The Fated and Doomguard Conflict 

The inter-faction conflict is one of the main storylines of the first act in Blizzard in Baator. On one side, you will run into the Fated faction, represented here by Factor Ulfbrand Völgarsson Baunaætari. On the other side is Raelis Shai’s troupe, representing the Doomguard, who are hiding out in the The Beneathmask Theater.

Haer’Dalis will tell you more about the root causes of the conflict (provided you have already spoken with Elvra Syne at The Styx Oarsman). You will learn that he has been accused of a „premeditated” insult against the Factol of the Fated, Rowan Darkwood. He will direct you to the The Division of Debt Collection, where you must convince Ulfbrand to cease his threats. Haer’Dalis will hand you a Fated Coin, which opens a portal to Ysgard (located near the Rivergate Tavern).

Portal to Ysgard

Note: This article does not contain spoiler tags. The following section of the guide contains major plot details regarding the mod’s narrative.

Several paths are available to resolve this inter-faction conflict:

  • Ambush Ulfbrand – work with the Doomguard to set a trap for the giant and his entire entourage (highly recommended for a first playthrough due to its unique mechanics).
  • The Raid on the Beneathmask Drama Hall – join forces with Ulfbrand and the Fated to launch an assault on Haer’Dalis’s troupe.
  • Attack Haer’Dalis – bring the bard’s head directly to the giant without involving the rest of the Fated. This can be achieved through open combat or a hidden assassination option.
  • Undermine the Fated’s Influence – systematically reduce the Fated’s standing throughout the act until Ulfbrand agrees to a peaceful resolution.

The Doomguard Path: Ambushing Ulfbrand

This path is triggered by the following dialogue choices:

  • Side with Doomguard. „I was told to use force if peace was not an option, and I will do so.”
  • Side with Doomguard. Lie: „I guess I have no choice. I do not know where they are now, but they trust me enough to take me there. I will return with the location.”
  • Side with Doomguard. Lie: „I will do you one better. There is no need to risk an open battle under the Lady’s eye. I will bring you the actor’s head myself.”

Ulfbrand is immortal while in Ysgard, so attempting to fight him there is futile. If you die in combat, you will awaken in the death hole. However, if you lie about your intentions, you will still successfully ally with the Doomguard.

Regardless of how you ally with the theatrical troupe, you must return to the Beneathmask Theater and coordinate the ambush on Ulfbrand alongside Haer’Dalis. Before the trap is sprung, the Nameless One can suggest defensive formations to the actors (requires the Fighter class; having 12+ Intelligence increases the defensive formation’s strength for the duration of the battle, while having less than 12 permanently weakens it).

Haer’Dalis will send you back to Ulfbrand (even if you fought him earlier—the giant suffers from memory issues and will not be hostile). The giant will fall for your bluff and march to the location where the bard is allegedly hiding, completely unaware of the trap.

The Ysgardian will also hand you a Call to Battle – a scroll that allows you to send dispatches to potential faction allies. The History of Interfactional Diplomacy book from the library can prove incredibly useful when selecting your allies.

You can send dispatches to:

  • Ebb Creakknees (Requesting Harmonium Support): They will assist if: Ebb Creakknees is alive, you spoke to him at the Smoldering Corpse Bar, and you have visited Carceri. The Harmonium will not join you if you were reported by Sulfur Stefan (one of Alviro’s patients).
  • Ebb Creakknees (Requesting Anarchist Support): They will assist if: you met Ebb in Curst, and Scofflaw Penn is alive.
  • Emoric (Requesting Dustmen Support): They will assist if: Emoric is alive, and you either discovered where Pharod gets his bodies or have joined the Dustmen.
  • Keldor (Requesting Godsmen Support): They will assist if: Keldor is alive, and you have visited the Great Foundry and completed the Godsmen faction trials.
  • Splinter (Requesting Sensate Support): They will assist if: Splinter, Qui-Sai, and Mertwyn are alive, and you have visited the Civic Festhall.
  • Barking-Wilder (Requesting Xaositect Support): They will assist if: you have joined the faction and possess a Chaotic alignment.

Warning: The overall battle effectiveness will naturally decrease if you invite rival factions to the same fight, as they will turn on each other instead of the enemy:

  • The Dustmen view the Sensates as fools trapped in the snares of passion, while the Sensates view the Dustmen as nihilists wasting the only thing of value – the ability to experience.
  • The Harmonium seeks to eradicate the Xaositects to maintain order, while the Xaositects view the Harmonium as a threat to absolute freedom.
  • The Harmonium strives for total control, while the Anarchists want to destroy everything the Harmonium has built.
  • The Godsmen treat life as a path to ascension, while the Dustmen view striving for godhood as an extension of the soul’s suffering when it should be seeking eternal rest.

Once you finish sending out dispatches and receive all replies, you can initiate the ambush.

The Ambush

The vast majority of the ambush requires strategic battlefield maneuvering. The outcome depends heavily on mid-battle decisions, as well as the total tally of the Fated’s influence, which you can weaken or strengthen throughout the first act.

A partial list of factors that decrease their influence can be found in the „Peaceful Path” section below (primarily consisting of dialogue choices that criticize the Fated’s beliefs or their Factol, Rowan Darkwood).

Additionally, the battle’s outcome is determined by:

  • Properly selecting faction allies: Inviting rival groups increases the chance they will fight among themselves, rendering their battlefield support negligible.
  • Utilizing companion strengths: Before the battle, you can select three companions and assign them specific objectives:
    • Fall-From-Grace: If kept away from direct danger, she can effectively heal your allies.
    • Ignus: Can incinerate the Fated’s berserkers (though his presence can occasionally endanger both friend and foe).
    • Nordom: Can utilize high ground on the fortifications to rain down crossbow bolts on enemies.
    • Dak’kon: Excels as a second-line battlefield leader.
    • Annah: Can sneak behind enemy lines to land backstabs.
    • Morte: His taunts and curses can occasionally distract Ulfbrand.
    • Vhailor: Will spread terror through the Ysgardian ranks with his axe.

The finale of the ambush relies entirely on the Fated’s final influence balance. Battlefield successes lower it; failures increase it. As a result:

  1. The Fated win if their influence is above zero: Ulfbrand wins the engagement, and the actors are executed. After the fight, you can return to Ysgard where the giant will be celebrating his victory.
  2. The Doomguard win if the Fated’s influence falls below zero: Ulfbrand is left isolated on the battlefield, allowing you to slay him.
  3. The Fated and Doomguard draw: The Lady of Pain herself arrives on the battlefield and slaughters representatives of both factions (in this scenario, you can loot Ulfbrand’s earring directly off his corpse).

If you possess the Greater Coin of Fate (found in the bag purchased from the harbor Ware-shack Manager), you can force a draw regardless of the battle’s progress by opting to flip the coin during dialogue.

No matter the outcome, Ulfbrand’s earring will either be found on his corpse or can be obtained from him in Ysgard if you visit him after a victorious battle.

The Fated Path: Assassinating Haer’Dalis

This path is triggered by the following dialogue choice:

  • Side with the Fated. Truth: „I will do you one better. There is no need to risk an open battle under the Lady’s eye. I will bring you the actor’s head myself.”

By choosing to ally with Ulfbrand, you can personally deliver the news of Haer’Dalis’s demise. Simply return to the Beneathmask Theater. The bard can be killed in two ways:

  1. Direct Confrontation: You can declare your intentions openly in conversation, triggering a battle against him and his allies.
  2. Silent Assassination: If you possess a Razorvine Garrote (looted from the razorvine blight corpse in the Flooded Area), you can suggest that Haer’Dalis step into the backstage area with you. There, the Nameless One or Annah can use the garrote to quietly execute the actor. For the Nameless One, success depends on being trained in the Thief class.

Upon his death, Haer’Dalis drops the Entropy sword (+2). Bring his head back to Ulfbrand to receive his earring, which is required to open the portal to Cania.

The Fated Path: The Raid on the Beneathmask Theater

This path is triggered by the following dialogue choice:

  • Side with Fated. Truth: „They are hiding in the theater by the Vertical Sea. We can raid them easily.”

By exposing Haer’Dalis’s hiding spot, you will join Ulfbrand and the Fated in a full raid on the Doomguard theater. After making this decision, the giant will need a moment to prepare. Speak to him again to begin the march.

Upon arrival, you will find the theater in ruins. You will stand alongside Ulfbrand on the stage to face Haer’Dalis’s troupe, while backstage, a group of Ulfbrand’s berserker units deals with the remaining Doomguards.

Haer’Dalis will deliver one final speech to the crowd. Ulfbrand – with or without your aid (see below) – will emerge victorious over the bard. Once the battle concludes, he will hand over his earring, allowing you to access the Cania portal.

If you fall during the battle, you will awaken on a pile of fresh corpses in a ruined section of the theater. Returning to the main stage area reveals the fight has concluded, and Haer’Dalis’s troupe lies dead. Ulfbrand will no longer be at the theater; you can find him celebrating his victory back in Ysgard, where you can claim his earring.

The Hidden Peaceful Path: Undermining the Fated’s Influence

Throughout Act I, you will encounter numerous characters who align with the philosophies of either the Fated or the Doomguard. Conversing with them allows you to either increase or decrease Ulfbrand’s overall faction influence.

Influence Mechanics: How It Works

The Fated begin the game with 8 points of influence. Choices made during your adventures will adjust this value. Forcing Ulfbrand to back down and accept a peaceful resolution requires dropping this metric all the way to 0.

How to Reduce the Fated’s Influence

Lowering their influence is highly challenging, particularly because many choices throughout the adventure can inadvertently increase it. Shifting the metric upward even slightly can lock you out of the peaceful resolution entirely. To succeed, you must consistently criticize Rowan Darkwood and sow discord among the Fated’s ranks.

Important: You must reduce the Fated’s influence to zero before formally aligning yourself with either faction.

Actions that decrease influence:

  • Convinving Mahalai that his contract lacks legal ground, then returning the contract to him (-2);
  • Fighting Mahalai or setting Vhailor upon him (-1);
  • Killing Mahalai, such as by shoving him off the cliff (-1);
  • Making Rowan Darkwood the central antagonist in Raelis Shai’s play (-1);
  • Agreeing with the pale woman on the cliff on the subject of Rowan Darkwood (-1);
  • Slandering Darkwood during the conversation with the pale woman on the cliff (-1);
  • Expressing a negative opinion of Rowan Darkwood when speaking with Ulfbrand (-1);
  • Pointing out to Ulfbrand that petitioners lose memories of their former lives (requires listening to the Death Advocate’s lecture at the Civic Festhall) (-2);
  • Criticizing the Fated’s philosophy when discussing the dissolution of Bigby’s College of Academic Arts with Tasselwick Drohm (-1);
  • Calling the Fated „nothing but parasites” when speaking with Drohm (-1);
  • Calling Darkwood Academy a hotbed of corruption and pseudoscience when speaking with Girgosh (-1).

Actions that increase influence:

  • Alienating Tasselwick Drohm (+1);
  • Agreeing with Ulfbrand’s philosophy that the strongest should dictate the law (+1);
  • Training with Ulfbrand (+1);
  • Defending Rowan Darkwood during the conversation with the pale woman on the cliff (+1).

What Next?

If you have successfully lowered the faction’s influence to zero (no easy way to check this), ask the Sauna Master about Ulfbrand and the Fated. The character will admit that everything has been „falling apart” lately, the Fated are losing their grip on the city, and Ulfbrand’s standing is incredibly weak.

This unlocks a brand new dialogue path with Ulfbrand. Instead of taking a side, you can successfully convince him to abandon his campaign against Raelis Shai’s troupe. Ulfbrand will willingly yield his earring to you so you can open the portal to Cania.

You can then return to Haer’Dalis at the Beneathmask Theater to collect your well-earned rewards.