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Easily the best part about Pillars of Eternity isn’t necessarily the combat or the unique classes you can choose. Instead, it is the characters known as companions that join your party. The companions shape and are shaped by everything that happens in the story. One of the best companions is the one featured in this Pallegina Pillars of Eternity guide.
Pallegina is, by far, one of the more complex characters that I appreciate. She was one of my favorites to use in the first game when I played it because of her playstyle, which complemented my Chanter nicely and her backstory. She is present in both the original Pillars of Eternity and its sequel, which means you get to spend a lot of time with her. Find out how to do just that in this Pallegina Pillars of Eternity guide.
Bottom Line Up Front
Pallegina mes Rei is one of the core companions you can recruit to your party in both Pillars of Eternity games. She is a member of the godlike avian race and has a sometimes rough personality that strictly follows her orders and what she believes in without compromise.
That said, Pallegina is one of the most valuable companions you could have since she is one of the few returning characters who are available for your party in both the original Pillars of Eternity and its sequel, Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. Because of this, players get a lot of time to shape her life and character.
Pallegina Overview
Pallegina mes Rei is one of the most substantial party members you can recruit in both Pillars of Eternity games. This is surprising since there are so few options like that in both games. As such, she is one of the core anchors of the story and party that is familiar to the player.
I love Pallegina for that, even if she can be a frustrating character to deal with at times. She is a Paladin who is a staunch believer in following her superiors’ orders. In this way, she is a tough nut to crack, but she can also be one of the most rewarding characters to learn about.
This is especially the case if you play Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. Her companion quest in this particular game is one of the best in the entire series. It can take a lot to get there, though, and she isn’t the most friendly with the other companions who join your party. Here’s everything you need to know about her.
Appearance
When it comes to Pallegina’s appearance, I am mainly basing this off of her portrait that is seen in Deadfire. In this sequel game, we can clearly see the front of her face. She is an avian godlike, which gives her an intriguing appearance that is a mix of humans and this supernatural avian race.
This is primarily seen in her human features on the face that are complemented by these almost peacock-like feathers. These avian features replace the hair that an average human would have with gorgeous richly blue feathers that contrast nicely with the golden eyes she has. Other than that, she wears plain silver Paladin armor.
Backstory Explained
Before you ever meet Pallegina mes Rei, she goes through 26 years of hardship to the point at which you meet her. She was the only child of a leader of a village. At childbirth, her birth rendered her mother unable to have more children, and her father to resent her for this.
Over time, she learned of the Brotherhood of the Five Suns and how free they were in their adventures and missions. In the end, her father sold his daughter to the company for his own benefit. Despite being a male-only organization, the Brotherhood inevitably let Pallegina join due to her godlike nature.
She grew up during her time as a recruit in the Brotherhood and her only friend was Giacolo, who you meet and learn more about in Deadfire, so I won’t spoil his story here. But know that she faced immense harassment and bullying due to her unique status in the group.
Eventually, she was able to pass her test at 20 and formally join the Brotherhood as an actual Paladin. In time, she followed orders but occasionally went rogue to find the truth behind a situation to protect the Republics from danger.
This led to her investigating animancy as a significant threat to the entire existence of the Republics. Unfortunately, she was reprimanded for doing this and found herself lying in wait as a simple guard while waiting for a chance to strike. That leads to her meeting the player in the original Pillars of Eternity.
How to Unlock Pallegina as a Companion
There are a few ways to recruit Pallegina to your party, depending on your status with her and how things work out. It is even possible to not even recruit her in the second game, depending on how things go with her storyline in the original. Here are all of the ways to recruit her.
Pillars of Eternity
Pillars of Eternity is by far the easier way to recruit Pallegina to your team. You can get her to join you while you are in Ondra’s Gift so long as you have finished the quest At All Costs. There is nothing else you need to do other than speak with her after this quest and agree to let her join the team for her investigation’s purposes.
Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire
The second game is quite different when it comes to recruiting Pallegina. Since you can directly affect how her story plays out in the end, this directly affects where she is, what she’s doing, and, most importantly, what she thinks of you.
Some slight spoilers are ahead for those who haven’t played the original and beaten it, so turn away now if that’s you. Her companion quest, The Child of Five Suns, determines what Pallegina is up to in this game.
The easiest option for recruiting her is if you make sure that Pallegina follows her orders to the tee. Alternatively, if she disobeyed but was forgiven for her actions (it’s up to the player to make sure this happens), then she will be at the Kahanga Palace, where you can efficiently recruit her.
On the other hand, if she disobeyed and you didn’t make sure she was forgiven for this, you’ll find her in Queen’s Berth. Here, you’ll need to try and recruit her, but she will reject you. Then, later on, you can find her at the Vailian Trading Company Headquarters, where she will formally join you, though don’t expect her to be friendly.
Lastly, note that she can leave your party for numerous reasons throughout Deadfire if you make the wrong choice, and she disagrees with it.
How to Best Use Pallegina in Combat
Once you have Pallegina on your team, there are a few different ways to take advantage of her powers and skills. I will break down below how to best use her in battle in terms of who to pair her with on your team, the three classes she can have in Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire, and much more. Let’s get started in using her to the fullest.
Companion Synergy
For starters, there is how Pallegina works in combat. She is a melee user, for the most part, who can be an excellent striker or tank-like character. She can deal hefty damage and take some heavy damage at the same time, depending on the class she has.
When it comes to the first Pillars of Eternity, she is more set in her powers and abilities, so there isn’t much customization here. In addition, she works pretty well with everyone in the group, for the most part, so that she can be a valuable ally on your team, no matter the makeup.
That said, I suggest pairing her with magical or ranged users as she can be a fantastic tank-like character for the party. If you are a magic user like myself, then she is an excellent partner. I also recommend adding characters like Sagani, Kana Rua, or Hiravias to your team.
When it comes to Pillars of Eternity 2, it is a different story. Pallegina can change her playstyle quite a bit more and has a harsh relationship with many of the group members. As such, I only suggest partnering her in this game with characters like Serafen, Aloth, and maybe Tekehu. Just beware that your party is likely to disagree often, depending on who you have with Pallegina.
Classes Explained
Pallegina is primarily a set character in the original Pillars of Eternity, but she can change up quite a bit in the second game. Here, there are three class options that you can switch between for the companion. The three options that you have are Crusader, Paladin, and Herald classes.
Crusader
Crusader is one of the many multi-classes you can have in Pillars of Eternity 2. This one is a mix of Fighter and Paladin, which gives more of an emphasis on attacking enemies and dealing damage. This is less of a focus on the tank aspects of the character.
As such, this particular class is mainly for the players who don’t mind sacrificing some of the defensive capabilities that Pallegina has for dealing the most damage that she possibly can in combat. I don’t mind the Crusader class for her, but she is honestly my least favorite of the three since I think there are better uses for her in the other two options.
Paladin (Frermas mes Canc Suolias)
The second option is to keep Pallegina in her home of the Paladin class. Here, she will gain the unique subclass that is Frermas mes Canc Suolias, otherwise known as the Brotherhood of the Five Suns subclass. This particular subclass is unique to her and grants the Sworn Enemy ability.
I love this ability because it emphasizes the tank nature of Pallegina and mainly makes her worthwhile during certain boss fights. She will mark an enemy and deal more damage to them. If you upgrade it to Wrath of the Five Suns, she will shoot out projectiles that deal immense damage to the target.
This makes her one of the better options for boss fights, and I like this class.
Herald
The final option is to make Pallegina into a Herald, which is a multiclass that mixes up Chanter and Paladin. I like this one because it gives so much more utility to Pallegina. She is able to use the tank abilities as before, but she now has the option of being a full support character in every way.
She’ll be able to take a hit, heal up the team, and use some of the chants that a Chanter has. I think this is one of the best routes for taking her character in the second game since it turns her into one of the ultimate support characters in the game, freeing up the rest of the team to be the damage dealers.
Companion Quests
There are a couple of companion quests that involve Pallegina and her backstory. You’ll want to do both of them as they significantly affect what happens in both games regarding her character. The first of these is The Child of Five Suns in Pillars of Eternity, followed by The Man of Chimes in Deadfire. Here’s everything you need to know about both Pallegina companion quests.
The Child of Five Suns (Pillars of Eternity)
Image from Fandom
The Child of Five Suns is the first companion quest for Pallegina and the only one available in the original Pillars of Eternity. You can start this one as soon as Pallegina joins your team, but you won’t honestly be able to complete it as soon as you get it.
This is due to some events that need to happen first and the fact that you need to be able to visit Twin Elms for the quest. That said, once you reach Act 3 in the game, you’ll be able to see The Child of Five Suns to its conclusion.
Without spoiling much, the story involves the investigation that is at the heart of Pallegina’s backstory. As you likely know, she is investigating animancy behind the backs of the dukes who don’t want her doing that. You get to help in her investigation to find the truth and determine her fate in the process, which directly affects the next game.
The Man of Chimes (Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire)
The Man of Chimes is the one companion quest for Pallegina in Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire. Unlike the first game’s quest, you can’t do this one as soon as she joins your team. Instead, you’ll need to head to The Sacred Stair and visit the Spire of Soul Seers here.
Once you do so, Pallegina will bring up her childhood friend from the Brotherhood, Giacolo, who played a massive role in her life up until this point. He is in dire need of being saved, and this quest takes you on a path to determining the fate of Giacolo and dredging up Pallegina’s past.
The events that happen in this quest determine what Pallegina’s ending is in this game and what you’ll find out about her in the epilogue-style sequence that reveals what happens to everyone. You get the most out of this quest if you play the first game since you’ll be more invested in everything Pallegina is going through.
Can You Romance Pallegina?
Lastly, you may be wondering if you are able to romance Pallegina in Pillars of Eternity and its sequel. After all, she is one of the only companions to return in the sequel game. Unfortunately, no, she isn’t one of the options for romance in this game.
In fact, if you try to flirt with her, she will outright reject you. This could be down to a personal preference matter, the presence of her oath to serve the Brotherhood, or even her godlike nature, which means that she is unable to bear children. Regardless, she is unavailable for romance in both games, so look elsewhere for this type of companionship in the party.
FAQs
Question: How do you get Pallegina in Pillars of Eternity?
Answer: You can get Pallegina to join your party in Pillars of Eternity by heading to Ondra’s Gift after completing the quest At All Costs. She is relatively easy to locate at this point in the game, and honestly hard to miss her. Getting her in Pillars of Eternity 2 is more challenging since it depends on what happened in the first game.
Question: Can you get Pallegina and Maia?
Answer: During Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire, you’ll be asked if you want help from Pallegina or Maia. You can get both of them to join your party at the same time by asking for both of them to help you out. It is possible to have both join your team in this game, even if they don’t necessarily like each other.
Question: Can you romance Aloth in Pillars of Eternity?
Answer: Yes, it is possible to romance Aloth in Pillars of Eternity, unlike Pallegina, who is not able to be romanced. That said, Aloth is one of the tricker people to romance in this game, so be prepared to have some patience.
Who to Check Out Next in Pillars of Eternity
Pallegina is one of the best characters in the two Pillars of Eternity games, mostly for the simple fact that she is one of the only ones in both titles. Unlike most of the other companions and party members in these games, she is present in both titles and, therefore, has more time with the player.
Because of this, you find out a lot more about her motivations and backstory, and you can be much more invested in her life. It makes what happens with her much more impactful and intriguing than some of the other characters who are only present in the story for one game.
If you want to find out about the other person who carries over to Pillars of Eternity 2 from the original game and all of the other companions in that game, be sure to check out our complete list of companions here. This will help you determine who are the best characters to add to your party when you play through the game.
