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Most of the quests you're given towards the beginning of Dragon's Dogma 2 are pretty simple, but there's one that stands out for being quite tricky: The Caged Magistrate. Unlike other missions you've done in the early game that just required you to follow a quest marker and do some basic combat, this one spirals into a full-blown long form quest that only offers vague hints about its objectives.
I had some trouble figuring this one out during my playthrough, and if you're reading this article, you're probably having a hard time yourself. Fear not, though, because I've written up a detailed guide that goes over how to complete The Caged Magistrate quest step-by-step. You'll find the complete walkthrough below.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Speak with Magistrate Waldhar
Here's how to get started with The Caged Magistrate quest, and how to complete its first objective:
- Speak with Captain Brant at The Stardrop Inn in Vernworth. At night, you'll find him by the bar; talk to him and he'll lead you to a private table where you can talk about your plans to undermine Queen Regent Disa.
- Select "Tell me of the magistrate." from the options that appear. Brant will explain that Magistrate Waldhar was imprisoned for suggesting that the person claiming to be the Arisen in Vernworth is false. He'll then give you a Gaol Key and ask you to sneak into the city's prison and free Waldhar.
- The back entrance to the prison is found directly southwest of the Slums area on the east edge of Vernworth. Follow the path up there until you come across a small tunnel with a locked metal bar door. Since you have the Gaol Key, you can open it.
- Enter the structure and climb the spiral staircase until you come across another metal door that leads to the prison cells. Note that the room beyond this point is a restricted area, so don't walk in yet.
- Magistrate Waldhar's cell is the farthest one on the left; slowly enter the room and walk to it, using pillars to block line of sight from the patrolling guards. As long as the guards can't see you, they won't notice you. You can also walk behind one of them, if necessary. If you get spotted, the guards will attack, so run out of the prison to break their aggro if this happens.
- Quickly unlock Waldhar's cell with the Gaol Key, go inside, and speak with him. He'll tell you that since he can spend his days studying in his cell, he doesn't want to leave unless you find him a place to say that's home to a wealth of knowledge.
- Step out of his cell and exit the prison the same way you came in, once again sneaking behind guards and using pillars to block their line of sight. Once you get out of the room with all the cells, you don't have to worry about being seen by guards.
Magistrate Waldhar's request for "a place with plenty of tomes" is pretty vague, though your Main Pawn should speak up and say that they heard of a place like that in the Slums. That's where you're headed next.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Find a place with plenty of tomes
The Slums is a short walk north of the gaol entrance, and it's where the second part of The Caged Magistrate takes place. Here's what to do there:
- Speak to Ser Kendrick, the man asking for alms for the poor, in front of the Gracious Hand building (the large domed one). You'll have the option of donating food or 1,000 Gold.
- Give him a food item and 1,000 Gold, then speak with him again. He'll mention that there's a boy named Malcom missing, and that he was last seen searching for hidden treasure. This will begin the quest, The Heel of History.
The Heel of History: How to find Malcom
- To find Malcom, speak with three of the children in and around the Gracious Hand. The third child you talk to will explain that Malcom went into the nearby broken tower to explore hidden vaults beneath the Gracious Hand.
- Return to Kendrick and speak with him again. He'll open a new pathway in the broken tower that leads to the vaults. Head down into them with him and follow the path (watch out for little spiders and bats).
- You'll find Malcom in a large library; speak with him and Kendrick to complete The Heel of History. You can leave the same way you came in.
As I'm sure you can tell, the library in the vaults is the "place with plenty of tomes" that Magistrate Waldhar seeks. Now that you've discovered it, you can return to him and tell him about it.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Free the Magistrate from his cell
Now that you know of a place for Magistrate Waldhar, you can free him from his cell and finish the quest. Here's how to do so:
- Sneak back into the gaol as you did before, enter Waldhar's cell again, and tell him about the vaults. Remember, you're safe from the guards as long as you don't get in their line of sight.
- Waldhar will agree to come with you; lead him out by walking behind one of the patrolling guards. Don't move too slowly, or the two of you will likely be spotted.
- Once you exit the prison, Waldhar will head to the vaults on his own. At this point, the quest is pretty much done — now you just have to report back to Brant.
- Head back to The Stardrop Inn at night and speak with Captain Brant to complete the quest. He'll thank you for freeing Waldhar, though unfortunately you have to give him the Gaol Key back.
Note that as a reward for your hard work, Brant will give you 7,000 Gold and a Ferrystone. The former is quite a hefty sum of money that you should use for some early game gear upgrades, while the latter is a nifty consumable that lets you fast travel to any Portstones you find.
Well done, Arisen
While The Caged Magistrate doesn't require any noteworthy combat whatsoever, its difficulty lies in how obscure a few of its objectives are. Sneaking into the prison and speaking with Waldhar is simple enough, but finding Malcom and stumbling across the vaults he'd like to study in forces you to investigate the Slums carefully — and you'd never know about his or their existence unless you donated food and money to Kendrick in the first place.
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In truth, many of Dragon's Dogma 2's quests are vague in this way, and often have objectives you won't find unless you explore areas thoroughly and carefully. Adopt that mindset, though, and you generally won't have too much trouble.
Note that after giving Magistrate Waldhar a few days to get situated in the vaults, you can visit him there to get a new quest. He'll send you to one of Vernworth's masquerades; you'll need to visit one anyway for a main story quest, so get yourself some formal raiment, and you can kill two birds with one stone.
Dragon's Dogma 2 is available now, and it's one of the best Xbox games and best PC games you can play in 2024 if you love action RPGs with deep, varied combat and rich fantasy worlds. Capcom's new title is playable on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5 for $69.99.
