Don't be a huge jerk and drop the shovel at the other side of the tunnel so whoever does the quest next can feel appropriately taunted.
Thank you.
God.
Feel free to hate me for this, but I found this hilarious.
I have also had this happen to me, but been lucky enough to have another one spawn.
Isn't a new one generated after the quest area gets cleaned up?
The two times I've ran that quest I've seen a shovel there, but one always spawned in the sack too. Are we supposed to be running back around to deposit it when the quest finishes? I just kept mine.
I believe it's intentional the way it works now. Sometimes you're fortunate to come across a shovel that's spawned in one of the sacks. Other times you aren't. I believe the point of the quest is to show off some of the mechanics that might be necessary while traversing the Underdark and the need to be prepared when doing so.
Sorry for the tone in the OP.
But no, the shovel is not newly generated. There's always 1 shovel after a reset but after that all bets are off. Usually people drop the shovel after using it.
I mean, you don't /have/ to, but if you keep it the way you have been, the next guy to do the quest has to pray another shovel spawns, has to buy one or has to bring one or he can't finish the quest. That's kind of a bummer.
(Though as big of a bummer as /seeing the shovel past the tunnel because someone dropped it there.)
Edit: I guess maybe noctem is right, but that seems weird to me and counter-intuitive.
I always assumed it was to show off different mechanics, and to presumably to give you a free shovel and other tools for survival, and to show THESE ARE IMPORTANT.
QuoteI believe it's intentional the way it works now. Sometimes you're fortunate to come across a shovel that's spawned in one of the sacks. Other times you aren't. I believe the point of the quest is to show off some of the mechanics that might be necessary while traversing the Underdark and the need to be prepared when doing so.