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Walkthrough
For this quest, you'll need to visit the ducal palace in
Beauclair (#1) and update the duchess on your progress. She won't be very impressed that you haven't killed Dettlaff yet, especially when you suggest helping him against his blackmailer, but eventually you'll sway her to see things your way.
When you show the duchess the wine stain on the list of murder victims, she'll summon her sommelier. He'll recognize the wine as Sangreal 1269, which is produced at Castel Ravello -- but only for the ducal table. So the duchess will demand that you, she, and Damien, the captain of her guard, travel to Castel Ravello to see what is going on.
On the way to Castel Ravello, you'll spot two level 42 panthers attacking a cart (#2). You and Damien will move in to engage them, but you'll have to do all of the heavy lifting. When you defeat the panthers, you'll earn 450 xp.
At Castel Ravello (#3), you'll meet with Fabricio, the steward of the vineyard. He'll claim that only he has access to the Sangreal, but eventually the duchess will become impatient with him and demand the key to the cellar where the barrels are kept. You and the duchess will then head over to the cellar, where you'll find inventory ledger at the entrance to the storeroom (#6). The ledger won't show anything out of the ordinary, so you'll decide to look around for the 1269 vintage.
You'll find the Sangreal barrels on the upper level of the southern side of the storeroom (#10). You can either use the staircase (#9) or simply climb up to get to them. When you knock on the barrels, you'll detect that they're full, so the duchess will decide that you should open them up to see what exactly is inside. To open the barrels, you'll need a
Barrel Tap (#7) and a
Wooden Hammer (#8). You can find these items in the cellar.
When you open the barrels, the duchess will do the tasting, and eventually she'll find one that contains "revolting, bitter plonk" rather than Sangreal. This discovery will earn you 600 xp. When you ask Fabricio about the deception, he'll admit to selling a barrel to a self-proclaimed Cintrian noble, and that he has a second barrel ready for delivery. The duchess will charge Fabricio will high treason, and she'll have him sent to her dungeons.
To catch the wine thieves, you'll need to deliver the second barrel to the Fort Astre Ruins (#4). Damien and his men will hide nearby, ready to come to your aid. The ambush will work according to plan -- more or less -- and you should have an easy time defeating the level 42 bandits and their leader Hornitz.
Afterwards, the duchess will show up, and you'll question the lone surviving bandit. He won't want to talk at first, but eventually he'll reveal that the first barrel went to a warehouse in the Beauclair port, and that they were working for the Cintrian. Learning this information will earn you 1500 xp. The duchess will then send the survivor to her dungeons to keep Fabricio company.
To complete the quest, you'll just need to meet up with Damien and the duchess at a guard post in
Beauclair. You shouldn't travel there right away with the duchess. Instead, you should loot the ruins first, including the bandits' payment for the wine -- 500
Florens. When you do eventually reach the guard post (#5), you'll learn that the warehouse is a dead end, but that the Cintrian was seen with a singer named Cecilia Bellante, and that the two of them are planning to attend a soiree hosted by the Mandragora, an elitist club of artists and performers. The duchess will then decide that you and she should attend the party together.
1 - Beauclair Palace
2 - Panthers
3 - Castel Ravello
4 - Fort Astre Ruins
5 - Guard Post
6 - Inventory Ledger
7 - Barrel Taps
8 - Wooden Hammer
9 - Staircase
10 - Sangreal Barrels
Exits
- Cellar entrance.
