Joining the New Camp in Gothic 1 Remake is the longest faction questline in the game. You're not just walking up to a leader and pledging loyalty. You're running errands for thieves, diving under taverns, and staging highway ambushes before anyone trusts you enough to hand over a Bandit's Dress. If that sounds like your kind of RPG experience, this guide walks you through every step.
What is the New Camp and should you join it?
The New Camp sits in the hills on the west side of The Colony, near the large body of water visible on the upper-left of the map. It's a faction of rogues, bandits, and mercenaries who position themselves as champions of freedom compared to the more authoritarian Old Camp. The camp is particularly appealing if you want access to Water Magic, which includes spells like ice and chain lightning.
You can only join one of the three camps. Accepting Lares' offer locks you out of the Old Camp and the Swamp Camp permanently, though you can still visit them.
One thing worth knowing before committing: Water Magic doesn't become available until around Chapter 4 of the game's 6 chapters. If early magic access matters to you, joining the Old Camp's Fire Mages is the faster route. That said, joining the Old Camp as a Fire Mage doesn't lock you out of Water spells entirely. Once you're an established mage, the Water Mages in the New Camp can still teach you those spells. The Swamp Camp, by contrast, caps mage progression at the 4th circle, which means you'd miss the 5th and 6th circle spells entirely.
New Camp location on the map
How do you get to the New Camp?
The direct route is dangerous early on. The smarter approach is to work through the Casting Shadows quests and get some tasks from Thorus at the Old Camp. Eventually, Thorus hands you the Out of Sight quest, asking you to deal with a messenger named Mordrag.
Instead of getting rid of him, ask Mordrag about his work as a messenger for the New Camp. He'll offer to escort you there himself, which starts the Admission to the New Camp quest. Follow him and he'll clear enemies along the route, handing you a ring when you arrive. That ring is your introduction to Lares, the camp's leader.
Once inside the New Camp:
- Head up the hill past the farm and across the bridge.
- Enter the large cave on your left.
- Hug the left side of the cave and climb the hill to find Lares' house.
- Show the ring to any guards who stop you.
Speak to Lares and he'll lay out what you need to do to earn your place in the camp.
Speak to Baal Kagan near the base of the hill before heading up to Lares. He gives you the Canvassing Customers quest, which lets you earn ore by selling swampweed to bandits in camp. That ore comes in handy for bribing guards at the tavern.
Meeting Lares for the first time
The 5 quests to join the New Camp
You need to complete enough of these quests to earn both Lares' and the Rice Lord's favour. Here's a breakdown of all five.
Quest 1: A Piece of the Pie
Lares wants 400 ore nuggets and points you toward Baal Isidro at the lake tavern. You'll need to bribe the guards to get inside. Once in, speak to Baal Isidro and propose helping him sell his swampweed. He refuses at first. Buy him some rice schnapps from bartender Silas, and he'll change his tune, kicking off The Herb Merchant quest.
Baal Isidro gives you Green Novice, Northern Dark, and Dreamcall to sell. Offload these to mercenaries, bandits, or merchants like Sharky, Cronos, Malon, and Silas in bulk. Once you've hit 400 ore, bring it to Lares rather than returning to Isidro.
Quest 2: A Few Drops Too Much
Pick this one up from the Rice Lord near the camp gates. He sends you to the lake tavern to help Silas with a problem. Speak to Silas, then deal with the drunkard Rayk. You can beat him up or talk him down. Either works.
Quest 3: Up to His Neck
After finishing A Few Drops Too Much, the Rice Lord asks you to track down his missing foreman, Bran. Talk to farmer Malon politely (the tone of your dialogue matters here) and he'll tell you Bran headed toward a cave near a pond used by Jacko and Renyu.
- Exit the New Camp and head toward the large pond settlement.
- Find the cave entrance on your right, guarded by Renyu.
- Go inside and beat up Jacko. He'll reveal that Bran was sent to rob the tavern basement.
Now head to Silas' lake tavern. You have two ways into the basement: lockpick the door behind Silas, or swim underneath the tavern through a submerged cave entrance behind the building near the pier. The underwater route skips the lockpicking entirely.
- Go behind the tavern near the fishing pier and chimney.
- Dive in and swim through the flooded entrance.
- Continue through the cellar until you reach dry land and Silas' alchemy stations.
- Head up the stairs to find Bran's body.
- Loot the body and read the note.
- Swim back out and confront Silas.
- Return to the Rice Lord to complete the quest.
If you haven't dealt with Rayk in A Few Drops Too Much yet, he's the person who can point you toward the underwater entrance. You can skip that conversation and dive straight in regardless.
Bran's body in the basement
Quest 4: Something the Matter?
This one connects to the Test of Faith quest from Diego at the Old Camp. Head to the Old Mine in the northwest of The Colony (it's around the hill to your left when leaving the New Camp). Go almost all the way down and find Ian to pick up the supply list.
Instead of returning to Diego, take the list to Lares. He'll tamper with it, starting the Something the Matter? quest. Deliver the falsified list to Diego, then report back to Lares.
Quest 5: The Raid
Once you've built up enough favour with both Lares and the Rice Lord, ask Lares whether you've proven yourself. He'll mention a special assignment. Push him on it and The Raid quest begins.
- Speak to Gorn near the cave entrance. He gives you a free sword.
- Walk to the road between the Old Mine and the Old Camp. You'll find a carriage stuck in the mud.
- Sneak up the mound above the carriage to find Wedge and the other raiders.
- Your job is to distract the guards. Telling them you're new to the Colony and offering to find wood to free the carriage works well.
- Trigger the ambush. You can use weapons despite being told not to kill the guards.
- Speak to Wedge, then return to Lares.
Setting up The Raid ambush
Quest summary and rewards
One source notes you need to complete at least 3 of the 5 quests and reach level 5 before Lares will officially accept you. Completing all 5 is the safest approach and avoids missing anything.
What do you get for joining the New Camp?
Once Lares accepts you, the Admission to the New Camp quest completes. You receive the Bandit's Dress armour and 1,500 XP. From that point, you're a full member of the faction.
The long-term payoff is access to the Water Mages and their spell training, including ice and chain lightning spells. Just know that full mage power through this route doesn't kick in until the later chapters. The grind is real, but so is the payoff.
For more walkthroughs, tips, and faction breakdowns, check out the Gothic 1 Remake strategy guides collection.