Online:Vision Quest

Save Shad Astula from a Maulborn takeover. Zone: Deshaan Objective: Shad Astula — Learn the secrets of the Academy of Magic. Quest Giver: Arch-Mage Valeyn Location(s): Shad Astula, Shad Astula Underhalls Prerequisite Quest: School Daze Reward: Shad Astula Academy Robes Lena's Wand of Finding High Leveled Gold XP Gain: High XP ID: 3908

Save Shad Astula

Arch-Mage Valeyn thinks his visions are somehow connected to the evil Magistrix Vox. Unfortunately, before he could learn more, something blocked his magic.

Quick Walkthrough

1. Investigate the library.
2. Find Hadmar.
3. Find Lena's lockbox.
4. Collect spell ingredients.
5. Find the Maulborn general.
6. Destroy the Jagged Lens.
7. Talk to Valeyn.
8. Talk to students at the dock.

Detailed Walkthrough

Immediately after completing School Daze, your conversation with the Arch-Mage of Shad Astula will continue:

"While you assisted my students, I had another vision. I see that your fate is fundamentally tied to the chaos-bringer, Magistrix Vox. However ...."

Tell me what you saw.

"Alas, I've seen nothing beyond the chaos-bringer's name! Something interferes with my fore-vision, blocking my efforts at every turn.
I suspect we are opposed by mighty forces beyond mortal ken."

What should we do?

"We must take appropriate measures! I'll gather the students and make sure the grounds are secure.
I'd like you to use the trapdoor to investigate the library vaults. I haven't heard from the librarian, and that fills me with nameless apprehension."

All right, I'll check the library vaults.'

Prison Break

The trapdoor is nearby. Upon entering it, you'll only be able to explore a short distance before being caught in a magical trap. Your character will awaken in a jail cell, imprisoned alongside Lena and Tedras from the prior quest. Speak to Lena to continue:

"Shad Astula's been overrun. The last of the Maulborn, from the looks of it--they must need more soldiers.

And they're getting them. They cast some kind of spell to enslave the students."

They're forcing the students to fight for them?

"That's what it looks like.

That spell didn't work on us--don't know why. We carried out the Arch-Mage's orders, but then the Maulborn caught us and threw us in here with you."

What did the Arch-Mage order you to do?

"When the trouble started, he gave us some arcane items and told us to find places to hide them. Then he went off on some mission of his own.

I'm glad you're awake. Can you get us out of here?"

I can try

Speak to Tedras by the cell door next.

"This is terrible! The Academy's in danger, the Arch-Mage is missing, and I'm locked in here with you!"

Who captured you?

"The Maulborn general himself.

One of the senior students recognized him. Said he was Darvasen—used to be the Arch-Mage's assistant!"

Where did Arch-Mage Valeyn go?

"Who knows? He muttered something about looking for Hadmar and a familiar.

What do you think the Maulborn want us for?"

Nothing good. Have you tried the gate?

"I was afraid to. There're guards out there!

Maybe you could check it. Discreetly."

Attempt to open the gate. You won't be able to, but you'll attract the attention of Familiar, which will approach the gate:

Valeyn's Familiar: "Back away from gate. Coming through!"

Once it forces its way in, it'll engage in a conversation with you:

"I open portal and we go find big Nord. Name Hatmeer! Or Hadmead? I forget. Mortals have dumb names.
No matter. Come, come. We go now. Big Nord hides in building next to where we appear."

What about Lena and Tedras?

"They stay here. Master says he doesn't want them to be dead yet.
I get them when time comes. No worry!"

The banekin will open a portal to the ground floor of the Instruction Halls. The familiar will follow you and assist you in combat. You need to locate Hadmar. The banekin said he was in a building near the Instruction Halls. Head next door to the Instructor Housing (On the right-hand side when you exit the Instruction Halls) and find Hadmar, who is hiding behind the bed. Speak to him.

"Hadmar's glad to see you. Arch-Mage said you'd be here soon. And here you are."

What's going on?

"Hadmar isn't sure. One moment I was walking to instruction hall, next moment--boom! Hadmar knocked on backside.
Woke up in here, with Arch-Mage standing over me. He said wait for you to show up. I waited, and you showed up!"

Did the Arch-Mage say anything else?

"Yes! He told me to set up my totem near big rock outside. Lena hid her lockbox high up on top of rock.
Lockbox is very important. We must find lockbox and bring it to Lena!"

Where is it?

"Just outside!
You use totem to reach the lockbox, while Hadmar stays on ground. Then we'll find Lena!"

Lena's Lockbox

Head outside and locate Hadmar's totem, fighting your way through (or sneaking your way past) scamps and enthralled academy students as needed. The totem is located in front of a large rock behind the Administrative building. Use it to launch yourself onto the left side of the rock; the right side is too steep to climb. Lena's lockbox is hidden within a crevice in the rock. Once you interact with it, Valeyn's Familiar will teleport her up onto the rock right next to you. Talk to her.

"Wait, where am I? Why are we up so high?
That blasted banekin! It could've warned me!"

Nice to see you. Can you open this lockbox?

"The lockbox. Right. The Arch-Mage tinkered with my wand and told me to hide it up here.
That was just before Darvasen tossed me in that cell. I still can't believe the Arch-Mage's old assistant is the Maulborn general."

It sounds like the Arch-Mage has a plan.

"He said we'd need the wand, but he didn't say why.
Wait, I know! The Maulborn have occupied the library vaults and sealed the door. And what makes the best spell of unlocking? Burnt scamp hide and illusion dust, of course!"

Where can I get those ingredients?

"You can use my wand to scorch the scamps. And illusion dust is the residue of illusory monsters. With enough of each, we can prepare a spell to get us through to Darvasen.
We'll need Tedras, though. That spell is his specialty."

Scorched Scamp. Crunchy!

You'll need to collect five Scorched Scamp Hide and six units of Illusion Dust. Improved Wand of Finding will instantly fry any scamp you aim it at, with a short cooldown between uses; however, you can kill the nearby scamps through any means and still get scamp hides. All you need to do to kill scamps with the wand is put your line of sight over the scamp and fire away. Toasty! For illusion dust, you'll need to kill several illusory nix-hounds and Kagouti standing guard near the enslaved academy students.

For role-playing purposes, it may be valuable to know that the illusory monsters are positioned such that it is impossible to engage any of them without also engaging an enslaved student in combat. Valeyn's familiar is still accompanying you, and it may not attempt to spare students' lives even if you disengage them and flee after killing a monster.

Once you have the needed ingredients, get to the library door and activate it. Tedras will appear:

"About time you summoned me. I thought you'd leave me sitting in that cell forever."

I heard you were the best at opening locked doors.

"You heard correctly. If I had the right ingredients, that is. But getting them will be tricky, considering that the Maulborn occupy the Academy."

Way ahead of you. Here you go.

"Illusion dust and burnt scamp hide. Perfect! Just give me a moment and ... there we go!
I'll wait up here. You know, to keep your escape route clear. Now go find the Arch-Mage and put an end to that Darvasen."

Upon entering the library, you will need to fight your way through Maulborn soldiers, navigate the underhalls, locate General Darvasen, and kill him. Once he's dead, you'll need to approach and interact with an object called the Jagged Lens of Compulsion, to shatter it. Doing so will knock your character unconscious; you'll awaken in a room with Lena. An optional quest objective encourages you to speak to her:

"You're awake! Oh, I was so worried.
I'm so glad you're all right."

What happened?

"You shattered the Jagged Lens and broke the spell. The few Maulborn who were left were totally outnumbered, and they ran for it.

The Arch-Mage had us bring you up here. I've been watching over you. You know, as a friend."

So Shad Astula is safe again?

"Safe as gorapple pie. Thanks to you.
And you—you weren't even supposed to be here. I heard how you got your invitation. And now we're all alive because you broke the rules. I'll have to think about that."

You watched over me the entire time?

"Don't give me that look! I was worried about you, that's all.
Oh, and before I forget, the Arch-Mage wants to speak with you. He's right outside."

Head outside and speak to Arch-Mage Valeyn at the testing field, to the right of the stairs.

"Good to see you up and around.
I knew you'd be fine, but Lena wouldn't leave your side. You gave her a good scare."

The Academy is safe?

"Yes, though we lost a few students and instructors in the fight.
The fact that the lens was buried below the library vaults was one of our greatest secrets. Darvasen used that knowledge to aid the Maulborn."

So that's why the Maulborn attacked Shad Astula?

"Quite so. They're running out of loyal troops. When Darvasen told them about the lens, they saw it as the solution to all their problems.
If Darvasen could turn our students into soldier-slaves, the Maulborn would be back in business."

So that's it, then?

"For you, here, yes. But I don't need a vision to know that you still have unfinished business out there.
Anyway, I'd like to thank you. And there's one more thing."

What's that?

"The students you helped want to speak with you. They're waiting at the docks.
I think they want to say goodbye."

Head to the docks and talk to Lena to complete the quest:

"I wasn't going to let you go away without saying goodbye."

I'm done here. I have to return to Mournhold.

"I know. You have things to do. Important things. We just heard about everything you did before you arrived here.
But we didn't want you to forget us."

I won't forget you.

"We wanted to give you something. It's not much, but maybe it will help you remember the Academy.
Now where did I put it?"

You don't have to give me a present.

"Don't be silly. Ah, here it is.
Take my wand. It worked better for you, anyway. Remember me when you use it."

Bugs

• In the cell, there seems to be two invisible triggers on the left of the door that can be reached from the inside of the cell. One of them seems to cause the objective to fail and return to the "Investigate the Library" goal, while the other takes you out of the cell (and also fail the objective). ^?
  • Stay away from near the left area of that door.

Quest Stages

Vision Quest
Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
	The Arch-Mage hasn't heard from the librarian, so he asked me to use the trapdoor to check the library vaults. Objective: Enter the Library
	Now that I'm in the library, I should look around and see if I spot anything unusual. Objective: Investigate the Library
	As I investigated the library vaults, someone ambushed me. I woke up in a locked cell with Tedras and Lena. I should speak to them and find out what happened. Objective: Talk to Lena Dalvel Objective: Talk to Tedras Relvi
	I should examine the gate. Maybe I can find a way to open it. Objective: Examine the Gate
	A small banekin scattered the Maulborn outside and walked through the locked gate. It appears to want to talk to me. Objective: Talk to Valeyn's Familiar
	A friendly banekin rescued us. He said that Arch-Mage Valeyn sent him. We're supposed to find Hadmar, who's hiding in the building next door. Objective: Find Hadmar the Thin-Boned
	Hadmar set his totem up near a large rock to the north. I can use the totem to reach the lockbox Lena hid on top of the rock. Objective: Find Lena's Lockbox
	When I found the lockbox and tried to open it, Lena appeared. I should speak to her. Objective: Talk to Lena Dalvel
	Lena thinks we should cast a spell of unlocking to get into the library vaults and deal with the Maulborn. I'll need to gather dust from the illusory monsters and use the wand to collect scorched scamp hide. Objective: Collect Illusion Dust Objective: Collect Scorched Scamp Hide Objective Hint: Use Wand to Scorch Scamps
	I collected the ingredients for the spell of unlocking. I should find the library trap door in the Arch-Mage's office and summon Tedras to case the spell. Objective: Go to Library Trap Door
	I'm back at the library door and the Arch-Mage's familiar summoned Tedras to meet me. I should give Tedras the ingredients and tell him what we're planning. Objective: Talk to Tedras Relvi
	Tedras unlocked the library door. I need to find the Arch-Mage and deal with the Maulborn general. Objective: Find the Maulborn General
	I found the Maulborn general in the caves connected to the library. He enslaved students and captured the Arch-Mage. I need to deal with this villain. Objective: Defeat Maulborn General Darvasen
	I defeated the Maulborn general. Now I need to shatter the crystal to release the spell holding the students. Objective: Destroy the Jagged Lens of Compulsion Hidden Objective: Return to the School
	I woke up in the Academy dormitory. It seems that everything is back to normal. I should talk to Arch-Mage Valeyn and find out what happened. Objective: Talk to Arch-Mage Valeyn Optional Step: Talk to Lena Dalvel
Finishes quest	Shad Astula is safe again, and it's time to move on. The students I helped want to speak to me before I leave. They're waiting for me at the docks, near the boat back to Mournhold. Objective: Talk to Students at the Dock Objective: Talk to Lena Dalvel

Notes

* Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the game and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.

• Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
• Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.