Forest

Key takeaways

• The Forest is a broad location, not just woodland Its scope includes the Blighted Village and the Owlbear Nest, although both are also treated as separately named locations.
• Scratch is one of the most important optional encounters Speak peacefully to the dog beside his dead master, Gomwick, to recruit Scratch to camp later.
• The Edowin encounter is time-sensitive in practice Resolve the conversation before provoking the area, and decide whether to send Brynna and Andrick away or direct them towards the Owlbear Nest.
• The Blighted Village contains several major side routes These include the Apothecary’s Cellar, the Whispering Depths, access towards the Underdark, and routes to the Goblin Camp, Risen Road and Sunlit Wetlands.
• There are numerous hidden caches around the village Bring a character with good Perception and Survival, and use a shovel for discovered dig spots.
• The area changes according to earlier choices Aradin, Barth, Remira, Raphael and other characters may appear here only under particular circumstances.

About this guide

Overview

The Forest is a named location in the Wilderness during Act One of Baldur’s Gate 3. It occupies the central woodland between the Emerald Grove, the Goblin Camp, the Risen Road and the Sunlit Wetlands. Despite its simple name, it is not merely the stretch of trees around the Emerald Grove. The game’s Forest location includes the entire Blighted Village, the Owlbear Nest, several detached sites around the village, and a number of encounters that are easy to miss if you follow only the main road.

The Forest is also one of the earliest areas where Baldur’s Gate 3 establishes its preferred style of exploration. A seemingly ordinary path can lead to a companion-related encounter, a hidden dig spot, a recruitable camp follower, a parasite specimen, an optional fight or a route into a much larger dungeon network.

Boundaries and hierarchy

The Forest belongs to the Wilderness, the large Act One overland region containing the Emerald Grove, Blighted Village, Goblin Camp, Risen Road, Sunlit Wetlands, Waukeen’s Rest, the Overgrown Ruins and other locations. Within the Wilderness map, the Forest is the central woodland area. It lies:

The Forest’s internal hierarchy is slightly unusual. The Forest page identifies the Blighted Village and Owlbear Nest as locations within the Forest, while the game and wiki also treat them as separate locations in their own right. For navigation and directory purposes, this guide follows the broader Forest boundary and includes both child areas. The Emerald Grove, Goblin Camp, Risen Road and Sunlit Wetlands are neighbouring locations, not Forest subareas.

Included subareas

• Blighted Village
• Whispering Depths
• Owlbear Nest

Excluded neighbouring locations

• The Risen Road
• Overgrown Ruins

Geography and navigation

The Forest consists of wooded paths, shallow rivers, rocky ridges and clearings around the abandoned village. The central feature is the Blighted Village, which acts as a crossroads between several major Act One routes.

The terrain rewards vertical exploration. Several objects and paths are accessible by jumping across rocks, climbing ruined structures or approaching areas from an unexpected direction. The northern entrance to the Blighted Village, for example, can allow the party to bypass the most obvious goblin guard interaction.

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A useful mental map is

Blighted Village

The Blighted Village, formerly known as Moonhaven, is an abandoned settlement at the centre of the Forest. Goblins occupy the ruins, but the village itself is much older than their current presence. Documents and environmental clues connect the former settlement to Selûne and to a violent destruction that may have involved Sharran forces connected with Ketheric Thorm.

Approaching the village for the first time awards experience and may trigger an ambush or dialogue with goblin guards. The reaction depends on the approach, whether the party is detected, and the character’s available dialogue options. Possible solutions include:

The southern entrance includes a goblin who demands money, while the eastern approach is guarded by goblins positioned around the blacksmith and apothecary buildings. Entering from the north can provide a quieter approach.

Blighted Village directory

• Whispering Depths

Apothecary’s Cellar

The Apothecary’s Cellar lies beneath one of the village buildings. It is a separate interior area rather than a general Forest landmark. Its contents include alchemical materials, documents and a puzzle involving the cellar’s hidden spaces.

This subarea is particularly useful for characters interested in:

The cellar also connects to the wider underground network beneath the village. Do not treat it as merely a loot room. It provides clues and rewards that can remain relevant much later in the game.

Whispering Depths

The Whispering Depths are the cavern network beneath the Blighted Village. They are home to spiders and are one of the earliest locations where the party can encounter a route towards the Underdark.

The Whispering Depths are an optional child area of the Blighted Village, but they should be considered part of the Forest’s overall exploration package. They offer combat experience, spider-related loot and a possible route to the Underdark. Entering through the village well is the most obvious route, although the area has other access points.

Owlbear Nest

The entrance to the Owlbear Nest is in the Forest near the river, at approximately X: 86, Y: 448. Tracks in the mud outside the entrance provide an Investigation interaction. The nest is a separate location in the game’s location hierarchy but is reached directly from the Forest.

The main encounter is with the owlbear responsible for Edowin’s injuries. The nest also contains:

The owlbear encounter can be resolved in more than one way. The party can fight, use dialogue and checks, or exploit environmental and tactical options. The outcome has later consequences for the owlbear cub, so players wishing to recruit the cub should avoid killing it unnecessarily and should consider how the Goblin Camp event is handled afterwards.

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Residents and fixed encounters

The Forest’s named characters are mostly encountered during specific scenes rather than living permanently in the area.

Edowin, Brynna and Andrick

At approximately X: 139, Y: 446, the party finds Edowin, mortally wounded after an owlbear attack, while Brynna and Andrick tend to him. The three have recently become followers of the Absolute and believe they are searching for survivors of the nautiloid crash.

The encounter can become hostile if the party reveals that they are not followers of the Absolute or identifies themselves as survivors. The party can avoid combat with suitable checks, including:

If Edowin dies peacefully, his body can be searched for:

The remaining spear component is found in the Owlbear Nest. Combining the two parts produces Vision of the Absolute, and completing that combination can grant the Guild Artisan inspiration A New Vision.

If the party directs Brynna and Andrick to take revenge, they travel to the Owlbear Nest and wait near its entrance. This changes the opening circumstances of the nest encounter and can create an additional danger if the party delays.

Scratch and Gomwick

Scratch is found near X: 69, Y: 476, guarding the corpse of his master, Gomwick, a courier for Sword Coast Couriers. Gomwick was carrying a delivery towards Baldur’s Gate when gnolls attacked. He ordered Scratch to flee, but Scratch later returned and remains beside the body, believing Gomwick is only resting.

If the party loots Gomwick while Scratch is guarding the corpse, Scratch can become hostile. After Scratch has moved to camp, Gomwick’s body can be searched safely for letters. One letter points towards a later stash in the Lower City Graveyard involving a grave marked “M. Kurwin”.

Killing Scratch is also an oathbreaking action for a Vengeance paladin, making this encounter relevant to oath-based character play.

To recruit Scratch

1. 01
   Approach without immediately looting or disturbing Gomwick.
2. 02
   Speak to Scratch.
3. 03
   Convince him that the party means no harm.
4. 04
   Allow time for him to appear at camp.
5. 05
   Interact with him at camp to unlock Find Familiar: Scratch.

Other conditional characters

The following characters may be found in or around the Forest depending on earlier choices:

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The detached barn is north-east of the Blighted Village but remains within the Forest boundary. Strange noises can be heard inside. Opening the doors leads to an encounter with Grukkoh and Buthir, usually resulting in combat or a strongly suggestive confrontation.

The scene has companion-specific reactions. Allowing Astarion to open the doors can grant approval, while Shadowheart and Wyll may try to prevent the party from doing so if present.

Nearby, a piece of meat is roasting over a campfire with a Dagger +1 lodged in it. The dagger can be removed with a successful DC 15 Investigation, Sleight of Hand or Strength check.

The barn is not a shop, inn or usable service facility. It is a mission-only encounter site with environmental loot.

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Other conditional characters

Fixed named loot

The Forest page also identifies random arrows, potions, valuables, gold, camp supplies and spell scrolls in hidden caches. These should not be treated as fixed inventories because their contents can vary.

Fixed named loot

Hidden treasure directory

The Survival dig spots require a shovel after discovery. If no party member detects one, some locations can be revealed through information discovered elsewhere, such as the War Map in the Shattered Sanctum.

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Goblin ambushes

The Blighted Village is the Forest’s main organised hostile zone. Goblin guards are positioned near the eastern, southern and western entrances, with additional enemies on rooftops and inside ruined buildings. Their placement makes vertical movement and line of sight important.

A non-combat route is often preferable if the party is low level, but fighting the guards can provide useful experience and reduce later danger in the village. The best approach depends on whether you want to preserve goblin dialogue, avoid an alarm or clear the settlement methodically.

The owlbear

The owlbear is a significant early combat encounter, particularly for an inexperienced party. It has strong melee attacks and can punish characters who stand together. Consider:

Exsanguinated boar

If Astarion has joined the party and the required long rests have occurred, a dead boar can appear at one of several random Forest locations. The possible sites include areas near the Blighted Village, the eastern village entrance and the route towards the Sunlit Wetlands.

Examining the corpse with Medicine reveals unusual neck wounds. With Astarion present, further checks can expose that the boar was drained by a vampire. This provides an additional dialogue option during Astarion’s later bite-related camp scene, although finding the boar is not required for that scene to occur.

The corpse also provides Bloodless Pig Meat, which restores Camp Supplies.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland

The Forest’s wider paths can contain hostile creatures and encounters that are not part of the village’s fixed guard force. Gnolls are especially relevant to the backstory of Gomwick’s death, although the main gnoll combat sites belong to the surrounding Risen Road area rather than the Forest proper.

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This route is designed to see the Forest’s major content without rushing into the most consequential Act One decisions.

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The Forest’s most important historical site is the Blighted Village, once called Moonhaven. It was associated with Selûnite worship and with the nearby Temple of Selûne. By the time the party arrives, the village has been abandoned and ransacked for years. Its ruined shrine, documents and Selûnite objects preserve fragments of that history.

The village also reflects the larger conflict between Selûne and Shar that runs through Act One and continues into later acts. Records found around the settlement, together with later evidence elsewhere, suggest that Sharran raiders connected to Ketheric Thorm may have been responsible for the destruction. This is presented through environmental storytelling and documents rather than a single complete exposition scene.

The Forest therefore links several of the game’s central themes:

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Before leaving the Forest, consider confirming that you have:

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Enter from the Emerald Grove side. Follow the woodland path but pause before crossing directly into the village.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Find Edowin, Brynna and Andrick. Resolve the conversation peacefully if possible. Decide whether to send Brynna and Andrick away or towards the Owlbear Nest.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Visit Scratch. Approach the dog near Gomwick without looting the corpse. Recruit Scratch and leave the body undisturbed until Scratch has gone.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Explore the riverbank and Owlbear Nest. Deal with the owlbear and search for the spear component. If using a non-lethal or dialogue-heavy approach, make sure the cub’s later fate is compatible with your intended outcome.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Search the Forest’s outer paths. Check the detached barn, the hidden tree-trunk burrow, the southern clearing and the ridges around the village.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Enter the Blighted Village. Choose your approach based on whether you prefer dialogue, stealth or combat.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Explore the village before leaving. Visit the windmill, ruined school, Selûnite remnants and abandoned buildings.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Descend into the Apothecary’s Cellar. Investigate its documents and hidden areas.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Enter the Whispering Depths if prepared. This can be a demanding fight for a low-level party, so consider returning after gaining experience elsewhere.

Optional encounters in the surrounding woodland: steps

1. 01
   Use the village as a crossroads. From here, continue towards the Goblin Camp, Sunlit Wetlands or Risen Road according to your current quest priorities.

Sources

• Forest - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki
• Blighted Village - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki
• Wilderness - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki