The Blood of Dawnwalker Romance Guide: Anca, Lacra and Crake Relationship Paths

The Blood of Dawnwalker gives protagonist Coen considerable latitude in deciding which allies to trust, which personal stories to pursue and, eventually, who to become close to. According to a GamesRadar+ guide by Oscar Taylor-Kent and Joel Franey, three characters have emerged as known romance or relationship options: Laslea healer Anca, vampire ally Lacra and rebellion leader Crake.

These routes are tied less to a single hidden approval meter than to consistently following a character's connected quests and making the relationship intention clear when the game presents the opportunity. The reported paths are also relatively forgiving. GamesRadar+'s experience suggests players can disagree with a potential partner on major decisions without necessarily shutting down the romance, although showing care, honesty and interest remains a sensible approach.

There are spoilers below for character quests, late-game choices and relationship scenes.

How romance appears to work in The Blood of Dawnwalker

The broad structure of the known romances is similar. Coen needs to spend time with an eligible character through their optional and main-story-adjacent missions, then choose the more intimate response when a pivotal moment arrives. The game generally makes the tone of dialogue choices readable, distinguishing between friendly, hostile and romantic approaches. That should make it easier to express interest without treating every conversation as a guessing game.

GamesRadar+ reports that choosing the romantic option ultimately leads to an explicit scene for each currently identified route. Afterwards, Coen can discuss the encounter with the character involved and, in some cases, state an interest in seeing them again. However, the game's 30-day time limit and the urgency surrounding the wider conflict mean the reported routes do not allow players to repeatedly revisit those scenes as a routine activity.

The source's general advice is to be kind rather than cruel, address companions' personal quests in good time, make honest decisions rather than blindly agreeing with everyone, and openly declare romantic interest where possible. It also notes that taking upgrades for Coen may be beneficial. Still, the key takeaway is that quest progression matters: each of the three relationships is connected to a longer chain rather than a brief one-off conversation.

Anca romance: supporting Laslea's healer

Anca is introduced very early, during the prologue, and the game signals Coen's possible attraction before the pair have properly begun their relationship. Coen's siblings tease him about his interest in the former nun, who now serves as the learned healer of Laslea. Her history, including witchcraft-related baggage and anxiety about being an older woman, becomes important context for the more compassionate responses in her route.

One reported successful approach was to take opportunities to remain with Anca, treat her warmly and reassure her over the parts of her past that trouble her. This includes the early section in which she teaches Coen to brew medicine. Yet this is not apparently a strict requirement. Another player who chose to leave instead still retained the possibility of pursuing the relationship later. That flexibility is useful for players who made a prologue choice without knowing it might connect to a romance.

Likewise, an early decision in Anca's story does not appear to close the route. At the end of the quest Echoes of Silenced Bells, at St. Tryna's, Coen must decide what to do with notes, including whether to throw them into the fire. Based on the GamesRadar+ account, that choice did not prevent the romance from continuing.

The more important point is to stay with Anca's wider storyline after St. Tryna's. Her quests eventually direct Coen toward the Cathedral and the search for sword shards. Continuing far enough leads to a quest named The Font of Life. Players seeking Anca's romantic scene should use this stretch of the story to reinforce Coen's interest in her. After the quest, a return to the inn and a mutual acknowledgement of that attraction triggers the intimate outcome.

Anca's route therefore seems to be the most forgiving for players concerned that they may have mishandled early choices. The available evidence indicates that neither declining extra prologue time nor the St. Tryna's notes decision automatically ends the possibility. What matters more is engaging with her personal story and responding with empathy once the relationship becomes more direct.

Lacra romance: a dangerous alliance with limits

Lacra's route begins around Svartrau and the Cathedral area. Players can trigger the quest A Friend Like This near the Cathedral by following signs of a supernatural struggle. The same quest can also be initiated by slaying Ambrus. Its conclusion gives Coen an opportunity to forge an alliance with Lacra, an older Egyptian vampire who shares his desire to remove Brencis from Vale Sangora, even if her methods are frequently ruthless.

Her relationship path continues through further interactions and the quest Song of the Mountain. Notably, the reported romance remained available even when Coen pushed back against Lacra's violence. The GamesRadar+ playthrough denied her the chance to feed from a shepherd and chose to attack the Uriashi, yet still reached the romance option. That is a significant sign that Lacra does not require unquestioning agreement. Players can challenge her decisions and remain close enough to pursue the encounter.

The pivotal mission is an optional quest called The Night of Horrors, which becomes available when Lacra opens the path to Midnight Reckoning, the final questline that ends the game. In The Night of Horrors, Coen follows will-o'-wisps through a dangerous bog to locate the remains of another ancient vampire. The quest matters not only for the relationship scene but also for decisions concerning Lacra's eventual fate, making it especially important for anyone invested in her story.

At the end, Coen discovers Mandrakes, a blood-magic power source that Lacra compares to the nearest thing vampires have to drunkenness. The crucial choice is to accept the Mandrake. Refusing it ends the quest prematurely, so players pursuing Lacra should not turn it down. Going along with the experience leads to Lacra offering Coen her blood, which develops into a proposition. Accepting that proposition triggers the romance scene.

There is an important emotional distinction to Lacra's outcome. Coen wakes alone afterward, a circumstance linked to his ability as a Dawnwalker to move through the morning sun. When he speaks with Lacra at her ruined base, she says that she enjoyed their time together but is not seeking a serious relationship. The outcome GamesRadar+ reached did not appear to directly decide her fate, but it is a more casual connection than the route offered by Crake.

Crake romance: the rebellion route

Crake, whose birth name is Marat, leads the rebellion against Brencis. His romance is entwined with the rebel storyline and can be started soon after the prologue. Players can save Mert the Miller, follow the information he provides and meet the Manumits. Crake then asks Coen to build infamy before arranging a meeting in the city, setting the stage for a longer investigation involving a winged monster.

The broad role-playing advice for Crake is to treat him fairly and understand the immense pressure placed on him as a guerrilla leader. The source advises against excessively questioning his methods or condemning every hard decision. He responds best to someone who recognizes the burdens and compromises involved in his fight against Brencis.

Continue his chain until Crake suffers a shoulder injury. Coen can then offer to help remove his armour and tend to the wound, a scene that clearly establishes the sexual tension between them. This is not the final romance trigger, though. Afterwards, players receive several quests and should prioritize the mission Crake provides concerning a man named Ascar: Distant Shadows.

Once Distant Shadows is complete, return to report back. Crake becomes angry and leaves, which begins the time-locked quest A Closer Look. Meeting him outside town advances the conversation to a kiss. Coen can kiss him back, producing the romance scene.

Of the three reported paths, Crake's carries the strongest suggestion of a longer-term future. In the aftermath, he admits that the rebellion leaves little room in his life for a sustained relationship at present. However, he says he is willing to be with Coen after Brencis is removed. That makes the rebel leader the only known romance option described as offering a potential commitment beyond the immediate crisis.

Choosing the right relationship path

Players looking for a specific tone can use these outcomes as a guide. Anca's route is built around empathy, her past and a steadily developing bond. Lacra's is tied to a perilous vampire quest and ends, at least in the outcome currently documented, as an explicitly noncommittal encounter. Crake's demands investment in the rebellion and patience with time-limited quest progression, but it offers the clearest prospect of a relationship once the conflict is over.

Since the documented routes are accommodating of some disagreement, players should not assume every imperfect dialogue decision has permanently ruined a romance. The safest plan is to keep pursuing the relevant character's quests, avoid delaying time-sensitive steps such as Crake's A Closer Look, and choose direct romantic responses when the game presents them. With the 30-day pressure hanging over Vale Sangora, prioritizing the character whose story matters most to Coen may be as important as any individual line of dialogue.