Baldur’s Gate 3 companions and where to find them

Baldur’s Gate 3 companions are playable characters that can join you on your adventures through Larian’s expansive CRPG. With their own personalities, subplots, and possible romance arcs, the BG3 companions add color to your fantasy capers. And there are more of them to meet than you might first think, so we’ve put together a complete list of Baldur’s Gate 3 companions.

We’ll cover everyone’s Baldur’s Gate 3 classes and Baldur’s Gate 3 races so you can choose the perfect party composition. We can also tell you where to find everyone and what it takes to kickstart a Baldur’s Gate 3 romance. Plus, we’ll cover each companion from best to worst, starting with the most useful characters and ending with the least.

The ten Baldur’s Gate 3 companions are:

• Shadowheart
• Gale
• Lae’zel
• Astarion
• Minthara
• Karlach
• Wyll
• Halsin
• Minsc
• Jaheira 

Shadowheart

A holy healer shrouded by shadows.

Shadowheart is one of the first Baldur’s Gate 3 companions you can meet as you begin the game trapped aboard the same Mind Flayer ship. She’s a DnD Cleric of the Trickery Domain who worships a somewhat shady deity, and she’s got a pretty monumental task she needs your help to complete.

While she’s very guarded about her past, Shadowheart’s loyalty towards you quickly grows with a bit of nurturing. Underneath all that shade and cynicism, she seems to have a noble heart.

The Trickery Domain is one of the weaker Cleric subclasses, but it’s easy to change Shadowheart’s class. If you give Withers some coin, you can turn Shadowheart into a Cleric that’s better designed for healing or offensive spellcasting. Once you’ve done that, she’s pretty much unstoppable – and worth including in any party composition.

Here are Shadowheart’s starting stats:

Where to find Shadowheart

Shadowheart can be found trapped in a pod on the Nautiloid at the very beginning of the game. If you manage to rescue her, you’ll find her unconscious on the beach after the Nautiloid crashes. You won’t need to walk far to spot her.

If you failed to rescue Shadowheart, she’ll be awake and investigating a door on the far East of the beach. Ignore her, and she’ll crop up at the Druid’s Grove. Ignore her again, and she’ll appear at the Goblin Camp or the Mountain Pass. She’s pretty essential to the story of Baldur’s Gate 3, so the game won’t let you miss her.

You can learn more about this companion in our dedicated Baldur’s Gate 3 Shadowheart guide. 

Gale

A Wizard whose devotion comes at a great cost.

Another companion you meet early on is Gale, an ambitious and amicable DnD Wizard. He’s filled with passion for learning, helping those in need, and his beloved DnD god Mystra – he might even find passion for you, if you play your cards right. All this passion comes at a price though, and Gale has some pretty costly debts to settle.

Gale is a real goody-two-shoes as far as Baldur’s Gate 3 companions go. Stay on the righteous moral path, and chances are you’ll get along swimmingly.

You might find Gale appealing or annoying, but he’s worth adding to your party regardless. As a Wizard, Gale has access to a varied list of powerful spells and subclasses. You can turn him into an incredible ranged damage dealer, or you can fill his spellbook with utility options that allow you to fly, unlock doors, manipulate enemies, or turn invisible. Gale can fill many roles in your party, and his versatility is valuable.

Here are the starting stats for Gale:

Where to find Gale

Head North of the crashed Nautiloid, and you’ll come across a fast travel waypoint called ‘Roadside Cliffs’. Investigate a nearby purple portal, and you’ll quickly meet with Gale. Don’t take heed of any dialogue that might imply the portal is dangerous – many players have cautiously ignored it and missed out on a companion altogether. 

Lae’zel

One very grumpy Githyanki gal.

Your very first companion is Lae’zel, a Githyanki who suffered the same fate as you aboard the Mind Flayer ship. While running into you may have saved her skin, she doesn’t make the easiest travelling companion.

As a Githyanki DnD Fighter, few trust her, and she repays that mistrust in kind. Ruthless and rude, Lae’zel is immediately at odds with the party, wishing to go to her own kind for help with the tadpoles instead of the Druids nearby. Still, maybe there’s a softie in the making hidden somewhere.

Every party needs a character with a high Strength stat. This is for more than just fighting (though Lae’zel excels in this area). They also make great pack mules as they’re able to carry more loot than the average spellcaster. Lae’zel is our top Tank thanks to her Battle Master subclass, which gives her ways to manipulate the battlefield and create advantages for your adventuring crew.

Here are Lae’zel’s starting stats:

Where to find Lae’zel

You’ll meet Lae’zel shortly after the game begins, and she’ll temporarily become a member of your party. However, you’ll become separated during the Nautiloid crash. To reunite, head North, and you’ll find her a short distance from the Roadside Cliffs waypoint. If you don’t help her out of trouble at this location, you’ll meet her later at the Mountain Pass.

You can learn more about this gutsy Githyanki in our Baldur’s Gate 3 Lae’zel guide. 

Astarion

A sneak that’s hard to trust but easy to love.

Astarion is the ‘I can fix him’ character of Baldur’s Gate 3. You meet him very early in the game, and since he featured in Early Access, the BG3 community had plenty of time to learn to love him.

Snarky and stealthy, Astarion is everything a sneaky DnD Rogue should be. He’s hiding dark secrets and a pretty bloody past, so expect to have your heartstrings tugged should you choose to romance him.

Astarion’s Sneak Attack ability and stealth skills make him a sleeper hit when it comes to combat. You can send him into dangerous situations alone as a Scout, and he can surprise enemies with a poisoned arrow or dagger. Plus, with buffed Dexterity and Charisma, he has plenty of utility outside of a fight. Lock-picking, trap-disarming, and NPC-charming are all in his wheelhouse.

Here are Astarion’s starting stats in BG3:

Where to find Astarion

Astarion is standing out in the open, West of the Nautiloid crash on the beach. He’s easy to spot and recruit, but you only get one chance to add him to your party.

Read more in our full Baldur’s Gate 3 Astarion guide. 

Minthara

She’s definitely a baddie.

Minthara is a Baldur’s Gate 3 companion to save for your evil playthrough. She’s a DnD Paladin, but there’s not much holy going on with her. Whatever’s going on with these Mind Flayers, she seems to be on their side – at least, so it appears when you meet her in Act One.

Paladins use their Charisma to cast spells, and they’re excellent frontline fighters thanks to a beefy Strength score. This means Minthara is an absolute beast in combat and she’s a smooth talker the rest of the time. She can fill several party roles at once, making her a powerful ally – but her evil disposition makes her tough to recruit.

Here are Minthara’s starting stats as a Baldur’s Gate 3 companion:

Where to find Minthara

You’ll first meet Minthara at the Goblin Camp in Act One, but she can’t be recruited until she gets to Moonrise Towers in Act Two. If she dies before then or becomes hostile to your party, you’ve missed your chance to make friends. This means you’ll need to agree to her plans in the Goblin Camp or completely bypass the Goblin camp.

You can cheese your way around the situation, but it’s tricky. Start by attacking Minthara and her allies in a way that gives her the ‘temporary hostile’ condition, and then knock her unconscious rather than kill her. With a bit of luck, she should turn up at Moonrise and still be up for joining you. 

Karlach

She has literal fire in her heart.

On the surface, Karlach looks like your stereotypical Tiefling from the Nine Hells. She’s hot-headed, vengeful, and literally fuelled by Rage as a DnD Barbarian. It won’t be long before she’s starting heated conflicts – even within your adventuring party, if you’re not careful.

But there’s more beneath the surface. Karlach was never a pawn of evil by choice, and now she’s escaped, she’s going to need a lot of help to survive on her own.

As a Strength-based fighter, Karlach rivals Lae’zel and Minthara for her skills in combat. We’ve ranked her lower because she doesn’t have quite as much to offer as either character. Karlach lacks Lae’zel’s tactical options, and she doesn’t have much use outside of combat like Minthara. A raging Barbarian is fun to play, though (especially with the Tavern Brawler feat), so feel free to choose her if you find her personality charming.

Here are Karlach’s starting stats for Baldur’s Gate 3:

Where to find Karlach

Head North from the Blighted Village waypoint, and cross the bridge. Follow the road to the East, and you’ll find Karlach near the river. If you’ve already recruited Wyll, you’ll have a quest marker that shows you where to go. 

Wyll

How much would you sacrifice to be a hero?

Wyll comes from an esteemed noble household in Baldur’s Gate, but he’s better known for acts of heroism that earned him the title of ‘Blade of Frontiers’. He’ll do just about anything to make the world a better place – which includes making some infernal pacts to gain more power. So far, so DnD Warlock.

Wyll was available to adventure with in Early Access, but a lot of his story was rewritten before the full release. So even if you think you know him, there’s still more to learn.

Sadly, even with the rewrites, Wyll is our least favorite Origin companion. This is based on his class – on its own, a BG3 Warlock doesn’t have much to offer. Eldritch Blast may be one of the best cantrips in the game, but Wyll’s limited spell slots remain a major hindrance. His high Charisma score makes him useful in non-violent situations, but he’s not the only companion that’s persuasive.

If you’re still desperate to include Wyll in your adventures, we recommend multiclassing and giving him some levels as a DnD Bard or DnD Sorcerer.

Here are Wyll’s starting stats in BG3:

Where to find Wyll

Wyll can be found in the Emerald Grove with the Tieflings, North of the crashed Nautiloid. If you ignore him and recruit Karlach, he’ll later appear in your camp. 

Halsin

A beefy Druid who becomes a beast.

When he’s not using Wild Shape for romance, Halsin is a DnD Druid that fiercely protects his Druid Grove. At least, he was until he was captured by a small army of goblins. If you fancy helping him out of that sticky scenario, it’ll be worth your while – Halsin knows a lot about your Mind Flayer problems, and it never hurts to have a bear on your side in battle.

If you want to recruit or romance Halsin, you’ll have to help him complete his goals first. This means he’ll hang around in your camp for most of the game, but you can’t really play as him (or with him) until Act Three.

Given how late you can recruit Halsin, he’s not one of our top choices of companion. Plus, the Druid class is a bit ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. Depending on how you build his character, Halsin can be great at healing, area control, frontline fighting, or bulking up your party with summons. But by the time he becomes available, most of these roles have been done better by another party member.

Here are Halsin’s starting stats for BG3:

Where to find Halsin

Halsin is imprisoned in the Goblin camp, and he’ll agree to join you as a temporary companion if you side with him in the fight between the Goblins and the Emerald Grove.

If you need help recruiting Halsin, here’s a handy guide. 

Minsc

A classic hero returns to Baldur’s Gate.

Minsc is one of two Baldur’s Gate 3 companions that have featured in previous Baldur’s Gate titles. Like in the previous games, Minsc is a DnD Ranger of kind heart, strong muscles, but dim mind. Oh, and did we mention he’s voiced by Matt Mercer?

Long ago, Minsc was sent away from his home on a journey of self-discovery. He’s had many adventures since then, some of which led him to travel with the Druid Jaheira. As of BG3, he and his hamster companion Boo have been petrified and stuck as a statue in the game’s titular DnD city.

Minsc appears in Act Three, after you’ve built solid relationships with most other companions. This makes it less likely that you’ll want to journey with him, but he still has his uses. If you’re not a fan of Astarion, you can use Minsc’s Ranger skills to replace the party Rogue, for example.

Here are Minsc’s starting stats:

Where to find Minsc

You’ll need to complete a long-winded quest before you meet Minsc in Act Three. We won’t spoil the details, but it involves the Counting House in the city of Baldur’s Gate. 

Jaheira

This Druid has a long history with Baldur’s Gate.

Jaheira is a returning companion from previous Baldur’s Gate games. In previous games, she was a headstrong warrior who spent time helping organizations like the Harpers. In Baldur’s Gate 3, Jaheira is still all of those things. She’ll also likely have plenty to say about your Mind Flayer problem.

By the time you find Jaheira, you’ll have already met one Druid. You’ll either have included Halsin as a party member, or you’ll have decided he’s not worth the hassle. Either way, a second Druid feels a little redundant. Still, if you’re keen to recruit her for the nostalgia, she can do everything that Halsin can.

Here are Jaheira’s starting stats:

Where to find Jaheira

Jaheira is in the Last Light Inn in Act Two. This is in the Northern part of the map. To get there, follow your initial path through the Shadow-cursed Lands. If you reach Moonrise Towers, you’ve gone too far – backtrack and head to the right.

Need some more advice for BG3? The game shares a lot of the 5e feats, DnD backgrounds, and 5e spells found in Dungeons and Dragons. This means an OP DnD character build could be just as powerful in the digital game – and we can recommend plenty.