Significance of Rats in the Gauntlet of Shar
The rats encountered within the Gauntlet of Shar are not merely incidental vermin; they are integral to a specific questline and offer a unique path to resolving a major encounter. Their presence is directly tied to the Orthon, Yurgir, and his infernal contract.
Key Aspects and Interactions:
- Speak with Animals: Utilizing the "Speak with Animals" spell or an equivalent potion is crucial for interacting with these rats meaningfully. Without it, they remain ordinary, albeit numerous, creatures.
- Yurgir's Contract Dilemma: The rats are, in fact, the hidden key to Yurgir's contract. They are the reincarnated form of the last Dark Justiciar that Yurgir failed to kill. Collectively, they hold the memories and essence of this individual, Lyrthindor.
- Information Gathering: By speaking with the rats, players can learn about Yurgir's predicament and the nature of his contract with Raphael. They reveal that Yurgir is trapped because he cannot find the "song" or the "one who remains."
- Alternative Resolution: Players can discover that the rats themselves are the target Yurgir seeks. This information can be used in several ways:
- Convince Yurgir to kill the rats (including their leader, who manifests from the swarm).
- Break Yurgir's contract by helping him decipher the lyrics of the ritual that binds him, which involves understanding the role of the rats.
- Slay Lyrthindor, the conscious entity formed by the rat swarm, after prompting his appearance.
- Location: These rats are found predominantly in the western section of the Gauntlet, particularly around Yurgir's location and the giant Sharran statue. One notable rat often sits near a broken effigy of Shar, providing initial clues.
Successfully navigating the interactions with the Gauntlet of Shar rats provides a less combat-intensive method for dealing with Yurgir, offering significant narrative and quest progression benefits. Ignoring them or simply killing them as normal rats will cause the player to miss out on this nuanced solution.
