It can be quite tricky to find Philomeen’s hiding spot in Baldur’s Gate 3 as the location is hidden in a highly dangerous area. Helping Philomeen is part of an optional side quest and upon completing it you will get some worthy rewards. Philomeen is a deep gnome who escaped from the cult of the Absolute and is hiding away in the Underdark, near the Grymforge.
Helping Philomeen is one of the possible ways of eventually releasing True Soul Nere in Baldur’s Gate 3. If you are engaging in a righteous-inclined playthrough, you may want to meet the deep gnome and hear what she has to say. Before doing that, however, you will have to find her hiding spot, which may be hinted at after talking to Laridda.
Other characters you meet in the game also make mention of Philomeen, including the Duergar Brithvar who makes reference to a deep gnome who supposedly fled with smokepowder.
Philomeen’s Hiding Spot Location
Delve Deep Into The Hidden Forge
The exact spot where Philomeen is hiding in Baldur’s Gate 3 is in the far northwest region of the Grymforge. For reference, it is closer to the waterway through which you arrived rather than the lava-filled portions. You can reach the location by exploring the harbor and finding two Duergar that will be overlooking several deep gnome corpses. You will also notice a large metal door nearby. To proceed further, you can either reassure the Duergar or kill them.
You will need to
lockpick
the entrance to this door, so use a character with high Dexterity, such as Astarion, to succeed at the Sleight of Hand check. Make sure to save the game before entering the room.
As soon as you enter, you will automatically roll Perception checks, and if successful, you will spot a wall that can be opened by pressing a button. If all Perception checks fail, reload the game and try again. After interacting with the button, the wall will open, revealing a secret passage.
Follow the path, open the doors, and start heading up the small hill of debris. Here, you will be ambushed by three slime opponents, which will drop from the ceiling. Their positions can be seen by the corresponding puddles of acid underneath them. While these Ochre Jelly enemies are easy to hit, their acid projectiles make them tough opponents with resistance to slashing and lightning damage.
If you wish to skip the fight entirely, you may enter stealth and try to make your way around these slime enemies unseen.
Climb the stairs and make your way to the left, towards a cliff. Upon reaching the extremity, you must use a jump to reach the other end of the area. At this point, you will encounter a locked door and have two options to deal with it. The first of them is lockpicking it. The second method is going to the left of the door in Baldur’s Gate 3, as there is a hidden passage through a broken wall, which grants access to the area.
At the far end of the room, you will encounter Philomeen. Walking up to her will initiate a cutscene where you have to negotiate with the scared deep gnome, who has a dangerous weapon that could wipe out you and the rest of your party if provoked.
How To Calm Down Philomeen
Talk Your Way Out Of An Explosion
Once you find Philomeen, they are primed and ready to blow your party to smithereens using the Runepowder Barrel they stole from the Duergar. It is possible to sneak past Philomeen before starting their dialogue to steal this item beforehand, preventing them from using it as a threat. This can only be done using a spell or magic item in Baldur’s Gate 3, like a 
Potion of Invisibility, to mask your movements in the deep gnome’s hiding place.
When you starting talking to Philomeen, you have to pass a Persuasion or Intimidation check to calm them down. You can also try to cast Detect Thoughts on the gnome to reference their motivations during the conversation. Philomeen wants to bring back the Barrel to the Ironhand clan of freedom fighters in Baldur’s Gate, but they are willing to detonate it now should they consider you a threat.
As you can see in the above video by YouTube creator Gamerpillar, passing the first initial Charisma check will lead to more dialogue with Pilomeen. You can choose to kill them right away without the threat of the Runepowder if you’re feeling evil, but Philomeen will try and run. However, talking to them some more and letting them go will lead to a big reward later on.
Why Philomeen Is Not Appearing In Baldur’s Gate 3
Previous Actions May Keep Philomeen From Showing Up
In case you reach Philomeen’s hiding spot and do not encounter her, this could mean a few things. One of them is that you already dealt with True Soul Nere and that the marker left there is simply bugged in Baldur’s Gate 3. If you already handled the Nere situation, you need not worry about the marker – you will be unable to find Philomeen, but the main task is done.
If you haven’t dealt with True Soul Nere and can’t find Philomeen, there is a chance that Nere has already died from poisoning and the deep gnome left her hiding spot, leaving behind only her bugged quest marker.
There is no big punishment for missing out on the interaction with Philomeen. If you want to ensure you find the deep gnome, however, the best solution is to learn about her disappearance upon reaching Grymforge and then immediately go to her hiding place, without going back to camp or teleporting anywhere else. Resting can result in Nere’s death and her subsequent disappearance.
Rewards For Finding And Interacting With Philomeen
Gain A Grenade Of Runepowder
Anyone who talks down Philomeen in her hiding spot will be rewarded with the 
Runepowder Vial, a grenade you can throw at enemies. This mini-explosive is modeled off the Barrel Philomeen is trying to transport, dealing a ton of Force damage to targets in an AoE radius when triggered by a fire source. You can use this item in a variety of ways; such as using it as a mine to lure enemies into an incoming blast.
Those who steal the 
Runepowder Barrel from Philomeen can also gain it as a reward of sorts. This environmental consumable can be placed like any other barrel, being triggered with fire like other explosives. This Barrel does far more Force damage than the Vial, especially if creatures caught in the blast fail a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw in Baldur’s Gate 3.
The Runepowder Barrel, unlike the Vial, automatically inflicts Critical Hits against objects and environments for even more Force damage.
Philomeen leaves her hiding spot and returns in Angleiron’s Cellar in Act 3 once your party reaches the Lower City. Here, she will be part of the Ironhand resistance in the city, which you can ally your party with to help disable the Steel Watch run by Gortash. While finding Phiomeen’s hiding spot isn’t particularly hard, it may require some sidetrack exploration in Baldur’s Gate 3 to achieve these rewards.
Source: Gamerpillar/YouTube
