Compassion

After speaking with the citizens of Britain, you learn much of what the Guardian has done in your absence. The Virtues are being twisted in the minds of the citizens, and the powerful Runes of Virtue have gone missing from the land. After meditating at the ruined Shrine of Compassion, you head off to its Dungeon, Despise, to see if you can learn more...

Denotes Required Actions

Denotes Optional Actions

The Countryside

• Back at the Crossroads east of Britain, take the North road. Beware of Goblins up in this direction. You'll eventually come to a small, 2-story house. This is Iolo's House (23). Enter and you'll meet Gwenno, Iolo's wife. You learn that your old Companion has gone to the Dungeon to investigate what's wrong with the Land, and he hasn't been seen since. On the north side of the house, you'll find the stairs to the second floor. There you'll find a Music Room with some instruments you can play with. There's a Long Bow in the corner by the door if you missed the one in Britain.
  

• Outside Iolo's, there's an adventurer named Orson. He gives you more information on Despise, and reminds you to meditate at the Shrine if you haven't already.

• Continue north along the road, and eventually the Column will come into view. You'll see the remains of a poor farmer who died during the Column's appearance (this scene should look familiar. If not, watch the intro again ;). To the right of the Column is the entrance to Despise.
  

Despise

• Go down the entrance and follow the passage. Use a weapon or the Ignite spell to get past spider webs that block your way. There are some Wyrmguard Armguards between two barrels you can take. They're better than Leather. Pull the lever on the ground to get past the lowered gate.

• When you come to a branch in the passage, go to the East and you'll hear some voices on the other side of a door. Don't touch the door at all if you want to hear their entire conversation. Once you touch the door, you'll find it's locked and you'll hear some cries for help. The key to the door is in a small chest behind the checkers board. When you enter you'll meet Castro and Felix. These brothers came into Despise in search of a treasure that they were going to use to get money so they could buy the rights to stay in Britain. This treasure is locked away and the key to it is the Kiran Stone which was broken into 4 pieces. You find out that 2 others came into Despise as well. Each one of them knows the location of one of the stones. You learn from these two that one is in a Pillar room and the others is behind a Wall of Water.

• Back in the passage, you'll see a familiar puzzle to the west. Ignite the torch on the left side of the door to unlock it. This leads to the Pillar Room. Dispatch the vermin in this room, and you'll find a red potion in the NW corner. Jump from one pillar to another to reach the top where you'll find the Yellow Kiran Stone. There is another pillar slightly lower than the large one with the stone. It has a small blue button on it which you must hit to open the gate to continue farther into the Dungeon. Go through the newly opened gate and jump over the gap in the floor. There's a guard post here with a Journal you can read. The lever on the wall opens the closed gate.
  

• Before you go through there, though, head back to the gap in the floor. Look down and you'll see a passage. Jump down and go through it. There's some sulphurous ash and a white potion in the chest you'll find in a small room. The fountain in this room is a Healing Fountain UNLESS you click on the portrait of yourself and take the Wyrmguard armor. Then it turns into a poison fountain. Continue south to a dead end. The lever on the floor opens the wall. This is a one-way door. You're now in a room with a large pool. This is the same place that the other gate from the guard post leads.

• In the Large Pool Room, you'll see a fountain pouring into a full bucket of water on the East end of the room. Take this bucket, and put it on the altar on the west end of the room to unlock the door on the South side of the room. There's an orange potion in the fountain in the middle of the pool. Go out the south door and you'll come to a Pentagram painting. Click the painting and a white potion will appear. To the west is a blocked passage.

• To the East and up some stairs, you'll come to a large Weapons Room with a short sword in a display case. You can take it if you need it. If you touch the crooked shield on the East wall, a secret door will open. This leads to a Healing Fountain. There some potions and gold in the chest. Back in the Weapons Room, there's a passage in the NW corner that leads to a lever. This lever opens the gate and covers the hole on the other side.
  

• Through the gate, you'll come to a room that gives you a hint what's in the water. Don't drink it! Read the note next to this poor fellow's body and you'll find out it's Mourdin, one of the other brothers. His note gives a hint that a Stone can be found near a Dining Room somewhere. There is some Leather Body Armor next to his body. Continue East up some stairs to a room turned into a Rat's Nest. The key to the door is in the rat's nest in the center of the room. Before you move on, though, check the SE corner. There's another handy bag behind some cobwebs to increase your carrying capacity. Through the locked door, you'll come to an Archery Room. All the arrows laying around should give you a hint on what you should do. Shoot the grey target above the door to unlock it.
  

• Through this door is the Dining Room. As you enter, you'll see a key hanging on the wall directly in front of you. Take this key and walk up on the ledge to the East. Step on the pressure plate to lower the wall and enter the hidden passage. The key from the Dining Room opens the chest you find back here. In the chest you'll find a treasure map and a key that goes with it. Take them with you for later. Step on the pressure plate next to the chest back here and you'll be teleported. The room to the south has spikes rising and falling. Carefully make your way between the spikes where there are larger gaps to the lever in the SW corner. Pull it to raise the gate. Enter the room and the Blue Kiran Stone will appear. You can just take it without walking into the flames.

• Back in the Dining Room, through the small arch to the West into a room with a Fireplace. There's a chest that contains a Light scroll, a yellow potion, and some sulfurous ash. On the South wall you'll see a blue button. Push it to make the wall disappear and proceed through. Make your way along the passage, breaking through some cobwebs, and you'll eventually come to a small room with a Fountain. To the left is an Alchemy Lab. Up on the stone platform you'll find some reagents, potions, and a Leather Cap. Pull the lever under the stone platform to make the Fountain disappear. There's a secret door where the Fountain was. Behind it is a purple button that opens the gate.
  

• Through the gate you'll come to another guard post. Read the Journal to discover the key to the door down the hall is missing. The key is in the small pool of water to the south. To make the door accessible, you'll need to get to the lever on the other side of the fence. I got there by using the two barrels nearby. I placed one on the other side of the fence first (yes you can do it without being over there), then put the other next to the fence. Climb up onto the barrel, jump across to the other side, and flip the lever. Do the same to get back. See the picture below for an example.
  

• Through the now accessible door, you'll find a small Cathedral. Take the key on the one bench for later. Nearby you'll see a lute and a bow. This proves Iolo has been through here! Read the parchment on the altar for a hint on what you can do in this room. Light the candles on the altar with Ignite and the ankh will emit a rainbow light. Stepping into this light will restore your health, but ONLY ONCE! I recommend saving this for when you head back out.

• When you walk through the door behind the altar, you'll hear someone screaming for help. Quickly move to the NW and flip the switch on the wall there to stop the walls from crushing the poor trapped man in the pit. When he finally makes his way out, you'll find out he's the last of the 4 brothers, Thadious. For saving him, you'll get a point of Karma and he'll give you the Green Kiran Stone. If you don't save him, you'll take a negative Karma hit, and you'll have to quickly make it to the red box on the wall and get the Kiran Stone out of it before you get crushed.
  

• At the far end of the hallway there is a locked door. There is a room to the East with an Attractor. Behind the ball, you'll see a red button on the pedestal. Press it at the key will be "attracted" to you from the other side of the gate across the hall. Take the key and make your way to the end of the hall, unlock the door, and go through.

• Through this door is the Kiran Stone Room. Place the 3 Kiran stones you have so far on the matching colored pillar. Read the book on the ledge NE of the colored pedestals to find out what Kiran's treasure is. Reading the book will open the passage to the North.
  

• Through the new passage to the north, you'll eventually have to start swimming. When the passage opens up to a room with a Waterfall, look to the right of the waterfall for a lever underwater. Pull the lever and a stone will move aside revealing the Red Kiran Stone and another handy inventory bag. Take the stone back to the Stone Room and get Kiran's Treasure.
  

• Return to the waterfall room, and continue swimming East through the door amd back up onto dryer land. You'll pass a short sword and some leather arms on a small ledge. Continue and you'll come to a large, open, lava-filled room with a bridge across the middle. A strangely familiar Wyrmguard calling himself Ooli will confront you. He'll attack you but will soon beg for your Compassion claiming he is your friend Iolo! He is telling the truth!! Spare him and he will let you pass and enter the Column. If you kill him, you'll take a negative Karma hit, and the level 4 Archery skill will be unavailable to you later in the game. It is always in your best interest to save your friends somehow when you come across them! Walk up into the Column and take the Glyph of Hatred to disable the Column's control of the land. Complete restoration of Compassion to the land will require the Cleansing of the Shrine.
  

• Make your way out of Despise the way you came, using the Despise Cathedral if you haven't already. Upon exiting, you'll be confronted by an old enemy and make a new friend. It's off to find the Mayor and get the Sigil...