The Hag Quest in Act 1 proved to be an enormous pain in the butt during my first playthrough. There is a far more efficient way to get the job done than completing the quest as intended.

If you visit Emerald Grove prior to any assault on the settlement, you'll find Auntie Ethel near the other merchants. I didn't attack her here. I intended to save the grove and get on friendly terms with Dammon.

Later, you'll see her again south of the Blighted Village in a conversation with two men. Keep your distance. Don't enter the conversation at all. Fire an arrow at Auntie Ethel from as far away as possible. She disappears and that kills the men she was talking to somehow. You'll need to acquire two smoke powder barrels from the goblin camp and two oil barrels for good measure. Once you have those, venture to the Tea House in the swamps south of the Blighted Village.

When you enter the Tea House, you'll find Auntie Ethel still in her human form. You'll find Mayrina as well. Auntie Ethel doesn't transform into the hag during the cinematic. You see Maryina briefly but she disappears after the cinematic is completed. You'll see Auntie Ethel tending the Tea Shop using a circular pathway. I set down two smoke powder barrels and two oil barrels near the bookshelves and positioned my party above it. Auntie Ethel wanders that way as if nothing is amiss. A fire arrow sets off the smoke powder barrels. Instant death! That isn't the best part. The remainder of the quest is a relatively simple stroll beyond the fireplace. You don't have to fight the hag's minions. You don't see the hag where she has Mayrina caged. You have all the time in the world to rescue Maryina. Of course, Mayrina is still unsatisfied, but that's the price of progress. Out back, she can resurrect her zombie husband and be on her way to Baldur's Gate.

You'll probably be tempted to try the same approach with the owner of the Blushing Mermaid in Baldur's Gate. If you intend to save Vanya using the Hag's Bane, complete the Act 3 hag quest as you normally would. If you don't want to save Vanya and just make easy work of the hag, set off the explosions near where you meet Captain Grisly. Hide out in the stairwell. After the explosion is a cinematic. The bar patrons attack you.

When I ventured into the hag's lair, I couldn't use the Hag's Bane to free Vanya. The hag acted strangely. She did nothing during the encounter except stand there. She'd attack us only if we stood next to her. No spells. No teleportation. No movement. Just stationary claw attacks. You can destroy the mushrooms without any problem. It's simply a matter of killing the hag outright after that. She pukes up Vanya in her final moments, but the girl is dead. If the game determines that the hag really can't do anything because of this approach, it makes sense that the hag won't puke up Vanya by letting you use the Hag's Bane.

For a while there, I wondered if I was the only person to try this approach. This guide stayed at around 130 unique visitors with no favorites for a long time. Maybe most people weren't convinced and had better things to do. Then someone must have finally repeated my method and discovered it was effective. Now, look at it. Over 500 unique visitors and three favorites.

My guide for the battles of Moonrise Towers probably experienced the same thing. Someone tried my order of battle and found it worked. It took off. Who knows? Maybe someone will discover just how easy it is to save Hope, utilize Yurgir, and kill Raphael in the House of Hope without having to do much during the battle itself.