Baldur's Gate 3: How to romance Shadowheart

How do you romance Shadowheart in Baldur's Gate 3? Baldur's Gate 3's loyal Cleric of Shar is the only remaining survivor of a holy mission and is now on a mission to deliver a relic to her coven in Baldur's Gate. Shrouded in mystery, there's more to this high half-elf than she'll initially show her tough exterior.

Here's everything you need to know about how to romance Shadowheart in Baldur's Gate 3, including how you can gain (or lose) her approval, as well as the exact dialogue options to choose to successfully romance Shadowheart.

Note: if you're unsure about how romance mechanics work in Baldur's Gate 3, read everything you need to know in our Baldur's Gate 3 romance guide!

How to romance Shadowheart in Baldur's Gate 3

To romance Shadowheart in Baldur's Gate 3, you need to gain a high approval rating from her ahead of the refugee celebration that occurs after completing the Save the Refugees side-quest. We'll explain this in more detail below, but first let's explore how to go about winning Shadowheart's approval, and eventually, her heart.

You'll first encounter Shadowheart in a pod during the prologue. Pro tip: You can free her by finding and placing a rune in a console near where she is being held. If you don't free her there, you'll encounter her again, banging upon a door in the Abandoned Ruins. And, if you don't recruit her then and there, she'll then find you at your camp with a mind to kill you. But you're charming enough that instead of her killing you, you'll have her join your party — easy peasy, right?

Unlike some characters who align with fairly black-and-white values and views, Shadowheart has a little more depth. She favors cunning approaches to potential conflicts over violence. This means she's not above tricking people, so the approach isn't to be morally righteous so much as it is to choose options that will avoid outright bloodshed.

She holds anti-Gith views and will think lower of you if you support the Gith.

Gain Shadowheart's approval by:

• Using trickery and manipulation over violence
• Exposing lies
• Expressing anti-Gith sentiment
• Showing kindness to animals
• Aiding the less fortunate
• Demonstrating compassion to children

You'll lose Shadowheart's approval by:

• Decieving her
• Exercising unnecessary violence
• Espousing pro-Gith views
• Humiliation
• Showing favoritism toward the wealthy

Your companion Lae'zel is Githyanki, so Shadowheart's inherent dislike can lead to tension in the party. Be careful if you're flirting with the idea of a romance with both of them, as they may become jealous of one another. If you want to win Shadowheart's approval, your best bet is to disagree with Lae'zel whenever you can.

Throughout your interactions with Shadowheart, you'll want to keep in mind that she's an animal lover, so you can gain her approval by showing kindness to these creatures and doing things such as petting the camp pup.

Shadowheart romance: dialogue choices

As with all companions, you'll be able to check Shadowheart's approval rating of you on the character sheet. The goal is to get this to high, and you'll ideally want to gain Shadowheart's approval before the Rescue Druid Halsin quest if you're seeking a romantic moment at the camp. In a normal playthrough, it can take around 20 hours to reach this point.

If at that point Shadowheart's approval rating of you is high enough, then the refugee celebration that follows the Save the Refugees side-quest is your chance to seal the deal.

To successfully romance Shadowheart once you reach this point, you must choose the following dialogue prompts:

• Tieflings?
• Are you worried Shar won’t approve?
• I'd be glad to. (if she asks to share a bottle)
• I'll find you after everyone’s turned in for the night.

If you've managed to get this far, you then can head to a bedroll, where you'll have the option to go to bed alone or with Shadowheart (wink wink).

You'll then be granted a romance scene, though this one is relatively mild compared to some others. But perhaps that's only the beginning of your love story with Shadowheart.

That's everything you need to know about romancing Shadowheart, your high half-elf trickster companion. But, if the tricky and manipulation Shadowheart so admires leaves your head spinning, you can try romancing Gale, Lae'zel, Astarion, or Wyll instead.

Disclosure: Former RPS deputy editor Adam Smith (RPS in peace) now works at Larian and is the lead writer for Baldur's Gate 3. Former contributor Emily Gera also works on it.