The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt created by CD Projekt Red.
Images used for educational purposes only.
Main Walkthrough

Location: Velen - Downwarren
Prerequisites: Complete Ladies of the Wood and Family Matters
Suggested Level: 9
Reward: Varies; see below

IMPORTANT NOTE: This quest will send the Bloody Baron away, for good or ill, for the rest of the game. If you want to play Gwent against him make sure you do it before completing the quest.

- This quest triggers after you’ve completed all of the compulsory, story-based quests in Velen. Once you’ve wrapped these activities up the Bloody Baron will invite you to accompany him to Crookback Bog to save his wife; agree and he’ll meet you in Downwarren, which is a short trip north of the swamps.

- When you arrive in Downwarren you may find a grisly sight. If you freed the spirit in The Whispering Hillock he people will be dead here; if not they’ll still be alive. Follow the Baron out when he leaves town.

- Follow the Baron’s squad into Crookback Bog. You’ll have to fight Drowners, Water Hags, and Rotfiends a few times, but with a bunch of men to help they will die pretty easily. A cut scene’s waiting after your third battle, and how it turns out depends on your choices in Ladies of the Wood. Regardless of your choice, however, you have a fight coming up.

Fiend

This battle begins with Drowners and Water Hags attacking your group. Easy enough - just kill them alongside the other soldiers. Things are complicated a bit when a larger Fiend shows up, and it will quickly kill many of the lesser NPCs. The quickest way through this fight is to use Igni to more or less stun the thing, then beat it down as quickly as you can. The more you use Igni, the less it will attack, and the less it can kill the other soldiers.

What happens next depends on what you did in Ladies of the Wood:
  • If you did not free the Spirit then this quest is more or less over. You’ll receive your reward, 300 gold, and experience. All done.
  • If you freed the spirit you need to go looking for Johnny, who’s back in his warren to the northeast - or, uh, he should be, anyway. Kill the Drowners and Water Hag near his hole, check to confirm he’s not home, and use your Witcher Senses to follow Johnny’s footprints. He’s hiding in a small wooden structure behind a bush. Head back to the village for a cut scene, then look in the indicated house to find a trapdoor into a cellar. A cut scene follows; choose the doll with the flower. After the next cut scene you’ll have to head to Crow’s Perch again to collect your fee of 100 gold. (Though you get more overall experience.)