In Baldur’s Gate 3, 10 companions can join you and you can romance eight of them. You take at most three along at a time, so your party is four characters. Below you’ll find who’s who, their class and race, which act and location they join in, and whether a romance is possible. Everything here applies to all platforms after Patch 8, is checked as of 20 October 2026 and contains no story spoilers.
All 10 companions at a glance
You meet eight companions in Act 1, Jaheira in Act 2 and Minsc not until Act 3. Class and race for the first six come from the official game site; for Halsin, Minthara, Jaheira and Minsc we list the class only.
| Companion | Class and race | Where they join | Romance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shadowheart | Cleric, High Half-Elf | Act 1, the beach after the nautiloid crash | yes |
| Astarion | Rogue, High Elf | Act 1, the cliffs west of the nautiloid wreck | yes |
| Gale | Wizard, Human | Act 1, near the Roadside Cliffs waypoint | yes |
| Lae’zel | Fighter, Githyanki | Act 1, a hanging cage west of the ruins | yes |
| Wyll | Warlock, Human | Act 1, Emerald Grove (The Hollow) | yes |
| Karlach | Barbarian, Zariel Tiefling | Act 1, by the river south of the Risen Road waypoint | yes |
| Halsin | Druid | Act 1, Goblin Camp / Shattered Sanctum | yes |
| Minthara | Paladin | Act 1, Shattered Sanctum | yes |
| Jaheira | Druid | Act 2, Last Light Inn | no |
| Minsc | Ranger | Act 3, the sewers of Baldur’s Gate | no |
Wyll is in the Emerald Grove, training a young tiefling. Lae’zel is caged west of the ruins and Karlach waits by the river south of Risen Road. If you want to know what each class brings, see our overview of classes and subclasses. What races like Githyanki or Tiefling mean is covered in our BG3 races list.
Your party: you and three companions
You can bring at most three companions, so the party has four characters. Companions stay at your level, so if you leave someone out for a long stretch, they don’t fall behind and you can swap them in later without trouble.
If your party is missing something, you can hire mercenaries (hirelings) from Withers in camp. The same character also lets you change a class for a fee. When you play with friends, each extra player takes over one companion; more on that in our BG3 co-op guide.
Companions pay attention to what you do. Act in line with their personality and you earn Inspiration, which lets you reroll a failed check outside combat. It works the other way too: annoy someone enough and they leave the party.
Origin characters and The Dark Urge
The six Act 1 companions are also Origin characters: Astarion, Gale, Lae’zel, Shadowheart, Wyll and Karlach. At the start of the game you can pick any of them as your main character instead of your own Tav.
The seventh Origin option is The Dark Urge. It’s a custom character you create yourself, but unlike Tav it comes with a fixed story. It is not one of the ten companions who join you.
Halsin, Minthara, Jaheira and Minsc are not Origin characters. You can’t play them as your main character, but you can take them into your party.
You can’t recruit everyone in one playthrough
Ten names in the table doesn’t mean ten companions in a single run. Some Act 1 decisions bring certain companions in and drive others away. The best-known example: side with the goblins and Wyll leaves the party.
We deliberately don’t spell out how to recruit specific companions, because that would give away the plot. If you want as many people around you as possible, choose carefully in Act 1 and save often, since the game autosaves rarely. Outside Honour Mode, saving before a big decision and reloading if needed is perfectly fine. More tips for the first hours are in our beginner’s guide.
Romance: who you can romance
The game has eight main romances: Shadowheart, Astarion, Wyll, Gale, Lae’zel, Karlach, Halsin and Minthara. Jaheira and Minsc have no romance, even though they otherwise travel with you as full companions.
Romances are available regardless of your character’s gender. There’s no need to plan ahead in character creation for who you might want to get close to later.
We leave out how individual romances play out, their scenes and relationships with characters outside the party. Those are spoilers, and the game is best when you discover them yourself.
Companions by act
- Act 1: Shadowheart, Astarion, Gale, Lae’zel, Wyll, Karlach, Halsin and Minthara.
- Act 2: Jaheira at Last Light Inn.
- Act 3: Minsc in the sewers of Baldur’s Gate.
Warning, minor spoiler about Minsc: skip this paragraph if you don’t want to know even that. For him to be able to join you, knock him out rather than killing him.
Join our Discord to discuss who to take along or to find partners for co-op: GamersTogether Discord.
FAQ
Ten: Shadowheart, Astarion, Gale, Lae’zel, Wyll, Karlach, Halsin, Minthara, Jaheira and Minsc. You can’t have all of them in one playthrough, because some decisions bring certain companions in and drive others away.
Shadowheart, Astarion, Wyll, Gale, Lae’zel, Karlach, Halsin and Minthara. Jaheira and Minsc have no romance.
No. All romances are available regardless of your character’s gender.
Three. The party is you plus up to three companions, four characters in total.
Yes, as an Origin character: Astarion, Gale, Lae’zel, Shadowheart, Wyll or Karlach. The seventh option is The Dark Urge, who has a fixed story. Halsin, Minthara, Jaheira and Minsc can’t be played as the main character.
Information verified on 20 October 2026. Find more guides in our BG3 guides section.