Heartwarming / Baldur's Gate III

WARNING: Spoilers Off applies to Heartwarming moments pages.

General

Act 1

• If you save a Tiefling child from a group of harpies, he'll mention that his boss told him to thank you properly — Which he does by writing you a story about how you'd saved him.
  • Alfira is a Tiefling bard trying to come up with the perfect song as tribute for her recently-deceased teacher, which the player can assist with.
• Saving Arabella from being killed by Kagha. The gratitude from her parents is a clear case of Good Feels Good.
• In a way, Volo attempting to help take out the tadpole. It fails horribly, but he could have just fled without any attempt to save you, like he does if the offer is declined.
• Saving the Grove and preventing conflict between the Tiefling refugees and Druids. Everyone involved is so grateful for your heroics that they throw a party in your honor.
  • During the party, Scratch will happily wander among the refugees looking for attention.
• If you have recruited both the Owlbear cub and Scratch and have Speak with Animals active, you'll hear animal screaming in the night and can take off running to check on them. You find Scratch lying calmly by the cub's side. Turns out that the Owlbear cub had a nightmare and Scratch ran to comfort him. This leads to a conversation where Scratch has adopted the PC as his master now, and the cub considers the camp his new home.
• The care the Githyanki creche caretaker shows the late-hatching egg.
• Strangely, Lae’zel of all people approves if you swear to the caretaker to raise said egg as your own. Later dialog if you leave the egg in her inventory has her admit that she's growing increasingly attached to the unhatched Gith.

Act 2

• If you can keep Isobel out of Ketheric's clutches and free The Nightsong from her prison, the two have a tearful reunion after a century apart.
• After drinking himself into a stupor for being forced to abandoned his siblings, Rolan can reunite with Cal and Lia. After initially having a verbal confrontation with Lia, Rolan is just happy that his siblings are alright, and sincerely thank you for saving them and apologizes for his past behavior.
  • Before that, Rolan is seen demanding to be served more alcohol, but the Tiefling children refuse him. Talking to them after reveals they were trying to help him through his grief because they were grateful he saved them, and had even found him a spellbook as a thank you gift.
• You can reunite Bex and Danis. The two love birds are overjoyed to be together again.
• Withers comforting Arabella after her parents' death, especially considering who he really is.

Act 3

• After helping Aylin kill Lorroakan, if Rolan is still alive he’ll sincerely thank the party for everything they’ve done for him and his siblings before taking control of the tower and swearing to use it to help in the battle to come.
  • If you check in on him later, he’ll tell you he’s planning to spread the knowledge Lorroakan hoarded.
  • What Rolan says when he stands up to Lorroakan also tugs at the heart, especially when you recall how he started off. We inspired him to be better.
  Rolan: (Looks to Tav) I have seen what true leadership can accomplished, - (Looks back at Lorrakan) - but never under your tutelage.
• In the House of Hope, you encounter several "debtors" that are forever damned to wander the halls - many of which are completely mad and obsessed with tasks that relate to their deal with Raphael. If you perform for them, however, they'll all halt what they're doing and gather around you just like any other NPC, enjoying the music. Even the Loyal Debtor, otherwise crawling around on all fours and barking, appears to return briefly to her human self.
• While exploring the city you might come across the retired Mindflayer hunter Golbraith, who'll gift you a shield that belonged to Abdel, aka Gorion's Ward, the canonical player character of the original Baldur's Gate games. The reason why this is significant is because Golbraith is based on the father of one of the Early Access players who Larian put in the game after they learned his dad, who used to play Baldurs Gate 2 with his son, was now suffering from Alzheimer's.
• The culmination of the Romances are extremely well-done:
  • If Astarion remains unascended, he will admit how much he's looking forward to staying with his beloved. Even though he has lost the ability to walk in the sunlight, for the first time in centuries he has a future to look forward to.
  • Gale is confident that he will soon be able to give Mystra the Crown of Karsus and get his Orb removed, and asks his beloved for their hand in marriage. He will be overjoyed if they accept, and he assures them that his family will welcome them with open arms.
  • Both of redeemed Shadowheart's endings are sweet in their own right: If Shadowheart manages to break Shar's curse at the cost of her parents' lives, she still mourns them but feels like she can handle whatever the future holds so long as she has you. If Shadowheart saves her parents Shar will still torment her, but she knows she can handle it now that she has them and you by her side.

The Dark Urge

• The Dark Urge's character is rife with tragedy and personal struggles worthy of a Shakespearian tragedy if played as a morally good character who struggles to contain their impulses. The moments when you reign in this bloodlust, especially when they crop up at the absolute worst time, are always a testament to the Dark Urge's desire to be better than the monster they were. Perhaps the most powerful and poignant moment is when the Dark Urge develops the urge to kill their romantic partner, but manages to stay their hand long enough for their partner to wake up and realize something's wrong. Rather than be terrified by how the Dark Urge almost tried to kill them, they're more concerned about the Dark Urge and offer words of encouragement, stating they will not allow them to succumb to their worst instincts. This even applies to a Dark Urge character who freely indulges in their bloody desires; the one line they will never cross is butchering the one they love most.
• If the Dark Urge confesses to Isobel that their blood is telling them to kill her, she won't be afraid and will tell them she doesn't think they'll go through with it. A successful insight check will show that she genuinely believes in the inherent spark of goodness in people and thinks the Dark Urge can overcome their violent compulsions to protect her. Keep in mind Isobel just met them, and although this conversation can only occur after a successfully thwarted kidnapping attempt, she otherwise knows very little about them, yet she still has unshakeable faith in their ability to choose good. (Even better, although neither has a way to know this at the time, Isobel and the Dark Urge have similar issues with villainous fathers who want to control them—so should you prove Isobel right by defying the compulsion, then it's easy to read this situation as both of you helping the other resist your respective evil dads.)
• If the Dark Urge has managed to suppress their violent impulses at almost every opportunity, or at least curbed the worst moments such as the aforementioned attempt to kill their lover, and they refuse to retake their mantle as Bhaal's champion, the God of Murder strips them of his divine blood and kills them. Withers quickly undoes Bhaal's actions by resurrecting the Dark Urge, a feat made possible precisely because the Dark Urge strove to become a good person. Better still, Bhaal actually cured the Dark Urge — by removing his divine blood, he also rid them of the murderous impulses that have plagued them throughout the game. At long last, the most vile Bhaalspawn to ever exist no longer needs to be a monster.
  The Dark Urge: Cured at last! Cured!
• The journal updates for the Dark Urge's personal quest "The Urge" are generally written in second person, as if the events were narrated by your Urge... Unless/until you refuse to become Bhaal's champion and are finally cured of your Urge. In that case, for the first time in the entire game, the update is written in first person singular: the Dark Urge is finally free to be themselves. The quest itself will remain open until the end of the game, as their new journey of self-discovery continues.
  The Urge: It's strange to think, but I can do whatever I want to. Be whoever I want to! I'm finally me. These thoughts won't talk to me any longer.
• Doubles into Tear Jerker, but in the epilogue, if you reject Bhaal and destroy the Absolute, the fact that the morning after, even after all you’ve been through, after a day that cements you and your companions as legends of the Forgotten Realms on par with Balduran himself, your mind turns to Isobel if you killed her, or whichever Bard died (Alfira or Quill) if Isobel survived. With the implication that your memories of who they were in life, and the goodness in their heart, could not be snuffed out by your murder of them, and were enough to motivate you to reject Bhaal himself and save the world.

Companions

Astarion

• Kinda bittersweet, but in the first instance of letting Astarion feed on you, he sincerely thanks you and confesses that you're the first person he has ever fed on due to Cazador limiting him to pests like rats. On the sweeter side, if you stop Astarion from ascending, he will thank you for preventing him from becoming like Cazador using almost the exact same words.
  Astarion: This is a gift, you know. Thank you — I won't forget it.
• If you play as Astarion, he can choose to entertain a Tiefling child with his own Rogue tricks, and even let him keep the coin.
• Some of his party conversations show that, while you're the first person Astarion fully trusted and openly cared for, there are other people that care for him in the world.
  Karlach (in the Spawn ending): You'll hate this, but... I'm so fucking proud of you. You could've had it all - but it would've cost you your soul. You kept what was worth keeping. That can't have been easy.
  Astarion: Ugh. Don't remind me.
  Karlach: No promises. You deserve to be told and told again what an incredible person you are.
• Astarion is neutral to you adopting the already lovable dog Scratch, but approves you taking in and caring for an owlbear cub. It says something about him (and you) that he likes the idea of someone adopting what's basically a known monster into camp.
  • Remarkably, he warms up to Scratch and can still joyfully pet the wholesome helper and play fetch with him. If Scratch is gone and he throws the ball Scratch used to play with, he sounds like he's on the verge of tears and failing to act mean.
• He also approves you praising and indulging His Majesty the cat in Last Light Inn.
• Romanced Astarion gets a surprisingly vulnerable scene where he admits that at first he only slept with you to manipulate you into protecting him, but by now he's genuinely come to care for you. When the player admits to feeling the same, Astarion seems skeptical, but the player can opt to give him a tender hug — which he absolutely doesn't expect but clearly enjoys — and he declares that even though he has no idea what he's doing, he wants to have a real relationship with you.
• Araj Oblodra offers to give the party a potion if Astarion fulfills her dream of having her blood drunk by a vampire, an idea that disgusts Astarion. If you defend his refusal and/or leave the choice up to him, he will sound surprised as he thanks you before turning Araj down. Later, he will repeat that he's genuinely grateful that you didn't strongarm him into going through with it, as all he's known for 200 years is being forced to do things against his will.
• If you don’t kill Isobel as the Dark Urge and are romancing Astarion, when explaining the situation to him, you can tell him that you should die for all the evil you’ve done. He outright laughs it off, bringing up how many people he lured to Cazador over the years, with the implicit suggestion that both of you can and will overcome your horrible past to be better people together, and truly free.
• If you agree to offer your body to Haarlep, he'll gain the ability to shapeshift into you whenever he feels like during sex, and he assures you you'll know when he does. If you let out a moan in public, Astarion is the only squadmate to recognize your situation and sincerely sympathizes with you — even if you attempt to dismiss it — as he he knows what it's like to lose control of your body.
• Dalyria, one of Astarion’s vampire “siblings” who he calls Dal, comes across as timid when met but seems to show genuine concern for the others. So much so that when Astarion, backed up by several other heavily-armed adventurers, drags their “brother” Petras into the sunlight for an interrogation about Cazador’s plans, she begs him to let Petras go and gives up Cazador’s secrets so that he will — The same Cazador she's absolutely terrified witless of even being slightly late for.
  • Similarly, she's rather upset that Astarion came back to this hellhole at all when he'd already gotten free.
• If he meets them alone and knows the truth about the Black Mass, he'll warn them that Cazador means to sacrifice them himself.
• Astarion's Dare to Be Badass speech to the other spawn after refusing the ritual falls somewhere between this and Awesome, though it's arguably more this, since he tells them pretty much exactly what Tav has been saying to him for most of the game:
  Astarion: You can hide here, living in the shadows like parasites, or you can be more than what (Cazador) made us to be.
  • There's also his response when Cazador calls him "a means to an end" earlier, especially when you consider that he might've said exactly the same thing about himself in conversation with the player:
  Astarion: I am so much more than what you made me!
• The fact that you only need to roll an 18 at worst to convince Astarion to give up ultimate power; and if you pass an Insight check first, a new option has a DC of just 15. However short a time he's been with the party, be it weeks or even days, the kindness and support you've shown him has had more of an impact on his character than 200 years of torture and torment.
• If he remains a spawn, the player can try to call off their romance on the grounds that they're either turning into a mindflayer or, in the case of the Dark Urge, that they'll lose control again and possibly succeed in killing him. He tearfully insists in the former case that he loves you for who you are, not what you look like, or he reminds the Dark Urge that he promised to save them and that he's not afraid. He also reminds Tav that they don't get to make decisions for him - not after everything he's been through. If Tav agrees to stay together, Astarion tries to act like his usual flippant self about it, but clearly sounds like he's close to tears of relief.
• When the Dark Urge learns about their heritage, he displays little more than a dismissive curiosity, but if they admit their fears of losing themselves to Bhaal, Astarion encourages them to stand up against their father and not become a slave in an unusual moment of empathy and support.
  The Dark Urge: I'm very afraid. How can I stand up to a god? He wants me to cause carnage.
  Astarion: You know, I didn't realize you and I were so alike. I - I felt paralyzed to do anything about Cazador for so many decades. I gave up on myself. I gave up on any hope of escape after a few lashes. Bhaal controls you in much the same way. I don't know how you can beat him, but I do know this: You must try. The half-life of a mind-addled slave is worse than death — Don't become his.
• Another case of bittersweet, but in Astarion's Spawn ending, he's dismayed by not being able to bask in the sun again; he's also frustrated that Cazador's still in some of his mind despite having killed him already. The traces of abuse linger on and a cathartic moment isn't enough to snuff it out. However, he reflects, whether romanced or Origin, that he gets to decide his future now that he has realized his agency- truly, honestly free. On a romanced playthrough, you two decide what your next course of action will be. Either way, he feels being stuck with his vampire weaknesses again is more bearable with you by his side. You can even choose to either go on another adventure to try and find a way for him to enjoy sunlight, settle down, and/or guide his fellow spawn as someone who has more experience being outside of Baldur's Gate as a vampire should you choose to free them.
• The fact that by sticking by him and trusting him, by bringing out the good in him, no matter what, trusting him to not Ascend and be better than what he was made to be - you will always have a very close relationship with Astarion, be that as a close friend or more. Throughout the game, you get to see him grow from someone who threatens you at your first meeting and who admits he didn’t care for you then if you romance him, to someone unconditionally trusts you. After 200 years of misery and having no-one, he finally has people to care for and who care for him.
• In a very twisted sort of way, if the player character dominates the Netherbrain in the end and hijacks the Absolute's plot while having romanced and ascended Astarion, they don't keep him as a thrall like they do the rest of the party, but let him go free to enjoy the spoils of ruling together as the Absolute, with Astarion so respectful of and happy at your cutthroat grasp for power that he's completely fine with you ruling as his equal, instead of his other Ascended romance paths where it's implied the player character has trapped themselves in an abusive relationship.
• As the game goes on, Astarion's face becomes less lined and more youthful. He's better fed and more relaxed/mellowed out (especially poignant on a good Tav/Resist Durge run).

Gale

• Gale's bond with his tressym, Tara.
• The fact that Gale is the camp cook, keeping everyone fed.
• Gale's utterly livid reaction, one of the very few times he genuinely loses his temper, when Nettie sneakily attempts to kill the player character under the guise of offering healing.
• Elminster's final dialogue after delivering Mystra's order for Gale to suicide bomb the Absolute. As her Chosen and messenger, he can't openly encourage defiance of her will, but he comes about as close as possible to stating that even he thinks Gale should not go through with it.
  Elminster: Like moons make swell and wane the nescient seas, so too the sky-strewn gods ordain the tidal fates of mortal days. And yet - a notion born in lonely hours - come ebb, come flow, come all that is beyond the breadth of our dominion: be a moon unto yourself. Even the waves of fate can break upon the shores of will.
• If the player responds to Elminster's news by suggesting Gale's suicide would be no great loss, Elminster is pissed — perhaps the most he loses his temper in the entire game — and calls you out for being a complete asshole. Given that later materials reveal he met Gale when the latter was only 8 years old, there's likely a bit of Papa Wolf in this reaction.
• Gale's stargazing scene in Act 2, in both its platonic and romantic versions. Believing he has no choice but to sacrifice himself on Mystra's orders, and that the time is imminent, he invites the player to watch the stars with him on what he thinks is his last night alive. If the player has high rapport with Gale, he finally drops the humorous mask he's kept up for most of the game and has a rare moment of open vulnerability, admitting he's terrified to die but sees no other way out. The Heartwarming part comes in with the player's response.
  • In the friendship version, the player can assure him they don't want him to die, that they'll find another way, and that they'll keep him company as long as he needs it. Being reminded that You Are Not Alone is enough to shake Gale out of his despair. The following day he will thank you for reminding him of all he has to live for, and says he's lucky to count you as a friend.
  Gale: There is so much to live for, and so few moments in which to house it all. Damn you. Damn you for giving me so much to care about! Our friends, our adventures... this would have been so much easier if it were just me. But it isn't.
  • If it's the romantic version, between fear of his condition and his general nerdy awkwardness, Gale's romance has been a very slow burn up until this point. But realizing he may not get another chance, Gale pours out an achingly romantic Anguished Declaration of Love, describing the proper courtship he wishes he could have given the player if circumstances were different, using illusion magic to open up his home in Waterdeep to them, and (depending on player choice) using the Weave to share a sexual encounter that is nothing short of a spiritual merging. At the end of it all, Gale is so deeply in love that he realizes it's Worth Living For, and that he would rather defy a god than give up what you have together.
• If it seems intimidating that Gale's ex is a literal deity? His romantic arc decisively proves the opposite. He's painfully unaccustomed to being valued as a person rather than as a worshipper/Chosen, and once he experiences the difference, he's as deeply in love as it gets.
  Gale: With you, I forget my goddess.
• At the climax of the game, if the player character is faced with the Sadistic Choice of becoming a mindflayer or forcing Prince Orpheus to do so, a high-rapport Gale will point out there's a third option — he could still use the Netherese orb to destroy the Absolute, killing himself in the process. His vocal delivery makes it clear he isn't looking forward to that fate, but he's totally committed to following through if it spares his friend/lover.
• If Tav becomes a mindflayer, they can lament to a romanced Gale that it's unlikely to ever be reversed. His response? Ask you to marry him and joke about finding a very open-minded cleric — Clearly, the thought of leaving you never even crossed his mind.
  Gale: I rather like this new you.

Halsin

• Halsin was originally a minor character in the overall game, an important NPC but only in Act I. After the Early Access feedback indicated he was quickly becoming a fan favorite, Halsin was promoted to a full Companion! Voice actor Dave Jones was highly emotional and giddy at the fan response and how Halsin fans gave him his first bid-budget gig as a "Main Character".
• In order to save and heal the Shadow-Cursed Lands, Halsin joins the party to save Thaniel the forest spirit. After some investigating you learn that Thaniel is trapped in the Shadowfell, and Halsin is perfectly willing to venture alone in this dangerous realm to save his friend.
• Later, we learn that Thaniel has divided into another being called Oliver. If Halsin is in the party, he is able to convince Oliver to return to Thaniel. The heartwarming part comes when Halsin fully acknowledges Oliver as his own person rather than as a monster born from shadows. He talks to him in a fatherly manner and explains why Thaniel needs him, without ever resorting to force. After completing Act 2, Halsin hopes that he will live to see Thaniel and Oliver play together in the restored Shadow-Cursed Lands.
  • If you speak to him in the camp, he'll mention having had visions of Thaniel and Oliver, sometimes as one being and sometimes as two separate ones. While he hasn't had the chance to see them in person yet, he's still obviously very happy about this development.
• Throughout Act 3, Halsin grows steadily more disillusioned with the state of life in Baldur's Gate, showing much dismay for the destruction of nature and the lack of care towards the downtrodden, and wishing that there was a better way of doing things. Following the defeat of the Absolute, he's inspired to begin a new community in the former Shadow-Cursed Lands, where people will be able to live in balance with nature and support each other properly. Nine caravans of war refugees have already joined him when he tells the player of his plan, and the children have started looking up to him as a father figure.
  • If the player has romanced Halsin, they can promise to come and join him once the chaos in the city has been settled, with Halsin vowing to watch the horizon each morning for their arrival.

Jaheira

• Bringing Jaehira with you to save Minsc is itself heartwarming enough. But then you'll stumble over some symbols that represent companions from the first two games and she'll fondly reminisce about them.
• Eventually, you earn Jaheira's respect and she starts calling you "cub." When you visit her house and meet her family, you learns that this is what she calls all of her children. True to her character as the resident Team Mom, Jaheira sees you as one of her own.
  • You can also decide to call her "crow" as your own Affectionate Nickname for her. Jaheira herself will approve of this.
• Jaheira warns Rion that doppelgangers are on their trail and one stole Jaheira's face. Rion responds thusly:
  Rion: Hm. All right, then - if you turn up asking for hugs and kisses, I'll make sure to shoot first.
  Jaheira: That's my girl.
• The fact that Jaheira is not willing to give up on the Dark Urge, even if they have accepted the Slayer form. She acknowledges that by rights, she has spent her life fighting Bhaal and should kill you, but she has faith that you will serve the good in the end and choose your own path away from Bhaal.
• If the Dark Urge rejects Bhaal and is cured of their curse, Jaheira expresses nothing but pride in their accomplishment. She has seen and fought many villainous Bhaalspawn, with a good-aligned Gorion's Ward and Imoen being the only ones who redeemed themselves. You can easily see how happy she is to see the Dark Urge follow their paths and succeed, and just like Gorion's Ward before them, she declares her Undying Loyalty to them too.
  Jaheira: Lead, then. Nature's servant awaits.

Karlach

• In general, Karlach is one of the kindest and most wholesome companions in the game. Ironic, considering her background.
• After getting an upgrade to her infernal engine that allows her to touch people, one of the first options you get is to give her a hug. After enduring ten lonely, violent years in Avernus, it's extremely satisfying to see Karlach receive a hug from one of the first friends she's made on her journey.
  • Even sweeter in her romance, where you get the option to give her a Big Damn Kiss. It's been a long time coming at this point.
• If you romance Karlach, she practically squees with affection for you, especially in the scene where you can confess your love for her. Karlach warmly reciprocates the confession and expresses how she can't stop smiling.
  Karlach: I adore you, you know.
  Tav: I... I love you.
  Karlach: (Crying with joy) I LOVE YOU TOO! Oh my gods, I've been dying to say that.
• In Act III, a romanced Karlach will ask Tav out on a first date. She takes them to her favorite hole-in-the-wall, and Endearingly Dorky shenanigans ensue as she awkwardly navigates just what she should say and do on a date.
• In the ending, if you romanced Karlach and don't turn her into a Mind Flayer, Tav will return to Avernus with her despite her hatred of the place, because they want her to live and she wants to live with them. If Wyll's storyline has ended happily and on good terms with Tav, he'll join the two as well to protect Karlach from Zariel, making it clear that the three have become True Companions.
• Karlach's response to the Owlbear Cub coming to your camp is arguably one of the cutest moments in-game:
  Karlach: (squeeing) Oh my gods, look at its little beak! Oh, c'mere, you doll!
• If you convince Wyll to spare Karlach, everyone approves of your action, including Lae'zel and Astarion.

Lae'Zel

• Lae'zel urgently wakes you up because she can't stop thinking about you, and insists that the only remedy is to defeat her in single combat and prove your worth. If you win, she decides that she chose well; If you lose, she helps you up with downright-bizarre-for-her gentleness and care.
  Lae'zel: Tsk'va! No more. I can't bear it. I've torn flesh from monsters and men. I've laughed as they suffered. But you... I don't want to hurt you — I want to protect you. For you to protect me. 'I am yours.' Say the words. (Player responds) Zhak vo'n'ash duj: Source of my bruises.
  • If you stick with her romance into Act III, she once again wakes you up before dawn and urges you to follow her... So that you can watch the sun rise over the harbor with her. She admits that she used to hate seeing the sun rise and the stars vanish — she used to hate everything about the Material Plane — but now "(she revels) in it" because "(she revels) in you." Since the Githyanki have no word for "love", she chooses the closest phrase to describe her feelings toward you; "Source of My Joy".
  Lae'zel: There's more, but - but I don't know how to say it. I don't know what to call it. I just know whatever comes next, I want you near. When all this is over, will you stay with me? For good?
  Tav: I've been waiting a long time to hear those words. I will stay with you, come what may. (Holds her hand)
  Lae'zel: ''Zhak vo'n'fynh duj'': Source of my joy.
• If your player character is a Githyanki, you get the option to return to the Astral Sea with Lae'zel at the end. If Orpheus stays untransformed, he warmly welcomes you both as his brother and sister/sisters in arms as you all fly to the stars to free the Githyanki from Vlaakith. And as of Patch 6, anyone who has romanced Lae'zel gets the same honor, regardless of race, which speaks volumes given how xenophobic Githyanki normally are.
• Lae'zel and Shadowheart spend most of the game at each others' throats, yet Lae'zel takes no pleasure in Shadowheart's pain during her personal quest, and questions why she has to go to these lengths to prove herself to her God and fellow Sharrans when she's clearly been nothing but faithful.

Minsc

• During an argument, Jaheira expresses her Anger Born of Worry, her guilt for abandoning Minsc and lecturing him for putting Baldur's Gate at risk with his reckless heroics. She pleads for him to be more cautious and stop charging into danger, no doubt out of fear of losing another close friend. Minsc counters that he has no greater purpose in life than protecting his Wychlaran — his witch. That's right, after all these years together Minsc has declared Jaheira his witch. Furthermore, he has complete faith that Jaheira will find a way to save them all regardless. Despite protesting him calling her his witch, Jaheira firmly declares that she is Minsc's friend, and leaves the conversation by denying him ointment or healing palms, much to Minsc's displeasure.
  Minsc: The titles matter not, only this: When Minsc does as Minsc does, and charge in to make a mess, Jaheira does as Jaheira does — And find a way to save us all anyway.
• If Minsc is with the party going to Jaheira's house for the first time, the dialogue is slightly different and is very sweet.
  Fig: STAND ON YOUR LIVER.
  Minsc: It's "stand and deliver" Little Fig. Though I think I like yours better.

Minthara

• In Early Access, if you managed to sleep with Minthara the night after the raid at the Emerald Grove without peering into her inner fears, you would later catch her trying to kill you in your sleep only to discover that she can't actually bring herself to do so, even under the Absolute's orders. If you persuade her into sparing you due to the bond you now share with her, she'll quickly stand down and point you towards Moonrise Towers so that you can commune with the Absolute.
  Minthara: I had hoped you would sleep through this. I take no pleasure in what I must do. In another life, I would have taken you as my consort in Menzoberranzan. But the Absolute demands your death [...] Killing you would be... bitter. I have never needed anyone, but I want you. I give you your life, on the understanding that you belong to me now. And I to you.
• In the full release, if you've slept with Minthara after the raid at the Emerald Grove and arrived at Moonrise Towers, you'll soon find her being punished by the Cult of the Absolute for her failure to find the Astral Prism. Following her into the dungeon below, you will hear from one of the questioners torturing her that among her "weaknesses" was "a longing for acceptance and affection from a mortal", indicating that she actually cherished her intimate moment with you that night. And if you convinced the questioners to let you delve into her mind to save her, she would be surprised that you've actually risked your life to rescue her.
  Minthara: You came. I prayed that you would, but there are no gods left for me [...] I didn't dare hope... I owe you more than my life.
• As you progress further into your romance with Minthara, she eventually refers to your relationship with her as alurlssrin, a drow word used to describe the deepest bonds of trust and love. This is despite the common knowledge that drow society has no word for romantic love^note According to Ed Greenwood, only Eilistraee and her faithful have knowledge of all the drow words for love. So for Minthara, who is still proud of her noble upbringing, to use such a word proves just how much she has grown to love you.
  Minthara: It is not a word I ever expected to say. I have had many lovers, but none ever earned my trust and affection as you have.
• Before the Final Battle against the Netherbrain, a romanced Minthara can offer you a Now or Never Kiss as encouragement while preparing for battle.
  Minthara: Does your blood sing as mine does, my love? There is no time for words, let us join the battle.
  Player Character: This could be our last moment together.
  Minthara: No. If this is to be our end, we will die together.
  (Both the player character and Minthara share a kiss)
  Minthara: But do not think of endings. Think of the glorious battle to come, and rejoice that we have a part in it.
• If Minthara remains your romantic partner after defeating the Netherbrain, she will eventually ask what you want to do with your newfound freedom from the elder brain's influence. If you respond that you'd like to take over either Baldur's Gate or Menzoberranzan with her, she will fully support your choice to the point of forsaking her own family in favor of establishing a new drow house in your name.
  Minthara: My name belongs to my mother, so our House will have a new name — your name — and the world will learn to fear it.
  • Within the same scene, if you ended up becoming a mind flayer to save Baldur’s Gate, she’ll still love you all the same and practically vows to help you master your new form.
    Mind Flayer!Player Character: I am a monster.
    Minthara: So am I, my love. Let us be monsters together…
• Minthara has quite a few unique interactions with the Dark Urge, some of which can cross into Unholy Matrimony levels of heartwarming if they take her as their romantic partner throughout the game.
  • The Dark Urge can confess to Minthara about their murderous impulses and their struggle to suppress it. But where most of their companions would see it as a mere oddity at first glance, Minthara immediately takes their matter seriously as she has seen a similar case among her own people back in Menzoberranzan, encouraging them to keep their urges under control lest they become a victim of their own bloodlust.
  • Later on, when they discover their true heritage as a Bhaalspawn, the Dark Urge can then reveal the truth to Minthara by projecting memories of their past atrocities into her mind. The narrator then describes her absorbing every detail of their murderous thoughts just as they sense a strong desire from her. After which, Minthara would voice her utter admiration for the Dark Urge.
    Minthara: Elgg-hor... duk-tak... slayer. There are many names for you, and all of them inspire dread. You are exquisite.
    The Dark Urge: You don't fear me?
    Minthara: Ecstatically so. It makes my heart race.
• Patch 6 expanded on the ending where you choose to control the Netherbrain. If Minthara is your love interest, she is then spared from becoming enthralled. There is something deliciously heartwarming about the player character sparing Minthara, showing that despite commanding such great power now, they still cared for her and want her to willingly join their reign. Minthara, who encouraged them to hijack the elder brain, reciprocates and the look that they share is nothing less than a mixture of pride, love and triumph as they are now commanding one of the strongest armies in the Sword Coast, ready to conquer the world together.
  Minthara: You are glorious, my love. You have never been more beautiful.

Shadowheart

• Easy to miss alongside Shadowheart's grief, but the narration all but states that after Shar renounces her, Selûne continues to provide Shadowheart with her Cleric abilities with zero downtime in between. Shadowheart just came within a hair's breadth of killing her child, on top of having lambasted, hunted, and tortured her followers for four decades; yet she's still more than ready to welcome Shadowheart back into her clergy even before Shadowheart herself makes that decision. She even lets Shadowheart keep her old domain, despite Trickery not being a domain of Selûne.
• If you managed to save Shadowheart's parents, she will have a tearful reunion with them. Later on, she will voice her guilt about what she had done, her despair of the time that she has lost and tells her family that she can never call herself Jenevelle again or be the daughter that they wanted. But they assured her that no matter what name she decides to call herself and no matter what she did, she will always be their daughter.
• If you're in a relationship with Shadowheart, Arnell and Emmeline will quickly figure it out and accept your relationship, and even offer for you to join them once your adventures are over. It's nice to know that after the story is over, your main character has a new loving family to welcome you, especially if you are playing a good-aligned Dark Urge after all the suffering caused by their Big, Screwed-Up Family.
• Just the fact that Arnell and Emmeline truly embody what unconditional love is regardless of how you progress Shadowheart's questline. This is obvious in the Selunite path, where they selflessly offer their lives so that Shadowheart can be freed of Shar's curse, making it clear that they'll pay whatever price they need to for their daughter's future. But it becomes even more poignant in the Sharran route, where they offer no condemnation, and show no ill-will towards their daughter even as she's played right into Shar's hands. Even as Shar gloats about how she became Shadowhearts "true" family by robbing her of the one she was born in, her parents remain resolute in their faith that no matter what, their daughter will find her way back to the light. Their hope seems a doomed one if Shadowheart does kill them and completely submit to Shar, but the fact that she retains her soft spot for the avatar, and her willingness to Loophole Abuse and continue a romance even if she ends up separating from them, hint that there may still be a faint light at the end of the tunnel if Shar ever decides to forsake her (as she so often does to her followers).
• The Main Character and Selûnite Shadowheart consummating their relationship under the moon is a truly sweet moment, implying that Selûne herself blesses their union.
• If you romance Shadowheart as the Dark Urge, during the scene in Act 2 where your urge gets out of control, you get advantage on your saving throw as you attempt to rein in your affliction. The reason? Shadowheart has faith in you.
• While much darker for obvious reasons, romancing a Sharran Shadowheart also has a touching component to it, namely the sheer extent of Loophole Abuse she's willing to do in order to keep the relationship alive. Despite being warned by Dame Aylin of how Shar will try to take Shadowheart all for herself, something Shar confirms after Shadowheart kills Aylin, she's constantly coming up with any justification she can to keep the Avatar by her side. If she kills her parents as part of Shar's final test, she finally decides to separate from the Player Character, but not before leaving them with more opportunities to reunite should they wish it. This gets further emphasized in the Patch 5 epilogue, where she says that rather than constantly dividing her attention between the Avatar and her duties, she wants to completely devote herself to her lover whenever they reconnect, including at the party itself. While it is rather tragic to see Shadowheart so consumed by her faith that she has to structure everything else about her life around it, it's also ironically heartwarming that even so, there are still some bonds Shar cannot break.
• As of Patch 6, you can give a high-rapport Shadowheart a comforting hug during the scene in Act 3 when she breaks down in front of the Selûne statue.

Wyll

• Wyll is generally deeply selfless and always puts the needs of others before his own. While he does slip in his judgement at times, he takes the time to listen to all sides if presented and he willingly chooses to suffer for the common folk, including Karlach and his Father.
• If the player character goes all the way through with Volo's attempted tadpole removal procedure, afterwards, Wyll will cheerfully welcome them to the club for one-eyed heroes.
• If you play as Wyll and spare Karlach, she will be floored that you are willing to sacrifice so much for her sake, leading to this potential exchange.
  Karlach: Wyll, I don't know what to say. I can't believe what you did. Been a long time since someone stuck their neck out for me like that. How can I thank you?
  Wyll: Some advice on proper horn care wouldn't go amiss.
  Karlach: Hah! Look, I'm sure you'd rather live without 'em, but those babies are absolutely magnificent. As far as I'm concerned, you've never looked better. Keep 'em clean and dry, apply a bit of seed oil now and then and they'll shine. I'm grateful I get to travel with you, Wyll. You may look like a devil, but you're one of the most noble men I've ever met.
• Duke Ravengard is initially deeply cynical after his rescue, thinking his son only saved him to further Mizora's schemes. If the player reveals the truth by connecting Wyll and Ravengard's minds, he finally learns that Wyll sold his soul to become strong enough to defeat the Tiamat cultists that threatened Baldur's Gate. Ravengard will be both overjoyed and remorseful for his past treatment.
  Ravengard: My son, you sold your soul to save Baldur's Gate — And I cast you out for it. You gave yourself to the Hell's eternal fires so I might walk free. By the gods, can you ever forgive me?
  Wyll: There's nothing to forgive. You only wanted to protect the city. I only ever wanted the same.
• Wyll will join Karlach in Avernus at game's end if they're both alive and the player allows it. His relationship with Karlach has deepened to the point that he is willing to risk his own life and freedom just so she won't have to choose between dying and living alone. They even share cigars before charging off into battle.
• There's something wholesome about Wyll desiring a romantic relationship and marriage when a lot of your companions go straight for the sex and feelings happen much later. His romance is the most "classic" of the romanceable party members, even offering a round of courtly dance.
  • As well, his romance is full of breathtakingly romantic lines straight out of a poem that, combined with his utter sincerity in saying them, is incredibly sweet.
  Wyll: (following his Dance of Romance with the player) So much shadow around us. To think I almost missed the light.
  Wyll: (following a kiss) I've drunk wines from Daggerford to Cormyr, but I've never known a taste as rich as yours.
  Wyll: (when asked by the player to define their relationship) You are the red of sunrise, the yellow of high noon, and the orange of sundown. If you were a song, I'd never stop singing; if you were a psalm, I'd never stop praying. You make a damn fun dance partner, too.
  Wyll: (when asked by the player to define their relationship post-proposal) You are my yesterday, my today, and my tomorrow. Fortune willing, as the seasons of my life pass into winter and my hair goes to grey, you'll still be within my quivering arm's reach.

Epilogue

• The epilogue that comes with Patch 5 has a series of heartwarming moments.
• Six months after the main story, Withers invites the party for a reunion celeberation. The fact that the stoic and dry Withers is perfectly willing and happy to reunite you and the party speaks volumes of how fond he has grown for you and your party.
  Withers: Thou wert called here. Some from above, some below. For with thine bond, together thou has kept the wheel of fate spinning, when it threathened to halt. Though thou were drawn far apart in the months after the collapse of the Absolute. Tonight, fate renews thy bond once more. Thou shouldst take care to preserve it, it is a great weapon, wielded in the hand of good. Go. Know one another once more.
  • The fact that Withers gives Karlach a night of reprieve and to briefly let her return back to Faerûn so she could enjoy a night with her friends without fearing her infernal heart exploding is a strong gesture of kindness.
• Depending on where your companions are at the end of the game, their lives are shown to have improved substantially after your adventure:
  • If they went to Avernus, Tav, Karlach and Wyll have been surviving and having further adventures, and even have a plan to finally fix Karlach's heart for good. Despite Karlach's fears that Zariel would reclaim her as soon as she stepped foot in the hells again, she's been able to preserve both her life and freedom with her friends at her side.
  • If he has refused godhood and handed the Crown of Karsus to Mystra, the Goddess of Magic made good of her promise to fully remove the Orb so that Gale can have a normal life again. Gale has become a teacher in Blackstaff Academy and no longer has to live in fear of his affliction causing a disaster. His relief at no longer living under a death sentence is palpable.
    Gale: It was like exhaling for the first time, after holding my breath for so very long.
    • When reminiscing fondly about the group's time together, he indicates that he's happily settled but that he might like to relive the adventure by committing it to a book, Bilbo Baggins style.
    • He's also a professor of illusion magic specifically, a Call-Back to the lovely images he conjured at key moments in his personal questline, and says he really wants his students to know how fun magic is. In contrast to the guy who nearly destroyed himself seeking greater and greater power, Gale now appears to take joy in magic for its own sake, and wants to share that with others.
    • A romanced Gale and Tav/Durge can be Happily Married at this point, and if so, they are still very much in the honeymoon stage. If the player opted not to live in Waterdeep, the two of them can become a pair of adventurers, with Gale thrilled at all the arcane books they've discovered. He's also eagerly picking up skills from his partner's class (such as learning to sing if Tav is a bard, or sleight of hand if Tav is a rogue), and calls them an "excellent teacher" — a callback to what Tav/Durge might have called him after the first lesson with the Weave. Lastly, Gale is just as gushingly in love even if Tav/Durge has become a mind flayer, demonstrating that he really meant it when he said it made no difference in his feelings.
    • A non-romanced Gale may invite the player to come visit Waterdeep and stay at his home as a guest. If the player has become a mindflayer and points out their unique dietary needs, without batting an eye Gale says he'll simply call in a favor from an anatomy professor to ensure he can feed you properly.
  • If he remains a vampire spawn, unless you romance him (or if you still do as a Githyanki who joined Lae'zel to war against Vlaakith), the last time you see Astarion is him running away from the sun. After six months, you finally reunite with your vampire friend and get closure. Depending on your choices, you learn that he either has readapted to a life in the shadows and has become something of an Anti-Hero or has taken up leading and guiding his fellow spawns in the Underdark. After two centuries of enduring hellish servitude under a cruel vampire lord, Astarion is finally happy and free to enjoy his freedom with either choice. This is even doubly so if you romanced him. He wishes all the companions well and says that everyone there deserve happiness with a genuine openness that he had more trouble expressing six months prior, and is grateful that he gets to experience it with you. On a Dark Urge playthrough, if you answer Jaheira's question if you're planning to have kids of your own that you do plan to have them in the future, one can even interpret this as Astarion choosing to have a family of his own with you instead of being forced by Cazador's idea of "family".
    • The fact that Astarion stays as a kind of morally-grey Anti-Hero in both Spawn routes solidifies that he still thrives and doesn't need corrupt power and seven thousand souls to be free.
    • Neither of you still haven't found a cure for him to safely bask in the sun, but you can tell Withers that you two still aren't giving up either. In a future where both of you are truly, honestly free, choosing to find a cure anyway says a lot that you and Astarion have welcomed hope. He didn't know that being suddenly be whisked away to a Nautiloid ship and remain intact would be possible, so there isn't much to go by that the possibility of finding a cure isn't impossible either.
    • On a run where Astarion becomes a hero, he recounts how people don't mind killing so long as you target the evil ones. Here, he's a roaming adventurer who hunts down the wicked in his own rogueish ways. On a romanced path where you suggest Astarion to go out there and be a hero or find a cure, the opening narration when you both arrive to the party informs you that Astarion told you that the last six months have been a counterweight to his 200 years of torment.
    • Astarion admits that he isn't a perfect leader to the rest of the spawn in the option that you offer to him to guide his fellow victims in the Underdark, but he also makes sure the group survives in the harsh environment. The fact that there are so many deadly creatures and people means feeding isn't that much of a problem- free blood bags just go to them. Sure, there's no narration about the counterweight thing in a romanced route with this one, but he does admit that he cares for his fellow spawn and does feel responsibility by freeing them, planning to turn their bare settlement into something like a palace. With his experience being out and about outside of Baldur's Gate, the rest saw him as a guide, teaching them on their hunger as one of the first that was transformed by Cazador. Becoming leader of the spawns is quite the contrast to his past as a fallen-magistrate-turned-miserable-slave, especially now that he's more concerned with treating people justly. There's no official way to say whether this route can also be counterweight like the Hero route, but who's to say it can't be? His Fantastic Racism towards gnomes also seems to be gone during the six months as one of his background lines implies, or at least abides by pragmatism.
      Astarion: If I get back and they've killed another gnome, I swear- someone's getting impaled.
    • Another is that there's no indicator in the game that the choices regarding spawn Astarion's plan for the future have to be mutually exclusive. There's nothing stopping you from pursuing the freed spawns, becoming heroes (again), finding a cure, and settling down- at least nothing within the limited timeframe the game lets you explore.
  • Halsin's epilogue touches a few heartstrings. Besides helping his community, which is already thriving with new arrivals, Halsin has become a foster father for several orphaned children who have grown very fond of him, and he spends his days playing with them. His dream of Thaniel and Oliver has come true, and he gets to watch his spirit friends happily playing with children in a land restored after centuries spent in shadows. He even describes the children as "his greatest purpose- and reward".
  • Halsin begs the player for stories about their exploits- admitting a bit sheepishly that this is mostly because every night, the children beg him for bedtime stories, and he is running out of stories already.
    • If not exclusively romanced with the player, Halsin will give the player a wooden duck he carved, explaining that ducks are migratory, yet always find their way back to where they're meant to be, just like their group of friends finding each other.
    Halsin: Ducks are my favourite, but I thought they were particularly fitting in this case. They are migratory birds of course, traveling far and wide with the turn of the seasons. Yet they always find their way back to where they belong, just like old friends find themselves back in each other's company.
    • The player has a choice to send the owlbear home with Halsin; not only is the former over the moon, wanting to play-fight him, but Halsin is similarly delighted, stating that he promised the children he would bring them home a surprise, and he can't wait to see their faces now.
    • If the player romanced Halsin, he admits his worries to them; not only that the player may regret their uneventful life together (which the player can quickly reassure him about), but also because he's nervous about how the children, who haven't gone a night without him since he founded their commune, will fare without him and his bedtime stories. He sounds every bit like a new parent afraid to leave the kids with a babysitter.
  • If she joined the battle against Vlaakith, Lae'zel appears through a psionic projection that took "twelve gishes' talents, a few dozen stolen psi crystals, and two tendays of effort" to conjure. Even as busy as she is after becoming a Warrior of the Comet, she spares no effort to see her friends again and openly voices of how much she missed them.
    • If she was romanced, she calls Tav "my love". Given how hardened she was when they first met, and how the Gith language has no word for "love" to begin with, it's a sign of how far she's come and how much she has grown together with the party.
    • If Orpheus died and you succeeded on the difficult Persuasion check to convince her to stay in Faerun, she will tell you that she has gathered allies to destroy Vlaakith's strongholds on the Sword Coast and invites you join her on a raid against a creche in Chult. If you agree to accompany her, she notes approvingly that you still have "fire in your belly".
    • If you keep the egg that you found in the Gith Creche and you are in a romance with Lae'zel, in the epilogue you learn that the egg hatched. The newborn gith who is named 'Xan', is being raised by you and Lae'zel, and like a proud mother she speaks fondly of him and she fully intends to give him the freedom of choosing his own destiny.
    • If she's with the Warriors of the Comet she also informs the PC that she is approaching the Githzerai God King to discuss an alliance meaning that she's opened up the possibility of healing a rift among the Gith people that has existed for thousands of years.
  • A redeemed Shadowheart will have restored and moved into a rural cottage left in ruins by the march of the Absolute (with her parents, if they were spared). She is the other option for the owlbear's new keeper, a task which she will happily accept without hesitation. She'll comment how it's too big for her doorway and will have to sleep in the barn, though... but if the player replies that enlarging the doorway so she can cuddle an owlbear at night will be worth it, she'll laughingly say she can't not do it now that you've planted the idea in her head.
  • Wyll is the Life of the Party, tearing through the alcohol and happily dancing in front of the bonfire. This is particularly heartwarming in contrast to his behavior during the Tiefling party in Act 1, in which he could barely stand to show his face after his Forced Transformation courtesy of Mizora. If his ending is accompanying Karlach (and you, if you come along), he also gets summoned by Withers as a temporary reprieve from battling in Avernus. If you didn't come along with them to hell, he'll say that he misses you regardless if he's romanced or not. If he became a Grand Duke and is romanced, you can both happily adopt a child together.
  • Checking on Jaheira has her tell you of her feelings about her children, and is proud of them choosing to get to their dreams despite her not wanting them to.
  • On a Dark Urge run, Jaheira notices you blush when she spoke of family. She asks you if you ever plan to have your own, cautious about the possibility of more Bhaalspawn. But, on a run where you pushed against Bhaal's influence, your Bhaal blood is already gotten rid of by him. Safe to say, having your own biological children is likely not going to result in Bhaalspawn should you choose to have your own. You have options to say that you don't want to have kids either. You can be a Durge and not have kids, but still have your chosen family with your companions. You can be a Durge that wants to have kids to add to your chosen family. There's a nice juxtaposition to either option that you contrasts to your past. Choosing to not have kids is, aside from just plainly not being interested in more responsibility, can also to emphasize that you don't need genetic relatives or hellish lineage to make a familial connection and find contentment with them. On the other hand, deciding to have children of your own can also be out of one's free desire. This situation contrasts your gory descent prior by having them naturally or via adoption that doesn't have to involve being raised with murderous urges- all out of free will and finding happiness in there too in spite of your prior tragedy, not because you're forced to like the old you. The game treats both options with equal validity.
• You get the option to hug all of your companions during the party, which fully signifies that despite the months apart and they have returned to their lives, your bonds forged through trial and tribulations remains strong.
• If you're playing as the Dark Urge, you can choose the option of toasting to your companions being your Family of Choice - not your murderous blood kin nor Bhaal, but with the people you've come to treasure and put closely to your heart throughout your journey. Despite who you were and who you've cut ties with, it really shows how much choice can affect the likelihood who'll treat you so much better than those who raised you - and now without your cursed blood, you can embrace everyone without worrying about killing them.
  The Dark Urge: To all of you, my real family.
• You receive newspapers and letters from several NPCs that have accompanied you in different times in your journey:
  • As you can view in the ending, Gandrel (if not killed) will say that the children are in agonizing conditions from helping them reign in their vampiric urges and trying to find a way to feed them, but they're all thankful for giving them an opportunity to start anew and adapt to their situations somehow. Ulma writes you back, telling you about how the Gur families are still struggling, but have found hope. She thanks Astarion for giving them another chance and congratulates him for standing up against his former master. They're still cautiously watching, but now with more admiration than fear.
  • If you’ve saved Mayrina from Auntie Ethel and killed the green hag for good, her letter to you states that not only did she finally gave birth to a boy whom she named Connor, but her anti-hag group has also found success as a publishing house for guidebooks about killing hags. She then thanks you for having faith in her when she once thought that she couldn’t be a good mother for her son without her husband to be with them.
  • If you've freed the imprisoned vampire spawn within Cazador's palace and letting them live, Sebastian's letter would state that they have found a new home within the depths of the Underdark where they have built new lives for themselves. Despite the dangers of the region, they are still content with their newly-found freedom thanks to your efforts and are glad that you still see them as people rather than the bloodthirsty monsters that Cazador made them into.
  • If both Alfira and Lakrissa survive the events of the game, Alfira's letter reveals that they have opened up a School of Music within the Lower City in honor of you as well as her late mentor Lihala, with her school attracting many aspiring bards from Candlekeep to Waterdeep. Alternatively, if you've played as the Dark Urge and avoided killing her (at the cost of killing Quill in her stead), she would thank you for sparing her from a gruesome death and forgives you for the attempt on her life.
  • If Orpheus survives, a letter from Voss will mention that Orpheus sought the aid of Zaerith Menyar-ag-Gith, the Githzerai God-king, for the fight against Vlaakith. Given that his mother Gith was partly responsible for the split between the githyanki and the githzerai many ages ago, for Orpheus to Reconcile the Bitter Foes and reunite the gith was something Voss thought was impossible up until that point.
• Several dialogue options you can pick with each character referring to your partner are very sweet, such as telling Jaheira that your partner is your home, or offering to bring your partner to come visit Gale in Waterdeep. One particularly sweet one is if you're romancing (spawn) Astarion and tell Minsc you're looking to cure his vampirism, he'll muse on how love would be the thing to conquer such a seemingly daunting problem. He also implies that Boo may know of a cure, though he doesn't elaborate on it at the party.