text: Limona Razvan firstname.lastname@example.com Legal note This faq/walkthrough belong to me. Feel free to use it,except one situation. If you obtain money from him,send some to a humanitarian foundation(Children Care, Green Peace, fight against antipersonnel mines,etc.). If posted, mail me to keep track on him. Neverwinter Nights 2 Storm of Zehir Walkthrough Version 1.1 Update : 2 II 2009 - Added new info about miscelaneous quests Ruined Keep(Sword Coast) and One of Many (Samarach) grace to J. Urban Sylesis. 1. Introduction 2. Strategy tips 3. Building a party 4. Main story 5. Side missions 6. Miscelaneous quests 7. Teamwork benefits 8. Cohorts 9. Bugs and tricks 10. Credits 1. Introduction Storm of Zehir is an ambitious add on to Neverwinter Nights 2 and, most likely, the future of Neverwinter franchise gameplay. Since the original campaign and Mask of Betrayer are not related to Storm of Zehir, you could only import a character, but not continue the story. The first thing to do is to consult nwn2forums.bioware.com for a complete list of bugs, glitches and how to fixe them. Without them, the game will still work, but only for those who don`t get crazy when they miss a quest. Of course, this faq will miss some information about loot, enemies number, rewards, etc. If you like, I appreciate all possible updates and corections. 2. Strategy tips a. Save.In a world where rest is a luxury(inns,crafting station in Samargol, Crossroads Keep HQ, random dungeons and overland map - if nobody is around), you will need a back up. b. Always buff before fighting. This is a high magic module, full of evil, acomplished enemy spellcasters who use all the spell possible, from the old fireball to paralyze, confuze, etc. c. Shield users, especially those destined to be tanks, live longer. d. Buy summoning objects to soft up tough enemies. e. Read all info available on bioware or nwn2.wiki before playing.If you don`t like spoilers,at least check those threads about building a character, a party and best strategies to use. f.Always target first the spellcasters. They are weak, but a well placed fireball will kill half your party. g. Remember to have fun ! It may look strange, but if you immerse to deep in technical data, the game will lose his charm. h. This is not a game with a lot of good weapons or armors. The only weapons I found worthy were Malak`s Claw (scimitar) and Fang of Zehir (falchion), later in the gameplay,so is best to make your own. Fast. 3. Building a party Neverwinter Nights games had been, since number 1, highly unbalanced. While most encounters and fights could be solved by a combination of experience and careful planning, the final battles are always overpowering and really hard. Storm of Zehir manage, finnaly, to give spellcasters a better place, but, in doing so, they made enemy arcanists a pain in the ... In my opinion is unlikely or almost impossible to win with a tank formation, bent on simply crashing everything around. There are, of course, cheats and glitches who can be exploited, a topic for later. Despite what the Adventurer`s Guide tell you in the beginning, a rogue is not necessary for the first part. The most succesful party I created was composed by two tanks, a cleric, a sorcerer, plus Umoja (Druid) and Belueth the Calm (Rogue) as cohorts.Your tanks should be able to whistand a lot of punishment, so i selected Bard 1/Fighter 4/Red Dragon Disciple 10/Frenzied Bersekr 1 and Fighter 7/ Dwarven Defender 9. A cleric is essential for healing, more than in previous games (Cleric15/Fighter 1), Umoja and his dino pet Yuzhai soften up the enemies, Belueth deals a lot of sneak damage and she can take one level of ranger to select Monstruos Humanoids (Yuan Ti) as favored enemy. The essential party member was, nevertheless, a custom made sorcerer. Yes, both cleric and druid could punch with magic, but an arcanist will make the difference. I choosed evocation as school and bombed everyone to oblivion. Especially in the final boss battle, the sorcerer will save the day. Final thoughts : 1. Humans do not make good tanks in Storm of Zehir, because you need a lot of inborn abilities to cover all possibilities.Dwarfs and in some extent genasi fill this role with stubborness and grace, followed by drows(if you can wait until they reach level 16). 2.Tweaking your party to perfection (custom made armor, weapons, amulets, rings etc.,enchanted with all damage resistence available) doesn`t mean to much to the big bosses. They have already huge reduction about everything, so expect battles who last at least (being optimistic !) half of hour, real time ! 3. You`re not invincible, stop acting like one ! This is not NWN2, where NPC rush blindly, kill everything and have a snack ! With this `tactic`, enemies in Storm of Zehir will cut your team in little pieces and feed them to their summoned pets ! Let creatures came one by one, use summoned elementals to keep them distracted while your tanks keep choping and mages throw fireballs and Isaac`s Missiles. 4. Spread points in every skill necessary. You have one avatar and three NPC who could cover a lot of options, from intimidate to spellcraft and crafting. I suggest letting Belueth do the spot/hide/move silently work, while survival is not that necessary (being fast on the overland map means nothing if some mob is able to see through your hide ). NOTE : It`s not usual to present the quests so early in a faq. After reading a lot of them and making some of my own, I understand that is really frustrating to scroll down a lot of pages to find that one advice you REALLY need. Since you get a lot of things to do, i decided to split the quests, avoiding a lot of confusion (also, I am to methodical for my own good !). I didn`t bother to make a list of races, classes, skills, feats, spells, traders and prices. This data can be found online on many faqs posted on Game Faqs and Game Spot or in the work of fans (Thieves - Guild.net, nwn2.wiki, nwn2forums.bioware.com ) 4. Main story A. PRELUDE Create or import a character(up to level 30). Welcome to the ship Vigilant, lead by captain Lastri Kassireh, a lightfoot halfling. After speaking with her and Volo, you have to make a decision. Read by yourself the Adventurer`s Guide and earn 1000 XP or make first a team and read the same book for 250 XP each. I prefer the second one, because I want my team to level in the same time. Register your party, keeping in mind what cohorts you`ll encounter later and rest. TIP : Spend as much time you like in customizing the party. Remember, a game need a balanced team, something that pleases you. If you feel happy about the initial choices, no matter how strange may look,the game will be less frustrating. B. SHIPWRECK The game will show a cutscene with Volo the bard starting his new book about your adventures. Next, Vigilant will be doomed by a combination of sabotage and storm, ending as shipwreck on the coast of Samarach. Speak with the rest of her crew, earning a longsword and a shortbow by use of diplomacy or intimidate. Stay close to Volo, involved in speaking with 3 groups of batiri, canibalistic goblins, lead by Ghzermag the Wild, Clawkeeper Kzheemoc and Shoudul of the Skulls. Every time, he will fail to understand them and make you battle for extra XP.Be careful of that Goblin banner, he will damage with sickness the first one who get past him, only one time, while fighting or chasing the batiri.In the end a patrol of Samarach Elite show up, accusing everybody to be yuan ti in disguise ( I wonder what will happen if one of your team is a yuan ti, available in this expansion ?). Still, i had the time to check the debris and scrubs for extra weapons, scrolls, magic wands and potions, plus one more coin of life. Also, ignore the locked cave and receive the Protector feat for keeping everyone alive (+1 Survival). Click one of the Samarach patrol when you`ve done everything. In Samargol the merchant Sa`Sani will interfere in your favor, asking to rest in Leira`s Trick Inn before speaking to her again. TIP : Don`t bother using Sleight of Hand. The only one who can be pick- pocketed is Volo and he`s empty. C. Samargol City - SAMARACH TIP : Explore first the city. The crafting station is the only place you can rest for free and merchants like Vadiny`a, Osi Tchaluka and the priestess of Waukeen got weapons, armor and recipes. Vadiny`a has low prices for armors, but she also offer low prices for everything.If you get enchanted items, ancient trap parts or delicate totems, keep it until `Golemkin` from Lantanese lumber camp is available. TIP : With patience you could steal some gold pieces from merchants. I didn`t wait enough to see if they drop weapons and armor. a. Crossroad Keep - Missing Associates Before speaking with Sa`Sani, you`ll overhear her discusion with Volo and Na`Sirin, regarding her missing associates in Crossroad Keep. The quest will update later. b. Samargol - Unnerving Evidence Sa`Sani first task is to investigate the shipwreck area for evidence pointing to a sabotage. On place kill 6 velociraptors, 6 batiri scavengers, 2 batiri guards and 1 jungle beetle. The first clue is a body on the way to ship, followed by the ship hull (where she is broken in two), a rope and a broken spear near the place with a coin of life in prelude. There is also a zalantar spear in a rack near the locked cave ( Hint for a Stormlord NPC/Avatar ?! ). c. Samargol - Job Aplication Along with quest b. Sa`Sani require some of her cargo recuperated.Depending the game and resources already in your cargo,shipwreck area will give 2 - 6 ore, near the shore and cave entrance. d. Samarach - The Lady`s Apprentice (non stop quest) Along the game, resources will be available from buying and finding all over the overland map. The job is to exchange them for trade bars aka cheques nowadays, making a profit for Sa`Sani Merchant Company. TIP : Samarach is a bad place for buying/seling, because all three towns have the same prices and rare resources like salt can`t be sold for profit. Simply sell what you find, waiting the Sword Coast to make a significant fortune. e. Samargol - Missing personnel Sa`Sani believe Lastri Kassireh may be alive and sugest to search the area surrounding the shipwreck. Going south from there is the cave of Stone Knives batiri tribe. Kill those 3 - 4 from entrance, go ahead until main chamber. Lastri is prisoner in a wooden cell and wants revenge against chief Zhechrrog, two matrons, 1 elder and 2 batiri young for eating one of her mates.Kill them,free Lastri with the key taken from chief, loot the place (especially the short sword called Shard who deal negative damage) and return. f.Samargol - Seeking the truth Sa`Sani want Luaire tracked down to the Lantanese Lumber Camp to find out if her message to Crossroad Keep was sent.In the camp Dall Nickleplate say that Luaire is missing and the portal is broken. To repair him an `unknown` hero should inquire further, finding out what is needed : f.1 :Samargol - Local Troubles ( Pesky Dinos, Disturbancies ) Dall have a couple of problems. Someone is messing arounds with the equipment,a essential part is missing and the local dinos started to like to much gnome dishes ( with gnomes as dishes ! ). Get outside to kill one dino party and bring back 3 claws. Wait until midnight, then head near the gnomes chopping of a tree where a ghost do nasty thing. Engage and after a couple of hits, she get out of her rage, stating another gnome, Leva, killed her/him to steal a new invention. Find her remains(N, near a tree,in a mound) and present them to Dall. Finally, the missing piece. There are two options : with a good spellcraft or craft check you`ll be able to replace the piece or start searching the megaraptor who eated the original one. He is outside, near the camp, on the overland map. In the end the portal is repaired, but the arificier is dead, killed by some exotic toxine, now in your posesion. Dall send you back, promising he will deliver a mesage to Crossroad Keep and Sa`Sani. g. Samargol - Sabotage Sa`Sani ask to find more about the toxine. Inquire Vadiny`a who point in the direction of Chokemist,a plant who create addiction in those who try to kill other with it. Head to Chokemist Cave, buffing once inside against mind affecting substances(Protection against evil do nicely).Kill Luaire and his three corrupted spiders,loot(interesting Assassin Stilleto) and report back. After you reveal the yuan ti origin of Luaire, suddenly the town captain bug in and order Sa`Sani to remove herself from Samargol and be happy she is still alive, despite her `involvement` with yuan ti. Geee,I think the fact she control much of Samargol commerce didn`t matter at all! h. Samargol - North Bound Sa`Sani will go to Crossroad Keep and suggest you do the same.The portal malfunctioned again, sending you to a crypt in Sword Coast. Fight a necromancer and 2 skeletons, loot the place and head to keep, along the road.Entry the keep, watch Khelgar and Sa`Sani speak, receive some XP and head to the Company HQ (on the left ). D. SWORD COAST a. Crossroad Keep - The next step Sa`Sani require your presence in Company HQ. Enter the building to receive 100 trade bars and 300 XP. b. Crossroad Keep - Sword Coast Trader To increase the commercial influence of your company at least one town around the keep should have a trading post. Inquire to find out they need. For example Highcliff want 100 trade bars and 5 timber. Go back, speak to Sa`Sani and build a caravan using the services of Caravan master O`Dell. Don`t forget to upgrade your caravans from the beginning at level 3 for extra income and resistence against bandits and mobs on map.Do not create more than 3 caravans in a unpatched game, because you`ll be flooded by trade bars. c. Crossroad Keep - Missing Associates Sa`Sani ask to travel in Neverwinter City and speak with the representatives of three merchant companies - Circle of Friends, Forgotten Lords and Fated Winds (good, chaotic, evil ), all three in the shrine of Waukeen. The first one will increase your diplomacy by one and the second appraise by two. I didn`t try Fated Winds, even knowing those missing associates spoked with them. In order to join a company pay a fee of 250 trade bars and find out the representatives had been seen in the company of Jordan Wright, leader of Fated Winds.He refuse to even speak about the matter, so go back to Sa`Sani who ask that you work to enhance the status in chosen company and find more about their fate. d. Neverwinter, Forgotten Lords Quests To advance further in finding the missing associates we need to help Forgotten Lords company in three quests : d.1 : Port Llast - Under New Management * This is the mother of all glitches in Storm of Zehir, without a fix. Even when the fix is installed, many other bad things can and will happen. I didn`t bother to use a fix, so Septimund, one of prospective cohorts, will crash the game if taken as cohort. Also, Umoja will lose the ability to summon his dino Yuzhai permanently ! Since I didn`t like Septimund to begin with, I simply choose, on the second play, to ignore him while resolving the quest and choose another cohort instead of Umoja * Because of the Luskan occupation, Port Llast has been cut off from land and sea trade. Your mission - if you choose to take !!!? - is to restore commerce for 1000 trade bars. From here are two directions : - fast -- pretend to work with Luskan and use Umberlee wraith or Lord Adreum undead army to defeat them. In my opinion this solution is for those who breeze through gameplay without paying to much attention to sidequests and extra XP in order to get as fast as possible at the end. - steady -- deal yourself with Luskan army, then solve the trade issues. Since evil answers tend to bore me, here it is the steady solution. Enter Port Llast Garrison and kill the Luskan leader Rynn Shepherde and his two Elite soldier, plus two guards at entrance. Buff properly and head directly where Platinum Pride is docked to face 1 cleric, 1 soldier, 7 buccaneer from the ship and 3 patrol soldiers. At level 13 the cleric will lose Auril`s Accoutrements armor with resistence against cold.Return to garrison, free Haeromon Dothwintil and receive Sigil of the Last Port ( AC +3 against orcs, Con +2 ). Then you`ll need to solve two problems who plague the city. d.1.2 : Port Llast - Army of the Dead The land trade has been severaly hampered by an undead invasion.You could take Septimund as cohort, paying 3000 gp for the wyrmsage he need to protect the city in his absence over the night.Fight two wraiths who enter the city by night, exit and head to Gothaladreum graveyard. In the first yard roam 8 gravetouched ghouls and in small graveyard on right 3 ghouls plus 2 ghast. 5 skeletons move past the stone walls and in the graveyard in front of you will be 6 more skeletons, 2 skeleton warriors and 3 wraiths. Loot the gravestones, then retrace your step to the ruined buiding on the left, past the stone walls. Inside Nya perform necromantic rituals in her effort to save Port Llast from Luskan occupation. If your conversational skills are low, simple choose the lines saying Port Llast is free and Haeromos also. Septimund have a good diplomacy check, so he can be useful here. Loot the book next to her for scrolls and exit. Ignore the Ghostly Visage from the small graveyard on right, as you enter the area, because she will do the same ! ( On the other hand, if you`re working for Luskan, he will appear as Lord Adreum, the figure with whom Nya conspired to bring the undead against Luskan forces. A word of advice in this case : to kill him, no matter why, is a tough choice. He will go down, but the team leader need some Death Ward spell protection, because if you fail the check against his touch, you`ll die in one hit !) Return to Haeromos for 500 gp and 1200 XP. A bluff check will net 1000 gp more, but in a bugged game the journal believe the extra money is the reward for the next quest and he will update accordingly ! d.1.3 : Port Llast - The Wrath of Umberlee NW of Port Llast can be found The Priory of Dephts, a temple for the godess of sea and oceans Umberlee.Click,swim,enter the temple and read the placard saying you will pay Umberlee for times in gold, mind, blood and song.First payment most be 2000 gp or 150 trade bars ( be sure you have at least 8000 gp or 600 trade bars on you ! ). The door will open for the next payment. Read the 4 placards, click the statue and answer the question : Who should fear the Queen of Dephts ?(Everyone); What death covet most the Queen of Dephts ? (Drowning) ; What`s Umberlee divine symbol ? ( A blue - gree wave curling left and right ); What domain Umberlee rule ? ( Seas and oceans ). A wrong answer will net some electricity damage and four correct one will open the next door. Loot Khralver and 4 drowned people on the water to trigger their attack. While fighting them, 2 larger elementals show up from left/right rooms. Kill them also and click on the levers to get acces into the last payment. The song room is mostly bugged. Put your avatar on each 9 arms of the symbol in order to see who light up green and who deal electricity damage. Install your 5 NPC/cohorts on the safe ones and don`t hesitate to summon a pet on other spot if 3 blue lights still do not show up near the right door. I did it by moving randomly by avatar on center and the rest of arms and eventually you`ll trigger the right patern.Inside the priestess can handle a decent conversation for once, even if she is demanding and crazy.It looks like she belong to Kraken Society and made a deal with another member, a High Captain of Luskan, to stoped by storms any vessel heading to Port Llast with Neverwinter reinforcements. After that Luskans decided not to pay the price and she let the storm ravage the coast until someone else will pay. I did have the option to kill her, but i opted to pay 6000 gp to stop the storms. Return to Forgotten Lords for 1000 trade bars and 1400 XP. Buy a new status in the company for 1000 trade bars (!?) and ask for another task. d.2 : New Leaf - Shortage A shortage of goods need to be investigate in New Leaf. Enter the inn and speak with quartermaster for some cryptic answers. Exit, face a bandit mob and loot a serpent figurine who glow brightly near the bandits cave. Go south to find out Forktongue Hideout, past some rocks. There are 3 bandits and a cleric just ahead. Take them fast, buff if you can, because 13 bandits and 2 clerics will jump full force, attracted by the battle noises. Take all out, go left - right - left to find in the main chamber Myrkul, 1 Forktongue Barbarian, 1 cleric and 2 bandits. Bang their heads, return to the quartermaster and your company for 1800 XP. Ignore the journal, he doesn`t update properly. Your company leader is worried, because Myrkul work for Fated Winds and all companies can be kick out if Nasher suspect foul play in bussines dealings. When ready, join him in a meeting with merchant company leaders to deal with the matter. d.3 : Conyberry - The Meeting Enter the inn in Conyberry and put the weakest member(sorcerer/wizard) in front because your back will be soon in flames ! Click on Jordan Wright when he get in and trigger the battle with `weak` answers to his questions (I`m not sure if agreeing with him change anything ?). A bunch of Yuan ti get in ( you did take Foe Hunting - Monstruos Humanoids, did you ?) aka 3 holy guardians and 5 abominations. Kill them and return to Sa`Sani.I wanted to rest, but those silly yuan ti killed the innkeeper !? Damn ! e. Crossroad Keep - Missing Associates Sa`Sani make a brief speech about her lost associates wanting a meeting in Night Rest Inn, near Phandalin. Kizu and Il`foss are in the right chamber with a couple of Tavern patrons(What this mean exactly, since I saw them like forever in Neverwinter games? Do they have a share in tavern profits?). They tell the story about a yuan ti Sauringar princess Sa`Sani, working for god Sseth to bring her people to dominance in Faerun, whom they betrayed changing sides for god Zehir, adept to a much more direct approach aka war and plunder.Kill them for good loot (Emerald Stave and Kizu short sword coated with Wyvern poison) and return to the Keep. f. Crossroad Keep - Murder at Crossroad Keep In your absence Sa`Sani killed Nas`Sirin and head back to Samarach.Use the portal, speak with Dall and go to Viper Temple. g. Chult - The fall of House Se`Sehen Enter the temple and buff properly before speaking with Sa`Sani, mainly protection against evil, haste and death ward. Also put a tank in the back, since your party will be stuck before the battle on the stairs. She tell the story about Viper Temple, ancient home of Sauringar clan and her work for Se`Sehen clan who betrayed Sseth for Zehir, planning to conquer Faerun by infiltrating spies and war. Get 2400 XP for speakin with her and Se`Sehen cronies get in fast. 2 snaketongue zealots came from back to distract the attention from the main force up front ( 2 abominations, 2 snaketongue zealots and Es`San). Take the abominations and zealots fast with tanks and magic, while Es`San will teleport to safety when damaged enough. Speak with Sa`Sani who suggest to attack fast and stealthy the Temple of World Serpent where all leaders od Se`Sehen gathered. Loot, get in touch with Volo for some nice items (Rejuvenating Ring and Custom Chicanery) and exit to World Serpent temple. h. Chult - Infiltrating the Temple of World Serpent Speak with preacher Madeem at entrance. Use your rogue, in stealth mode,to buy some stuf at the merchant on right, then take the party on the east stairs. Open the locked/trapped door, loot the armory (trapped door)and up to the next level. Do not speak with any yuan ti on the way. Explore the level, find the almanach (didn`t care at this point to explore further, so I find out from forums about his presence) and reach Serpentlord Ar`Sulis chamber. Open the door in front of him and save before trying to get to the next level. The door in front ask 3 questions about seasons and months. Here the answers i got from trial and error : Leaffall - Midwinter, Highsun - Highharvestide, Melting - Midsummer ;; Eleasis - Tarshakh. Receive 2750 XP for your succes and to the next level. Use the rogue, if any,in stealth mode to disable the traps and open the doors, keeping away from yuan ti. Head back, rejoin the party,take the guardians out and open the throne room door. Now came the most difficult boss battle ever to be found in Neverwinter games. The enemy number is low - 6 cultists,Hierophant N`Safa and Herald of Zehir, but they sure punch hard. I suggest to avoid a direct confrontation. Keep the mages on the balcony, the way you came, buffed with death ward, protection against evil, haste, etc. Put the tanks on the stairs to protect them, all in stand your ground position. Head to the yuan ti party to trigger the battle. Soon enough 2 cultists will be on top of you. Run in the direction of balcony, letting the mage kill them with some lighting bolts. The hierophant and Herald will came after you and is time to use those summoned pets to keep them distracted. Use the other road to kill the 4 cultists who pray near the throne, healing your enemies, plus some fireballs from arcanists. The mages should keep summoning elementals against those 2 big bosses long enough, then start pounding with everything you have at the herald. He is the lord of damage reduction on almost everything, except cold iron and sonic, but a tank do not stand to much against his falchion and foul magic. I restored myself and some companions at least 3 times, while Umoja and the sorcerer use all their magic and wildshapes. Of course, a lot could go wrong. Eating potions require precise timing, some spells fail, you got disarmed without knowing,one or more of your NPC/cohorts can`t go near the target because of the crowded place,do not notice the 4 bozo near the throne ( he-he, my bad !) etc. Loot his falchion Fang of Zehir (divine magic 2d6, EB+4,Keen,On hit : Poison Blood of Zehir) and a wisdom amulet from N`Safa. Speak with Zehir near the throne to brag about your victory and chalenge him to a open fight (with a somewhat low voice !), but he refuse, stating his return one day. You also gain the feat Serpent`s Bane who make the yuan ti on the overland map avoid attacking your party. Exit to Overland map and get the option to speak with Sa`Sani or return to map. I spoke with Sa`Sani and killed her, making Volo to run from Viper Temple and the game ask if you want to retire. I didn`t get back to the Temple of World Serpent to finish the rest of yuan ti, so the final cutscene mentioned their presence inside some human cities. One final mention : the ending cutscene employ some beautiful made paintings in white and black who reminded my of the Aquanox 2 ending. Overall, Storm of Zehir is enjoyable and I give him 7,5 out of 10. He deserve a 9 for effort and imagination, but the bugs and frustrating encounters on the overland map need to be solved in the future. 5. Side missions This quests can be obtain be speaking with different NPC, residing in towns or related to other missions. In order to keep some order, I decided to point precisely who and where will give them. I. SAMARACH 1. Samargol - Vadiny`a ( a shaddy merchant,considering she is a tiefling, located in Samargol bazaar) 1.1 : Samargol - Plainsrunner She wants the tusks of Bal-alak the Ferocious, a dire boar roaming N of Samargol on overland map. Kill him and bring back the tusks.Reward - 750 gp 1.2 : Samargol - Heavy Weaponry Her bodyguard Artiuk will look more impressive with a fire greataxe from firenewts living in Mines of Sergol (see sidemissions,towns,Torich below). The reward is 3000 gp. 1.3 : Samargol - Batiri Bargain She heard that the batiri tribe of Shattered Spear posses a flawless gem and want one, no matter how you decide to obtain it.There are two ways that I tried : a. exterminate them and loot the gem. b. do first a quest for Volo ( Samargol - Sightseeing, see below) to acquire a spear needed by the batiri matron and get 1600 XP from her in a separate sidequest called Shattered Spear Tribe - Relic of Shattered Spear Tribe. I understand, while browsing the forums, that you could steal it, using sleight of hand, but NEVER thought about it. Well ... Do not forget to loot the chests and racks stranded around the cave. The batiri will ignore your looting, so no trouble. 2. Samargol - Volo ( big mouth, strange quests, in love with nymphs, near Sa`Sani company building ) Volo is interested about a lot of things, so his quests could be defined as general and local, linked to Samarach and Sword Coast local flavor. General : He want as many information possible on Samarach and Swoard Coast to write a book. Sharing your experiences in different places and dungeons will net the following feats : Tourist (+1 Search), Wanderer (+1 Search, Spot), Wayfarer (+1 Search,Spot,Listen ), Pathwalker (+1 Search,Spot,Listen, Survival),Traveler (+2 Search, +1 Spot, Listen, Survival), Nomad ( +2 Search, Spot, +1 Listen, Survival), Journeyman (+2 Search,Spot,Listen, +1 Survival) Local flavor : 2.1 : Samargol - Pretty bird He want a parrot(talking bird) from Vadiny`a, but he can`t approach her because of some past misunderstandings. In exchange Vadiny`a require some exotic pet. Head to the Underdark Black Market, purchase a Caged Glacier Snake from Xo`rill and make the exchange.(Do not kill yet the mindflayer to free the slaves - see Underdark Black Market quest below). 2.2 : Samargol - Sightseeing Volo heard about the yuan ti and want a fragment from one of their ruin, N of Samargol. This is, without a doubt, the first difficult fight in the game, if you didn`t do the Underdark quest yet and didn`t cheat yourself better weapons, armor and items. First sneak past the denizens in the jungle. Enter the ruin,buff and avoid the electrical trap in front and right(DC 25). Go left, kill 1 Holy Guardian yuan ti and two spider construct.Loot the bookcase for scrolls, a shattered spear (keep it) and the fragment,pull the lever in the next room, go back and enter into the rooms on the right ( 1 Holy Guardian, 2 spidey ). The middle corridor hide the most powerful enemies.I suggest to plant your team at the entrance and attract the enemies on the corridor to fight them one by one, while the arcanist unleash their magic from distance. This way 1 spidey, 4 Holy Guardians and Serpentguard D`shai are more manageable. Loot the treasure room (locked and trapped chests, be wary!) and go back for 1400 gp and a a magical artifact. 2.3 : Local Delicacy Compared with 2.2, this one is a breeze. Go kill some dino, roaming around the yuan ti ruin before and bring him back a dinosaurus steak. 3. Samargol - Bounty Hunter Kwesi She will redeem bounties placed on different monsters and creatures ussualy roaming the overland map. 4. Underdark Black Market A bunch of mindflayers run an underground market using their contact and spies in Samargol government. There is a broken mindflayer near Zhiir who`s mind was destroyed while `looking` in the mind of a god. Along with the doomsayer in Samargol, they are hints about the future of Faerun world in the next games when magic/Weave will dissapear. 4.1 : Underdark Black Market - For special customers only Before giving acces to his special stash of magical items (nothing huge,by the way !), Zhiir need a book of lore from the wizards in Tempest Fury, a keep in NE plains, near the road to Torich. A sylph inside inform you that Shamal, a djinni, is the new master after he slayed the wizards who imprisoned and tortured him. Loot the skeleton in the main hall ( Scarab of Protection +1, Brace of Armor +1, Quarterstaff +1) before opening the doors and fight 1 water elemental and 3 - 6 ice mephits. Open the small chest in every room, hidden beside junk and old furniture, for the 3 keys necessary to open the vault and loot(be careful - the one in the left room deal at least 40 points electrical and the second 15 - 25 cold damage).Open the vault and the chest inside, but before looting the content buff the team properly. There are two options : - easy - use the looted ring of summoned djinni to capture Shamal and deal with his 4 summoned air elementals - hard - attack everyone, despite Shamal superior magic and his elementals damage reduction. 4.2 : Freeing the slaves This is not a quest per se, because the journal will not update something. When speaking with Xo`rill a info about a slave group will pop up and you could ask to buy them and decide to free them. Before doing so, I highly recomend to consider. Their magic and damage reduction make mindflayer the toughest fight in Samarach. Buff properly and take them one by one to cumulate the weak damage your team could muster in the beginning. Open the locked door to the prison and free them, plus one of the cohorts (see cohorts quests below). Loot everything, including the easily to miss chest left of Xo`rill initial position, plus a bottle of Deepwine from Zhiir. 5. Town/village/camp quests 5.1 : Rassatan - The Singing Pendant A bard called Redfeyer lost his pendant while exploring the Singing Cavern, a place full of spiders and bats ! Enter the cave and explore her 3 arms. Move forward and right to find the chest with the pendant,protected by a web trap and 4 green spiders, common defence for all chest. After the chest is open 8 bats show up, atracted, I presume, by my taste ! Go straight ahead, engage 4 bats plus one giant green spider (queen?), loot the Dirt Mound and a chest in the left. On the left arm is another chest, 8 bats and an Arcane Nexus, useful later. 5.2 : Taruin - The Finest Wine The halfling Ottelmar need a bottle of Deepwine. Head to Underdark Black Market and Zhiir, who`s price can be reduced with appraise (?) ( I don`t remember, sorry !). Another way is to kill the mindflayers and loot their bodies, but not before completing Zhiir quest above. Receive 5500 gp and 600 XP from Ottelmar. 5.3 : Torich - Into the salt mines Essien mentioned the Mines of Sergol being overrun by firenewts. Enter and loot the bookcase on the left. Room in front - 3 firenewts and an armoir, who contain a lens of detection,useful in team without rogues.Take the right path and choose between two direction : forward( a room with some archers and a sorcerer ) ; left - 2 hellhounds, 2 archers and 1 alchemist in the first chamber and the bosses behind a door on the left again (Overlord Flamespar, 1 sorcerer, 1 hellhound,2 archers, 1 alchemist, 4 elite warriors) Essien will give 600 XP and acces to salt resource, while Vadiny`a will want the greataxe of fire wielded by the Overlord. 5.4 : Nimbre ( small place on the road from Samargol to Torich with one merchant and a bunch of ingrate villagers ) 5.4.1 : Nimbre - Agents of Serpentfolk Enter the village and speak with captain Akuma about his presence. Looks like someone pointed the villagers as being in league with the yuan ti and the proud captain will simply take them to Samargol, without any investigations. Leave him for now and enter the Loremaster house. A good spot check (Umoja) will reveal a snake tatoo on Haldric arm, turning the meeting into a brawl. Buff properly to fight him and 2 surprisingly tough snaketongue cultist. Search the body for a bloodied note revealing his masters unexplained intention to empty the village of his people and loot the rooms around.Present the note to captain Akuma. On the other hand you could simply refuse to let the villagers go with him and fight for some loot, especially a Gilded Armor (AC 5 +1,Intimidate +3), propriety of captain Akuma. 5.4.2 : Nimbre - Inquisitive Pig Near the other exit could be found some boars and an inquisitive pig, interested in a mound in front of him. Choose search, fight the boars for their teeths and a Periapt of Wisdom +2. 6. Lantanese Lumber Camp 6.1 : Lumber Camp - Infestation Ahri `Golemkin` ask for your help in retrieving 4 cloackroaches part to find out why his trusted golems run amok. I suggest to hunt them around the camp before taking the quest, just to be sure ( many glitches !). The reward for succes is 600 XP and one summoning cloackroaches item. 6.2 : Bounty Hunter Nill Sheafrustle He will redeem bounties placed on different monsters and creatures ussualy roaming the overland map. II. SWORD COAST A. Neverwinter City 1. Merchant Company (Forgotten Lords for me) 1.1 : Neverwinter City - The trade post ( Actually this should be 1.4, but i choose to put the first three in the mainquest, being related to Missing Associates) - buy the trade post from Sir Nevalle. If he is not outside, Sir Nevalle can be found in Wailing Wench Tavern and agree in exchange of 8000 trade bars.You receive a key and 1000 XP 1.2 : Neverwinter City - Sating the Sensate A genasi calling himself Phineas the Sensate require 9 rare resources to be displayed in his museum. Another bugged quest, because there are only 8 : Adamantine (Leilon), Mithral (Highcliff), Harvest Mead (West Harbor), Darksteel (Conyberry), Zalantar (New Leaf), Cold Iron (Phandalin), Salt (Torich) and Knuckelhead Ivory (Port Llast). 2. Thayan Enclave 2.1 : Neverwinter City - A knot in the Weave Akila from Thayan enclave in Neverwinter need somebody to investigate 6 arcane nexuses with attenuators. As reward the chests around him contain Thayan learning scrolls aka 1000 XP each and the gnoll merchant will improve the quality of items he sell ( bracers of armor +8 and +7 after all 6 attenuators have been charged). The location are : Samarach - Singing Cavern, Tempest Fury, Ruins (W on map, on the peninsula) Sword Coast - Parruna`s Rock, Shadow Fortress, Undead Barrow, Arcane Brotherhood Outpost, Banite Enclave, Snaketongue Bandit Cave, Pirate Cove Along the line you find the Shadowars - remember Hordes of Underdark ? - are responsible for this knots who link Samarach and Sword Coast. Akila should be approached after the Viper temple battle who open the northern part of Samarach. 2.2 : Chult - Fixing a Hole Go back to Samarach, past the Viper Temple on the right until you find the Foreign temple.Enter to be confronted by a Champion of Shade.Put your team against him and click the portal to be send on the other side, where a wizard is healing the champion (through portal!), making him invincible. Kill fast the wizard, bring your team ( make each one click the portal) and explore the northern part of Sword Coast, inaccesible before. Return to Akila who express his concern about shadovars, get 1600 XP and that`s all. No climatic final battle against the agents of Shadowar, no huge rewards for spending hours on map !!? Rushed quest. 3. Neverwinter City - Think of Children Sir Nevalle need a suitable place for an orphanage, since the Shadow War left many children without parents. Propose Crossroad Keep and convice Khelgar stating the need of children to look up on a great hero like him. B. Crossroad Keep 1. Khelgar Ironfist (Inside the keep) 1.1 : Crossroad Keep - Recruitment Drive Khelgar need some mercenaries in Phoenix Tail Inn to train his greycloacks. Speak with their leader Nall using the conversational skills : Intimidate - throw a veiled threat about ambushes on the road Diplomacy - rant about Nall being a hero Bluff - hint to a coming war who Nall doesn`t want to miss 1.2 : Crossroad Keep - Shadow Fading King of Shadows former servants entranched themselves in a ruined keep near West Harbor and prepare their forces for a strike. Head there and face first 3 shadow mastif and 4 - 6 ghouls/ghasts. Go left, using the rogue to disable the fire traps, fight 4 - 5 wraiths and in the room up front where the guilty party reside - 1 Shadow High Priest, 2 shadow priests, 1 vampire, 1 warlock and 2 greater shadows after the priests die. Kill the warlock first, then concentrate the missiles and fireballs against the rest. Left from the main chamber is the smithy with 2 ghostly blacksmiths and loot. Travel through a hall with 3 - 7 dire rats, exit and get a reward of 1100 XP and 1500 gp. 1.3 : Crossroad Keep - The Bard`s Tale The bards in the courtyard stole the Ironfist Clan gauntlet and run to Neverwinter Woods. This is one tough place to find. She is actually S of Veluuthra camp, near a rock formation. Circle around the stones slowly until the map will update itself. If not, we both have a problem. This happend to me,also. In desperation, I enter the Veluuthra camp, killed the elf wizard, exit and the Log cabin appeared ( nice glitch !). Inside there is a raucous (!?) celebration. Except the bards, there are 8 party guests, 5 bouncers, 1 cook and Feargus Orc - Heart (innkeeper ?). Ask Feargus about the bards, use Belueth connections to Shadow Thief of Amn to pinpoint their locations and buff. This is a crowded place and you know by now what to do. Azahr, Venn and William rest in the next door. When I get inn they recognised me and the battle started. It will take sometimes, because there are 24 people in one small cabin (!). Open the locked door near Azahr and the chest for gauntlets. Reward - 1200 XP, 2000 gp. I have the sensation I should keep the gauntlets or steal it back, if possible. The same goes for the Singing Pendant, back in Samarach, who acted as Mass Vigor when used. 2. Crossroad Keep - Upgrading your company status Speak with Variel to upgrade your company status/bussiness oportunities : 2.1 : Upgrading Greycloacks armor - donate 500 trade bars and return with 5 mithral - 5 adamantine 2.2 : Upgrading Greycloacks weapons - donate 1000 trade bars and return with 5 cold iron - 5 zalantar 2.3 : Propaganda (pay people to promote your company) - donate 2000 trade bars and return with 5 lumber - 5 skins - 5 ore 2.4 : Build the Shrine of Waukeen - donate 5000 trade bars and return with 5 mithral - 5 lumber 2.5 : Upgrading the portal - return with 5 adamantine and 5 darksteel 3. Crossroad Keep - Nimble Fingers, Light Step(near Adventurer`s Society) A nobleman called Jaris inherited his uncle building, full of unstable chemical compounds. He want the chemical clutter stabilized. Enter, use the rogue to sneak on stealth mode past the crates full of vials on the left, while the rest is standing. Open the locked door, take the vials, go back. Transfer the vials to the party alchemist, enter the door on right, click the table. Use the green vial to neutralize the compound and the purple to check the result. Remove silver vials and blue ones, go back for 1400 XP, 1000 gp and one Bag of Holding - 100%. 4. Crossroad Keep - Protection Money Sa`Sani will give this quest when your merchant company is famous and rich. A band of trolls and ogres, lead by the fey troll Tuka - Akut, demand protection money. Head to Crystal Cave. My advice is to fight from the beginning, because trolls and ogres are far to dangerous to let them encircle your team in the main chamber,where you could speak to Tuka - Akut. Kill 1 worg and 1 ogre guard at entrance, plus the ogre coming from the tunnels. Advance to find 1 ogre beastmaster, 3 worgs and 2 trolls (chamber on right), 3 ogres and 2 trolls hampering on the tunnel and 2 trolls (chamber on left) until main room. Tuka - Akut lead 3 ogres, 2 trolls and 1 troll cleric. Keep in mind that trolls can`t be killed until you use fire or acid to keep their inborn regeneration kicking in. Loot the place and receive 1900 XP from Variel. 5. Crossroad Keep - Volo In order to expand his knowledge about Sword Coast Volo want to research other people life experiences. 5.1 : Crossroad Keep - Researching Merchants Volo want to ask 6 merchants about their experience. Speak with Jacoby - Variel (Crossroad Keep), Tamas - Aruna - Sheydann (West Harbor), Akila (Thayan enclave, Neverwinter City). Others - merchant company leaders (Shrine of Waukeen, Neverwinter City), Osi Tchaluka - Vadiny`a (Samargol), etc. Reward - 2000 gp 5.2 : Crossroad Keep - Researching Bandits This one is really crazy ! Approach bandits on the overland map, bribe to let go and click the last line, letting them know you want to see their bosses ! After 3 encounters a Bandit group(blue light) show, stating they are Wilted Rose Marauders working for Snaketongues. Reward - 2000 gp and one ring of acid resistence. C. TOWN QUESTS 1. Phandalin - The Cold Iron Mining Company The bussinessman Danley want an investigation about the cold iron mine, taken over by two strange merchants. With a spot check Daniel Merriwether and Chester Paulson are identified as ogre mages Radbur and Gromcheck in disguise. Take them fast, before unleashig elemental damage,loot a Falchion +1 and Gromcheck`s Walking Stick and proceed to clean up the mine. Fight through 4 ogre foremans and 7 - 10 workers, open the chest at the end of mine (potions, adamantine bullets/arrows). Go back to Danley for 1000 XP and 1000 gp. If possible, use a Bluff check for extra 500 gp. 2. Conyberry - Parrum`s Rock Jesentus Parr, former manager of the Parrum`s Rock mine, asked to investigate the mine and bring back the deed.Fight 5 drowned in the first room and 4 ghast plus 2 drowned in the next. Read the corespondence on floor to find Parr is to blame for the drowning and the mine foreman have a son, working in the inn back in Conyberry. Open the locked door on left, buff and face what it looks like big, angry wraiths - 1 Smothered Conscience and 2 Echo of Regret. Do not attack the barrel with weapons, because they are going to explode. Instead use some long range missile do damage the wraiths instead, then engage the enemies. Loot the place and go back. I handed the deed to the boy for 1400 XP. 3. West Harbor 3.1 : West Harbor - Dragon Hunt Two black dragon keep West Harbor under pressure. Find the wizard Tamas, missing in the dragons cave. I just started to buff inside and my heart popped when 3 silhouettes start walking to me. Fortunately, not enemies (for a change !). Tamas, escorted by Pitney and Ginni Lannon, explain shortly what happened, trigering a question in my paranoid head - how they survived in a dragon cave ? I let it go for now, suspecting the Lannon`s are the dragons in disguise. Use the rogue in stealth mode to scout and disable the traps. On the right is a stone with a suspicious barrel, containing Harvest Mead and a locked door. Buff with spells against energy and elemental damage,open the door and attack 2 mages,1 shaman and 2 warrior lizardmen. Loot them and the chest who contains the Shawl of Aruna (see next quest), retrace your step on the main tunnel and go left. Kill 3 lizardfolk, 1 beetle thrall and 3 more beetle attracted by the noise (sometimes those 3 will attack before you have the chance to take left). Follow the tunnel until a statue of Tyr. Click her to make 1 fire mephit and 2 ice mephits attack. Continue forward, disable the trap and buff for the toughest fight inside - 1 Lizardfolk chieftain, 2 warriors,1 large water elemental, 1 mage and 1 shaman. Send a fast NPC to distract the arcanists long enough your sorcerer/druid kill them and engage the rest. Take the orison key fromthe chieftain, open the cell ahead and speak with Tamas. He is the real one ! Loot and go back in West Harbor. Speak with Lazlo, who tried to bribe the dragons in protecting the village against undead and now is stuck with them. Buff and challenge Voareg. Use missile against him and his brother Waervaer, with the tanks in front, while the villagers deal with the lizardmens. Slay them and gain Dragon Slayer feat. Now you can trade with West Harbor, buying their Harvest Mead. Go back to the dragons cave, loot their treasure chest and return later. 3.2 : West Harbor - The goodwife`s Shawl Goodwife Aruna lost his shawl in Mere and need your help to recover it. Solving the quest above is enough. Return the shawl for 1000 XP. 3.3 : West Harbor - Whispers in the Marsh (I got this quest at level 16) Speak again with Aruna who accuse Sheydann evil pourposes in convincing Jan Buckman join a cult. Head to the place. Buff before speaking with Sheydann on the right and use conversational skills to make Jan doubt and refuse to join the so called merchant in the battle. Dispose also of those two near the entrance and follow the road to fight 3 more plus a mage. Loot, especially Sheydann`s scimitar, speak again with Jan who let go a amulet called Unwiling Pendant. Reward from Aruna - 1700 XP and Gardener`s Glove. 6. Miscelaneous quests They pop up randomly on the overland map, divided in places (dungeons,ruins, towers,etc.) and parties who roam the land. Usually parties can appear both in Samarach and Sword Coast, with a few exceptions. I mentioned the places as happened to my gameplay : SAMARGOL a. Charm Peddler - a half elf who try to sell fake magical objects. Use Appraise or Spellcraft to reveal his knockoff items. b. Samarach Soldiers - ask to stop and submit to a test revealing any suspect dealings with yuan ti. Of course, no matter what you say, all travelers are suspect and need to pay a 2000 gp fee. Pay or fight against 12 of them, mainly archers. c. Diseased Townsfolk - a group of people believe you infected them as yuan ti in disguise (!?). With Heal they can be cured for 500 XP. d. One of Many - will show up, I believe, if at least one member in your team is chaotic or evil. He need to be feed with cohorts for extra XP. For example, at level 6, Umoja meant 800 XP and Chir 750 XP. Below the info send by Sylesis : ~_ one of many : will reward you with xp for each companion you feed him, including those in the swordcoast. After some victims, he'll also give a feat called minor negative energy aura ( +1 int I think ) then negative energy aura (+1 str, dex, con, int). I got the first feat after feeding him the 3 companions in samargol, the second after I gave four. I gave two more companions but One of many is still hungry. Unfortunately I can't find any other companion : Septimund didn't want to leave the surroundings of Port Last until the undead problem was sold, and disappeared after.I hope this will be useful ~ e. Delirious Hunter - poisoned by spiders resilient to fire, can be healed for 500 XP f. Demons of Samarlogh - three spiders resistent to fire, related to the quest above. Easy to kill, providing you don`t use only fireballs and fire! g. Sister Horta - a hag with 3 ogre bodyguards crack and eat some bone`s marrow. With a Bluff or Intimidate check she will retreat for 400 XP, while fighting mean 98 XP, one ring of wizardry and 2 gems. h. Korath Embersmith - a giant `collecting` tribute from human lands. Kill him for 73 XP, 5500 gp and 433 XP at exit (with two summons). i. Cabin (SE corner of Map, near the end of coast) - a hidden cabin with a journal about some drowned sailor and small loot. A bugged quest, in need of a fix. j. Crypt (SE of Taruin) - wraiths and loot. k. Tower (N of Chokemist Cave) - small dungeon with 3 bugbears. l. Kobold cave (S of Chokemist Cave) - a bunch of kobolds attack on sight. m. Ruin (S of Kobold cave, near the end of peninsula) - 4 - 6 lizardfolk warriors and loot. n. Crypt (W of Chokemist Cave) - a sarcophague surrounded by four undead who will attack after you loot the coffin. o. Destroyed Temple (NE of Viper Temple, available after the battle here) - click on temple and use a search check to loot the yuan ti bodies for scrolls. p. Yuan Ti Temple (SE of Temple of the World Serpent,available after the battle at Viper Temple ) - left and right door shelter 3 Erinyes and 6 - 7 imps, while the center lead to a chamber with a Yuan Ti diabolist, 1 horned devil and 2 Erinyes. Since the place is crowded, attract them on the corridor one by one and pound missiles until they`re gone.Loot the chest. r.Zecorian`s Demesne (S of Temple of the World Serpent,available after the battle at Viper Temple ) - this quest is the main reason you should try to become an epic character. First a spellcraft check is needed to lower the magical defence of the tower.The entrance is protected by a huge skull who block your search check long enough to miss deadly and epic traps who can kill NPC with low HP easy and 3 dread wraith.Put the party in stand your ground position and wait for the wraiths to come close, before pounding. Buff your rogue with protection against energy and resist elements, put him in stealth mode, save and find a route to the door from left or right, past the traps.Save again beside the door and try to open her and trigger in the same time a search check to make the trap appear. Move the rest of your team by the same route and to the next level.Level two - 5 hellfury skeletons who explode when defetead. Heal, reach level three and buff with everything available. This is the second toughest battle in Storm of Zehir, against 2 vampire lords and Zecorian himself, an ilithid lich. Throw fireball at vampires to kill fast, then concentrate all you got against Zecorian with greater dispel magic in tow. At first I believed he is invincible, but after a while (15 - 30 min. real time !) he start to lose damage reduction. Loot (not enough for the troubles I had here !) 1 ring of divine power,bracers of armor +8, ring of protection +4. On the way out remember the traps still work ! s. Temple (SW of Demesne) - nothing SWORD COAST a. Kana - she refuse to join and agree to teach some fighting moves for 500 XP b. Human Mob - a bunch of slaves revolted against their Red Thay masters. I opted to help them, then speak with Garish to receive Zouldrin`s Bauble (AB +1 against humans, Open Lock +5) c. Christov`s Crew - approach this band of adventures, lead by Christov Darkmoor. With a lore check he will be identified as the pirate Christov, but he prefer the term privateer. After his ship Shadow Cutter was lost in Port Llast storms, they decided to raid ...earn their living on land. A spot check identify their succes ( fat purses and good weapons) and a choice : leave them by or attack for some golden pieces and Eyepatch of the Great Sea Corsair (Spot+5, See Invisibility 1use/day) d.Ograth`s Marauders - the leader of the orc band try to perform a rite called Eye of the Gruumsh. Browsing forums i learn that you could direct him to the elf camp Veluuthra, but I didn`t discover that location yet. So, I decided to help him. He cut out one of his eyes and charged at me. Kill him and his buddies for one Halberd +1, 466 gp and a dagger +2. e. Liam Harvestead - near West Harbor Liam is stucked under a log by a hag who made him believe she was a beautiful women and put it there to marinate ! Ask for more info and a reward of Mead, then head South. Enter Swamp Cave (NW of the Crypt you end in North Bound mainquest), kill one ogre, 3 hags and loot their eyes ( I have the strange feeling this is another bugged quest, well ... ) f. Fowl Play - a group of chickens(!) show up on the map. Speak directly with Wild Emphaty (Umoja) or read the paper on the leader beek to use a click once, click twice kind of conversation. Use Dispel Magic to find out he is Darius North, leader of Alabaster Eye Adventuring Company (my !!), transformed by a evil wizard in chickens. Reward - chain shirt +3. Mentioned in the jornal. g. Onyx Cave ( N of Neverwinter City ) - Use Darkness on the locked door, decorated with the symbol of evil godess Shar. Face the monks of Dark Moon sect aka 1 Superior, 2 acolytes and 2 clerics. Take out the clerics fast, while the other 3 are easy. Loot the treasure on left ( next door ) and engage in the room ahead 1 master and 1 Divine Champion. On the right there are 2 cells. Open the first to free Ribsmasher who will wait at Keep as cohort. Since i got this location early, after speaking with Sa`Sani, I believe the game want me to use him. Maybe in the next replay ! h. Malarite Hermit`s Cave (SE of Gothaladreum) - a cave with one mad malarite and 2 dire bears. Reward for the kill - Greataxe +3, Scalemail +3, one chest with scrolls and a heal potion. i. Gnoll Cave (E from Malarite Hermit cave ) - 4 gnolls ahead, followed by 6 plus a leader attracted by the noise of incoming battle. Rest is allowed and you get a flail +2 on top some gp. j. Forgotten Ruin ( N of Gothaladreum) -An Iron Golem protect the ruin and 4 chests with recipes, gems, potions and scrolls. k. Arcane Brotherhood Outpost (NE of Gothaladreum)- First floor: 3 Luskan Pirates, 2 Hosttower apprentices. Attack the mages first, before casting confusion spells. Loot the chest in the next door for a bowl of comanding water elemental and up to stairs. Second floor : 2 Luskan Bersekr, 1 Luskan pirate captain, 2 hosttower wizards. Same tactic. Loot the gold staying in piles all around and the chests in the room ahead. l. Drow Kinslayer - a battle between drow and wood elf. Join the last and loot the evil drow - cloack of resistence +2, Spidersilk Jerkin light armor (arcanists), 3 drider silk, full plate +2, Bolt of Piercing. m. Eldrith Veluuthra Camp (NE of Phandalin, E of worg cave) - the camp of elw wizard supremacist Veluuthra. Kill him, 1 cleric and 5 rangers or wait to meet Ograth above ( d quest ) n. Undead Barrow (N of Veluuthra Camp )-fight 3 ghasts and 2 wights to get acces in the main chamber. Loot the sarcophages (the big stonish one is trapped) full of enchantment recipes and items to wake up 2 vampires. Use fire for a easy score and rest. o. Strange Gnomes -they usually hang NE of Neverwinter City and speak with yes and no ! I didn`t get anything useful, even that one time they hint to a treasure somewhere. p. Cabin (SW of Conyberry) - she is inhabited by Skullsmasher. Find out about his travels and receive an enchanted morningstar. Now is time to fight him carefully. Plant the mages near the chest in front of Skullsmasher, behind the table, buff and ask him his greatsword. He will summon 3 - 5 Ivory Shieldmaiden and punch quite strong for an old warrior. Use Ice Storm spells, who don`t allow saves, to finish him fast and loot his weapons and a summoning Ivory Shieldmaiden item. r. Banite Enclave (N of Veluuthra camp) - fairly straightforward dungeon. Right chamber - 1 banite cleric and 3 bodyguards. Don`t bother loot the place because a strong wave of enemies will show up to join the battle - 2 clerics, 2 agents, 1 blackguard, 1 skeleton. Go right on the corner and face a intersection : right - trapped door, with a statue in the back dealing negative damage. Destroy her and loot the treasure chests ;left - one Timothy Arneson will expect to clear the place in a cell(strange enough, the cell is not locked ?) and in the end of the corridor face the leaders of banite group - Interceptor Krassus, Painbinder (!?) Zyrax, Fell Emris and Sulakh of the Ebon Hand. Target the arcanists like Zyrax and Emri first, then move upon the other two for 1200 XP and a feat Bane of the Banites. Clean the place, speak with Arneson for extra 500 XP, rest and leave. Mentioned in the jornal. s. Abandoned Mine (near Banite enclave)- exploited by 5 duergar miners and one wizard. Dispose of them and open the chest in back for trap recipes. t. Illefarn Ruin (NE corner of map ) - inhabited by drow. Kill 1 phase spider (first door on left), 1 Drow Arachnomancer and 1 warrior (second door on left) and 3 drow warriors, 1 Priestess of Lolth, 1 Arachomancer on the right. u. Hunting Cabin (NE of Banite Enclave) - a Malarite druid, helped by 2 dire boars and 3 dire wols, killed the hunters inside. Kill him, loot the bodies. v. Ruined Keep (SE of Illefarn Ruin) - a broken bookcase with a lot of recipes and 4 gargoyles who didn`t even notice my party (bug, again !) Sylesis opinion about the quest : ~ _ ruined keep : the gargoyles not attacking is not a bug, as you haven't touched the real treasure they protect. A skilled character using the bookcase will get a message saying there is something behind : break it and you'll find a chest with an epic trap on it. I don't remember what's in, I managed to disarm it on my first game but not this one ( my thief-like character has rather poor skills ) ~ x. Pirate Cove (S of Port Llast,down to shore) - this cave is exactly the same as the lizardfolk cave in NWN2, before reaching Fort Locke!. On right reside 1 wizard, 2 pirates, 1 archer, followed by two more on stealth mode. Left can be found 3 pirates and in the main chamber the leaders: Captain `Blunderbuss`McGant, Buffo`The Navigator`, Chaplain Alessa, Chef Gronk and first mate Sparks. Speak and attack, while Buffo will teleport away, leaving only 4 to slaughter. Ignore the pirate wenches, notice the Arcane Nexus. y. Forgotten Crypt ( NE of Dark Temple, available after the battle at Viper Temple, accesible from a Thayan quest - see Neverwinter, Thayan enclave ) - the current residence for 3 greater shadows, 4 shadows, 5 mummies and 1 death knight. Loot rare gems, weapons and rings. z. Hotentow Cave (NW of Dark Temple, available after the battle at Viper Temple, accesible from a Thayan quest - see Neverwinter, Thayan enclave) - lair of 5 - 6 fire giants led by King Karagg. Despite impresive size, they do not punch hard, so kill them, loot the bodies and the racks near the left wall. w. Sword Coast - The Enraged Worgs Packs of enraged worgs will track you, no matter the hide/move silently check and attack. Speak with Ulweth in Ohoenix Tail Inn ( Crossroad Keep) and head to the worg cave, SE of Thundertree city. Kill 5 enraged worg pups at entrance, 1 pup and 1 worg on the left, then go back and up ahead. Face 2 worg,2 pups and the den mother on right and explore the left tunnel until you see a scroll where someone stated he will return if the worgs are killed. Exit the cave, do some stuff and return. The place contain Tyburn the Mad and 2 Umber Hulks. Kill him for a scimitar called Malar`s Claw (Wounding DC18) and a chainmail +2. The quest will appear in the journal. 7. Teamwork benefits I only have quest related information for the feats i used, so please update me on the others. Teamwork Benefits are a group of 12 team based feats with specific requirements. East of Phoenix Tail Tavern (Crossroad Keep) you could see Daerred sitting idly. He boast a strange idea of him being a disciple of the famous Knight - Captain and founding member of Adventurer`s Society/Company. The training start after you build the first trading post and caravan. Another condition is that you could train a feat at level 1,4,7,10, 13, 16 .... Choose carefully. Even at level 30 you can take only 10 feats, but some are destined to be used by specific parties like archers, rogues etc. His team will upgrade cohorts to your current level and teach the following feats : a. Awareness - Your team knows where to look and what to listen for to anticipate ambushes. Leader Prerequisite: Listen 12, Spot 12 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Listen or Spot 2 Ranks. With this every member gains a +2 bonus to Listen and Spot checks. Pay 1000 gp and play a game. Spot 3 halflings hidden in a house S of Highcliff. In my game they hide in the 3 room on the N side. It`s possible the last one is above your spot check and the only way to see him is to cast a dispel spell in the room. Get 1300 XP. b. Camp Routine - The regular routine your group has established allows you to set up, watch, and break down camp quickly and efficiently. As a result, the party is 25% less likely to have a hostile encounter when resting. Leader Prerequisite: Survival 8 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Survival 1. I didn`t take it. c. Improved Camp Routine - The regular routine your group has established for resting has been honed to perfection, allowing you to set up, watch, and break down camp with the utmost speed and efficiency. The party is 50% less likely to have a hostile encounter when resting. Teamwork Prerequisite: Camp Routine ; Leader Prerequisite: Survival 12 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Survival 2. I didn`t take it. d. Circle of Blades - The members of your team can combine their attacks to slice through the defenses of a foe they have surrounded and get +2 bonus on damage rolls when attacking an flanked opponent. Leader Prerequisite: Weapon Specialization, BAB +6 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Sneak Attack +1d6 OR Weapon Finesse. I didn`t take it. e. Fearsome Roster - Your party projects an air of menace, which causes some would-be foes to flee when your team approaches them on the Overland Map.Hostiles will run from the party if their CR is 3 levels or more below the party level (without this benefit, enemies will run away if they are 4 levels or more below the party). Leader Prerequisite: Intimidate8 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Intimidate 1 Rank or +1+ Charisma. Pay 1000 gp and choose an intimidating action from what you have done before. f. Improved Fearsome Roster - Your team has become even more menacing, causing many would-be foes to flee when you approach them on the overland map.Hostiles on the Overland Map will run from the party if their CR is 2 levels or more below the partys level. Teamwork Prerequisite: Fearsome Roster ; Leader Prerequisite: Intimidate 12 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Intimidate 2 or +14 Charisma. I didn`t take it. g. Foe Hunting - Your team is especially good at tracking down and destroying specific types of creatures, gaining +2 bonus to damage rolls against the leaders favored enemy. Leader Prerequisite: Favored Enemy (any one) +4 ; Team Member Prerequisite: Survival 1, BAB +4.Pay 1000 gp and exterminate 4 Umber Hulk in a cave near Leilon for 1300 XP. This is the best because with one level of ranger and feats like Favoured Enemy and Improved Favoured Enemy : Monstrous Humanoids aka Yuan ti, you`ll be dealing all the damage required. h. Group Trance - You and your teammates reduce your susceptibility to sleep by learning the ways of the elves and sleep 4 hours instead of 8. Leader Prerequisite: Elf or Half-Elf ; Team Member Prerequisite: Concentration 1. Pay 1000 gp. Find the elven tower SW of Conyberry, click him and choose meditate for 1300 XP. i. Missile Volley - Your team excels at firing as a group, unleashing a saturated wave of arrows and bolts. Each member places her shots so that the target cannot dodge them all. Enemies get a stacking debuff of -1 AC vs. missile weapons when attacked with a missile weapon. The debuff lasts for a round. Leader Prerequisite - none ; Team Member Prerequisite: Point Blank Shot. I didn`t take it. j. Steadfast Resolve - Your team members can use their camaraderie and shared experience to shrug off the effect of fear, gaining a +2 bonus to saving throws vs. fear. Leader Prerequisite: Concentration 8, Iron Will feat ; Team Member Prerequisite: Base Will Save Bonus +2. I didn`t take it. k. Superior Flank - Your team is good at harrying foes by taking maximum advantage of their divided attention. All party members get a +2 bonus to hit when attacking a flanked opponent. Leader Prerequisite: Sneak Attack +4d6 ; Team Member Prerequisite: BAB +3.Pay 1000 gp and kill 5 assassins in a graveyard N of Neverwinter City for 1300 XP. l.Team Rush - Your team travels faster than normal as a group. The efforts and assistance of the faster characters allow the slower ones to keep up. Each party member moves at the speed of the fastest person in the party. Leader prerequisite: Survival 8, Toughness feat ; Team Member Prerequisite: Survival 1. Pay 1000 gp and kill and old,deadly goblin camped near the Banite Enclave for 1300 XP. 8. Cohorts Along the game 11 cohorts could be enlisted to help in different quests. Here is the list with a couple of necessary information : a. Inshula sar Mashewe (Human Ranger) can be found near his sister, bounty hunter Kwesi, in the Open Palm Bazaar in Samargol. She ask for 300 gp, with a diplomacy/intimidate check or you can get her for free after playing a game of cards where a rogue will remove the negative cards with Sleight of Hand. Marginally useful in the beginning for a party without points invested in hide/move silently. b. Umoja (Human Druid)reside near Vadiny`a in Open Palm Bazaar in Samargol and he will join without any conditions. He is, in my opinion, the best cohort so far. A druid have acces to powerful spells and wildshape feats, plus a familiar like Yuzhai. This dino can hold his position against mighty bosses for a while and have a lot of health, around 200 on level 16. c. Lastri Kassireh (Lightfoot Halfling Swashbuckler)stay in Leira`s Trick Tavern in Samargol. You need first to solve her quest called Samargol - Unaccounted For. She is concerned about the second mate Nerul(?) and give a key for the locked cave on the shipwreck beach. Fight through a bunch of batiri and trained dino lead by Chieftain Taelunangul. Receive from Nerul a amulet called Sailor`s Shelter and loot the place for ore and Jungle Headress(+3 Survival).Upon returning with the good news,Lastri will offer her services. She is not that bad in combat, but Swashbucklers look weak in Storm of Zehir against tough monsters.Do not forget she is available after you free her in a quest given by Sa`Sani. d. Chir Darkflame (Deep Gnome Wizard) is one of the slaves kept by mindflayers in the Underdark Black Market. She will join after you kill all of them, but the ECL penalty (+3) given by her race is far to great for those who can`t wait to deal with the Herald of Zehir. Otherwise, fight all the mobs with EL 17 in Northern Samarach, close to The Temple of World Serpent, to achieve faster epic levels. e. Finch (Half elf Bard) can be found in every inn on Sword Coast, except Neverwinter City. Before joining he ask to help him in a quest called Sword Coast - Price of a Song. While in Neverwinter he was falsely accused of stealing a noble timepiece, blocking any chance to perform in the city. Visit Blacklake district, speak with Sir Nevalle and Lady Jeanelle to clear his name and obtain an entry paper. Keep in mind that you need your own papers before asking for him, so join a merchant clan first. I only used him once - Port Llast Undead problem and he did a good job against weak enemies. f. Belueth the Calm (Aasimar Rogue/Shadow Thief of Amn) can be found in the shrine of Waukeen (Neverwinter City). Pay her fee of 5000 gp (I heard a Diplomacy check will lower the price to 3000 gp, but I never had high diplomacy among my team). The second best cohort and she could take a level of ranger for Favorite enemy Monstruous Humanoids and Assasin for extra damage, while hide/move silently come handy on the overland map. g. Grykk Bannersworn (Half Orc Paladin) reside in Wailing Wench Tavern from Neverwinter. Ask him to join and donate 1000 gp to his monastery. If you are lawful good he will join for free. I didn`t use it. h. Quarrel (Half Drow Warlock) is one of Tamas pupil in West Harbor.Deal first with the dragon problem, then ask Aruna what`s new and she will point to Quarrel. Quarell blame his low understanding of magic as the failure to deal with the dragons and hint about a master aka Ammon Jerro. A quest will pop up ( West Harbor - Path of the Master ) when you suggest he should visit Crossroad Keep. Be inside the keep and ask him to join. Warlock magic is good in Samarach (yes, I started with a NPC warlock one time !), but not enough in Sword Coast (check him against the warlock in the Shadow fortress, for example). i. Soraevora Aeravand (Sun Elf Favored Soul) can be found next to Khelgar in Crossroad Keep. She is the best solution for a party without a cleric and her magic, while somehow limited,is strong enough to complement a custom made sorcerer or Chir Darkflame. j. Ribsmasher (Human Monk) is a prisoner in Onyx Cave (see Sword Coast, Miscelaneous quests). I didn`t use it. k. Septimund (Human Cleric/Doomguide of Kelemvor) is involved in the mainquest ( see Port Llast - Under New Management ). I used him once to deal with the undead army attacking Port Llast and he can be a useful player. Unfortunately, I don`t think Doomguide is a good choice, because I like to have a third hybrid tank. A cleric with a couple of fighter or Stormlord levels is much more powerfull. 9. Bugs and tricks There are plenty of bugs in this game. A couple of quest can`t be updated or crash if you bring certain cohorts ( see Port Llast - Under New Management), other relate to the amount of trade bars earned or non functioning portals. The list can go on, but is best to consult the extensive list on nwn2forums.bioware.com, Storm of Zehir. Tricks are usually a way to earn money or XP using ingame odities. For example : 1. you can earn more XP by summoning extra pets before exiting to the overland map, after a random battle. 2. The Phandalin Cold Iron mine quest is the equivalent of Lorne quest in NWN2. Take your reward, exit and go again in the inn to receive the same amount of money and XP every time you do it. Be careful - if you load a save game and try to do this again the journal will update properly and stop the glitch ( I think, didn`t tested !). 3. To get a boost on the overland map and escape a mob to fast otherwise - when they approach click parley, then evade. Pause the game fast, then click on the map and your team leader will go faster for some seconds. Once again, check for more on forums. 10. Credits All credits go to Atari, Obisidian and all the RPG fans who love to find and fix everything. Copyright 2009 Limona Razvan


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Confirmed: Toyota Moving North American Headquarters to Texas
Move Follows Nissan's Exodus from Golden State in 2005
California may have legendarily mild and pleasant weather going for it, but in terms of the business climate, the Golden State is also legendarily bureaucratic and burdensome, making it a prime target for more business-friendly states to recruit and persuade companies to move. Nissan made the move from the Los Angeles suburb of Gardena to the Nashville, Tennessee, area in 2005, ultimately building a new headquarters and settling in the Nashville suburb of Franklin. Nissan's U.S. operations had been based in Southern California since 1958. Now, it looks like Toyota may soon follow suit, with a report from Automotive News suggesting it may move its North American sales and marketing headquarters from Torrance, California, to the Dallas, Texas, suburb of Plano.
At approximately 11 a.m. Pacific Time today, Toyota confirmed the Automotive News story by issuing a release confirming the move. The company announced a consolidation of its operations in Torrance, California, and its engineering operations in Erlanger, Kentucky, to a new campus in Plano. Approximately 4000 employees will be affected by the move. Construction will begin in Fall 2014, and is expected to be completed by late 2016 or early 2017.
In an official statement, Toyota North America CEO Jim Lentz, said the move would help the company to be "better-equipped to speed decision making, share best practices, and leverage the combined strength of our employees." Lentz went on to say "This is the most significant change we've made to our North American operations in the past 50 years, and we are excited for what the future holds."
Like Nissan, Toyota has a long history on the West Coast, being based in Southern California for more than 50 years. Although the report comes as somewhat of a surprise, looking at the larger logistical picture, such a move would make sense. Since the closure of the NUMMI joint-venture plant in Northern California in 2010, Toyota has few manufacturing operations on the West Coast, with only a plant in Tijuana, Mexico, which makes some Tacomas, and builds truck bed assemblies. The majority of Toyota's manufacturing operations are in or around the Southeast, including Mississippi, Kentucky, an engine plant in West Virginia, and the truck plant that builds the Tundra and Tacoma in San Antonio, Texas.
Texas Governor Rick Perry has also been very aggressive in recruiting businesses in heavily regulated and taxed states to move to the low-tax, laissez-faire regulatory environment of the Lone Star state. It's likely Perry presented a highly attractive package of tax breaks and incentives to persuade Toyota to relocate. An official announcement of the move is expected to come within a few weeks.
Source: Automotive News, Toyota

subset: commoncrawl


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After months of tension and frustration, key world powers and Iran sounded more optimistic Saturday after "constructive and useful" talks about Tehran's intentions for its nuclear program.
"We have agreed that the nonproliferation treaty forms a key basis for what must be serious engagement to ensure all the obligations under the treaty are met by Iran while fully respecting Iran's right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said following the meeting with Iran's top negotiator, Saeed Jalili.
Ashton said Saturday's meeting in Istanbul was a basis to establish a "sustained process of serious dialogue."
The next meeting between Jalili and delegates from the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council -- the United States, France, Russia, China, and Britain -- and Germany, will be held May 23 in Baghdad.
Jalili insisted that the goal of his nation's nuclear program is to produce energy, not weaponry. He stressed, too, that Iran "should enjoy our rights" to have nuclear energy.
That said, Jalili also noted the "positive approach" of the recent talks, saying they furthered the "process of cooperation."
Ashton and Jalili said that experts will meet before May 23 to create a detailed framework for future discussions about Iran's program.
"We expect that subsequent meetings will lead to concrete steps toward a comprehensive negotiated solution which restores international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear program," Ashton told reporters.
The group of delegates -- also known as the P5+1 -- has spearheaded diplomatic efforts to persuade Iran to rein in its nuclear program, which Iran has said is purely peaceful. U.N. and Western leaders suspect it of having military aims, including a possible nuclear weapon.
All sides agreed to postpone talks about the details of Iran's nuclear program to a later date.
Ashton said that future dialogue would involve the principle of a "step-by-step approach and reciprocity."
Asked specifically what she meant, Ashton told CNN the steps "will be designed to build the confidence that there isn't going to be a nuclear weapons program. That might be, for example, enabling inspectors to have more access."
Reciprocity, Ashton indicated, could include rewarding Iran, which is under significant global sanctions, if it dismantles inappropriate programs.
"But that needs to be very carefully thought about," she said. "And it is very important that we recognize the importance of sanctions in taking and actually getting us to today."
Iran last met with the six powers for talks on its nuclear program 15 months ago. That meeting, also in Istanbul, was widely regarded as ending in failure when Iran presented what the international side said were preconditions for talks.
Jalili told CNN later Saturday said his country has supported positive dialogue.
"We have always said confidence building has been a two-way street," he said.
Going into Saturday's meeting, the indications from behind the scenes were that both sides wanted to make progress.
Ashton said the P5+1 wanted to know whether Iran was serious toward moving toward a sustained process.
Apparently, the group was satisfied by Iran's rhetoric.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said in an opinion piece published Friday in the Washington Post that Tehran is committed to a peaceful program, but it needs to see trust from the international side.
"Despite sanctions, threats of war, assassinations of several of our scientists and other forms of terrorism, we have chosen to remain committed to dialogue," he wrote.
"In the upcoming talks, we hope that all sides will return to the negotiating table as equals with mutual respect; that all sides will be committed to comprehensive, long-term dialogue aimed at resolving all parties' outstanding concerns; and, most important, that all sides make genuine efforts to reestablish confidence and trust."
Iran has been under increasing pressure to accept international demands to restrict its nuclear program, including a series of harsh economic sanctions imposed by European nations and the United States. It hopes future negotiations will lead to an end to those sanctions.
Last month, Iranian officials signaled that they were ready to engage with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, over the issue.
Iran suggested last week that one proposal may be a reduction in the amount of uranium it enriches to 20%, but it was unclear if such a proposal was still on the table.
While the enrichment isn't enough to create nuclear weapons, which require a uranium content of 90% or more, analysts and inspectors say it is a step toward being able to create a nuclear weapon.
Last month, the IAEA noted what it called a sharp and troubling increase in Iran's uranium enrichment capabilities.
Iran says the enrichment is for research and medical needs.
As a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Iran has the right, like other countries, to enrich uranium for commercial and research reactors. But the same facilities that are used for peaceful enrichment can be used to enrich uranium for a bomb, and inspectors say they have not been able to fully gauge Iran's intentions.


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My Mordin died a rather pathetic, and entirely unintentional death at the end of Mass Effect 2. Seeing as a little plaque on the Normandy is hardly a fitting tribute to a "man" of so many talents, I might look into this bust for a memorial instead.
Priced at $40 and being sold from BioWare's store, it's not very big—it only stands 8" tall—but for that price, you shouldn't be expecting something life-size.
Mordin Bust [BioWare]


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Candied Cherry Tomatoes
Crunchy, juicy, salty-sweet and single-serving, candied cherry tomatoes taste as good as they look. Not surprisingly, the idea for these Cookfight cuties comes from Serious Eats.
Reprinted with permission by Julia Moskin and Kim Severson. Copyright © 2013. Published by HarperCollins Publishers. Available wherever books are sold. All rights reserved.
Read more: Bake the Book: Candied Cherry Tomatoes
- Yield:makes 24 tomatoes
- Active time: 20 minutes
- Total time:30 minutes
- 1/4 cup white and black sesame seeds, toasted (about 2 tablespoons each)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 24 firm ripe cherry tomatoes, stems removed
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Put the sesame seeds and salt in a small bowl, mix, and set aside.
Clip a candy thermometer to the side of a deep 3- to 4-quart saucepan. Combine the sugar and balsamic vinegar in the pan and boil over medium-high heat, swirling the pan occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the corn syrup.
Continue to cook, brushing down the sides of the pan with a moistened pastry brush to prevent crystallization and adjusting the heat as needed so the syrup doesn't boil over, until the syrup registers 305 degrees (hard-crack stage) on the thermometer. Remove from the heat.
Put a toothpick into the stem end of a tomato, then dip the tomato into the syrup, allowing the syrup to go a little over halfway up the tomato. Twirl gently and carefully over the pan to let the excess drip off, then immediately dip the bottom half of the tomato into the sesame seeds and stand, seed end down, on the lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining tomatoes, reheating the sugar syrup over low heat as needed to restore fluidity
Let cool for 10 minutes at room temperature before serving.
This Recipe Appears InBake the Book: Candied Cherry Tomatoes
This post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Serious Eats. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.


text: Dear Forumembers, My problem is easy: ispconfig installer/updater script doesn't detect dovecot server and not configure it. When i reconfigure the services with update.php it always says "Configure Courier". But i don't have courier imap server. My config is centos [email protected]_64, ispconfig 3.0.4 with the atrpm's dovecot packages. I followed that instructions from http://www.howtoforge.com/perfect-server-centos-5.7-x86_64-ispconfig-2 The core of ispconfig is working, i can create email accounts and websites, and i can sending emails, but i don't recieve. ..... Reconfigure Services? (yes,no) [yes]: Configuring Postfix Configuring Mailman Configuring Jailkit Configuring SASL Configuring PAM Configuring Courier Configuring Spamassassin Configuring Amavisd Configuring Getmail Configuring MyDNS Configuring Apache Configuring vlogger Configuring Apps vhost Configuring Database Updating ISPConfig .... Any idea? Tibor


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Adobe Photoshop Elements 10 for Windows [Download]
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PlatformsWindows Vista, Windows 7, Windows XP
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Editorial Review
Turn everyday memories into sensational photos you'll cherish forever. Adobe Photoshop Elements 10--the newest version of the #1 consumer photo-editing software--makes it easy to edit and create using automated options. Make flawed photos phenomenal with a brush stroke, create perfect group shots, and easily add patterns and effects. Tell your stories in unique printed creations and Online Albums, share photos with your social network, and view photos virtually anywhere you are.
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Brunswick County is looking at its first major cold snap of the year this week, with nighttime temperatures expected to drop to as low as 17 degrees.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), we are unlikely to experience a repeat of the early 2014 deep freeze that coated our area with a thick layer of ice. One caveat: The winter forecast favors below-average temperatures in southeastern states.
Too many efforts to make Brunswick County roads and bridges safer and more convenient are posing serious risks and creating major hardships as we enter a new year.
Some discomfort is to be expected during times of change, as indicated by endless clichés like "no pain, no gain" and "you can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs."
But some projects under way by the North Carolina Department of Transportation seem to have given little thought to the people who live, work and travel here.
Eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon wrote a letter to the editor of New York's Sun, and the quick response was printed as an unsigned editorial Sept. 21, 1897. The work of veteran newsman Francis Pharcellus Church has since become history's most reprinted newspaper editorial.
Brunswick County Schools are working hard to establish more digital learning environments for students, although the glitches they have encountered thus far have little to do with technology.
The inability to keep pace with statewide and national trends not only affects student learning, but also the school system's bottom line.
Most of us would think twice before dropping $35,000 on a new vehicle or $350,00 on a new home. We would do some research to make sure we were getting a fair deal on a sound investment and take time to carefully consider all options before agreeing to a final price.
About 6 a.m. Thanksgiving Day, volunteers gathered at Shallotte Presbyterian Church to prepare holiday suppers for those in the community who receive Meals On Wheels. Offered through Brunswick Senior Resources Inc., Meals On Wheels volunteers deliver hot meals to adults 60 and older who are homebound or at BSRI senior centers and sites throughout the county. The volunteers took time out of their holiday with their own families and friends to make sure their neighbors would not go without participating in the traditional feast.
The revival of Shallotte's once-bustling riverwalk, as well as the development of other properties central to the town's vision plan, is progressing at a steady pace.
At its regular meeting earlier this month, the Shallotte Board of Aldermen approved the acquisition, sources of funding and contracts to buy properties on Cheers and Wall streets.
This essentially completes the property purchases necessary for the town's riverfront project, an idea first proposed in 2008 as part of Shallotte's vision plan.
The decision by the majority of the Brunswick County Board of Education to terminate Superintendent Dr. Edward Pruden's contract is bad enough.
But the inaccessibility of those three members — Shirley Babson, Catherine Cooke and newly re-elected Charlie Miller — in the immediate aftermath makes it much worse.
After the decision was announced following a special-called meeting Nov. 12, Babson, Cooke and Miller bolted from the board's meeting room at the Brunswick County Schools Administrative Offices in Bolivia.
United States veterans are traditionally honored at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month, the latter of which is the anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I.
Originally, in 1938, Congress made Nov. 11 Armistice Day, a legal holiday celebrating world peace and honoring World War I veterans. In 1954, Congress amended that act to make the holiday Veterans Day, honoring American veterans of all wars. After some confusion over what date the holiday should be observed, however, Veterans Day again was designated as Nov. 11 in 1978.
Election Day 2014 is over. Now the time has come to plan the next steps for local, state and federal government officials who have been elected to serve us.
Those steps could not be possible without the people who have already taken the first, most important step in our democratic process: voters.
This week, schools in and around Brunswick County are observing what's commonly called Red Ribbon Week, which is taking place this year Oct. 23-31. Cedar Grove Middle School in Supply, for one, will have a mini flag football game Thursday, Oct. 30, with staff, students and members of the Wilmington Tigers Semi-Pro Football Team as part of their celebration.
Halloween is a holiday meant to be equal parts fun and frightening for all who observe it, but celebrations have the potential to turn tragic. Whether participating in traditional trick-or-treating with children or costumed revelry with adults, it is important to be safe and responsible.
If Brunswick County were to ever to become the home of a theme park, the type Rube McMullan plans to make a reality is the ideal kind.
McMullan is using a parcel along the Shallotte River he purchased from First Bank as the springboard for what he hopes will become Shallotte River Swamp Park, opening by May 1, 2015.
History has taught us not to let our guard down during hurricane season, which is in full swing with fall's arrival. This year marks the anniversaries of four of the most devastating storms to strike our community in the past century.
Many can still remember exactly what they were doing just before Hurricane Hazel made landfall 60 years ago Oct. 15 as a Category 4 storm at the Carolinas' state line. Hazel killed 95 people in the United States and 100 more in Canada.
Nearly all of us have done it: A friend, a family member or a coworker mentioned he is suffering from a headache or muscle sprain or anxiety attack, and you offered him a pill from one of your personal prescriptions — not because you meant to break the law, but because you did not want to see someone suffer pain.
If you were lucky, that is as far as it went, a one-time solution to an immediate problem. But even if you not realize it, chances are you know someone who is addicted and needs help.
Service as an elected official requires a certain degree of sacrifice. Apparently, Brunswick County Board of Education members forgot that when they tried to give themselves a raise Aug. 28.
It is difficult to believe, given their combined 57 years on the board, they did not know only the Brunswick County Board of Commissioners can give them a raise.
It is astounding that they would try this in a year when teachers across the state had to fight so hard to secure an average 7 percent salary increase from the General Assembly.
Most Americans can remember exactly where they were and what they were doing 13 years ago today. At the same time, for many of us, the day was a blur.
The day we simply call 9/11, now observed as Patriot Day, was marked by four separate but coordinated attacks that established this timeline:
Hijackers crashed the first plane into the World Trade Center's North Tower in New York City at 8:46 a.m.
The second hijacked plane hit the South Tower at 9:03 a.m.
The third hijacked plane struck the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., at 9:37 a.m.
On the surface, Venus flytrap poaching may seem like a victimless crime. The valuable vegetation adapts to being held in captivity as a houseplant, after all. But the reason lawmakers pushed this year to make stealing the plants from their native land — which includes Brunswick County — a felony is because our heritage is the true victim of this crime.
Two news items in this edition are cause for concern.
One is the report that the North Carolina House defeated a bill last week that could have secured economic development funding linked to Brunswick County's effort to bring a new business into one of its industrial parks.
The other is the report that the Brunswick County school district has lost 181 of its 840 teachers in the past school year.
Sunset Beach town leaders are pushing for a change to allow swimming pools on the oceanfront.
The change is on a list of proposed Unified Development Ordinance amendments reviewed by the Sunset Beach Planning Board at its Aug. 7 meeting. The proposal is to add swimming pools as a permitted use in all town zoning districts except mainland business MB2, which could pave the way for a public swimming pool.
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