Rescue the Queen

Rescue the Queen is the mainline quest to free Anora, King Cailan's wife, from the Estate of the Arl of Denerim.

Background
The Arl of Redcliffe arranges for Anora's handmaid, Erlina, to meet with The Warden. She tells the party that the queen is being held prisoner in Denerim at Arl Howe's estate.

Walkthrough

 * 1) Arl of Denerim's Estate:
 * 2) * Travel to the Arl of Denerim's Estate
 * 3) * Meet with Erlina, who helps you sneak in.
 * 4) * Explore the main level and find your way to the dungeon.
 * 5) Dungeon Level
 * 6) * Confront Arl Howe.
 * 7) * Converse with other prisoners.
 * 8) Main level reprise
 * 9) * Fight interior guards
 * 10) * Rescue Anora
 * 11) * Escape or Surrender

Arl of Denerim's Estate &mdash; Exterior
Travel to the Arl of Denerim's Estate from the Denerim city map and meet with Erlina. She will explain that, due to peasant unrest, only the back entrance is open. Sneak past the crowds at the main entrance and follow the path to the back of the estate. (If you are spotted, fight the four guards who appear; they will not sound the alarm.)

When you meet up with Erlina again, she will warn you that the door guards will recognize your party as impostors, so let her distract them. (Take a few steps away from the door to trigger the cutscene.) Advance towards the door to enter the main level. Should you choose to fight the guards outside, the disguises will no longer work and you will have to fight your way through the estate.

Arl of Denerim's Estate &mdash; Interior
Once inside, search the western part of the the main level thieving and looting as you might anywhere else. Eventually, you will end up at the Queen's room, which has been magically sealed, forcing you to find the Arl, who has the key.

You can continue to loot the remaining rooms with impunity except for one belonging to Bann Vaughan. You can blow your cover now or save that room for later. Either way, trouble is on its way. If you do enter, you will see a human woman and man in a mildly compromising position. He recognizes that you are not part of Howe's guards and sounds the alarm. Although he is easy to kill, the remaining guards will turn hostile slowing your exploration.

In the last hallway before reaching the dungeon you will find a locked door that can be opened by a Master Lockpicker. Behind it lies piles of treasure, including Howe's Shield and a lot of cash. In the last room before the dungeon, find a Chest that contains some mildly interesting Warden Documents.

Arl of Denerim's Estate &mdash; Dungeon
As you arrive in the dungeon, one of the prisoners takes advantage of the distraction of your entrance to overpower his guard. Riordan is a Grey Warden from Orlais who has a brief conversation with you before heading out.

Your disguises will no longer work, so get ready to start fighting. Eventually, you will find your way to to Arl Howe, who offers very little conversation before attacking. His corpse has Biteback Axe and some keys, allowing you to free the Queen as well as taking a shortcut back to the main level.

Before you leave (or on your way to Howe), you also have an opportunity to chat with (and perhaps free) some of the other prisoners. See the Dungeon article for more details. Take special note of Vaughan, who you can spare in exchange for his vote at the Landsmeet.

Reprise: Arl of Denerim's Estate &mdash; Interior
There are two exits back to the main level: the entrance closer to Howe requires fighting larger numbers of guards simultaneously; returning the way you came involves more walking, but smaller confrontations. Area of Effect spells, traps, and bombs are very helpful in controlling the masses and choke points. Regardless of the path, fight your way back to the Queen's room, where you will find her disguised for travel back to her estate.

Alas, for all your subterfuge and prowess eliminating Howe's guards, the exit is blocked by Ser Cauthrien, who offers you the choice to surrender or die.

Cauthrien's team presents the toughest challenge; the best strategy is to quickly exit the room to avoid getting surrounded and give you an opportunity to control the number of foes tackled at one time. The boss knight is usually the first to follow and she deals heavy damage, so most strategies involve distracting or snaring her: her target can try to run circles around her, slowing her attacks; mage spells like Winter's Grasp or Cone of Cold can freeze her; or you can try various techniques to Stun her. Some players like to freeze a foe in the doorway, preventing the rest of the enemy from reaching your team and allowing you to use various ranged attacks to win a war of attrition. In the worst case, if you lose the fight, The Warden will be taken prisoner, as if you decided to surrender. In the best case, remember to loot Cauthrien's corpses for her weapon before heading outside and back to Arl Eamon's Estate.
 * Fight!

You can decide to surrender to Cauthrien, which causes The Warden (and Alistair, if present) to be locked up in the jail at Fort Drakon. However, the rest of the party manages to evade capture and has the option of completing Captured!. The Warden has two choices: to escape or wait to be rescued by their companions. Any two companions (except for Shale) with high enough approval, can be chosen to attempt a rescue. See the main article for details.
 * Surrender

Not all companions think this a pragmatic choice: Sten's approval and Oghren's.

Result

 * It seems Anora managed to get to Eamon's estate, where she will be staying as a guest.


 * Queen Anora is rescued.
 * The Alienage in Denerim is unlocked; Unrest in the Alienage begins.
 * Miscellaneous loot includes: Howe's Shield, Biteback Axe, The Summer Sword, 40 from Vaughan, and a pile of treasure.