Only one of Brencis’ three Boyars in The Blood of Dawnwalker can be talked into working with Coen, and it is not the one you might expect. Xanthe can become an ally if you push her to a breaking point and then make the right call in her manor. Ambrus and Bakir, by contrast, are dead ends no matter how you play their questlines.
Quick answer: Max Xanthe’s anger by clearing her Court Activities until The Cycle of Love quest starts, reach her fight with Coen in the manor, and choose to spare her. You cannot ally with Ambrus or Bakir under any circumstances.
How to ally with Xanthe in The Blood of Dawnwalker
Allying with Xanthe runs through her anger meter. You raise it by completing the quests tied to her, which are easy to spot because the quest marker carries her symbol and her portrait shows up when you hover over it. Once the meter is full, a special quest fires that leads to the alliance decision.
The dialogue path that leads into the alliance during that confrontation runs through these lines:
- Now you want me to spare you?
- What can you offer me?
- You were making an offer before the voices interrupted you.
- All right. Let’s work together.
You know it worked when Xanthe shows up green in the Court menu with white flags beneath her name. That color and flag change is the confirmation that she is now on your side rather than waiting to stop you.
Why you can’t ally with Ambrus or Bakir
Neither Ambrus nor Bakir has an alliance branch. You can raise their anger and draw them out for a confrontation, but there is no dialogue outcome that turns either one into an ally.
| Boyar | Can you ally? | How you face them |
|---|---|---|
| Xanthe | Yes | Max her anger, reach her in the manor during The Cycle of Love, then spare her |
| Ambrus | No | He has no manor; he only appears once his anger is maxed and the Boyar invites Coen to a duel |
| Bakir | No | Anger him across Vale Sangora until Farkas invites you to the Lunar tournament via the Lunar Trial quest |
Ambrus doesn’t have a house or manor to visit, so the only time he stands in front of Coen is the duel that follows his anger reaching its peak. Bakir works a little differently. You can enter the Lunar Manor, but he won’t be present until the Lunar Trial quest is triggered. Even when the Lunar tournament plays out, none of its outcomes end with Bakir joining you.
The reason Xanthe is the exception comes down to motive. Her love for her daughter, twisted as it is, gives her a reason to deal. Ambrus and Bakir simply have nothing to gain from siding with Coen.
What allying with Xanthe changes in the final battle
When Coen heads to the castle to face Brencis and free his family, every Boyar left alive will be waiting to stop him. If you already faced them and either recruited or killed them in Anachora, they won’t reappear there.
Xanthe’s section is a maze built to eat your time, and it can drag on for a long stretch if you have to solve it. Allying with her removes that maze entirely. On top of that, she fights alongside you in the final battle, and because she is your ally, Brencis can’t seize control of her against you. She appears naturally in front of Coen as he pushes deeper into the castle.
Note: there is a specific ending connected to allying with Xanthe. It isn’t a clean, happy result, and it isn’t really about Coen either, so weigh that against the convenience before you accept her help.
The practical takeaway is simple. Xanthe is the single Boyar alliance worth pursuing; it trades a punishing maze for a powerful ally in the last fight, and both Ambrus and Bakir stay enemies to the end regardless of how you handle their quests.
