Deliver Nere's Head

Deliver Nere's Head is a quest in Act One of Baldur's Gate 3. It can be started if the party talks to Sovereign Spaw at Ebonlake Grotto, after completing  Defeat the Duergar Intruders.

The Sovereign demands Nere's head.

Objectives

Objectives and journal entries may vary pending story decisions and outcomes.

Kill Nere.

• Sovereign Spaw wants the head of the drow Nere.
• Sovereign Glut also wants Nere's head.
• Several duergar are plotting against Nere. We've agreed to help, and they should support us when the time comes to kill Nere.
• Sovereign Spaw is defeated. Perhaps Sovereign Glut will reward us for killing Nere.

Take Nere's head.

• Nere is dead. We need to take his head to the Myconid Sovereign.
• Nere died in the cave-in. Now we just need to cut off his head, and deliver it to the Myconid Sovereign.

Return to the Myconid Sovereign.

• Nere is dead, and we have his head. The Sovereign Spaw will be pleased.

Find the new Sovereign.

• Nere is dead, and we have his head. Another Myconid Sovereign might want it.

Return to the Myconid Sovereign.

• Nere is dead, and we have his head. Sovereign Glut will be pleased.

Quest Complete

• Sovereign Spaw rewarded us for delivering Nere's head.
• Sovereign Glut rewarded us for delivering Nere's head.
• There are no Myconid Sovereigns left to reward us for Nere's head.
• We couldn't retrieve Nere's head.

Walkthrough

Once the duergar at the Decrepit Village have been defeated, the myconid Sovereign - either Spaw or Glut depending on the party's choices - have yet another mission for the party. The duergar were not the only ones slaughtering the myconids. There was also a drow who killed many of their kind. The Sovereign wants his head.

Nere freed from the cave-in.

Nere can be found at Grymforge, where is he trapped in a poisoned room due to a cave-in. There are two paths to completing this quest: either free Nere from the cave and confront him, or let him die from the poison.

Free Nere from the cave-in

The quest  Free True Soul Nere must be completed in order to successfully proceed with this path - otherwise, Nere remains trapped behind the cave-in and is inaccessible. Once he is free, completing this quest simply requires killing him and taking his head. It is possible to side with or spare Nere, but allowing him to live fails this quest and opens up other story and dialogue options.

Depending on dialogue choices and actions with the various factions and occupants at Grymforge, this confrontation can look very different:

• The party can side with the duergar rebels against Nere. This requires speaking to Brithvar prior to the confrontation.
• The party can side with Nere and the Cult of the Absolute against the duergar rebels.
• The party can fight both the duergar and the cult at the same time.
• The party can also clear the area of occupants prior to freeing Nere, to which he would react accordingly.

How the duergars are dealt with (violently or diplomatically) affects the outcomes of the  Save the Grymforge Gnomes quest.

The way Nere is killed can lead to his head being impossible to retrieve. It seems that elemental damage like fire might render the body unrecognisable. Pushing the drow into the lava also fails the quest.

To remove Nere's head, loot his corpse and a cutscene plays. A DC 10 Strength check will be checked, but Nere's head will be successfully removed regardless of the result. Removing Nere's head earns the Inspirational Event Head of the Snake (Haunted One background).

If siding with Brithvar, looting Nere's corpse in view of any surviving Duergar may cause them to accuse the party of theft. However, taking just the head seems to not be considered a crime even if the corpse is highlighted in red.

Let Nere die

The other option is waiting until Nere dies from the poison. There is a timer for this quest - Nere sends out a telepathic cry for help the first time that the party enters camp. At that point, it is safe for a Long Rest once. However, if the party returns to camp and Long Rests for a second time, Nere dies from the poison.

If this happens, the party returns to find that the cave-in has been cleared by the gnome slaves. The duergar looted the entire area and left with the gnomes, causing Save the Grymforge Gnomes to automatically complete. However, Nere's corpse is undamaged and the head can still be removed and returned to the myconid Sovereign for a reward.

Returning to the myconids

The myconids thank the party for restoring peace to their circle.

Speaking to the Sovereign, they thank the party for their service to the myconid circle and say that their song will always be with the party. Spaw names the party Life-Chanter and thanks them for their service. If the party is flattering to Glut, it says the Circle sings to them its truth. Their voice is forever welcome in its harmonies so long as they remember that it is the song of Glut.

Quest rewards

Upon successful completion of this quest, Spaw rewards the party with:

• Envoy's Amulet
• 120 Exp

If Glut was made the new Sovereign during Avenge Glut's Circle, Glut rewards the party with:

• Champion's Chain
• 120 Exp

If Nere dies, the following items can be looted off his corpse:

• Dagger +1
• Disintegrating Night Walkers
• Nere's Head (quest item)
• Sword of Screams

If Nere is spared (and fail the quest), he grants one of the following items:

• Dagger +1 - If Nere is sided with and abandons the cult.
• Gift from the Absolute - If Nere is sided with and remains in the cult.