Last updated: 14 July 2026

BG3 Approval Guide — How to Max Approval With Every Companion

This BG3 companion approval guide covers every companion in Baldur's Gate 3, each of whom maintains a hidden approval score that determines which dialogues unlock, whether romance options appear, and how the story develops around your party. Unlike the romance system, approval is about consistent alignment with a companion's values across hundreds of small decisions — not a single grand gesture. This guide explains how approval works and gives you the key choices that move the needle for every companion.

01How the Approval System Works

Companion approval is a hidden numerical score that shifts up and down in response to your dialogue choices, how you treat NPCs, what you do in combat, and decisions during quests. The score is tracked separately for each companion and only changes when that companion is physically in your active party — decisions made while a companion is at camp have no effect on their score.

Approval gates specific story events. Certain dialogues, flirtatious exchanges, and key plot moments require minimum approval thresholds to trigger. There is no visible number — you can tell approximate approval from mood dialogue when you speak to them at camp (very low approval triggers negative comments; high approval triggers warm or enthusiastic reactions).

Critical rules:

• Only active party members react to decisions. Rotate the companion you want to raise approval into your party before making important choices.
• Reactions are immediate. You will see a small approval pop-up near a companion's portrait when you make a choice they respond to.
• You cannot reliably see the number, but the progression is meaningful — high approval unlocks romance, special dialogue, and some unique companion quests.
• Companions have strong opinions about alignment-adjacent choices, not just obviously good/evil ones. Shadowheart approves of pragmatic self-preservation even when it seems unheroic.

02Astarion — Approval Guide

Astarion is a vampire spawn who values cunning, self-interest, and personal freedom above altruism. He approves of players who are clever, avoid unnecessary sacrifice, and treat him as an equal rather than a monster.

Choices Astarion approves of:

• Letting him feed on you when he asks in Act 1 (significant approval gain).
• Choosing sarcastic, witty, or self-serving dialogue options.
• Intimidating or manipulating NPCs rather than persuading or deceiving politely.
• Keeping rewards from quests rather than giving them away.
• Choosing to spare or recruit enemies if it is the strategically smart move.
• Agreeing with his cynical assessment of other characters and situations.

Choices Astarion disapproves of:

• Refusing to let him feed or attacking him after discovering he is a vampire.
• Selfless heroic choices that yield no personal benefit.
• Siding with obviously good-aligned NPCs when there is a self-serving alternative.
• Releasing prisoners from captivity for purely moral reasons.

Astarion's Act 2 quest around his origin is a pivotal approval moment — the choices you make about his future determine his ending arc more than any other decisions. Discuss it openly with him at camp as you progress.

03Shadowheart — Approval Guide

Shadowheart is a cleric of Shar who values pragmatism, the welfare of the group over strangers, and keeping her own secrets while respecting others'. She is not evil — she is cautious and mission-focused.

Choices Shadowheart approves of:

• Prioritising the party's safety over helping NPCs who cannot return the favour.
• Keeping secrets and respecting privacy — both yours and others'.
• Choosing pragmatic, effective solutions over morally pure but costly ones.
• Not pushing her to reveal her backstory before she is ready.
• Agreeing that survival and the mission matter most.
• Supporting her during her Act 2 quest involving Shar's trials.

Choices Shadowheart disapproves of:

• Pushing her on Shar or her past repeatedly before building trust.
• Siding with githyanki NPCs — she has strong negative feelings toward them.
• Sacrificing yourself or party members for strangers.
• Choosing obvious 'good person' dialogue when a smarter or more cautious option exists.

04Gale — Approval Guide

Gale is a scholarly wizard who values intellectual curiosity, genuine kindness, honesty, and creative thinking. He responds poorly to cruelty and appreciates players who engage with ideas seriously.

Choices Gale approves of:

• Asking about magic, spells, and his scholarly background — exhausting all curious dialogue options.
• Treating NPCs with kindness and respect, especially those who are vulnerable.
• Making morally good choices that help the innocent.
• Accepting his magical items when he offers them (he needs to consume items due to his condition — do not refuse).
• Showing interest in books, history, and lore found throughout the world.
• Being honest in dialogue even when deception might be easier.

Choices Gale disapproves of:

• Cruelty, sadism, or unnecessary harm to helpless characters.
• Dismissing magic or intellectual pursuits as unimportant.
• Refusing to give him magical items when he asks in Act 1 (important for his condition).
• Choosing selfish or callous options that discard NPCs as unimportant.

05Lae'zel — Approval Guide

Lae'zel is a githyanki warrior who respects strength, decisiveness, and the Githyanki way of life. She disapproves of hesitation, weakness, and excessive mercy toward enemies.

Choices Lae'zel approves of:

• Choosing aggressive or direct combat solutions over negotiation when combat is viable.
• Acting decisively — picking a course of action without agonising or back-pedalling.
• Respecting Githyanki culture and not belittling it.
• Showing confidence and dominance in dialogue rather than uncertainty.
• Killing enemies rather than releasing or sparing them.
• Pushing forward with the Zaith'isk quest in Act 1 even when it seems dangerous.

Choices Lae'zel disapproves of:

• Excessive mercy, freeing prisoners out of pity, or choosing non-violent solutions repeatedly.
• Showing weakness or indecision in dialogue.
• Belittling or mocking Githyanki customs.
• Choosing 'talk it out' options when she clearly wants to fight.

06Wyll, Karlach, and Halsin — Approval Guide

Wyll is the Blade of Frontiers — a heroic warlock who values protecting the innocent and standing up to evil. He approves of:

• Heroic choices that help the weak, defend the innocent, and oppose clearly evil forces.
• Listening to tieflings and treating refugees with compassion.
• Confronting evil directly rather than making deals with it.
• Supporting him during his complicated contract situation in Act 1 and beyond.

Karlach is an enthusiastic tiefling barbarian who values warmth, loyalty, and fighting for what is right. She approves of:

• Treating tieflings and marginalised characters with respect and kindness.
• Choosing emotional honesty and directness over manipulation.
• Fighting evil head-on rather than making compromises with it.
• Engaging with her enthusiasm and matching her energy in dialogue.
• Helping the Tiefling refugees at the Emerald Grove.

Halsin is a druid who values harmony with nature, compassion, and honesty. He joins the party in Act 2 after the Shadow Curse questline:

• Protect nature, druidic traditions, and living things throughout the game.
• Be honest and genuine in dialogue — he dislikes deception for its own sake.
• Show compassion to both people and creatures.
• Support him during his Shadow Curse mission — it is the primary approval event for unlocking his full companion arc.
• Note: Halsin cannot be fully romanced until Act 3 when the Shadow Curse is resolved.

07Minthara — The Dark Path Companion

Minthara is only recruitable through a specific dark-path decision in Act 1: siding with the goblins and raiding the Emerald Grove. This permanently locks out Wyll, Karlach, Halsin, and the Tiefling storyline, so it is a significant commitment.

If you take this path, Minthara approves of:

• Power, ambition, and dominance over others.
• Ruthless decision-making — eliminating threats rather than making alliances.
• Respecting her perspective and intellect rather than treating her as a tool.
• Agreeing that strength and strategy matter more than sentiment.
• Her personal questline in Act 3 around the Absolute cult.

Note: in Patch 9+, there is a non-lethal method to recruit Minthara without raiding the Grove (knocking her unconscious in the Goblin Camp and triggering her questline in Moonrise Towers in Act 2). This path still locks some tiefling content but avoids the full raid. The details are patch-dependent — cross-check against current patch notes for your version.

08General Approval Strategies

These approaches raise approval across multiple companions simultaneously:

• Rotate companions for key decisions: if a choice benefits Astarion, swap him in; if a choice benefits Karlach, swap her in. You cannot please everyone simultaneously when values conflict.
• Address concerns at camp: speaking to companions at camp between major quests often unlocks relationship-deepening dialogue. Always exhaust their camp conversations.
• Quest support matters most: each companion has personal quests across all three acts. Supporting them through these quests — rather than opposing their choices — is the single most efficient approval activity.
• Skill checks unlock better outcomes: passing Persuasion, Insight, or Intimidation checks in key conversations often leads to approval gains that a failed roll misses. Save-scum legitimately (if you use it) on companion conversations you consider important.
• Nobody approves of everything: BG3 is designed so a perfectly aligned run for one companion makes others unhappy. Pick your priority companions for romance or specific story outcomes, and accept that some characters will have mediocre approval.