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Locationmajor

Nortale's Hostel

Baldur’s Gate 3, Act Three, Lower City, base game

Importancemajor

Key takeaways

  • Location The hostel is in the Lower City’s Eastway district, immediately across from Baldur’s Mouth and behind Basilisk Gate.
  • Layout It has two accessible floors and no basement. The ground floor contains Pammella Nortale, Dholber Greene and Dwindling Greene. The upper floor is a shared dormitory with locked chests and Goris Ballast.
  • Best reason to visit The upstairs chest near the landing contains a Soul Coin, while Dholber Greene’s chest contains a Remedial Potion and the apparently unique Scroll of Goodberry.
  • Stealing has consequences The upstairs chests are red-outlined. Goris Ballast reacts if he notices the party opening or looting them.
  • Do not miss the balcony A passive Perception check can reveal a pouch containing a Note from Skarai and a Gold Necklace.
  • No dedicated quest starts here The hostel connects thematically to refugee relief, Baldur’s Mouth and Lower City social conditions, but the building itself does not provide a major quest or combat encounter.

About this guide

Spoiler warning: This guide discusses Act Three locations, named residents, hidden loot and nearby Baldur’s Mouth content. It does not cover major late-game plot revelations beyond the hostel’s immediate surroundings.

Overview

Baldur’s Gate 3, Act Three, Lower City, base game

Baldur’s Gate 3, Act Three, Lower City, base game

Introduction

Nortale’s Hostel is a small refugee boarding house in the Lower City of Baldur’s Gate. It is easy to overlook because it has no major quest marker, shop interface or combat encounter. Nevertheless, it is one of the city’s most human locations: a crowded charity hostel struggling to house refugees, keep food on the table and maintain basic order while Baldur’s Gate absorbs people fleeing the Absolute crisis.

The hostel occupies a two-storey building in the Eastway district, directly across from the Baldur’s Mouth printing house and just behind the Basilisk Gate chokepoint. Its ground floor contains the reception and common area. The upper floor is a shared dormitory containing several locked chests, minor loot and a small collection of unique or unusually scarce items. A rear door leads to a balcony overlooking the Chionthar.

Nortale’s Hostel is not an inn where the party can rent a room, take a long rest or buy supplies. Its “services” are part of the setting rather than player-facing mechanics. You can speak with the hostel’s residents, read its records and correspondence, explore the dormitory, and collect loot. Treat it as a compact exploration location rather than a quest hub.

Immediate neighbours

The hostel’s position is useful for navigation. If you have reached Baldur’s Mouth, look across the plaza for the smaller building opposite it. If you are approaching from the Basilisk Gate side, the hostel lies just beyond the chokepoint rather than inside the barracks complex.

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Immediate neighbours

NameDetails
Baldur’s MouthThe printing house directly across the small plaza.
Basilisk GateThe nearby Lower City chokepoint and route into the city.
Basilisk Gate BarracksA separate Flaming Fist facility near the gate.
Wyrm’s Rock FortressBeyond the city approach, not part of the hostel.
Eastway streets and Lower City homesThe streets around the hostel contain several unrelated buildings and minor locations.

Front entrance

The front door opens directly into the ground floor. This is the most natural entrance and places the party near Pammella Nortale and the newly arrived Greene family.

Rear entrance

The back entrance also opens onto the ground floor, but it is associated with the hostel’s balcony overlooking the Chionthar. It is useful if you are exploring the river-facing side of the Lower City or want to search the balcony for its hidden pouch.

There is no loading transition to a separate cellar or back building. The hostel is a compact two-storey interior.

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Ground floor

The ground floor is the hostel’s public and communal space. Pammella Nortale is here, speaking with Dholber Greene and Dwindling as she explains the rules of the establishment.

This area establishes the hostel’s purpose. It is not presented as a profitable inn. Pammella runs it as a charitable boarding house for people who need food, a bed and somewhere safe to stay. The influx of refugees has pushed the hostel’s resources to the limit, and her papers show that she is seeking donations and trying to find work opportunities for residents.

Ground-floor named entries

Not all of these entries are located in exactly the same part of the room, and some are documents rather than characters. They are listed together here because they belong to the ground-floor or hostel-wide exploration set.

Speaking with the residents does not trigger a major quest. Pammella’s dialogue and idle conversations with Dholber and Dwindling are mainly environmental storytelling about refugee life, hygiene, donations and the difficulty of running a crowded shelter.

Upper floor dormitory

The upper floor is a communal sleeping area lined with bunk beds and rustic chests. The chests are marked as owned, red-outlined and locked. They generally require a DC 10 Sleight of Hand check to open by lockpicking, although the chests associated with Goris Ballast and Dholber Greene can also be opened using keys obtained from their owners.

Goris Ballast stands near a window, apparently trying to escape the city’s noise. He may confront the party if he notices them stealing from the dormitory. The exact outcome depends on how the theft is carried out and whether the party is detected, so stealth, turn-based mode and line-of-sight management are useful if you intend to loot the room.

Upper-floor named entries

The ordinary chest contents are not all fixed in the same way. Some contain alchemical ingredients, gold or a random precious gem, while the most notable character-linked chests contain specific items.

Rear balcony

The rear doors lead to a balcony above a steep river-facing shore. Search the far corner carefully. A passive DC 10 Perception check can reveal a pouch containing:

The note is addressed to someone connected with the Baldur’s Mouth Gazette, making the balcony an understated link between the hostel and its much more prominent neighbour.

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Pammella Nortale

Pammella is the halfling owner and manager of the hostel. She is referred to as the “Hostel Mother”, a title that reflects both her administrative role and the practical care she provides to residents.

She welcomes the party and explains that beds and bathing facilities are upstairs, although the game does not provide these as usable player services. Her dialogue and idle conversations show her trying to maintain hygiene and dignity in difficult circumstances. She is particularly concerned about lice, donated clothing and making sure families who have reached Baldur’s Gate can settle safely.

Pammella is also attempting to keep the hostel financially viable. The documents around the building refer to donations, unpaid food deliveries, possible employment and appeals to wealthy patrons.

Dholber Greene

Dholber is a refugee staying at the hostel with his child, Dwindling. He is present on the ground floor while Pammella explains the hostel’s rules and helps the family deal with lice.

His possessions are stored in a chest upstairs. The chest contains the hostel’s most important fixed loot, including the Scroll of Goodberry.

Dwindling Greene

Dwindling is Dholber’s child and another refugee resident. The child’s complaints about itching and the family’s missing relatives reinforce the hostel’s role as a refuge for people displaced by the wider crisis.

Despite being named and present in the building, Dwindling has no major quest line here.

Goris Ballast

Goris is a hostel resident found on the upper floor near a window. He is frustrated by the constant noise of Baldur’s Gate and can object if the party steals from the dormitory.

The Soul Coin is one of the hostel’s most valuable finds, especially for players collecting them for Karlach-related use or for the Noble background inspiration associated with obtaining a Soul Coin.

Other residents named in the records

The Hostel Registry lists additional lodgers who are not necessarily all present as active conversational NPCs in the accessible hostel scene:

This distinction matters. A name appearing in a document does not automatically mean that the person is an interactable NPC in the location.

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Nortale’s Hostel has an unusually rich collection of ordinary papers for such a small location. Together, they explain how the shelter functions.

Hostel Registry

The registry records the current lodgers. It is found inside the hostel and names several residents, including Goris Ballast, Dholber Greene, Dwindling, Bunt Chugley, Rags Deelarma and Reagan Splint.

Nortale’s Hostel - House Rules

Pammella’s rules are both practical and darkly comic. They require residents to be considerate, clean up after themselves, limit water use and avoid disruptive behaviour. The rules also specifically prohibit ritual sacrifices on the back porch and “intimacy clients” in the dormitory.

The rules are useful context for the building’s atmosphere. Nortale’s is a crowded communal shelter, not a conventional tavern or private guesthouse.

Employment Opportunities

This note lists work available around Baldur’s Gate:

The list shows Pammella trying to connect refugees with paid work rather than relying only on charity. It also points players towards several separate Lower City businesses and districts.

Draft Letter to Lord Whitburn

Pammella is preparing to appeal to Lord Whitburn for financial help. The letter explains that the hostel is a non-profit boarding house serving families in need, with demand increasing because of the refugee crisis.

This is a draft rather than a completed quest item. There is no confirmed hostel mission in which the player delivers it or secures Lord Whitburn’s donation.

My Dear Madame Nortale

This letter comes from Derque Rillyn, a noble admirer and regular donor. Derque says that his father, Lord Hir Rillyn, will not provide more money through the normal allowance, but suggests renaming the establishment Hir Rillyn’s Hostel to encourage a larger contribution.

The letter gives the hostel a connection to Baldur’s Gate’s patriar class and shows that Pammella’s financial problems are not simply a matter of poor administration. Even sympathetic donors are constrained by family politics, status and money.

Past Due Invoice

The hostel’s mailbox contains an overdue invoice from Durinbold & Oathoon, provisioners. The letter threatens collection by “Fist Repossessions” if Pammella does not pay the minimum amount due.

This is one of the clearest indicators that the hostel is in immediate financial trouble. It also ties the building to the city’s commercial and law-enforcement pressures without creating a dedicated encounter.

Anything Spare?

A related note can be found in the mailbox of Beehive Goods and Wares elsewhere in the Lower City. It asks Oliver for spare supplies to distribute to refugees and requests that donations be dropped off at Nortale’s Hostel.

This note is not inside the hostel, but it belongs in a complete overview because it confirms that the establishment is part of a wider informal relief network. The item contains a spelling error, referring to “Notale’s Hostel”.

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Fixed loot

The Scroll of Goodberry is a single-use scroll that creates four Goodberries when cast. It cannot be transcribed into a wizard’s spellbook because Goodberry is not a wizard spell. The location listing identifies the hostel copy as unique within a playthrough.

Fixed loot

ItemLocationNotes
Soul CoinRustic chest near the top of the stairsIn Goris Ballast’s belongings
Terazul ×2Goris Ballast’s chestFixed according to the location listing
Remedial PotionDholber Greene’s chestFixed item
Scroll of GoodberryDholber Greene’s chestReported as the only one of its kind in a playthrough
Gold NecklaceBalcony pouchRequires a passive Perception check
Note from SkaraiBalcony pouchAssociated with Baldur’s Mouth
Tarnished PendantOn top of an upstairs rustic chestMundane amulet with no enchantment
The True and Impossible Adventures of Tenebrux Morrow, Vol. 3Beside an upstairs bunk bedPart of the fictional book series

Random or variable contents

Do not treat every ordinary chest item as a guaranteed fixed collectible. The character-linked containers and the named balcony items are the more reliable targets.

Theft considerations

The dormitory chests are red-outlined. Opening them is treated as theft, and Goris may react if he sees or hears the party. If you want the contents without immediately provoking a confrontation:

The exact reliability of stealth depends on party position, lighting and NPC movement. The safe assumption is that these are residents’ private belongings, not unclaimed treasure.

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For a clean first visit, use this route:

This route separates the hostel’s quiet environmental storytelling from the more consequential Baldur’s Mouth area.

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Nortale’s Hostel and Baldur’s Mouth are separate locations, but the game places them directly opposite one another for a reason.

The hostel’s balcony contains the Note from Skarai, which points towards the Gazette. The employment notice also directs residents to jobs elsewhere in the city, including work associated with Figaro Facemaker and the Singing Lute. Meanwhile, Baldur’s Mouth is responsible for printing the city’s daily newspaper and is involved in the Act Three quest Stop the Presses.

The hostel itself does not start Stop the Presses. To begin that quest, the party can speak with Estra Stir south of Basilisk Gate and then investigate Baldur’s Mouth. The printing house has its own guards, Steel Watchers, editor and basement machinery, none of which belong to Nortale’s Hostel.

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Theft considerations: steps

  1. 01
    Enter turn-based mode.
  2. 02
    Check Goris’s cone of vision.
  3. 03
    Use stealth or concealment.
  4. 04
    Lockpick only when no resident can see the interaction.
  5. 05
    Move away from the chest before ending turn-based mode.
  6. 06
    Be prepared for a witness dialogue if your character is detected.

Theft considerations: steps

  1. 01
    Enter through the front door.
  2. 02
    Speak with Pammella Nortale to hear the hostel’s basic situation.
  3. 03
    Listen to or initiate the conversation involving Dholber Greene and Dwindling.
  4. 04
    Search the ground floor for the hostel documents.
  5. 05
    Read the Hostel Registry to identify additional lodgers.
  6. 06
    Check the mailbox outside for Past Due Invoice.
  7. 07
    Go upstairs and locate Goris Ballast near the window.
  8. 08
    Decide whether you want to steal from the red-outlined chests.
  9. 09
    Search the chest near the upper landing for the Soul Coin and Terazul.
  10. 10
    Search Dholber’s chest for the Remedial Potion and Scroll of Goodberry.
  11. 11
    Check the top of the rustic chest for the Tarnished Pendant.
  12. 12
    Search beside the bunk beds for The True and Impossible Adventures of Tenebrux Morrow, Vol. 3.
  13. 13
    Go through the rear doors.
  14. 14
    Search the balcony’s far corner and pass the passive Perception check to find the pouch containing Note from Skarai and Gold Necklace.
  15. 15
    Continue across to Baldur’s Mouth if you are investigating the note or beginning the nearby printing-house content.

Direct hostel missions

No major quest is confirmed to begin, advance or conclude entirely within Nortale’s Hostel.

Indirect connections

The hostel contributes to the setting and context of several wider Act Three concerns:

These are narrative connections rather than confirmed quest mechanics.

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Enemies and bosses

There are no fixed enemies or bosses inside Nortale’s Hostel. The main danger is social rather than martial:

Missable loot

The balcony pouch is particularly easy to overlook because it depends on a passive Perception check in a corner away from the central route. If the check fails, use a character with higher Wisdom or Perception proficiency and search the area manually.

Progression changes

The available evidence confirms the hostel’s Act Three state but does not establish a comprehensive schedule of changes after major city events. The safe approach is to visit when first exploring the Lower City if you want to see the residents and collect the fixed documents and loot.

There is no verified hostel-specific rescue, evacuation or destruction sequence to list here. A change in nearby Lower City conditions should not automatically be treated as a change to Nortale’s Hostel unless the game visibly alters its residents or contents.

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Lodgers named in the Hostel Registry

The registry entries should not be read as proof that every named lodger is an active, present NPC in the accessible building.

Separate nearby locations

These are neighbouring or document-linked places, not subareas of Nortale’s Hostel.

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Separate nearby locations

Can the party rent a room?

No player-facing room-rental service is confirmed. Pammella refers to bunks and baths, but the hostel functions as an environmental location rather than a usable inn.

Is Nortale’s Hostel a shop?

No. It has no confirmed merchant inventory or trade interface.

Is there a quest inside?

No major direct quest is confirmed. The hostel contains environmental clues and links thematically to nearby Baldur’s Mouth, but its own scenes are optional.

Where is the Soul Coin?

It is in the rustic chest near the top of the stairs on the upper floor, associated with Goris Ballast. The chest is red-outlined and may require a DC 10 Sleight of Hand check or the appropriate key.

Where is the Scroll of Goodberry?

It is in Dholber Greene’s upstairs chest. The item is a single-use scroll and is described as unique within a playthrough.

Does the hostel have a basement?

No. The building has two floors and no basement. Do not confuse it with Baldur’s Mouth, which has a separate printing-press basement.

Can the residents become allies?

No confirmed recruitment, companion, faction or major alliance mechanic is associated with the hostel’s residents.

Is the balcony part of the hostel?

Yes. The rear doors lead to the hostel’s river-facing balcony. The balcony contains the hidden pouch with Note from Skarai and Gold Necklace.

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This guide treats the base-game Act Three Lower City location as the scope. It separates Nortale’s Hostel from nearby Baldur’s Mouth, Basilisk Gate Barracks and Wyrm’s Rock Fortress.

The available location evidence verifies the building’s two-storey layout, named residents, major fixed loot, documents and balcony contents. It does not provide a reliable, exhaustive change log for every possible city-state progression condition, nor does it establish a full list of all ordinary decorative objects or every random chest roll. Those have therefore not been presented as guaranteed content.

Sources