Curst Prison – Planescape: Torment Location

This guide covers a location in Planescape: Torment, detailing the area with an overview, map, and map legend. The overview acts as a walkthrough, and outlines what players can find and do at each location on the map(s). This particular location’s ID is AR0702.

Map Legend

1 – Trias
2 – Locked Gate
3 – Guard
4 – Locked Door
5 – Prisoners
6 – Pressure Plate
7 – Container
8 – Guards
9 – Locked Door to the Inner Sanctum
10 – Cassius
11 – Vhailor

Exits

1. Passage to the Curst Underground.
2. Barbed door / portal. You’ll only be able to open this door and activate the portal after helping Trias (#1). The portal will take you to the Outlands.

Overview

Note: Inside the prison, you’ll encounter numerous Trelons (worth 2500 xp) and Curst Guards (worth 3250 xp), plus a few traps. If you take substantial damage, don’t forget that you can return to the hermit in the Curst Underground (Exit A) to rest.


1 – Trias

On the dais here, you’ll meet the imprisoned deva Trias. He’ll make you a deal. If you recover his sword and use it to sever his chains, thus freeing him, then he’ll tell you what you want to know. To help you out, he’ll reveal the combination to one of the gates blocking your way (#2).

You’ll find Trias’ sword, Celestial Fire, being guarded by Cassius in the prison’s inner sanctum (#10). Cassius will be pretty polite to you, and he’ll give you three ways to claim the sword:

• Strength. For this method, you’ll have to defeat Cassius in battle. Cassius will hit you hard, but he’s very slow, so once you figure out who he’s attacking, just have that character run away, and while Cassius is pursuing, let the rest of your party kill him. You’ll earn 10,000 xp for defeating Cassius, and you’ll find the sword Celestial Fire on his corpse.
  
  
• Wits. For this method, you’ll have to solve three riddles. You’ll need Intelligence 17+ for the correct answers — “a human,” “hunger,” and “time” — to come up in dialogue. If you get any of the answers wrong, then Cassius will attack you, and you’ll have to pursue Strength method from above. If you get all three answers right, then Cassius will hand you Celestial Fire before disappearing, and you’ll also earn 5000 xp.
  
  
• Speed. For this method, somebody in your party will need to steal a set of Bandages from Cassius. If you fail, then Cassius will attack you, and you’ll have to pursue the Strength method from above. If you’re successful, then Cassius will hand you Celestial Fire before disappearing, and you’ll also earn 5000 xp.

When you claim Celestial Fire, all of the locked cell doors in the prison will open, and a bunch of prisoners and guards will congregate right outside the inner sanctum (#9) and near the prison entrance (#2). These groups will fight amongst themselves a little, but mostly they’ll attack you when they spot you. If you fought Cassius, then these battles might be rough, and you might need to run away — or just let your character die, which will spawn you near the map entrance (Exit A). Otherwise, just defeat every hostile creature who gets in your way, and make your way back to Trias.

When you return to Trias, you’ll be given the choice of striking him down or breaking his chains. Don’t kill the deva, as that will just force you to load your game. Instead, free him. This will earn you 306,250 xp, and Trias will grant you the gift of knowledge — well, not really, since he won’t know anything about your mortality. But he’ll suggest that you talk to the fiend Fhjull Forked-Tongue, and he’ll give you the key to a portal (Exit B) that will take you to him.


2 – Locked Gate

You’ll only be able to go through this gate once you’ve learned the combination from Trias (#1).


3 – Guard

One of the guards here will drop a Finger Bone Key when he dies. You’ll need the key to unlock a nearby door (#4).


4 – Locked Door

To open this door, you’ll need the Finger Bone Key (from #3). Most of the other locked doors in the prison will only open after you’ve met with Cassius (#10).


5 – Prisoners

At these spots, you’ll discover An’izius, Roberta, and / or Siabha, provided that you had them arrested while you were in Curst. None of them will be happy to see you.


6 – Pressure Plate

This pressure plate will start out trapped. If you step onto it while it is armed, then you’ll take some damage but you’ll earn 87,500 xp, and the door to the inner sanctum (#9) will unlock. If you disarm the trap, then nothing will happen when you step onto the plate. So step onto the plate first and then disarm the trap.


7 – Container

Inside this container, you’ll find a Dread Bond and more.


8 – Guards

One of the guards here will drop a Reminder Note when he dies. This note will allow you to open the door to the inner sanctum (#9).


9 – Locked Door to the Inner Sanctum

There are two ways to open this door: you can step onto the nearby pressure plate (#8) while it is armed, or you can loot the Reminder Note from one of the guards (#8) and use it as a key.


10 – Cassius

At this spot, you’ll meet Cassius, the guardian of Trias’ sword. He’s involved in Trias’ quest (#1).


11 – Vhailor

Inside this cell, you’ll meet a suit of armor named Vhailor. If you have Wisdom 18+, then you’ll trigger a memory worth 60,000 xp, and you’ll be able to command Vhailor to awaken. Otherwise, he’ll only awaken if you try to take his weapon or a piece of his armor. You’ll earn 90,000 xp for recruiting Vhailor, but if you have to remove a character from your party to make the addition, then you’ll lose that character for good since you won’t be returning to the prison.