Who Is the Most Romanced Companion in Baldur’s Gate 3?

This article contains official Larian statistics about player data and popular romance choices in Baldur’s Gate 3. Beware gameplay spoilers.

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Baldur’s Gate 3 is a game all about player choice. Based on the 5e ruleset of Dungeons & Dragons, there are hundreds of hours of content, endless character creation options, and an extensive number of quests and characters to encounter on your journey through Faerûn. Of course, you’re at the mercy of the dice to determine how well you do, but the unpredictability is a huge part of the fun and challenge.

Since the main character, also called “Tav” by default, can be customized to the player’s liking, the more iconic faces of the story are your devoted companions, like Lae’zel, Gale, Wyll, and more. And throughout the story’s twists and turns, your character very well might choose to engage in a romance with one of these allies. This is often done over the course of the companion’s own personal quests, like Astarion’s “The Pale Elf” storyline or Shadowheart’s “Daughter of Darkness” trials.

But with so many choices available to the player, just what path did people actually choose?

After the game’s first anniversary, Larian Studios released player data that revealed some surprising stats about player preferences in the affairs of love. Let’s break down the details.

• Who was the most romanced companion?
• Who was the least romanced companion?
• How many people hooked up with Halsin?
• Which companion rejected the most players?
• How many people chose a secret romance option?
• How many people completed Baldur’s Gate 3?

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Companions can romance any player gender.

It’s important to note for this data Larian released, companions aren’t restricted to being romanced by only specific genders in-game. Players can create any type of Tav they want, with a variety of options for gender presentation and sex — these details only impact visual details and dialogue options in romantic cutscenes.

Players choosing to play as a companion (also called origin characters) instead of a custom Tav can also romance any of their fellow companions. Bloodweave shippers, we see you.

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Shadowheart was the most romanced companion.

• 51.3% of players reached the final act of Shadowheart’s romance arc.
• 48.8% of players unlocked Shadowheart’s final romance scene in Act 3.
• Players requested over 27 million kisses from Shadowheart during gameplay.

Look, we get it. The goth half-elf with memory issues is no surprise for the fan-favorite romance option. Shadowheart has an aloof energy that slowly warms as you grow closer to her. We love a slow burn! Plus, the artifact she’s carrying is quite integral to the plot, and her storyline introduces beloved characters from past installments of Baldur’s Gate. The fandom calls her “God’s favorite princess” for a good reason.

Her quest also has total “I could fix her” energy as you help her recover her true identity and  eventually step away from the duplicitous Sharran religion she’s trapped in. Of course, you can encourage her down a dark path too. Making Shadowheart a Dark Justiciar has its own challenges and rewards.

Either way, the trust Shadowheart places in your Tav to guide her is a heavy responsibility — and even though she’s known for missing her targets in battle, she clearly has a much higher accuracy hitting us right in the feels.

Female characters rank in the top 3 of companion romances.

After Shadowheart, Karlach and Lae’zel respectively rank second and third in romance arcs. While Larian didn’t share the specifics of their stats, it is clear the female characters dominate player preferences, with one notable exception in Minthara. It’s also worth noting, despite their status in the top 3, other companions like Astarion ranked higher in terms of optional romantic interactions.

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Minthara was the least romanced companion.

• Only 169,937 kisses were exchanged with Minthara, per Larian’s player data.
• Minthara is an optional companion character whose romance requires morally evil choices.
• Minthara can also easily be killed without players realizing she is recruitable.

A vengeful paladin, Minthara can join the party as a companion for players looking to walk on the evil side of their alignment. Introduced as one of the leaders of the goblin army in Act 1, Minthara is actually considered a boss battle for most players. But those who aren’t afraid of trying to cozy up to a mean, dominating drow woman can take her side and rain destruction down on the druids of the Emerald Grove.

If you leave Minthara alive and later save her from the Cult of the Absolute in Moonrise Towers, then she can join your party. Romancing her after that is still quite difficult, as evidenced by character stats. She’s elusive and much more likely to be murdered before players even realize she can join your fight for freedom. Plus, the loot she drops on death is powerful and plenty tempting for players with sticky fingers…

Minthara has a toxic kiss.

It’s important to note, kissing Minthara can also rarely result in a poison debuff on players that has negative impacts on gameplay. It is similar to Astarion’s bloodless debuff after he bites the Tav, but that is less random and more intentionally triggered by players. Minthara’s poison kiss can be cured with select healing items, spells, or abilities.

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658,000 players hooked up with Halsin.

• 70% of players chose to romance him in human form.
• 30% of players engaged in intimacy with his druidic bear form.

Halsin is the big, burly archdruid who can wildshape into various animal forms. A lover of nature and a rare polyamorous partner in the game, he can be a primary or secondary romance option for adventurous players. But, of course, the most notable feature of engaging with Halsin is the fact that he can be transformed during the intimate scenes depending on what the Tav wants.

Less than half of players romancing Halsin chose his beast form.

Well, according to Larian’s data… 30% chose the bear. For those completing Halsin’s romance arc, less than half of players wanted to see if it was true whether the druid was an animal in the bedroll or not. Roar.

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Astarion rejected the most players.

• Nearly 100,000 players were actively rejected by Astarion.
• All companions can reject you and even potentially leave the party if you act contrary to their morals.
• Astarion’s romance requires a specific interaction in Act 2 with Araj Oblodra which can be missed or be mishandled, resulting in a breakup.

Our favorite fussy vampire spawn Astarion is quite the heartbreaker! While every companion has the ability to reject a player who doesn’t treat them well and acts in a manner that earns their disapproval, Astarion is known to be one of the most particular. His ego has to be carefully navigated along with his autonomy, as the Tav helps him overcome his servitude to a cruel vampire master.

In Act 2, a particular encounter can spell doom for the player’s romance with the vampire if handled incorrectly. A blood alchemist named Araj Oblodra asks for Astarion to bite her in exchange for a potion that gives the players a tempting permanent strength boost. If you force him to do this despite his protests, or otherwise miss the encounter entirely, Astarion has a tendency to break it off shortly thereafter. No amount of bonus will help you carry the weight of that guilt for bullying your beau.

After being rejected by Astarion, the majority of players chose to pursue a romance with Shadowheart instead, followed by Gale. Players can progress through romance encounters variably at certain parts of the campaign.

Astarion was the second most kissed companion.

Despite the rejections that sting more than a vampire’s bite, plenty of players got some fang in other ways. After Shadowheart’s 27 million, Astarion doled out 15 million kisses to Tavs who had successfully reached the middle stage of his romance arc. He was the second most kissed out of all the companions despite not being in the top 3 romanced.

This also doesn’t include the number of players who let him bite them, an activity that first occurs in a surprise Act 1 cutscene and then can later be voluntarily triggered by the player to give Astarion a boost in combat (at the temporary cost of some of your stats).

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1.1 million players chose a secret romance option with the Emperor.

• The Emperor mindflayer protects the player as their Dream Guardian throughout the campaign.
• The Emperor is secretly romanceable, with 1.1 million players partaking in this option.
• 63% of players chose the disguised Dream Guardian form, while 37% chose his tentacled true appearance.

You’d be surprised by how many Tavs heard the booty call of Cthulhu. Did you know you could romance the Emperor? It can only occur in Act 3 of the game, since for most of the adventure, there are limited opportunities to engage with the mindflayer in disguise.

Choosing empathetic dialogue options and not dismissing the Emperor as another mindless drone tend to have the greatest impact here. Also, taking the Astral Tadpole isn’t essential to the endeavor, but destroying it will hamper the relationship.

It is also entirely possible to romance the mindflayer while maintaining a romance with a companion character. When engaging with the Emperor, he offers players the choice between his Dream Guardian form (a humanoid appearance you customized before starting the game) or his true self. And for the unfamiliar, mindflayers have a lot of freaky tentacles. 37% of players who romanced the Emperor preferred it this way, and we have to applaud them for it.

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Over 1 million people completed Baldur’s Gate 3 in its first year.

• By the time of the stats being released, the 1.3 million players completed the game.
• Completing the game isn’t necessary to unlocking romance scenes with partners.

Note, this statistic shows how many players finished the entire game. BG3 players are infamous for restarting runs, picking new character configurations and trying new party compositions. Many players don’t even leave Act 1 of the three-act game, not because it’s a bad game, but because it is perceived as cozier, offering more exploration and customizability than later, plot-heavy segments.

Still, 1.3 million players completed the game start to finish by the time of these stats, released only a year after the game debuted. That number is likely astronomical now when you consider how many people have since done multiple runs, including the Dark Urge playthrough, which presents an entirely different perspective on the hero’s journey.

All of these stats listed above draw from every instance of gameplay, completed or not. The combined time gamers have spent in the character creator alone total 8196 years as of the time Larian took these stats. Try to wrap your head around that number!

It really makes those 7 hour game binges you indulge in seem less irresponsible, doesn’t it? So, go ahead — get those Shadowheart smooches. You’ve earned it.

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Baldur’s Gate 3 Collectibles Coming Soon

Adventurers, be prepared to gather a party and travel through Faerûn with new Baldur’s Gate 3 collectibles coming soon from Sideshow. RSVP now to be notified when the collection of new figures and art prints drops.

Which companion did you romance during your Baldur’s Gate 3 playthrough? Join the conversation with other fans at Sideshow Social Network or in side.show/geekgroup, and don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!