Baldur’s Gate 3 has earned enormous praise for its plethora of well-rounded, romanceable companion characters. Among those companions is the well-meaning, well-spoken, Weave-wielding Wizard Of Waterdeep, Gale Dekarios.
As a generally good-aligned character, Gale generally isn’t too much of a challenge to romance for players who are committed to a “good” playthrough, though he can be a challenge for anyone playing as The Dark Urge or otherwise planning to take the “evil” route when it comes to player choices, and there are several moments in the story that can result in him disappearing altogether. Keep reading for a guide to winning over the wordy wizard’s heart, including tips that will help you avoid having him leave your party.
How To Romance Gale In Baldur’s Gate 3
Recruitment
Though all Baldur’s Gate 3 companions were aboard the Nautiloid with you, only two of them can be found within it and recruited before it crash-lands in Faerûn. Once you’ve picked up Lae’zel and Shadowheart, don’t bother scouring the Nautiloid for other companions, as you won’t find any. Instead, Gale can be found at the Roadside Cliffs waypoint, close to the Nautiloid’s crash site.
Technically, Gale can be found in the Roadside Cliffs waypoint, as he’s somehow managed to get himself stuck in the fast-travel point’s swirling purple portal. Head to the aforementioned waypoint (coordinates: X: 223 Y: 326) and keep an eye out for a portal with a hand sticking out of it. Succeed a skill check and you can pull Gale out of this portal predicament, at which point he will offer to join your party.
Note: If you are playing as The Dark Urge, you will have an additional option that allows you to fantasize about chopping off Gale’s hand. If you choose this option, the Urge will overtake you, and you’ll do far more than fantasize about it. Understandably, selecting this option results in Gale not joining your party–in fact, you won’t even see him again for the rest of the game. If your Dark Urge character wishes to woo Gale, you’ll want to start with not giving in to fantasies of dismembering him.
Approval and disapproval
Generally speaking, Gale is a pretty laid-back guy. He approves of acts of kindness and displays of selflessness. He loves magic (and talking about magic), and is, overall, someone who appreciates optimism.
Backstabbing, lying, killing innocents, expressing negative views toward magic/the Weave, and refusing to let him eat some of your enchanted belongings (yes, you read that right) will all earn you disapproval from Gale.
Act 1: Appetite suppressants
At some point after Gale has joined your party, you’ll eventually find him hunched over at camp with an exclamation mark over his head. Upon speaking to him, you’ll learn he’s suffering from an odd medical condition that could lead to disaster if not treated. Unfortunately, the only treatment for this particular ailment is allowing Gale to consume some of your magic-infused items, destroying them in the process. Gale’s condition makes up the majority of his narrative arc in Act 1, and it’s not something you want to ignore–especially if you’re planning to romance him.
Edible gear
No matter how much you like the guy, managing Gale’s magical appetite can be extremely frustrating, mainly due to the fact that Act 1 has far fewer magical items for you to stumble across than Act 2 and Act 3. But if you want to keep him in one piece–let alone romance him–you’ll have to suck it up and part with some magical items.
When it comes time to serve Gale his magic-infused meal, start a dialogue with him and let him know you have a piece of gear on hand for him to suck the life out of. Once you do that, a menu will appear, showing every “edible” item currently in your active party’s inventory. Once selected, the item will disappear, but the menu will stay open, making it extremely easy to accidentally feed Gale multiple magic items at once–something that’s not worth doing, as it won’t raise your approval score with him. Be sure to only select one item from the menu, then close it. Additionally, make sure you don’t give Gale any magic items unless he’s verbally requested one, otherwise you’ll be wasting perfectly good gear for no reason.
On the bright side, Gale only needs to “eat” a total of three enchanted items, so you won’t have to continue feeding him valuable gear once you’ve served him his third magical meal. Items Gale can consume will be marked as such, with a special note in the item’s tooltip informing you that the item is suitable for consumption.
Deciding which items to feed Gale can be a little tricky, but keep in mind that most of the gear you find in Act 1 will be entirely useless by Act 3, so letting go of three items really isn’t that big of a deal in the long run. That said, we’ve compiled a short list of items players can feed to Gale without putting themselves at a disadvantage in combat.
- Komira’s Locket
- Robe of Summer
- Cap of Curing
- Ring of Color Spray
- The Watcher’s Guide
Channeling the Weave
Once you’ve earned some approval, Gale will once again be found at camp with an exclamation mark over his head. (Thankfully, he won’t be hunched over in pain this time around.) Speak to him to take part in a cutscene that, should you wish, can turn quite romantic. Gale will teach you how to channel the Weave (or simply do so alongside you, if you’re already a magic-user), and you’ll eventually be given the opportunity to picture your heart’s desire in your mind. To officially kick off Gale’s romance, select the option to picture yourself holding Gale’s hand, or the option to picture yourself kissing him.
Act 2: Explosions and Elminster
Message from an ex
Shortly after starting Act 2, players will bump into Gale’s friend and fellow wizard, Elminster. Elminster will tell you he has a very important message for Gale. Agree to take Elminster back to camp to trigger a cutscene revealing that Gale’s ex-lover–the goddess Mystra–is willing to forgive his past failures in return for a small favor: She wants Gale to blow himself up using his Netherese orb (the thing in his chest that’s been giving him cravings for magic objects). Doing so would cause a massive explosion, killing both Gale and The Elder Brain. Talk to Gale about this revelation and you’ll earn approval (as long as you aren’t too hard on him for not being forthcoming about said Netherese orb).
Moonlit date night
Upon arriving at Moonrise Towers, players who have earned enough of Gale’s approval (and aren’t currently partnered with any other companions) will have the opportunity to take this romance to the next level. Eventually, a cutscene will occur at camp where the player sees a spectral projection of Gale standing outside his tent. Interacting with this projection will start a conversation in which Gale admits he’s fallen in love with the player. Select either the option to kiss him or the option to tell him you feel the same way, and he’ll ask you to spend the night with him. Assuming you’re receptive to his advances, you’ll get to decide what kind of lovemaking you’re in the mood for:
- Selecting the dialogue option that suggests you prefer “the real Gale” will see him conjure a bed, and the screen will fade to black after Gale and the player character climb into it together.
- Choosing to take Gale up on his offer to “make love the way gods do” will result in a much lengthier cutscene that shows Gale and the player-character making love inside the Weave itself.
At this point, Gale will consider the relationship official.
Act 3: Mysterious Mystra
Get blessed
Assuming Gale survives Act 2, he’ll be told that Mystra wishes to speak to him. Follow him to the Stormshore Tabernacle and give him some encouragement for an approval boost. (Don’t forget to accept the blessings of the five statues located inside the tabernacle while you’re there–they’ll grant characters who pray to them a special buff.)
The Crown of Karsus
Once Gale has hashed things out with his otherworldly ex-girlfriend, you’ll want to focus on finishing up his companion quest, The Wizard of Waterdeep. Failing to complete this quest will affect both your relationship with Gale and the ending of the game, so once you arrive in Baldur’s Gate, you’ll want to visit Sorcerous Sundries, a bookstore located near the Lower City Central Wall waypoint. Speak to Tolna–the woman behind the desk at the back of the first floor–and pass some skill checks to learn where the store’s most powerful magic tomes are kept.
With that knowledge in hand, head upstairs to break into Tolna’s office. Examine her bookshelf closely–one book is sticking out from the rest of them. Interact with the book to move the bookcase, revealing a secret passage to the Sorcerous Sundries vault, where you’ll find the book Gale’s looking for–The Annals of Karsus–after solving an enchanted puzzle.
Happily ever after
When you reach the game’s big finale, you’ll be presented with a choice: Give the Crown of Karsus to Gale, allowing him to ascend to godhood, or hand it over to Mystra. Giving it to Mystra results in a “good” ending for Gale. To convince him to hand over the crown, select the dialogue option that says, “This doesn’t have to be the end for us. Just forget the Crown.”
If you successfully complete The Wizard of Waterdeep questline, defeat the game’s big bad, and convince Gale to hand over the crown to Mystra, you’ll be rewarded with a special cutscene in the game’s epilogue, where Gale will come to you with a very sweet proposition. However, if the player allows Gale to sacrifice himself, gives him the crown, doesn’t complete his companion quest, or chooses an ending that effectively sees them gaining absolute power over Faerûn and everyone in it, the romance between Gale and the player will come to an end. Depending on which of these choices the player makes, Gale can:
- Not appear in the epilogue at all
- Show up acting like a completely different person and offer to make the player his “chosen,” (similar to the way Astarion acts if the player lets him ascend)
- Appear in the epilogue, but not appear in an end-game romance scene
Players shooting for a good ending will want to keep the Crown of Karsus out of Gale’s hands, while players who are aiming for an “evil” playthrough may wish to allow Gale to keep the crown and ascend to godhood.
Romances with Non-Origin Characters and NPCs
- Drow twin scene: While going through with this foursome doesn’t affect Gale’s approval, he will immediately refuse the offer. He can still be talked into participating, but if the player convinces him to take part, he’ll eventually sneak out of the room, leaving behind a magical projection of himself to take his place.
- Emperor romance: Amusingly, players who manage to romance The Emperor will always be caught by their companions. Despite how disgusted everyone looks, getting caught with The Emperor will not have any effect on approval from any companions, Gale included.
- Haarlep: Although Gale will disapprove of the player stripping down to get in bed with Raphael’s pet incubus, he won’t break up with them for it–even if they go as far as pledging their body to the winged creature in exchange for a key and some intel.
- Halsin romance: If Halsin expresses interest in the player, Gale will object. Should the player choose to romance Halsin, Gale will break up with them. It seems the wizard isn’t particularly fond of polyamory.
- Mizora romance: Players who choose to sleep with Mizora will soon find themselves single, as Gale will immediately break up with them upon witnessing the player’s Infernal bedroom escapades.