How To Solve The Open Hand Temple Murders In Baldur's Gate 3 (2024)

Many different characters in Baldur's Gate 3 get killed in gruesome murders, but you have a chance to solve who committed the one that took place in the Open Hand Temple. This place in Rivington has seen the unfortunate death of the Temple's leader, Father Logan. Only you and your party can investigate this crime and find the culprit behind the murder.

The Open Hand Temple is a location to visit in Act 3 of Baldur's Gate 3, and your party can immediately find a commotion when you arrive. Many people have gathered to discuss the murder of Father Logan with their theories about who killed the beloved figure. Starting this side quest could lead to a few rewards depending on your decisions based on the information your party finds.

How To Start The Investigation

Speak to the main investigator on the scene, a Hollyphant named Valeria, to begin this quest in Baldur's Gate 3 after offering help to Sister Yannis. This detective seems to already know who murdered Logan and accuses the refugee Brilgor of the crime. Sister Yannis gives your party a few areas of interest to gather clues to prove whether Valeria's hunch is right.

A spellcaster who can talk to the dead in Baldur's Gate 3 can ask questions not only from Father Logan but also from the corpse of Brilgor. Unfortunately, Brilgor also died when the Temple murder took place, so you can't get their side of the story unless you use a bit of necromancy. The refugee's casket has to be dug up in the graveyard behind this area before you can use a spell on Brilgor's body.

Speaking to either Brilgor or Logan reveals that Brilgor was not the culprit behind the murder. Logan will tell you that a dwarf dressed in red killed him, but this is a relatively vague description of some characters in Baldur's Gate 3. Take this hint with you as your party continues to gather other clues from the scene of the murder itself in the basem*nt of the Temple.

How To Investigate The Crime Scene

The crime scene is one of the areas Sister Yannis highlighted, but you can find a secret Ornate Wooden Hatch in the Kitchen that leads to a series of tunnels below the Temple. Traveling through this dark passage leads to a crypt you can explore. Go toward the room with an altar to start an unavoidable combat with a few enemies that will attack your group on sight in Baldur's Gate 3.

Press the buttons behind the crests in the wall near the altar to start the combat, which you must beat without destroying the bodies of each foe. This is because one of the enemies carries the Flower Key item in Baldur's Gate 3 or one of the key items related to the murder. Those with a high enough Perception stat may also find a mysterious Hole near a platform leading to the water below this area.

Search the Hole to discover Stillmaker, or the murder weapon used to kill Father Logan in the first place. None of the bodies of enemies in the room will have anything more to say about the murder, so don't cast Speak with Dead on any of them unless you're curious to hear their perspective.

Where To Use The Flower Key

Your party must reach Fraygo's Flophouse to use the Flower Key, but this area could be difficult to travel towards, depending on your earlier choices in Baldur's Gate 3. The Steel Watch guards the South Span Checkpoint that blocks your path to the Flophouse. If you have angered this policing force in the city, you may have to fight through or sneak past these guards to visit your destination.

Passing Wyrm's Crossing will put you on the right path to the Flophouse, where you can head upstairs and interact with a large wardrobe on the top floor. When you do this, a secret room opens up and displays another shocking murder. Grab the journal on the desk in this space to uncover the true culprits of Father Logan's death and this crime scene - the Bhaalist Cult in Baldur's Gate 3.

The journal lists not only Logan's name crossed out but also several other potential victims that the Cult plans to attack. This will set up future encounters and fights in Baldur's Gate 3 that you can pursue to prevent others from dying to this murder-obsessed group.

How To Solve The Murder

Return to Valeria and give her the evidence found in the journal to complete the quest as you solve Logan's murder once and for all. This will prove Brilgor's innocence and allow your party to track down other instances of the Bhaalist Cult's plot. Since you eventually need to face Orin the Red, the leader of this group, any advantage over these enemies could be useful in Act 3.

Valeria is found on the second floor of Sharess' Caress, a shop directly across from the Flophouse's location. If the Hollyphant is away from the shop, she may be involved in another quest your party will have to track down within the Lower City. Thankfully, anyone looking to solve the Open Hand Temple murder should be able to find Valeria in Baldur's Gate 3 easily if they explore enough of their map.

How To Enter The Lower City In Baldur’s Gate 3

The best reward for completing the Open Hand Temple Murders investigation is the Lower City pass. Once you have compiled all of your evidence, ending in finding the Bhaalist cult’s hit list in Fraygo’s Flophouse, Valeria will give you a pass to finally pass through Wyrm’s Crossing.

All you need to do is turn in your evidence, acquire the Lower City pass, and move to the draw bridge to present your pass. With the pass in hand, you will be able to pass through to the Lower City portion of Baldur’s Gate with no problem. Even though this is the most direct way to get into the Lower City it is far from the only way.

There are three other ways to enter the Lower City without completing the Open Hand Murder investigation quest line or using the Lower City pass. First, you can attempt to parkour past the bridge barring the entrance to Wyrm’s Rock. The “pick up” and “throw” actions are easily the two most underused parts of Baldur’s Gate 3, and if you have the time and patience, you can build your own bridge.

Next, you can attempt to convince the gate guards, although the DC to make any of these rolls is very high. Finally, you can get arrested to get a fast pass into Wyrm’s Rock Fortress. Naturally, you’ll need to escape, which means fighting guards and losing most of your equipment.

How To Recruit Valeria In Baldur’s Gate 3

One of the central quests in Baldur’s Gate 3 after reaching Acts Two and Three is "Gather Your Allies". After the party learns about the Absolute Cult and its impending attack on Baldur’s Gate, you can slowly gain favor with other characters. In return, these characters, or groups, can aid you in the final confrontation of the game.

Given the grand scope of the final assault on Baldur’s Gate, you might need all the help you can get. The most common way to acquire allies for this final quest is to complete character-specific quest lines.

To get Valeria as an ally, you need to meet two conditions. First, complete the Open Hand Temple murder investigation by using the steps outlined above. Finally, you also need to reject the Murder Tribunal and rescue Valeria from the Bhaalist temple. After defeating Sarevok and his cohorts, you can find Valeria chained up in a side room.

Once you rescue the magical creature, it will officially be marked in your journal as an ally. Naturally, if you side with the Murder Tribunal and slay Valeria, you will not receive their help during the final confrontation, although this means you might attract the murderous Saverok as an ally for this final fight.

Baldur's Gate 3

Franchise

Baldur's Gate

Platform(s)

PC , Stadia , macOS , PS5 , Xbox Series X

Released

August 3, 2023

Developer(s)

Larian Studios

Publisher(s)

Larian Studios

Genre(s)

RPG

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Violence