MARREND PLAYS THE WITCHER 3 - WILD HUNT!

I might not be entirely certain about this game, but, let's start things off with the "Story and Sword!" difficulty mode. Which I approximate as a "normal" difficulty, with the "story mode" being one difficulty mode tier under it. We'll see how this mode pans out, and how long I last before pushing it down to "story mode". Hopefully, I'll last longer than The Outer Worlds in this regard.

With that out of the way we see a pair of old men investigating a scene, and interspersed with it, flashbacks to a battle, and a woman that seems to be the subject of their search. The scene ends, and we find ourselves possibly transferred even further back in time, at some kind of manor house, or a fortress, or other such location. Our protagonist, Geralt of Rivia, is taking a bath, and on the other side of the room is a woman facing away from the camera, reading a book, wearing only a towel wrapped around her hair. Geeze, not even five minutes into this game, and there's nudity!

The lady in the chair is Yennifer of Vengerberg, and she prods the old warrior to hurry by means of a summoned scorpion. I don't want to go so far as to consider that these two are married, but, it's certainly clear that the two are very close to each other. Either way, our task is now to meet with Ciri. There's a few objects to interact with in the room, as well as talking with Yennefer. For full disclosure, I used the in-game codex to grab the full names/titles of these characters, but, I will likely only use their given names from here on out.

Down the stairs triggers a cut scene with Vesemir, who I think was the other guy in the investigation cut-scene. I check the codex again when I can, and see the entry for Ciri. Her full name is the most extravagant yet, but, writing it here when no character would likely speak it feels a bit off? That aside, the entry pretty much confirmed my suspicions that she's Geralt's daughter.

After a bit of a run/chase along the rooftops (what is this, Assassin's Creed?), and an in-game tutorials about climbing and running, we meet up with a group of witchers. The game delves into a training session, which includes a combat tutorial. Yeah, let's take that tutorial!

The game allows me to practice what I learned after the initial points of training concerning the use of dodging, parries, counterattacks, and sigil use. I do so for a bit before continuing. Ciri sends the helmet of a training dummy over the ramparts, and she climbs to fetch it. After the others disperse, Geralt calls out to her, asking if she's found the helm, but no response is heard. He calls out again, with a touch more urgency, but, again, no response. He looks back at the training dummy, and notices something... odd. That's not straw under there! That's... a person? What?

The scene shifts to being completely frozen over, with a wraith/lich speaking about a White... something? Sorry, there doesn't seem to be a pause function with these cutscenes, and I don't see any cross-referencing with the in-game codex either. Either way, the lich has an axe, and Geralt can only watch in terror as the blade descends upon the frozen body of Ciri...



...then he wakes up. Now that we're back to the present, we have Geralt confide with Vesemir about the nightmare. The two get up to move at first light, eventually to be set upon by ghouls. This is my first "real" fight in this game, and while I do my best in regards to the combat training that the tutorial provided, I still get hit a few times before the encounter is over.

The two mount their horses, and have a conversation along the road about various matters that, if I must be fully honest, I barely pay much attention to. However, if you thought that we'd get to the town, the main road, or wherever these two are headed, without a fight, you'd be wrong.

Our next point of story is, in fact, a fight. This time with a griffin. The two witchers manage to scare it away, but, the beast takes a horse with it. The owner is still alive, though, and presumes we want money. If we managed to kill the griffin, maybe I'd be more inclined to accept payment. Since it's still alive, I let this be a freebie. I dunno, maybe we chase it down later, but, our story main priority right now is to find Yennifer, who, yes, is the person these two are trying to track down.

The passing conversation about Yennifer allows us a bit of a lead from the peasant we just saved. His cousin runs a nearby inn, and we might learn Yennifer's whereabouts, as well as treatment for the wound that Vesemir took during the fight with the griffin, there. The game doesn't seem to allow me to save until we hit that village, and talk to the innkeeper. I make some idle conversation before talking to her about Yennifer, or seeing what inventory she has. Nothing I have can be sold to her, so, I keep my purchases minimal.

After closing the dialog, Vesemir sits at a table, and the game sets me free to save, or talk to the villagers about either the story, or possibly get some side-quests. I absolutely take the opportunity to save, and take a bit of a breather before continuing. Maybe I can be a bit more vigilant about taking screencaps as well, but, we'll see.

Anyway, I saw a few Gwent cards in the shop, so, I kinda wonder if I can get a game in? Do I need to have a certain amount of cards in my inventory to even play? Well, maybe I can ask around this inn, rather than ask this thread!



Well, what would you know. Second NPC I talked to. The game doesn't quite grab me as much as Acromage, but, it's certainly has it's layers of strategy. Though, perhaps if I actually managed to win a game, or even a single bout, my opinion might be a tad different. I think I saw a separate difficulty level specifically for the Gwent mini-game in the game options. I didn't touch it, so, I'm playing at the default level. However, even at this difficulty level, I can't help but to suspect the AI cheats with it's plays, or just has a better array of cards than I do.

The very next NPC I talk to has a bit of information for me. Apparently, the lady went past a barracks to the northwest. We'll be talking to the soldiers stationed there eventually, but, there might be things in town to do. However, before we even get to that, there's a bunch of thugs just outside the inn, looking to beat me up. I beat them up instead, though, I still took a few hits in the process. Maybe I'll get better at that at some point. Hopefully, before it's too late.

At any rate, the quest notice board has six objects, two of which are tasks that are tracked by the mini-map and quest log. One is a legit witcher contract, and the other sounds more like a more standard side-quest, so, let's do that side-quest first. I'll do a hard-save before talking to the guy, though, juuuuuust to be on the safe side.

This was a bit of a search-and-rescue mission. We're trying to find a solder that was part of a battle, quite possibly the same battle showcased in the opening. So, the probability he's still alive is questionable at best. Thankfully, the guy was still alive, and it was thanks to a soldier from the enemy's side? I'm not going to question it, as both men need treatment, and leaving the enemy solder here to die does not sit well with me. No, he's going to recover, and possibly work the fields. I don't recall how much the task was worth, money-wise, and looking at the quest log again makes no such reference to money, or experience, earned.

Our next target is the contract, so, we'll have to get the details from it's poster. The suggested level for this contract is 2, of which I'm about 350 experience away from as of this writing. I've certainly not kept track of how much experience creatures are worth, and the codex doesn't seem to contain this detail either. Well, maybe there were points of interest generated on the map thanks to the notice board? Maybe some of those can lead us towards a level-up?



Oookaaaay-ku, that's... a lot more points of interest than there were posts on the board! The monster den a bit west of the crossroads fast-travel point, well, I can clear it, but, I can't destroy the nest unless I have a bomb with the "destroys monster nest" trait. Naturally, I don't have any on-hand, nor do I have the reagents for either of the recipes I know.

You'll have to excuse me if I groan at this. Alchemy systems, and the hunt for reagents, always feels like a waste of time to me. Vagrant Story might be the sole exception, but even then, it's entirely possible to be screwed over in that game because of the other systems the game uses that it uses, and isn't exactly transparent about.

Anyways, I wind up dealing with a group of bandits. I still haven't quite mastered defensive maneuvers, and one guy having a crossbow wasn't a particularly happy thing either. I checked the fort south of my position from the above map, but it looks like it's up on a cliff, and I didn't see a way up there from the vantage point I had. The point at the beach had monsters to fight, and I ended up dying there because, yes, I still suck at defense, thanks. Then again, these mobs are level 3, and I'm still level 1. Might be a bit before I attempt to tackle that point again.

I eventually found a way to the fort. It was another bandit camp, and it took me a few tries before I successfully took them down. With one attempt, I rolled off the edge of the parapet, and fell to my doom. This move was certainly not my intent. Hell, my intent was to loot the body of the guard I just felled. The game must have considered that I was still in combat mode, and the interact button in that context was a roll, so, uh, yeah, there you go. Welp.

There's a point in the middle of the forest that is making me a bit curious. However, let's save our progress so far, and call this a session. Though, as a side-note, I've picked up a bunch of junk from the bandits, and other nasties I've faced so far. It might behoove me to see how encumbered I am, because I have a sneaking suspicion the game will not allow fast travel while over encumbered. However, all that will wait until next time, on the Witcher 3 LP!

Last time, Geralt found some bukthorn and talked to the hunter that saw the griffin that's been terrorizing the people of White Orchid. He also did a number of extraneous tasks, partially in preparation for hunting the griffin.

It might be possible the game will lock me down in plot if I kill this griffin. Then again, it might not. It's kinda hard to say, but, I can create an alternate hard-save slot for a "just in case" scenario. However, I still check the codex on griffins, and see what all griffins are weak to, and what reagents I'm inevitably missing in regards to the suggested items. One of the items, hybrid oil, isn't even on my alchemy list. So, if I go now, the only thing on that list I'd have access to is the Aard sigil/sign (telekinetic blast). A ranged weapon sounds like a great idea, so, let's hop over to the blacksmith I helped earlier.

Nope. None of that. The option to repair equipment is semi-tempting, but, it's a point of cost versus utility. I've still got a non-zero amount of initial gear on me, and it's not like anything I'm wearing has fallen below 50% durability. The lowest is my silver sword, at 61%.

All, right, enough putzing about. Let's just do this. Maybe I'll die trying, but even if that were to happen, I might still learn something. As it happens, the game requests that I brew a Thunderbolt potion. Which, I swear, was not on my list before, but certainly is now. I barely have the ingredients for it, but, sure, I'll brew one, because I can't seem to close the menu until I do. What the hell, game? I only had one copy of one of those reagents? What if I didn't have it? Was I given it just now? Hard to determine.

At the site, Vesmir gives me a crossbow. Which, yeah, that might help against a flyer. The fight, itself, I think I did okay in. We took off maybe a third of it's health before it took flight, and we had to chase it down. I considered using the crossbow to maybe take a few pop shots at it as it flew over, but, I have had zero practice with the weapon, or even how to use it, so, that idea was a bust. During the fight, the game gave me a message that one of my weapons is deteriorating, which, yeah, that checks out. The silver sword is now at 49% durability, and is taking a -9 penalty to it's damage capacity. Let's see how much this griffin head is worth to the garrison commander first, then determine if I'm going to attempt to pay the smith, or use items to fix it myself.

So, I arrived at the garrison, to see the commander inspect a shipment of grain. It was rotten, and the guy was pissed. Perhaps rightly so. The guy sent to deliver it proclaimed no knowledge of the grain's condition, but, was dragged away to be tortured regardless. A few words were exchanged between us, but then we got down to brass tacks. Yennifer had ridden north, to Vizima. It's only a day's ride from here, according to Gerald, and he isn't exactly happy the commander wasn't more forthcoming with this info. The commander might have a point that we might not slain the griffin in exchange for this info, though.

The commander also offers gold, and I can choose to either accept it, or turn it down. Now, I'm not going to say I don't need gold, but, I'm not sure if I want his gold. I understand that he needs to show that the Nifgaardians are in control of this area, but, flogging what amounts to a deliveryman for bad goods just doesn't sit right with me? I dunno.

There is a quest marker on my map that's been there since I picked the buckthorn, so, let's do that before we ditch this area. What it involves is the theft of... a frying pan? Hey, don't look at me, that's what the lady is looking for. Had a bit of a tale too, but, that's beside the point. This might not be a particularly rewarding quest, in either gold or experience, but, why not.

There was a dead body inside a house, and the pan was as clean as a whistle. Geralt figures the soot was used for ink, as there's a fragmented letter. For my trouble, I earn 10 experience, and a decent array of food items. Not that I was expecting gold, but, the food is appreciated all the same. That done, I take another look at the area map. There's still 16 undiscovered locations, but, it's possible I come back to this area later. For now, I return to the inn, and talk to Vesmir to move the story forward, and maybe even complete this plot quest that's been active all this time. There's a band of men sitting across from our table that smell of trouble. Vesmir advises we stay out of any trouble they might brew, but, a woman at the bar lights the fire.

Weapons were drawn, so, the fight would inevitably get bloody. The ruffians had clubs, though. If I was thinking more clearly, I probably would sheath my sword, and go fisticuffs. Be that as it may, the two witchers stand, and the ruffians, well, they're dead. One Geralt decapitated. He offers to help a civilian up, but, they are, perhaps, rightly frighted by the sight of blood and carnage. We're no longer welcome at this inn for the foreseeable future. We leave, and an attachment of Nifgaardians stand before us. Geralt tries to keep cool, but I both groan and quirk an eyebrow at the same time. The relationship Geralt has with these guys is, perhaps, questionable at best, but, thankfully, they aren't here to arrest us. No, they're here as an escort. A particular person of interest is in their group. As to who this person is...



...well, I'll be damned. Yennifer? The very woman we've been attempting to track down? I wasn't expecting to see her for another ten or so game hours, to be honest! Both Geralt and Vesmir seem to share this sentiment.

So, here's the lowdown. She's playing the part of an envoy, inviting Geralt to the palace of the emperor of Nifgaard. Or, at least the palace that they have claimed on the front lines during their conquests at war? I'll have to see if there's some kind of entry about this in the codex when I get a chance. Right now, I'm locked in conversation and cutscene.

Vesmir presumes he's not invited, and mentioned previously that he'll be going back to Kaer Morhen, the fort where Geralt's dream from earlier took place. The cutscene continues, and on the road, the escort comes under attack by a pack of wraiths on horses. This is the titular Wild Hunt, and all the escort guards die to them. Yennifer and Geralt manage to escape, by means of Yennifer using her magic to destroy a bridge after the pair cross it. The riders of the Wild Hunt might be fearless undead, but, the horses still react to the blast, and therein lies the opportunity to flee.

The game fast forwards into the palace at Vizima, where Geralt is being attended to by a trio of maids in a bath basin. Gerald looks quite pleased with himself, and I'm pretty sure at least one of the maids is taking him in as eye candy. Before anybody even considers any funny business, the chamberlain dismisses the maids, and has Geralt wear a towel, having his sit in a chair to receive a haircut and bread trim. Which I allow, but, Geralt throws in a bit of gruff sarcasm, asking if they will also do his nails and feet.

That done, he's then directed to wear one of three outfits, all of which are black. I doubt there's any gameplay differences between the outfits, but, the game puts control back to me, allowing me the opportunity to save, and access the codex. Though, as an aside before I get to these things, if this emperor wants me to do something about the Wild Hunt, which I'm taking as some kind of in-universe equivalent to the Nazgul of Lord of the Rings fame, he's got another thing coming. For one, I'm not nearly experienced enough in playing this game. Geralt might be a battle-hardened veteran, but, I'm mostly still trying to not suck as hard. Which I might still be failing at. Even if I was at least reasonably good at this game, I would very likely require much better equipment than whatever I had.

Thankfully, the emperor doesn't want the Wild Hunt dead. He wants Ciri. This is where I learn she's the biological daughter of this emperor, though, perhaps, she might be more filial towards her adopted father, Geralt. What, exactly, the emperor wants her for he won't say, outside of "state matters". The emperor naturally offers gold for the witcher's services, but, if Ciri is involved, I don't want money. I may turn out to be the poorest witcher in the land, at this rate, but, I consider Ciri family, even if it has been several years since last we met.

At any rate, the chamberlain is ordered to escort me to see Yennifer again, to get more details on this mission. While the precise location of Ciri is unknown, there are leads to follow. The one Yennifer wants Geralt to follow will lead us to the Crossroads Inn in Velen, and a man named Hendirk. She offers teleportation, but, Geralt declines. The name of Triss Merigold had been dropped before, but, it sounds like we might have an opportunity to meet up with her? However, before all that, let's get out of this finery, and back into our adventuring outfit.

That done, I take a look at the map, and find a quest available marker. The story mission is rated level 5, and I, being level 4, took some interest in this quest. At least until the game prompted me to gamble on a game of gwent. Which I did, and lost, of course. Looks like I need to win to either activate this marker, or clear it. I'd rather not loose money, and load my hard-save, since I made one just before talking to this guy.

So! To Velen it is, then. There's 18 notice boards on this map, and here's what it looks like after accessing the closest one.



That's a fairly decent array of things to check out and explore as it is. However, I hear a woman crying nearby. I'm tempted to see what that's about, but, I also found a letter in my inventory from Yennifer, and it kinda sounds like she stashed something back in Vizima. Which I wish I knew about earlier, but, whatever. The crying I heard turned out to be nothing I can do anything about, at least for the moment. So! Back to Vizima for whatever Yennifer left behind, then back.

As it happens, the items Yennifer was referring to are all level 11 stuff. Certainly better than what I have now, but, it will be some time before I can equip them, being only level 4 as of this writing. The stash in White Haven is at the inn, and I don't think enough time has passed for things to cool off there? I remember seeing two stashes on Velen's map, and presume that this Crossroads Inn I'm supposed to meet Hendrik at will have one.

Along the way, I find a priest and a pair of guards. The priest is tagged with a quest, so, I dismount and hear what the details are. The priest serves the Eternal Fire, and there are dead bodies on a nearby battlefield that could be set ablaze, not only for the greater glory of the Eternal Fire, but also before necrophages come for them. I don't know how much of a religious person Geralt is, but, keeping necrophages away from what civiliaztion there is out here comes across to me as an activity he would be interested in. Three search areas appear on my map, and at each one includes a group of ghouls, wild dogs, or both. At the last one, I find one man still alive, fighting against ghouls. I assist him, and after the battle concludes, it appears he's had dealings with this priest before. My mission details did not indicate anything concerning survivors, so, he's gonna be let free.

The priest has moved north, near the coast line. I let him know that I met the guy, and was offered a bribe for my silence. I turned it down, of course, but, the priest got it in his head that killing me would be the cheaper option, and three against one is good odds, even if the one is a witcher. Bad move, man, bad move. The priest had 200 gold on him, which is probably the largest single amount of gold I've gotten in one go so far. The experience from completing the quest, I think it was 50, or thereabouts?

Along the way, I came across a person in distress marker, and must've had five or so guys guarding the place. I don't know how many attempts I made, but, all of them ended in death, so, I'll try coming back to it later. There's is also the small point that the lowest level guy I saw in that crew was, like, 7. Might've seen a 9 or two in there. I'm still level 4. Definitely later. For now, there's a quest near-ish to me.

This is a bit of a shady merchant selling very possibly counterfeit passes that allow crossing the Pontar river. I could pay the man 100 gold, or, I could do a job for him, and help out his brother-in-law, and get a reduced price. I'll see what that man wants in a bit, but, there's a notice board in this area, so, might as well add even more objects to the map.

The brother-in-law is a scavenger, and is at a battlefield with a few others of such profession ply their trade. Of course, such a profession has it's own share of dangers, and being under attack by ghouls is one of them. They want me to put a stop to them. I don't know exactly how much I'd be paid for this task, but, I agree to it.

My first attempt failed. Not because I died, though I was pretty close. No, some ghouls must've gotten to the workers. Though, wandering outside the designated area might have had something to do with it as well. Two or three more attempts at it, all failures due to Geralt's death. So, this is another thing I'll have to come back to later.

I tag a point of interest to the east, and find a burning hut along the way. Apparently belongs to an elf, according to the men standing there, and very possibly started the fire in the first place. This is another encounter I die at, and won't bother making a re-attempt. Let's adjust my position to some other place on the map, and hope it's less perilous.

I make a stop at the Crossroads Inn, and take a gander at the notice board there, as well as some posters. I'll be talking to Hendrik later. For now, I want to access my stash, and the two that are on this map are not located at this inn, as I once assumed. Both locations have their own notice boards, so, I tag the one that feels closest one to me, and hope I can make something of a temporary HQ there.

Except I can't get there. It's locked behind a gate, presumably the estate of a man nicknamed the Bloody Barin. The guards won't talk to me, so, this is a dead end as well. Unlocked a fast travel point, at least. The other stash is across the river, and that seems to require a pass. So, uh, that's a dead end as well. Thanks, game.

Let's take a look-see at the non-story quests that are available to me that I know about.



I've set aside "Fake Papers" as a quest for later, I don't care about gwent, and everything else on this list of optional tasks is a bit over-leveled for me right now. Though, out of curiosity, I tagged "Contract: Woodland Beast" to see how far that would take me to at least talk to the one who posted it. Looking at the map, it was at the bridge where I was before when I went to report to the priest of Eternal Fire. That area does not currently have a fast-travel point, so, either I fast-travel back to Hanged Man's tree, and ride from there, or forget about it for now. Which, I must admit, is highly tempting.

For what it is worth, there's a few locations I can discover around these parts. There's a merchant outside the manor proper I can access, so, let's unload some crap before going out and quite possibly dying again.

Of the three points of interest near the manor, I manage at least a bandit camp. The other two are monster nests. Level 7 ghouls. The bandits, I think, might've also been around level 7 as well, but, I suspect I might've gotten lucky there. So, where does that leave me? I think that might leave me right back at the Crossroads Inn, and, oh my, am I gonna advance the story again!?

Well, first, let's hard-save, and try to fast-travel back to White Orchid, attempt to access it's stash, and get rid of this equipment that is, at least for the moment, just weighing me down. Though, if I must be honest, I also fixed up my current gear with spawned toolkits via the in-game console. So, yeah, this game has officially been UGEd, and I will likely use inventory spawning to help in potion-brewing, crafting, or whatever situation where I would otherwise be asked to gather reagents. At least so long as it isn't a quest that's asking me to do it. Though, keeping my gear in working/good shape is a thing too, obviously.

Either way, Hendrik isn't at the Crossroads Inn. Seems like he's escaped to a place called Heatherton, to the west. Either he's avoiding Nilfgarrdian solders because they could blow his cover, or because of some other trouble. There's a two locations on this islet I could visit, let's see how bad they are.

The closest point was a bandit camp. I survived the encounter, which is more than I can say for the previous tasks I've attempted, but, I will not dare to say I'm getting better at this game. The other location turned out to be a guarded treasure, with said guard being a level 13 critter. At that high level difference, it doesn't even matter. I mean, I manage to give it a few pings with my crossbow, but, even if I could keep doing that, which I kinda feel is questionable, it would probably take waaaay to long.

I safely arrive at Heatherton, but, an eerie cold and mist abounds. A man is under attack by rabid dogs, which I slay, then calm him down with Axii. His tale is that Hendrik was here, but was taken, if not slain, by the Wild Hunt. I notice some tracks that lead to a house, and investigating them, we observe traces of ice around hoofprints. Inside the house lies the body. On the off-chance they missed womthing, I search his jerkin first. Nothing there, but, searching his boots yields a key, and that generally indicates a door.

In the next room is rug, and under that is our door. Down the ladder is an suspiciously open chest with valuables in it. What's even more suspicious is a candle that makes a wall swing open, and revealing another chest that contains a book. This is meant to look like a merchant's ledger at first glance, but, there's information about Ciri in there. The book becomes a Quest Item after reading it through, and a refresher of the information gleaned. However, the facts Hendrick actually has on Ciri are pretty vauge. He's only managed to spot her two times. Once sounded like some kind of audience with the Bloody Barin, and the other time, she was dealing with a witch.

Hence, two story quests become available. "Hunting a Witch" which is considered level 5, and "Bloody Baron", which is considered level 6. I'm maybe a little over halfway to level 5. There's no convenient locations for me to discover around this area. Either I go north to the coast, or move toward Midcopse, to the south, which is where "Hunting a Witch" is pointing me towards. However, this is plenty of content for this session. Find out what I'll end up doing next time, on the Witcher 3 LP!

Things have been crazy lately, so I can only apologize for not having this up earlier. Be that as it may, last time, Geralt looked for a witch, but found an acquaintance, Keira Mitz, instead. Then, with her help, he looked for an elf, but found the Wild Hunt instead. With this kind of luck, tracking down the Crones of Crookback Bog will end up finding somebody completely different as well.

The other lead I have is the so-called Bloody Baron. You'll have to forgive me for thinking this will turn out to be yet another wild goose chase, or an empty lead. The man is willing to tell Geralt what he knows of Ciri, and we get into a flashback...



...where we play as Ciri, herself? That was unexpected! At any rate, we soon meet a little girl called Gretka, who was apparently trying to follow the Trail of Treats. Which is a reference Keira made in regards to the Crones of Crookback Bog. The young girl is afraid of the wolves in the area, most especially the King of Wolves.

We follow Gretka, fighting packs of wolves along the way. We come across a manged corpse, of which Ciri investigates. After the examination, she formulates a hypothesis that the King of Wolves might likely be a werewolf. As such, it might behoove her to formulate an oil to douse her blade to deal with it. This is not something I have done as Geralt, as I generally assume I don't have the ingredients to make an oil. This quest adds a task to gather parsley leaves, and there are enough in this area to complete said task before delving into the cave where we find the werewolf. Looks like it was about to maul a poor peasant, but, Ciri got it's attention, and did what she could to slay it. Not without taking damage, but, I do my best.

As a brief aside, fighting as Ciri is a little different. For starters, I only have access to one weapon. No inventory screen, and the quick menu only seems to have three slots available, none of which have any additional options for me at this juncture. However, her dodge looks more like a short-range teleport, and I think she regenerates faster than Geralt does, even after consuming food. Though, that might be a balancing factor due to the lack of access to an inventory screen than anything else.

The werewolf slain, and civilian rescued, we then get a short cut-scene back at the baron's manner, then a cut back to the present. It sounds like the baron has taken in Gretka into his manner in some way. I've already forgotten the details. As for the possible current whereabouts of Ciri, well, yeah, he's got a job for me before spilling any beans. Which I expected from the start, but, now that we are down to brass tacks, he's looking for both his wife and daughter. The daughter, I sorta knew about, as I've seen posters asking about her whereabouts in various locations in Velen. The wife, not so much. He probably thinks that if one is found, the other is likely to not be far. We'll see how true that is.

What they look like is useful to know, no doubt. However, I also need some kind of lead as to where they could have gone. Even if the supernatural is involved, there should still likely to be some kind of trace Geralt could sense, either where they sleep, or at least, wherever they were last seen. The baron isn't exactly happy with having a stranger look through the rooms and/or effects of his wife and daughter, but, Geralt takes a hard stance, and he relents.

We first investigate the personal quarters of the baron and his wife. A candlestick broken at the stem. A painting hanging to hide a hole reaching back to a cabinet. The cabinet on the other side having a broken off piece of wood that looks like it came from the candlestick. Deep nicks on a post, suggesting being hit by a heavy object. Back to the candlestick, there's glass stains. The smell suggests wine, and we follow that until the trail ends, but, there's a suspiciously highlighted floorboard nearby to investigate. A talisman was hidden there, suggesting it might have been set up as some kind of ward, but against what, not even Geralt knows at this juncture.

We relay what findings we can to the baron. The amulet was worn by his daughter for some time, and probably got it form a peller. The signs of a fight were something of a shock to him. He had asked his men countless times if they had heard anything, and the response had always been no. This means the only lead we really have is this pellar.

On the way out, I peek my head into the room that contains the stash. This was apparently the room where Ciri stayed, and a spinning top can be found on the ground, which probably belonged to Gretka. A set of scatted clothes on the ground are also here. They probably belonged to Ciri, but, regardless whoever they belonged to sure left this estate in a hurry. I can also access the notice board, for even more optional content. A small bit was done before riding to the pellar.

When I get there, a contingent of the baron's men are already there, and from eavesdropping a bit on their talk, it sounds something went afoul. I confront the guards, and their story is that he told one of their buddies to eat something, and he's been practically living in the outhouse since. The group is ready to lynch the man for this offense, but, I try to compromise. They let him live if I tell them how their friend might be cured. The exchange worked well enough for my purposes: the soldiers moved off, I don't have to fight, and the pellar might owe me a favor when I see hi.

Whither the pellar owes me a favor or not, he refuses to augur the location of either of the lost women that the baron seeks. At least, not without his goat. Both Geralt and I take a heavy sigh, and go off on this fetch/escort quest. Fighting of wolves before getting to the goat wasn't too bad, but, running into a bear while escorting the animal was a little harrowing. It wasn't as bad as my encounter in White Orchard, as I lived through this ordeal, and even manage to only have taken maybe a sixth of my health in damage after the quest was all said and done.

The pellar could not augur the location of the wife and daughter, but, he could sense a botchling, created due to the wife's miscarriage, and improper burial of the fetus. That she was even pregnant to begin with was not a detail the baron shared with us, for whatever reasons he might have.

So, the bad news is there's now a botchling to deal with. The good news is that it's possible to transform a botchling into a lubberkin, a spirit that watches over the family it should have had. The precise process of this transformation is not explained in the codex, only that the transformation exists. However, I think we owe the baron another visit to relay our findings, and see what he has to say about all this.

Except such a talk might have to wait. When I arrive, I see smoke rising from the fortress, with the cry of "There's a fire in the castle!" Well, then. I venture into the manor grounds, and notice that nobody's making any moves to put out the fire. An older soldier says that some men might be too afraid of a possible backlash. Which would only make sense to me if the baron, himself caused it. Regardless of sense, or not, I'm asked to save a stable hand, and the horses that are trapped in the fire. I'll do my best, but I also really really think somebody should really be on quenching this fire, possible consequences be damned.

I manage to climb a ladder to open the stable doors from the other side, allowing the horses to run off. The stable hand likely managed to escaped as well, but, that wasn't specifically shown. I then found myself face-to-face with the baron again, and Geralt isn't too happy. He openly accuses the baron of abusing his wife and daughter, and such being the very reason they left in the first place. The baron won't stand for such accusations, so, we go into fisticuffs. Fighting groups can be pretty dangerous, but, one-on-one duels are certainly more doable for me. I still take a few punches, but ultimately win.

We eventually move to another corner of the manor that isn't on fire to talk. The baron still says he laid no any hands on his daughter. His wife, however, well, that's another story. The fight in the bedroom was between them. The baron doesn't know how long he was out, but, he found the miscarried fetus in the bedroom, and could only think of disposing it. Hence, this botchling.

After explaining a bit about the nature of how botchlings are formed, we present the baron with two options. One is to attempt to transform it into a lubberkin, and maybe that spirit can help us find it's mother, and if we're lucky, it's older sister. The other option is to slay the botchling, and bring it's blood to the pellar to have him augur the location of the missing women with it. The baron chooses the path of the lubberkin, and Gerald has some insights in this matter that were absolutely not in the codex. While the game presents us with the option to do this later, I decide to do it now. I still hard save as soon as possible, don't get me wrong, but, solving this issue sooner rather than later sounds like a thing Geralt would recommend.

My previous experience with the noonwraith earlier makes me suspect some amount of fighting against the botchling might be necessary. I surprisingly happen to have the reagents needed to brew an oil for my sword that would make slaying it an easier task. However, that's not what the client wants.

First, we visit the grave site, and find it dug up and empty. This is a sign to Geralt that the botchling is active, and on the prowl. Indeed, it has not gone far, as it approaches us, and the baron takes a step back as it does. It seems calm enough, so, the opportunity to transform it into a lubberkin more readily presents itself. The only question is how willing the good baron is to follow through, as he must be the one to carry it back to the manor. He's squeamish at first, but, manages to carry the thing.

It wouldn't be an escort quest if there wasn't something to fight. The bothcling was disturbed, and cried out, making a pack of wraiths appear. They certainly did a number of me, but, I survived. Calming down the botchling afterwards took a use of Axii. There's at least two such encounters, though, and I have a bit of trouble getting past the second one. Of course, I don't have the reagents for the oil that could be effective against wraiths, so, I dunno what else I can do, except be more aware of enemy movements, dodge better, take what attacks of opportunity I can, etc.

Thankfully, it was only the two waves before reaching the threshold of the manner, where the botchling was laid to rest again, but not before Gerlat had the baron say something of an incantation. If all goes well, tomorrow, she'll be a lubberkin. Geralt will look after the grave, and will do the rite at midnight. The baron wanted to stay as well, but, this is wichter's work. Besides, I get the feeling that even if he followed the lubberkin with me, leads us to the ladies, and find them alive, they likely won't react kindly to his presence.

The lubberkin is a swift-moving spirit, which I certainly appreciate. It can almost keep pace with a cantering Roach. The spirit stops by a smoker's hut by it's lonesome that... honestly isn't that far from Crow's Pearch?



They were definitely here, at one point. Horseshoe prints on the ground, as well as scattered clothing. Both seem a bit pricey for a mere smoker. The lubberkin starts moving again, stopping at the corpse of a horse. Signs of the corpse being handled by necrophages are here, but, with the head torn clear off, that suggests something big and powerful.

The spirit starts moving again, stopping again at a fisherman's hut. There is a family here, and I learn both the women were there for a time. The lady of the house would rather keep things under wraps, but, the child let slip they were, in fact, there.

We knew the women were attacked by something big, and the fisherman's account covers this. He couldn't quite describe the thing either, but, the baron's wife bore marks on her hands, and looked as hot as a fresh iron brand. His account was that the baron's wife was taken into the forest by the beast, so her trail seems to ends here unless we learn more about this creature. The design the fisherman drew in regards to the marks might be something the baron might know about, and maybe we can get a lead about what kind of creature attacked the two, and why.

It sounds like the daughter, at least, is very much alive, and in a town called Oxenfurt. The location is maybe west by northwest from Hanged Man's Tree. I think I will want to meet her and see what she's willing to offer, at least in regards to finding her mother. It doesn't sound like the baron's daughter has made any attempts to return to her father. With reward notices all over the place, I feel the most likely scenario is that she's hiding out, possibly until an opportunity presents itself for her to go and help her mother. Perhaps I can be that opportunity for her? Stay tuned for the next session of the Witcher 3 LP!


Optional content corner
From the exit of the elven mage's lab, there's three points north to explore, but, that area is flooded with level 13 wraiths. Far south was a treasure guarded by a pair of level 8 wraiths. I managed, but, it wasn't pretty. There's a town/fast travel points both in the northwest and southwest of this point, but, one of them had level 9 bandits and their other had level 23 ghouls. Another point of interest I attempted turned out to be a camp of level 9 bandits. So, back up north to at least Duen Hen.

Southwest of that point is a bandit camp, level 3. I felt confident until some other critters got into the scene, and things went from bad to worse to dead. However, I saved before that engagement, and there was a point south in the middle of the water that I had hoped would be better. This was a spoils of war, and there's definitely some enemies swimming around in that water, and likely, the treasure is down there too. I'm barely capable fighting on land, so, fighting underwater is not going to happen.

Back north, then west, then south lies a hidden treasure, but, the sea hags there were level 99. So, instead of south, we head north for two points of interest. Both were level 3 bandit camps with, thankfully, no further surprises. One of the camps unlocks a fast travel point, Condyle, which I will use to get back to Crow's Perch to get rid of some of this access junk.

From Condlye, I go north, to find another bandit camp. Further north is an abandoned site that level 7 pirates have taken for an outpost. I somehow manage to take them down, and the site becomes active again, giving me access to at least one more shop. There's a bandit camp between this site and Midcopse that I manage to clear.

I use the fast-travel point in Midcopse to return to Hanged Man Tree, and head north, where the contract "Woodland Beast" is pointing me towards, though, I managed to free a person in distress between those two points. At any rate, the details here is that some kind of beast has been attacking transport supply wagons, and the captain of the guards stationed at the Pontar River wants to see an end to this. Apparently, I can get a pass across the Pontar this way, which might be preferable to the shady-looking merchant I met before.

At any rate, the initial site to search is across the river from the Inn at Crossroads. So, back to Hanged Man's tree, and from there, the Inn at Crossroads. Aghouls were in the area for me to slay, but after dealing with them, I could investigate the scene more thoroughly. There were signs of necrophage claw marks on the bodies, but, were made postmortem. There were footprints in the area, so whatever made them was either human, or humanoid. The chest being laid bare and open suggests the "human" option, but, we follow the footprints regardless.

The footprints lead to a river and a contingent of drowners, but certainly continue further on the other side of the river. Following the tracks, a voice from above calls out to me. An elf with a bow trained on my head. I convince him to take me to their leader and maybe attempt some sort of diplomacy between these two races, but, when given the option to either leave things alone or die, I choose to leave this alone. Perhaps I could be called a coward, but, I don't know how many elves there are in this camp, and I'm only one guy. Maybe I have the skills now to maybe, maybe take on five people at once, and come out with a silver or health afterwards. However, if it's more than that, and it probably is, it won't end well for me.

I can only report to the captain of the guard that it's not a beast, but a company of elves that are attacking his supply train, but I was hired to kill a beast, not elves. He won't give me any gold, but gives me a pass for informing him of the truth behind situation. He called it "notifying the proper authorities", but, the way he was talking, there won't be any peace between elves and humans any time soon. As if this war between Niflgaard and Temeria isn't producing enough death in this land. No, we must commit genocide on the entire elven race as well on top of the death that's already being produced by that war.

After visiting Ciri's Room, the quest "Ciri's Room" pooped up. We can interrogate the girl she helped a bit, but, of course, that interrogation grants no further leads to Ciri's whereabouts. At least we return the toy top to it's owner.

As a production note, while the server has seemed to stabilized a bit, I don't see me increasing the rate at which I play this game. Screen captures have also gone on the wayside, though, that might be a lack of focus on that aspect of the LP, plus lack of any kind of foreknowledge of what's coming up, and therefore cool to show off. Comparing with The Outer Worlds, and noting the 12 items in my locker associated with that LP, perhaps a lower number of screencaps was expected.

That aside, if I want to be perfectly honest, I've been more and more inclined to the LP for Xenosaga Episode 3. I'd rather not write two LPs at the same time, but, this game feels like it could have a similar number of sessions to Heroes of Might and Magic 3 Complete. Though, I would note that Heroes 3 was compartmentalized into that many sessions because of it's mission-based structure, whereas this game is more free-form in it's structure.

Last time, Geralt met with the with the ealdorman of Downwarren, as per a request given to him by the Crones of Crookback Bog. As part of that task, he meet with a thornling that claimed that the Crones captured the kids at the orphanage, and decided to help a thronling take the body of a horse that would, in turn, help the kids.

Nothing comes without a cost, though. The Crones wanted those children for themselves, and placed the blame for their escape entirely on Gran, who turned out to be the missing wife of the Bloody Baron. As payment for the information, the baron finishes his tale, which suggests Ciri left Velen for Novigrad, but, from the sound of things, she's likely not there anymore. Still, Novigrad is our next point of investigation, but, there's a few matters to attend to in Velen. Refer to the optional content corner for what details I can manage.

For starters the world map made me think Novigrad was it's own location with a separate map. It's still a rather large city, but very much located on the map of Velen. If I bothered to tag the quest that would have me go here, perhaps this confusion on my part would've been rectified earlier.

All that aside, this is among the largest civilized areas I've been in. The city has three notice boards and at least two fast travel points within it confines from the brief amount of exploration that I did there. It's quite the disparity from the thatched huts in the wild that I've become accustomed to seeing. Even in the area of Crow's Perch, while certainly better off then most places, still had this downtrodden sense. Even so, let's have the game introduce us to Triss Merigold and see what information she has to share, if any.

...Is what I would say, if she was still residing in her residence. Apparently, she's in hiding due to the Temple Guards of the Eternal Fire in this city cracking down on anybody who even has the hint of magic about them. A pair of scavengers milling about the entrance to the house relayed as such, dropping the title of "King of Beggars" when they do, before the leader of the Guard, Caleb Menge, butted in, arresting them, then gave me a bit of a warning that his eyes are on me.

Still, I peek in her house to see if there is any additional clues as to her whereabouts. The house is in a state of upheaval, with objects thrown about every which way. There's plenty of loot, but, the points of interest only really lead me to the conclusions that she left in a hurry. Though, with the state of the house in such disarray because of the looters, perhaps that is a premature conclusion.

From what the looters told me before getting cuffed is that there's two possible methods to find this King of Beggars. One is to talk to beggars, and probably grease their palms a bit. The other is to tail suspicious-looking characters from the town square in the hopes they might lead me to him. I attempt the latter of these, and I meet with a partial success. I now know where the entrance is, but, the gatekeeper there won't let me past unless I either pay 50 coin, or speak a password. There's no certainty that I would have learned the password if I spoke to beggars instead, so, whatever. I pay it.

In the office is a man and a woman. The man is the presumed King of Beggars, sometimes also known as Francis Bedlam. The woman...



...is the sought-after Triss Merigold. Francis makes a bit of a speech concerning his vision and wish to change Novigrad, but, who knows how successful he'll be. As for Triss, given her reaction, it would be news to her that Ciri made way to Novigrad. Somehow, this doesn't surprise me. However, the question of who could know the whereabouts of Ciri in this town assuming she's still here, is left unanswered as we approach an alchemist. Triss ordered some ingredients from him, but, he was intercepted by a Temple Guard patrol, and had to drop the package. I volunteer to go with Triss and fetch it, but, rather than leave through the front door, another patrol is by the window, and presents a problem. I don't know how well-known Triss is, as a sorceress, but, I'm sure she'd rather not risk getting caught by them, even if it means going through the basement to avoid detection.

Along the way to the site the alchemist spoke of, Triss speaks about how of Novigrad was once correctly labeled a free city. A place where that would allow both magic-users and nonhumans to flourish. Even regular folk had better chances here than anywhere else. In more peaceful times, perhaps it could still be that, but, of course, the city, known for it's wellspring of coin, has become a point of desirability for the parties engaged in war. I've long lost track of the political landscape of this game. I don't think the war in question is necessarily limited to Nilfgaard and Tamera, but, I certainly can't name other nations/factions off-hand. For what it is worth, the codex categories are, bestiary, tutorial, characters, books, and crafting. Any reference to nations would be limited to the character tab.

Either way, once the package is returned to it's rightful owner, we visit a granary to take out some rats? Wait, a rat-killing quest? This late in the game? Or have I been mystically transported to Castleview? Either way, it sounds like a prior arraignment for Triss, and having an extra hand wouldn't hurt. The job done in due time, the merchant asking this of us got the idea in his head to send men after us, and do the Eternal Fire a favor. There were maybe three level 10 guys, and while I don't know Triss' level, Geralt was at 11. With their focus divided, they were dealt with in due time. We then had a talk with the merchant afterwards, and strong-armed him into paying double. Frankly, I would've been happy with whatever was agreed beforehand, but, there was no options of conversation here.

That done, Triss does me a favor, and gives me a lead as to who might have an idea about Ciri's current whereabouts. A dream-seer by the name of Corinne Tilly. This marks the Pyres of Novigrad story-quest complete, and in it's place is Novigrad Dreaming. Pyres of Novigrad level indication was 10, but Novigrad Dreaming is 7. Now, maybe it's just me, but this makes me not want to engage in more side-questing? However, I get the funny feeling that things aren't going to be as easy as it sounds. Find out how if my feelings are justified, next time on the Witcher 3 LP!



Optional content corner
<Contract: Shrieker>
Not sure how long I've had this in my log, but, whatever. The person to talk to is in Crow's Perch. Absolutely no description is given for this beast. The son of a man who made a failed attempt to capture/slay it apparently saw the whole mess. It takes a bit of convincing/Axii, but, the child describes the thing as a large rooster with a lizard's tail, and gives me a general area to search. I find the remains of a dog (the boy mentioned one), before I notice the trail of monster blood. They eventually lead to a cave, and Geralt makes a conclusion that it's a cockatrice. Now that I think back on the description, yeah, that checks out.

I refer to the codex for what they are weak against, and, to no surprise, I don't have all the reagents for either draconid oil, or grapeshot bombs. At least I can use Aard to maybe knock it out of the air? My abilities with the crossbow have been a bit lacking, but, I guess that could be a method if I have no other options. I barely come out of the fight alive, but, since I am alive, I can take the trophy, and bring it back to the quest-giver for the exp reward. Naturally, they offer gold, but, since this guy took in an orphan, I'm inclined to let him keep the money. I dunno, maybe I really am making Geralt to poorest witcher, but, it's, just, I generally take the option to not take money, if it presents itself?

<Return to Crookback Bog>
I probably should have name-dropped these characters earlier, but, whatever. The baron's daughter, Tamara, did not want my help in rescuing her mother, Anna. Phillip, the Bloody Baron, however, is another story. As I said last session, I can't say for sure if we can truly save Anna, so long as she bears the brand that was placed upon her by the Crones. Even if one would make an attempt, who knows what kinds of consequences there would be in going against them?

All that aside, the baron seems willing enough to make an attempt, and wanted me to join him. The quest marker's at Downwarren. The ealdorman there speaks of a horse trampling about. The way he describes it makes both me and Geralt come to the same conclusion. It's probably the spirit of the thornling I helped that took the body of a horse from last session. It might have helped the children of the orphanage escape, but, now it's taking some kind of revenge on this town? They did send a non-zero number of people to kill it, but, I can not blame them for that. Nor can I exactly blame this spirit for wanting vengeance, but, my current guess is that I have to stop it, and, maybe, the Crones as well.

Regardless of what's going on, the baron takes six other guys with him, and we come across some drowners between us and the orphanage. Nothing a party of this size can't handle, that's for sure. When we arrive, there is already a melee in progress. It's the group Tamara's was with! After the drowners and water hags are cleared, the baron and daughter have a few words for each other. Of course, the baron would see his daughter return, but, she will have none of that. Both me and the witch hunters make a point that we should really, really figure out where Anna is. She's found, and her form more closely resembles that of a water hag than anything else. Tamara would have me do something for her, but, something is coming.

Another mess of drowners, water hags, and a large fiend. The concerted effort of Tamara's witch hunters, the baron's men, and myself take care of these things, so that our attention moves towards the now-cursed Anna. If there is one person who might know more about how Anna got to be this way, and give us a lead as to how it could be reversed, it's the godling, Johnny.

There's drowners and a water hag where his alcove was. It doesn't take long to figure out that he's left, though, and a search ensues. I follow Johnny's tracks, and find him in due time. He spoke of a hidden ladder, which I think I found on an earlier point in the game. I might not 100% remember what all was down there, but, it kinda sounds like if there is a way to reverse whatever happened with Anna, it's down there.

An array of four voodo dolls await me there, with exactly one representing Anna. I can examine all four, and glean what clues I can, and I make a choice. I'm not sure if I can back out of this, but, Anna is screwed either way. If we left the dolls as-is, she would probably degrade into a water hag in due time. By removing the wrong doll, she burns to ashes, and dies horribly. By choosing the right doll, she regains her human form, but, her life span has been cut short regardless. However, she gains her sanity back for what time she has left. The baron apologizes profusely for what he has done, as he should. Anna, for her part, is happy to see both husband and daughter together again, but, has a few more parting words for her daughter than husband.

Tamara takes some additional time to cry. I overheard the witch hunters talking about taking the body with them to Oxenfurt. Does Phillip have no say in this? Though, speaking of, maybe it didn't matter to him where she was buried. When he departed, he told me to go back to Crow's Perch for payment. What I found was a body hanging from a tree in the courtyard. Having lost Anna was doubtlessly a heavy blow, and with Tamara, being very vociferous in her wish to have nothing to do with him, he must've thought there was nothing left to live for.

So, I looked this up to see what the variations for the Bloody Baron plot line would be. The children Anna were looking after will be removed from the narrative (I'll refer to this state as RFN/MIA) regardless of what I choose. However, I'm largely assuming they are dead if the Crones take them. They might live if I help the thornling, but, the cost of helping that spirit is that the people of Dunbarrow suffer madness, if not death, themselves. Slaying it seems to indicate that Anna and Phillip live, but, Anna's mind and heart are completely broken. From what I can gather, Phillip would take her to some place where mystics are said to live in an attempt to heal her. Which means they become RFN/MIA for the rest of the game. However, should I help the sprit-thornling-horse thing, they both die, and would be RFN/MIA regardless. Tamara lives in any given scenario, but, her mental and emotional state are probably more stable if Anna lives. This is not to say that she could stabilize if her mother dies, but, she also likely wouldn't need to stabilize as much. However, I also find it likely that she'll be RFN/MIA for the rest of the game, regardless of how things go down.

All this aside, there is no doubt that the plot-line concerning the Bloody Baron has come to an end. I even get a little cut-scene for it. For what little it is worth, I could imagine Geralt wishing Phillip and Anna Strenger to be happier, and better off, in the next life. Assuming he even believes in such things. As for Tamara, perhaps Dea, her lubberkin sister, yet watches over her. Perhaps, one day, she turn this tragedy to strength, rather than allow it to destroy her from within.

<For the Advancement of Learning>
For a person who claims to be a friend with benefits, I can't say I appreciate the fact that Keria Metz put me to sleep after telling her that Fyke Tower's lab is still around. Perhaps the sorceress was overly excited by what she could find there, but, in that excitement, I wonder if she forgot the detail that a plauge maiden was released?

Fighting said plauge maiden is what I half-expect from this quest, but, thankfully, that wasn't what was going on at all. With documents in hand, she would make her way to Radovid. I'm not exactly sure which nation he represents, but, they are not friends to Nifgaard. Regardless, she of of the mind that she would trade the notes for a high price, and be able to live in a manner she is more used to living. However, I manage to talk her out of doing such a rash thing. The reasoning I have Geralt put forward is that the research notes could be turned into the makings of biological weapons. Keira believes it's not particularly possible. Even if it was, there would be death either way. The only difference would be how the death would come about.

Regardless of this, I suggest an alternative. To go to Kaer Morhen instead. It may not have all the trappings that she's clearly looking to immerse herself in once more, but, it's certainly an improvement over her living conditions in Velen, and she could live in relative peace. She relents, and, probably, becomes RFN/MIA.