In Baldur’s Gate 3, one of the most popular companions is not allowed to have a happy ending. However, the voice actress behind Karlach thinks that’s fine – and she has a strong reason.
When Baldur’s Gate 3 was released, it only took a few days for the various companions and playable characters to be embraced by the community. Whether it was the peculiar wizard Gale, “God’s favorite princess” Shadowheart, or the fiery Karlach – they were all loved. However, while most characters can have a happy ending, that is not the case for Karlach. The voice actress Samantha Béart explains why there isn’t one.
What does the community want? Unlike most other characters, Karlach doesn’t have a happy ending. In Avernus, one of the hells, her heart was removed from her body and replaced with a hell machine. This allows Karlach to perform at extreme levels, but it reduces her lifespan: Her entire journey revolves around changing this state or accepting that her life is now only of short duration.
Many in the community therefore demand: Karlach deserves a happy ending and it should be added to the game afterward. But the voice behind Karlach explains why that wouldn’t be appropriate.
Karlach does not get a magical happy ending, as that would be a cheap way out
What does the voice actress say? In a video from the YouTube channel “Fall Damage,” Samantha Béart confronts comments from the community. She reacts to them and also shares anecdotes about how she perceived the whole thing. The most serious and important reaction is to the comment from Duskwind, who says: “Karlach is one of the few characters that made me cry.”
In response, Béart explains:
Mission accomplished. So I hope you cried at the intended moments and not out of frustration or because you didn’t like the character. But I believe Sarah Baylus [, the author behind Karlach], did a great job of not only tearing out Karlach’s heart but yours as well. We all cry together. That’s very healing.
There are people who come to me at autograph signings and tell me stories about how they see themselves in Karlach and how she helped them heal. We had people with very serious illnesses who told us that Karlach helped them accept the prognosis. Therefore, I honestly believe that if we had simply had a “magical ending,” it would have diminished that experience for those people.
Then Béart laughs a little and explains: “[Now I am] canceled. People hate it when I say that.”
Béart’s statements make it clear what the developers and story writers wanted to convey with Karlach’s story. Sometimes there is no other way but to try to continue with a potentially fatal condition and make the best of the time that is left. A magical happy ending where Karlach is miraculously cured would probably ruin that experience – because in real life, there are no miraculous healings.
The uncertain yet inevitable fate feels much more real and alive for Karlach than for many other characters in fantasy stories that one is familiar with. But that is also the reason why the characters of Baldur’s Gate 3 are so immensely popular.
Here, we presented really strong companions that can win every fight for you.
