Changes: Forbidden Knowledge

Revision as of 23:25, 14 April 2020

Forbidden Knowledge is an Act 2 side quest in Dragon Age II.

Bug! This quest is bugged. Choosing any option other than destroying the initial 5 books will leave you unable to complete the quest. This quest can still be completed with the stat boost as long as only the Fell Grimoire is read.

Acquisition

If Idunna was spared during Enemies Among Us, she sends a letter to Hawke at the beginning of Act 2. If she is dead, the quest is received upon finding any Evil Tome.

Maximising experience and loot

To achieve the largest possible amount of experience as well as gaining the stat boost and Voracity, destroy all five Evil Tomes, the quest will proceed and you will be led to the last book called the Fell Grimoire. Then choose to read the Grimoire to gain the stat boost. This will let you complete the quest and gain the stat boost as well as the unique Staff.

Walkthrough

There are 5 Evil Tomes scattered throughout and around Kirkwall as well as the Fell Grimoire.

You can choose any of the following options when selecting a book (they are all mutually exclusive):

Destroy the book:
- Merrill: rivalry (+10)
- 750 XP
Read the book, then accept the book's deal:
- Merrill: friendship (+5) (This will only apply for the first book.)
- Greater Tome of the Mortal Vessel
Read the book, then take it:
- Merrill: friendship (+5) (This will only apply for the first book.)
- Book of Forbidden Lore, worth 86 0.
Take the book:
- Book of Forbidden Lore, worth 86 0.

Since you can still get the Trophy, "Exorcist" even if you read or take the Fell Grimoire at the end, it is more worth your while to destroy all Five Evil Tomes.

Choosing any of these options will cause several demons and abominations to attack. You will also gain a Trash item Book of Forbidden Lore to sell for coin, no matter which choice you make, but only once, and that includes the Fell Grimoire.

Taking or reading any of the Evil Tomes will make the quest impossible to complete.

Reading and accepting the book's deal will give you +2 attribute points, but this will only work once: subsequent books will not provide attribute bonuses.

Evil Tomes

The order in which you find the Evil Tomes is irrelevant. Upon entering an area with a tome, it will be marked on the map. Be prepared to fight shades, demons and abominations. The tomes are located:

In the chantry on a table near the top of the southern stairs.

Note: If Sebastian is not in the party, he will join in as ally in the ensuing fight if you lure the enemies to him.

In eastern Viscount's Keep, on a bench near the throne.

Note: When the enemies spawn a door closes. It can be unlocked (during combat only) for 250 XP with 50 cunning (or 40 and "Bonus to lockpicking" gear).

Note: The tome in the keep can not be used immediately upon arriving in Act 2; Hawke must leave the area and return to use it as Hawke being able to use the book immediately upon starting Act 2 would mean they could possibly be forced to fight alone.)

Note: If Aveline is not in the party, she will join in as ally in the ensuing fight if you lure the enemies to her room.

In the Rotting Cave (which will not be accessible until another tome is read/taken/destroyed), whose entrance is found at the far-eastern end of The Bone Pit at surface-level, at an otherwise dead end (see map below). A Corrupted Lyrium is also in the cave.

In the Abandoned Thaig, whose entrance is shown as "Recently Opened Passage" in the game, and is near Sundermount's western exit to the world map. The tome is found in the main room of the thaig, along with the Nexus Golem's wares. There is a battle in this room before getting the tome; see abandoned thaig strategy if you have trouble.

In a Dank Cave, whose unmarked entrance is found in the north-central area of the Wounded Coast (see map below). A dragon guards the tome and a modest treasure. There is also Raw Lyrium at the beginning of the cave.

The Fell Grimoire

The Fell Grimoire can be found in the Forgotten Lair, which is an area in Darktown near the Northwest entrance next to a barrel and labeled as Evil Pit. It will not be unlocked until all the Evil Tomes have been destroyed.

As soon as you enter the Forbidden Lair, there is a master trap (50 cunning to detect and disarm - 250 XP) blocking the hallway.

Note: If you set off this trap, poison gas is released to the north and east of the first intersection you encounter, and disarming switches appear in the passage of this intersection (one at the intersection, one at the northern end). Using this switch turns off the poison gas.

The first door you encounter has a simple lock (10 cunning to open - 50 XP), so be sure to bring at least one rogue or you cannot proceed. After fighting some corpses in the first room, there are 2 complex traps (30 cunning to detect and disarm - 150 XP) and a master trap* (40 cunning to detect and disarm - 200 XP) at the beginning of the short hallway before the open doorway, and a complex trap (30 cunning to detect and disarm - 150 XP) and 2 master traps (40 cunning to detect and disarm - 200 XP) just before the doorway.

Note: * This master trap can sometimes spawn as a complex trap instead.

Note: All Traps could be Master Traps, netting your group a very large amount of xp for disarming them all, so being very careful and prepared could end up being very profitable to you.

Just past the open doorway there are three more master traps (50 cunning to detect and disarm - 250 XP/trap), and just before the passage turns north there are three more master traps* (50 cunning to detect and disarm - 250 XP/trap). Ranged attacks can draw enemies into safe areas where they can be defeated and then the traps can be disarmed.

Note: * These master traps shoot a one-time flame-burst from the south wall of the upcoming corner; they also release poison gas west of the traps and north of the upcoming corner where the passage turns north (the gas eventually disappears). There are an Arcane Horror and 2 Skeleton Archers around the corner; if you set off these traps and release the poison gas, the gas can kill them as long as they do not see you.

Note: A rogue with 40+ cunning and "Bonus to disarm traps" gear will be effective at disarming the master traps listed above that normally require 50 cunning to detect and disarm.

An Arcane Horror and 2 Skeleton Archers attack where the passage turns north (unless the poison gas killed them).

In the next room you find the grimoire.

Destroy the book:
- Merrill: rivalry (+10)
Read the book, then accept the book's deal:
- Merrill: friendship (+5)
- Greater Tome of the Mortal Vessel
- Book of Forbidden Lore, worth 86 0.
Read the book, then take it:
- Merrill: friendship (+5)
- Book of Forbidden Lore, worth 86 0.
Take the book:
- Book of Forbidden Lore, worth 86 0.

No matter what you do with the Fell Grimoire, you will confront Xebenkeck, a powerful desire demon. The boss will summon hordes of rage demons and abominations, as well as a revenant in the second wave. See the article on Xebenkeck for strategies to defeat them.

Result

Tarohne's tomes and potentially the Fell Grimoire are destroyed.

Rewards

Exorcist achievement or trophy
From 3 to 7 on Xebenkeck
1000 XP (after reading/destroying the Fell Grimoire - quest completion)
(optional) 750 XP/book destroyed and (about) 260 XP/demon fight (for the "other" five books)

Notable items

Voracity, looted from Xebenkeck

Notes

If you are seeking the Supplier achievement, be sure to grab the Raw Lyrium from the cave on the Wounded Coast and the Corrupted Lyrium in the cave in The Bone Pit
Even if you decide to read or take the Fell Grimoire, the journal will still say that it was destroyed.
Even if you read the Fell Grimoire, or you read any of the other Evil Tomes, you still get Book of Forbidden Lore trash item to sell.
You gain Merrill: rivalry (+10) for each book that is destroyed, resulting in a whopping Merrill: rivalry (+60) if she is in the party when destroying all Evil Tomes and the Fell Grimoire.
If you've read any of the books and playing on the PC version it is possible to use the runscript zz_lgt_debug command from the console, select Act 2, and then more choices, and then forbidden knowledge. Then you can select the final phase of the quest and complete the quest despite having read a book (you might need to be somewhere other than darktown when you use the command for it to work, you will be teleported to darktown right next to the entrance).

@@ Line 27: / Line 27: @@
 === Maximising experience and loot ===
-To achieve the largest possible amount of experience as well as gaining the stat boost and [[Voracity]], destroy all five Evil Tomes, the quest will proceed and you will be led to the last book called the [[Fell Grimoire]]. Then choose to read the Grimoire to gain the stat boost. This will let you complete the quest and gain the stat boost as well as the unique [[Staves (Dragon Age II)|Staff]].
+To achieve the largest possible amount of experience as well as gaining the stat boost and [[Voracity]], destroy all five Evil Tomes, the quest will proceed and you will be led to the last book called the [[Fell Grimoire]]. Then choose to read the Grimoire to gain the stat boost. This will let you complete the quest and gain the stat boost as well as the unique [[Voracity|Staff]].
 == Walkthrough ==
@@ Line 36: / Line 36: @@
 * Destroy the book:
-:{{Approval2|[[Merrill]]|-10}}
+** {{Approval2|[[Merrill]]|-10}}
+** 750 XP
-:750 XP (1500 XP in {{platforms|pc}}1.04)
 * Read the book, then accept the book's deal:
-:{{Approval2|Merrill|+5}} (This will only apply for the first book.)
+** {{Approval2|Merrill|+5}} (This will only apply for the first book.)
-:{{:Greater Tome of the Mortal Vessel (Dragon Age II)|style=iconmini}}{{clrl}}
+** {{:Greater Tome of the Mortal Vessel (Dragon Age II)|style=iconmini}}{{clrl}}
 * Read the book, then take it:
-:{{Approval2|Merrill|+5}} (This will only apply for the first book.)
+** {{Approval2|Merrill|+5}} (This will only apply for the first book.)
-:{{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
+** {{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
 * Take the book:
-:{{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
+** {{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
 Since you can still get the Trophy, "Exorcist" even if you read or take the Fell Grimoire at the end, it is more worth your while to destroy all Five Evil Tomes.
@@ Line 64: / Line 61: @@
 * In the [[Kirkwall chantry|chantry]] on a table near the top of the southern stairs.
+{{Note|If Sebastian is not in the party, he will join in as ally in the ensuing fight if you lure the enemies to him.}}
 * In eastern [[Viscount's Keep]], on a bench near the throne.
@@ Line 71: / Line 70: @@
 {{Note|The tome in the keep can not be used immediately upon arriving in Act 2; Hawke must leave the area and return to use it as Hawke being able to use the book immediately upon starting Act 2 would mean they could possibly be forced to fight alone.)}}
+{{Note|If Aveline is not in the party, she will join in as ally in the ensuing fight if you lure the enemies to her room.}}
-* In the [[Rotting Cave]], whose entrance is found at the far-eastern end of [[The Bone Pit]] at surface-level, at an otherwise dead end (see map below).  A [[Lyrium (crafting resource)|Corrupted Lyrium]] is also in the cave.
+* In the [[Rotting Cave]] (which will not be accessible until another tome is read/taken/destroyed), whose entrance is found at the far-eastern end of [[The Bone Pit]] at surface-level, at an otherwise dead end (see map below).  A [[Lyrium (crafting resource)|Corrupted Lyrium]] is also in the cave.
 * In the [[Abandoned Thaig]], whose entrance is shown as "Recently Opened Passage" in the game, and is near [[Sundermount]]'s western exit to the world map.  The tome is found in the main room of the thaig, along with the [[Nexus Golem]]'s [[Nexus Golem's Wares|wares]].  There is a battle in this room before getting the tome; see [[Abandoned_Thaig#Strategy|abandoned thaig strategy]] if you have trouble.
@@ Line 83: / Line 84: @@
 == The Fell Grimoire ==
 The [[Fell Grimoire]] can be found in the [[Forgotten Lair]], which is an area in [[Darktown]] near the Northwest entrance next to a barrel and labeled as Evil Pit. It will not be unlocked until all the Evil Tomes have been destroyed.
-As soon as you enter the Forbidden Lair, there is a ''master'' trap (50 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 250 XP) blocking the hallway. The first door you encounter has a ''simple'' lock (10 ''cunning'' to open - 50 XP), so be sure to bring at least one rogue or you cannot proceed. After fighting some corpses in the first room, there is a ''complex'' trap (30 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 150 XP) and a ''master'' trap* (40 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 200 XP) in the short hallway before the open doorway.
+As soon as you enter the Forbidden Lair, there is a ''master'' trap (50 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 250 XP) blocking the hallway.
+{{Note|If you set off this trap, poison gas is released to the north and east of the first intersection you encounter, and disarming switches appear in the passage of this intersection (one at the intersection, one at the northern end). Using this switch turns off the poison gas.}}
-{{Note|*This master trap can sometimes spawn as a complex trap instead.}}
+The first door you encounter has a ''simple'' lock (10 ''cunning'' to open - 50 XP), so be sure to bring at least one rogue or you cannot proceed. After fighting some corpses in the first room, there are 2 ''complex'' traps (30 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 150 XP) and a ''master'' trap* (40 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 200 XP) at the beginning of the short hallway before the open doorway, and a ''complex trap'' (30 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 150 XP) and 2 master traps (40 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 200 XP) just before the doorway.
-'''''Note''':All Traps could be Master Traps, netting your group a very large amount of xp for disarming them all, so being very careful and prepared could end up being very profitable to you.
-''
+{{Note|* This master trap can sometimes spawn as a complex trap instead.}}
-After walking through the open doorway, there are two more ''master'' traps (50 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 250 XP/trap) in this hallway. Ranged attacks can draw enemies into safe areas where they can be defeated and then the traps can be disarmed.
+{{Note|All Traps could be Master Traps, netting your group a very large amount of xp for disarming them all, so being very careful and prepared could end up being very profitable to you.}}
+Just past the open doorway there are three more ''master'' traps (50 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 250 XP/trap), and just before the passage turns north there are three more ''master'' traps* (50 ''cunning'' to detect and disarm - 250 XP/trap). Ranged attacks can draw enemies into safe areas where they can be defeated and then the traps can be disarmed.
+{{Note|* These master traps shoot a one-time flame-burst from the south wall of the upcoming corner; they also release poison gas west of the traps and north of the upcoming corner where the passage turns north (the gas eventually disappears). There are an Arcane Horror and 2 Skeleton Archers around the corner; if you set off these traps and release the poison gas, the gas can kill them as long as they do not see you.}}
 {{Note|A rogue with 40+ cunning and "Bonus to disarm traps" gear will be effective at disarming the master traps listed above that normally require 50 cunning to detect and disarm.}}
+An Arcane Horror and 2 Skeleton Archers attack where the passage turns north (unless the poison gas killed them).
-After destroying or reading the grimoire (which will grant you +2 attribute points), you will confront [[Xebenkeck]], a powerful [[desire demon]]. The boss will summon hordes of [[rage demon]]s and abominations, as well as a [[revenant]] in the second wave. See the article on [[Xebenkeck#strategies|Xebenkeck]] for strategies to defeat them.
+In the next room you find the grimoire.
-== Result ==
+* Destroy the book:
-The Fell Grimoire and [[Tarohne]]'s tomes were destroyed.
+** {{Approval2|[[Merrill]]|-10}}
+* Read the book, then accept the book's deal:
+** {{Approval2|Merrill|+5}}
+** {{:Greater Tome of the Mortal Vessel (Dragon Age II)|style=iconmini}}{{clrl}}
+** {{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
+* Read the book, then take it:
+** {{Approval2|Merrill|+5}}
+** {{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
+* Take the book:
+** {{:Book of Forbidden Lore|style=iconmini}}, worth {{Currency|8600}}.{{clrl}}
+No matter what you do with the Fell Grimoire, you will confront [[Xebenkeck]], a powerful [[desire demon]]. The boss will summon hordes of [[rage demon]]s and [[abomination]]s, as well as a [[revenant]] in the second wave. See the article on [[Xebenkeck#Strategy|Xebenkeck]] for strategies to defeat them.
+== Result ==
+Tarohne's tomes and potentially the Fell Grimoire are destroyed.
 == Rewards ==
@@ Line 119: / Line 139: @@
 *Even if you read the Fell Grimoire, or you read any of the other Evil Tomes, you still get Book of Forbidden Lore trash item to sell.
 * You gain {{Approval2|Merrill|-10}} for ''each'' book that is destroyed, resulting in a whopping {{Approval2|Merrill|-60}} if she is in the party when destroying all Evil Tomes and the Fell Grimoire.
+* If you've read any of the books and playing on the PC version it is possible to use the runscript zz_lgt_debug command from the console, select Act 2, and then more choices, and then forbidden knowledge. Then you can select the final phase of the quest and complete the quest despite having read a book (you might need to be somewhere other than darktown when you use the command for it to work, you will be teleported to darktown right next to the entrance).
 [[Category:Dragon Age II side quests]]