Save the Tieflings from the Grove

Key takeaways

The quest is best approached as a long-term protection objective rather than a short combat assignment.

• The grove has two connected crises The refugees face hostility from the druids inside Emerald Grove while goblin threats endanger the settlement from outside. Resolving only one side of the situation does not necessarily secure the refugees' future.
• Zevlor and Kagha define the early conflict Zevlor speaks for the tiefling refugees, while Kagha is a key figure in the druid response. Conversations with both help establish what is at stake before the player commits to a broader course of action.
• Act 1 decisions have later consequences Keeping the tieflings alive preserves later interactions and narrative paths. Their survival also enables the Act 2 continuation involving Rescue the Tieflings.
• Moonrise Towers is part of the wider rescue arc The refugees who survive the initial crisis can later be encountered at Last Light Inn, while captives taken to Moonrise Towers require a prison infiltration and liberation effort.

Overview

Save the Tieflings from the Grove is an Act 1 quest centered on the fate of the tiefling refugees at Emerald Grove.

Save the Tieflings from the Grove is one of Baldur's Gate 3's major early questlines. It begins amid a conflict between the tiefling refugees seeking shelter at Emerald Grove and the druids who want the outsiders removed. At the same time, goblin forces threaten the grove from outside, making the refugees' survival depend on both the internal dispute and the wider regional crisis.

The quest is not a single conversation followed by one fixed battle. Its outcome depends on how the player handles the grove's leadership, the refugee situation, and the goblin threat. Zevlor is the central tiefling representative in this stage of the story, while Kagha represents the druid leadership whose decisions place immediate pressure on the refugees. The player can investigate, negotiate, fight, or align with one side of the conflict.

The consequences continue beyond Act 1. If the tieflings survive, their story can continue as they attempt to reach Baldur's Gate, and their survival is a prerequisite for the Act 2 quest Rescue the Tieflings. Later encounters at Last Light Inn include Alfira, Rolan, and Dammon, while the captives taken to Moonrise Towers become part of the effort to liberate the remaining prisoners.

Where this sits

Requirements

Reach Emerald Grove and engage with the refugee and druid crisis before the situation resolves without the player's intervention.

• RequiredReach Emerald GroveThe quest concerns the refugees sheltering in the grove, so the player must gain access to the settlement and begin speaking with its inhabitants.
• RequiredInvestigate the local conflictSpeak with the people involved in the refugee dispute rather than treating the goblin threat as the only relevant problem.
• RequiredDecide how to address the goblin threatThe grove's future depends on the player's handling of the hostile goblin forces and the consequences of that decision.
• RecommendedPreserve key charactersAvoid choices that place the tiefling refugees or their important allies in lethal danger if the goal is to continue their later storyline.

Objectives

1. Resolve the conflict at Emerald GroveThe player must deal with the dispute between the tiefling refugees and the druids.
2. Protect the tiefling refugees from goblin threatsThe refugees' survival is the quest's central practical and narrative objective.
3. Secure the refugees' path toward Baldur's GateA successful Act 1 outcome allows the tieflings to continue their journey rather than ending their story at the grove.
4. Preserve the Act 2 rescue pathSaving the refugees keeps Rescue the Tieflings available as a later continuation.

WalkthroughSpoilers

1. 01

   Understand the grove's immediate crisis

   Enter Emerald Grove and identify the refugee crisis

   Once inside Emerald Grove, explore the settlement and speak with the tiefling refugees as well as the druids. Establish who is directing the refugees, why the druids want them gone, and how the goblin threat changes the urgency of the dispute.

   Location: Emerald Grove

   TipDo not rush straight toward a single resolution before learning what Zevlor and Kagha want.

2. 02

   Learn the tieflings' priorities

   Speak with Zevlor about the refugees' situation

   Find Zevlor and ask about the tieflings' prospects and the danger facing the settlement. His position makes clear that the refugees need time and protection, and his concerns provide context for the decisions that follow.

   Location: Emerald Grove

   Watch outTreat the refugee leadership as part of the quest rather than an optional side conversation; the fate of the group is the broader objective.

3. 03

   Determine how the druid conflict can be resolved

   Investigate Kagha's role in the druid response

   Talk to Kagha and examine the druid side of the dispute before choosing a permanent solution. Her actions and authority are directly connected to the pressure on the refugees, so resolving the internal conflict can change the danger inside the grove.

   Location: Emerald Grove

   TipInvestigation and dialogue can provide alternatives to immediately fighting everyone involved.

4. 04

   Prevent the internal crisis from deciding the refugees' fate

   Choose a course for the grove's internal conflict

   Decide whether to expose, persuade, or oppose the people driving the refugee crisis. The exact route depends on the character's abilities and prior discoveries, but the important point is to prevent the internal dispute from becoming a catastrophe for the refugees.

   Location: Emerald Grove

   Watch outA hostile resolution can endanger named characters and close later narrative paths.

5. 05

   Resolve the external threat

   Address the goblin threat before it overwhelms the grove

   Take action against the goblin forces threatening the settlement rather than leaving the grove's external danger unresolved. The quest can branch according to whom the player supports, so confirm that the chosen outcome protects the refugees before moving on.

   Location: The areas surrounding Emerald Grove and the goblin-held region

   TipComplete conversations and investigations you care about before committing to a factional outcome.

6. 06

   Verify the refugees' outcome

   Check the grove after the major decision

   Return to Emerald Grove and speak with survivors after the central conflict has been settled. This confirms whether the refugees remain alive and whether their departure toward Baldur's Gate is still possible.

   Location: Emerald Grove

   Watch outIf the refugees are killed or the grove is lost, later tiefling interactions and quests may no longer be available.

   Missable
7. 07

   Preserve the refugee storyline beyond Act 1

   Continue with the surviving tieflings' journey

   If the Act 1 outcome preserves the refugees, their story continues beyond the grove as they try to reach Baldur's Gate. Keep track of the named survivors rather than assuming that every character has the same later outcome.

   Location: The route beyond Emerald Grove

   Missable
8. 08

   Continue the tiefling rescue arc

   Follow the Act 2 consequences

   In Act 2, rescued tieflings can be found at Last Light Inn, while other captives have been taken to Moonrise Towers. The later rescue objective requires infiltrating the prison and liberating those remaining captives.

   Location: Last Light Inn and Moonrise Towers

   Watch outThis step contains major story consequences and should be read only if the Act 2 outcome is known.

   Checkpoint

Mission mechanics

This quest uses branching state rather than a single linear mission route. The player is managing the survival of a community, so dialogue, investigation, faction alignment, and combat can all affect the final result. A choice that appears to solve the immediate grove dispute may still damage the refugees' ability to survive the wider goblin crisis.

The quest also demonstrates Baldur's Gate 3's persistent character-state design. Named tieflings can reappear in later acts, offer new interactions, or become unavailable if they die during the Act 1 conflict. For that reason, the safest approach for a completion-minded playthrough is to resolve the grove carefully, revisit the settlement afterward, and confirm that the refugees are still present before leaving the region.

There is no need to treat every encounter as a mandatory battle. The available route can change according to what the player discovers and how they approach the people involved. However, delaying the central crisis indefinitely is risky: major actions in the surrounding story can move the grove toward a point of no return.

What works and what does not

Choices and consequencesSpoilers

• Protect the refugees and resolve the grove crisis in their favor

  The tieflings can survive Act 1 and continue toward Baldur's Gate, preserving later interactions and the Act 2 Rescue the Tieflings quest.

  Spoiler
• Allow the refugees to be killed or lose control of their situation

  Named characters may die, and later quests, interactions, and narrative paths connected to them can be lost.

  Spoiler
• Support the force opposing the refugees

  This can produce a substantially different Act 1 outcome and prevent the refugee storyline from continuing in its intended form.

  Spoiler
• Leave the crisis unresolved while advancing other major events

  The grove's state can change without the player being able to return to the same decision point, making early manual saves important for players who want to compare outcomes.

  Spoiler

Completion checklist

• Speak with Zevlor about the refugee crisisRecord the tiefling leader's concerns before choosing a side.
• Speak with Kagha about the druids' positionHer role is central to the internal conflict.
• Investigate the cause of the grove disputeLook for a resolution beyond an uninformed confrontation.
• Resolve the internal Emerald Grove crisisDo not assume the goblin threat is the only part of the quest.
• Address the goblin threatThe refugees cannot be considered safe while the external danger remains unresolved.
• Return to Emerald Grove after the major decisionCheck the settlement and confirm the refugees' survival.
• Create a manual save before a major faction commitmentThis is useful when comparing consequences or protecting a specific character.
• Confirm that the tieflings can continue toward Baldur's GateThis indicates that the Act 1 refugee storyline remains active.
• Look for surviving tieflings at Last Light Inn in Act 2Later encounters depend on the Act 1 outcome.Optional
• Follow Rescue the Tieflings if it is availableThis is the Act 2 continuation of the rescue storyline.Optional

Failure conditionsSpoilers

• The tiefling refugees are killedThe quest's central objective fails for the dead characters, and their later interactions and narrative paths are lost.
• The grove's conflict is resolved against the refugeesA factional outcome that removes or endangers the refugees can prevent their journey toward Baldur's Gate.
• A named tiefling dies during the wider questlineIndividual character deaths can remove later interactions even if some other refugees survive.
• The player advances the story past a point of no returnSome major decisions can settle the grove without allowing the player to return and change the outcome.

Rewards and drops

• Surviving tiefling storyline
  Protecting the refugees preserves their journey toward Baldur's Gate and enables later character interactions.
• Rescue the Tieflings access
  Saving the tieflings in Act 1 is a prerequisite for the Act 2 quest Rescue the Tieflings.
• Continuing character interactions
  Surviving characters including Alfira, Rolan, and Dammon can offer later interactions or quests.

AftermathSpoilers

Trivia

• The quest is notable for carrying character consequences across multiple acts instead of ending when the Emerald Grove conflict is resolved.
• Its central goal is community protection: the player is judged not only by whether the immediate fight is won, but also by which refugees remain alive afterward.
• The later appearances of Alfira, Rolan, and Dammon illustrate how the Act 1 outcome can shape optional conversations and quests much later in the game.

Sources

• Save the Tieflings from the Grove — bg3.wiki — bg3.wiki

Relationships