Minsc

Overview

Approval

Banter

Minsc of Rashemen is a recruitable Companion with the Folk Hero background, returning from both Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn. He is a Human and a Hunter Ranger first appearing during Act Three.

After spending decades in petrification together, Minsc and his beloved hamster sidekick Boo have finally been revived. They seek a life of "butt-kicking" evildoers to serve as a force of goodness, justice, and glory. He can first be found in The Counting House, where he has been tadlpole-dominated by the Absolute into a True Soul and criminal gang leader known as the Stone Lord. He is found again in the Abandoned Cistern, and knocking him out in the ensuing fight allows him to be freed from his brainwashing and recruited into the party. He cannot be romanced by any character.

Minsc is the only character with access to the spell  Find Familiar: Boo.

“

If there is one thing Minsc hates more than beasts with bad breath - It is those who are tricksome with the truth! And turnips. But you are no turnip. Let that be of comfort, in your final moments.

„

— Minsc, threatening Rakath Glitterbeard

Overview

Starting class

In Baldur's Gate 3, Minsc has the Folk Hero background, and Ranger is his default class. At subsequent level-ups, his default subclass is Hunter, but the player can fully adjust his character build as desired.

Personal quest

Minsc does not have a personal quest, but he is directly tied to two others. First, he is the unwilling antagonist of Jaheira's companion quest  The High Harper, and completing this quest allows him to join the party. Second, his ending in the Epilogue is determined by the outcome of  Aid the Underduke, namely a conversation with Nine-Fingers Keene afterward.

Recruitment

Minsc can be recruited during Act Three if Jaheira joined the party in Act Two. Progressing The High Harper leads to a fight with Minsc in the Lower City Sewers. To be recruited one must use  Non-Lethal Attacks on the final blow, otherwise Minsc dies without the possibility of being revived and Jaheira leaves the party.

The Emperor argues the rashemi is too stupid to be of use but can be persuaded with a DC 15 History check or DC 15 Intimidation check to extend the mind shield of the Mysterious Artefact in order to free Minsc from the Absolute's influence. If Jaheira is dead, has not been recruited, or has left the party, the Emperor mentions he is "too far gone" and Minsc becomes hostile again with 1 hit point. After killing Minsc in this way, when spoken to, party members behave as though Jaheira had just left, even if she has never been in the party since Moonrise Towers.

Approaching Minsc with the player character elsewhere and only Jaheira in the party may cause odd behaviour, possibly preventing him from being recruited.

Approval

Main article: Minsc/approval

Minsc isn't the brightest but he is brave and loyal and has the cutest familiar - Boo.

Romance

Minsc cannot be romanced, remaining oblivious to any player character's possible attraction.

Personality

Minsc is a skilled warrior and is otherwise blissfully bereft of the burdens of Intellect. He believes his friend Boo is actually a miniature giant space hamster and he is the only one who can talk to him. He views the world in absolutes (no pun intended): if there is evil then it should be defeated.

Despite her constant nagging, Minsc sees Jaheira as a dear friend and is very protective of her, going so far as to call her his honorary Wychlaran upon their reunion in Act Three. He intensely dislikes Viconia DeVir and Sarevok Anchev because of his history with the latter and because they are evil.

Backstory

See Minsc for a more complete backstory

Minsc is a Rashemaar berserker from a matriarchal nation of Rashemen. As a young man he went on a dajemma - a coming-of-age tradition for Rashemi men to travel the world accompanying his Wychlaran - a young witch Dynaheir.

The Iron Crisis

In their travels they became separated and Dynaheir was snatched by gnolls. With the help of Gorion's Ward (the protagonist of the previous Baldur's Gate games) Minsc freed her and they travelled together, along with Imoen, Jaheira and Khalid.

They resolved the Iron Crisis and defeated the culprit - Sarevok Anchev.

Shadows of Amn

Sometime after Sarevok's defeat, the group parted ways for a while until they once again joined up alongside their friends: Gorion's Ward, Imoen, Jaheira and Khalid. At some point in their travels they were captured in a forest by Shadow Thieves and imprisoned in a dungeon beneath the city of Athkatla in Amn. Minsc, Jaheira and Imoen survived, but Dynaheir and Khalid were killed. Their captor was Jon Irenicus - an elven wizard who wanted to steal the Bhaalspawn essence for himself. Minsc eventually helped Gorion's Ward to defeat him.

Petrified for a century

Minsc's petrified statue

Combat in front of the statue

Awaken, my Minsc

At some point in their travels Minsc and Boo were ambushed by an unknown individual, petrified, and left in the middle of marketplace in the Upper City of Baldur's Gate. For a long time Baldurians believed it was a statue, commissioned by a merchant to commemorate the city's renowned heroes. It became a popular landmark under the title "Beloved Ranger".

80 years later a wild mage Delina tried to defend herself against a gargoyle and accidentally struck the statue with a  wild magic surge. The surge dispelled the petrification and Minsc and Boo returned to life, unaware of the passing of time. They joined forces and travelled together for a while.

Approximately 10 years later Minsc reunited with Jaheira and together they worked to uncover the mysterious Cult of the Absolute. They were the first to uncover information about the threat of the Absolute. Due to Minsc's impulsive eagerness to fight he got captured by the cultists and Jaheira, realising they were severely unprepared and unarmed against the cult, decided to leave him in order to share news about the cult.

Captured by the cult, Minsc was infected with a Tadpole and brainwashed into following a Doppelganger imitating Jaheira. Under the tadpole's influence, he became a feared murderer under the moniker "Stone Lord". Minsc was also separated from Boo as the tadpole suppressed his memory of the hamster. Their latest crime is robbing the Counting House.

Involvement

Act Three

During Act Three, should the party arrive at the Counting House and delve into the vaults, they encounter Minsc accompanied by a doppelganger imitating Jaheira, with Minsc revealing himself by tearing his way out of the maw of a Mimic. When encountering Minsc in the Counting House he immediately leaves the building.

Epilogue

Minsc's appearance and dialogue at the party depend on the outcome of  Aid the Underduke and the subsequent conversation with Nine-Fingers Keene.

Ambient chatter from Minsc in either ending has him impressed with the quality of meat Withers provides, though neither he nor Boo knows where Withers sourced it.

Zhentarim Prisoner

If Minsc is not present for the conversation with Nine-Fingers, he refuses to make amends with her, and/or the player character sided with the Zhentarim, he arrives looking worse for wear, decked in rags. Without knowing the gravity of his situation, he reveals he has been kidnapped by the Zhentarim and was nearly about to be executed until Withers rescued him by spiriting him away for the party.

Berserker Lodge

If Minsc agrees to help the Guild as their "berserker lodge", he appears well-dressed and accompanied by a halfling from the Guild, Happy Hoarson, whom he was in the middle of terrorizing for looting corpses. Minsc commends the player character and their companions for being ideal heroic role models, the kind of people Happy should strive to be more like. He also says he no longer sleeps in "that" sewer, instead having found a much nicer sewer to sleep in.

An additional line of ambient chatter from Minsc in this ending has him exclaiming to Boo that Happy must be treated nicely if he is to reform.

Related Literature

• Domovoi Invocation
• Register of Goods Received
• Stolen Property - Reward Offered!
• The Stone Lord's Sketches

Loot

Starting equipment

• Alchemy Pouch
• Camp Supply Sack
• Leather Boots
• Leather Gloves
• Longsword
• Minsc's Fantastical Relaxation Garb
• Minsc's Leather Armour
• Minsc's Tasteful Boots
• Minsc's Underwear
• Potion of Healing
• Scroll of Revivify - 2x

Development

Unlike other companions, Minsc, alongside Jaheira, was revealed in a trailer at the Video Game Awards 2022. Minsc was initially slated to be a playable origin, his scrapped content was datamined back in 2020. Tieflings in the Emerald Grove had special dialogue reactions to him and his hamster.

Changes from previous games

Unlike Jaheira, whose stats remained fairly consistent through the games, Minsc's Ability Scores in Baldur's Gate 3 differ heavily from his stats from Baldur's Gate 1 & 2. In previous games, he is depicted as immensely strong, being able to punch through walls and break himself out of cages. However, his stats as a companion in Baldur's Gate 3 do not reflect this. This is likely due to the fact that while previous games use stat rolling, Baldur's Gate 3 uses 27 Point-Buy; it also allows his Ranger abilities to function more reliably due to his high Wisdom.

If one seeks to emulate Minsc's ability scores from prior incarnations of the game, an arguably close approximation is: STR 17, DEX 15, CON 15, INT 8, WIS 8, CHA 10. This distribution leaves only STR and WIS as unattainable outliers at the start of the game, as his previous STR is 18, (requiring an ASI) and his WIS 6 - which would be problematic for a Ranger in Fifth Edition.

The NPC Version of Minsc encountered in the Sewers uses a stat-block reminiscent of the previous entries in the series: STR 20, DEX 15, CON 15, INT 8, WIS 6, CHA 9. He swaps to his playable version after the conversation introducing Boo to the party.

Minsc in official trailers

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Gallery

• 

  Minsc's armed model.

• 

  Minsc's model

• 

  Minsc's camp model.

• 

  Minsc's underwear model.

• 

  Character portrait by Edward Vanderghote.

• 

  Brainwashed.

• 

  With Boo.

• 

  Commander Legends' Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes

• 

  Commander Legends' Band Together

External links

Minsc on the Forgotten Realms Wiki