The old saying to “never judge someone by how they look” perfectly fits Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3, whom you can recruit and romance. With a single horn protruding from her skull and her red blood-colored skin, appearance-wise Karlach will remind you of the devil. But she is far from it.
Karlach was also captured by Mind Flayers and escaped the nautiloid ship. She has a tadpole in her brain like you and other party members. You will find her injured near a bed of rocks on the Risen Road during Act 1 of your playthrough.
She is involved with Find and Hunt the Devil as well as Wyll’s companion quest Blades of Frontier. If you are doing any of these quests, they will lead you directly to Karlach.
Karlach Location in Baldur’s Gate 3
Karlach is near the ruined building where you meet Anders and get the quest to hunt the devil (X: 110, Y: 500). From the building where Anders and the paladins are located, climb down the hill. Follow the path, and it will lead you to a water stream. A tree acts as a bridge on it, and you’ll find Karlach resting on the rocks recovering from her injuries.
Talk to Karlach
When you interact with her, she will recognize you as being on the nautiloid with her. This allows you to bond with Karlach. Appreciate her flames and agree with what she says. She will ask for your help to deal with the paladins.
She is very talkative and compassionate compared to the other party members. Having Karlach in your party is always entertaining. Her rough demeanor aside, she is a sweet and kind character looking for friends as you level up your relationship with her by playing the game.
Take out Anders and his fake Paladins
At this point, you get two options. Side with Anders or Karlach. If you side with Anders, you will not only end up losing one of the best companions, but you also won’t benefit from the choice either. Simply put, agree with Karlach to kill Anders and his fake paladins.
After talking with Karlach and agreeing on defeating the Paladins, head back to the location she mentioned. Defeat Anders and the paladins there. The fight will not be too difficult as you are still in the game’s early stages. But make sure to take a short rest before you begin. Make sure to disband your party first and position them before you bring Karlach in front of Anders. Seeing her, Anders will start the fight immediately.
After defeating the paladins, you will get the sword of justice from Anders. This is a two-handed weapon that a Paladin best wields.
Head back to Karlach and tell her you took care of the problem. After saying so, Karlach will unleash her anger and be available to recruit at your camp. Do not be alarmed, as she is a Barbarian, and raging is what they do. So, this is normal for them. After she calms down, you can recruit Karlach in Baldur’s Gate 3.
Wyll and Karlach’s confrontation
Karlach and Wyll will not be on the best of terms when they first interact with each other. Wyll was also recruited to kill her by his patron, Mizora. They will both get angry at each other, and you must convince Wyll that Karlach is not evil.
You can do this by selecting the Persuasion dialogue and passing the roll for a check. Make sure to do a quick save beforehand to get the result you want. Sometimes the rolls go against you. After doing this, you will have convinced Wyll to be nice to her.
If you find and recruit Karlach before recruiting Wyll, he will appear at the camp one night and try to kill her. This will save you the time to find Wyll. You can convince Wyll not to hurt Karlach and recruit him on the spot.
Can you recruit Minthara and Karlach in the same playthrough?
To answer it simply, YES. You can recruit both Minthara and Karlach without any problems. Just don’t kill Minthara and knock her out inside Goblin camp. Recruit Karlach and complete Act 1 normally. Then save Minthara from the Moonrise Towers during Act 2 and voila. You will have both in your party.
However, if you decide to side with Minthara and kill any Druid inside Emerald Grove, Karlach will leave your party instantly. If you haven’t recruited her yet, she will become unavailable to recruit.
