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Background

You'll receive this quest from Osric in Admeth's Den in Copperlane (#1).


Walkthrough

Osric will tell you that before he joined the Dozens, he was kicked out of the Crucible Knights because of a "snake of a man" named Penhelm, and that when he left, he was forced to leave behind a breastplate that belongs to his family. So Osric will ask you to get his breastplate back, and he'll hint that he wouldn't mind if you also ruined Penhelm's name, perhaps by investigating why Penhelm sought out a forger after having his soul lineage read for the Knights.

The first thing you should do is talk to Penhelm (#2). You'll find him in Crucible Keep, which is located in the First Fires district. During your conversation, you'll notice that Penhelm is wearing Osric's Family Breastplate. Penhelm will claim that it became the property of the Knights when Osric left, and that he's fully justified in wearing it now. Penhelm will also deny that there's anything wrong with his lineage.

To check out Penhelm's story, you'll need to pick up his lineage affidavit, which can be found in a shelf in the records room (#3). When you read it, you'll see that Penhelm's lineage was certified by a cipher named Kurren at Hadret House, which is located in Brackenbury. When you show Penhelm's Affidavit to Kurren, he'll notice right away that it's a forgery, and he'll show you what a proper Hadret House seal looks like.

When you leave Hadret House, you'll get stopped by Penhelm plus a handful of Novitiates. You'll have a few ways to deal with them:

• You can give Penhelm his forged affidavit and allow him to keep Osric's Family Breastplate. You'll avoid a fight with Penhelm, and you'll gain a "moderate" amount of reputation with the Crucible Knights, but your actions will end your association with the Dozens.
  
  
• You can give Penhelm his forged affidavit but demand Osric's Family Breastplate in return. This will only work if you use the "stuck in the past" dialogue option when Penhelm asks why he should give the breastplate back (the diplomatic and passionate options will cause Penhelm to give you 200 cp but not the breastplate). If you're successful, then Penhelm will hand over the breastplate and leave peacefully, and you'll earn a "moderate" amount of reputation with the Crucible Knights. Then when you return to Osric, he'll reward you with 2000 cp, and you'll earn a "moderate" amount of reputation with the Dozens.
  
  
• Anything else you do will cause Penhelm and his Novitiates to attack you. The battle shouldn't be tough, and afterwards you'll find Osric's Family Breastplate on Penhelm's corpse. Then when you return to Osric, he'll reward you with 2000 cp, you'll earn a "moderate" amount of reputation with the Dozens, and you'll earn a "minor" amount of reputation with Defiance Bay.

If you complete the quest but don't return Osric's Family Breastplate to him, then you won't be able to continue on with the Dozens. Wenan (in Admeth's Den) won't give you the quest The Bronze Beneath the Lake, Sonild (also in the Den) won't sell you anything, and you won't get to choose the Dozens as your faction during the quest The Hermit of Hadret House. But if you complete the quest to Osric's liking, then just the opposite will occur: Wenan will offer you the quest, Sonild will sell you items (including Bracers of All-Consuming Rage and Snerf's Folly), and the Dozens will remain an option for you.


1 - Admeth's Den


2 - Penhelm


3 - Penhelm's Affidavit