W3EE 4.23 Manual
User Manual:
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The Witcher 3: Enhanced Edition – Step by Step
- Guide by Lady Glass -
Installation (Modders)
Unpack the archive. Put the three folders in your Witcher 3 top level directory.
Overwrite your input.settings file with the included input.settings file.
Installation (Casual)
Find your Witcher 3 top level directory. This is a folder called “The Witcher 3”
which contains folders named bin, content, DLC, and more. If you cannot find this
location on your computer, consult this guide.
The download of the mod is packed in 7zip (.7z) format. Unpack it with any
archiving software (free download here). Move the three folders from the archive, called
bin, DLC, and Mods, to your Witcher 3 top level directory.
If you’ve done this step correctly, then the DLC folder in your Witcher 3 top level
directory will contain (among others) two subfolders named dlcW3EE and DLC1.
Find your input.settings file, located in C:\Users\[your name]\Documents\The
Witcher 3, or This PC\Documents\The Witcher 3. Delete that file and replace it with
the input.settings file provided in the mod download.
Installation (First Launch)
After installing all mod files to the correct locations, launch your game. Before the
game window appears, a window named “REDengine 3” will appear and say it is
compiling scripts. If an error message appears, record the contents of the error message
and find someone who can help.
If the game starts without errors, close it and start it again. Always take this extra step
any time the “REDengine 3” window appears. Your game will contain errors no one can
fix if you forget to close and reopen it after it compiles its scripts.
Installation (Updating)
If you already have The Witcher 3: Enhanced Edition installed and you wish to
install a new version, check the version numbers of the old installation and the new
installation. Version numbers are broken into two halves by a decimal point (.), the
major version on the left and the minor version on the right. If the major version of the
new installation does not match your current installation, you will need to start a new
game after updating the mod. Do not continue on a previous save file.
Before installing a new version, visit the DLC folder in your Witcher 3 top level
directory and delete the subfolders named KOTW, W3EEDLC, and dlcW3EE (not all
3 will be present unless you have made a mistake), and visit the Mods folder to delete
every subfolder with W3EE in its name. Then install the update using the instructions
above. Replacing input.settings will remove your custom controls.
Warnings and Tips
•You must begin a new game after installing Enhanced Edition. No exceptions.
•New Game Plus is not supported. Quick Start is not supported.
•You can change the controls to your liking using the in-game menu located in
Options > Key Bindings. While you have this menu open, do not use the option
to reset all controls to default (do not press [R]). If you do this, the game will
“forget” controls added by the mod, and you will be unable to use them even if
they appear to have corresponding input buttons. If you have wiped your controls
by mistake, you can fix this by reinstalling the mod’s input.settings file.
•Enhanced Edition does not care if Unification Patch is or is not present. Do not
play versions of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt older than 1.31 (September 12, 2016).
If you do not know your version number, check the game’s main menu.
•Enhanced Edition is distributed only in English. If you play in another language,
look for the translations at the top of the description page. If no translation is
available, you will have to force the game to load Enhanced Edition’s English
text, or many text boxes will appear blank. Go to the Mods folder in your Witcher
3 top level directory. Visit each of the subfolders with W3EE in its name, and in
the content subfolder you will find a file named en.w3strings. Rename this file,
replacing “en” with the two-letter code for your language.
•If Enhanced Edition is causing a performance drop, go to Options > Mods >
W3EE > Addons > Friendly HUD > 3D Markers, and set “Enable 3D Markers”
to off.
•Instead of installing a mod to change the timescale of the game, go to \Mods\
modW3EEMain\content\scripts\game\r4game.ws, find the line
“setHoursPerMinute” (line 636) and change the number in the parentheses.
•The debug console can be opened with [~]. If this does nothing, edit general.ini,
located in \bin\config\base. Add “DBGConsoleOn=true” to a new line, then
save the file.
Installing Other Mods
Enhanced Edition is an extensive mod and includes the features of many simple and
necessary mods by other authors, credited where appropriate. Before installing a mod,
check to see if Enhanced Edition already adds the desired feature, including minor
things like scabbards for NPCs. Check first.
Do not use the “automatic merge” feature of Script Merger. Review the comparison
screen in KDiff3 and edit the script files intelligently to avoid creating bugs.
Credits
The Witcher 3: Enhanced Edition by Sir Reaperrz, Esq.
Special contributions by Corvah
W3EE – Lazarus Project by falki, Kolaris, and Charan666
Friendly HUD and vanilla bugfixes by Wasteland Ghost
Lore-Friendly Economy by stefan3372
Manual Bomb Aiming by Eutirion
Primer by DominusSicarum and skyliner390
Enhanced Targeting by Mpstark
Immersive Cam by ksolberg
More Quick Slots and Quick Inventory by Wolfmark
All Quest Objectives on Map by Wolfmark
No Duplicate Relics by Partoutatix
E3 2014 VGX More Blood Mod by KNGR
Quest reward bugfix by Absamra
Special contributions by tmentink and BloodyCharacter
Potion bottle asset by RayDess
XML edits by PeasantHenry
Weapon assets by billyro
VFX by ScoutbrO
Scaleform menu contributions by erxv
HUD assets by Hyadum27
Description text by Lady Glass
Table of Contents
The manual will proceed topically, one subject at a time. Topics will be addressed in
the following order:
1. Combat Controls
2. Combat Concepts
3. Exploration and Economy
4. Alchemy and Crafting
5. Signs and Talents
6. Technical Information
Combat Controls
- Attack
[Note: It is strongly recommended that you keep “Modify Attack Type” unbound. It
changes your attacks between light and heavy when held. Put “Strong Attack” on an
easily accessible key (recommended binding: Mouse 3).]
The Witcher 3: Enhanced Edition is a more skill-focused fighting game with an
emphasis on player involvement and control. It uses a manual targeting system by
default, which aims every attack at the center of your screen. Move the camera to aim
your attacks as though you had crosshairs on your display. If this is difficult, you can
practice by installing a crosshair overlay of your choice, or by sticking tape to the
middle of your screen.
You will take one step forward with every attack, which may not be enough to reach
the enemy in front of you. To change your attack distance, hold the medium distance
modifier or the long distance modifier. These inputs can be customized in Options >
Key Bindings (recommended bindings: Left Control and Left Shift).
- Attack Bending
The direction of your attack is not fixed once you begin the swing. Move the camera
while swinging to change its aim. You can use this bending technique with long attacks
to wrap around enemies and strike from behind, even when they try to face toward you.
- Whirl and Rend
Hold fast attack or strong attack with a weapon to trigger these alternate attacks.
- Special Attacks
If you fast attack while holding the parry key, you will perform a stamina-draining
kick attack instead of a weapon attack. If you strong attack while holding the parry key,
you will perform a double heavy attack, which may kill human opponents instantly if
they are missing 70% or more of their health. Weapons are required for special attacks.
[February 08, 2019: Special attacks may be contingent on whether or not you are in
the defensive stance, not whether or not you are holding the block input.]
- Block
While you hold the block key, you will assume a defensive stance. Attacks that come
at you from the front while you defend will be deflected and have no effect. Arrows and
bolts can also be deflected, but not liquid projectiles like cockatrice spit.
You must have a weapon drawn to parry any attack more dangerous than a bare fist.
Parrying an attack costs stamina, and if you cannot pay the full stamina cost, only
part of the incoming damage will be prevented.
Every attack you block has a chance to break your guard, deal damage, and stagger
you. Some attacks, such as drowner leaps, are specially marked as unblockable, and
attempting to block them guarantees a long stagger.
See Poise for more information.
- Counter
Press the parry key once while facing an enemy who has just begun an attack to
counter that attack. When you counter an attack, it will deal no damage, unless it is
unblockable, in which case it will deal reduced damage. Countering an attack counts as
attacking for most purposes, including stamina payment (see Stamina).
Without a weapon, you have access only to the fist counter, which can only counter
enemy fist attacks. When you counter with a weapon drawn, you will perform an
evasive slash, which will miss if you are too far away.
You can also combine the parry key with the medium distance modifier to change
your sword counter to a kick counter, which drains stamina in the same way as the
special fast attack (see Special Attacks). The long distance modifier replaces your sword
counter with a shoulder bash that staggers your opponent. These body-contact
counterattacks do not work against most large enemies.
[February 08, 2019: Kicking some enemies, e.g. ghouls, may cause them to dodge
backwards, pulling you with them. There are no plans to change this behavior.]
- Dodge and Roll
Press the dodge key to take a step back. Combine it with the direction inputs to dodge
in a specified direction. You can do the same with the roll key.
Every enemy attack has an invisible cone called the safe dodge angle, which is 90
degrees (by default) pointed straight at you. If you are dodging away from an attack in
this angle, you are immune to damage from that attack during the early middle portion
(20% - 60%) of the dodge’s animation.
The first part of the dodge animation provides no protection and the last part provides
reduced protection. Dodges outside the safe angle also provide no protection. Partially
dodged attacks are called grazes.
Hold parry while dodging (not rolling) for extra protection; you will be able to
counter some of the attacks you would have failed to dodge.
- Jump
Roll and jump are on the same key. Roll will be chosen contextually when enemies
are near, and jump will be chosen otherwise.
To roll while no enemies are near, use a fast attack and then roll immediately after. To
jump while in combat, sprint first.
- Sign Casting
Selecting a sign using its selection key will immediately cast it. Select a sign using
the radial menu if you do not wish to cast it immediately.
- Crossbows
Crossbows require ammunition to fire. Use your “Use Item” key to load and to fire
your crossbow. Hold the fire key to aim your crossbow and release it to pull the trigger.
Use the jump key while aiming to put your crossbow away without firing it.
Crossbows can be fired underwater.
Combat Concepts
- Vitality
Your health bar appears in red. If it’s not there and you want to see it, hold [Enter] to
force Friendly HUD to show it to you. At the beginning of the game, you have a vitality
maximum of 6,000 points. At 0 points, you die. Ways of increasing your maximum
vitality are uncommon. In Enhanced Edition, increases to your survivability usually
take other forms, like points of increased dodge safe angle or evasion speed.
Be aware of your percent vitality. As your health bar empties you lose stamina
regeneration, vigor regeneration, movement speed, poise, and even resistance to
damage. When you fall below 30% of your maximum vitality, you lose the ability to
sprint and run out of combat and will begin to limp.
Get your vitality back by consuming food and drink. These consumable items have
little immediate impact but have a long duration, making them your primary source of
vitality between encounters. You can only benefit from one food item and one drink item
at any time. The vitality regeneration of both food and drink is suspended during
combat, but the stamina regeneration of drink items continues.
You can use the time-lapse feature of meditation (see Meditation) to consume
multiple food or drink items in succession. You also regenerate 1 point of vitality every
second under most circumstances, enabling you to meditate away scratches without
consuming food or drink.
- Stamina
The stamina bar is yellow and wraps around the bottom of the wolf medallion. It
refills rapidly over time. When you dodge, roll, attack, counter, or sprint, you pay a
stamina cost for that action. You do not regenerate stamina while taking an action with a
stamina cost, and you do not regenerate stamina until one full second after finishing an
action with a stamina cost.
The sword icon on your stamina bar glows when you have high stamina and fades
when your stamina bar empties. You deal more damage the brighter the sword glows,
losing up to 40% of your damage output when the bar is empty.
Additionally, you cannot attack while out of stamina.
- Vigor
The red half-wheel to the left of the medallion is vigor. Every sign you cast in its
standard mode costs 1 vigor point, one-third of the full bar. Every point of vigor
missing from your meter reduces your damage by 10%, down to a minimum of 70%
when all vigor has been spent.
The alternate modes of Aard, Yrden, and Axii also cost 1 vigor point. The alternate
modes of Igni and Quen cost vigor continuously while they are cast.
Casting a sign imposes a regeneration delay that ends one second after you cease
casting the sign. The standard mode of Quen also impedes vigor regeneration, reducing
it to one-half speed while the shield is present.
- Toxicity
Below the health bar is a bar with a skull icon at one end. This bar fills up bright
green with toxicity points when you drink your alchemy creations. By default, it holds
up to 100 points. There is no special effect or penalty for completely filling up the bar,
but you cannot consume an alchemy product that would put your toxicity total above
your toxicity maximum.
You have a 50-point toxicity safe threshold, and any number of toxicity points below
this number will have no adverse effect on you. Toxicity above this amount will deal
steady damage to your vitality. Note that increases to your maximum toxicity do not
automatically increase your safe threshold, but they do reduce damage.
Toxicity constantly dissipates at a slow rate. Toxicity points associated with an
alchemy product begin to clear faster once that alchemy product has worn off.
- Adrenaline
Adrenaline points are temporary boosts you can get in combat. They appear among
the buffs on your HUD as a percent over a picture of a heart. Each point of adrenaline
buffs you by a small amount, up to +100% stamina and vigor regeneration and +20%
damage when full up. You also experience up to a 15% time slowdown effect, making it
easier to make decisions in combat. There are ways to increase your adrenaline
maximum above 100%, which will enable you to gain even more stamina, vigor,
damage, and time slowdown.
You gain 12 points of adrenaline when you take a hit, 5 for killing an enemy, 2 for
landing a hit, and 1 for countering an attack. Adrenaline gain is severely penalized while
vitality is high and the points rapidly fall off after a few seconds of inaction.
- Poise
Poise is granted by the armor you wear. Heavy armor provides significantly more
poise than light armor. You gain poise while at high toxicity and lose poise while at low
vitality. You gain a temporary multiplier to your poise while performing an action: +20%
while sprinting, +30% while attacking, and more.
Every point of poise gives you 1% chance to resist the stagger effect of any attack
you could parry. Once your poise reaches 110, you can resist the staggering effect of
unblockable attacks. Many heavy attacks have a high “poise damage” value, which
calculates your stagger chance as though your poise were that many points lower. This is
why heavy enemy attacks are more likely to stagger you, and also why poise values
above 100 continue to be valuable.
- Injuries
Every unblocked attack that hits its target has a 2% chance to injure the victim,
including you. The second swing of the strong special attack (see Special Attacks)
comes with a guaranteed injury if both swings of the attack connect. Injuries are
randomly selected from a table of options. Everyone is immune to all injuries they
already have.
Limb (arm, leg, wing) injuries cause immense pain when moving. When you dodge
with a leg injury or attack with an arm/wing injury, there is a chance that your action is
interrupted by a brief stagger. The chance is 10% on attacks and 20% on dodges.
Chest and spine injuries apply 5 stacks of bleeding (see Status Effects) immediately.
Spine injuries increase also the damage you take from behind.
Head injuries blind you and inhibit stamina regeneration for five seconds.
Injuries remain until the victim is restored to full health, and are then removed.
Having two injuries on the player character triggers the out-of-combat limp animation
(see Vitality).
- Finishers
Also called “executes,” “killmoves,” or “finishing moves,” you score one of these by
killing any human enemy with a fast attack, then attacking them again while they have
their hands over their throat. Choose which finisher to use by combining your attack
input with a direction key.
Killmoves always dismember their victim. Whenever you dismember an enemy, you
regain 20 stamina and you gain 10 adrenaline (instead of the standard 5 awarded after
killing an enemy).
If you execute the last enemy in a fight, you get a time slowdown and camera zoom.
- Status Effects
Burning deals continuous damage until it times out. No stacking.
Bleeding deals continuous damage until it times out. Stacks up to 15 times.
Poison on you slowly increases toxicity. Poison on anyone else deals continuous
damage. Stacks up to 5 times.
Blindness makes an actor unable to attack or block until it times out. Blindness also
briefly turns the screen white when applied to you. No stacking.
Slowdown or chilled makes an actor move slower. Slowdowns stack additively up to
100%. Chilled is increased to frozen by stacking twice from different sources.
Frozen or paralyzed makes an actor stop moving until it times out. Frozen actors take
additional damage during this time. No stacking.
Stun makes an actor stand in place and take no actions until it times out. Being hit
with an attack cancels stun. No stacking. Also called confusion and snare.
Hypnosis on you turns the screen dark until it times out. No stacking.
Stagger removes the victim’s ability to take actions until it times out. No stacking.
Knockdown and heavy knockdown are similar to stagger, but instead of the
staggering animation, knock the actor onto their back and make them play a stand-up
animation. Heavy knockdown creates a window of time where an enemy can be
instantly slain with a stab to the heart.
Exploration and Economy
- Your Inventory
You can carry up to 75 units of weight, beyond which you lose the ability to move
faster than a walk. Every item has a weight, even the coins in your pocket and the quest
items the game forbids you from dropping. The inventory screen only displays values
down to the hundredths (0.01), so if an item does not appear to have weight, you will see
it when you have more of them.
You cannot open your inventory screen or eat food during combat. While you
have the radial menu open, your Quick Access items will be displayed in the lower-left
of the screen in two columns. Tap a quick item key to use a corresponding item from the
left column. Hold that key to use the item in the right column.
- Roach’s Inventory
Press [P] while near your horse to open her saddlebags, or double tap the whistle
button. The saddlebags hold up to 250 units and will not allow you to put in more, but
you can increase this number to 400 by equipping a saddlebag-type item in the
appropriate slot in your inventory screen.
While haggling with merchants, you can sell from the contents of your saddlebags,
regardless of proximity to Roach. You can dismantle or repair things in the saddlebags,
and so on, just as if they were in your inventory. You also have access to the stash while
meditating, regardless of Roach’s location.
- Area Looting
When you open a container, dead body, or herb container, the game also checks other
nearby objects of the same type. Their contents will be displayed in the same loot
window, listed below the contents of the central container.
Area looting is performed in a radius around you, not around the container.
- Horseback Looting
Visit Options > Key Bindings to set an input to loot herbs while on horseback.
Herbs in a radius around you will be picked and added immediately to the saddlebags.
- Loot Scarcity
Many of the chests, barrels, and bundles in the world have little or nothing in them.
Some points of interest and treasure hunt quests have no lootable objects at all. They
will still mark themselves as cleared or completed when you visit.
[February 21, 2019: It is documented that the Coast of Wrecks quest, which requires
you to open four chests, cannot be completed with Enhanced Edition installed, as only
two of those four chests will contain items.]
- Prices
The selling and buying prices of every item in the game have been tuned, greatly
increasing the value of the Novigrad Crown and greatly decreasing the value of the
miscellaneous items that you might try to sell to local merchants.
- Relic Restoration
There are no duplicates of relic weapons. Only one copy of each of The Harpy,
Headhunter, etc., can be found. When you find these items, they may be in unusable
condition, unable to be equipped, and without a damage rating. They must be taken to a
craftsman for restoration, an expensive one-time process. Some relic weapons are found
well-preserved, and do not require restoration.
- Weapon Alternatives
You can wield one and two-handed axes and maces, but cannot use attack distance
modifiers with the two-handed versions. Axes, maces, and steel swords have high
durability and deal damage to all enemies except the supernatural, like werewolves and
wraiths. Silver swords, which can be used to kill these enemies, have low durability and
will need frequent repair work.
- Monster Trophies
When you complete a contract, you will take a trophy off the monster’s body. To the
right buyer, these are quite valuable. They are also fairly heavy and have no other uses.
- Item Enhancements
Grindstones and workbenches apply charges to your weapons and armor that are
consumed in combat. They last indefinitely otherwise. Until these charges are depleted,
your equipment will not degrade in quality.
- Night Sight
Press Night Sight (Mouse 4 by default) to toggle night vision.
- Deleveling
There are no “character levels” or “item levels” in Enhanced Edition. There are no
quest levels, area levels, or display elements that mention levels.
Individual enemies of the same type vary in health and damage by plus or minus
10%, generated at spawning.
Even the best light armors provide less protection than the weakest of heavy armors,
and even the best swords deal less damage than a blunt halberd. Instead of simple
number upscaling, items showcase their quality through rarity, in color-coded tiers:
common (gray), uncommon (blue), rare (yellow), and relic (brown). Items of greater
rarity are more likely to have helpful secondary effects like stamina gain, movement
speed, and bonus carrying capacity.
To learn more about improving your character, see Skills and Talents.
Alchemy and Crafting
- Meditation
Meditation is an integral part of a witcher’s routine. You must be meditating to repair
your weapons and armor, spend skill points, equip mutagens, or perform alchemy.
Press [N] to meditate. If there is a fire nearby, you will kneel facing it. If your
character does not detect a nearby fire, you will light one, spending wood from your
inventory. If no wood is available, you will not make a fire. If you do not wish to spend
the wood you have, hold [N] to kneel down without building a fire. Any time you
meditate at a fire, you will whistle for Roach; this is a holdover feature from previous
versions, where proximity was required for stash access while performing alchemy.
While in meditation pose, you can press [N] again to stand up, or hold [N] to bring
up the clock interface, which lets you fast-forward to a set time of day. You can also hold
the sprint key (Left Shift by default) while meditating to see the world time-lapse around
you. Each meditation-exclusive action you take (spending skill points, etc.) causes time
to pass around you. If you meditate at a fire for at least 7 hours, you gain the Well
Rested buff: +1000 maximum vitality for one real-time hour.
While you meditate, your safe toxicity threshold is elevated by 20% of your
maximum toxicity, your toxicity points clear faster, and you resist some bleeding
damage. Oils you apply to your blades and potions you drink during this time have their
duration increased by 20%.
- Crafting
To make an item in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, you find the entry for the item you
wish to make in a drop-down menu, then click on it to view its ingredients. Fill each of
the product item’s ingredient slots with an appropriate item, then fuse them with a button
press. Each type of crafting also has a contextual requirement: you must be speaking
with a blacksmith to craft a sword, must be kneeling at a fire to brew potions, and so
forth. Some ingredients, like the broken sword in a restoration recipe, cannot be
substituted. Many other ingredient requirements, especially alchemy ingredients, can be
satisfied with more than one available item.
To switch between eligible ingredients, click on them in the crafting interface and use
the up and down arrow keys or mousewheel.
- Dismantling
Many ingredients called for in bulk, like leather scraps, are also difficult to find. In
order to get large numbers of these ingredients, visit the dismantling menu, only
available when bartering with a craftsman. Here, you can see what ingredients can be
made out of the ingredients in your inventory.
- Component Quality
Every component is an item, and every item in the game has a rarity (see
Deleveling). Whenever you craft an item, the average rarity of your components is
calculated. Common items have a rarity of 1, counting up all the way through relics, at
4, and “witcher gear” (green) items, which have a rarity rating of 5.
In some recipes, certain ingredients, like the bottles in your potions, are excluded
from the calculation of an average, because multiple versions of these ingredients at
different rarities do not exist.
Increasing the average quality of your components results in higher-quality output. A
preview of your item is displayed in the upper right part of the crafting screen.
- Ability Sets
Armors and weapons may have multiple “ability sets” available when you craft them.
If they do, then the name of their recipe will be prefaced with the word “regular.” Use
the indicated controls at the bottom center of the crafting screen to cycle through the
ability sets. Each set will change the prefixing word of the item’s name and grant it a
few themed bonuses. The exact values are random and determined when you craft the
item.
- Alchemy Recipes
Alchemy recipes in Enhanced Edition require you to mix “primary substances”
into “bases” to create products. Blade oils use various greases as their base, bombs can
be made with a variety of powders, and potions and decoctions require alcohol.
For example, Swallow, the basic healing potion, is made of an alcoholic base and
three of the six primary substances: aether, rebis, and vitriol. You will also need an
empty bottle in which to put the potion. (You get empty bottles by consuming alcohol,
which happens naturally when you brew potions. You won’t run out.)
After you line up the ingredients and craft the item, a sound will play, indicating
success, and the quantities of ingredients in your inventory will update. However, the
item will not be added to your inventory, as it has not been created. Instead, it has been
added to a crafting queue, which fills up with the items you request. When you exit the
crafting screen, the game will briefly fade to black and every item in your crafting queue
will be added to your inventory, one at a time.
- Primary Substances
An item is an alchemy ingredient if it is a base or if it contains one of the six primary
substances: aether, hydragenum, rebis, quebrith, vermilion, and vitriol. Every alchemy
recipe requires at least one “unit” of a primary substance. Most recipes require multiple
primary substances in differing amounts, but no recipe requires that a primary substance
be added twice.
- Ingredient Quantity
Every base and alchemical substance has a quantity rating of 1, 2, or 4. Each
ingredient provides a number of recipe units equal to its quantity rating.
Every alchemical recipe requires 4 units of its corresponding base type (grease,
powder, or alcohol), meaning that 2 copies of a quantity 2 base will fulfill the
requirement, as will 4 copies of a 1-quantity base or 1 copy of a 4-quantity base.
Ingredients cannot share the load in a recipe slot, even if they are interchangeable.
Alcoholic bases are described as “weak,” “strong,” or “pure,” corresponding to
quantity scores of 2, 4, and 4, respectively. Oil bases are “low,” “standard,” and “high
quality”, also corresponding to quantity scores of 2, 4, and 4. Powder bases are also
“low,” “standard,” and “high quality,” but these match up with quantity scores of 1, 2,
and 4, different from the other bases.
Other ingredients are described as “low/weak,” “moderate,” or “rich” sources of their
corresponding primary substance, indicating their status as 1, 2, or 4 quantity
ingredients, respectively.
[February 08, 2019: Discussion is ongoing about standardizing this terminology.]
- Distilling
In your alchemy screen is a drop-down menu called “Substances: Primary.” These
recipes are called the “distilling recipes.” When you make one of these primary
substances using a “contaminated” (common) ingredient, you will receive a “quality”
(uncommon) sample of primary substance. Use a “quality” ingredient in the distilling
process to create “pure” (rare) samples of the primary substance. Distilling a “pure”
ingredient does not improve it further.
- Secondary Substances
Some alchemy ingredients contain one of the three secondary substances, nigredo,
albedo, and rubedo. If you line up ingredients for your potion (and only potions) that all
contain the same secondary substance, then your finished product will contain that
secondary substance as well. Ingredients that do not contain primary substances (bottles,
bases, etc) do not need to contain the secondary substance.
When you drink a potion with a secondary substance, the secondary substance will
appear on your display as a buff, with a separate timer from the duration of the potion.
They tick down and expire separately.
The nigredo buff grants you 10% bonus damage. The albedo buff reduces all toxicity
points you would gain by 20% until it expires, including on the potion that applies the
buff. The rubedo buff heals you 0.3% of your maximum vitality every second.
Secondary substances disappear from an ingredient when you distill it into a sample
of primary substance.
- Cooking Recipes
You can purchase cooking and brewing recipes from innkeepers, enabling you to
combine and upgrade your food items, increasing their efficiency per weight unit. You
can also prepare your own alcohol for potions.
- Potions
Potions have a non-optional drinking animation. Do not expect to be able to consume
a potion while under immediate pressure.
- Oils
Any oil can be applied to any melee weapon. When you exit the inventory screen
after applying an oil, you will play an animation running your hand down the length of
your weapon on both sides, unless you are in meditation pose.
While you have an oiled weapon drawn, its remaining effectiveness will display on
your HUD, but it will slowly drip away over time. To keep the oil on a weapon, keep it
sheathed. Each hit with the weapon will also deplete the remaining oil until none is left.
Oils lose effectiveness as they lose charges. Oils will remain on a blade indefinitely if
it is not drawn, including when it’s unequipped or stashed.
- Bombs
While you hold the key to throw a bomb, a bright white or red spot will appear on the
ground where your bomb will land. (The indicator’s color is affected by ambient
lighting.) On key release, you throw the prepared bomb in a line to the target.
To cancel a prepared bomb throw, jump.
- Decoctions
There are 10 decoctions, each associated with a monster family (necrophage,
vampire, etc). To learn the recipe for a decoction, you must read 2 books about that
monster family, available from book vendors throughout the world.
Signs and Talents
- Aard
Aard is the sign of air. Use it to put out fires, give enemies a push, and deal a burst of
damage to them. Use it underwater to create a shockwave that will crush anything in
front of you.
You can upgrade it to unlock its alternate mode: hold the cast button for half a second
to hit everything in a circle around you, instead of the cone in front of you. Alternate
Aard does half damage and has 60% of base Aard’s knockdown chance.
- Igni
This is the sign of elemental fire. It ignites things in a cone in front of you: campfires,
candles, explosive barrels, and enemies. Enemies who catch fire will take damage over a
few seconds and might panic, standing in place instead of attacking or defending
themselves (see Status Effects).
Its alternate mode fires a continuous stream that slows enemies. Enemies on fire take
less damage from the alternate mode.
- Yrden
The “fifth element,” Yrden represents an unknown force. Cast it to create a
temporary circle on the ground that slows everyone in it, including you. Enemies in the
circle receive a burst of damage every 0.9-1.1 seconds (the timer is separate for each
enemy), and enemies who take three pulses of the damage are snared (see Status
Effects). Additional ticks may be require to apply the snare, based on the enemy’s slow
resistance. After being snared, enemies cannot be snared again for 4.5 seconds.
Upgrade the sign to unlock its alternate mode. This creates a single rune on the
ground which destroys enemy projectiles near it and fires staggering blasts at enemies
who take offensive actions against you.
- Quen
Quen is the sign of earth. When cast, it creates a layer of electric force that protects
you from harm until it expires or is depleted. When you take a hit, the damage is
reduced by the number of points remaining on your Quen shield, then Quen loses a
portion of its strength. Quen loses fewer points on a hit if you have a higher armor rating
or greater sign intensity.
Alternate Quen creates a spherical forcefield around you that blocks incoming
damage and turns it into stamina and adrenaline, but depletes vigor when blocking hits
and while channeling.
Cast Quen while your base Quen shield is up to dismiss it.
- Axii
This is the sign of elemental water. Use it to stun the enemy in the middle of your
screen. It does not always work; increase your sign intensity and try weaker-willed
opponents to up your chances.
Its alternate version allows you to switch an enemy to your side instead of stunning
them (see Status Effects).
- Skills
On your Character screen, there are five tabs: Combat (red), Signs (blue), Alchemy
(green), General (brown), and Mutagens (gray). The Mutagens tab is just an alternate
way of viewing your inventory, so be sure when you check it that you’ve retrieved all
your mutagens from your saddlebags. The red, blue, green, and brown tab all feature a
grid of talents. Each talent belongs to one of sixteen skills.
In the red, blue, and green tabs, there are fifteen talents at the top of the grid that are
automatically unlocked. Each one of them is the “base talent” of its corresponding skill.
The other talents below it in the column also belong to the same skill. You can hover
over any of the fifteen base talents to see your skill progression in that skill. Every time
your skill progression reaches 100%, it resets to 0, and you receive a skill point.
Each skill point is associated with the skill that generated it, and cannot be used
interchangeably with the other fifteen types of skill point.
You gain progression in each of the sixteen skills by using that skill.
•Fast Attack: Use fast attacks. Progress 75% faster by hitting enemies.
•Strong Attack: Use strong attacks. Progress 75% faster by hitting enemies.
•Defense: Use blocks, dodges, and counters.
•Ranged Combat: Use a crossbow. Progress 75% faster by hitting enemies.
•Battle Trance: Complete combat encounters. At least one enemy must die for a
combat to qualify. Progress 50% faster by taking no damage in that combat.
•Aard Sign: Use the Aard Sign.
•Igni Sign: Use the Igni Sign.
•Yrden Sign: Use the Yrden Sign.
•Quen Sign: Use the Quen Sign in its standard mode. Block damage with the Quen
Sign in its alternate mode.
•Axii Sign: Use the Axii Sign.
•Brewing: Craft any recipe in the “Potions” category.
•Oil Preparation: Craft any recipe in the “Oils” category. Apply oils to your
weapons.
•Bomb Creation: Craft any recipe in the “Bombs” category. Throw bombs. Plant
bombs in monster nests.
•Mutation: Craft any recipe with a mutagen in its ingredient list. Read any of the
twenty books that teaches a decoction recipe.
•Trial of the Grasses: Drink potions and decoctions.
•General: Complete quests and discover fast travel signposts.
- Talents
While meditating, you may spend skill points to unlock and upgrade talents. General
talents cannot be upgraded once unlocked. All other talents have 5 ranks, which each
cost 1 skill point. Each skill has 4 talents in it except General, which has 20. Each skill is
therefore fully upgraded after you have spent 20 of the correct type of skill point.
Fully upgraded skills continue to earn skill points, and the extra skill points can be
used to unlock mutations after traveling to Toussaint.
All the talents where you have spent your points are always on, regardless of how
many different talents you have.
- Mutagens
Your Character screen has four slots for equipping mutagens, which unlock as you
earn skill points (across all skills).
Color mutagens (red, blue, and green) have no effect. These are used as alchemy
ingredients (see Decoctions). Monster mutagens, named after their monster (Griffin,
Noonwraith, etc.) can be looted off the corpses of the appropriate monster type. While
equipped, they confer abilities loosely themed to match the monster you killed. The
exact value of the buff from each mutagen is determined when you loot it.
- Archmutagens
You can learn alchemy recipes for “Archmutagens,” which combine monster
mutagens from all the monsters of a family to create a more powerful effect.
Archmutagens have a nonrandom buff value and can be equipped while meditating as
normal.
- Mutations
When you have unlocked the ability to research mutations, an icon will appear on
your Character screen, centered between your mutagen slots.
On the Mutation screen, accessed by clicking the mutation icon on your Character
screen, you can research new mutations by meditating and spending their costs (color
mutagens and skill points). They are organized in a dependent tree structure, requiring
you to research the central ones first and the branching ones after.
You can equip up to one of your researched mutations at a time.
Technical Information
- How Is Damage Calculated?
Every attack has a random damage output, chosen linearly from an uninterrupted
range of integer values, expressible in the form total = min + 1d(max-min) using dice
algebra notation.
Attacks also have one or more damage types, from the following list: frost, force,
poison, fire, physical, silver, slashing, piercing, bludgeoning, rending, elemental, shock,
morale, and direct.
Every character has a resistance value for every one of these damage types. That
resistance value is 0% unless an effect or equipment or racial trait changes it.
Every attack has an AP (armor piercing) rating, expressed as a percentage.
When an attack comes in, its random damage result is calculated, then your
resistances to all damage types are reduced by the AP rating of the attack, down to a
minimum of 0 (no negatives). This reduction is only for the purposes of this calculation
and is not “real.”
Then, two numbers are generated. One number, call it x, is the AP of the attack
multiplied by its damage (remember that 15% = 0.15). The other, call it y, is the damage
of the attack minus your total points of armor.
If the attack has more than one damage type, your armor rating will be split up
among these damage types. An attack that deals 80% piercing damage and 20% fire
damage will be split up so that 80% of your armor points are subtracted from the
piercing damage and 20% are subtracted from the fire damage.
Now, whichever of x or y is smaller gets dropped and forgotten about. The
remaining number is multiplied with your resist percentage (x * [100 minus your resist
percentage as modified by enemy AP] / 100), and the result is the damage number that is
dealt to health.
- How Many Points Does Quen Lose?
After Quen reduces damage dealt to you by the number of Quen points you have, two
numbers are calculated:
Call one of them x, it’s equal to one-tenth of the (pre-resistance) damage of the
original attack, or 2500 less than the pre-resistance damage, whichever is greater. This
number goes up as the damage of the attack goes up.
Call the other number y, it’s equal to the damage you took from the attack, after
armor and resistances but before Quen, divided by the pre-resistance damage of the
attack. This number is smaller the greater your armor is.
Your Quen shield now loses points equal to x * y / (Quen Intensity)2.
- What Do The Difficulty Settings Do?
4: 100% enemy damage, 100% enemy health.
3: 90% enemy damage, 80% enemy health.
2: 75% enemy damage, 65% enemy health.
1: 50% enemy damage, 50% enemy health.
- Where’s My Ingredient?
An alphabetized list of every alchemy ingredient is available here. It lists their
primary and secondary substances, quantity, and quality. See the lower-left of the page
to navigate between the pages: monster ingredients, herb ingredients, loot-exclusive
ingredients, and bases.
[January 23, 2019: We hope soon to provide information on ingredient availability by
map region.]
- Which Recipes Am I Missing?
Recipes are presented below without bases, bottles, vials, or bomb cases.
This is the full list of (basic quality, quest unrelated) potions:
•Black Blood – 4 aether, 8 vermilion, 4 vitriol
•Blizzard – 4 hydragenum, 4 rebis, 4 vermilion, 8 vitriol
•Cat – 4 aether, 4 hydragenum, 8 quebrith
•Full Moon – 8 aether, 4 hydragenum, 8 quebrith, 4 vermilion
•Golden Oriole – 8 quebrith, 4 rebis, 4 vitriol
•Maribor Forest – 4 aether, 8 hydragenum, 4 rebis, 4 vitriol
•Petri’s Philter – 8 aether, 8 hydragenum, 4 quebrith, 4 vitriol
•Swallow – 4 aether, 12 rebis, 4 vitriol
•Tawny Owl – 12 aether, 4 rebis, 4 vitriol
•Thunderbolt – 8 rebis, 8 vermilion, 8 vitriol
•Tiara – 4 aether, 4 quebrith, 4 rebis, 8 vermilion
•White Honey – 8 hydragenum, 4 quebrith, 4 rebis
•White Raffard’s Decoction – 8 hydragenum, 4 quebrith, 8 rebis, 4 vitriol
This is the full list of decoctions:
•Cursed – 36 rebis, 20 vitriol, 14 red mutagen (lesser), 1 cursed mutagen
•Draconid – 24 hydragenum, 40 vermilion, 10 green mutagen (lesser), 1 draconid
mutagen
•Elemental – 60 aether, 10 blue mutagen (lesser), 1 elemental mutagen
•Hybrid – 40 rebis, 16 quebrith, 12 green mutagen (lesser), 1 hybrid mutagen
•Insectoid – 28 rebis, 32 quebrith, 14 green mutagen (lesser), 1 insectoid mutagen
•Necrophage – 48 vitriol, 10 red mutagen (lesser), 1 necrophage mutagen
•Ogroid – 52 vitriol, 12 red mutagen (lesser), 1 ogroid mutagen
•Relict – 20 quebrith, 44 vitriol, 10 blue mutagen (lesser), 1 relict mutagen
•Spectre – 16 hydragenum, 36 vitriol, 12 blue mutagen (lesser), 1 spectre mutagen
•Vampire – 44 aether, 24 quebrith, 10 red mutagen (lesser), 1 vampire mutagen
This is the full list of (basic quality) oils:
•Argentia Oil – 8 aether, 8 hydragenum, 4 quebrith, 4 vitriol, 1 silver
•Brown Oil – 8 quebrith, 4 rebis, 12 vermilion, 4 vitriol
•Corrosive Oil – 4 aether, 12 quebrith, 8 vermilion, 8 vitriol
•Falka’s Blood – 4 aether, 4 hydragenum, 8 quebrith, 8 vermilion
•Flammable Oil – 4 hydragenum, 8 quebrith, 12 vermilion, 4 vitriol
•Paralysis Oil – 8 aether, 4 hydragenum, 8 rebis, 12 vitriol
•Poisonous Oil – 8 quebrith, 12 rebis, 4 vermilion, 8 vitriol
•Rime Oil – 8 aether, 8 hydragenum, 4 rebis, 8 vitriol
•Veil Oil – 12 aether, 8 hydragenum, 4 vitriol, 1 glowing ore
This is the full list of (basic quality) bombs:
•Dancing Star – 8 aether, 12 quebrith, 4 rebis, 12 vermilion, 4 vitriol
•Devil’s Puffball – 8 hydragenum, 12 rebis, 8 vermilion, 8 vitriol
•Dimeritium Bomb – 12 aether, 8 hydragenum, 4 quebrith, 12 rebis, 1 dimeritium
ore
•Dragon’s Dream – 4 hydragenum, 12 quebrith, 8 rebis, 12 vermilion, 4 vitriol
•Grapeshot – 12 quebrith, 8 rebis, 8 vermilion, 4 vitriol
•Moon Dust – 8 aether, 12 hydragenum, 4 vermilion, 12 vitriol, 3 silver
•Northern Wind – 8 aether, 12 hydragenum, 4 quebrith, 4 vermilion, 8 vitriol
•Samum – 8 aether, 8 hydragenum, 8 rebis, 8 vermilion
For the list of bases and their recipes, see the ingredient spreadsheet, here.
- What Does an Enhanced Potion Do?
Enhanced and Superior potions have extended durations, increased effects, and
reduced toxicity costs.
Some superior potions have new effects that emphasize the potion’s story or
mechanical role:
•Swallow: Taking damage no longer interrupts the effect.
•Tawny Owl: Potion timer does not run at night.
•Maribor Forest: Toxicity impedes vigor regeneration less.
•Full Moon: Heals vitality by an amount equal to current toxicity.
•Cat: Increased safe dodge angle (+15).
•Thunderbolt: Critical hits have a 25% chance to slow time by 50% for 2 seconds.
•Petri’s Philter: Signs with optional special effects always apply them.
- What is a Set Bonus?
When you wear four pieces of armor of the same weight (light, medium, or heavy),
you receive one of these bonuses:
•Light: +15 degrees safe dodge angle.
•Medium: 15% chance to resist status effects.
•Heavy: 20% chance to stagger enemies when you block.
When you wear five pieces from the same Witcher school, you get one of these
bonuses (these sets contain swords!):
•Cat: Attacks from behind deal 10% more damage and, if available, spend 15%
adrenaline to stun the target. Allows moderate adrenaline gain at high vitality.
•Griffin: The size of Yrden circles is increased by 15%. Vigor regeneration is
increased by 20% while standing in an Yrden circle.
•Bear: Incoming unblockable attacks can now be blocked for partial damage
reduction and they no longer stagger you.
•Wolf: When you enter combat, gain 5% attack power and sign intensity for each
enemy beyond the first. This expires after 30 seconds.
•Viper: Applying poison to an opponent paralyzes them for five seconds and
causes them to take stamina damage from the poison in addition to vitality
damage.
•Manticore: Every two minutes, you can throw a bomb without consuming one.
Witcher armor sets are all composed of pieces of matching weight class, so you’ll
receive the armor weight bonus as well. To receive a third and final set bonus, upgrade
your Witcher armor to Grandmaster tier:
•Cat: Alternating fast and strong attacks increases the damage on your next attack
for 6s. The increase is 2.5% per set piece equipped.
•Griffin: For 3 seconds after you cast a standard-mode sign with vigor, you may
cast a standard-mode sign for free.
•Bear: Blocks and counters generate stacks, up to 5. Each stack increases critical
hit chance by 3%. Strong attack at maximum stacks to consume all stacks and
guarantee knockdown.
•Wolf: Damage dealt by the Quen sign and its related abilities is doubled.
Activating Quen grants bonus shock damage to your weapons.
•Viper:
•Manticore: Whenever you brew a potion or oil, 30% chance to double the output.
Note that Grandmaster witcher gear is improved so that you only need four pieces
from the set instead of five to receive the basic witcher set bonus. Note also that
Manticore gear is always Grandmaster tier.
