The Baldur's Gate 3 Soul Coins are mysterious coins that you'll discover while exploring and completing quests across the world. The description also reads that they can power infernal machines, and once you get to know one of Baldur's Gate 3's most beloved characters: Karlach, you'll find they can be used to power her up. Past that, this slightly harrowing currency is used in Avernus, the hell-like region you might remember flying through on the Mindflayer ship at the start of the game. .
Putting aside any moral qualms you have about buying something with a literal soul—those devils sure know how to party, huh—Soul Coins are extremely valuable items that are well worth holding onto. Here, I'll explain every Soul Coin location I've found so far, plus the specifics of what you can actually do with them.
Baldur's Gate 3 Soul Coin locations - Act 1
Dank Crypt
There are three Soul Coins in the Dank Crypt area of the Overgrown Ruins, near where the Nautiloid crashes on the Ravaged Beach. Get here by heading east from the Roadside Cliffs waypoint, then you can either head through the main door or shoot the hanging rock in the Chapel Entrance and jump down through the hole it makes. Either way, you'll have to fight some bandits, but if you go in the second way I mentioned, you can shoot an explosive barrel through the door that will deal with them all. Now, activate the switch on the wall at the back of the library and head into the Dank Crypt.
You can also head further east past the entrance and lockpick a hatch to get into the Dank Crypt straight away, but it has a difficulty rating of 20 so that's less of a sure thing. Either way, once inside, here is where to find the Soul Coins:
- The first coin is located in the room with the giant sarcophagus at the south end of the Dank Crypt, specifically in the right-hand sarcophagus on the room's west side. I'd recommend grabbing this before you loot the main sarcophagus, setting off the fire trap.
- The second coin is located in a sarcophagus in a side room to the west of the area with the big statue and the Entombed Acolyte corpses.
- The third coin is inside Wither's sarcophagus. You'll find this hidden in a room behind the big statue, but pressing the button that opens the door will wake the acolytes. After they're beaten, wake him up, then loot his coffin. Be sure to grab the Amulet of Lost Voices from the nearby chest since it lets you speak to the dead.
Nadira and the Bugbear
You can get the fourth Soul Coin by saving Nadira from a Bugbear Assassin. Once inside the Emerald Grove, head east up to the top of the little rocky outcrop where you can see a Tiefling with a telescope. As you approach, the assassin will appear, and combat will begin. It isn't a hard fight and theoretically, if you let Nadira die, you should be able to loot the Soul Coin from her corpse, or you can potentially pickpocket her. Whatever you choose, if you save her, you can then get the coin by using Deception or feigning ignorance before rolling Persuasion or Intimidation.
Toll House balcony
Fittingly, there's also a Soul Coin available right near where you first find Karlach. In The Risen Road area, there's a large hill with a toll house on it. If you go outside on the south side of the toll house, there's a porch with a ladder leading up to a balcony area. Laying right there on the ground for the taking is a single Soul Coin, no strings attached.
Baldur's Gate 3 Soul Coin locations - Act 2
Reithwin Tollhouse basement
Just across the bridge into Reithwin Town is the Tollhouse, full of spooky floating ghost skulls and a variety of gold and mysteries to unravel. But if you poke your head outside of the building on the south side, you'll find a locked door into the basement that you can lockpick—or unlock using the key, located on a skeleton up on the roof of the Tollhouse. Inside the basement, you'll need to pass a Perception check to see the button that moves aside the bookcases to reveal the hidden room. Among other rewards, there's a Soul Coin just sitting on the table inside.
Lann Tarv, Moonrise Towers
Once you get to Moonrise Towers in act 2, you can get three Soul Coins provided you have Karlach in your party and speak to the Bugbear, Lann Tarv. He'll give you the coins provided you listen to three very sad stories about the souls contained within each. You can find Lann Tarv in the main hall where you enter, on the left side.
Baldur's Gate 3 Soul Coin locations - Act 3
Peartree's Mailbox, Lower City
Once you've made it into Baldur's Gate proper, you can head to Peartree's boarded up house in the Lower City. You can teleport to Heapside Strand, then jog up two flights of stairs and up the road to the right to find the boarded up house. Right next to the door is a mailbox, with a Soul Coin ready for you to grab up.
Peartree's Home, Lower City
There are two Soul Coins in the basement of Peartree's Home in the Lower City, contained within a strongbox. You'll want to teleport to Heapside Strand, go up the two flights of stairs, head right up the street, and smash the boards off the door to the house. The cellar hatch is hidden under the suitcase on the right. Now, just head into the next room and look behind the door to see the strongbox.
Nortale's Hostel, Lower City
Right across from the Basilisk Gate barracks is Nortale's Hostel, a small two story building with a few NPC's hanging out inside. At the top of the stairs is the dormitory area, and right at the top of the steps is a locked rustic chest. While the chest is marked red for stealing, the only NPC upstairs is staring out the window, and totally oblivious if you decide to lockpick your way in to claim a Soul Coin.
Philgrave's Mansion, Lower City
You can find a Soul Coin in Philgrave's Mansion, close to the Heapside Strand waypoint, in the Lower City during Act 3. This location is tied to Mystic Carrion quest to find Thrumbo, but you can get inside by lockpicking a stone door on the west side of the house. The upper floors are filled with ghouls, so watch out, but if you head to the east side of the house to the room filled with gore, there's a Soul Coin in the viscera pile on the table.
Raphael's Safe, The House of Hope
There are a whopping five Soul Coins contained within Raphael's bedroom safe in the House of Hope in act 3. You'll have to pickpocket the archivist in the archives to get a bedroom invitation allowing you through the barrier, and then sneak up the left side of the room, avoiding Haarlep's line of sight from the bed. Disarm the trapped painting and then press the button below to reveal the safe behind it. Pick the safe lock and you can claim the Soul Coins.
What are Soul Coins for?
If you read the description, it mentions that these coins power infernal engines, and if you pass an Arcana check when you acquire the one from Nadira, it'll further explain that these coins are used as currency in Avernus—essentially, the game's hell region. Soul Coins do have a more immediate purpose, though.
Once you recruit Karlach near the Risen Road, she can consume a Soul Coin to power up the infernal machine inside her, granting the Infernal Fury condition until Long Rest. This adds 1-4 fire damage to her melee attacks when she's Raging or her HP is below 25%. Since Patch 2, the Infernal Fury condition will also add 2-8 fire damage to all unarmed strikes, with no need for rage or low HP. These coins are quite rare, though, so spend 'em wisely.
Can you free a soul from a soul coin?
Unfortunately, not in Baldur's Gate 3—you're stuck just wishing you could do the right thing.
Though there are ways to in D&D itself, where Soul Coins also exist. In Forgotten Realms—where Baldur's Gate 3 is set—Soul Coins are made from infernal iron and infused with a single soul. They also give special powers, allowing you to commune telepathically with the soul of the person held inside, or to drain the life out of another creature. Most importantly, you could free the soul inside them by using remove curse, something we sadly cannot do in Baldur's Gate 3.
