Baldur’s Gate 3’s Most Controversial Choice is Also Its Easiest

Highlights

• In Baldur’s Gate 3, players have the choice to be heroic or villainous, but the majority of players avoid returning the beloved dog Scratch to a cruel kennel master.
• Scratch is a former courier dog that players can adopt and interact with, and he quickly becomes a popular and useful companion in the game.
• When players reach Act 3, they have the opportunity to save Scratch from the abusive kennel master, and doing so earns approval from multiple companions. Abandoning Scratch is one of the few cruel actions that players tend to avoid, even on evil playthroughs.

True to its Dungeons and Dragons inspiration, Baldur’s Gate 3 features many choices that players can make throughout the game. Players can opt to be heroic, helping refugees, saving people in need, and defending the weak. Alternately, many villainous choices are also available – in particular, selecting the Dark Urge origin allows players to embrace murder and violence. Among these less-than-heroic choices, however, there is one which the majority of Baldur’s Gate 3 players avoid even on evil playthroughs: returning lovable dog Scratch to the cruel kennel master.

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Scratch Is A Former Courier Dog The Party Can Adopt

Scratch, an adorable white dog encountered in Act 1 of the game, quickly won the hearts of many Baldur’s Gate 3 players. Initially discovered guarding the corpse of his former master, Scratch can be invited to live in the party’s camp. Characters can pet him and play fetch with him; sometimes, he even brings useful items to the player. If treated well enough, Scratch becomes summonable as a familiar and can search for treasure in the overworld.

While many of Baldur’s Gate 3’s characters have quickly become popular among fans, Scratch is one of the most universally beloved. He is both useful and cute, and giving him a pet or playing a round of fetch is a great way to relax after some of the game’s darker moments. Scratch is also loved for his polite personality – when spoken to using “Speak With Animals,” he is friendly and cheerful, always inquiring after the player’s health.

Returning Scratch To His Owner Likely Dooms Him

When players reach Rivington in Act 3 of Baldur’s Gate 3, they can find the Sword Coast Couriers and learn that Scratch was a former courier dog kept here. However, it is clear from the moment players step into the kennel yard that this is not a good place for the dogs. The kennel master, Angry Mar’hyah, is a cruel and abusive woman who mistreats the dogs (and employees) under her care. When spoken to via “Speak With Animals,” the dogs in the kennels confirm that she often loses her temper with them, and they are treated poorly.

Scratch’s Fate Is In The Player’s Hands

If Scratch is summoned when interacting with Mar’hyah, players will have to pass a Persuasion check to prevent her from taking him back. Then, players can pass an Intimidation or Deception check to convince Mar’hyah to leave her job at the kennels entirely. Saving Scratch and driving Mar’hyah off earns approval from multiple companions, including Jaheira, Gale, and Halsin. Uniquely, players can also attack and kill Mar’hyah with a much lower-than-usual chance of earning punishment – her beleaguered assistant “Oyster Boy” will not report the player even if he witnesses the entire thing. “Oyster Boy” will in fact help players free the remaining courier dogs, even at the cost of his job.

There are several instances in which a player can cruelly turn over characters who trusted them to another, but Scratch’s is easily the most painful. Other moments like this one include:

• Turning Shadowheart over to the Sharran Mother Superior.
• Sacrificing Jaheira or Minsc to Bhaal’s Murder Tribunal.
• Returning Astarion to his ex-master Cazador.
• Giving the Nightsong to ambitious wizard Lorroakan.
• Letting Ketheric Thorm capture Isobel.

While there are many opportunities for “evil for evil’s sake” in Baldur’s Gate 3, ranging from torturing an injured bird to removing potential companion Gale’s hand, abandoning Scratch is one of the few the majority of players avoid. It doesn’t help that there’s no reward for abandoning the poor dog – Mar’hyah becomes aggressive should players ask for gold, and giving him back removes the “Summon Scratch” option permanently. Protecting this very good dog and keeping him safe at camp is something that even the most eager of Dark Urges will likely choose.