All six origin companions in Baldur’s Gate 3 can join you in Act 1. Shadowheart, Gale, Astarion, Lae’zel, Wyll, and Karlach each have a fixed spot near the crash site or the Emerald Grove. Most need only a short conversation. Lae’zel needs a cage shot down, and Karlach needs a promise to help her against the people hunting her.
Quick answer: Recruit Shadowheart, Gale, Astarion, and Lae’zel around the Ravaged Beach and Roadside Cliffs. Then recruit Karlach on The Risen Road before you settle anything at the Emerald Grove, and Wyll in The Hollow.
Origin companion locations in Act 1
Each origin companion has a set class and a set place in the first region. The table lists them in a route order that keeps backtracking to a minimum.
| Companion | Class | Location | What it takes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shadowheart | Cleric | Ravaged Beach, by the crash | Wake her and talk |
| Gale | Wizard | Ancient Sigil Circle, Roadside Cliffs | Pull him from the portal |
| Astarion | Rogue | Path southwest of Roadside Cliffs | Defuse his ambush |
| Lae’zel | Fighter | Northeast of Roadside Cliffs | Handle tieflings, drop cage |
| Karlach | Barbarian | Stream by The Risen Road | Agree to fight the paladins |
| Wyll | Warlock | The Hollow, Emerald Grove | Talk at the training dummies |
Your active party holds four characters, including you. Anyone you recruit beyond that goes to camp, where you can swap them in later by asking a current member to wait there.
Shadowheart, Gale, and Astarion near the crash site
These three sit within a short walk of where you wake up after the Nautiloid goes down. You can have a full party of four before reaching any major quest area.
Shadowheart on the Ravaged Beach
Shadowheart lies unconscious on the sand a few steps north of where you land on the Ravaged Beach. She only appears there if you freed her pod on the Nautiloid by looting the Eldritch Rune from a corpse in the next room and inserting it into the console beside her. Interact with her to wake her up, talk it through, and pick “All right, let’s get moving.” to have her join.
If you didn’t release her from the pod, check outside the Dank Crypt. Should she be absent there as well, you’ll find her at the Emerald Grove.
Gale at the Ancient Sigil Circle
Travel north from your landing point until you reach the Roadside Cliffs waypoint, marked by a swirling purple circle called the Ancient Sigil Circle. Touch the sigil to make a hand emerge from the portal, then interact with it and pass a check to free him. Strength is one option, but other skills may work too. If your Strength is poor, switch to Lae’zel after you recruit her. Gale introduces himself as Gale of Waterdeep; choose “Sounds like a plan. You’re welcome to join me.” to bring him into the party.
Gale has no known alternate spot. He stays at the waypoint until you free him, so don’t skip the portal expecting him to show up elsewhere.
Astarion on the cliffside path
From Gale’s waypoint, follow the path southwest along the cliffs. Astarion waves you over, claiming he has one of the brain creatures cornered. He’s setting a trap and pulls a dagger on you once you get close. Choose calm options to defuse the standoff rather than attacking him, then invite him along with “You should travel with us. Four of us are better together.”
How to free Lae’zel from the hanging cage
Lae’zel splits from you in the crash and ends up as a prisoner in a small canyon near an archway northeast of the Roadside Cliffs waypoint. Two tieflings, Damays and Nymessa, stand under her cage.
If you miss the cage encounter, Lae’zel reappears further northwest at a bridge, facing a githyanki patrol.
Wyll and Karlach: recruit order around the Emerald Grove
Wyll and Karlach are tied together. Wyll’s pact sends him after a devil, and that devil is Karlach. Recruiting both cleanly comes down to order and to one choice when they meet.
Karlach by the stream on The Risen Road
Karlach is across the stream below The Risen Road, south of the waypoint and the tollhouse where the paladins wait, and northwest of the Emerald Grove. Follow the path with corpses and hyenas, then take the turn down to the stream. She’s at the far end, on a small ledge that’s easy to walk past. When you approach, she’s wreathed in flame. Ask “Are you all right?”, hear her out about the Paladins of Tyr hunting her, and answer “Let’s send them back where they came from.” to recruit her instead of fighting.
Karlach can leave this spot if you wait too long to find her, so head there early.
Wyll in The Hollow
Inside the Emerald Grove, walk into The Hollow past the merchant near the entrance. Wyll is teaching tiefling children at the Makeshift Training Dummy. Talk to him about the mind flayer parasites and his hunt for the devil, then pick “Let’s join forces, then. We can hunt this devil back into the Hells.”
If you recruit Karlach first, Wyll may no longer be in The Hollow. In that case he comes to your camp during a Long Rest to confront her. Side with Karlach in that argument and both of them stay. Siding with Wyll means fighting Karlach, and you lose her.
Siding with the goblins and raiding the Emerald Grove permanently removes both Wyll and Karlach. They leave or turn hostile, and nothing you say changes it.
How to confirm each origin companion joined
A successful recruitment ends the conversation with the companion added to your party, shown alongside your character with their own portrait and nameplate. If your party already has four members, the new recruit heads to camp instead. Open the map, travel to Camp, and you’ll find them waiting there.
Once all six are at camp, you can rotate any of them into the active party. Ask a current member to wait at camp, then talk to the one you want to bring along. Companions at camp share experience, so nobody falls behind in level while benched.
