Did we miss anything in this quest? Is there something we didn't discover? Let us know!

Background

This is a gold quest that will become available in the map room of the Heroes' Guild after you've completed either Protect Orchard Farm or Attack Orchard Farm.


Available Boasts

• No Protection
• Without a Scratch
• Protect Traders

Walkthrough

Your goal is to escort a couple of traders through Darkwood Forest. Shortly into the trip you'll meet a third trader, but you'll discover that he's been infected by the Balverines (werewolves) of the forest. If you send him away, then your alignment will drop by 40 points. If you let him come with you, then eventually he'll turn into a Balverine and attack you (generally in Darkwood Weir or at the Ancient Cullis Gate). We've heard people say that you'll get an alignment boost for allowing the third trader to follow you, but it didn't happen when we played.

This escort quest, just like every escort quest, is sort of a pain. You'll face bandits, Balverines, Hobbes, and even an earth troll during the trek, and sometimes they'll attack whoever they see first (that is, you) and sometimes they'll make a beeline for the traders. Still, the best strategy is to tell the traders to wait when you enter an area, and then to clear it with your character before proceeding again.

You'll succeed in the quest if you can keep at least one of the traders alive. If you're careful, this shouldn't be too difficult, especially since the traders will heal when they reach the Darkwood Camp. The most difficult part of the quest is in Darkwood Lake, since in that area bandits will suddenly appear on the map and attempt to kill the traders. You might also have some problems with the earth troll at the end of the quest. It's difficult to kill the troll using melee combat because it has a short-range area attack, and so you should consider using bows or magic against it.

When you reach Barrow Fields, the traders will stop following you, and they'll walk to the bridge leading to the merchant area. When you reach the bridge as well, the quest will end, and you'll receive at least 500 renown and 2000 gold, plus earn the trader's feather trophy.

"You think this is bad? You should have been on my last trip."