Video-based Walkthrough for Neverwinter Nights 2

PROLOGUE | ACT I | ACT II | ACT III ||| MotB | SoZ | MoW |

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Crossroad Keep

Githzerai Prisoner

And here I speak with Zhjaeve for the first time in the City Watch Headquarters. Sir Nevalle then arrives and bids me to return to Crossroad Keep.

Equipping Zhjaeve

For those of you who want Zhjaeve to actually display some armor when she puts some on (like me), check out this link. Even so, after you place the files you want into the override directory, you'll need to use the NWN2gff editor to change her NeverShowArmor variable from 1 to 0.

Zhjaeve is now a joinable companion, but she's practically naked on arrival. Good thing I've been stashing away some equipment for her. Valeria then pulls the following items out from her Bag of Holding so that Zhjaeve can now wear them:

Elven Ceremonial Armor
Gauntlets of Ogre Power
Ring of Caitlyn
Kiss of Sune
Casavir's Plate Boots - This one is simply to cover up the feet on her new model.

I then set Zhjaeve up with her spells. Note that she doesn't have to dedicate any spell slots to spells of the Cure Wounds sort, and can instead freely dedicate all of her spells to either offensive spells or buffs. The reason is that her spontaneous casting ability will allow her to convert any of her previously prepared spells into healing spells on the fly if she has to, which translates into considerable flexibility for her.

I also make a point of dedicating two of third-level spell slots to Magic Vestment. The reason is that she'll be able to use the spell on her Elven Ceremonial Armor to raise its enhancement bonus, and likewise on a magic shield that she'll soon purchase.

Lastly, I buy the Thayvian Circlet (+2 Intelligence, +1 saving throws, +2 Concentration) for her from Werth the Armorer in the Docks District. The Intelligence bonus is meaningless. The point is the bonuses to saving throws and Concentration.

Zhjaeve's Guidance

And here is a cutscene where Zhjaeve offers some guidance to Valeria. I also get 500xp for becoming the new Knight-Captain of Crossroad Keep.

Managing Crossroad Keep

Managing the Keep is a rather complex mini-game unto itself, and it's easy to go wrong. A mismanaged Keep can easily burn a hole through your pocket, while a well managed Keep can become an extremely profitable venture for you. What to do? Well there are some resources that can help you. This entry from the NWN2Wiki provides information on certain variables like who can join the staff of the Keep, special missions, and upgrade costs.

So what affects the income of the Keep? Here's another helpful link.

Here's my take on the info. Certain factors relate to the keeping of time with respect to your management of the Keep:

Keep Time - Time goes up by 2.5% when you either speak to Officer Kana (more on her later), or when you get Master Veedle to build an upgrade (more on this later).
Special Missions - Special missions and certain special events are scheduled to appear at certain time intervals. For example, Old Man Morris' mission will occur at 10% to 15% time. Be careful not to have Master Veedle build too many upgrades in succession lest you miss out on a special mission.
New peasants, new merchants, new Greycloaks, income, etc., all of the variables get tabulated at each new 2.5% integer.
Time is also finite, and stops at 100%. Once time reaches 100%, no more income, no more new peasants and merchants and recruits and such.

Then there are certain variables tied to your peasant population:

Land Security - Land Security raises the Peasant Growth Modifier. Land Security is in turn increased by upgrades that improve the fortifications of the Keep, assigning Greycloaks to patrol the lands surrounding the Keep, and the Unit Strength of those Greycloaks who do patrol the lands.
Number of Peasants - More Peasants means more of a base from which to draw your Greycloak troops, and more of a taxable population.
Farmer Tax - How much you tax your peasants.
Peasant Civility - How well-behaved your peasants are. Keeping taxes low will improve peasant civility. Undertaking actions befitting a tyrant (e.g. bleeding them dry, forceful conscription) will lower Peasant Civility and may even increase the negative Unrest value.
Peasant Growth Modifier - How fast more peasants are willing to take up residence around your Keep. Lower Peasant Civility means a lower Growth Modifier. Keep in mind that Peasants will have a greater tolerance for higher taxes if Land Security is appropriately higher.

Then there are factors tied to merchant commerce:

Road Security - Road Security raises the Merchant Growth Modifier. Road Security is increased by upgrades to the roads themselves, assigning Greycloaks to patrol the roads themselves, and the Unit Strength of those Greycloaks who do patrol the roads.
Number of Merchants - More merchants means more of a base from which to assess the Merchant tithe.
Merchant Tithe - The level to which you tithe incoming merchants. Raising the taxes too high can have a negative impact on the Merchant Growth Modifier. There's also a secret merchant tax that can be implemented with a successful Appraise check that won't have any negative effect on the Modifier. This secret tax needs to be reset periodically.
Merchant Growth Modifier - The rate at which more merchants will come to the Keep. Higher taxes can have a negative effect on the Modifier. However, the merchants will be more accommodating of higher taxes if the Road Security is appropriately higher.

Then there are factors tied to your military power:

Number of Greycloaks - How many Greycloaks are actually in your armed forces. The more Peasants you have, the more volunteers you'll get for joining the Greycloaks. You can also actively recruit more Greycloaks if you like. Keep in mind that active recruiting is rarely if ever necessary if you play things right, because having good Peasant Civility and good Land Security will mean more Peasants coming to your Keep. This in turn will mean your Greycloak number will pretty much take care of itself. Another thing to keep in mind is that the more Greycloaks you have, the more of a demand on the Keep's budget, so don't go overboard with this unless you have the resources / income to match. Greycloak numbers may also experience casualties on account of the Special Missions.
Weapons - How well armed your Greycloaks are. This is handled through the blacksmith named Jacoby if you get him to work for you at the Keep.
Armor - How well protected your Greycloaks are. This is handled through the armorer named Edario if you get him to work for you at the Keep.
Greycloak Civility - Increases if you have the Greycloaks treat the Peasants well, and decreases if you have the Greycloaks act like the Peacekeepers in the Hunger Games movies. It only really becomes a problem if Greycloak Civility is low but Peasant Civility is high, which then becomes a recipe for Unrest.
Greycloak Morale - Increases if you treat your Greycloaks well, increases in proportion to the degree with which they succeed at the Special Missions.
Training - How much training they've had. It needs to be an early priority when you first take charge of the Keep.
Greycloak Unit Strength - This variable depends on a formula that accounts for Armor, Weapons Upgrade, Training, Morale, and the Number of Greycloaks recruited. Greycloak Unit Strength is important for things like obtaining the best results during special missions, and increasing Land Security and Road Security if they're assigned to patrols.

Based on the above info, it is obvious that if you really want to make the most of your Keep then you need to make each 2.5% time integer count as much as you can. But at the same time, there's a dilemma. Going all the way with building fortifications, and assigning all of the Greycloaks to land patrols will mean more Greycloaks will get recruited and more rapidly. But the more Greycloaks you've recruited, the more your Keep coffers get strained. Your income will never turn out to be negative, but it is entirely possible to get an income of 0 with each time integer if you prioritize recruitment and land security exclusively.

If you want to increase income, then having Master Veedle increase road upgrades and assigning Greycloaks only to road patrols will increase road security. That will mean more taxable merchants come to the Keep. At the same time, not sparing any Greycloaks for recruitment will mean less Greycloaks for road patrols and a further enhancing of road security.

The dilemma should be obvious by now. Where do you strike that balance? There's more than one take on the issue. Here's an extreme example that has one goal, to absolutely maximize the amount of income that can be attained at the end of the 100% time limit.

This approach depends on throwing everything exclusively into maximizing land security and Greycloak recruitment until about the halfway mark. Once the halfway mark is reached, everything is then thrown into maximizing road security and bringing as many taxable merchants as possible to the Keep. I'm not in favour of this approach, at least not for my game. It calls for a nearly complete avoidance of Kana and Master Veedle until Act 3, with the idea of recruiting Light of Heaven so as to maximize Greycloak and peasant recruitment almost from the word 'go'. It also avoids any complications on account of the special missions.

Here is a more balanced approach, which is designed for a good-aligned character and starts things almost right away during Act 2.

It is this particular path, with a few caveats, that I'll be showing in this guide.

Recruiting for Crossroad Keep

Note that I haven't even spoken to Kana or Master Veedle yet, so Keep Time hasn't even started yet. One of my priorities is to recruit the early staff that are available in Act II, and before Keep Time even starts. Those staff are:

Calindra in the Armed Alliance Inn in Port Llast. Unlike Pentin, she'll provide gold rewards for her mining.
Pentin at Old Owl Well. He's one of two miners that can be recruited. Having him as one of the miners can result in occasional ingot rewards for yourself. Having mining set up at the Keep is also important for being able to do armor and weapon upgrades for the Greycloaks. The highest upgrades require that you find more Ore Veins in the course of the game.
Katriona at Old Owl Well. She becomes one of the Sergeants.
Orlen in West Harbor. He's important for Peasant Civility as he will tend the farm fields outside the Keep.

I return to the Keep, enter the Keep Courtyard, and go back out to the Keep outskirts. That results in my newly recruited staff being present at the Keep.

That also includes my two miners, Calindra and Pentin. I speak to Calindra about ore deposits that I discovered during my previous adventures, and she now leaves to quarry them.

I enter the Courtyard, and go back to the outskirts. Calindra has returned. I speak with her again, and receive several ingots of various types.

The other significance of mining the ore deposits is that I can now upgrade the armor and weapons of my Greycloak troops stationed at the Keep (more on this below). For future reference, there are ore deposits that I'll need to find during Act III and have my miners quarry in order to obtain the best possible armor and weapon upgrades for my Greycloak troops.

A Soldier's Story

I return to West Harbor. Here I get 500xp for informing Retta Starling of Lorne's fate.

The Swamp Elf

And here is where Elanee calls Georg on his Swamp Elf story.

Master Veedle

I approach #4 on the Crossroad Keep map, and briefly speak with Lieutenant Kana and Master Veedle. It becomes apparent that Master Veedle is the go to guy for upgrades. As I previously mentioned, I want to spend as little time as possible on the Keep during Act 2, but just enough to be able to access the merchants that become available through the Smithy and the Merchant Shop.

Lieutenant Kana

I enter through the front gate to the Keep itself at #10 on the map.

Crossroad Keep

I start off at #1 on the Interior map. I then speak with Lieutenant Kana at #2. There are certain things that I can give her instructions on:

Greycloak Task - The options are 1) Training 2) Patrol the lands exclusively 3) Patrol the roads exclusively 4) Patrol both lands and roads 5) Actively recruit more Greycloaks. I chose the Training option in order to get the Greycloaks ready for a special mission that will come up at about 10% Keep Time.
Greycloak Recruitment Standard - Goes on a continuum from getting as many as I can but with less effectiveness or getting only the best but with the least number. I go with only the best. It will pay off in the long run as certain measures I take during Chapter 3 will ensure a steady stream of peasants and in turn Greycloak volunteers anyway.
Sergeant Assignment - 1) Go on special missions with the Greycloaks. 2) Go on land patrols. 3) Go on road patrols. 4) Go on both land and road patrols. 5) Train the Greycloaks. 6) Recruit more Greycloaks. Katriona is my only available Sergeant for the moment. I assigned her to special missions for the time being, and again in anticipation of that special mission that will come up very soon.
Merchant Tithe - This can be set to none, light, medium, or heavy. Setting it to high can result in less merchants coming to the Keep. It is not a good idea raise Merchant Tithes until Road Security has improved enough, so I leave it at none. However, I also make an Appraise check to install a secret tax on the Merchants that won't negatively affect the Merchant Growth Modifier. I need to periodically reset this secret tax at times, like after I come back from the Ruins of Arvahn.
Peasant Tax - Same options. And again, taxing too heavily can diminish the number of Peasants who are willing to come to the Keep. I prefer not to raise taxes until Land Security is good enough, so I leave this at none as well.

Lastly, I have her give me a report on Crossroad Keep. Keep Time is for the moment at 0%, so I'm just getting started.

Uncus

Now I speak with Uncus at #4. I allow him to remain at the Keep as a merchant, subject to a proviso that I'll get into shortly. Of all the fences that are willing to buy wares that were pickpocketed, Uncus offers the best prices, so now Neeshka takes the opportunity to unload everything she's collected so far.

I also buy one item from him, the High Forest Cloak (+2 deflection bonus to armor class, +1 to saving throws, Druids only), which becomes Elanee's cloak for the rest of the game. Keep in mind that she won't be able to transfer its benefits when she goes into Wild Shape.

*Note* One last thing, Uncus' presence in the Keep will actually be a hindrance to building a strong healthy Keep if you were aligned with the Shadow Thieves beforehand and if you engage in repeated conversations with him. He has certain tasks for the Knight-Captain that invariably involve things like getting rid of traitors or spies amongst the Greycloaks. Falling in with these requests invariably has negative effects on variables like Greycloak Unit Strength, Greycloak Morale, and Greycloak Civility. The precise penalties that result depend on the particular dialogue choice you select with him. Reference XInfinity's guide if you want the details.

Craft Wondrous Items

If you want to access the workbenches in the Keep basement, but without advancing Keep Time, a good way to do it is simply speak to Wolf near the front door of the Keep, and have him bring you straight to the basement.

Once I'm there, one of the Potion Shelves will have more potions and scrolls for me to loot. Now it's time to create a couple more items.

First up, Valeria pulls three Fairy Dusts out of her Lesser Magic Bag. I reload until she gets three Radiant Water Essences out them. She only needs one right now, but the other two will come in handy later on. I stow those two back into the Lesser Magic Bag.

Next, Valeria places one of the Beljuril gemstones that she found earlier into the Magician's Workbench, plus two Leather Hides, plus a Radiant Water Essence. She casts Eagle's Splendour on the Workbench to create a Nymph Cloak +8 for Qara. It goes without saying that Qara will wear the Cloak for the rest of the game, and it will enhance her spellcasting powers considerably.

After that, Valeria fuses some Air Essences together into a Radiant Air Essence. She place the Radiant Air Essence into the Magician's Workbench, plus a Leather Hide and the other Beljuril Gemstone. She then casts Cat's Grace on the bench to create the Belt of Agility +8 (Dexterity +8, Freedom of Movement) for Neeshka. Neeshka will wear the Belt for the rest of the game. It will improve her use of Improved Evasion, several of her thieving skills, her attack bonus in conjunction with her Weapon Finesse feat, and her armor class.

Headsman

I now have quite a lot of gold, so I head over to Fibba in the Docks District. I make purchases even cheaper with Grobnar activating his Inspire Competence, and Valeria casting Heroism on herself. I purchase the Headsman (Falchion +3, Vorpal DC=20) from Fibba's special wares. At some point I'll raise its enhancement bonus to +4 and add the Keen property to it. It becomes Bishop's other weapon for the rest of the game, and makes him a truly powerful character in his own right. He can rain destructive arrow-fire on his targets from afar. Any that make it close to him will then have to face instant-death strikes from his vorpal falchion.

I then purchase the following from Fibba's regular wares:

25 Full Plate molds
12 Half-Plate molds, for a total of 15
25 Heavy Shield molds
9 Light Shield molds, for a total of 10
25 Longbow molds
21 Tower Shield molds, for a total of 22

The intention is to craft items, and then sell them for a profit margin that far exceeds any amount I may have had to pay for the base materials. More on this below.

Deekin at Crossroad Keep

First, I must speak to Master Veedle about rebuilding the Merchant Shop, which will advance Keep Time to 2%.

I then travel to the south side of the Merchant Quarter, and talk Deekin into setting up shop at Crossroad Keep. His store will be in the small building just to the left when I first enter the courtyard. I don't buy anything from him just yet. The reason being that there's a very expensive purchase in the Blacklake District that I have my eye on, so I want to raise gold instead of spend it. Remember, any items available for purchase in Crossroad Keep will still be available for purchase in Act III. Items that can be purchased in Blacklake District will only be available during Act II. I hold off for the time being.

Deekin, along with Jacoby and Edario who will also set up shop at Crossroad Keep very soon, are all willing to spend up to 20,000gp per item depending on their price. For some reason, Valeria's companions can also sell items for higher prices than Valeria can. And Grobnar's Inspire Competence will help them while it will instead cheapen the selling price for Valeria herself. I therefore let Valeria's companions do the selling, aided by Grobnar's Inspire Competence. So I sell some of my pricier items to Deekin for now.

Lastly, there were a few items that I couldn't sell for more than 10,000gp to previous merchants (e.g. Luckstones, Ardulia's Fall, Kiss of Sune). It turns out that they'll sell for less than 10,000gp to any one of Deekin, Jacoby or Edario. With that realization, I just sell them off at 10,000gp each to Fibba.

Armor and Weapon Upgrades

Now I instruct Master Veedle to build the Smithy, which puts Keep Time at 5%.

The Smithy is ready to start, but there's nobody to work it just yet. First I travel to Highcliff and convince Edario to work in the Smithy at Crossroad Keep. After that I go to Fort Locke, and get Jacoby to work for me at the Keep.

Both will have set up shop by the time I return. Jacoby has interesting weapons for sale, but none of it figures into my long term plans. I do, however, sell him any expensive items that I had left.

I speak to Jacoby about upgrading the Greycloaks' weapons, which the first time costs 5,000gp. I next speak to Edario about upgrading the Greycloaks' armor, which costs 3,500gp the first time around.

The next upgrades are 15,000gp each for Jacoby and Edario.

The next upgrades after that are 35,000 for Jacoby and 30,000 for Edario.

That will be the maximum possible upgrade available through Jacoby. There is one more for Edario, but it's not possible until I find a certain ore deposit during Act III.

I run out of keep funds doing this, and in fact have to partially pay out of my own pocket for the last upgrades. But I do it anyway, because it improves the Greycloaks' chances of success during their special missions.

Crafting Duskwood Longbows for Profit

I have nine Duskwood Planks. I buy 50 more from Jacoby. I also buy one more Longbow Mold, for a total of 29. The idea is a simple one, simply craft 29 Duskwood Longbows (Sand takes over smithing duties now), sell them at about 3,700+gp a pop, and turn in a tidy profit in the process. If you need to raise gold for pricey items, this is one such method.

Crafting Mithral Heavy Shields for Profit

I have 4 Mithral Ingots. I buy 25 more from Jacoby, for a total of 29. Now I craft 14 Mithral Heavy Shields, sell them at almost 9,000gp a pop, and turn in another profit in the process.

Crafting Adamantine Full Plates for Profit

I have 3 Adamantine Ingots. I buy 25 more from Jacoby, for a total of 28. Now I craft 9 Adamantine Full Plate Armors, sell them at 10,000+gp a pop, and turn in another profit.

Crafting Light Shields for Profit

I have 6 Zalantar Planks. I use them to craft 3 Zalantar Light Shields, which sell for 15,000+gp each.

I also have 3 Umber Hulk Hides. I use 2 of them to craft an Umber Hulk Hide Light Shield, which sells for almost 15,000gp.

Deekin's Wares

I wanted to make sure I could still afford everything I wanted from the merchants in the Blacklake District before I bought anything from the merchants at Crossroad Keep. I think I am now at that point. I purchase the following from Deekin:

Ring of Resistance +3 (+3 to saving throws) - One of Valeria's rings for the rest of the game. That it helps her Evasion ability is one of the key points.
Boots of Hardiness +3 (+3 Constitution, +3 dodge bonus to armor class) - The Constitution boost is minor, but Valeria has a lot of durability on account of her spell-buffs, high armor class, and Evasion ability. The dodge bonus to armor class is certainly welcome. Although ultimately I will have her export a pair of Boots of the Sun Soul +5 into Mask of the Betrayer.
Greater Magic Bag (holds items at -80% weight)

I end the video by having Valeria transfer everything from her Lesser Magic Bag and into her new Greater Magic Bag.

Edario in the Smithy

Now I buy the following from Edario:

Forgotten Shield (Tower Shield +4, +2 to Will saving throws, +25% resistance to slashing damage) - Casavir will use it for the rest of the game once he acquires the Tower Shield Proficiency feat, which is not far off.
Dragon Armor (Scale Armor +5, +3 to saving throws) - Grobnar's armor for the rest of the game. At some point Grobnar will access the Improved Evasion ability through another item, so the saving throw bonus provided by the armor is certainly welcome.
Dragon Shield (Heavy Shield +2, +10 acid resistance, +10 cold resistance, +10 electrical resistance, +10 fire resistance) - The enhancement bonus is only +2, and it cannot be enchanted any further through the Craft Magic Arms and Armor feat. Zhjaeve, however, can simply cast a Magic Vestment spell on the shield to raise its enhancement bonus, thereby having her cake and eating it too. The elemental resistance bonuses will also stack with those provided by her Ring of Power.
Kumakawa (Hide Armor +3, Improved Evasion) - I'm saving this for Ammon Jerro when he joins the party.

Sending Daerred to Port Llast

Keep Time is at 5% when I enter the Keep again. In any event, Keep Time is now at 7%. That means the amateur adventuring company led by Daerred will appear for the first time asking for work. It's up to you whether you want to send them to their deaths, or give them instructions that will keep them alive and earn a magic ring for yourself later on.

Asking Kana if there's any work for them will prompt them to leave immediately for Port Llast, which will keep them alive for the time being. This event pushes Keep Time to 7%.

Guyven of the Road

I speak for a bit with Guyven of the Road at #7 on the Interior Map. A future benefit of Guyven being in the Keep is that I'll get 100xp bonuses whenever I enter certain areas for the first time.

Torio Claven

While I'm here, I speak with Kana again. This won't push Keep Time forward. Remember, it is leaving the Keep Interior AND re-entering the Keep Interior AND speaking with Kana that pushes Keep Time forward.

Kana notifies me that Torio Claven has been captured, and I now have the option of either having her executed or bringing her to Crossroad Keep as a captive informant.

Valeria chooses the latter. I exit the Keep Interior, come back in, avoid speaking with Kana so as to also avoid pushing Keep Time forward, and speak at length with Torio for background information.

*Evil* Sending Daerred to his Death

I handle things somewhat differently as the evil party. Zarathos sends Daerred and company to their deaths by telling them to go to the Mere of Dead Men. It results in +3 Chaotic alignment points and +1 Evil alignment points. It will also result in Daerred and his company attacking me as undead spirits in the final dungeon of the OC.

I also order Torio Claven executed out of spite, and as a roleplaying decision.

*NOTE* I'm done with Crossroad Keep for now, as I want to do most of that part of the game during Act III.

Now I finally get around to the optional quests in the Blacklake District.

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Video-based Walkthrough for Neverwinter Nights 2

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