Find the Missing Shipment of Smokepowder

Key takeaways

The quest rewards careful handling of the shipment more than simple combat success.

• There are two starting points You can encounter Rugan and Olly while they are under attack by gnolls, or you can begin through Zarys in the Zhentarim Hideout. These routes connect to the same shipment conflict. Starting points
• The strongbox is the main decision point The shipment contains the Iron Flask. Opening or taking the chest is consequential because the Zhentarim expect the cargo to be delivered intact. The strongbox
• The cleanest faction outcome requires delivery Returning the intact shipment to Zarys can unlock the Zhentarim's exotic merchant stock and the Harold crossbow. Other decisions can reduce your standing with the faction or make Zarys hostile. Faction outcome

Overview

Find the Missing Shipment of Smokepowder is an Act 1 side quest in Baldur's Gate 3 about recovering a lost Zhentarim caravan strongbox.

The quest begins around a caravan shipment that never reached its destination. The strongbox is being guarded by the surviving agents Rugan and Olly, who are trapped while gnolls attack their position. You can become involved by finding the pair during the attack or by approaching the Zhentarim Hideout and speaking with Zarys about the missing cargo.

The central object is the sealed shipment itself. The strongbox contains the Iron Flask, a powerful and mysterious item, so the quest is not simply a matter of escorting a package from one location to another. The decision to preserve the chest, open it, steal it, or return it to the Zhentarim changes how the faction treats you and can alter the rewards available afterward.

This quest is deliberately structured around competing interests rather than a single required solution. Saving Rugan and Olly, protecting the shipment, and satisfying Zarys are related but not identical goals. Players who want the most favorable Zhentarim outcome should treat the strongbox as a protected objective and avoid opening it before deciding whether they intend to deliver it intact.

Where this sits

Requirements

The quest does not have a documented mandatory prerequisite in the supplied material. Its accessible routes are tied to the survivors, the shipment, and the Zhentarim Hideout.

• RequiredReach the Act 1 quest areaThe quest is an Act 1 activity and becomes relevant when you can reach either the caravan survivors or the Zhentarim Hideout.
• RequiredFind a quest entry pointLocate Rugan and Olly while they are under attack by gnolls, or visit the Zhentarim Hideout and speak with Zarys.
• RecommendedChoose a shipment policyDecide whether the strongbox will be preserved for delivery, opened, or taken for your own purposes before committing to a faction outcome.
• OptionalPrepare for branching dialogueThe quest can be resolved through conversation as well as combat. Keep a save before the shipment decision if you want to compare outcomes.

Objectives

1. Locate the missing caravan shipmentFollow the quest through the survivors or the Zhentarim Hideout until the strongbox becomes the focus.
2. Deal with the threat to Rugan and OllyThe two agents are trapped while gnolls attack, making their survival part of the field encounter.
3. Decide the fate of the strongboxThe shipment can be protected for delivery, stolen, or opened, with different consequences for the Zhentarim relationship.
4. Report the intact shipment to ZarysIf you are honoring the Zhentarim arrangement, take the unopened chest to Zarys in the Zhentarim Hideout.
5. Collect the resulting faction rewardA successful intact delivery can lead to access to exotic merchant stock and the Harold crossbow.

WalkthroughSpoilers

1. 01

   Find one of the two documented quest entry points

   Choose how to enter the quest

   You can start in the field by finding Rugan and Olly under attack by gnolls, or you can first visit the Zhentarim Hideout and speak with Zarys. Both routes concern the same lost caravan strongbox, but the order in which you learn about the shipment can differ.

   Location: The area around the trapped caravan survivors or the Zhentarim Hideout

   TipIf you want the context from the Zhentarim's side first, speak with Zarys before committing to a decision about the chest.

2. 02

   Assist Rugan and Olly during the gnoll attack

   Reach the trapped survivors

   When using the field route, approach the position where Rugan and Olly are defending the shipment from gnolls. The encounter is a tactical rescue rather than a simple conversation, because the agents remain exposed while the attackers close in.

   Location: The caravan strongbox's defensive position

   Watch outAllowing the agents or the shipment to be overwhelmed can change the later quest state and remove dialogue options.

3. 03

   Make the area safe enough to resolve the shipment dispute

   Clear the immediate threat

   Prioritize the attacking gnolls that can reach the survivors or pressure the strongbox, while keeping your party positioned so it can respond to enemies approaching from different angles. Once the attack is under control, speak with the surviving agents instead of treating the fight as the end of the quest.

   Location: The caravan encounter area

   TipThe protected objective matters as much as winning the battle; avoid area attacks or reckless positioning that could endanger allies you intend to save.

4. 04

   Learn who claims the strongbox and what is expected of you

   Question the survivors about the shipment

   Rugan and Olly provide the immediate human context for the lost cargo and identify the strongbox as a Zhentarim delivery. Their survival gives you a direct route into the faction's request and lets you make an informed decision before dealing with Zarys.

   Location: Beside the recovered caravan shipment

5. 05

   Preserve the shipment for delivery

   Keep the strongbox sealed if you want the faction reward

   The chest contains the Iron Flask, which makes opening it tempting but costly from the Zhentarim's perspective. If your goal is to preserve the best-known Zhentarim outcome, do not open or remove the shipment before taking it to Zarys.

   Location: The recovered caravan shipment

   Watch outOpening the chest or failing to deliver it as agreed can make Zarys hostile or damage your standing with the Zhentarim.

6. 06

   Bring the intact strongbox to the Zhentarim contact

   Travel to the Zhentarim Hideout

   Take the intact shipment to the hideout if you are pursuing the delivery route. The hideout is also the alternative starting point, so players who began with Zarys may already have the relevant contact and only need to return with the cargo.

   Location: Zhentarim Hideout

7. 07

   Deliver the shipment to Zarys

   Speak with Zarys about the recovered cargo

   Report to Zarys and resolve the conversation in a way that confirms the shipment has been returned intact. This is the point where the Zhentarim evaluate whether you honored the arrangement rather than merely whether you survived the gnoll encounter.

   Location: Zhentarim Hideout

8. 08

   Accept the consequences of your chosen shipment outcome

   Resolve the alternative shipment outcomes

   If you open the chest, steal it, or otherwise fail to deliver it as agreed, the quest follows a different branch. Those choices can produce different narrative outcomes and rewards, but they may also turn Zarys hostile or alter your faction standing.

   Location: Zhentarim Hideout or wherever the shipment is opened

   Watch outSave before opening or stealing the strongbox if you want the option to pursue the intact-delivery branch.

9. 09

   Claim the reward for a successful intact delivery

   Collect the delivery rewards

   Returning the intact shipment to Zarys grants access to the Zhentarim's exotic merchant stock and the Harold crossbow according to the documented quest outcome. The reward is tied to the faction's acceptance of the delivery, not simply to finding the survivors.

   Location: Zhentarim Hideout

   Checkpoint

Mission mechanics

This quest combines a rescue encounter with a faction-delivery decision. The opening combat asks you to manage a threatened group of NPCs while also preserving access to the shipment. Afterward, the quest becomes more conversational: the important question is not only who won the fight, but what you do with the strongbox once it is in your control.

The shipment creates a meaningful risk-and-reward choice. The Iron Flask makes the sealed chest valuable to the player, while the Zhentarim's interest in receiving the cargo intact gives the object a second function as a test of cooperation. Treating the chest as ordinary loot can close off the clean delivery outcome.

The quest also supports different approaches to information gathering. Finding Rugan and Olly gives the story a field-rescue entry, while visiting Zarys gives the Zhentarim Hideout route. Because these routes converge on the same cargo, a player can choose whether to make the endangered agents or the faction contact the first major point of contact.

What works and what does not

Encounter phases

1. 1

   Gnoll assault

   Starts: Approaching Rugan and Olly at the besieged shipment

   Not specified in the source pack

   The survivors are under attack while protecting the caravan strongbox. The immediate tactical priority is to prevent the attackers from overwhelming the agents or compromising the shipment.

   • Gnoll pressureTell Hostile gnolls advance on the trapped survivors and their defensive position.Answer Focus on enemies threatening the agents first, while keeping enough party coverage to avoid being surrounded.
   • Use the battlefield's available space to keep your party between the attackers and the protected objective.
   • Do not assume the quest ends when the last attacker falls; the shipment decision follows the rescue.
2. 2

   Shipment resolution

   Starts: The attack is dealt with or the player reaches Zarys through the hideout route

   Not applicable

   The encounter changes from tactical combat to a branching decision over the strongbox. The Iron Flask inside the chest makes the choice more consequential than a routine delivery.

   • Make a manual save before opening or taking the chest if you want to preserve the intact-delivery route.
   • Speak with the relevant characters before committing to a shipment outcome.

Choices and consequencesSpoilers

• Save Rugan and Olly and preserve the shipment

  This keeps the agents and the strongbox available for the Zhentarim delivery route, subject to the later decision about what to do with the chest.

• Return the intact shipment to Zarys

  Zarys can grant access to the Zhentarim's exotic merchant stock and the Harold crossbow.

  Spoiler
• Open the chest

  The Iron Flask becomes available, but the Zhentarim may treat the shipment as compromised and Zarys can become hostile.

  Spoiler
• Steal the chest or fail to deliver it as agreed

  The quest follows a different narrative branch and can alter your standing with the Zhentarim and the rewards you receive.

  Spoiler
• Allow the agents to die during the attack

  The surviving-agent route is lost, and the later quest state can differ from one in which Rugan and Olly are rescued.

  Spoiler

Quest checklist

• Find an entry point through Rugan and Olly or ZarysBoth routes lead into the missing-shipment storyline.
• Protect the caravan strongbox during the gnoll attackThe chest is central to both the faction request and the later choice.
• Keep Rugan and Olly alive if you want their branch availableTheir survival is part of the field encounter's stakes.
• Decide whether to keep the shipment sealedThe intact-delivery outcome requires honoring the Zhentarim's expectation.
• Speak with Zarys in the Zhentarim HideoutUse this contact to report the shipment or resolve the faction branch.
• Claim the faction reward after intact deliveryCheck for the exotic merchant stock and the Harold crossbow.
• Make a save before opening or stealing the chestThis preserves the ability to revisit the branching decision.Optional

Failure conditionsSpoilers

• Rugan or Olly dies during the gnoll attackThe agents are the protected survivors at the center of the field encounter. Their deaths can remove or change the branch that depends on rescuing them.
• The strongbox is opened before an intact deliveryOpening the chest exposes the Iron Flask but can compromise the agreement with the Zhentarim and provoke a hostile response from Zarys.
• The shipment is stolen or not delivered as agreedThe Zhentarim can change their attitude toward the player, and the rewards associated with returning the intact cargo may no longer be available.
• Zarys becomes hostileThe source material specifically warns that opening the chest or failing to deliver it can cause Zarys to become hostile.

Rewards and dropsSpoilers

• Access to Zhentarim exotic merchant stock
  Returning the intact shipment to Zarys grants access to the faction's exotic merchant stock.
• Harold
  The Harold crossbow is listed as a reward for returning the intact shipment to Zarys.
• Iron Flask
  The powerful and mysterious Iron Flask is contained in the caravan strongbox. Taking or opening the chest can change the Zhentarim outcome.
• Branch-specific narrative outcomes
  Saving the agents, stealing the chest, opening it, or delivering it produces different story consequences and may change the available rewards.

AftermathSpoilers

Trivia

• The quest is commonly referred to as Find the Missing Shipment, while this entity uses the supplied full name Find the Missing Shipment of Smokepowder.
• The strongbox is both a delivery objective and a container for the Iron Flask, which is why the quest's central decision has consequences beyond ordinary stolen cargo.
• The quest can begin before the player ever speaks with Zarys, because the field encounter with Rugan and Olly provides an alternative entry route.

Sources

• bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki

Relationships