Sunlit Wetlands

Key takeaways

• The beautiful wetlands are an illusion The area changes to the Putrid Bog when the illusion is exposed.
• Auntie Ethel’s encounter drives most of the location’s content She is first encountered with Demir and Johl, then retreats to the Riverside Teahouse and eventually her lair.
• You do not need to pass the first insight check to reveal the bog Speaking to a sheep successfully, attacking a sheep, or forcing Ethel to reveal her hag form can also break the illusion.
• The Druid Sanctuary is an independent combat and investigation site It contains the Shadow Druid evidence needed for Investigate Kagha, as well as the Wood Woad Shield and The Sparkle Hands.
• The Overgrown Tunnel is a connected dungeon, not a separate region It is reached through the false fireplace in the Riverside Teahouse.
• The best reward route is not always the same as the safest route You can save Mayrina, obtain Auntie Ethel’s Hair, kill Ethel, or combine some outcomes through dialogue checks.

About this guide

Overview

The Sunlit Wetlands are an Act One location in the Wilderness of Baldur’s Gate 3. At first glance, the area appears to be a bright, peaceful marsh south of the Blighted Village and the Forest. In reality, it is the Putrid Bog, a dangerous swamp concealed beneath Auntie Ethel’s illusion. The location contains the Riverside Teahouse, the Druid Sanctuary, the entrance to the Overgrown Tunnel, and several quest encounters tied to Mayrina, Auntie Ethel, Kagha, Astarion and the search for a cure.

This guide treats the Sunlit Wetlands as the whole location rather than only the visible marsh. Its included subareas are:

The neighbouring Forest, Blighted Village, Emerald Grove, Goblin Camp and Underdark are discussed only as connected locations. They are not part of the Sunlit Wetlands.

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Included subareas

Main route from the Wilderness

The main entrance is around X: 47, Y: 315. This is the intended approach and is the easiest way to encounter the location’s opening story scene.

Main route from the Wilderness: steps

1. 01
   Travel south-west from the Forest or Blighted Village.
2. 02
   Follow the road towards the wetlands.
3. 03
   Approach the group arguing near the entrance.
4. 04
   Speak with, avoid or attack the people involved.
5. 05
   Continue towards the Riverside Teahouse, the sanctuary or the southern marsh.

Route from the Goblin Camp

The area can also be approached from the Goblin Camp side by crossing a fallen log around X: -20, Y: 319 and descending near X: -37, Y: 307. Feather Fall, Grant Flight or equivalent movement protection is useful because the descent can otherwise cause damage. This route may bypass or alter the expected order of the opening encounter.

Suggested exploration order

For most playthroughs, the following order gives the clearest progression:

This route is not mandatory, but it reduces the chance of overlooking the sanctuary and its quest evidence.

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Shortly after entering the area, the party can recognise that something is wrong with the seemingly idyllic landscape. The initial check is generally an Investigation check, although class, background and dialogue choices can offer alternative Arcana, Nature, Wisdom or Charisma checks. The listed difficulty depends on the character and option used.

Failing this first check does not permanently lock the party out of discovering the truth. The illusion can later be broken by:

The sheep are actually Redcaps in disguise. Once exposed, they become hostile, and the area’s visual presentation changes. The Sanctuary becomes decrepit, the teahouse becomes ruined and the food around the area is shown to be dangerous or rotten. Characters with the Outlander background can receive the Eyes of the Wild inspiration for dispelling the illusion.

Suggested exploration order: steps

1. 01
   Visit the entrance and resolve or observe the Demir, Johl and Ethel encounter.
2. 02
   Activate the Riverside Teahouse waypoint.
3. 03
   Investigate the illusion, but avoid accepting Ethel’s eye bargain unless you specifically want that outcome.
4. 04
   Search the exterior wetlands for traps, the well and the sanctuary route.
5. 05
   Visit the Druid Sanctuary and collect the Shadow Druid evidence.
6. 06
   Return to the teahouse and progress Save Mayrina.
7. 07
   Enter the Overgrown Tunnel.
8. 08
   Rescue Mayrina and resolve the Ethel confrontation.
9. 09
   Return to the sanctuary if you want to complete the Kagha-related investigation before leaving the Wilderness.

The well

The well south of the teahouse is another part of the illusion. It appears clean while the illusion is active but is revealed to contain dead flesh once the bog is exposed.

Drinking from it can grant Refreshed, which increases maximum hit points until the next Long Rest and removes temporary hit points. After resting, the effect changes into Nauseated, creating vulnerability to Psychic and Acid damage until another Long Rest. Drinking again while Nauseated produces the Sickened condition. The effect can also behave differently during the Ethel fight if the character drank from the well before combat.

Practical advice: The well is useful for a short-lived hit-point increase, but its later penalties make it a poor choice immediately before a difficult fight unless you have planned around the consequences.

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The Riverside Teahouse stands on a small hill around X: -40, Y: 270 and contains the only waypoint in the location. On entering, the party is drawn into a conversation involving Auntie Ethel and Mayrina. The party can intervene, question Ethel, accept her offer, or attempt to save Mayrina. Ethel eventually removes Mayrina from the visible room regardless of how the initial conversation develops.

Auntie Ethel’s offer

Ethel offers to remove the protagonist’s tadpole in exchange for one eye. This does not cure the tadpole. Accepting the bargain applies Paid the Price and permanently changes the appearance of the chosen eye. The exchange is unavailable if Volo has already replaced one of the protagonist’s eyes, and it is also unavailable when playing Wyll as an Origin character.

For an Oath of the Ancients paladin, accepting the eye bargain or certain aggressive actions involving Ethel can count as oathbreaking.

Trader

Before Ethel fully reveals herself and retreats into the Overgrown Tunnel, she can act as a trader. Her stock includes useful consumables and alchemical supplies, with some items restocking after a Long Rest. Her notable possible stock includes:

Once Ethel reveals her hag form, retreats into the tunnel or is killed during the confrontation, this shop becomes unavailable for the remainder of the relevant Act One sequence. If you want to buy from her, do so before beginning the confrontation.

Trader

The false fireplace

The fireplace at the teahouse conceals an illusion. A character can detect it with an Investigation check around DC 10, or Ethel can reveal it herself when she flees after the party turns against her. It leads directly to the Overgrown Tunnel.

The teahouse also contains food, potions, alchemical ingredients and camp supplies. The locked door at the rear leads to a small marsh section containing a Mushroom Circle and Connor Vinderblad’s coffin. It can be opened with the Teahouse Key or a very low Sleight of Hand check.

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The Overgrown Tunnel is Ethel’s lair. It is reached through the false fireplace and is divided into several named or functionally distinct sections.

Entrance Gallery

The Entrance Gallery contains tangled roots, alcoves, a Gnarled Door and a central cauldron. Ethel may appear here to give the party a final warning, depending on how the party entered and whether stealth was used. The area also contains evidence of Ethel’s previous victims.

Masked victims

A later chamber contains four victims wearing Whispering Masks. They are controlled by Ethel and generally attack when encountered. At the start of their turns, they make Wisdom saves. A successful save can cause a victim to lose their turn rather than attack.

The Mask of Regret victim can potentially be saved. Knock her out rather than killing her, defeat Ethel, then take a Long Rest. She can later remove the mask and identify herself as Hydrangea Wubb.

The descent

The route down contains roots, rocks, ladders, vines and multiple traps. Two particularly notable traps are:

Ruptured Stones require Perception to detect and have a very high Sleight of Hand difficulty to disarm. Covering the vents with objects can block the fumes without relying on a successful disarm attempt.

Ancient Abode

The Ancient Abode is the arena for the main Act One Ethel confrontation. Mayrina is suspended in a cage over a pit. When combat begins, Ethel can set the cage on fire, forcing the party to extinguish it if they want Mayrina to survive. Ethel may also summon surviving masked thralls into the fight.

Acrid Workshop

The workshop contains Ethel’s magical and alchemical materials. It is relevant to the quest involving Connor Vinderblad and contains the wand Bitter Divorce, which can be used in the attempt to raise him. The consequences are deliberately morally and narratively ambiguous, so consider saving before using the wand.

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The sanctuary occupies the largest island in a chain of rocky islands. Reaching it requires crossing the marsh and making jumps across water. Under the illusion it looks like a druidic refuge. Once revealed, it becomes the Decrepit Sanctuary.

Enemies

The battlefield contains Deep Water, Mud and Twisting Vines. Mud Mephits can create additional mud patches through their Death Burst effects, making movement increasingly awkward.

Quest evidence

A concealed notch around X: 83, Y: 211 contains a note from the Shadow Druids. A Perception check is required to reveal it. Reading this evidence initiates or advances Investigate Kagha, which is connected to the broader Save the Refugees questline.

Loot

The buried chest is easy to miss because it is not immediately visible as a conventional container.

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Save Mayrina

This is the location’s central quest. It begins at the entrance when Demir and Johl confront Ethel over the disappearance of their sister, Mayrina. The party can side with Ethel, defend the brothers, refuse to intervene or avoid the conversation entirely. If the party avoids the encounter and returns later, the brothers can be found dead, with a letter on Johl’s body.

The quest continues at the Riverside Teahouse and concludes in the Overgrown Tunnel. The main objectives are:

Save Mayrina: steps

1. 01
   Discover that Ethel is not what she appears to be.
2. 02
   Follow her through the false fireplace.
3. 03
   Find Mayrina in the Ancient Abode.
4. 04
   Deal with the burning cage.
5. 05
   Defeat Ethel or negotiate with her.
6. 06
   Decide what to do with Connor’s remains and Bitter Divorce.

Find a Cure

Ethel is one of the possible approaches for the Find a Cure quest. She offers to remove the protagonist’s tadpole but fails because of the magic used to modify it. Her bargain therefore provides no cure, even if the party accepts the physical cost.

Investigate Kagha

The Shadow Druid note in the sanctuary advances this quest. The relevant evidence is not located in the Emerald Grove itself, so a party that only visits the teahouse may leave the wetlands without finding it.

The Pale Elf

If Astarion is recruited, the wetlands can advance aspects of his personal quest through the appearance of Gandrel, a monster hunter connected to Astarion’s history. Gandrel is listed among the named characters associated with the location.

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Spike traps

Numerous spike traps are concealed in the deeper water channels. They can be detected with Perception. Triggering one causes Bleeding and Open Wound without a saving throw. If Open Wound is not overcome, it can progress through Rotting to Flesh Rot.

Ethel’s lair hazards

The Overgrown Tunnel contains traps, poisonous fumes and restricted movement. Whispering Masks can also influence characters who wear them. The dungeon is safest when explored slowly, with one character checking ahead and another carrying spare throwable objects for blocking vents.

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The following entries are the verified named people, creatures, subareas, items and written materials associated with the Sunlit Wetlands and its included subareas.

Places and subareas

The Mushroom Circle and the area behind the teahouse are included because they are directly connected to the teahouse and its rear locked door. The Emerald Grove, Forest, Blighted Village, Goblin Camp and Underdark are neighbouring or connected locations, not subareas of the wetlands.

Places and subareas

• Sunlit Wetlands
• Overgrown Tunnel

Named characters and residents

Auntie Ethel is the principal resident and trader. Demir, Johl and Gandrel are visitors or story-associated characters rather than ordinary permanent residents. Hydrangea Wubb is a victim found in the Overgrown Tunnel and is only available for later conversation if she is spared correctly.

Creatures and enemy groups

The number and behaviour of some creatures depend on the sequence in which the illusion is broken and the Ethel encounter is started. Young Mud Mephits can be summoned during the sanctuary fight rather than existing as a fixed independent group.

Named equipment, rewards and quest items

Not every item is obtained in the same way. Corellon’s Grace is associated with Ethel’s trader inventory, Wood Woad Shield comes from the sanctuary combat, The Sparkle Hands is found in the sanctuary chest, and Auntie Ethel’s Hair is conditional on the Ancient Abode bargain.

Named equipment, rewards and quest items

• Wood Woad Shield

Named or unique written materials

The Letter from Mayrina is associated with Johl’s body if the opening encounter is bypassed or progresses to that outcome. The Shadow Druid note in the sanctuary is the most important quest document in the list.

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Before leaving the Sunlit Wetlands, consider checking the following:

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Are the Sunlit Wetlands and Putrid Bog different locations?

No. They are two presentation and progression states of the same Act One location. The area is initially labelled Sunlit Wetlands and changes to Putrid Bog after the illusion is exposed.

Is the Riverside Teahouse a separate location?

It is a named subarea within the Sunlit Wetlands. Its altered name, Gnarled Teahouse, appears after the illusion is broken.

Can the illusion be removed without passing the first check?

Yes. Speaking successfully with a sheep, attacking a sheep or making Ethel reveal her true form can expose the bog later.

Can I get Auntie Ethel’s Hair and save Mayrina?

Yes, but this requires allowing Ethel to reach the bargain stage of the Ancient Abode fight and passing the relevant dialogue checks. Killing her before that scene prevents the Hair reward.

Does Auntie Ethel actually cure the tadpole?

No. Her attempt fails, and accepting her bargain permanently changes the protagonist’s eye while applying Paid the Price.

Is the Druid Sanctuary part of the same quest as Auntie Ethel?

It is part of the same broad location but has a separate primary purpose. Its Shadow Druids evidence advances Investigate Kagha, while the sanctuary’s enemies and loot are independent of the Mayrina storyline.

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Sources

• Sunlit Wetlands - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki
• Sunlit Wetlands - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki
• Overgrown Tunnel - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki
• Auntie Ethel - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki
• Auntie Ethel's Hair - bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki