Hi everyone! As someone who's poured over 300 hours into Baldur's Gate 3 🎮, certain NPCs and their stories just stick with me. While many players talk about the heart-wrenching potential of Alfira the Bard, there's one character I can't get out of my head, a character who feels like a ghost of a grander design. Meet Ellyka ✨, the Tiefling you find hiding from Githyanki near Waukeen's Rest. Every new playthrough, her presence feels like a whisper of a missed opportunity—a potential companion whose story was left on the cutting-room floor. She's the subject of my little tin-foil-hat theory 🧢, and I just have to share why I think she was meant to be our Ranger.

🏹 Ellyka's Lone Ranger Potential

Let's set the scene. You're trekking towards the Mountain Pass, past Waukeen's Rest, and you come across a Tiefling named Ellyka. She's terrified, hiding from a Githyanki patrol and their fearsome Red Dragon 🐉. You can have a brief chat where she warns you about the Gith. Here's the kicker: the dialogue tree actually gives you an option to ask Ellyka to join your party! She declines, of course, but the option itself is a clue. Why would Larian include that specific prompt for a random NPC unless she was once considered for more?

ellyka-the-lost-ranger-companion-of-baldur-s-gate-3-image-0

Now, let's look at her stats and fighting style. Ellyka wields a bow 🏹 and possesses the classic high Dexterity and Wisdom scores. Any D&D veteran will tell you: that's the Ranger archetype. It immediately clicked for me. We get a Ranger companion, Minsc, but only in Act Three. Out of all the classic Dungeons & Dragons classes, Ranger is one of the few not represented by an origin character in BG3. Just like how I first thought Alfira was our missing Bard, I started to wonder—was Ellyka once meant to be our early-game Ranger?

🌿 Two Rangers? We Already Have Two Druids!

I can hear the counter-argument already: "But we get Minsc later! Why have two Rangers?" Here's my counterpoint: Jaheira and Halsin are both Druids 🌳.

  • Halsin: Our lovable bear-shifting Druid recruited in Act One/Two.

  • Jaheira: The legendary Harper Druid who joins in Act Two/Three.

The game already allows for duplicate classes among companions, using them to explore different subclasses and narrative roles. So, why couldn't an Act One Ranger (Ellyka) and an Act Three Ranger (Minsc) coexist? It would offer players more flexibility in party composition from the very start!

Think about the introduction timeline:

Companion Class Recruitment Act
Karlach Barbarian Act One
Potential Ellyka Ranger Act One (Theory)
Halsin Druid Act One/Two
Jaheira Druid Act Two/Three
Minsc Ranger Act Three

Ellyka could have been introduced not long after Karlach, potentially even as an origin character with her own dark past tied to the Githyanki. Having more origin options would have been a blessing, especially for players new to D&D's complex systems.

🎭 Why BG3 Needed More Class Coverage

I usually play a custom Tav, but I love the origin characters. They forced me to play classes I'd otherwise ignore!

  • Shadowheart turned me into a Cleric believer 🙏.

  • Gale made Evocation Wizard my go-to magic choice 🔥.

  • Wyll gave the Warlock class a compelling, heroic sheen.

Having a wider roster helps everyone:

  • 🆕 New Players: Have a guided, pre-built experience for each class.

  • 🗺️ Solo Players: Can build a perfectly balanced, full-coverage party.

  • 📖 Lore Lovers: Get more woven-in stories and companion quests.

Ranger, Bard, Monk, and Sorcerer are missing from the origin crew. Ellyka could have filled that Ranger-shaped hole in our hearts (and our party slots).

ellyka-the-lost-ranger-companion-of-baldur-s-gate-3-image-1

💀 The Ghost of a Questline: The Blood of Lathander

This is the part that really cements my theory. If you find Ellyka later in the game... she's dead in a Githyanki Crèche cell 😢. Using Speak with Dead reveals she came to the monastery searching for the legendary Blood of Lathander mace.

This isn't just random flavor text! This could have been Ellyka's companion quest 🗺️. Imagine traveling with her, uncovering her reasons for seeking the mace, facing the Githyanki who captured her, and ultimately claiming the artifact together. It would perfectly tie a companion's personal story into a major Act One loot objective. Instead, it's a tragic, underdeveloped footnote.

ellyka-the-lost-ranger-companion-of-baldur-s-gate-3-image-2

😔 A Moment of Wasted Potential

We know Larian cut content—it's part of any game's development. Maybe Ellyka was always meant to be a brief encounter. But every time I see her, hiding and afraid, and then later find her corpse with a grand, unfulfilled purpose... I feel that pang of wasted potential. She had the stats, the intro, the hinted quest, and the missing class slot. To me, she stands alongside Alfira as one of BG3's most intriguing "what-if" characters.

So, next time you're on the path to the Mountain Pass, give a thought to Ellyka, the Ranger who never was. What stories could she have told? What adventures did we miss? Let me know if you've ever felt the same about an NPC! 💬

#BaldursGate3 #BG3 #RPG #Gaming #DND #Companions #LarianStudios #Ellyka #Ranger #CutContent