Maps of the Month: Baldur’s Gate
Before heading to hellish Avernus, let’s tour through the more pleasant (albeit still decidedly dangerous) city of Baldur’s Gate, with our latest round of maps to augment your campaign!
WARNING:THESE MAPS MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus
BEFORE THE DESCENT
Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus released this September, taking adventure down to the first layer of the Nine Hells! Before the actual descent, however, things get started in one of the Faerûn’s most iconic cities—Baldur’s Gate.
Sword Coast
Are your characters traveling to “The Gate”? The
Gazetteer chapter in
Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus provides an in-depth journey through the history, demographics, and dangers of the city. Let’s start with a broader view of the city’s positioning along the Sword Coast, as well as such essential adventure locations as Candlekeep and Elturel.
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Baldur’s Gate
Arriving via Gray Harbor or through one of the city’s nine gates, visitors will find Baldur’s Gate split into three districts: the wealthy Upper City on the hills above the docks, the bustling Lower City around the harbor, and the lawless Outer City (which includes neighborhoods outside the city walls).
Important locations (of interest to many an adventuring party) are indicated on the map below:
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The Elfsong Tavern
Weary from a long day on the road? One of your first stops may well be the nearest tavern. And despite its rough-and-tumble clientele, the Elfsong Tavern remains one of the most popular in Baldur’s Gate.
As for its name? According to patrons, a disembodied elven voice cuts through the tavern’s crowd at periodic (and random) intervals, its song haunting enough to dim the room’s lanterns and make even the bar’s most hardened customers weep. (As a point of trivia, one of Wizards of the Coast’s conference rooms once shared the tavern’s name. No disembodied voices could be claimed there, except via conference calls.)
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Vanthampur Villa
From the taverns of the Lower City, let’s conclude our tour at the Upper City. Populated by the wealthiest residents of Baldur’s Gate and heavily patrolled by the city watch, adventurers may find themselves seeking out a particular example of the district’s fine homes: Vanthampur Villa.
A 12-foot-high stone wall encloses the villa, itself a stately stone edifice with a detached stable house. The wall features three wooden gates, including the main entrance and a coach gate to the south, as well as a postern gate to the north. All three gates are guarded, so if you do stop by for a round of trick-or-treating, approach with caution!
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Cartographers
And as always, our appreciation goes out to our amazing cartographers; this issue, these include Dyson Logos and Mike Schley.