Cora Highberry

Cora Highberry is a citizen hosting a wine festival in the Lower City during Act 3.

“

We're lucky to be blessed with a rather spacious one - seems cruel to let it go unused if there are children in need.

„

— Cora Highberry, to the party

Involvement

Act Three

Cora Highberry hosts a wine festival at her home southwest of the Elfsong Tavern. She is accompanied by her husband  Roger Highberry, the wine connoisseur Master Meztli, and several other guests.

If the party meet Cora before finding the  Bloodstained Parchment, she is instead inside her home with her husband, discussing how in the next few days she will be hosting a wine tasting to help raise money to care for the children she took in.

Cora is one of the murder targets during the quest ⁠Investigate the Murders. "Master Meztli" is actually the Bhaalist aspirant  Dolor, who seeks to kill her and chop off her hand to gain the approval of the Murder Tribunal and become an Assassin of Bhaal. If the party entered the Murder Tribunal before, or read the  Bloodstained Parchment and approached the proximity of Cora's home, Dolor kills Cora after one long rest (see time-sensitive activities).

Once the party approach Cora, she tells them she is about to taste some of "Master Meztli's" wine. A successful passive  DC 18 Medicine Check ( DC 10 Perception Check if Barbarian) reveals that the wine smells sickly sweet, with an acrid note on the periphery, indicating poison. There are several dialogue options to either drink the wine causing Cora (and optionally the player character) to be poisoned, or the party can outright expose Metzli as a serial killer.

If he is exposed, "Master Meztli" reveals himself to be the serial killer Dolor and is infuriated that his perfect crime was interrupted. He summons four  Doppelgangers to keep the party occupied and uses a (scripted variation of)  Spaceshunt Boots at level 5 which teleports 100 meters (66~ feet) away. One of the corpses contains a  Tombstone Shop Key necessary for later on in the quest. Successfully warning Cora Highberry grants the Inspiration ⁠Wine Connoisseur ( Noble background).

The party can also attempt to kill Cora themselves in order to complete ⁠Impress the Murder Tribunal.

After the doppelgangers have been defeated, Cora is inside her home along with her husband and two orphans whom the pair are looking after. She thanks the party profusely for saving her life and rewards them with gold.

The party can discover the grave of Cora's deceased stillborn child at the Lower City Graveyard.

Loot

• Cora's Hand

Related quests

• ⁠Investigate the Murders

Related literature

• Address Book
• My Thanks, Cora
• Preperations - prepared!
• Sweat-Stained Note
• Tear-stained letter