enter. The Drawbridge is up and locked. The invaders are atop the battlements and keep a watchful eye. Attempting to scale the walls would be suicide.
Overview and reason to visit[]
In order for this area to become available to the party, they must first speak with Nalia in the Copper Coronet. She will request that Gorion's Ward and party assist her in slaying the monsters and driving them away from her home and is willing to lend her assistance as a party member in exchange for your help. With the right dialogue options selected, she will mark its location on the party's World Map. This sets up the The de'Arnise Keep has been Invaded quest.
Once the keep has been cleared, Nalia will explain how she despises her betrothed, Isaea Roenall, and how the Roenall family will undoubtedly attempt to claim the keep and its lands. For most classes, this serves as an explanation as to why she will continue to adventure with them if the party desires. For Fighter, Blackguard, Barbarian, and Monks, she offers them a chance to become a steward for the keep, allowing her to keep the Roenall family out. This unlocks the keep as a stronghold.
Keep Exterior[]
This comprises all of the outer areas that surround the keep and is where the party appears whenever they travel to the area. The party starts in the southeast corner of the map, outside of the walls. Whilst the keep is besieged, there is a chance of encountering Goblins and trolls as random encounters during exploration of the map. There are three hidden spawn locations outside the keep walls.
The Palisade[]
In the southwestern corner of the area a moderately sized log palisade has been constructed which serves as a "fort" for the surviving souls who were able to escape and regroup to battle the invaders. It is a temporary defensive position that has been established by the defenders of the de'Arnise Keep now that they have been driven from the keep proper. The entrance is protected by two guards and standing inside of the fort is their leader Captain Arat. If Nalia is not in your party, she will be here as well.
Captain Arat will greet the party upon arrival and explain the situation in greater detail. Most importantly, he tells them how to access the keep interior by means of the secret passageway, warns them of the ability that trolls have to resurrect themselves unless dealt a fatal blow by fire or acid, and gives them twenty Arrows of Fire to help them in their task. In addition, he asks the party to lower the drawbridge so that he and his troops can assist in retaking the keep.
Secret Entrance[]
The only way into the keep whilst the drawbridge is up, is by way of this secret doorway and passage- which is initially hidden and must be detected. It is placed in the rock face to the north of the palisade.
Characters[]
Buildings[]
- de'Arnise Keep
- The Palisade
Related quests[]
Mod Content[]
This section is about unofficial content that is only available via fan-made mods.
The Quest Pack mod can install New Fate For The Dryads’ Acorns component:
Are all dryads the beautiful, innocent creatures they appear to be? Originally created by Bons, this component adds an intriguing twist to the quest to return Irenicus’ dryads’ acorns to the Windspear Hills. Evil players may delight in the new opportunities afforded here, including a delicious gourmet meal. The quest begins with a new encounter which will take place in the south of the de’Arnise Keep if you have not already returned the acorns.
Installation of Sword Coast Stratagems Mod, and the Tactical Challenges for BG2 "Tougher de'Arnise Keep" component will add more trolls to the keep, including some powerful spellcasting spirit trolls, and upgrades TorGal a bit. More and different invaders will be present inside and around the exterior of the keep.
The component, though not identical to the "Tougher TorGal" component of the Tactics Mod, is strongly influenced by it. The main differences from the Tactics version are a wider variety of troll reinforcements (not just spirit trolls) and a (hopefully!) cleverer, but slightly less tough, TorGal (who, in this version, has not stolen one of the flail heads).