Introduction
Baldur's Gate 3 spans three massive acts across the Sword Coast, from a mind flayer ship crash to the streets of Baldur's Gate itself. With over 174 hours of cutscenes and hundreds of branching decisions, a complete walkthrough is essential for seeing all major story beats without missing critical content. This guide covers the optimal story route through all three acts, including key decision points, companion milestones, and how to reach the best endings.
Spoiler Warning: This guide contains full story spoilers for all three acts.
Prologue: The Nautiloid
Your journey begins on a mind flayer nautiloid. You have a tadpole in your brain and 15 minutes (in-game, not real time, but move quickly) before the ship crashes.
Companion Recruits
| Character | Location | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Lae'zel | First room, trapped in a pod | Fighter |
| Shadowheart | Second room, banging on door | Cleric (Trickery) |
| Us | After Shadowheart, "brain" creature in skull | Intellect Devourer (temporary) |
Key Actions
- Free Lae'zel (talk to her pod, then use the console on the right side — Strength check DC 5 or let her free herself)
- Pick up Shadowheart (she's trying to open a door — agree to help)
- In the helm room: avoid the two cambions fighting Commander Zhalk. Loot the Everburn Blade from Zhalk (Command: Drop weapon from Shadowheart at 55% success rate). Run to the transponder and connect it. The ship crashes.
Act 1: The Wilderness & Emerald Grove
The Beach
You wake up on a beach. Your first priority: recruit companions.
| Companion | Location | Recruitment |
|---|---|---|
| Shadowheart | Unconscious on the beach (north of starting point) | Wake her up |
| Astarion | West of crash site, near the cliffs | He asks for help with an "intellect devourer" |
| Gale | Northwest, stuck in a malfunctioning portal on the cliffside | Pull him out (Strength check, or just pass the safe Arcana check) |
| Lae'zel | North, trapped in a cage by tieflings (near the mountain pass) | Kill tieflings or persuade them to leave |
| Wyll | Emerald Grove, training tiefling children | Talk to him after the goblin attack at the gate |
| Karlach | Northwest of the Blighted Village, across the river (Risen Road) | Wyll's quest leads to her |
Emerald Grove Story Beats
The Gate Fight: A goblin raiding party attacks the grove gate. Help the tieflings fight them off. Wyll joins after this.
Druid Politics: Inside the grove, the druids are performing the Rite of Thorns to seal the grove — trapping the tiefling refugees. Key NPCs:
- Kagha: Druid leader (acting). She's secretly allied with the Shadow Druids.
- Zevlor: Tiefling leader. Wants the grove to stay open.
- Arabella: Tiefling child caught stealing the Idol of Silvanus. Save her (Persuasion DC 12).
- Nettie: Druid healer. After you tell her about the tadpole, she tries to poison you. Pass the check or fight.
- Rath: Druid who opposed Kagha. He gives you the Rune of the Wolf for the hidden vault.
The Hidden Vault: In the Enclave Library (behind Nettie's room), use the Rune of the Wolf on the empty plinth to open the secret staircase. Inside: the Sorrow glaive (weapon) and The Necromancy of Thay (follow the steps: put the Amethyst in, pass 3 escalating Wisdom checks to read — grants Speak with Dead permanently).
Kagha's Betrayal: Search Kagha's chest (hidden behind a bookcase in the Servants' Quarters, behind the waterfall). Find a note that leads you to the Sunlit Wetlands. In the wetlands, find the Wood Woads and Mephits in the Putrid Bog. Inside the giant tree trunk, find evidence of Kagha's alliance with the Shadow Druids. Return and confront her. Pass a Persuasion/Intimidation check to make her stand down. The Rite of Thorns is halted.
Goblin Camp & The Absolute
The main story pushes you toward solving your tadpole problem. Multiple leads point to the goblin camp:
- Halsin (the missing archdruid) is reportedly at the goblin camp
- The Absolute's cult seems connected to the tadpoles
- The goblin camp is west of the Blighted Village
Route: Emerald Grove → Blighted Village (goblins hold the windmill gnome hostage — save him, he's connected to the Underdark) → Goblin Camp.
Goblin Camp Walkthrough
Enter through the main gate. Use the Illithid Wisdom authority to pass goblin checkpoints without fighting (requires a tadpole power — Unequaled Charisma).
Inside the Temple (Shattered Sanctum):
| NPC | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Priestess Gut | Main hall | Offers to cure your tadpole. Let her take you to her chambers. She tries to put you to sleep. If you're an Elf/Half-Elf (immune to sleep), she gets confused and calls guards. Kill her silently. Loot her parasite specimen. |
| Dror Ragzlin | Throne room, right side | Trying to speak with dead illithid. Let the scene play out or interrupt. He's the hardest fight in the camp (level 5, 112 HP). |
| Minthara | Back room, left side | Drow paladin. She orders you to attack the grove. You can: agree (evil), refuse (fight), or ignore. |
Freeing Halsin: In the Worg Pens (right side of the temple, past some goblin children throwing rocks at a bear). The bear IS Halsin (Druid Wild Shape). Kill the goblins. Halsin returns to human form and joins as a controllable NPC in the temple. He insists you kill the 3 leaders before leaving.
Strategy for clearing the temple:
- Kill Gut first (isolated in her chambers, easy stealth kill)
- Kill Minthara (optional, but killing her is required to save the grove). Bridge near her room is destructible.
- Dror Ragzlin: push him into the spider pit from the rafters. Or fight normally — focus him down (he has Commanding Strike that buffs goblins).
- Halsin thanks you and returns to the grove.
The Celebration Party
Return to Emerald Grove. The tieflings throw a party. This is the romance initiation point:
| Companion | Romance Trigger |
|---|---|
| Shadowheart | Share a bottle of wine. Pick flirty options. |
| Astarion | He complains about the party. Ask "what do you want?" |
| Gale | Show him a magic trick (Weave scene). Picture kissing/ holding hands. |
| Lae'zel | She proposition you directly. She respects dominance. |
| Wyll | Dance with him. |
| Karlach | She's too hot to touch (literally). Express interest — Act 2 will resolve this. |
The Mountain Pass vs. Underdark Decision
Both paths lead to Act 2, but different content:
| Path | Key Content | Recommended for |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain Pass (Rosymorn Monastery) | Lae'zel's creche questline, Blood of Lathander mace, githyanki lore | Lae'zel companions, completionists |
| Underdark (Grymforge) | Adamantine Forge, Myconid Colony, Nere questline, Duergar, deep gnomes | Anyone, but especially completing The Adamantine Forge |
Optimal route: Do both! Complete the Underdark first (activate the waypoint at Grymforge), then go back through the Mountain Pass. Halsin joins your camp and warns you — but you can do both. The only hard cut-off is entering the Shadow-Cursed Lands.
Underdark Key Points
| Area | Content |
|---|---|
| Myconid Colony | Sovereign Spaw gives quests. Find the escaped deep gnome (Thulla) for Wulbren Bongle quest. Duergar attack quest. |
| Arcane Tower | Read the poem on each floor. Place Sussur Blooms in the generator to power the elevator. Get the Staff of Arcane Blessing (top floor). |
| Grymforge | Free Nere from the cave-in (use Smokepowder Bombs from the duergar). Nere is a True Soul — fight or side with him. Loot his parasite. Use the Adamantine Forge to craft 2 items from Mithral Ore (Shield + Scale Mail or Splint Armor recommended). |
| Spectator Encounter | West of the Selunite Outpost. A Spectator ambushes you at a petrified drow camp. |
Mountain Pass (Rosymorn Monastery) Key Points
| Area | Content |
|---|---|
| Githyanki Patrol | Near the bridge to the pass. Voss's dragon riders. Lae'zel should handle the conversation. |
| Rosymorn Monastery | Giant eagles on the roof. The basement has drunk kobolds (hilarious encounter). |
| Creche Y'llek | Enter through the monastery basement. The infirmary doctor tries to "cure" you (don't trust her — she tries to kill you). Find the zaith'isk (tadpole removal device). Pass 3 saves for permanent buff: Bonus Action Illithid powers. The Inquisitor in the captain's quarters reveals the truth about the artifact (it's an Astral Prism containing Orpheus). Vlaakith appears and orders you to enter the Astral Prism and kill the occupant. |
| Blood of Lathander | Hidden in the monastery basement. Insert the Dawnmaster's Crest (collect 4 ceremonial weapons from around the monastery and place them on the appropriate pedestals). Do NOT take the mace without the crest — it triggers a solar death ray. |
Act 2: Shadow-Cursed Lands
Entering the Shadow Curse
From either the Underdark (elevator in Grymforge) or Mountain Pass, you arrive in the Shadow-Cursed Lands. The deeper you go, the stronger the curse.
Light Sources (required for the stronger curse areas):
- Moonlantern (from the drider Kar'niss or crafted by Balthazar — both options come later)
- Blessing of Selune (Isobel at Last Light Inn)
- Torches/light weapons (for light curse only)
Last Light Inn
The hub of Act 2. Key NPCs:
| NPC | Role |
|---|---|
| Jaheira | Harpers leader, potential companion. She casts a truth spell on you — pass the check or fight the entire inn. |
| Isobel | Cleric of Selune, maintains the protective barrier. DO NOT LET HER DIE — Marcus (Flaming Fist traitor) attacks with winged horrors. Protect Isobel at all costs. If she's kidnapped, the barrier falls, and everyone at Last Light becomes shadow-cursed undead (including Dammon the blacksmith, who you need for Karlach's quest). |
| Dammon | Tiefling blacksmith. Bring Infernal Iron for Karlach's engine upgrade (2 pieces total). After the second upgrade, you can touch Karlach. |
| Raphael | Devil. He appears outside the inn (near the mausoleum entrance). He offers to remove your tadpole — for a price. Sign the contract or refuse. |
| Art Cullagh | Unconscious Flaming Fist. Wake him with the Battered Lute (from the House of Healing). He mentions Thaniel. Start "Lift the Shadow Curse" quest. |
| Mol | Tiefling kid. Raphael has an interest in her contract. |
| Rolan | Tiefling wizard. He's drunk and depressed — his siblings were taken. Convince him to stay (Persuasion DC 15). |
The Thorm Family
Three Thorm relatives serve as mini-boss encounters:
| Thorm | Location | Strategy |
|---|---|---|
| Gerringothe Thorm (Tollhouse) | Tollhouse, western road | Give her all your gold or fight. Destroy the floating skulls (Visages) — each one adds 100 HP to her. |
| Malus Thorm (Surgeon) | House of Healing | Persuade the nurses to "operate" on him (Persuasion DC 21, requires reading the surgeon's notes first). He lies on the bed, the nurses kill him. |
| Thisobald Thorm (Brewer) | The Waning Moon tavern | Drink his challenge (3 Constitution saves). Or tell him stories (Performance checks). Last check gives you the option to make him burst. |
Gauntlet of Shar
The massive temple at the north end of the map. This is the main dungeon of Act 2.
Raphael in the Gauntlet: He appears near the entrance, revealing that Astarion's scars are a contract — part of the Rite of Profane Ascension. Kill the orthon Yurgir (or break his contract) for Raphael. This advances Astarion's personal quest.
Three Umbral Gem Trials:
- Soft-Step Trial: Stealth maze. Don't get caught by shadow copies. Follow the path clockwise. Misty Step makes this trivial.
- Self-Same Trial: Fight clones of your party. Remove your weapons before starting, then re-equip after the clones spawn — they'll have no weapons.
- Faith-Leap Trial: Jump across an invisible path. Look at the floor pattern in the main room — the path matches. Or just use Fly/Misty Step. Or have Shadowheart auto-succeed (she's a Shar worshipper).
The Silent Library: Fight the Dark Justiciars inside. The puzzle: trap the Librarian in the center room using the "silence" button. Open the gate, step in, trigger "silence" so she's stuck. Kill her. The Spear of Night is in a gated room (requires passing the puzzle altar).
Yurgir the Orthon: Raphael's target. Yurgir is in the eastern chamber. Options:
- Persuade him to kill his minions, his displacer beast (Nessa), and then himself (Persuasion DC 21, then 21, then 21). Each success: one source of stress gone.
- OR fight him. He has 110 HP, invisibility, and powerful crossbow bombs. Use See Invisibility (Volo's eye) or Faerie Fire.
Shadowfell (Nightsong):
Enter the Shadowfell through the pool at the bottom of the Gauntlet. Here you find the Nightsong — an aasimar woman named Dame Aylin, daughter of Selune, imprisoned for a century.
Critical decision:
- Shadowheart kills Nightsong → Shar rewards her with the Spear of Evening. Dame Aylin dies. Last Light Inn barrier falls. Isobel dies. Everyone at Last Light turns undead. This locks you into a darker path.
- Shadowheart spares Nightsong → Shar abandons Shadowheart. Shadowheart's hair turns white (Selune's mark). Dame Aylin is freed and joins you for the final fight against Ketheric. This is the "good" path.
Moonrise Towers Assault
After the Shadowfell, head to Moonrise Towers. The Harpers + Jaheira join the assault.
First floor: Fight through Absolute cultists and the prison guards. Free the prisoners (deep gnomes + tieflings) if you didn't do it already — the prison is in the basement.
Roof: Ketheric Thorm. Phase 1: fight him on the roof. At 50% HP, he retreats to the Mind Flayer Colony.
Mind Flayer Colony
The final dungeon of Act 2. You jump down into the flesh pit beneath Moonrise.
Key events:
- Find Mizora trapped in a pod (if Wyll is in party). Free her — she upgrades Wyll's quest.
- Find Zevlor in a pod (if you saved the tieflings).
- Balthazar's lab: Find the Moonlantern crafting station. Meet Us again (from the nautiloid).
- Chop's surgery room: Another True Soul extracting tadpoles. Horrifying.
- Wyll's decision: Mizora appears and offers Wyll a choice: save his father (Duke Ravengard) in exchange for eternal servitude, or break the pact and doom his father. This determines Wyll's ending.
Ketheric Thorm / Myrkul fight:
- Phase 1: Ketheric on the platform. He's level 8, AC 18, 156 HP.
- Phase 2: After Ketheric drops to 0, a cutscene plays. Nightsong (if alive) provides a massive advantage. Myrkul's Apostle rises (level 10, AC 18, 255 HP). He can consume necromites to heal.
- Strategy for Myrkul: Killing the necromites stops his healing. Stand on the platforms around the arena to avoid his pull AoE. He's resistant to Necrotic and Cold. Use Divine Smite, Fireball, or any Radiant damage. If Nightsong is alive, she's immortal and deals 30+ damage per hit to him.
Aftermath: The Absolute's Chosen reveal themselves. You see Ketheric's Netherstone. The Elder Brain is beneath the city. Onward to Baldur's Gate.
Act 3: Baldur's Gate
Rivington & Wyrm's Crossing
The first area of Act 3 is Rivington, a refugee district outside the city walls.
| Location | Content |
|---|---|
| Circus of the Last Days | Dribbles the Clown (murdered — scattered body parts), Djinni Akabi (rigged wheel — steal his ring, win a trip to Chult for Nyrulna legendary trident), Love Test with Zethino (advance romance) |
| Open Hand Temple | Murder investigation. Father Lorgan murdered. Leads to the Bhaal cult. |
| Sharess' Caress | Raphael's boudoir (upstairs). Haarlep, the incubus. Do NOT let Haarlep charm you — they steal your form and use it. Voss meets you here about freeing Orpheus. |
| Wyrm's Rock Fortress | Gortash's coronation. He becomes Archduke. Mizora appears and demands Wyll's choice. Duke Ravengard is tadpoled here. Steel Watch foundry revealed. |
| Iron Throne | Underwater prison. Duke Ravengard + Omeluum + Gondian prisoners. Timed 6-turn escape. Strategy: split party, open all cells, Misty Step/Dimension Door everyone. |
Lower City
Once inside Baldur's Gate proper:
| Location | Quest/Content |
|---|---|
| Elfsong Tavern | The Emperor's safe room. Rent the upstairs for your camp. |
| Sorcerous Sundries | Lorroakan's tower. He wants Nightsong. If you bring her: fight Lorroakan. If you side with Lorroakan: Nightsong is re-imprisoned (evil). Gale can also find the Annals of Karsus here. |
| House of Grief | Shadowheart's personal quest conclusion. Find her parents. Fight the Sharrans (Viconia DeVir returns from BG1/BG2). Decision: free Shadowheart's parents (she keeps the wound that flares painfully) or let them go (the wound is healed but her parents die for real). |
| Cazador's Palace | Astarion's master. Fight Cazador + his spawn. Decision: let Astarion ascend (kills 7,000 spawn, Astarion becomes Vampire Ascendant, massive power but fundamentally changes him) or stop him (Astarion remains a spawn, but gains freedom). |
| House of Hope | Raphael's domain in the Hells. Get the Orphic Hammer (to free Orpheus) and your contract. Fight Raphael — he sings his own boss music. With Hope, +2 AC buff. Loot the Helldusk Armor (Heavy Armor, 21 AC, fire immunity). |
| The Counting House | Minsc is here! Recruit him (if Jaheira is in party). The vault has a massive amount of gold. |
| Temple of Bhaal | Orin's arena. Get the Amulet of Bhaal from the Murder Tribunal (kill Sarevok). Enter the temple through the Undercity. In Orin's fight: she has Unstoppable charges (remove with Magic Missile or any multi-hit). Her Slayer form has 312 HP, AC 17. |
| Steel Watch Foundry | Disable the Steel Watch. Save the Gondians if possible. Find the book with the passcode. Take the elevator down to the Neurocitor. Insert Runepowder Bomb or blow it up with the book's code. |
| Gortash Boss Fight | After disabling the Steel Watch, confront Gortash at Wyrm's Rock. He's level 12, AC 16, 250 HP. He summons traps and grenades. Use Banish on the traps or just nuke him. His Netherstone is yours. |
The Finale: Confronting the Netherbrain
With all three Netherstones (Ketheric, Orin, Gortash), you face the Netherbrain.
The Emperor vs. Orpheus Decision:
This is the most significant choice in the game:
- Side with the Emperor: Trust the illithid. He consumes Orpheus's power. You + Emperor dominate the brain together. Orpheus dies.
- Free Orpheus (requires Orphic Hammer): Orpheus transforms into a mind flayer (or one of your party does). The Emperor leaves and joins the Netherbrain. Free Orpheus; he leads the assault.
- Become a mind flayer: If you're illithid yourself, you can dominate the brain solo. Karlach can also volunteer, which prevents her from dying from her engine.
The Final Battle Sequence
- High Hall: Assemble your allies (every faction you helped throughout the game shows up). Climb to the top.
- The Crown of Karsus: Atop the brain. Nautiloid bombardment. Avoid the artillery markers (red circles). Reach the crown.
- Channel the Netherstones: Your party member (with all 3 stones) opens the portal to the brain's interior.
- Inside the Netherbrain: Final fight against the Dragon + Intellect Devourers + the brain's projections. Kill the marked enemies protecting the Crown. Then channel the stones with the portal.
- The Crown chamber: The Netherbrain, now vulnerable. It has 300 HP (Balanced difficulty). Each turn it marks a platform that will be destroyed. Move off marked platforms. Kill it.
Endings
If you dominated the brain (became Absolute):
- Evil ending: become the Absolute, enthrall everyone. Cutscene: your companions bow as mind-slaves (ominous).
If you destroyed the brain:
- Good ending variations based on companion quest outcomes:
- Gale: Returns the Crown to Mystra (redeemed) or becomes a god (ambition path).
- Astarion: Freed (spawn) or vampire ascendant (powerful, but darker).
- Shadowheart: Selunite (parents freed or in afterlife) or Dark Justiciar.
- Wyll: Blade of Avernus (free) or Duke's heir.
- Karlach: Returns to Avernus (with Wyll/Tav) or dies on the docks (heartbreaking).
- Lae'zel: Flies on a red dragon to fight Vlaakith (if Orpheus lives/is freed).
- Epilogue party (6 months later at camp): Companions reunite, share letters, reflect.
With this walkthrough, you've experienced every major story beat across all three acts of Baldur's Gate 3. The game's true strength is in how your choices shape the journey — no two playthroughs are the same.
