Get ready to meet one of Lord Gortash’s greatest weapons: The Baldur’s Mouth. “Stop the Presses” kicks off when you learn that the number one newspaper in Baldur’s Gate is publishing an unfavorable piece about you.
You get this quest in Act 3 by speaking with Estra Stir, a reporter for The Baldur’s Mouth. She stands right next to a young newspaper crier just southwest of the Basilisk Gate waypoint. Estra is all too excited to see you, and she lets you know that the paper is currently preparing a story about your misdeeds. The only hope you have of saving your reputation in Baldur’s Gate is convincing Baldur’s Mouth editor Ettvard Needle to change the story.
Off to the paper
The quest will prompt you to head to the headquarters of The Baldur’s Mouth. Right now the building is unlocked, so you can head right through the front door. You’ll find Ettvard immediately downstairs walking between the desks of the newspaper’s employees. He’ll confirm what Estra told you, and you’ll have the chance to ask him for more details about the story.
When it seemed clear to me that Ettvard was pretty excited about the story, I decided that threatening him would be the best way to stop it from being printed. Unfortunately, that just prompted him to throw me out of the building. No matter what you do, it’s too late because the story is already at the printing press, and Ettvard has a very good reason for wanting it to go out to the public – Lord Gortash told him to publish it.
Journalistic espionage
At this point, you’re going to have to do some breaking and entering. I went back to camp and grabbed Astarion because he’s always good for picking a lock, and I’ve had him learn some useful spells through the Arcane Trickster subclass. Along with Astarion’s spells, I had a handful of potions and scrolls of invisibility, so I used that particular spell pretty liberally throughout this quest.
If you go back through the main floor of the building (which should be a bit easier if you don’t get yourself thrown out in the first place) you can lockpick a door to the east to get inside Ettvard’s office. Here there’s a chest containing a key to the basement and a letter from Lord Gortash himself ordering Ettvard to publish the damaging story about you. Getting the basement key is optional, since you can pick the lock, and you can reach the basement via the stairwell to the right of Ettvard’s office door.
Once in the basement, you’ll need to sneak past two Steel Watchers. The halls that the Watchers patrol are lined with rooms that you can duck into, but casting Invisibility again let me avoid the stealth game section of the quest. Take note of the lever in the first room you pass in the basement – you can use it later for a faster exit from the building.
After passing both Steel Watchers, head through the door at the end of the second hallway. Inside is a printing press inhabited by a fey named Jelliwig. You can persuade or intimidate Jelliwig into helping you change the story, as long as you provide the alternate headline for the new story. In a wicker basket just south of the printing press, you’ll find a broadsheet piece titled “Adventurers, Our Best Hope for the City.” Combine that with the press, and then all you have to do is sneak back out past the Steel Watchers, ride the elevator back to the entrance of the building, and lockpick the elevator door to walk out to freedom.
