Summary

• One Shadowheart choice in Act 2 significantly impacts Act 3 content in Baldur's Gate 3.
• Killing Dame Aylin in Act 2 leads to the fall of the Last Light Inn and loss of key characters.
• Shadowheart's Dark Justiciar path requires killing Dame Aylin, but it comes at a significant cost.

Seeing the outcome of decisions in Baldur's Gate 3 is usually an exciting part of experiencing the game, but not every choice ends up contributing to the overall experience. Some consequences end up removing a lot more content than they add, especially when it comes to the latter parts of the story. Although Act 3 is ultimately chock-full of things to do in any playthrough, it's surprisingly easy to eliminate a lot of memorable ones with one simple choice that occurs in Act 2 of the game.

[Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Baldur's Gate 3.]A large part of Act 2 hinges around the Last Light Inn, a refuge for the last survivors in a land plagued by a shadow curse. Both recurring characters from Act 1 and some new Act 2 introductions can be found at the inn, which is under the protection of a cleric named Isobel. Letting Isobel die ends her spell of protection over the inn, so it's not hard to realize that she needs to be kept alive at all costs. There's another scenario that can lead to the inn's fall, however, and it's not always as obvious.

Killing The Nightsong Hurts Act 3 Of Baldur's Gate 3

Dame Aylin's Death Triggers The Fall Of The Last Light Inn

Shadowheart's Act 2 arc in Baldur's Gate 3 centers around the Nightsong, a weapon being kept in the Shadowfell that her god Shar wants her to destroy. It sounds like a simple enough mission, but the Nightsong turns out to be an Aasimar woman named Dame Aylin, and killing her could easily make a good-aligned party balk. At the same time, calling Shadowheart off from her task can pose a challenge, and there are plenty of reasons why allowing her to go ahead might seem like the most appealing option.

It's important to exercise extreme care when dealing with the Nightsong, however, as allowing Shadowheart to kill her triggers the end of Isobel's protection of the Last Light Inn. Dame Aylin has a significant connection to both Isobel and the goddess Selûne who gives the cleric strength, so ending her life is a blow that causes the barrier to break. Although the game offers enough reason to believe that killing the Nightsong could have significant consequences, the fact that it directly triggers the fall of the Last Light Inn can come as a shock.

Without the knowledge of how a campaign where the inn never falls goes, it might not be obvious just how much this affects things, but significant ramifications manifest by the time Baldur's Gate 3 Act 3 rolls around. Reddit Main_Confusion_8030 lays out some of the biggest differences in a playthrough dedicated to letting the Dark Urge path incur some negative consequences, and they're not pretty. Certain characters that ended up lost in this particular campaign can still be maintained in some circumstances, but many are always gone for good.

BG3 Act 3 Is Full Of Characters From The Last Light Inn

Shadowheart Can Accidentally Cut A Lot Of Content

One huge side effect is the inability to recruit Jaheira, who can sometimes still be persuaded to if Isobel dies but fails to survive the battle at the inn if Dame Aylin dies. Jaheira's death in turn makes it impossible to add Minsc to the party, another character who appears in Act 3 with a significant connection to Jaheira. Jaheira and Minsc are the two returning party from the earlier Baldur's Gate games, so veterans of the series might be particularly disappointed to miss out on them by accident.

Another major loss lies in the gnomes Barcus and Wulbren, who have a reasonably interesting story in Act 2 but become more significant to the story in Act 3. The associated Ironhand Gnomes play an interesting part in the volatile politics of the city of Baldur's Gate, and they can provide some help to a party willing to engage in particular acts of violence. With the gnomes at the Last Light Inn dead, however, there's no way to follow up on this plotline.

Another important character positioned at the Last Light Inn is Dammon the blacksmith, who has less of a major role in Act 3 but can still be useful to have around.

Dame Aylin herself also has an Act 3 role to play, as the wizard Lorroakan is highly interested in the Nightsong. Although it's still possible to enter into a conflict with Lorroakan if Dame Aylin isn't around, the proper story and choices surrounding him require her presence. She can also help out in a couple of other key party fights in both Act 2 and Act 3, making her one of the most practically useful NPCs in the game.

It's possible for some key Baldur's Gate 3 characters to die before the Last Light Inn, from the tieflings that take refuge there to the trouble-prone Barcus. The Last Light Inn is the most significant way to wipe out multiple parties in one blow, however. Failing to talk Shadowheart down from killing a single character has cascading consequences, and it's worth approaching the situation with as much care as possible.

Letting Shadowheart Kill Dame Aylin Isn't Always Wrong

There's Still An Interesting Story To Be Found

When committing to a darker Baldur's Gate 3 campaign, killing Dame Aylin can sometimes still be the right move. It's the only way for Shadowheart to become a Dark Justiciar, something that she's dreamed of for as long as she's been dedicated to the goddess Shar. Act 3 is still full of interesting NPCs and questlines even after the fall of the last light inn, so locking off a portion of them won't mean that there's nothing to do in the final stretch of the game.

For a first playthrough of Baldur's Gate 3, however, convincing Shadowheart to let Dame Aylin live is definitely the better bet. A lot of the Act 3 material that gets lost is engaging, and Shadowheart's personal arc when she doesn't become a Dark Justiciar is especially rewarding in its own right. Act 2 of Baldur's Gate 3 can be an absolute minefield when it comes to choices, and there's no decision as potentially devastating as letting the Nightsong die.

Source: Main_Confusion_8030/Reddit