Key Takeaways
- The Gauntlet of Shar is visible from Grymforge.
- You can’t travel between them because this would place the player near the end of the second act (on the usual route).
- The Gauntlet and Grymforge are likely a part of the same Sharran underground complex.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is a game that continues to surprise, as I, and many others, are constantly learning new information about the game. Everyone knows the broad strokes, but there’s always an obscure interaction or rare dialogue to discover in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Something I’ve recently learned is courtesy of TheEccentricArtist on Reddit, who pointed out that a far-off ruin you can see in Grymforge is actually the Gauntlet of Shar from the game’s second act. While this surprised me at first, it makes sense because Gyrmforge, like the Gauntlet, was constructed by Sharran worshippers.
Since the Shadow-Cursed Lands and Act One’s Wilderness are right beside each other, it stands to reason that both Grymforge and the Gauntlet of Shar are part of the same underground complex but became separated after centuries of degradation. This has resulted in the situation we see in-game, where one can observe the Gauntlet of Shar from Grymforge, but can’t make their way down to it.
However, this inaccessibility is purely for gameplay purposes there are a plethora of ways the player should be able to access the Gauntlet from Grymforge, like Misty Step, Feather Fall and so on. You can access the Underdark by jumping down a giant hole with Feather Fall so there’s no lore reason why you wouldn’t be able to do it here.
Except… Larian doesn’t want the player beginning Act 2 via the Gauntlet of Shar. This area is the site of one of the act’s final quests. You can technically do it whenever, but it’s an uncommon approach. Imagine running into that Shadowheart situation without encountering anyone in the Shadow-Cursed Lands beforehand. You’d likely emerge onto the surface confused and wondering what that Aasimar was doing down there with the undead guy.
According to Sylassian in the thread’s comments, Larian had floated the idea of accessing the Shadow-Cursed Lands through this connection but ultimately scrapped it. As it stands, you can access the Shadow-Cursed Lands through an elevator in Grymforge.
Larian Studios has just announced Patch 8, an upcoming update that will add photo mode, crossplay and twelve new subclasses to Baldur’s Gate 3.
Baldur’s Gate 3 is the long-awaited next chapter in the Dungeons & Dragons-based series of RPGs. Developed by Divinity creator Larian Studios, it puts you in the middle of a mind flayer invasion of Faerûn, over a century after the events of its predecessor.