Baldur's Gate 3 companions: How to get every companion in Baldur's Gate 3
Learn more about all ten Baldur's Gate 3 companions
Want to get all 10 Baldur's Gate 3 companions? Baldur's Gate 3 is a classic Dungeons and Dragons adventure, meaning you and your party will travel to the titular city in search of enemies to kill and treasure to loot. A Baldur's Gate 3 party is limited to a max of four members at once, and there are 10 companions available to recruit throughout the game.
In this guide, we'll break down how to get every companion in Baldur's Gate 3. We'll also break down key information about each companion, so that you can fully assess which ones you'll want to have fighting in your party.
Baldur's Gate 3 companions
Baldur's Gate 3 has 10 companions, listed below:
- Astarion - Rogue, High-Elf
- Gale - Wizard, Human
- Karlach - Barbarian, Tiefling
- Lae'zel - Fighter, Githyanki
- Shadowheart - Cleric, High Half-Eld
- Wyll - Warlock, Human
- Halsin - Druid, Wood-Elf
- Jaheira - Druid, Half-Elf
- Minthara - Paladin, Drow
- Minsc - Ranger, Human
The first six on this list are Origin characters, which means you can also choose to play as them as your main character, if you so wish. This simply means that you'll act as them throughout the game, removing them as a potential companion because you'll actually be them!
Recruiting these characters as companions is a simple enough matter of engaging them in a brief bit of dialogue and choosing the options that obviously flag an intention to party up with them. If you prefer not to recruit someone you're talking to, it's also quite straightforward, as you'll just need to select the dialogue options indicating you don't want to travel with them.
Just be aware that it's possible to miss out on recruiting these characters, so we've included details of their locations on the map to help you track them down before advancing the story.
Astarion
- Species: High Elf
- Class: Rogue
- Location: Ravaged Beach, on some cliffs near the area's south-western coastline (coordinates: X172, Y284)
As you approach Astarion's location in the starting area, you'll hear him calling for help defeating a monster. The ensuing encounter can play out in a few different ways, but despite this elven rogue being a little stand-offish at the start, you can recruit him simply enough just by reaching the end of the conversation and asking him to join you.
Follow our dedicated guide if you want to romance Astarion in Baldur's Gate 3.
Gale
- Species: Human
- Class: Wizard
- Location: Ravaged Beach, Roadside Cliffs waypoint (coordinates: X224, Y326)
Like Astarion, Gale will start calling to you when you get within earshot of his location while exploring the starting area. While technically missable he's one of the hardest companions to ignore, since this luckless wizard has managed to get himself actually stuck inside a waypoint portal. Grab his waving arm to pull him free and you'll gain both a new fast travel point and a potential pal.
Check out our guide to romancing Gale in Baldur's Gate 3.
Karlach
- Species: Zariel Tiefling
- Class: Barbarian
- Location: The Risen Road, south of the river in the south-east corner of the area (coordinates: X110, Y504)
In all likelihood, you'll learn about Karlach from Wyll long before you actually meet her. She's the target of Wyll's latest demon hunt, which means that it's not a great idea to have Wyll in the party when you greet her for the first time, although a sufficiently smooth hero can broker a truce between them (and it's entirely possible to have them team up once you've recruited them both). Following Wyll's "The Blade of Frontiers" quest marker will lead you to Karlach's approximate location. All things considered, she's one of the more enthusiastic recruits to your team from the word go, being quite happy to party up with you provided you show a willingness to fight her enemies (fortunately, Wyll isn't included in this requirement).
Don't forget to check our guide to romancing Karlach in Baldur's Gate 3.
Lae'zel
- Species: Githyanki
- Class: Fighter
- Location: Ravaged Beach, west of the Overgrown Ruins waypoint (coordinates: X228, Y372)
Lae'zel is your companion throughout most of the prologue, and for that part of the game at least, you don't have any say in whether she joins your party or not. However, this is just a temporary state of affairs, as you'll become separated once the game begins proper.
When you encounter Lae'zel in the first chapter, she's been captured by a group of Tieflings and is being held in a cage. Help her escape and you'll have the choice to either side with the Tieflings against Lae'zel, or side with Lae'zel against the Tieflings. Either way you enter combat, but the latter choice is obviously the one to go for if you want to show your gratitude for her earlier help and/or recruit Lae'zel permanently.
Note that if Lae'zel dies on the Nautiloid and isn't resurrected before the prologue ends, or if you do nothing to rescue her from her captors on the Ravaged Beach once that event is triggered, she will die and therefore be rendered permanently unrecruitable. In either case her body can be found and looted, although the location will depend on her cause and time of death.
Once you've managed to recruit her, here's how to romance Lae'zel in Baldur's Gate 3.
Shadowheart
- Species: High Half-Elf
- Class: Cleric (Trickery Domain)
- Location: Ravaged Beach just beyond the starting area (coordinates: X271, Y220)
There's an option to meet Shadowheart during the prologue, as part of the "Rescue the Illithid's Captive" mission. Shadowheart is the captive in question, and if you can free her from her pod, she'll join you and Lae'zel for the remainder of your time aboard the Nautiloid. If you ignore or fail to help her here she'll still turn up later, but she'll definitely look more fondly on you if you assist her when you first get the chance.
Once the end of the prologue has scattered your temporary starting party, Shadowheart is the first permanently recruitable character you'll encounter on the Ravaged Beach. In fact, if you already teamed up with her previously she'll be practically unmissable, as she's right in your path as soon as you leave the area where you wake up. She's passed out, but you can talk to her to wake her up and potentially recruit her.
If, on the other hand, you didn't rescue Shadowheart on the Nautiloid, she'll be a little bit further on, and you'll instead meet her at the entrance to the Dank Crypt sub-area at the northern end of the Ravaged Beach.
You can also romance Shadowheart in Baldur's Gate 3.
Wyll
- Species: Human
- Class: Warlock (The Fiend)
- Location: The Hollow, on the platform in the camp area to the north of the entrance (coordinates: X207, Y552)
You'll first encounter Wyll as an NPC, part of a larger group who require your aid pushing back goblin marauders at the entrance to the Tiefling refugee camp in the Emerald Grove area. Successfully repel the goblin attack and Wyll will return to the camp, where you can later find him teaching self-defence techniques to a cute Tiefling kid. Despite seeming quite embedded in the community, Wyll agrees to join your party readily enough after you talk to him here.
Be sure to take a look at our guide to romancing Wyll in Baldur's Gate 3!
Halsin
- Species: Wood Elf
- Class: Druid
- Location: In the Goblin Camp prison (coordinates: X400 Y-28)
Halsin is a Wood-Elf Druid and launcher of a thousand memes, most of which have to do with his willingness to get frisky with you in bear form as part of his romance route. But before any of that can happen, you of course need to meet him.
You'll encounter Halsin some way into the game, once you reach the Shattered Sanctum. He's missable, so be on the lookout for a bear being menaced by some goblins and ensure that you have someone in your party who can speak with animals. Side with the bear against the goblins and, after that fight's over, promise to protect the Emerald Grove in order to send Halsin back to your camp.
Jaheira
- Species: Half-Elf
- Class: Druid
- Location: In the Last Light Inn (coordinates: X-45, Y145)
Jaheira is a Half-Elf Druid famous from previous Baldur's Gate games, and she returns here as the leader of Last Light. This is a safe haven that you'll find early on in Act 2 of Baldur's Gate 3. However, you won't be able to recruit Jaheira as a proper companion until the end of Act 2, after completing Moonrise Towers and defeating Ketheric Thorm.
Jaheira can be your companion as long as you generally try to do the right thing in her presence. When the Flaming Fists attack Last Light to abduct Isobel, for example, try to save her in the fight. Whether you succeed or not, simply trying is enough to convince Jaheira that you are trustworthy, which will later give you the option to recruit her as a companion.
Minthara
- Species: Drow
- Class: Paladin
- Location: In the Goblin Camp (coordinates: X333, Y46)
Minthara is a Drow Paladin and may already be familiar to you as Baldur's Gate 3's sole one-night stand romance option. Like Halsin, you encounter her in the Shattered Sanctum, but unlike Halsin, she's very pro-goblin and anti-Emerald Grove.
Doing what she wants in order to recruit her is straightforward enough, but does have the unfortunate side-effect of ensuring you can't ever recruit Halsin. It's potentially possible to deceive Minthara about your intentions and then side with Halsin anyway, but it's best to treat them as mutually exclusive party members and focus on recruiting the one you like the best.
Minsc
Minsc
- Species: Human
- Class: Ranger
- Location: In the Counting House in Baldur's Gate (coordinates: X-930, Y780)
Minsc is the final potential companion you'll meet in Baldur's Gate 3, appearing within the Counting House in the sprawling city. You'll find and recruit Minsc as part of Jaheira's companion quest, the High Harper, which means you'll need to keep her alive throughout Acts 2 and 3.
Minsc initially acts hostile, and you'll even need to find him during this questline. During that fight, make sure to use non-lethal attacks to merely knock Minsc out, rather than killing him. You'll also need to ensure that Jaheira manages to survive this long> If she does, and if you succeed in knocking Minsc out rather than killing him, then he'll eventually relent and agree to join your party.
If at some point during your travels you lose a beloved companion, try not to worry too hard, because we've got everything you need to know about reviving characters in Baldur's Gate 3. And if you're looking to get a bit fancier with your own Baldur's Gate 3 builds or that of your party members, why not learn how to multiclass in Baldur's Gate 3 or even respec your BG3 character entirely.
Disclosure: Former RPS deputy editor Adam Smith (RPS in peace) now works at Larian and is the lead writer for Baldur's Gate 3. Former contributor Emily Gera also works on it.