Karlach

Karlach
Karlach
Role	Origin character, companion
Voiced by	Samantha Béart
Information
Full name	Karlach Cliffgate
Title	Fury of Avernus
Race	Zariel tiefling
Class	Barbarian
Background	Outlander
Hometown	Baldur's Gate; Avernus, Nine Hells
Family	Pluck Cliffgate (father, deceased); Caerlack Cliffgate (mother, deceased)
Stats
Size	Medium
Type	Humanoid
Armour Class	13
Hit points	14
Movement speed	9 m (30 ft)
Weight	90 kg (180 lb)
Initiative	+1
Ability scores
STR
STR	STR
Proficiency bonus	+2
Saving throws	Str +5; Dex +1; Con +4; Int -1; Wis +1; Cha 0;
Resistances
Resistant	Fire
Features
Hellish Resistance;	Gain Resistance to Fire damage.
Darkvision;	Can see in the dark up to 12m.
Opportunity Attack;	Automatically attack an enemy moving out of your reach.

Template:Up to date

Karlach Cliffgate is an Origin character and a recruitable Companion with the Outlander background. She is a Tiefling and a Barbarian first appearing during Act 1.

Once a soldier in Zariel's army, circumstances have given her a new chance at life. Now, freed from Avernus, she will make the most out of it, and no one will get in her way. She can be found and recruited on The Risen Road during Act 1, and romanced by characters of any gender.

In multiplayer sessions, if Karlach is chosen as an origin by a player, Wyll will be locked as an option to any other players.

Avernus was never my home. It was my prison. I'm free now. And I'm never going back!
— Karlach, confronting servants of Zariel.

Overview

Background

Trapped in Avernus under Zariel's banner due to the machinations of those she trusted the most, Karlach has been fighting in the Blood War for a decade, away from all that she loved. Fate would smile on her and give her a way out, only to turn on her just as quickly, and she was tadpoled as she made her escape from Avernus. Now, free at last, though with an unwelcome guest in her head, she must protect her hard-won liberty with her life as she seeks revenge on those who crossed her many years ago. With a malfunctioning engine for a heart, and a burning desire to live, will she be able to save herself, or will hell catch up with her sooner or later?

Starting class

Karlach starts as a Barbarian, with a focus on two-handed weapons. Upon reaching level 3, she will default to the Wildheart subclass, granting her access to a variety of animal-themed class features and actions.

Special features

Karlach can use Soul Coins to power up her mechanical heart, giving her the passive Infernal Fury, granting her an additional 1d4Fire damage on her attacks when raging or when her HP drops below 25%
Karlach's mechanical heart can be upgraded twice while progressing the story:
- The first heart upgrade grants her Heart of Iron, giving her Advantage on Saving Throws against Charmed effects
- The second heart upgrade grants her Heart Ablaze, giving her immunity against Charmed effects

Personal quest

Karlachs's personal quest is Our Fiery Friend, spanning all acts of the game. Throughout it, Karlach's past will attempt to catch up to her as she is just beginning to enjoy her freedom.

One more subquest ties into her personal quest: The Hellion's Heart. In it, Karlach and the party must deal with her mechanical heart and the problems it causes her. Furthermore, Hunt the Devil will have her hunted by Zariel's agents, and Wyll's companion quest, The Blade of Frontiers, also features her as an important character.

An origin Karlach replaces Our Fiery Friend and The Hellion's Heart with Servant of None and Forging a Heart, respectively.

Recruitment

Karlach will refuse to join the party if they have sided with the goblins and laid waste to the Emerald Grove before meeting her. She will also abandon the party if they decide to side with goblins.

Act One

Karlach can be found on The Risen Road, on a road near the Toll House, precisely at X: 111 Y: 503. Cornered by Zariel's bloodhounds, she can be found nursing her wounds after battle. The party can talk to her, and recruit her provided they agree to help her get rid of the ones hounding her. Returning to Anders and co. with Karlach in the party will ultimately result in battle.
- If Wyll is brought along for the first meeting with Karlach, the two will confront each other. Wyll reveals that Karlach is the quarry he's been hunting for his patron, while Karlach claims to be a victim, not an agent of Zariel. Either party can be sided with, though siding with Wyll results in battle with Karlach. The situation can also be defused by convincing Wyll that Karlach's words are true, as backed by the the vision everyone shares thanks to their tadpoles.

Approval

Karlach has a very strong sense of right and wrong. She enjoys helping innocent people with their troubles and not expecting anything in return, something she finds in common with Wyll after their rocky first meeting. She approves of kind interactions with those in need, standing up for what's right and being decisive with enemies. Setting her up for some fun, such as carousing or making some mayhem, also has earns her approval, and being a compassionate friend to her, or a kind partner, is the easiest way of earning her trust and love.

Karlach disapproves of indiscriminate violence, being insensitive to the plights of others and dismissive of her when she attempts to get closer. Dealing favourably with villains doesn't sit well with her, and siding with Gortash, even if strategically sound, earns her disdain. Minimizing her problems, especially that of her malfunctioning mechanical heart, is a sure way of earning her contempt.

Romance

Karlach can be romanced by characters of any gender. When romanced, Karlach's inability to touch their partner, and the pain of being physically isolated from everyone for so long, are issues that are explored and need to be overcome together.

Description

Appearance

Karlach is tall and well-built, her muscle-bound body toned after many years battling in the first layer of the Hells. Her vermilion skin is covered in scars and burns product of her time in Avernus, tattoos adorning her left arm and parts of her abdomen, while small exhaust vents on her shoulders billow steam whenever her ersatz mechanical heart flares up, clearly visible under her chest.

Despite her intimidating presence, Karlach has a soft and amiable face, with an easy smile on her lips. Her pointed ears stick out and her left horn curves backwards and out, while the right one seems to have been broken off some time ago. She keeps her hair, dark-brown with reddish accents, long and messy with some simple braids adorned by metal discs, falling on the right side of her neck, below the trimmed side of her head. Her eyes are dark yellow, with the distinctive tiefling slit pupil, and light moles and freckles mark her nose and upper cheeks.^{[note 1]}

Personality

Karlach is an extremely passionate individual who strives to live life to the fullest. She tends to speak excitedly regarding any of life's simple pleasures, whether that be food, drink, friends, or intimacy. Her demeanor is generally joyous and very forward, having no fear of loudly proclaiming her love of being alive and how much she cares for those close to her. Her positive disposition and infectious energy seem to allow her to make friends easily, even if her honesty can cause her to come off as somewhat naive at times. ^{[note 2]}

Though oft friendly, Karlach is a very physical person and is not above getting into a brawl if provoked. She can be impulsive and easy to goad, and will lose sense and reason when confronting people she despises. Years in Avernus have made her lonely, compounded by the fact that her mechanical heart kept her from having physical contact with others, let alone intimacy. When talking about Gortash, beneath her outward rage, lie deep pain and a sense of betrayal, making her wary of trusting others as she once did. Despite their moral differences, she gets along well with Astarion due to both wanting to live their life outside the shadow of their abusers.

History

Life in Baldur's Gate

Born to Pluck and Caerlack Cliffgate, Karlach was raised in Baldur's Gate in a modest household in the Lower City. Young and restless, Karlach would often work odd jobs as a means to support her parents, often getting into trouble in the meanwhile. Even as a child, she was joyous and full of life and, despite the hardships, she loved her life in the city, surrounded by family and friends.

At some point, Karlach got hired by Enver Gortash to act as his bodyguard. Rising quickly through the criminal and political circles of the city, Gortash was beginning to paint a target on his back, and Karlach seemed like the ideal person to protect him. Lured initially by the money and a chance to support her parents financially, Karlach eventually developed deep respect for Gortash, not only because he trusted her enough to put his life in her hands, but because he also made her feel valued. The pair worked well together for a while, until Gortash made a deal with the Archdevil Zariel, and sold Karlach to her for a grand sum of money in order to fund his plans for domination of the city. Zariel's interest in the tiefling was to test her new infernal machine, and Gortash was confident Karlach could handle it, that she would serve as a great prototype for his dreamed infernal automatons.

Avernus and the Blood War

Betrayed and sold to the devil, Karlach was taken to Avernus and quickly worked on. Happening faster than she could process it, Zariel ordered her heart be replaced by an infernal machine, aimed to test the limits of machine and soldier. The archdevil quickly put Karlach and her new mechanical heart to work, conscripting her into her army to fight in the Blood War. Trapped and without any other choices, Karlach would fight for ten years in the war, surviving day by day fueled by both vengeance and a desire to live free. She would prove to be an exceptional soldier, slaying great demons and becoming one of Zariel's prized fighters. Both prisoner and champion of the archdevil, throughout it all she was alone, surrounded by devils and demons who offered no comfort, away from home and everybody she held dear.

Escape aboard the nautiloid

After ten years in the Hells, the sudden appearance of a nautiloid presented itself as a chance for escape, and Karlach made good on the opportunity. Cleaving the devils around her, she made her way towards the hurtling ship before running into Wyll, brought to Avernus to hunt her.^{[note 3]} The two battled briefly, Wyll giving chase as Karlach desperately reached for the ship, until they made it to the nautiloid before being separated during the siege. Captured by the mind flayers as the ship escaped Avernus, Karlach was tadpoled just as all other uninvited guests, and awaited a slow transformation via ceremorphosis.

Involvement

Our Fiery Friend

Our Fiery Friend is Karlach's personal quest. It is added to the journal upon recruiting her and spans all three acts of the game.

Act One

Act Two

Act Three

Endings

A Blazing End

Return to Avernus

Life as a Mind Flayer

Quest rewards

Interactions

Companion interactions

Karlach has unique dialogue interactions as a companion available after certain events. Whenever one is available, she will have a floating [ ! ] icon above her.

Act One

Act Two

Act Three

Exclusive dialogue

Either as an origin, or in the party as a companion, Karlach has unique interactions and special dialogue with the following characters.

Listed by the act they are first encountered in.

Act One

Act Two

Act Three

Loot

Karlach can be killed and looted, and drops the same loot as her starting equipment.

Starting equipment

Achievements

Hot Date
Go on a date with Karlach - now that's playing with fire.

Gallery

Karlach's first appearance in early access.
Karlach in Early Access.
Concept art with Karlach wearing a different starter armour (Unwanted Masterwork Scalemail).
Concept art with another starter armour.
Datamined Karlach restored by mods.
Datamined Karlach restored by mods.
Armour Concept Art by Jane Katsubo.
Armour Concept Art by Jane Katsubo.
Armour Concept Art by Jane Katsubo.
Promotional Wallpaper.
Character portrait by Edward Vanderghote.
Karlach's model.
Karlach's camp model.

Related literature

Notes

↑ Throughout development Karlach had multiple design changes. In Early Access she only had a placeholder model created with the same assets as a custom character, with two horns and no scars and was a Fighter (with a datamined tag of a Paladin). Concept art shows different proposals for her face, initially planning to give her more scars and more aggressive features. She also had a few different starter armour designs with one repurposed to become Unwanted Masterwork Scalemail. Her other concept armour can be seen on her Magic the Gathering Card.
↑ Interactions with those who knew her prior to the events of the game's story imply that she has always been this exuberant, even as a poor child growing up in Baldur's Gate.
↑ It's never made clear when exactly Wyll arrives to Avernus or who really sent him. Though there shortly before the events of the Prologue, Wyll couldn't have been hunting Karlach for long, as the time the nautiloid spent there before teleporting away is brief and Karlach's escape was an opportunistic decision. It's possible Zariel sent Wyll after Karlach via Mizora, but as Karlach herself says, she's largely inconsequential in Zariel's grand design. On the other hand, it's possible Mizora took the opportunity to remove Karlach as they both were in Zariel's inner circle and Mizora likely saw her as a rival.

Karlach was originally voiced by Shala Nyx in Early Access.
Can be spoken to with Speak with Dead.

References

External links

Karlach on the Forgotten Realms Wiki

Karlachs's official 5E D&D Character Sheet on D&D Beyond (PDF)

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[1] Throughout development Karlach had multiple design changes. In Early Access she only had a placeholder model created with the same assets as a custom character, with two horns and no scars and was a Fighter (with a datamined tag of a Paladin). Concept art shows different proposals for her face, initially planning to give her more scars and more aggressive features. She also had a few different starter armour designs with one repurposed to become Unwanted Masterwork Scalemail. Her other concept armour can be seen on her Magic the Gathering Card.

[2] Interactions with those who knew her prior to the events of the game's story imply that she has always been this exuberant, even as a poor child growing up in Baldur's Gate.

[3] It's never made clear when exactly Wyll arrives to Avernus or who really sent him. Though there shortly before the events of the Prologue, Wyll couldn't have been hunting Karlach for long, as the time the nautiloid spent there before teleporting away is brief and Karlach's escape was an opportunistic decision. It's possible Zariel sent Wyll after Karlach via Mizora, but as Karlach herself says, she's largely inconsequential in Zariel's grand design. On the other hand, it's possible Mizora took the opportunity to remove Karlach as they both were in Zariel's inner circle and Mizora likely saw her as a rival.

[note 1]

[note 2]

[note 3]