Classic Games Revisited
Dark Sun: Shattered Lands Walkthrough
24. Hot Springs
A Templar at 3 is forcing slaves to mine copper here under the watchful eye of guards, as Metiklt informed us. You could simply initiate combat and take all the guards and the Templar out, or you can get involved in the mining operation itself.
24.1. Copper Mining
On reaching around 2 (or anywhere near the operation), Kasha will burst out of the sand, wanting to know if you are escaped gladiators. If you say you are, he will tell you what’s going on here, then flee. On getting a little closer to the guards, they will demand an explanation of your intrusion. If you are aggressive in your responses, they will attack.
Via any dialogue path, if you demand to see the Templar and say you bring news from the city, the guard will insist that you pick up a tool and start working instead. Say you’ll work for now and you will be let in. If you don’t have them already, take the stone pick and shovel (Nazca Lines is two maps south from here if you want to dig up the chest later).
Speak to Templar Theofil (again, be careful what you say if you want to avoid immediate hostilities) and ask why he is mining the spring. Question why he believes there is copper ore here, then claim you can prove there is no copper. Show him the Wand of Metal Detection and Theofil will agree to pack up and leave if you give it to him. Hand it over and they will start walking away. Each party member will receive 6,000xp.
As they are walking away, you can attack one of them (or lob a fireball that doesn’t hurt the slaves) to start a fight. That will earn you additional XP, and Theofil drops a Leather Drake Shield, the first magical shield we’ve found. It improves your AC by a total of 3, and also increases the wielder’s saving throw vs. fire by 3. My entire party will continue dual-wielding though. Be sure to retrieve the Wand of Metal Detection from Theofil’s body—you can sell it for 10,000cp as it has no further use. The guards may also drop a few minor valuables.
Some slaves may start escaping while others will continue working, even though all of them will thank you for saving them.
24.2. Patrol Duty
Saunter over to 4, and (despite a distinct lack of flashing dots) you’ll come across a patrol of Drajian guards led by Uzoma, who mistakes you to be allies of Draj. They will not spawn if Theofil is still mining the spring. Again, you could get into a fight, or you can join their patrol by declaring you are a soldier. Opt for the latter, and stay close to Uzoma, or he may just leave.
He’ll lead you to 5, where a patrol from Teaquetzl will spawn. Uzoma will want them slain and you will be in combat mode, with the Drajians as your allies (flashing yellow on mouse-over) and the Teaquetzlites as your enemies (flashing black). If you try to talk to one of the Teaquetzlites, he’ll wonder whether he knows you from somewhere.
You can choose to follow Uzoma’s orders, but we don’t want to thin out Teaquetzl’s army. Instead, force-attack Uzoma (sword, spell or missile) and that will immediately change your loyalty. The Teaquetzlites will now be your allies and the Drajians your targets. Your new friends will be very happy you changed sides. Each party member will get 500xp for doing this. Uzoma leaves behind an axe among other mundane gear.
We now have a choice—we can clear out the Salt Oasis to the south, or head to Gedron to the north. Continuing south will eventually lead us to the Lava Rift and Gem Fields, but we only have two weapons that can hurt the fire elementals there. As with the Shadows, we can keep passing around the relevant weapons from attacker to attacker (or use a few spells). Although a little cumbersome, that will make us extremely rich.
On the other hand, going to Gedron will get us one of the best weapons in the game, a campfire, and another obelisk. We can also go south to visit Cedrilte to avoid a second trip to the north later.
I’m going to recommend a hybrid route that will prevent some back-and-forth.
Exit to the north at 6 to reach Gedron.