Arcanum, Bessie Toone Mine, Part III

(Part III of Arcanum Walkthrough for Troika's cRPG Definition of 2001, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura).

Gnome Assassin

In Shrouded Hills there is a gnome agent stalking us for the signet ring which was given to us by the gnome, Preston Radcliffe at the crash site: in town, he is a 12th level spy posing as the brother of Preston ("William"), whom we can slay with impunity; and just over the bridge (past Lukan), he appears as a 3rd level gnome assassin who attacks whether we give him the ring or not (or a third level human agent spawns if we slew the gnome in town).

The assassin was carrying a note, too:

These assassins are agents of the Molochean Hand. We learn this when we are waylaid on the overworld en route to Tarant from Shrouded Hills. 

At this point, the reader is advised to read a little about Arcanum waylays.

Ristezze

Merchant Ristezze is the only NPC in Shrouded Hills who can provide a solid lead on the ring:

That is, he gives us the name and the address of the jeweler that made it, but does not know what the initials "G.B" stand for.

[1,200 XP, Tarant: Map-marked]

Note: Purchase a shovel from Ristezze; it'll come in handy later.

So now we have two reasons to go to Tarant: the jeweler and Joachim's telegraph. These are our prime leads as it pertains to the main quest, but there is much to do in Shrouded Hills before we move on.

Bessie Toone

In the above dialogue I gave Ristezze the camera found at the crash site, but it is best to give him the boot of Bessie Toone (which we can find in the mine to the west) because the camera has uses later in the campaign whereas the boot can only be sold to Parnell at the museum in Tarant.

If we ask, Ristezze tells us a bit about Bessie Toone:

As does Constable Owens:

And the blacksmith, Lloyd Gurloes:

Bessie Toone Mine Location

Anyway, the mine is located far to the west. Under Bessie Toone's direction it was a lucrative silver mine that put Shrouded Hills on the map, but now it's a non-productive iron ore mine due to being haunted by the ghost of Bessie Toone.

The Bessie Toone mine constitutes a brief, low level dungeon crawl. It's so small and straightfoward (three forks and three dead ends), that it would be an insult to post a map for it. There are wolves, spiders and a few trivial traps; nothing dangerous.

Bessie Toone Ghost Location

The spirit of Bessie Toone is found in the west of the Bessie Toone Mine. Bessie Toone's Boot is found here as well (give it to Ristezze).

Other loot: Hexed Dagger, Magical Small Robe, Dynamite, Vendigrothian Sprocket (see Part IV).

Percival Toone

We can now visit Percival Toone (in the house south of the mine) and tell him about his mother's ghost:

[Dernholm Map-marked]

Sarah Toone

Continuation of this quest requires travel to Dernholm (to see Sarah Toone) and Tarant (to see Stanton).

Sarah Toone is found in a dilapidated house in the south of Dernholm, not far from our starting point:

Stanton Importers

Thus, we need to make our way to Stanton Importers located at 25 Lion's Circle in Tarant. Stanton seems to be well-heeled, and he's got three half-ogres backing him up. There are two tacts to take in the conversation:

However, only posing as the Industrial Relations officer results in not having to pay for the deed of the mine -- IF the "correct" dialogue responses are chosen. If not, we need to pay 350 GP for the deed.

The trick is not to be too hasty, and to avoid accusations:

The mine deed is now in our possession. Who to give it to, though?

If we give the deed to Sarah Toone:

[3,800 XP, Good +23] Be careful with big alignment shifts. For example, a 23-point shift to Good may lock you out of Thieves' Underground access.

The Filament Sword we receive as a reward is one of the best swords in Arcanum.

If we instead give the deed to Percival Toone:

[1,700 XP, 500 GP]

Either way, the spirit of Bessie Toone disperses and leaves behind a unit of pure ore on the ground, which we can give to Lloyd Gurloes, thereby satisfying his quest as well:

[800 XP, Good +1] One day later, he'll give us a Fine Steel Dagger made from the ore.

Oddly, we cannot tell the constable (who is also the mayor) that we have fixed the problem in the mine. One would think he would be interested in knowing that ore-mining can now improve the economy of Shrouded Hills...

At any rate, we gain our first reputation:

Reputation: Savior of Bessie Toone: The people of Shrouded Hills have taken a liking to you as the person responsible for freeing the ghost of Bessie Toone. [Reaction +10]

cRPG Blog	8. Thieves' Guild Arcanum	17. Ashbury Arcanum
ARCANUM (Index)	9. Cassandra Pettibone	18. Isle of Despair
1. Arcanum Walkthrough	10. Gilbert Bates	19. Wheel Clan Arcanum
2. Shrouded Hills Arcanum	11. Garringsburg Heist	20. Durin Stone Arcanum
3. Bessie Toone Mine	12. Madam Toussaude	21. Stillwater Arcanum
4. Jongle Dunne	13. Ancient Maze	22. Qintarra Arcanum
5. Doc Roberts Arcanum	14. Dernholm Arcanum	23. Bedokaan Village
6. Amulet of N'Tala	15. Black Root Arcanum	24. Persuasion Master Arcanum
7. Tarant Arcanum	16. Black Mountain Mines	25. Caladon Arcanum (to the end)