Not everything is perfect in Baldur’s Gate when you arrive to the city. There are a few problems you need to handle with your Baldur’s Gate 3 group, and one of them involves a girl named Vanra. She’s been kidnapped, and her mother’s lost her. Tracking her down won’t be easy.
You’ll be able to get his quest while visiting the Flaming Fist barracks in the Lower Cities of Baldur’s Gate. There, a distressed woman is trying to enlist help from the guards, but they’re not interested, and it’s your turn to try and resolve the situation. Here’s what you need to know about how to complete Save Vanra in Baldur’s Gate 3.
How to Investigate the Blushing Mermaid in Baldur’s Gate 3
Shortly after speaking with Lora, who gives you the Save Vanra quest in Baldur’s Gate 3, she’ll ask you to investigate her missing daughter at the Blushing Mermaid. You can find the Blushing Mermaid tavern close to the center of the city, north of the Counting House, close to the harbors. After accepting the quest, you can make your way over here at any time.
When you arrive at the Blushing Mermaid with your Baldur’s Gate 3 group, there won’t be too much direction on what you should be doing. You’ll be free to explore the entire bar to find anyone who may have learned something about Vanra and where she might have gone.
I spoke with the bartender who works on the bottom floor of the tavern, Bosun Gannet, about Vanra. He shared that Lora had been screaming about Vanra earlier but got kicked out. After speaking with Bosun, we’re told to talk with the captain of the Blushing Mermaid, Captain Grisly, who is on the second floor.
My Monk went upstairs to talk with Captain Grisly, and we learned more about Lora. It turns out that she was having several drinks with others last night, but she was alone. No one saw the child, Vanra, with her at all.
As we spoke further with Captain Grisly, she offered 3,000 Gold for us to take out Lora permanently because she’s a dangerous pirate. However, after refusing to help her, Captain Grisly revealed herself to be Auntie Ethel, who appeared in Act 1 of Baldur’s Gate 3. My character was surprised by this, having killed her when we killed her after saving Mayrina.
Auntie Ethel revealed that because we saved Mayrina in Act 1 and ran off with her original child, she had to find another. Auntie Ethel asks my character to walk away and leave her alone so she can create another hag, much like herself. For my Baldur’s Gate 3 playthrough, I refused, and Auntie Ethel disappeared. However, several crew members partying on the second floor became Red Cap versions of themselves, and we had to fight them.
Where to Find Auntie Ethel in Baldur’s Gate in Baldur’s Gate 3
After dealing with the Red Caps, Auntie Ethel has slipped away from you in Baldur’s Gate 3. She’s hiding somewhere in Baldur’s Gate, having eaten Vanra, and is trying to create another hag for herself. The downside to her getting away is your group needs to track her down, and they need a way to save Vanra. Directly attacking Auntie Ethel will kill Vanra, which you don’t want to do. You can find her by returning to Captain Grisly’s room and heading down into the basement, behind the Cellar Door.
When you arrive in the basement, it should look like a fairly simple area, with a few kegs here and there. However, you can reach a higher level by jumping on top of the kegs, with some overgrown trees in the corner. One of your Baldur’s Gate 3 characters will need to have a high enough Perception to see through the illusion on the left wall, but if they can, your group should be able to move through this area. There is a locked door you’ll need to pass a Sleight of Hand check to unlock.
For those who fought against Auntie Ethel in Act 1, this lower area is similar to that one, where several characters have masks on their face and have been corrupted by Auntie Ethel. I recommend fighting against them with your Baldur’s Gate 3 group, but you’ll want to make sure you’re using non-lethal melee attacks and knock them out rather than killing them.
After dealing with them, you can advance to the next room. However, it is essential to note that it is likely in your best interest to complete the Help the Hag Survivors quest. This quest gives you access to an item known as Hag’s Bane, and your Baldur’s Gate 3 group can use it to save Vanra.
Given my experience with this item, it is the only known way to save Vanra, which you have to use against Auntie Ethel during your second fight against her. You can unlock the Hag’s Bane by completing the Help the Hag Survivors quest, which involves Mayrina. If you have not already done this, I recommend going through this quest before confronting Auntie Ethel and trying to save Vanra.
How to Battle Auntie Ethel & Get Vanra Out of Ethel’s Stomach in Baldur’s Gate 3
When you walk into the next room, Auntie Ethel will be there. She’ll remind you that, now that she’s consumed Vanra, she can’t be harmed. However, if your Baldur’s Gate 3 group has created the Hag’s Bane, they can use it like a throwable item and toss it on her during combat. Immediately after using it, a cutscene will play out where Auntie Ethel is having trouble keeping Vanra in her stomach.
You can now freely attack Auntie Ethel with your Baldur’s Gate 3. Vanra is no longer in her stomach and has run away from Ethel to the safety of the corner of the room. However, even if you down Auntie Ethel, she has three Peralspore Bell mushrooms that will revive her. You’ll need to make sure your party also destroys them, or Auntie Ethel will continue to stand up and fight.
After beating Ethel, your Baldur’s Gate 3 party can speak with Vanra and make sure she’s okay. Unfortunately, she won’t have much to say, and she’ll run off to find her mother. The final step in this quest is to speak with Lora, and she’ll be at her home. You can find her home to the southeast of Stormshore Armoury, to the east of Sorcerous Sundries.
You can head over to speak with Lora, and she’ll thank you for returning her daughter. Doing so has brought her a good amount of closure, and she’ll reward your Baldur’s Gate 3 group by giving them one of her prized swords when she was a pirate: the Duellist’s Prerogative.
