GRIM DAWN / QUEST / SIDE QUEST
A Cultist in the Midst
Missable Act 1 side quest started by picking up the Cultist Orders in Burrwitch Village. Return to Devil's Crossing, confront Direni, then choose whether to kill him or let him live.
Last updated: 2026-07-12
Side QuestPermanent ChoiceHidden QuestEasy to Get Lost
Act
Act 1
NPC
Direni / Captain John Bourbon
Area
Burrwitch Village / Devil's Crossing
Level
12-20
DLC
Base Game
Missable
Yes
WHY PLAYERS GET STUCK
There is no quest giver. The quest only starts when you loot the Cultist Orders from the Dusty Lectern in a Burrwitch Village house. It is also missable: if you never start it and pass the relevant point in Cronley's Hideout in Act 2, the quest can no longer be taken.
WALKTHROUGH
- 1Loot the Cultist Orders in Burrwitch Village
- ▸Travel to the Burrwitch Village Rift and enter the house just northeast of the rift.
- ▸Inspect the Dusty Lectern inside and pick up the Cultist Orders.
- ▸The quest starts immediately and updates to confronting Direni in Devil's Crossing.
- 2Confront Direni in Devil's Crossing
- ▸Return to Devil's Crossing and speak with Direni inside the refuge.
- ▸The dialogue branches into killing him immediately, hearing him out, then either sparing or killing him.
- ▸Both routes complete the quest path, but the reward and Direni's Act 2 status differ.
- 3If you kill Direni, report to Bourbon after the fight
- ▸Choose the hostile dialogue option and Direni attacks; kill him in place.
- ▸Afterward, bring the Cultist Orders to Captain John Bourbon to complete the quest.
- ▸Killing him rewards XP, Iron, Devil's Crossing reputation, and Blood of Ch'thon, but Direni himself will not give you A Strange Key.
- 4If you spare Direni, take A Strange Key immediately
- ▸Hear him out and accept the deal to spare Direni.
- ▸The quest completes on the spot and he gives you A Strange Key plus Direni's Directions.
- ▸Receiving the key unlocks the A Strange Key side quest that leads to Depraved Sanctuary.
- 5Choose with the Act 2 consequence in mind
- ▸If you spare Direni, or never trigger this quest, he appears as a mini-boss in Cronley's Hideout in Act 2.
- ▸The Japanese wiki notes that the quest becomes unavailable if you pass the relevant point in Cronley's Hideout without having started it.
- ▸If you have already started it by looting the orders, the later Act 2 progression does not remove the pending confrontation. Pick up the orders early if you care about the reward route.
STILL LOST?
If you cannot start it, do not look for an NPC; check the lectern in the house northeast of the Burrwitch Village Rift. If you already pushed too far through Cronley's Hideout in Act 2 without starting it, the quest may be missed on that difficulty.
Sparing Direni gives A Strange Key immediately, but makes him appear as an Act 2 mini-boss. Killing him does not permanently lock Depraved Sanctuary, because the key can still drop from cultists around the sanctuary/lair areas.