Baldur's Gate 3: Abandoned Cistern: Sluice Gate Puzzle Answer

Mar 18, 2025

The Abandoned Cistern Puzzle is one of those easy-to-miss pieces of content in Baldur's Gate 3, but anyone who's following the Jaheira/Minsc storyline will likely find this eventually. Those who have encountered the Counting House's Stone Lord will be familiar with the Lower City's damp underbelly where this puzzle can be found. Solving this puzzle will help progress companion questlines, so you'll want to address it at some point.

Jaheira and Minsc are both characters from the previous Baldur's Gate games. Their questline and position as companions seem to be a bit of a nod to veteran players. To get started, make sure you recruit Jaheira in Act 2, as having her along will provide a bit of flavor to your experience and also unlock what many consider to be the sluice-gate puzzle quest's true ending.

To start the Abandoned Cistern Puzzle, you first need to follow Minsc's trail down into the sewers after you confront him at the Counting House. This is a quest tied to the companion Jaheira as you and your party begin to investigate the Stone Lord, a mysterious figure in Baldur's Gate. This takes place during Act 3 of Baldur's Gate 3, so expect any fights from this quest to be more challenging than early-game fights.

Minsc and Jaheira aren’t as powerful as they should be in Baldur’s Gate 3. Here’s why, and what it would look like if the game took a different route.

After you've confronted the Stone Lord in the Counting House and been charged with returning the vault's lost valuables, you should investigate the vault. On a successful Investigation check, one of your party members will mention the city's sewers. Head underground using any of the following locations:

No matter which entrance you use, you'll need to make your way to the northwestern part of the sewers, defeating any Bhallists or other enemies you encounter on the way. After this fight, you'll enter a room with two large valves and a huge round door that is locked. To complete the puzzle, you'll need to use the valves to equalize the water temperature and pressure so that the door can open.

Next to the Temperature Valve on the right, you can find a note pinned to the machine. It explains that the water heat level and pressure level have to be at "optimum" levels for the gate to be opened. Until both levels are in their optimal states at the same time, that huge round door will remain sealed.

Characters with a high enough bonus to Perception will spot the Note to the Sanitation Workers right away, so make sure someone in your party has a high score on this stat so you don't miss the clue.

This puzzle is one of timing, as the levels that each valve controls will change over time. The note reads that the valves need to be at optimal levels, not the highest levels, so making sure the pressure and temperature are where they need to be at the same time can be tricky. Put your party somewhere they won't be in the way (or not, if you're running solo with one of these crazy builds), and get ready to move quickly.

If you interact with each valve, you'll notice a small status at the top of the screen reading "X level rising". Next to this, you'll also see the status of the water temperature or pressure. Starting with the temperature valve, interact with it and wait until it reads "Perfectly Warm" at the top of the screen, then shut it off. Quickly do the same with the pressure valve until both valves read that they're perfect.

Once a valve has been turned off, its level will slowly start to decrease. This means you have to move quickly to ensure that both valves are at the perfect level at the same time. If you miss it the first time, allow the valves to reset and try again!

Once this is done, the Abandoned Cistern gate will open, and you'll have completed the sluice-gate puzzle! Heading forward will allow you to pass through the heavy stone gate and confront the Stone Lord once and for all. Don't forget to add Jaheira to your party if you're interested in recruiting Minsc in Baldur's Gate 3 and progressing the storyline of both companions.

The companion ability scores in Baldur's Gate 3 are balanced for gameplay, yet some choices are strange, leaving characters with unfitting stats.

Going through the previously locked gate will immediately start a cutscene that leads to a fight, so make sure your party is rested and ready for battle. The Stone Lord's identity may come as a surprise to you, affecting how you approach the combat encounter. Ironically, managing to find the answer to the Sluice Gate puzzle in Baldur's Gate 3 inevitably leads to even more questions.

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