Baldur’s Gate 3: How to recruit Minsc

Lucas Simons
Minsc in Baldur's Gate 3

Baldur’s Gate 3 has many characters you can recruit, but some of them require a little bit of extra effort and the completion of several quests. Here’s all you need to do to recruit Minsc the Ranger, a legend among Baldur’s Gate fans.

Baldur’s Gate 3 continues to surprise players with the sheer amount of content it has. Even players who completed their first playthrough of the game are still trying to figure out many things about the grand adventure.

One doubt that many players have is how to recruit Minsc as a companion in Baldur’s Gate 3. Here’s what you need to do to recruit Minsc in BG3.

Where to find Minsc in Baldur’s Gate 3

To find Minsc in Baldur’s Gate 3, players need to complete the first Quest of Act 3, guiding them to the City of Baldur’s Gate. Minsc is a legend in the Baldurian Lore, and Jaheira is one of his former companions, so having her is a must to recruit him.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Here are some of the conditions to trigger Minsc recruitment in Baldur’s Gate 3:

  • Players need to reach Act 3 to recruit Minsc.
  • Players need to recruit Jaheira as a companion at the end of Act 2 to recruit Minsc.
  • Players need to follow Jaheira’s The Harper Commander Quest to encounter Minsc later during Act 3.
  • Minsc can only be recruited in the Lower City area of Baldur’s Gate. If you encounter him sooner, it will be impossible to recruit him.

Depending on certain player choices, there’s a chance for them to encounter Minsc before completing Jaheira’s quest, thus ending up in the worst possible result and killing Minsc in the process. This will also make Jaheira abandon your party for good.

Boo in Baldur's Gate 3
Boo is the only Miniature Giant Space Hamster in all Faerun, and he’s Minsc’s loyal companion.

How to recruit Minsc as a companion in Baldur’s Gate 3

To recruit Minsc in Baldur’s Gate 3, you need to enter Sharess’s Caress and eavesdrop on a conversation between two shady merchants. One of them will express his concern about the so-called Stone Lord’s gang that has been harassing another group of bandits inside the city.

This will trigger the Quest: Aid the Underduke. You must also visit the Harpers Lair in Baldur’s Gate, following Jaheira’s companion Quest.

These two conditions will set you on a path that will lead to the Lower City, where you eventually will encounter a gang waiting to ambush the Stone Lord Gang. Make sure you have Jaheira with you in your party.

Go to the Guildhall in the Lower City, and talk to Nine-Fingers. She will give you a quest to attack the Stone Lord gang during a heist in the Counting House.

Travel to the Counting House and enter the Vault. To enter, you must first convince the Counting House clerk to open the Vault for you or find your way in. Once you gain access to the inner vault by using a combination of a Lightning Spell and water as a conductor, you will see a group of cultists and a man struggling with a Mimic monster.

Minsc and Boo in Baldur's Gate 3.
Minsc and Boo are back in Baldur’s Gate 3.

If you haven’t noticed yet, that would be Minsc. He will escape, but you must defeat the cultists and read the Note one of them has to learn about the location of Minsc’s hideout. Follow him to the Abandoned Cistern until you encounter him and a group of cultists.

Remember you must have Jaheira with your party, or he won’t join you at all. First, you need to defeat him, and here comes the hard part, as you must avoid doing lethal damage to him. Activate the “Non-Lethal Damage” passive of your character and strike him down until he drops. Then, you can make him join you by following the dialogue and having Jaheira talk to him.

Keep in mind that The Emperor will be displeased with your attempt to recruit Minsc, and you’ll need to pass a Persuasion check of 15 in order to protect Minsc from the Mindflayer Parasite. Otherwise, Minsc will turn into a Mindflayer and Jaheira will be forced to kill him, breaking her spirit, and causing her to retire from the party permanently.

That’s a wrap on how to recruit Minsc as a companion in Baldur’s Gate 3, for more content and guides related to the game, you can also check these out:

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