Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General Which companion(s) won't make it?

Dont question fate ... just be glad you did.

That world may not make sense to you, but it makes *perfect* sense to me. That's the whole point of having fictional worlds (in the plural), so different people will find different settings to their liking. I happen to love the FR precisely because of how it is set up and for its lore going back decades. I don't care for the other D&D settings (Grayhawk is sort of okay). And I utterly dislike Larian's Rivellon setting. But I'm not going to argue that Larian needs to throw out everything they've established in their setting because I don't like/approve of it. That would be just plain silly.

Also, I specifically said "with exceptions" in talking about "evil" races in the FR.

Anyway, I'm done with this as it is not my desire or intent to derail the thread.

Yes I have a response as well the OP has kindly asked to stop derailing their thread

I wonder if the off the rails comments could be divided into separate thread?

Anyway - I'll never recruit Minthara or follow the evil path. I've played BG2 dozen and dozens of times but never once sided with Bohdi.

Gale I'm going to give him a chance once but I suspect that manipulative $Q@#% is going to die.

Wyll? Who knows? He's been rewritten so who knows who he is?

Wyll comes across as a con who signed a pact with a Fiend for powers so he could run around pretending to be a hero but he's not actually evil, it's just how he's managed to survive and make a living...but now, depending on the choice you make with him, that con may come back to bite him...and if you go that route then it will probably be a catalyst for him to realize there's more to being a hero than being con with powers from a fiend and he'll have to make a choice...give up on the whole hero con and embrace the darkness or start acting like a hero, get rid of the fiend pact if he can and start doing the right things...and you can guide him down the path of recuing kittens from trees and running errands for peasants...OR you can teach him to make use of his abilities like charisma and conman skills to infiltrate some evildoing places and try to take over the evil-doing business...which I hear is booming.

Sorry for resurrecting the thread, but since we can't edit old posts, and I don't want my original assumptions to be left unamended, I'm just quoting myself and amending it this way. It was bothering me that I couldn't change my original thoughts after I played enough of the full release.

• Astarion: I'm pleased with the believable depth given to him. Love his romanced spawn ending along with the fact that we can reassure him about looking for a cure. My only general complaint is very minor: the inability to talk back when he makes snippy comments if you happen to disagree with him on occasion. Don't even need to record new lines or anything, just have him make a face in response, like an "Aw shucks, I just got scolded" pouty face or some such and have that be the end of the conversation. I'd like to pretend he can learn that it's okay to having differing opinions and that being immature in response is a good way to push your allies away.
• Minthara: Still kill her every time. Not interested in metagaming to arbitrarily keep her as an ally, anyway. Evil drow matriarch, no thanks.
• Halsin: Very pleased with him overall, but still clearly unfinished. His issues have been expanded upon at length, and I do largely agree with what people have been saying, so I'll not repeat any details. Partially fixed, but still needs work. Pretty annoyed that the bulk of his original content was cut, especially since his VA already put so much work and heart into him. For me, the changes weren't worth it, as it feels like there is less depth and fewer ties and connections to the overall stories with so much content cut (not just Halsin's, but the cut content in general). Devs' priorities could have been better, IMO.
• Shadowheart: I kill her on the beach. I thought she would no longer be the writers' pet, but she is. The last straw was the way she treats Lae'zel. I'd leave her alive (as I do with the others I don't recruit) if there was a way to get the artifact without killing or recruiting her, but there isn't. I just headcanon that she dies in the crash, rather than by my hand, lol.
• Lae'zel: She's my bro, hell yeah. Just wish she wouldn't insist that my dudes will wonder how it might've been to be with her when they reject her advances. Girl, they don't swing that way. (Can you imagine the backlash if it was a male character who said all this? If it's not okay for men to behave this way, how is it any better coming from a woman? Just have her take rejection gracefully instead of rubbing what we're missing out on in our faces. Gross.)
• Gale: Liked the changes made to him overall, but his arrogance vexes me so much that it overshadows his few good qualities (though I do enjoy those good qualities). I'm at a point where I usually just leave him stuck in the rock. Again, I do really like his good qualities, but not enough to go through his story which I didn't like in EA and still do not like now. (As an aside: why do some of the writers' OCs get to become gods or godlike, but ours can't? Not that I would want to, but it is a little unfair, lol.)
• Karlach: Ignore or kill for the "paladins." Her writing really takes me out of the setting, and nothing about her character appeals to me, same as in EA.
• Wyll: Ignore. Don't like Mizora anyway.
• Jaheira: Surprisingly likable, though it's going to be a long time before I return to a point where I can recruit her. I keep restarting my game...
• Minsc: I've yet to meet him; sure wish they didn't cut his content so much that we only get him for the final hours of the game. Heard good things about him, however, so I'm looking forward to meeting and recruiting him eventually.

I'd be curious to know if anyone else's opinions have been changed regarding the characters after release. I'm sure there's a thread somewhere specifically for discussing how people feel about the companions before and after release, but heck if I'm gonna dig around for it.

Tangentially related,

Obviously Astarion for me.
Even if during my current quest I want to know his story, I keep him as less as possible in the team
In my first play I abandonned him on the cliff, then I killed him when he tried to bite me, and for all other round I simply ignored him

Halsin and jaheira : bother me, I usually save them but they do not bring anything valuable

Minsc : never met in 600+ hours

Wyll, Gale and laezel : their story are ok

Shadowheart : something is odd with her. She acts as good and talk as evil, until she betrayed shar. At that point she could be consistent but she still stays odd

Minthara : I really want to know her story and have her in the team, but I really cannot play against the refugies.
Is it possible to save the refugies (I do not care about the druids) and keep Minthara in order to bring her into Selune's side ?

Karlach : my favorite character by FAR, the single one having a positive attitude, she is always part of the team
The ending with her is fabulous when we enter Avernous with Wyll

Clearly Halsin. He stays in camp as Orin bait and then he sadly gets killed by her. I don't like this character and I don't think, he should take up a precious companion spot.
Until she was recruitable on good side, Minthara was never part of my team, but in my honour mode run, I recruited her on a good playthrough. She is actually quite funny to have around.

All the other companions, I try to keep, because unlike a certain elf druid, they all have interesting storylines in act 3. And it's nice to see, how they develop.

Astarian -- I never fully recruited him as I think the idea of a vampire companion is inherently lame. I did briefly try including him once, and he was insufferable to point where I reloaded.

Minsc -- I paused my playthroughs in early Act 3, so I may never rescue this guy -- which is fine because he sounds ridiculous. I never played BG1 or BG2, so there's no nostalgia for Larian to mine from me with this character.


Honorable Mentions: If I wasn't 'gaming the game' to see their story lines, Minthara, Shadowheart and Lae'zel would likely all be dead.

Shadowheart - Her dialogue options and reactions with virtually dictated that I would have to kill her unless I meta my selections in a unnatural way or roll a natural 20 in one key exchange. There has been discussion on these forums about how poorly this sequence was handled.

Lae'zel - If I miss a persuasion roll when , she has to go. I save scummed until the roll was successful. Additionally, the entire Creche storyline seemed to require that I react unnaturally - arguably absurdly so - just to get the narrative to unfold, so that likely should have been the end of Lae'zel as well.

Minthara - I find her interesting despite her grimdark ethics and, fortunately for her, the game gives the option of recruiting her even on a 'good' playthrough. By all accounts, though, she should be dead along with the others at Goblin Fest.

Halsin - I've read about his fan service kinks and proclivities along with what potentially happens to him in Act 3; it should suffice to say that I will not be in any real hurry to save him -- particularly after how undistinguished he was in Act 2.

Nobody. Why would a normal person kill companions except in the most extreme situations?

That said, Lae'zel died when she and Shadowheart decided to fight it out. My main sided with Shadowheart because a) she doesn't like Gith, b) she didn't like Lae'zel, c) she wanted to sleep with Shadowheart (plan failed after she got busy first with Gale) and d) she was unsure what would happen to the articact if Lae'zel got it. Poor Lae'zel.

Second dead was Halsin. He was too massive and muscular to get back through the Shadow Portal, some less fitness training and anabolica abuse would have benefited him more, so not my fault (ok, I failed to protect the portal ...).

Astarion: It is hard for me to RP liking a Vampire that initially put a knife to my throat and then was trying literally suck the blood from my throat. He dies early in every play through.

Minthara: I tried an evil play through with her once and afterwards I felt like I needed a shower.

Halsin: There is NOTHING about him I like. I hate that his hulking build breaks the lore of what elves look like. I hate a lot of other aspects as well but do not want to write novel on why I hate Halsin.

Shadowheart: She is a bit of an enigma to me. While she is a Cleric of Shar and thus in effect Evil, I always have gotten a more Neutral Good vibe from her. No matter how much I want to do a play through without her, she always ends up in the party.

Lae'zel: I have tried to like her but her attitude is always such a massive turn off, not just romantically, but just being around her.

Gale: Gale is an arrogant ass and we all know it However he is a likable arrogant ass. He is that friend we all have that we hate talking to but miss when he is not around.

Karlach: I know a lot of people like her but in the end her writing feels more rushed than the others. The voice acting is outstanding but the lines she delivers just does nothing for me.

Wyll: The ultimate whiner, of poor me. I just want the world to see me as a hero and all my failures and short comings are because the world will not see me as a hero. His Daddy should have spanked him more. I want to slap him and tell him to stop chasing the childish desire to be a hero and focus on what needs to get done.

Jaheira: A lore breaker in my opinion since she dies in the BG novels. The character is not bad overall but not great either. Wish they would let her be involved in the Act two story line in place of Halsin.

Minsc: Okay this one is just because they needed a cheap hook to the older BG games. His inclusion in the game is almost incidental and comes so late it is a kind of who cares moment.


The thing I hate most about the companions is they all feel the same in so many ways. Why could we not have a Virtuous and Noble Paladin, or a whimsical, happy go lucky, comic relief Bard as companions? It was like Emperor went out and dug up every depressing, mentally broken person he could find. Maybe that was his plan, people he thought he could manipulate more easily. For being in a hurry he sure seemed awfully picky.

EXCEPT, not all of the companions have Tadpoles. Halsin and Jaheira don't.

Minthara. Good, evil, neutral, don't care. I want nothing to do with her. Might be the voice alongside the awful personality. Lae'Zel I can learn to respect, but not Minthara.

The only companion I've killed deliberately was Minthara. But now that I've had a chance to recruit her with the knock out method and talk to her a bit (after a second attempt, since she bugged out the first time), she is my favourite. So it is unlikely to happen again.

Jaheira, on my first run. I did not recruit her when it was possible, thinking I'd have opportunity later, and she died in the battle for moonrise towers because Larian did not give her any armor. Since I've had a full party, I did not reload. I actually forgot about Minsc on that playthrough, so I guess he lived.

Lae'zel, because my character failed the roll to convince the tieflings to let her out; Lae'zel then asked her to kill them instead, and since I was playing a tiefling, the answer was no.

@Zentu, I am genuinely impressed how much of the roster I find unlikable. Initially, BioWare held the "honor" of highest percentage of unlikable companions with Dragon Age Inquisition, but BG3 has usurped that crown IMO.

I enjoy slightly more of them than you do, but only marginally, lol.

Indeed for me Companion selection is a race to the bottom, for the least irritating individual. Bunch of messed up edgelords (and ladies). For me Karlach is most palatable.
Good point about Hulking Halsin - I find "Strong Body Type" for Elves ALMOST as bad as the awful square jaws of male Elves. I can't bring myself to play a male elf ...

As I keep restarting I cannot comment on Jaheira (who should be retired) or Minsc (whose only redeeming feature was Boo).

I travelled with Wyll, and he's the weakest of them all. I thought Warlocks were supposed to be scary. He's always missing his shots.
I basically travel with Lazel, Kalach and Shadowheart.
She keeps our hp up and we bash things.
To hell with Gale...he's got woman problems.

It's funny, because I don't play tabletop yet I never had any issues with Wyll, or warlocks, despite not knowing this clss well (old BG games had none). Even on my first playthrough, where he was just a warlock with a dash if fighter, I've found the blade pact and meleeing in darkness very useful. Spellcasters altogether were a bit of disappointment, though, with how few spells there are on higher levels.

Gale - My ride or die besti. Either as a companion or in his origin, he stays in the group. He talks a lot but that is alright, he has interesting things to say. A perfectly wholesome cinnamon role on first glance he has some dark currants streaming through his layers. He has some of my favourite writing in the game along with Lae'zel and one of these days I'll have him and the vampire become gods together - they'll cause such perfectly beautiful chaos.

Astarion - Seeing him choke on poisoned blood during bite night never gets old. He becomes a surprisingly good friend quickly enough and when you tell him to stay in camp after one of his more biting remarks, it almost feels like banter. I also enjoy his quest and character development very much - in the spawn path at least.

Lae'zel - She is my bro. Once you give her a chance, she is a good team player and often a voice of reason. She and Gale also have some of my favourite banter.

Jaheira - Team mom.

Shadowheart - Shart is a weird one, fluctuating between edgy and needy in the beginning and becoming extremely soft in the end. She is ok to have around for the most part.

Minsc - big, well meaning oaf who talks to his hamster and is treated by everyone like a big, well meaning oaf who talks to his hamster. I enjoy his company more than I expected.

Wyll - Since I figured out how to play blade pact warlocks, I have developed a soft spot for him - like for a sad puppy found in the rain. His moralising annoys me and that he feels like a secondary character in his own plot most of the time - but I do enjoy his epilogues when Karlach isn't around.

Halsin - He is alright as a NPC but just superfluous as a companion - apart from other things.

Minthara - Haven't had the chance to get to know her properly yet. I am looking forward to it though.

Karlach - She is cute and I liked her well enough before I noticed just how hard the game tries to make me care for her at every possible corner. You can't even be properly mean or grumpy towards her in places when it is warranted. Her naivety also starts to become grating as time wears on. Minsc is an idiot but everyone treats him like one, Karlach by contrast is treated as something special and precious by everyone including the narration itself. The next time around, she'll become a coat and I am sure it will be an overall improvement.

I see her as a bit simple. Emotional and mental growth atrophied - a teen delinquent kidnapped and sold to an army. A child soldier. Physically a Brienne, but in some ways her mind is that of Sansa. A miracle she did not end up being a psychopath like Astarion.
She gets treated as something special 'cause she is a GIRL. :P
What does "becoming a coat" mean? English is my 2nd language.

LOL,
Speaking of Shadowheart, she makes me roll my eyes, talking about her Godddess.
Girl, I think, you ARE delusional!!!!!