You get plenty of choices in Baldur’s Gate 3 for the three companions to fill out your party. However, some companions are just better than the rest, be it through personality or battle prowess. While success can likely be found with any party composition, there are simply better options.
Who Are the Best Companions in Baldur’s Gate 3?
The game features 10 companions, and we have narrowed that down to five to at least give options on how you might want to utilize them in a party.
Astarion
As a Rogue, Astarion provides a very direct benefit to any party. Regardless of subclass (Assassin is still the best), he is perfect for sneak attacks. There’s no better way to start a fight you know is coming than to let Astarion get a high-damage backstab in on an enemy that could prove to be trouble. Besides that, he’s a terrific ranged attacker, especially when given a Heavy Crossbow. While not everyone might accept his (spoiler-free) special condition, it does lend itself as a solid bonus attack.
Halsin
Whereas Astarion is entirely about being stealthy and shooting from the shadows, Halsin is the direct opposite. This tough Druid is key to a tough party, especially due to his Wild Shape transformations. Best armed with simple weaponry like a sword, his true benefit is entirely in the strength of the animals. The only drawback is that it’s hard to rely on him to be a healer, as that ability is unavailable in animal form. Though, this can be easily offset by bringing Shadowheart along as well.
Karlach
Continuing a damage-dealing party is the Tiefling, Karlach. This fiery Barbarian will surely provide an excellent increase in assault power to the party. While most encounters might encourage you to be a little bit quiet and calculating, she is there to rip through enemies and not worry about them noticing too soon. Her health pool is excellent for letting her play tank while everyone else can focus on range attacks or smaller threats. As any party can use more pure muscle, Karlach is always a good fit.
Lae’zel
The biggest benefit to Lae’zel is that she can somewhat do what Karlach does, and you can easily get her right from the start of the game. While this sounds like she is a poor substitute, she has her own benefits after reaching a certain level. All Fighters at level two gain the ability Action Surge which lets them make an additional action. If you equip Lae’zel with the strongest heavy weapons you’ve found, this second attack makes her almost unstoppable against stronger opponents.
Shadowheart
Fortunately, it is easy to get Shadowheart as a companion in the game because she is the best healer you could have. She’s not all that great for damage or crowd control, but if you choose a direct focus on healing abilities, Shadowheart makes for the perfect party member. By level five, she should have spells that heal individually or heal the whole party at once. As said for Halsin, having the two of them means a great two-front healing duo that will see you through plenty of fights.
Truly with these great companions, the only downside is that you can only take three of them with you at a time. For more Baldur’s Gate 3 companion guides, check out our links below.
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