Baldur’s Gate 3 is packed with memorable characters who could have supported a full adventure but instead disappear after a handful of scenes. From a tiefling bard to an undead tormentor, these ten NPCs have the stories, personalities and potential to become companions.
One character has already received a community-made solution. Mizora, Wyll’s devil patron and the source of his warlock powers, normally appears at camp only when it suits her. The Mizora Joins the Party mod by WorldWalker42 lets players recruit her infernal abilities. She is hardly the only NPC who could have filled a companion slot.
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10. Alfira
Why she belongs at camp: The game needs a bard, and Alfira is an obvious choice.
Alfira is a tiefling bard encountered in the Emerald Grove during Act 1. She writes a song about the player’s unfolding adventure, creating a warm and unusually personal introduction. That brief scene is effectively the end of her relationship with the player, despite the game having no bard companion. Players should avoid a Dark Urge run if they want to spend more time with her, as her fate can take a much darker turn.
9. Barcus Wroot
Why he belongs at camp: Barcus survives a remarkable series of disasters and deserves more than a supporting role.
The gnome can be rescued from a burning windmill early in Act 1. His troubles continue when he is captured, tortured for information about his former friend Wulbren, taken to Moonrise Towers and eventually handed leadership of the Ironhand clan in Act 3. His journey already has the scale of a companion storyline; he would simply need a class and a combat role.
8. Zevlor
Why he belongs at camp: He leads his people through catastrophe, twice.
Zevlor is the tiefling paladin trying to hold the Emerald Grove’s refugees together in Act 1. If the grove is saved and he survives, he leads the refugees towards Baldur’s Gate, setting up what seems likely to be a major storyline. Instead, he largely vanishes until later events. His potential as a good-aligned counterpart to Minthara has also prompted players to ask why Zevlor cannot be recruited.
7. Volo
Why he belongs at camp: Every disastrous expedition needs an overconfident narrator.
Volo first appears while attempting to investigate an owlbear nest. He later offers unreliable advice, becomes a camp trader and volunteers for a highly questionable eye operation. He would be a poor tactical choice in a serious battle, but his reckless commentary and talent for surviving situations beyond his abilities would make him an entertaining party member.
6. Araj
Why she belongs at camp: Her blood experiments hint at a much larger story.
Araj runs a stall in Moonrise Towers focused on blood, alchemy and unsettling experiments. She is particularly interested in the blood of a True Soul, claiming it contains valuable secrets. Her connection to the fallen noble house Oblodra suggests an unwritten story about restoring her family’s reputation. Araj would never politely ask to join the group, which is precisely why her mystery makes her such an appealing candidate.
5. Sazza
Why she belongs at camp: She repeatedly needs rescuing and becomes more confident each time.
Sazza is a goblin scout first encountered during the Emerald Grove conflict. Depending on the player’s choices, she can be saved three times across three acts, an achievement recognised by an in-game achievement. She is brash, self-assured and very aware of her own value. Her inclusion would also give players the goblin companion many have wanted.
4. Kagha
Why she belongs at camp: Her guilt and possible redemption are immediate, personal and unresolved.
Kagha serves as the Emerald Grove’s second-in-command in Act 1 while secretly cooperating with the Shadow Druids. Players can expose her betrayal or choose to forgive her. If spared, she begins a redemption path built around consequences that are happening in the present, rather than a centuries-old conflict already nearing its conclusion. The game gives her a compelling moral crisis, then lets her leave before that story can fully develop.
3. Popper
Why he belongs at camp: He is an enthusiastic kobold with an endless supply of treats and loyalty.
Popper appears at the Circus of the Last Days in Act 3 and is one of the few performers who is not secretly a doppelganger. He is devoted to His Majesty, a housecat he believes is genuine royalty, and constantly talks about his beloved “treatos”. He has little combat ability or tactical value, but his cheerful presence would make him an excellent camp companion.
2. He Who Was
Why he belongs at camp: An undead avenger would add a distinctive option to an evil-aligned party.
In the Shadow-Cursed Lands, players can discover an undead figure raising skeletons to torment a woman who wronged him centuries earlier. He Who Was clearly takes pleasure in the punishment, but the encounter is almost his entire story. Recruiting him would turn a disturbing one-off scene into a memorable companion, particularly for players whose darker choices leave them with fewer party options.
1. Arabella
Why she belongs at camp: Her emerging powers create one of the game’s most intriguing unfinished threads.
Arabella is a tiefling child rescued from Auntie Ethel’s basement in Act 1. She later recovers from the experience at camp before developing strange, uncontrolled magical abilities in Act 2. By Act 3, she leaves to follow her own path, with no clear resolution to the questions surrounding her powers. Her abrupt departure makes her one of the game’s most obvious missed opportunities for a longer companion or apprentice storyline.
Why these NPCs still matter
Baldur’s Gate 3 did not lack interesting characters when its companion roster was finalised. It had the opposite problem: too many strong personalities competing for limited space. Alfira could have provided a bard’s perspective, Zevlor could have offered a heroic alternative to Minthara, and characters such as Kagha and Arabella had unresolved arcs ready for further development.
Mizora’s recruitable mod shows what is possible when players revisit those unused possibilities. Whether future mods add Barcus, Sazza or someone even more unexpected, these ten characters remain compelling reminders that a supporting role is not always enough.
If you enjoy games built around character, atmosphere and replayable stories, a dedicated home setup can make them part of your regular play space. RETROCADE’s arcade machine buying guide can help you plan the right setup.
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