IX. Escape

Follow this walkthrough to solve the 'Escape' section of Return of the Obra Dinn. Uncover fates, identify crew, and piece together the mystery.

Alright, we're back on the port side of the Main Deck in the present day. From where Linde's hologram is, turn right and head towards the stairway leading down to the Gun Deck. Once you're down there, go aft, past Andersen's skeleton and a couple of holograms. Veer a bit starboard and aft until you spot the first door on the starboard side, near the Boson and Boson Mate's rooms. Turn left and head towards the door with a lot of blood underneath it, and a knife lying on the floor right in front of it. Seriously, pay attention to that knife – it's a big clue. Open the door, and you'll find a skeleton inside the Midshipmen Cabin, sitting in a pool of dried blood. It's wearing some pretty tattered midshipman's clothes. When you're ready, approach the skeleton to bring up the Memento Mortem and activate it with the spacebar.

Escape, Part 6

As the memory kicks in, you'll first hear some heavy breathing, followed by First Mate Hoscut's voice, sounding pretty distressed, telling someone he's been 'cut'. Then, you'll hear that same young boy's voice from Chapter VII, Part 6, but weaker this time, begging Hoscut to stay with him. Listen closely to the dying midshipman's last request: 'Tell Pete's mother, I... I tried my best. ...to pull him back... to save him.' Sound familiar? It's a clear reference to that diorama we saw earlier. The last thing you'll hear is Hoscut saying the name 'Brennan' and asking someone to 'bring the surgeon's kit'. Yeah, we know how this ends...

You'll find yourself standing in front of First Mate Hoscut and the midshipman, who has just passed away by his bunk. Pretty sad stuff. But no time for tears now, we've got some identifying to do.

From your starting position, turn completely around, then exit the cabin. Turn left and go aft until you find a seaman with his ear cupped, standing near two unidentified bodies just off to his port side. Zoom in on this seaman. Now, bring up your sketch using the Tab key. See why his profile is blurred? That's because he's the guy Hoscut called 'Brennan' – the same seaman who ends up getting his throat slit by Captain Witterel. So, click on his profile and in the 'unknown soul' slot, ID him as 'Seaman Henry Brennan' (#56). Another fate solved!

Now, exit the sketch. Turn right. Those bodies on the floor? They're likely the same ones from Chapter VII. Turn right again to find the topman on the stairs. He's the one who hasn't been clubbed by the Captain yet, but he will be. You might need to head back to the Midshipmen Cabin now. Go back fore along the trail of blood, turn right, and go back inside. Take a moment to reflect on the scene and the fallen midshipman before the memory fades.

The logbook will appear. Turn to Chapter IX, and then to page 105 for the lifeboat and page 106 for the ship's location: southeast of the Azores, northwest of Madeira and the Canary Islands. It'll then direct you to pages 117-118, showing the situation in the Midshipmen Cabin with 'others present' listed as three. Now, we need to figure out this midshipman's fate. Remember that knife on the floor near the cabin in the present? That's our clue. Click on the victim's profile and list his fate as 'knifed' in the second slot. We don't know the attacker yet, so we'll leave that blank for now.

Exit his profile. If you paid attention to the audio log on page 117, you'll recall the knife victim mentioning he tried to save someone named 'Pete'. Does 'Pete' sound like a nickname for 'Peter'? It should, because 'Peter' is the name of the explosion victim that the knife victim was trying to save back in Chapter VII. To confirm, return to the Table of Contents using 'Q', select 'Chapter VII', and flip forward a few pages to 83-84. The explosion victim's profile should now be clear enough to identify. Click on that victim's profile on page 83 and in the 'unknown soul' slot, ID him as 'Midshipman Peter Milroy' (#33). You should get a 'Three more fates correct' message, followed by this table:

That brings our total to 12 correct fates. Nice work! Now, exit the book. The Memento Mortem will start vibrating again, meaning another corpse is nearby. Turn completely around, exit the cabin, turn left, and use the Memento Mortem's corpse-revealing power with the spacebar. Head aft to where Brennan is, turn right, and approach the corpse of the officer mate. Activate the Memento Mortem again to absorb its soul and exit the memory. Back in the present-day Obra Dinn, you'll notice the Memento Mortem acting like a compass, its spirit pointing south. Turn around until the spirit points north, towards the port door. Press spa