The most important thing to keep in mind during Tabitha’s Episode 5 confrontation is efficiency. Every dialogue choice either lowers her walls or wastes her patience, and you only have a limited amount of time before she shuts the entire conversation down. The goal is to bring her walls to zero or lower while spending as little patience as possible.
Even if you choose efficient options, earlier decisions in the story can still affect whether the best outcome is mathematically possible. This scene is heavily influenced by your previous interactions with her.
Traits play a huge role here. Book Smart and Street Smart are the strongest options for this confrontation. They unlock key information earlier in the episode and provide some of the most effective dialogue choices during the conversation itself. They also allow access to one of the strongest closing accusations, which can reduce her defenses more than any other single option.
It’s also important to remember that Tabitha is lying for most of this exchange. Her reactions may sound dismissive or harsh even when you’re making progress, so her tone alone isn’t a reliable indicator of success.
The Most Efficient Dialogue Path in the Main Conversation
If you have Tabitha’s father’s letters, you should always show them first. This is one of the only choices that actually increases her patience instead of lowering it, while also significantly reducing her walls. It’s easily the best opening move.
Her mood matters a lot from this point onward. If she’s relatively cordial, you can try suggesting that she may not have known better. When this works, she’ll talk about planning to visit her father after the funeral. If she reacts negatively, it’s better to stay silent rather than push further.
You can usually tell her mood through small cues in narration and dialogue. In a better mood, she shows subtle signs of softening. In a worse mood, she becomes dismissive and resistant very quickly.
Mentioning the Goat is another efficient move if available. Certain traits make this even more effective, while simply asking for its name is a slightly weaker but still useful option. Avoid mentioning that it ate peanuts if that happened.
The stone carvings topic is also safe because it doesn’t reduce patience. Stronger follow-ups include revealing that you know where the next carvings are or showing Enoch’s drawings. If she’s in a cordial mood, pointing out that she sounds scared can also lower her defenses.
If you discovered the medical records, you should absolutely bring them up. However, if you have Book Smart, accusing her of murder too early is a mistake. That accusation is far more effective when saved for the closing statement.
Some topics are simply inefficient. Talking about Alexandra Scarlet won’t help because Tabitha doesn’t care. Conversations about Pearlanne tend to increase her walls and reduce patience, making them risky.
Handling Specific Topics the Right Way
The discussion about the cell depends heavily on your circumstances. Street Smart is usually the best option unless certain earlier conditions weaken it. If that isn’t viable, referencing Wayne being held there is a safer alternative. You should never repeat Wayne’s accusations that Tabitha locked you inside.
When discussing Enoch, concrete evidence like maps or drawings is the most efficient. Mystical players can bring up occult details, though those choices are more informative than strategic. Other pieces of evidence can be mentioned for lore reasons, but they won’t help much in breaking her defenses.
Talking about Wayne can help slightly under the right conditions. Mentioning that he isn’t human or referencing certain things he said about the town can reduce her walls a bit if she isn’t already upset. However, bringing up personal details or unrelated theories will either do nothing or end the confrontation early.
Best Closing Statement
Eventually, Tabitha runs out of patience and forces a final confrontation moment. If everything has gone well, she’ll mention something about you hating her. Hearing that line is actually a strong sign that you’re on track for the best outcome.
At this point, direct accusations work best. The strongest options come from Book Smart and Street Smart, especially when combined. Other effective statements involve connecting Wayne to deeper secrets or suggesting hidden truths about the estate. Weaker accusations can still work if she’s in a cordial mood, but they aren’t as reliable.
If everything has gone well, Tabitha will finally break. She waves her hand desperately, motioning for everything to stop, signaling that her walls have completely fallen.
If this advice didn’t help, you can always revisit your earlier choices and try again.
Farewell, and good luck. You’re going to need it.