Pay for Damages – Disco Elysium

This guide will help you complete the Pay for Damages task in Disco Elysium.

Pay for Damages Map

Legend

1. Joyce
2. Whirling-in-Rags
3. Kim’s Car
4. Pawnshop

Pay for Damages Walkthrough

Background

You’ll receive this task during your initial interview with Garte, the cafeteria manager at the Whirling-in-Rags (#2).

Walkthrough

Garte will inform you that you owe him 60 real for the three days you’ve stayed at the hostel, 30 real for all of the booze you’ve drunk, and 40 real for breaking the window in your room — for 130 real total. There are two ways to reduce this amount:

• You can use Savoir Faire to flee the scene. If you pass the check, then you’ll get away, but if you fail the check, then you’ll crash into Lena’s wheelchair, and you’ll lose a point of Health (Lena will be ok). Either way, you’ll still have to pay your bill, but Garte will agree to remove the drinks from it. With enough Rhetoric, you can also convince Garte to drop the charge for the window, reducing the bill to 60 real.
• You can use Authority to “arrest” Garte. If you’re successful, then Garte will remove the lodging fee from your bill (he’ll charge your precinct instead). You can then refuse to pay for the window, and Garte will cave in on that fee as well. But you’ll have to pay for your drinks no matter what, leaving you with a 30 real fee.

You won’t be able to stay in your room at night without paying the bill, and you probably won’t come close to earning 30 real — let alone 60 or 130 real — from finding money, collecting tare, and selling items at the pawnshop (#4). If you call your precinct for help (using the radio in Kim’s car, #3), then they’ll refuse to give you anything, and the more you beg for help, the more likely you are to embarrass yourself and lose a point of Morale.

Luckily, the game will give you two special ways to earn the money:

• If you pass a Volition check when talking to Joyce (#1), then she’ll give you what you need.
• At the end of the day (around 22:00), a thought bubble will appear on Kim’s portrait. When you talk to him, if you haven’t yet collected enough money, then he’ll suggest negotiating with Garte (#2) again. However, Garte won’t have any interest in adjusting your bill, and the amount will stand.
  But Kim will come to the rescue. He’ll direct you to his car (#3), where you’ll find some Radiant Spinners that he confiscated from a suspect. When you sell the spinners at the pawnshop (4), you’ll get 200 real for them, and Kim will let you keep the amount needed for your bill.

Note: You can also get both payments. Just pick up the bribe from Joyce, and then spend enough money so that by the end of the day, you can’t afford your bill. Kim will step in and give you the spinners, and you’ll end up receiving twice your bill amount, which should be plenty for buying odds and ends around the city. If you plan to pursue this route, then don’t reduce your bill when talking to Garte, since the more you owe the more you’ll make.

When you pay Garte (#2) what you owe, you’ll complete the task and earn 70 xp.