Baldur’s Gate 3: Can you romance multiple characters in BG3?

The heart wants what the heart wants.

Shadowheart in Baldur's Gate 3 stands with her arms out in front of her.
Screenshot by Dot Esports

A good bit of romance never goes amiss in Baldur’s Gate 3. With a large cast of companions and more than a few crackling fires to curl up around, love is always an option. But with so many choices, you may wonder if you can romance multiple characters in BG3.

Can you romance multiple characters in Baldur’s Gate 3, explained

Man with shoulder length hair closing his eyes and touching a tree in BG3
Halsin is one companion who is open to polyamory. Image via Larian Studios

Yes, you can romance multiple characters in Baldur’s Gate 3 if you meet the right criteria to romance those characters.

Not every companion is open to polyamory

Some companions will want you all to themselves if you decide not to be monogamous, or if you even attempt to put the moves on someone else, they may even friend-zone you.

Best of all, players may engage in a relationship with characters regardless of race, gender, or class. So you don’t have to worry about being limited. All of this can get confusing and hard to keep track of if you’re romancing everyone in Act One. Still, we’ve gathered everything we know about which characters and companions are okay with polyamory and which ones want a monogamous relationship.

As you progress through the Acts, things may change depending on your choices. But, for the most part, the origin characters aren’t open to the idea of polyamory past Act One.

Example

If you’re hoping to romance Lae’Zel, she doesn’t mind you fooling around until Act Two begins. But if you try to romance anyone else from that point on, she won’t be too keen.

Here is every romanceable character in BG3, grouped by whether they’re okay with polyamory.

All Monogamous characters in BG3

Gale staring at woman with green hair and a cream shirt in BG3
Gale only wants monogamy in BG3. Screenshot by Dot Esports

In BG3, your companions may only be interested in a romantic relationship with you from Act One, or they may eventually want to only be with you from Act Two. Here are the companions interested in monogamy at some point in the campaign:

  • Gale – When you begin to romance Gale, and he shows you how to access the Weave, he mentions he is only into being with one person. So, from Act One, Gale wants monogamy.
  • Wyll – Just like Gale, Wyll wishes for a monogamous relationship strictly between you and him. He is not accepting of other relationships, even in Act One.
  • Shadowheart – Shadowheart appears to be okay with being polyamorous with non-Origin Characters, including Minthara and Halsin. In Act One, she will be okay with Astarion, but after Act Two, you will instead have to choose between being exclusive.
  • Astarion – After testing, he is only open to a poly relationship in Act One with Shadowheart and is open to Halsin and Minthara from Act Two. He isn’t open to relationships with anyone else and will expect monogamy.
  • Lae’Zel – Lae’Zel is more of the committal type. She does not seem to mind poly during Act One with Gale, Wyll, and Karlach. But not with Shadowheart. I’m pretty sure she would gut you if you tried that. But from Act Two, she will want to be exclusive.
  • Karlach – She is open to polyamory, especially if it’s with Shadowheart in Act One. But this is only in Act One. After upgrading her heart a second time in Act Two, Karlach will want to be monogamous, and if you decide to have some intimate time with Karlach, Shadowheart will pop you right into the friend zone.
TL;DR:

While Shadowheart, Lae’zel, and Karlach may be open to a poly relationship in Act One. In Act Two, they want to be exclusive. Astarion’s status depends on who you want to romance.

All companions accepting of polyamory in BG3

Karlach the tiefling as she appears in Baldur's Gate 3
Karlach is only polyamorous in Act One. Screenshot by Dot Esports.

We’ve discovered that the following companions and characters are accepting of a polyamorous relationship as soon as you can romance them in BG3:

  • Halsin – From the dialogue in BG3, Halsin appears to be very okay with being in a polyamorous relationship (unless you’re planning something with Minthara), especially with Astarion. He will not be open to romancing until Act Two and is strictly polyamorous, which means you will have to bring on another character to romance if you plan to further your relationship with Halsin.
  • Minthara – Same with Halsin, Minthara is not available until Act Two. Romancing her can be lackluster and a loss since Halsin, Wyll, and Karlach will immediately leave your party. However, this could be an option if you’re open to an evil route and one-night stands.

If you do want to have a polyamorous relationship but don’t want to rock the boat just yet, the best thing to do is to increase your favorability with your ideal characters, and when you find out their relationship status, if we haven’t included it above, you can choose all the romance options and woo them to your heart’s content. Or you can stick with one, which will make your romantic life much easier.

Best polyamorous couples in BG3

Man with white hair and pointy ears smiling at night in BG3
You can be the third for the infamous Bear and Vampire duo. Image via Larian Studios

The Origin Characters will want to become exclusive by Act Two. Romancing two at the same time is still an option, but they will withdraw those feelings later on. Here are some poly relationships we know will work.

  • Shadowheart + Halsin + You
  • Astarion + Halsin + You

BG3 characters least compatible with multiple romances

Many Origin Characters will not be agreeable if you are romancing another Origin Character. Therefore, those listed will not cooperate with anyone else on the list as you come closer to Act Two.

  • La’ezel
  • Shadowheart
  • Astarion
  • Gale
  • Wyll
  • Karlach
Tip:

These companions either don’t like one another or aren’t compatible, so if you’re trying to romance one on the list, they won’t accept another.

How to romance a companion in BG3

A woman with light colored hair and pointy ears wearing gold armor in Baldur's Gate 3
You can woo her or kill her, which is an interesting mix. Screenshot by Dot Esports

There are several important aspects of romancing in Baldur’s Gate 3, and it can be broken down into a few easy steps:

  1. Meet and decide on your romantic companion or companions
  2. Choose the dialogue options that your potential love interest will approve of
  3. Avoid the dialogue options that will decrease your favorability in their eyes.
    • This includes romancing other partners they might not like.

Meeting and choosing your love interest in BG3

The first thing you need to do is find the companion you want to romance in the first place. You cannot romance someone you cannot speak with at the end of the day. I’d also like to point out you can’t romance the dead.

So, if your companion has died and you wanted to romance them, you’re out of luck. But you can use Withers to bring them back from the dead.

Gaining your love interest’s favor and keeping it in BG3

Lae'zel standing against a rugged background in Bg3
Image via Larian Studios

Once you have a companion in your party, you must be careful about how you act around them. Certain words and actions will earn approval or disapproval from the companions. Gain too much disapproval, and you will have no chance of romancing them, and all characters need to approve of you to a certain degree if you hope you hook up with them.

The first real opportunity to romance a character comes with the mission to save some Tieflings from a goblin camp. You’ll get to invite another character into your bed, so pick wisely to avoid an egg on your face.

One of the most important things to remember is some characters simply don’t like each other, like Shadowheart and Lae’Zel. So if you try to have a polyamorous relationship with them, you will be in for a wild ride, and not the one you were hoping for.

Tip:

Your companion’s personal quests are a great way to learn about them and increase your approval rating with them as well.

Others will have contradictory likes and dislikes, so doing something one character enjoys might push another character away. Sometimes, even your class will work against you, as a character like Gale has a thing for powerful magic users. So, if you’re a Fighter, he may not be interested in you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t romance him—it just takes a little more work.

Although you have many romance options, the important thing is to focus on your main squeeze and keep building those dialogue options until you progress the relationship to the point you want.

Romancing in BG3 can be complicated, but this is everything you need to know about how to romance a companion and which ones are open to you romancing multiple characters. And which ones are not.

Author

Aidan O'Brien
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