The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt created by CD Projekt Red.
Images used for educational purposes only.
Part Seven: Wandering in the Dark

Main Walkthrough

Location: Your rucksack
Prerequisites: Complete Wandering in the Dark
Suggested Level: 6
Reward: Hunting Boots, Hunting Gauntlets, XP

- In order to trigger this quest you must first complete the main story task Wandering in the Dark. You’ll receive the book The Ladies of the Wood at the end of that quest; read it to get started. (Note that it’s under Quest Items, not Books.)

- The book has some rather sketchy advice for finding the witches, and you can ignore it thanks to Geralt’s Witcher Senses - though you still have a lot of travelling to do to reach them. The place you need to search is far to the east of where you completed Wandering in the Dark, to the southeast of the (soon to be important) city of Crow’s Perch. Boating there is fastest if you don’t have any nearby Fast Travel signposts, but if you’ve never gone out that way before I recommend going by land, just so you get Crow’s Perch. You’ll need to head there for story purposes fairly soon.

- Inspect the wooden carving at the waypoint upon arrival, then follow the path. It’s lined with charms hanging from the trees. Follow them and you’ll find a farm in the woods, whereupon you’ll hit a cut scene. The path to get here is perfectly safe, but if you wander into the marshes at any point there’s an excellent chance you’ll get into battles with Drowners.

- Enter the hut marked on your map and speak to Travik, just inside the door, to trigger another cut scene. You’ll again get rebuffed, and now you need to find a way to lure Gran, the old woman, away from the hut. Speak to the kids outside and they’ll ask you to play Hide and Seek with them, in exchange for luring the old woman away. There are, in fact, two ways to do this:
  • Play Hide and Seek, as requested. They’ll rush off, and you need to find all four. This is a piece of cake using Witcher Senses. One is in the northern-most house; one is in a haystack behind the eastern house; the third is hidden behind a bunch of bushes near the haystack where you found the second kid; and the last is behind a tree off to the west side of the southern house.
  • Ask the kids if they want something else. They’re amenable to sweets, it turns out, and… well, frankly, I just couldn’t get this part of the quest to work, even though the trail is teeming with treats. Anybody know how to grab any of these stupid snacks? Let me know in the comments.
- A cut scene follows once you’ve finished up with the kids, and you’ll get a new waypoint to the east. You’ll find a circle of interest out here, and within it a battle with several Drowners and a Water Hag. They’re relatively tough foes, so don’t take them on in a big clump if you can avoid it. Once they’re cleared out, use your Witcher Senses to find some footprints in the north. Follow them northwestish.

Johnny, from The Witcher 3.
Such a cheery little godling.
- You’ll soon find a small burrow that Geralt can’t enter on his own. Interact with it to lure Johnny, your quarry, out of hiding. After a one-sided conversation Johnny will invite you to follow him through the bog. Do so - and watch out for Drowners along the way. At the end of the trek you’ll find a cliff with a nest at the top. Hop up the rocks. (Yes, you can, though it’s a bit slidey.) Do so, and… eh…

Wyvern

Oh joy. The Wyvern isn’t a full-on boss, but given that it’s aided by Harpies it’s tough enough to qualify. There’s a lot of movement in this fight, and it’s easiest to stall your foes by using Axii to pin them in place long enough for sword strikes. Take out the fragile Harpies first, then go after the Wyvern. Both enemies use the same sort of attacks, more or less, though the Wyvern has more range, and you should be a bit more skittish around it. Dodge to the side whenever either of these enemies start to rise into the air at you.

(Depending on your luck, the Wyvern may not even be up there to bother you, though it will still be nearby. You can ignore it if you like.)

- You’ll find a Sealed Bottle and a Raven’s Feather in the nest. Take the Bottle to Johnny to trigger a cut scene. Once it’s done, follow him back to the little farm - fighting off another Drowner / Water Hag combo along the way - for another cut scene. Finish it up to receive a Crone’s Dagger, as well as a new destination: Downwarren.

- Downwarren is located a fairly short jaunt north of The Orphans of Crookback Bog Fast Travel signpost, though you’ll be wandering through the bogs if you want to take the direct route. Expect Drowners along the way, unless you go immediately after the escort bit with Johnny.

- Downwarren has a Notice Board with the Contract: Swamp Thing quest and some item services, but your main draw here is the Ealdorman, standing near the Notice Board. He’ll point you to the nearby Whispering Hillock, and you’ll gain an appropriate quest: The Whispering Hillock. This doesn’t complete Ladies of the Woods just yet.

- Once you complete The Whispering Hillock you’ll find the Ealdorman standing outside the cave. Talk to him for a gruesome cut scene that will end the quest - though you get shot directly into another quest, and a short one at that.

Ciri, from The Witcher 3. She's all growed up.
Ciri's Story: Fleeing the Bog

 At last, the reclusive Ciri. This is the first of several segments where you get to play as the semi-Witcher, and she's a bit different from Geralt. Ciri doesn't have any healing items and takes more damage than Geralt, but she's a hell of a lot faster, and her side-steps are so quick that you can flank enemies in an instant.

All you need to do here is flee from enemies across the bog. If you use Ciri's dash you can escape them without a fight and reach the waypoint in moments. It's just that easy. Watch the cut scene and you'll be sent back to Geralt for business as usual.

Part Nine: The Whispering Hillock

Main Walkthrough