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Ruins of Arvahn
Malarite Hunters
I travel with Casavir, Shandra, Zhjaeve (who's required) and Qara towards the Ruins of Arvahn on the World Map. I bump into a man who is being pursued by several Malarite Hunters. I choose the good aligned response, and combat begins. Qara's Chain Lightning softens them suitably so that they're brought down rather quickly. The loot includes:
Pixie Lance
I go back to the Crossroad Keep and make for the Ruins a second time, only to get ambushed by several Pixies along the way. I choose to kill them. There are no alignment repercussions for doing so, and I get 40xp for each Pixie and 55xp for the Pixie Leader. It goes over pretty easy after Qara hits them with an Empowered Firebrand spell.
The Pixie Leader leaves behind the Pixie Lance (Dagger +2, Sleep DC=14 50% / 2 rounds), and a Fairy Dust. I keep the Fairy Dust in case I need it for enchanting later. I sell the Pixie Lance for plenty of gold.
West Harbor Destroyed
Third time is a charm, and Valeria now makes her way towards the Ruins. This prompts a cutscene whereby West Harbor has apparently been destroyed, and the Warlock arrives there with his army of Demons and Devils.
*Note* If you value Orlen being your farmhand at Crossroad Keep and Brother Merring for completing the Natrisse's Request quest, it is important to recruit Orlen and complete the quest before prompting this cutscene by making your way to the Ruins. Otherwise, they will perish along with everyone else at West Harbor.
Ogres, Orcs and Goblins
I arrive at #1 on the Ruins map. A little ahead, near #2, will be Orc Beserkers and Goblins fighting each other. I don't dive ahead just yet, because I don't want to start a custcene involving the nearby statue while I'm in the middle of the fight. I therefore keep everyone one back, and have Qara blast them into oblivion with repeated castings of Chain Lightning.
A little east at #5 will be a very large force of Ogres, Orcs and Goblins fighting each other. Valeria, in addition to the usual buffs, puts an Extended Haste on the party. This time the party charges right in to the thick of things. Valeria and Qara both hit the enemies with Firebrand spells. Zhjaeve positions herself so that she can use the Word of Faith spell, which blinds all of my enemies and renders them unable to attack. Now that Valeria has 3rd level spell slots to spare, her Beetle Familiar now begins to make effective use of the Vampiric Touch. The spell is often a good lead off for a Familiar, as it will not only damage its target but also give the Familiar bonus hit points above and beyond its own maximum. The entire sequence leaves all of my enemies dead or 'near death', so it becomes an easy mop up.
There will be a few more Orcs and Gobins and an Ogre about, but they're easily killed off.
Uthanck Thin-Blooded
First, let me explain at the outset that there are three rival groups of goblinoids in the area. One will be the Corpsewalker Clan of Orcs, which will be in the outdoor area of the Ruins. There will be two more inside Riverguard Keep, a group of Bugbears, and a collection of Goblins and Ogres led by an Ogre Magi. There is the immediate temptation to simply wipe them out as soon as you see them. However, it's more beneficial to do a quest for either the Corpsewalker Clan or the Ogre Magi to get an xp bonus before wiping them out. Note that the Bugbear Chieftain won't offer any xp bonus for wiping out his rivals.
I move on to the palisade at #3, which is inhabited by the Orcs of the Corpsewalker Clan. Valeria makes a Diplomacy check with their chieftain, Unthanck Thin-Blooded, in order to avoid getting attacked. I prefer to do Unthanck's quest since it will be more beneficial for reasons that I'll get into later.
If you're so inclined, you could slaughter the Orcs instead and right away. Uthanck would leave behind the Ice Reaver (Battleaxe +3, +1 cold damage, +15 cold resistance). One of the Orc Shamans would leave behind an amulet called The Ancient Sermon (+3 natural bonus to armor class, +1 1st level Cleric spell, +1 2nd level Cleric spell, +3 3rd level Cleric spell, Clerics only). However, I put that off until after I've wasted Ghellu and his crew.
Aurora Chain
Now I click on the Statue of Purification at #2. I get the Aurora Chain power, which increases attack bonus and damage each by one point for every four levels of the Knight-Captain character. It lasts for five rounds, and can only be used once a day.
To Riverguard Keep
Now I head over to #6. There will be a pair of Ogres, and a few Goblins as well. They're easily dealt with after a Word of Faith from Zhjaeve (which leaves them blinded) and Firebrand spells from Qara and Valeria. A nearby chest yields random loot.
Within plain view is the entrance to the Riverguard Keep.
