While it boasts an open world, like most games, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has an optimal order in which players should consider completing all main story and side quests for the most cohesive playthrough. Completing these activities rewards players with extra gear and items and further develops the story of some of the characters and the overall plot.
The story for The Witcher3 is broken into four different sections: Prologue, Act 1, Act 2, and Act 3. Each section will have its final mission that triggers the next act, so before doing any of these, you’ll want to ensure you’ve completed everything else to enjoy all the game has to offer and make the ending much more special.
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Best Quest Order For The Witcher 3: Prologue
The Best Order To Complete All 10 Quests
After completing the introductory tutorial quest, “Kaer Morhen,” players can access a much larger, open section of The Witcher 3‘s map and begin completing quests in any order they like. A few side quests are scattered throughout, which players should complete early to gain more knowledge of the game’s mechanics and the world it’s set in. The rewards can’t hurt, either.
Remember that you don’t have to complete every quest to thoroughly enjoy the story. Many quests may offer little reward, so feel free to skip any that don’t seem particularly interesting. However, try to stick to the recommended order, regardless of any that you may skip over.
- “Kaer Morhen”
- “Lilac and Gooseberries”
- “A Frying Pan, Spick and Span”
- “Missing in Action”
- “On Death’s Bed”
- “Precious Cargo”
- “Twisted Firestarter”
- “The Beast of White Orchard”
- “Incident at White Orchard”
- “Imperial Audience” – Completing Leads To Act One
There are a few Treasure Hunts, Scavenger Hunts, and Contracts scattered throughout the Prologue, but these aren’t missable and, at least in the case of one Contract, are best attempted later. While players can complete these now, it’s best to be done with the Prologue as quickly as possible for the pacing’s sake. Once the player completes “Imperial Audience,” they’ll be thrust into Act One, revealing a more significant portion of the map and the general direction of the game’s story.
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Best Quest Order For The Witcher 3: Act One
The Best Order To Complete All 59 Quests
In Act One, Geralt finally catches up with Ciri’s trail and begins pursuing her through Novigrad, Velen, and Skellige. This is where the game takes off, with the main plot beginning to come together, decisions impacting the story, and the first of The Witcher 3‘s romance options opening up. This is also the first time the player can control Ciri in a series of spin-off quests centered on Geralt’s ward.
Which sidequests are available depends partially on certain decisions that players may have made earlier – either in Act One or previous
Witcher
games.
If one of the quests below isn’t available, it’s likely locked out due to a story choice.
- “The Nilfgaardian Connection”
- “Bloody Baron”
- “Ciri’s Story: The King of the Wolves”
- “Ciri’s Room”
- “Family Matters”
- “A Princess in Distress”
- “Ciri’s Story: The Race”
- “Ciri’s Story: Out of the Shadows”
- “Hunting a Witch”
- “Wandering in the Dark”
- “Magic Lamp”
- “A Dog’s Life”
- “A Greedy God”
- “The Fall of the House of Reardon”
- “Wild at Heart”
- “Love’s Cruel Snares”
- “Defender of the Faith”
- “Funeral Pyres”
- “Forefather’s Eve”
- “Ghosts of the Past”
- “An Invitation from Keira Metz”
- “A Towerful of Mice”
- “A Favor for a Friend”
- “For the Advancement of Learning”
- “Ladies of the Wood”
- “The Whispering Hillock”
- “Ciri’s Story: Fleeing the Bog”
- “Return to Crookback Bog”
- “Pyres of Novigrad”
- “Novigrad Dreaming”
- “Broken Flowers”
- “Get Junior”
- “An Eye for an Eye”
- “Ciri’s Story: Visiting Junior”
- “Flesh for Sale”
- “Following the Thread”
- “Count Reuven’s Treasure”
- “A Favor for Radovid”
- “Redania’s Most Wanted”
- “A Matter of Life and Death”
- “Now or Never”
- “A Deadly Plot”
- “The Play’s the Thing”
- “A Poet Under Pressure”
- “Ciri’s Story: Breakneck Speed”
- “A Dangerous Game”
- “Cabaret”
- “Carnal Sins”
- “Destination”
- “The King is Dead”
- “The Lord of Undvik”
- “Possession”
- “King’s Gambit”
- “Coronation”
- “Echoes of the Past”
- “Missing Persons”
- “Nameless”
- “The Calm Before the Storm”
- “The Last Wish” – Completing Will Lead To Act Two
Act One is the most extended segment of the game and features many sidequests that players may choose either to undertake or ignore. Many Velen side quests exist as little more than distractions from the main story and can seriously slow down the pacing.
It’s also a good idea to unlock Novigrad as soon as possible since many additional vendors and sidequests are available there. Therefore, those who don’t care about missing quests may want to skip brief, unrewarding quests like “A Dog’s Life” and “Forefather’s Eve,” as those quests available between the two are fully optional.
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Best Quest Order For The Witcher 3: Act Two
The Best Order To Complete All 17 Quests
Act Two is the shortest of the three, and it strongly focuses on the main story. It revolves around Geralt’s return to Kaer Morhen and sets the stage for the final act.
- “Ugly Baby”
- “Disturbance”
- “To Bait a Forktail…”
- “The Final Trial”
- “No Place Like Home”
- “Va Fail, Elaine”
- “Berengar’s Blade”
- “The Isle of Mists”
- “Brothers in Arms: Nilfgaard”
- “Greenhouse Effect”
- “Brothers in Arms: Novigrad”
- “Monster Slayer”
- “Brothers in Arms: Skellige”
- “The Witcher’s Forge”
- “Brothers in Arms: Velen”
- “The Battle of Kaer Morhen”
- “Blood on the Battlefield” – Completing Will Lead To Act Three
The main sidequest chain in Act Two is the “Brothers in Arms” series, which sees Geralt gathering his allies ahead of “The Battle of Kaer Morhen.” These quests require a lot of travel and can be somewhat repetitive, so it’s best to pace them out with some Kaer Morhen side quests so they don’t feel like a chore.
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Best Quest Order For The Witcher 3: Act Three
The Best Order To Complete All 18 Quests
Act Three is the final chapter, in which all the events of The Witcher 3 come to a head. As this is where the overall story will come to a close, it’s important to do any last-minute things you may want to complete before heading into the end of the Act since some of your quests may automatically fail upon completion of the epilogue. Additionally, keep in mind that the selection of quests suffers the same fate as in other acts, where some of your choices may bar you from having the option to even attempt certain quests.
- “Bald Mountain”
- “Final Preparations”
- “Blindingly Obvious”
- “Reason of State”
- “The Great Escape”
- “Payback”
- “Through Time and Space”
- “Battle Preparations”
- “A Final Kindness”
- “On Thin Ice”
- “It Takes Three To Tango”
- “Reason of State”
- “The Sunstone”
- “Veni Vidi Vigo”
- “Child of the Elder Blood”
- “Skjall’s Grave”
- “Tedd Deireadh, The Final Age”
- “Something Ends, Something Begins” – Completing Will Finish The Game
“Something Ends, Something Begins” is technically the epilogue. This is where the main story is wrapped up and when players will see which of The Witcher 3‘s main endings they achieved. However, it’s still possible to play The Witcher 3 after the credits roll. In addition to any remaining quests, The Witcher 3 also offers players DLC content to be enjoyed once the game’s final act concludes.
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Best Quest Order For The Witcher 3: DLCs
The Best Order To Complete All Quests In Hearts Of Stone & Blood And Wine
After completing the main story, players can begin The Witcher 3‘s Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine DLCs. These DLC also have a proper mission order in Witcher 3, and players should fully complete Hearts of Stone before moving on to the quests in Blood and Wine.
Hearts Of Stone
- “Evil’s First Soft Touches”
- “Dead Man’s Party”
- “The Cursed Chapel”
- “A Midnight Clear”
- “Viper Armor Set”
- “Venomous Viper Steel Sword”
- “Open Sesame! Part 1”
- “Open Sesame: The Safecracker”
- “Open Sesame: Breaking and Entering”
- “Open Sesame: Witcher Seasonings”
- “Open Sesame! Part 2: The Heist”
- “A Dark Legacy”
- “Avid Collecter”
- “Scenes From A Marriage”
- “Venomous Viper Silver Sword”
- “Whatsoever A Man Soweth”
Note that any quest not mentioned here may be completed in any order without disrupting the story.
Blood and Wine
- “Envoys, Wineboys”
- “The Beast of Toussaint”
- “Blood Run”
- “No Place Like Home”
- “Turn and Face the Strange”
- “The Can Be Only One”
- “Fists of Fury: Toussaint”
- “Raging Wolf”
- “Wine Wars: Belgaard Part 1”
- “Wine Wars: Coronata”
- “Wine Wars Vermentino”
- “Wine Wars” The Deus in the Machina”
- “Wine Wars: Consorting”
- “Wine Wars: Belgaard Part 2”
- “The Warble of a Smitten Knight”
- “The Last Exploits of Selina’s Gand”
- “Till Death Do You Part”
- “Bovine Blues”
- “Extreme Cosplay”
- “La Cage au Fou”
- “Spoontaneous Profits!”
- “Amidst the Mill’s Grist”
- “The Hunger Game”
- “Where Children Toil, Toys Waste Away”
- “Wine is Sacred”
- “A Portrait of the Witcher as an Old Man”
- “Of Sheers and a Witcher I Sing”
- “The Man From Cintra”
- “Capture The Castle”
- “The Night of Long Fangs”
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The story of Blood and Wine will begin to branch at this point, so depending on your playthrough, you may follow either path. The first branch will go as follows:
- “Duck, Duck, Goosed!”
- “Beyond Hill and Dale…”
- “Tesham Mutna”
- “Pomp and Strange Circumstance”
- “Burlap is the New Stripe”
- “The Perks of Being a Jailbird”
- “Using Your Loaf”
- “Be It Ever So Humble”
As for the second story branch, the order is:
- “Blood Simple”
- “What Lies Unseen”
- “Tesham Mutna”
- “Pomp and Strange Circumstance”
- “Be It Ever So Humble”
This quest order may provide a helpful way to navigate the sprawling story of The Witcher 3, ensuring that information is revealed at a reasonable pace and little, if any, content is missed. However, there’s truly no prescribed order in which to complete quests.
If a player is interested in a particular storyline, they should follow it to the end; if they’re not, they can feel free to leave it be. The true joy of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is in the freedom of exploration and the variety of activities available.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
- Franchise
- The Witcher
- Platform(s)
- PS4 , PS5 , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Switch , PC
- Released
- May 19, 2015
- Engine
- REDengine 3
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Use of Alcohol, Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content
