Orin

Overview

Combat

Orin the Red is the Chosen of ⁠Bhaal and one of the leaders of the enigmatic Cult of the Absolute and serves as one of the main antagonists in Baldur's Gate 3.

“

Come to me, Father. Set my flesh to your unholy purpose.

„

— Orin the Red about Bhaal

Overview

A daughter of Bhaalspawns and a devout practitioner in the arts of murder and pain, Orin has painted the streets red in her father's name for many years. Still to be caught thanks to her shapeshifting abilities, she now prepares to make out of Baldur's Gate the biggest bloody offering to her father yet.

Background

Hinted at first through notes, she is properly introduced at the end of Act Two as one of the conspirators of the cult, along with  Ketheric Thorm and  Enver Gortash. Through cunning and murderous devotion, she and her allies have established a solid Bhaalist foothold in the city of Baldur's Gate. Now, empowered by a  Netherstone and with the cult's plans in motion, she intends to paint the city crimson with blood in a mighty offering to Bhaal.

Gameplay

• Orin is a level 12 ⁠Changeling boss and one of the main antagonists in the game.
• First mentioned in Act One, she is introduced in Act Two, and properly encountered and fought in Act Three.
• Fighting her is required in order to obtain her Netherstone and proceed with the story.
• In combat, she uses her deadly powers given by Bhaal himself to deal large amounts of damage quickly while being supported by her cultists.
• Her encounter can go different ways depending on the choices made by the party and whether or not the player character is the  Dark Urge.
• A cease of hostilities with her and her Bhaalists can be brokered if it is agreed to slay Gortash first.
• She can trick the party with her disguises and will kidnap someone important to the party.

Appearance

A close-up of Orin's intimidating gaze.

Orin has pale blue-grey skin with swirling, smoke-like plumes of red undulating across it. The iris and pupils of her eyes are a soft milky white, almost melding with the sclera, contoured by dark eyeliner, giving her an intimidating look. Her straw-colored, braided hair falls to the backs of her knees in a fastening reminiscent of a flail. Her form-fitting armour is bright blood-red, rigid, and rough like chitin. She adorns her head with an ornate silver tiara with a centrepiece in the form of a person supplicant, a single crimson gem adding some colour.

Personality

Orin is cruel and sadistic, but artistic and creative in her own twisted way. Her demeanour is immature and almost childish; Orin easily loses her composure when things do not go her way, enacts small rebellions against the authority figures in her life, and enjoys toying with her victims. She derives sadistic pleasure from taunting her victims with the gory details of her deeds.

When she impersonates another character with her shapeshifting abilities, she is initially able to convincingly mimic their personality. Her true nature tends to break through the mimicry, however, as she is often unable to contain her bloodlust, resulting in her becoming more openly violent and sadistic, invoking threats and fantasies of extreme violence and grotesque brutality before shifting back into her base appearance.

Her deranged devotion to Bhaal hides her true desire for acceptance and belonging as she constantly seeks validation and approval from him. Though uncommon, she extends her admiration to those she respects, such as her grandfather Sarevok. Her confident and vicious demeanour shatters, however, when confronted with the truth of her origins, and she displays genuine fear when forced by Bhaal to become his tool instead of doing so willingly.

History

Bhaalist upbringing

Raised believing that Sarevok was merely her doting grandfather, Orin was, in truth, born of an incestuous relationship between  Sarevok Anchev and his daughter  Helena Anchev, intended to be the perfect offering to the Dread Lord. Though he routinely mistreated and abused them, both Helena and Orin worshipped and loved Sarevok, enduring the hardships of growing up as Bhaalists. Orin received the bloody teachings of Bhaal, in time becoming the youngest Unholy Assassin to follow the steps of the God of Murder. Such were her gifts in killing that she was anointed Bhaal's Chosen.

When Orin was still a child, Sarevok, knowing Helena desired to be Bhaal's Chosen, ordered his daughter to kill Orin as an offering to Bhaal. Helena attacked Orin, but she was overcome by her child, who ultimately cut her down. Bhaal deemed the young changeling exceptional and ordered Sarevok to look after her henceforth. Orin served Bhaal directly under the Dark Urge as their second in command, though the two were often at odds about the correct way of making offerings to Bhaal. Orin believed that the Dark Urge butchered their victims without consideration, and what their father truly wanted was beauty and thoughtfulness in a kill. The Dark Urge, on the other hand, understood that Bhaal cared only for the quantity of murder performed, nothing more.

Yearning for respect and status, but dismissed and looked down on by Bhaal and Sarevok alike, Orin brooded as she waited for an opportunity to become her father's favourite.

Orin's betrayal

The Urge joined forces with ⁠Bane's Chosen  Enver Gortash, and together, they formulated a plan to steal the  Crown of Karsus, an ancient, arcane object of immense power, and subjugate an Elder Brain with it in order to create a soulless army to destroy the world with. After recruiting  Ketheric Thorm, ⁠Myrkul's Chosen, Orin joined the three in the raid to plant the Crown on the brain beneath Moonrise Towers.

It was during this time that Orin saw her opportunity and struck, driving a dagger through the Urge's skull and planting an Illithid tadpole in them. With her former rival left to die with a tadpole devouring their brain, Orin took the Dark Urge's place as Bhaal's Chosen and the third member of the conspirators. Orin would prove undisciplined in her role, however, as her bloodlust could not be contained, and she rapidly grew to be disliked by the other two, who saw her as little more than a necessary nuisance for their plan. At some point between the betrayal and the events of the game, Ketheric and Orin tricked  Minthara into a trap where Orin murdered her allies and captured her. She then used a tadpole to convert Minthara into a True Soul.

The dying Dark Urge is found by  Kressa Bonedaughter, saved from death, and held captive in the Mind Flayer Colony for some time as she experiments on them, until they are shipped away onto a Nautiloid. If the Dark Urge is chosen as Origin, they later awaken during the Prologue.

If the Dark Urge is not chosen as Origin, their corpse will be found in Orin's chamber during Act Three, tortured to death by their sister.

Involvement

Act One

Though Orin is not present in the first act of the game, her involvement in the plot is alluded to when the Absolute attempts to take over the party's minds, and they see a vision of the Chosen shortly before being saved by the  Mysterious Artefact. The player character can also see a vision of Orin manipulating an enthralled Minthara upon first meeting the drow in the Shattered Sanctum.

Act Two

Orin first appears alongside  Ketheric Thorm and  Enver Gortash in the Mind Flayer Colony beneath Moonrise Towers. An argument breaks out between Gortash and Ketheric, and is stopped from becoming a fight due to her intervention. Having successfully kidnapped  Ulder Ravengard, she also takes the opportunity to plant a tadpole in the duke's eye as part of their plan to take over the city. She then joins the other Chosen and uses her  Netherstone, the Lash of Bhaal, with them to order the Netherbrain to march the Absolute's armies on Baldur's Gate. She and Gortash leave for the city, while Ketheric stays behind to deal with the party.

Act Three

Orin, standing over a captive Lae'zel.

With Ketheric slain by the party and the Netherstones separated, Orin and Gortash's partnership falls apart along with their control of the Elder Brain. While Gortash is having his picture painted by a servant, a shapeshifted Orin comes to Gortash's quarters and repeatedly threatens him. Though Gortash urges Orin to control herself and focus on reuniting the Netherstones, Orin has no interest in cooperation. If the Dark Urge is in the party, she also tells Gortash her intention of killing them.

After reaching Rivington, the party can encounter Orin in person for the first time. She reveals that she is aware of their objective to confront her and Gortash and gather the Netherstones, and threatens to follow the party from now on, watching their every step before disappearing once more. If engaged by The Dark Urge, she reveals their relationship as siblings mockingly and taunts them (granting the inspiration ⁠Personal Relations in the process). From then on, she begins harassing the party by using her changeling abilities to shapeshift into different characters. When speaking with these seemingly innocuous characters, the conversation slowly turns more violent until Orin drops the disguise to goad the party into a bloody encounter with her.

Gortash may offer an alliance with the party if spoken to before confronting Orin. Tired of her theatrics and unreliability, Gortash offers to join forces to subdue the Netherbrain for good and rule the ⁠Sword Coast together if the party slays Orin and ⁠brings him her Netherstone. In order to convince the party, he also reveals that their camp has been compromised by Orin, who is masquerading as a party member. If bargained with, Gortash proves true to his word if his conditions are fulfilled.

Upon entering the Lower City, Orin kidnaps a member of the party unbeknownst to the rest of the group. Who she kidnaps, when and how it's revealed depends largely on the player character's relationships with their companions. Orin then confronts the party and announces that she holds a hostage, demanding they deal with Gortash first and face her in a duel, where the winner takes all. This encounter initiates the quest ⁠Rescue Orin's Victim.

To get Orin's Netherstone, the party must visit the Murder Tribunal in the Undercity Ruins, as the Temple of Bhaal is open only to those deemed worthy by Bhaal. At the tribunal, the party is welcomed by  Sarevok Anchev. He reveals how the Bhaalists survived the events of years prior, as well as his connection to Orin as her grandfather. If confronted by The Dark Urge, he further elaborates on Orin's involvement in their fall from Bhaal's grace, excited at the prospect of a Bhaalspawn duel in the ranks of the cult. He offers passage to the Temple of Bhaal if the party prove to be worthy by becoming an Unholy Assassin, which requires impressing the tribunal with a killing, and then the sacrifice of a celestial being (though the Dark Urge is allowed to skip straight to the sacrifice). Alternatively, the party can simply decide to fight Sarevok, a prospect he welcomes eagerly. Either granted to a worthy Bhaalist or looted from Sarevok's corpse, with the  Amulet of Bhaal in hand, the party can finally confront Orin.

Orin can be found within the Temple of Bhaal, at the altar. There, she is toying with her kidnapped victim, surrounded by Bhaal cultists. When approached, Orin threatens to kill her hostage, though she can be convinced otherwise through dialogue. The Dark Urge can persuade her to duel them as is Bhaalist tradition, to which she eagerly agrees.

Alternatively, if the party uses  Speak with Dead on  Helena Anchev's corpse, they can discover that Sarevok ordered her to sacrifice Orin. Revealing this to Orin causes her to completely lose focus on killing her victim. The same can be achieved by exposing that Sarevok is her father by reading  A page from Sarevok's book. If the party then choose dialogue options without ability checks, Orin becomes enraged and calls on Bhaal's power to transform into the Slayer. However, the party can also choose to taunt her further by succeeding a  DC 25 Deception, Persuasion, or Religion check, which causes Orin to completely break down since she is unable to cope with the truth. Bhaal then speaks to her through the giant skull carved into the temple wall, commanding her to fight and unnaturally forcing her body into the Slayer form. Regardless of the outcome of the conversation, Orin attacks when it concludes.

Once defeated, the party can loot her corpse and find  Orin's Netherstone. The Dark Urge gains the ⁠Securing Your Line inspiration if present.

Orin's shapeshifting

Orin uses her shapeshifting abilities to harass the party twice, using one of the disguises listed below. Following the second transformation, all further interactions with the characters below are genuine.

Meeting one of Orin's impersonations for the first time as the  Dark Urge grants the ⁠Personal Relations inspiration.

Orin can only be in one place at a time: if a disguised Orin stays in the visual range of a party member, she cannot take the appearance of other characters elsewhere and thus is effectively pinned in place. This way, it is possible to talk to the other genuine characters without triggering Orin's apparitions.

These characters, with the exception of the dying Stone Lord thug, can also be 'saved' by not speaking to them until reaching Gortash at Wyrm's Rock. Once Gortash informs the party that Orin has compromised their camp by shapeshifting into one of their companions, she only impersonates the dying Stone Lord thug.

Lastly, it is possible to identify when a character is actually Orin as they are then level 12, though without the large amount of hit points that would be expected from that level. When examined, these characters can be observed to have Orin's passives (e.g. Immutable Form), giving away their true identity. If attacked straight away, Orin transforms and disappears without her usual threats, but still taunts the party.

Disguises

•  Dying Stone Lord Thug near the Western Beach in Rivington.
•  Gyldro Angleiron, a blacksmith in the Rivington General.
•  Lens, a journalist in Rivington for the Baldur's Mouth Gazette.
•  Rowan, a member of the Flaming Fist, standing near the back of the donation barn in Rivington.
•  Zethino, the fey Master of Love at the Circus of the Last Days in Rivington.

Combat

Main article: Orin/Combat

Orin serves as one of the main antagonists of Act Three of the game alongside  Enver Gortash. Her defeat is required before facing the final threat of the game:  The Netherbrain.

Loot

•  Altar Key
•  Netherstone-Pommelled Bloodthirst – separates on pick-up into:
  •  Bloodthirst
  •  Orin's Netherstone
•  Crimson Mischief
•  Mutilated Carapace
•  Ring of Murderous Opportunity
•  Studded Leather Armour +2

Related Quests

• ⁠Get Orin's Netherstone
  • ⁠Impress the Murder Tribunal
  • ⁠Investigate the Murders
  • ⁠Rescue Orin's Victim
• ⁠The Urge

Related literature

•  A Plan for Chaos
•  A page from Sarevok's book
•  Abazigal, the Fourth
•  Amelyssan, the Sixth
•  Assassin's Instructions
•  Balthazar, the Fifth
•  Beheading the Bitterroots
•  Blood-Envy for the Unworthy
•  Bloodied Note
•  Bloody Message
•  Clasped Book (Moonrise Towers)
•  Concerning Orin the Red
• File:Crumpled Note Scrawled in Blood Unfaded Icon.png Crumpled Note Scrawled in Blood
•  Experiment on Cruor
•  Illasera, the First
•  Kill Order
•  Kudos on the Murder of Gortash!
•  Kudos on the Murder of Gortash! (no tribunal)
•  Letter from Orin
•  Letter with Sticky Red Blots
•  Manifesto
•  Sendai, the Third
•  Strangely Scented Note
•  Strike in Bhaal's Name!
•  Yaga-Shura, the Second

Achievements

First Blood

Kill Orin while her cultists are performing their ritual chant.

Gallery

• 
  Cinematic shot
• 
  Overhead Shot

External links

• ⁠Orin on the Forgotten Realms Wiki
• ⁠Bhaal on the Forgotten Realms Wiki
• ⁠Chosen on the Forgotten Realms Wiki