The Rising Tide

 is a main quest in. It is automatically obtained after completing The Iron Flail.

Synopsis
After resolving the situation at the Iron Flail Fort, the Watcher sets out to investigate the two visions during the Iron Flail:
 * The first one of "The Tidebringer", the Abbey of the Fallen Moon and it's High Abbot Kaoto
 * The second one of a vast cavern full of Eyeless – maegcfolk, thought only to exist in tales.

To find answers, the Watcher must journey to the Abbey of the Fallen Moon, hidden far up in the mountains of the White March.

Infiltrating the Abbey, posing as the Tidebringer

 * Go to the Abbey of the Fallen Moon on the world map.
 * Approach any of the sentries and Convince the guards that you're the Tidebringer with Resolve 14 (intimidate them into moving the bed outside if they cause you to tarry), Perception 13 (leveraging the hidden nature of the Abbey), or Lore 6 (mentioning the Mecwyn's Tide).
 * Locate and talk to Kaoto in the Halls of Presence, inside the Abbey.
 * You must pass a recitation ritual. The lore can be found in three places:
 * A mural in the northern part of the Abbey courtyard.
 * Some talk with Baesca in the Halls of Presence.
 * The book The Giftbearer's Pilgrimage in the Library to the east, inside the Abbey.
 * Return to Kaoto to begin the ritual of recitation.
 * "I am Saman - the Flood."
 * "I give myself, for a Giftbearer has no other tokens to offer."
 * "I have none, for all that belongs to Ondra is forgotten."
 * Having passed the ritual, Kaoto will admit you to the Halls of Silence. He'll give you two keys:
 * The High Abbot's Key: opens Kaoto's Quarters.
 * A Steel-banded key: opens The Vault of Forgotten Thoughts, which contains the Salt Well.
 * Enter the Halls of Silence and unlock the gate to the quarters of the Low Tide.
 * Go to the Pool of the Anointed.
 * Interact with the lever on the left wall. All nearby cells will open with a shriek, and the monks will come rushing out to the source of the noise. They'll become hostile when the gate finishes opening, so prepare for a battle or sneak away to the nearby cave on the right until the noise subsides and the monks will return peacefully to their cells. (A soul in that cave has a memory of the pain and anger from the noise.)
 * Enter the gate you opened. Speak with Farentis if you want. Farentis is the previous High Abbot. He will ask that you open the gates to let the Low Tide escape.
 * Make your way to The Rising Waterway and solve the picture puzzle.
 * City in flames
 * Tidal wave
 * Barren shore
 * Flourishing city
 * Continue to the Chamber of Tears. Use the lever found there. You have two choices of action:
 * Open the gates and let the Low Tide run away. This will make Kaoto and his High Tide hostile.
 * Perform the Rising and flood the Lower Tide quarters, drowning them to make way for a new cycle of Tide.
 * You'll receive Ondra's Witness.
 * Head back to Kaoto or go directly to the Reliquary. To get there, enter the Halls of Presence and use the stairs to the southeast for the Reliquary.
 * If you meet with Kaota, you will meet and then fight him at the Veil of Tears. Depending on your dialogue choices, a few of the Ondrites may turn on him and help you in the fight.
 * If you go directly to the Reliquary, there is no fight with Kuoto at the Veil of Tears and you may leave quietly after the events that follow. But if you go back to talk to Kuoto after  the Veil he will attack you for going to the Veil without him - there will be no option to convince some of the Ondrites to fight with you.
 * Enter the Reliquary grounds and interact with the metal piece found inside the mouth of the skull. This will result in another vision:


 * Commune with Ondra. She will be angered at you pulling out fragments of Abydon and taking them for your own... Though through the anger you'll be able to identify bits and pieces of history that were supposed to be left forgotten.
 * Passing checks for Intellect 17, Lore 8 and Perception 12 will give you extra dialogue options with Ondra:
 * Intellect: "Be that as it may, I must reject your moral paradigm because it engenders an incomplete conception of the good that fails to consider the importance of testing the soul." and then you can answer "Your supposition that peace of mind is tantamount to the overall good is a flawed premise. Empirically we know that struggle and inner turmoil strengthen the soul as often as they strangle it." followed by "I submit to you that life is a framework to test the soul, and that an untested soul withers from disuse. Consequently, it is better to test the soul in order that it should thrive. If it breaks, it is no worse off than if it were not tested at all."
 * Another Intellect 14 check allows you to ask about the Eyeless and point out that she isn't telling the truth - that she made Abydon forget them, so that he would remain ignorant of the manner in which he died.
 * Finally, the Perception 12 check allows you to learn that Ondra did, in fact, love Abydon, although the feeling was doomed from the moment she decided to wipe Engwith out, making kith forget the secrets of the gods - and preserving their own divinity.
 * Eventually, you will be able to ask her to call off the Eyeless, which will prove impossible. Ondra will tell you to go to Cayron's Scar, where their lair is, to see what you can do . She will suggest reforging Abydon's Hammer as a way to attract the Eyeless
 * The Rising Tide will be complete. You automatically get the next quest, Lair of the Eyeless.

Alternative entry
You can skip the entire Halls of Presence, Kaoto's recitation ritual and the Abbey courtyard, going straight to the Halls of Silence.
 * Go the the outcropping in the southeastern corner of the map.
 * Swing accross the chasm, using a Rope and Grappling Hook. A Dexterity 18 check needs to be passed.

The rest is about the same as above, from point 8 on: Continue through the Halls of Silence, as you would above, and use Ondra's Witness to either release or drown the Low Tide. Talk to Kaoto. Meet him upstairs at the Veil of Tears. Fight him. Commune with Ondra. Finish the quest.