Baldur’s Gate 3: Should you kill Yurgir or save him from his contract in BG3

To fully explore the Gauntlet of Shar in Baldur’s Gate 3, you require umbral gems or orbs—the last of which is by Yurgir, a Fiend from Hell who’s been trapped by Raphael. Worst of all, you must decide whether to kill or save Yurgir from his infernal contract.

Should you save or kill Yurgir in BG3?

Saving Yurgir: Outcome and consequences

Saving Yurgir will ruin your relationship with Asterion. Astarion despises this decision so much that you will have to Persuade or Deceive him to remain in your party if you decide to save Yurgir. In addition, simply breaking Yurgir’s contract will not give you the item Infernal Iron, which you need if you want to romance Karlach and use it for her companion quest, The Hellion’s Heart.

As part of your quest from Raphael, Kill Raphael’s Old Enemy, is to kill Yurgir, so he won’t approve of you saving the Fiend, and he won’t tell you what the marks on Astarion’s back mean, and this may prevent you from romancing Astarion entirely.

Killing Yurgir: Outcome and consequences

Killing Yurgir seems like the best option because it does not jeopardize your relationship with Astarian, gives you an Infernal Iron to use in Karlach’s companion quest, and gives you a pretty sweet one-hand crossbow called Hellfire Hand Crossbow.

You will also find your other companions, like Shadowheart and even Raphael, approve of your decision to kill Yurgir. And because you did as Raphael asked, he will tell you about the marks on Astarion’s back.

How to kill Yurgir in BG3

You will need to collect the final umbral gem during the Gauntlet of Shar. However, to get it, you must interact with Yurgir roughly at the coordinates X: -654 and Y:-754 and kill him. Although challenging, it is the quickest way to get what you need—plus, it keeps Astarion happy.

There are various ways you can kill Yurgir. His Concussive Blast is a massive problem, particularly for any melee characters, and his horde of followers can quickly drain your health. So, if you enter combat, be prepared for a lengthy fight that may require reloading a save and trying again. There are five tips you can use to make this fight easier. There’s even a cheat way to make him kill himself, his beloved pet, and his followers, so you don’t have to.

1) Throwing bombs with Karlach

One way to deal significant damage is to wait until he spawns bombs across the room, then use a character like Karlach to throw them back, making them explode instantly.

2) Lure them to ground level

Alternatively, use a familiar or cast ally to lure Yurgir and his followers down to ground level and near the door, where you can control the flow of combat better and protect yourself from attacks by moving outside the doorway.

If you can block their entry and position your tanks to the front, your backline can quite effectively whittle away at their health.

3) Counteracting Yurgir’s invisibility

Yurgir can go invisible, and this skill of his is quite annoying. Here are a few ways to counteract it:

• Use AoE attacks from a druid in owlbear form
• Use Volo’s Eye to see invisible enemies
• Use a “See Invisibility” spell, which can be learned from the Divination school, gotten as a scroll, or used as an ability from an item.
• Use the spell “Fairy Fire,” which reveals invisible enemies

4) Make Yurgir kill himself, his pet, and his followers

This one depends on your class, as Warlocks cannot do it due to a bug. You’ll need a character with high insight and good Charisma, like a Bard. Even if you don’t succeed fully, you can whittle down his companions to leave just the big man to face.

At the beginning of the dialogue with Yurgir, steer the conversation toward his pact with Raphael and get him to share his contract details. You can then ask Yurgir why he wanted the Dark Justiciars dead, which he says was so that he no longer had an audience. Passing the first persuasion check, which is 16, he will kill his followers. Another successful Persuasion check of 21 leads him to kill his pet displacer, and a final successful Persuasion check of 21 results in Yurgir killing himself.

There are many ways to get to this skill check, but this dialogue tree is one of the most reliable.

1. “Put that thing down. I’m here to talk.”
2.  “Wait – you know Raphael?”
3.  “He wants you dead.”
4.  “Let’s share our experiences about Raphael. Perhaps we can help each other.”
5.  “Show me this contract. Perhaps there’s something you missed.

Once you’ve been through that, an insight check will pop up, which you need to pass to unlock the second stage of dialogue checks.

1. “Your contract is a song?”
2.  [PERSUSASION] The lyrics are a trick. You’ve always had an audience – your followers. Get rid of them.
3.  [PERSUSASION] You still need to finish – the displacer can hear you, can’t she? Kill her.
4.  [PERSUSASION] Exactly. Kill yourself, complete the contract, and you’ll be reborn in Avernus. Free.

If you have the persuasion requirements, this is undoubtedly the easiest way to kill him in the game and probably the most sadistic.

5) Set up an ambush with Mage Hand or Minor Illusion

You can use Mage Hand or Minor Illusion to draw them out, then ambush them with AoE attacks. Make sure you have your best damage dealers for this. If you aren’t sure what AoE attacks are the best, here are a few suggestions:

• Eldritch Blast (Warlock)
• Shatter (Bard, Warlock, Sorcerer, and Wizard)
• Magic Missile (Sorcerer, Wizard, Rogue subclass Arcane Trickster, and Fighter subclass Eldritch knight)
• Chromatic Orb (Bard, Sorcerer, Wizard, Rogue subclass Arcane Trickster, and Fighter subclass Eldritch knight)

How to save Yurgir in BG3

Alternatively, you can use the dialogue to steer Yurgir away from a fight entirely and opt to try to save him from his contract—though this does upset Astarion due to the deal you made with Raphael.

Begin by steering the conversation towards the pact with Raphael, then ask why he wanted the Dark Justiciars dead. An option can then be taken to persuade Yurgir to allow you to look for a way to save him from his contract by exploring. I had this option because I am a Ranger.

A large yellow circle will then appear on your map, highlighting where you can investigate to determine precisely what stops Yurgir’s contract from being fulfilled.

When speaking to the rats, you’ll discover they speak as one. Head to the coordinates X: -709 Y: -723, and you’ll find a book, One Becomes Many and a Broken Effigy, at the foot of a giant statue.

Interact with the Effigy, and a rat will spawn with a warning. Attack and kill the rat, which results in another dialogue scene before a swarm of rats attack. Each rat has very little health and can be killed on one hit, but many more will spawn. This is the perfect time to use AoE attacks, as you can kill several in one go.

After the rats are defeated, the last Justiciar will appear. Kill him and take his loot, and you can return to Yurgir having successfully broken his contract and completed the quest—leaving you free to take the last orb you need.

Even though you might have saved Yurgir, you’ll soon learn that Raphael always collects his debts, and the two agree to create a new contract, which means your effort was for naught.

Regardless of your choice, this is everything you need to know about whether you should kill Yurgir or save him in BG3.