Crake is not the kind of character who opens up easily. He's the leader of the Manumits, a rebel faction fighting to bring down the vrakhiri ruling Vale Sangora, and he carries that weight in every conversation. But if you put in the work across several quests in The Blood of Dawnwalker, the camaraderie between Coen and Crake can turn into something far more personal.
Here's the lowdown on exactly what it takes.
Getting inside the Manumits first
You cannot romance Crake without joining his crew, and the Manumits don't exactly hand out membership cards. The path starts with completing the Firebrand quest right out of the prologue. That leads into Shadows in the Woods, where you first meet Crake alongside his lieutenants Drogos and Sara.
The group doesn't trust Coen at this point, so you'll need to grind your Infamy level up to level 4 (Notorious) before the faction's questline properly opens. Once that threshold is hit, the Where Loyalty Lies quest step shifts and you gain access to the Manumits hideout. That's when the real relationship-building begins.
The quests that build the bond
Three quests form the backbone of Crake's romance arc, and each one requires specific choices to keep things moving in the right direction.
What Hunts the Night gives you the first real window into Crake as a person. When Coen and Crake end up hiding together from soldiers, you get a string of dialogue options to draw him out. Asking about Sara, acknowledging his visible distress, and sharing Coen's own grief (referencing Alin if you've completed Home Sweet Home) all contribute to building genuine rapport. These aren't just flavor moments. They set the emotional foundation for everything that follows.
What Moves the Dead picks up after the pair escape from the crypts. Choosing to walk Crake back to the hideout costs 1 Time Segment, but it's worth it. You'll learn his real name is Marat, and inside the hideout you get the chance to bandage his wounds. Selecting "Let me help" here keeps the relationship on track.
Then comes Distant Shadows, which can look like a side errand but is non-negotiable for the romance. You tail a man named Ascar through the village, staying out of sight of patrolling soldiers. At the end, Ascar gets confronted. Back at the hideout, you need to be honest with Crake about what you witnessed. He storms off, Drogos tells you where he went, and you commit to going after him.
The romance scene and what it reveals
The payoff arrives in A Closer Look, a time-sensitive quest that must be completed within the same in-game cycle. Head to the marked location and work through the conversation carefully:
- "May I join you then?"
- "I'm worried about you. What's wrong?"
- "Please, just tell the truth about Ascar."
- "Hey, nothing you say can change the way I see you."
These choices lead to one of the more quietly affecting moments in the game. Crake reveals that Ascar is his father, and that their estrangement stems from his dad discovering his sexuality. It's a genuinely well-written beat, not melodramatic, just honest. Crake kisses Coen, who gets startled, and then the choice is yours: select [Kiss him back] to complete the romance.
Afterward, the conversation continues. Coen can share that his mother may have known he was bisexual, and the two reach a real understanding. From there, Crake opens up about his plan to take down Brencis, setting up his own finale quest arc.
Crake alongside the other romance options
Crake's arc is more layered than a typical companion romance because it's tied directly to faction progression. You're not just choosing dialogue options in isolation; you're building a whole relationship with the Manumits as an organization. That context makes the eventual payoff feel earned rather than scripted.
If you're working through all of Coen's potential relationships, the romance guide for Anca and the Lacra romance walkthrough cover the other major paths in similar detail. Each one has its own quest dependencies and dialogue windows, so tracking them across a single playthrough takes some planning. Keep your controllers ready and check the full The Blood of Dawnwalker guides collection for everything else you'll need across Coen's journey.
