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How To Begin The Art Callugh Quest
How To Find The House Of Healing
How To Loot Malus Thorm Without Fighting Him
How To Defeat Malus Thorm
Returning To Art Callugh
Within the Shadow Lands of Baldur's Gate 3, many secrets await to be explored and uncovered. Some, more than others, will require you to go the extra mile. For those who are ambitious and for those who really love a duck-loving druid, you'll want to uncover the mystery of Art Callugh.
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Baldur's Gate 3: How To Defeat Commander Zhalk
The commander is not alone.
Resting within the Harper haven of Last Light Inn, you can find this holder-of-secrets in a comatose state. He mutters something, beckoning your curiosity, and before you know it, you'll be up to your knees in one of the darkest storylines and coolest boss battles of Baldur's Gate 3.
Updated September 15, 2024, by Alexis Campbell: Added new information detailing Honour Mode changes for the encounter with Malus Thorm in the House of Healing - as if two Legendary Actions weren't enough. Additionally, overdue information regarding how to bypass Malus Thorm's fight has now been added for those who dislike taking trepans to the head.
How To Begin The Art Callugh Quest
From the main entrance of the Last Light Inn, go through the first door on your right to enter an area with a fireplace, a long table, and several beds. Art Callugh is the only patient in the beds.
Speak with him and the woman sitting next to him to hear him speak of Thaniel. Use Medicine and Arcana checks (both DC 15) to determine that Art Callugh needs something familiar of his. You're given a letter that points you in the direction of the "House of Healing."
Before you begin heading there, however, speak with Counsellor Florrick to advance her related questline and then return to your camp to speak with Halsin.
Tell Halsin you heard of a Flaming Fist muttering about a boy named Thaniel - sometimes only triggered after talking about Ketheric Thorm. His interest will be piqued, and you'll need to follow him back to the Last Light Inn, where he's now sitting beside Art Callugh.
Speak with Halsin a bit, and he'll tell you nothing you didn't already know yet, but this will set up for the end of this quest when you return from your journey to the House of Healing.
To do the rest of this quest, you will need the Moonlantern.
How To Find The House Of Healing
Unfortunately, getting to the House of Healing is a very long and arduous trek, requiring you to fill out the majority of the Shadowlands map as the waterfront cuts off any direction roads and requires you to go all the way around.
To begin, start from the area where you had the ambush to get the Moonlantern. From here, travel northwest to reach the Rethiwin Mason's Guild.
You can explore this area for a few nice magical items and an Infernal Metal, an item required for Karlach's questline.
Going through the guild area, past the Wooden Hatch and the elevator crane, you'll reach an area with heavy brush and a large iron gate. Behind that gate is Arabella.
You can choose to accept or deny her special request. Either way, carry on past her and into a large area with a stone mausoleum in the center.
The mausoleum is guarded by several Shadows and three Shadow-Cursed Harpers. You'll need to use your Moonlantern or a similar bright light (if you chose to free the PIxie) to reveal the Shadows.
Once you defeat the Shadows here, turn right and head north through gates into a grove-like cemetery area. An indication you're in the right place is a rolled Passive Perception that illuminates a skeleton with a special ring.
The mausoleum is worth investigating, using the plaques to enter. Inside is a special Sharran Sanctuary where you can safely rest and explore without combat.
Continue along the main, cobbled path in this direction until you reach the side of a building and, eventually, a locked wooden door (Coordinates: X: 189, Y: 73).
Pick the door (or use Scroll of Knock or its related spell) and enter to finally find the House of Healing. Your destination is through the large wooden doors in the room and to your left.
There are several other ways inside the House of Healing. However, this method is the most efficient and safest as the front door and general entrance of the House of Healing is guarded by several enemies, wearing you down before you ever reach the boss.
How To Loot Malus Thorm Without Fighting Him
If you're not a big combat person or fear one of the hardest combat encounters in this act, you might be interested in talking your way out of fighting Malus.
To do so, you'll want to walk into the room and speak with him and his assistants.
He'll rattle on about Shar's doctrine, but to get the best of him, point out his own doctrine to use against him using any of these checks:
- Investigation (DC 14)
- Religion (DC14)
- Persuasion (DC 16)
Afterward, you can choose the (DC 18) Persuasion check (or any check with the similar answer):
They need a better subject to practice on first. Not a student, but a master.
Alternatively, you can also convince the sisters to kill each other first (DC 21 Persuasion) and then convince Malus to kill himself after (another DC 21 Persuasion).
He'll understand the assignment, and his own assistant will use him for a lesson - killing Malus. After, they won't fight you, and you can loot the lute from him without consequence.
You'll unfortunately miss out on one of the coolest encounters in the game, however.
To increase your likelihood of success, we recommend bringing Shadowheart to talk with Malus in your stead. If anyone knows Shar and her teachings, it's our resident grumpy cleric.
How To Defeat Malus Thorm
Malus Thorm | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
HP | 276 | ||||||||
AC | 18 | ||||||||
Speed | 9m | ||||||||
Size/Weight | Medium/100kg (Undead) | ||||||||
Stats | |||||||||
Str | Dex | Con | Int | Wis | Cha | ||||
14 (+2) | 18 (+4) | 14 (+2) | 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) | 8 (-1) | ||||
Resistances | Magical attacks, Fire, Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing | ||||||||
Feats | |||||||||
Magic Resistance | Malus is Resistant to magic attacks. | ||||||||
Multiattack (Wounded) | Malus can make an additional attack as a Bonus Action against a creature with less than its maximum HP. | ||||||||
Once per Long Rest, wearer can Paralyse a target for 2 turns after scoring a Critical Hit. | |||||||||
Turn Resistance | Malus has advantage on saving throws made by Turn Undead or related effects that turn the undead. | ||||||||
Incapacitation (Legendary Action; Honour Mode Only) | Malus has +10 on Saving Rolls against checks that would Incapacitate him. | ||||||||
Wail of Loss (Legendary Action; Honour Mode Only) | After being attacked, all his assistants will let out a wail that may Confuse (Wisdom save) Malus's enemies within range (3m), causing affected creatures to wander, attack randomly, and skip turns. | ||||||||
Grasping Appendage (Legendary Action; Honour Mode Only) | Malus can use his Legendary Action to pull a creature within 18m (or 60ft) closer to him by 9m (or 30ft). | ||||||||
Attacks And Actions | |||||||||
Request Surgical Instrument | Malus can request one of his assistants to bring him a new weapon and change his attack. This happens on the assistant's next turn. | ||||||||
Lovely Assistant | Malus can reanimate (revive) one of his assistants to 12HP as a Bonus Action. | ||||||||
Bonesaw | +5 to hit, 5ft; Deal 1d8 + 3 Slashing damage.
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Artificial Leech | +8 to hit, 5ft; Deal 1d4 + 5 Piercing damage.
| ||||||||
Syringe | +8 to hit, 5ft; Deal 1d4 + 5 Piercing damage.
| ||||||||
Trepan | +8 to hit, 5ft; Deal 1d6 + 5 Piercing damage.
| ||||||||
Claws | +8 to hit, 5ft; deal ?d? + 4 Slashing damage. If the creature struck is not at full HP, Malus can use this attack twice. |
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For those who have primarily followed the main story path up to this point, Malus Thorm will be the most difficult boss you have faced thus far in Baldur's Gate 3. The danger he poses is in the raw damage and possible effects he deals in a single turn.
An unlucky turn may result in him dealing as much as 85 damage in a single attack, possibly one-shot-killing a party member. The trick to this fight is not necessarily dealing with Malus Thorn but actually his assistants.
His assistants each carry a special weapon item. Once per turn, he will call on one of his assistants to come forward and hand him that item. If they reach him, he can equip it.
You'll need to stop each of the assistants before they reach Malus to the best of your ability. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done because:
- They have relatively large HP pools of 48.
- They resist Poison and Fire.
- They always begin battle a walkable distance behind Malus.
- They can use Mind Screech, causing a large amount of Psychic damage and a chance to paralyze the target.
- One person in your party must give up their weapon hand to always hold the Moonlantern if you chose to keep it
- All party members must stay within the Moonlantern's area of effect range if you chose to keep it.
As a result of all these factors, you most likely won't be able to stop the first one from reaching him. You'll need to focus on later-called assistants.
This fight is infinitely easier when you know the order of assistants and weapons he calls for. Every battle instance, Malus will call for his assistants in this order:
- Sister Hunna - Bonesaw
- Sister Geanne - Artificial Leech
- Sister Anya - Syringe
- Sister Vanessa - Trepan
Whichever one you don't kill, he'll call for the next one instead. The order loops when he reaches the end of available sisters. As a result, your first two targets should be Anya and Vanessa (the Trepan is the most dangerous weapon of the four).
With Anya and Vanessa as your primary targets, use area attacks like:
Don't attempt facing Malus until you've dealt with the four sisters. Their paralysis effects (through Mind Screech and thrown Karabasan's Gift potions) and their ability to buff Malus to incomprehensible levels make them far more frightening than the man himself.
Having the ability to use Misty Step here is a huge bonus. You can swap around the room, avoiding Malus and taking out the sisters as needed.
Just beware that you will be afflicted with the Shadow Curse if you leave the area of effect around your Moonlantern and don't have the Pixie's blessing. Additionally, your Misty Step can be subverted in Honour Mode thanks to Malus's Patch 7 addition: Grasping Appendage.
With Vanessa prioritized above all others, take out the assistants and then begin focusing on Malus.
Although his assistants are gone, he's still a formidable opponent. Try keeping yourself at full HP as much as possible. Being even a point below will mean Malus gets to make a second attack with his claws against his target.
Keep your healer busy while you go to town on Malus. With his general tankiness between HP and resistances, it will be a long time, so you'll have to get comfortable for the long haul.
Malus's second dangerous quirk is that he can revive his assistants, going in order of who would have been next. They are always revived at 12HP~ (depending on difficulty).
You can defeat these revived assistants relatively easily. If you have an Assassin Rogue in your retinue, you will always be able to use the Assassinate perk on them and remove them in a single strike. Take them out quickly to avoid them being a problem, and continue hacking and slashing Malus.
A bug can be created when you loot the bodies before they're revived, taking away the weapon, and Thorm requests for a servant. This sometimes confuses the AI, leading to long wait-times in initiative and, in rare instances, duplication of the weapon. This was not fixed as of Patch 7.
Eventually, though, you'll see the light at the end of this surgery, and you'll be able to defeat Malus Thorm once and for all. You can take all of Malus's dangerous weapons, his unique amulet, and the important Battered Lute you came for.
There is also the surgery patient to consider. You get an achievement if you killed Malus before he performed surgery on his patient.
However, there is no known way to save the patient at this time. You can choose to walk away from the House of Healing and leave him to die, or you can end his suffering before you go.
Dealing With Honour Mode Malus Thorm
Honour Mode Malus Thorm requires a significant amount of finesse in your spatial planning. Wailing Loss can completely undo the strategy above if you have too many partymembers located in melee with his assistants.
Keeping your distance isn't easy either with the risk of Malus Thorm's Grasping Appendage action.
For this reason, Honour Mode players are suggested to observe the following:
- Summonable creatures such as the spider's egg, any spell summons, or revived dead should be placed in melee with the sisters instead.
- Spell casters should remain at the top of the stairs for high ground with only one tank character at a chokehold to prevent Malus from reaching them. This tank should ideally have the Sentinel feat.
- Give up on the surgical patient; he isn't worth the trouble if you already have the achievement.
- Use Acid attacks to reduce the AC of the enemies and increase your overall damage output.
- Place an ice floor in any way. Their poor Dexterity will mean constant slips, losses of turns, and the Prone condition.
- Wailing Loss will heavily punish damage attacks; therefore, it is recommended to layer on field hazards and status conditions before making damaging attacks.
Returning To Art Callugh
Return to Art Callugh in the Last Light Inn and speak with him and Halsin. You'll be prompted to play the lute. Do so.
As you play the lute, Art Callugh will finally awake. You can choose to speak with him and gain more information about his dreams or let Halsin do the talking.
No matter how you let it play out, you can start the next quest with Halsin. It's a quest that will lead you to another dangerous defense instance, a game of hide-and-seek, a new playable companion, and, most importantly, a cure for the Shadow Curse.
With this quest under your belt and another just around the corner, you can follow Halsin out the door and to the beach to continue your adventure.
Next
Baldur's Gate 3: How To Defend Halsin's Portal
You only need to last five rounds.