How to romance Gale in Baldur's Gate 3

The Baldur's Gate 3 Gale romance might not be quite as thrilling as getting intimate with a Tiefling giant who's literally too hot to handle, with Karlach, but if you like your magic and Gale's charms have taken effect, who cares what anyone else thinks? Gale does seem to be a bit of a love-hate character in terms of whether he comes across as charming, or an absolute creep, but either way, he is a romance option.

Unlike a lot of the other characters, Gale's romance is a bit of a long haul, and you won't properly seal the deal until act two. Still, it's got a lot of fun moments, and ultimately, Gale is an extremely flawed character, so if you want that RPG experience of trying to help a companion triumph against their worst nature, it's definitely a good choice. That said, here's how to romance Gale in Baldur's Gate 3.

How to recruit Gale

You'll first encounter Gale at the Roadside Cliffs waypoint shortly after the Nautiloid crashes on the Ravaged Beach, where he'll appear as a hand sticking out of a magical portal. You can help pull him out and then, since he also has a Mind Flayer Parasite, recruit him to help you find a cure. Since Gale's a wizard that can learn spells through scrolls, he's a useful party member to have around. 

How to build Gale's approval

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Gale is a good guy with a serious lust for knowledge, and likes it when you're kind, solve problems using magical acumen—like Arcana checks—or when you try to acquire forbidden knowledge, such as reading the Necromancy of Thay or puzzling out the Book of the Dead Gods in the Overgrown Ruins. 

He also likes it when you resolve situations via talking instead of bashing an enemy's head in. If you're playing Baldur's Gate 3 as a good character, he'll likely warm to you pretty quick. Gale also likes when you give him magical artefacts to snack on, which he'll explain to you when your approval is high enough and you've travelled with him a little while. I'll explain that key event in a bit more detail below, though.

Important Gale Romance events

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Based on my playthrough, there are three key events that lead to you sleeping with Gale and establishing a romance, besides just generally getting his approval. I'll go through each of them below in a bit more depth:

• Making magic with Gale: Once you have enough approval, Gale will want to speak to you in the camp, and will invite you to try and conjure the weave with him. After a few basic checks, you'll be able to imagine a situation involving you both. You need to imagine either kissing him or holding hands with him.
• Feeding Gale magic artefacts: After enough approval, Gale confides that he has a condition where he needs to consume magical artefacts. Agree to help him, and periodically give him a magic item to eat when he needs it. You'll know when because an exclamation mark appears above his head. After you've given him three artefacts over time, he'll confess to you in camp about his condition, past mistakes, and the dangerous magical orb inside him.
• Meeting Elminster Aumar: This elderly wizard appears as a messenger for Mystra—goddess of magic and Gale's ex—in the Mountain Pass just after you beat the undead enemies on your way to the Shadow-Cursed Lands. He may also appear in the Underdark if you choose that direction, but I didn't encounter him there. Invite Elminster back to your camp and he'll ultimately heal Gale so he doesn't need to consume artefacts, though he will ask Gale to use orb inside him to blow up the heart of the Absolute

Once you've done all three of these, you're ready to get a little more intimate with Gale.

How to sleep with Gale

If you've progressed all the previous steps, then Gale is actually the instigator of your romance. For me, this occurred towards the end of act 2, just after I'd fought Ketheric Thorm in Moonrise Towers, but before I went into the Mind Flayer Colony. In camp, you'll see a projection of Gale, which will invite you to a romantic rendezvous if you speak to it. Take a long rest and your scene with Gale will occur.

Once a romance is established with Gale, you can discuss it further with him at camp, kiss him, or dump his ass. A warning vis-a-vis the dumping: if your playthrough is anything like mine, you won't be able to romance anyone else besides one-night stands with side characters. Overall, it kind of makes sense that Gale's romance scene is before you head down into the Mind Flayer Colony for reasons that will become apparent once you explore and continue the story.