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Steel Watch Foundry

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Lower City
Lady Jannath's Estate
Steel Watch Foundry Grey Harbour Docks
Water Queen's House
The Steel Watch Foundry is a Location within the Lower City in Act Three of Baldur's Gate 3.
Eliminate the threat. In this case - the foundry where these atrocities are produced.<...> It is in the Lower City, down by the docks. Beautiful building, belching smoke into the sky day and night.
Wulbren Bongle, describing his plan to destroy the Steel Watch

Overview[edit | edit source]

The Steel Watch Foundry is a massive inductrial setting lining up the western side of Grey Harbour Docks. It occupies the large plot of land between the stone stairway up to the Steeps district and the Water Queen's House. The visible overground part of the foundry is supplemented with several subterrestrial levels.

Steel Watch Foundry is a factory providing the full cycle of producing the Steel Watchers - one of the key elements in Enver Gortash'sEnver Gortash's plan of seizing power over the city of Baldur's Gate. The Steel Watch is not, however, an entirely the Archduke nominee's invention: the prototype of a bipedal automaton was developed by Gondians in the Hall of WondersHall of Wonders[1] in the Upper City, while Gortash refined the concept with an "Infernal Power Supply" and a method to control and command the Watchers remotely through a central hub.[2]

Implementing these ideas turned the foundry into one of most thoroughly guarded city objects and, at the same time, into the most sensitive spot of the whole Gortash's project.

Outside area[edit | edit source]

View from the roof on the city behind the Foundry

The area around the foundry is separated from the docks with an iron fence with two gates at X: -234 Y: -149 and X: -234 Y: -180. Both gates are locked, each requiring DC 20 Sleight of Hand Check DC 20 Sleight of Hand Check to lockpick, and red-outlined. The fence runs around the whole eastern side of the foundry territory, save from the small corner near the staircase to the main city, where a vent shaft ends.

The southern side of the surrounding area comes onto a rocky cliff and is fenced only to the half of the length. Beyond the fence is a small wooden berth with a single moored boat. In the boat stands an unlocked heavy chest with three Gold Ingots inside.

This part of the foundry territory can be accessed with a series of jumps from the Water Queen's House porch approximately at X: -240 Y: -202 (spells like Misty StepMisty Step or Feather FallFeather Fall help to avoid falling damage).

The surrounding area is constantly patrolled by two Steel WatcherSteel Watchers (one along the fence and another guarding the berth). A third Watcher patrols the roof of the foundry. Encounter with any of them can be avoided through using means of concealment or invisibilityinvisibility combined with Turn-based mode. However, destroying a Steel Watcher grants one or both of the following inspirations, if they were not earned earlier in the playthrough:

Access[edit | edit source]

Points of entrance to the Steel Watch Foundry building are as following:

  • Main entry across the fence gate at X: -260 Y: -150
  • Open skylight on the roof at X: -300 Y: -136
  • South side entrances at X: -275 Y: -170 (unlocked, but requires jumps or using levers nearby) and X: -290 Y: -170 (locked, requires DC 20 Sleight of Hand Check DC 20 Sleight of Hand Check)
  • Vent shaft at X: -247 Y: -126 (requires DC 5 Perception Check DC 5 Perception Check to find, leads inside the antechamber behind the main entrance at X: -252 Y: -166)

While the party are inside the foundry building proper, they cannot fast travel or move to the Campsite.

Building layout[edit | edit source]

Main Floor[edit | edit source]

Looking straight down the center of the main floor.

When entering the foundry from the main entrance, the party found themselves in a small antechamber, assumingly meant for routine maintenance of the automatons. To the right from the entrance Gasper ThroaksGasper Throaks and Iron Consul ChaddIron Consul Chadd are talking. Their sight cones lie far from the doors.

The production process goes from the foundry depths to the surface. Thus, the main floor behind the next double doors is the foundry conveyor floor where final assembly of Steel Watchers takes place. Several partially completed watchers can be found in various states, hanging from the ceiling or lying around on tables.

The guard inside the foundry consists entirely of the followers of the Cult of BaneBane holding various positions within its ranks. In the middle gallery several Gondians are toiling, being coerced to work by Black Gauntlet Tamia HolztBlack Gauntlet Tamia Holzt, the head of security on this level of the foundry. When the party approaches, a cutscene plays, showing the true means of Gondians' cooperation: the Motivator devices, connected to the explosive collars on each worker. Witnessing this scene grants The Means of CoercionThe Means of Coercion inspiration to characters with NobleNoble background.

The party can sneak around to cross the hall (possibly using the gallery above it, accessible by the stairs near the main entrance or the ladder at X: -307 Y: -163), or approach the guards openly. In the latter case, Tamia Holzt initiates the conversation on sight. Throughout it, a passive DC 7 Religion Check DC 7 Religion Check is rolled. If interacting party member succeeds, the party gain an additional option to pretend to be the relief crew via a DC 15 Deception Check DC 15 Deception Check. Otherwise, they have no other option than fight the Banites, but can sway the Gondians to their side.

During the fight, Banites can activate and drop the Motivators, which in this case go off on the next turn. To avoid this, the Motivator must be interacted with and disabled, which requires DC 5 Intelligence Check DC 5 Intelligence Check. Letting the device to trigger the Gondians' collars is considered an oathbreaking action for Paladins of the Crown and Vengeance Paladins.

If the party successfully convince Tamia, they are free to wander around the main floor (save for looting the red-outlined items), including exploration of the Security Office in its far end (see below). Tamia Holzt also gives them an operational Motivator. More so, in this case two Banites in the antechamber and all Steel Watchers outside disappear, allowing to explore the outer area as well.

On the gallery around the conveyor band are several workbenches offering a sort of exhibition, prepared for Gortash's inspection of the foundry. There are eight items on show, depicting parts of a Watcher, of which four can be useful (though all are red-outlined):

The central conveyor band butts into the elevator doors at X: -303 Y: -149. The door is locked and cannot be lockpicked. However, it can be opened with a lever in the Security Office. The elevator cabin leads to the subterranean Lab level of the foundry (see below).

In the rear part of the building is the Security Office. It can be accessed through the double doors at X: -316 Y: -163 or from the doors on the upper gallery at X: -316 Y: -134. Both doors are locked, require DC 15 Sleight of Hand Check DC 15 Sleight of Hand Check to lockpick or can be opened with the key carried by Tamia Holzt.

Inside the office Gondian artificer Zanner ToobinZanner Toobin wanders back and forth. He is blindblind and non-hostile, so the party can walk freely within the room. At X: -331 Y: -156 on the desk lies the Watcher Crossbow Blueprint. The workbench in the opposite side of the office at X: -325 Y: -134 allows to combine the blueprint with the Watcher's Arm and Targeting Module (from the exhibition mentioned above) and create a Hellfire Engine Crossbow.

If the party speaks to Zanner Toobin, he turns out to be the unspoken leader of the Gondians. He reveals that his brethren were blackmailed to produce the automatons. Their relatives are imprisoned elsewhere as hostages, but Toobin claims he and his ill-fated fellows are ready to riot should they know their families are safe. Agreeing to help Toobin starts the Save the Gondians quest. Toobin tells that the clues to where the hostages are kept can be found deeper in the foundry.

Toobin also tells that the key element of the whole Steel Watch project is a Neurocitor, constructed by him – and he has provided the built-in means to destroy it as well. Alternatively, he can be pickpocketed for the notebook, which describes another way to break the Neurocitor (a codeword to overload the system).

On the upper gallery inside this room at X: -318 Y: -149 is a lever which calls up the aforementioned elevator, opening the gate to its cabin at the same time.

On the wall is the Scrying screen. Interacting with it shows a short cutscene with a couple of hostages, clearly kept in some kind of a prison. The side room to the south is a storage with nothing remarkable inside.

Lab Level[edit | edit source]

Lab level - view from the elevator cabin
A brainless zombie? I mean, more brainless than usual.
Astarion, examining a body in the Lab Level study

The Lab Level can be accessed via two ways:

  • The door from the Security office at X: -327 Y: -149
  • The aforementioned elevator called with the lever in the Security office

The Lab Level is a large subterranean split-levelled hall where various parts of Steel Watchers are constructed and filled with the secret components, which subjugate them to the central control hub.

The elevator opens to the conveyor belt running through southern half of this level from what appears to be a forge, with several Steel Watcher torsos on it. The door from the Security office leads to the landing of a small staircase in northern half of the hall. The landing extends to a narrow balcony at X: -1969 Y: 420, from which a character with enough Strength can jump up to the pipes winding under the ceiling. These pipes allow to reach most parts of the Lab Level and can be useful in a fight. Using means of spatial movement like Misty StepMisty Step or Grant FlightGrant Flight is helpful to reach them as well.

In the Lab Level more Gondians and Banites can be found, along with two Hellfire WatcherHellfire Watchers. The Banites and the automatons are hostile to the party on sight; if no means of concealment or invisibilityinvisibility are used, the battle starts immediately. Unless the hostages throughout the quest Save the Gondians are already saved, the Gondian workers are hostile as well.

In the far end of the Lab Level is a higher ground. There is a study with a small library and two operating beds with beheaded zombies on them. An inscription on the wooden crate nearby claims that the zombies are provided by BalthazarBalthazar from the Moonrise Towers. On a table at X: -1941 Y: 442 is a Mind Flayer Parasite Specimen. One of the bookcases in the library contains the book titled The Many Faces of Gond, which in turn contains the codeword able to destroy the Neurocitor: the gnomish name of Gond, "Nebelun".

This book is not marked as a Story Item, and it is destroyable. Destroying it locks the party out of using this way to complete the Disable the Steel Watch quest. Thus, it is recommended to avoid using AoE spells close to the study, for they can possibly destroy the bookcases.

View on the study and the shrine to Bane

At X: -1972 Y: 445 is a locked metal crate with a Potion of Supreme Healing and an Elixir of Radiant Resistance. It can be lockpicked with DC 18 Sleight of Hand Check DC 18 Sleight of Hand Check or opened with the key carried by Black Gauntlet Indora RalstonBlack Gauntlet Indora Ralston.

In the corner at X: -1956 Y: 416 is a shrine to Bane. The portrait over it is a copy of that in the belfry of the Wyrm's Rock Fortress, in the Archduke's chambers.

The quest Save the Gondians can be progressed by reading one of the following documents, scattered around the Lab Level:

Each of these three documents contains mentions of the Iron Throne and / or a submarine hidden in Flymm Cargo as a method to reach it. There are several other documents with similar contents, like a note on the Lanpos Biggs' corpse, but they do not change the quest state. Some of these documents are destructible.

Also, it is possible to pick up the corpse of Lanpos BiggsLanpos Biggs at X: -1948 Y: 422, bring it to a safe place (like Security Office outside) and interrogate via Speak with DeadSpeak with Dead. Asking the corpse about the circumstances of his death, and then of eavesdropping, gives the necessary information and progresses the quest. Reading the note on the corpse is not helpful.

At X: -1960 Y: 461 are the doors to the heart of the foundry: the Control Centre. The doors are locked, requiring DC 30 Sleight of Hand Check DC 30 Sleight of Hand Check to lockpick or the key owned by the Lab Level's head of security Black Gauntlet Hahns RivesBlack Gauntlet Hahns Rives.

If the party have already been to the Iron Throne and saved at least several Gondians (notably Zanner's daughter Obelia ToobinObelia Toobin), then upon entering the Lab Level the Gondians are already fighting against the Banites. If the party engages in the fight as well, Gondians ally with them. Saving all the Gondians enslaved in the Steel Watch Foundry grants the In Need of a HeroIn Need of a Hero inspiration to characters with the Folk HeroFolk Hero background.

Control Centre[edit | edit source]

The Control Centre antechamber with interactive brain jars

Before the main area is a small antechamber, where are several interactable brains in Brain Jars. Each one can be 'connected' to with the charcter's tadpole to view and possibly control a particular Steel Watcher. When interacting, it prompts a dialogue describing the Watcher's actions, mostly aggressive and / or unnecessarily cruel towards their "objects". It is necessary to pass a DC 25 Wisdom Check DC 25 Wisdom Check (or 2 DC Wisdom (Illithid) check) for each Watcher to stop them from hurting someone.[3]

In the antechamber lies the decapitated body of another Gondian artificer Lu La ForzaLu La Forza. A book describing the full process of stuffing the Steel Watchers can be taken from him. If Zanner Toobin survived to this point, he refuses to follow the party to the next room and stays in the antechamber.

Following the corridor is a large split-levelled room with massive wires intertwined with thick threads of pink tissue resembling the fleshy walls of the Mind Flayer Colony. Here are three upgraded Hellfire Watchers,[4] and a Steel Watcher TitanSteel Watcher Titan (on Honour mode it is replaced with Hellfire Steel Watcher Titan), which is initially hidden under the moving platform with metal barrels. If the party approach the platform without means of concealment or invisibility, the Titan comes up, and the fight starts. When defeated, the Steel Watcher Titan drops the Legendary weapon: the Gontr Mael longbow.

Feats and abilities of the Steel Watcher Titan and the Hellfire Steel Watcher Titan, as well as tactics on fighting them are listed on the creature's page.

On a table in this room lies an Automaton Component with a note from Ketheric ThormKetheric Thorm addressed to Gortash. It turns out to be the head of BernardBernard from the Arcane Tower in the Underdark.

A view of the Neurocitor and its control panel

At the back of the room is the Neurocitor, a large fusion of electronics and brain matter that allows the Elder BrainElder Brain to connect to and control the Steel Watchers throughout Baldur's Gate. In front of it at X: -1929 Y: 206 is the interactive Neural Switchboard. There are three ways to complete the Disable the Steel Watch quest:

  • Interact with the Neural Switchboard and place the Runepowder Bomb inside (the dialogue option)
  • Interact with the Neural Switchboard, pass the DC 7 Intelligence Check DC 7 Intelligence Check and use the codeword obtained from the aforementioned books (the dialogue option)
  • If Zanner Toobin survived to this point, and the party defeated the automatons in the Control Centre, he can initiate the self-destruction protocol. He appears in the room after the fight is resolved.

It is entirely possible to use invisibility to sneak to the Neural Switch and interact with it without engaging in a fight with the watchers in the room.

Using the Runepowder Bomb may grant one or several of the following inspirations:

However, using the bomb is considered an oathbreaking action for Paladins of Devotion.

Destroying the Steel Watch Foundry by any available method (planting the bomb included) may grant as well one or several of the following inspirations:

After destroying the foundry by any available method the party finds themselves on the Grey Harbour Docks embankment. Depending on which of the relevant quests are active at this moment (i.e. Disable the Steel Watch, Save the Gondians and Avenge the Ironhands) the automated dialogue follows between Zanner Toobin (or his replacement character MenaldaMenalda) and / or Wulbren BongleWulbren Bongle and Barcus WrootBarcus Wroot. The party's choices in it may descend into yet another fight.

The Steel Watch Foundry becomes inaccessible after the destruction. In case the party have somehow lost one or more Netherstones while exploring it, a failsafe option [verify] is provided. In this case, near the burning debris appear three Kobold LooterKobold Looters clad in unique white armour. The EmperorEmperor attracts the party's attention to them. These Kobolds are hostile to the party on sight, but have only 20 HP each. The Netherstone(s) can be looted from any of them.

Waypoints[edit | edit source]

This location has the following WaypointWaypoint nearby:

  • caption = Grey Harbour Docks Grey Harbour Docks at X: -219 Y: -155

Related Locations[edit | edit source]

Related Quests[edit | edit source]

Characters[edit | edit source]

Gondians[edit | edit source]

Clan Ironhand gnomes[edit | edit source]

These characters appear only if the Ironhand gnomes have survived the previous events of the current playthrough.

Cult of Bane[edit | edit source]

Black Gauntlets[edit | edit source]

Iron Consuls[edit | edit source]

Fists of Bane[edit | edit source]

Creatures[edit | edit source]

Loot[edit | edit source]

Related literature[edit | edit source]

Gallery[edit | edit source]

External links[edit | edit source]

Footnotes and references[edit | edit source]

  1. Not implemented in the game playthrough.
  2. As stated in Gondian Automaton Conversion and in How to Build a Watcher.
  3. As each party member can only use the Illithid power once in a Long Rest, rotating between members may be helpful. However, stopping Watchers from their actions brings neither approval nor inspirations. Destroying a brain does not disable the Watcher connected to it.
  4. Unlike those in the Lab Level, these Watchers are armed not only with Watcher Greatswords, but also with Watcher Crossbows.[verify]
  5. This inspiration, unlike two others, is gained as well if the Runepowder Bomb is simply used in any of the fights, not only in the Foundry.[verify]
  6. Appears if Zanner Toobin did not survive
  7. Appear only if the party have somehow lost the Netherstone(s) before destroying the foundry.
  8. Appears only in Honour difficulty mode