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[Castor Krieg]

Nice twist on the Grand Master, although

Spoiler

it makes sense it's Alvin and from a story perspective the tragedy is much more interesting, we never get to see his family, so maybe Alvin is his son?

Spoiler

Most likely Grand Master is Alvin. He must've teleported and ended up in the past.

I want to bitch a bit about plot progression Chapter 4 ---> Chapter 5:

Spoiler

Helping the Order in Murky Waters shouldn't put you immediately on the side of the Order. Witcher neutrality has nothing to do with this, Geralt in the books would also not walk away when townspeople were in trouble.

Then again that's the strength of the Witcher, you don't really know how your decisions will influence the future events (as seen during the final cutscene).

 

[kiryani]

I know this is a stupid question but I'm gonna go ahead and ask anyway.

Is there a way to change the camera settings so you can use WASD to move and the mouse to click the UI and tilt the camera?

I just find RPG's on PC more comfortable that way.

 

[Snuggles]

I know this is a stupid question but I'm gonna go ahead and ask anyway.

Is there a way to change the camera settings so you can use WASD to move and the mouse to click the UI and tilt the camera?

I just find RPG's on PC more comfortable that way.

I don't think there is a setting to change that, but if you hold shift you can click the UI while in 3rd person mode.

 

[Max]

I know this is a stupid question but I'm gonna go ahead and ask anyway.

Is there a way to change the camera settings so you can use WASD to move and the mouse to click the UI and tilt the camera?

I just find RPG's on PC more comfortable that way.

You can hold shift in Over The Shoulder mode to take control of the mouse. Otherwise, F1 and F2 puts your camera in a far and close camera respectively with full mouse control as well as WASD movement

 

[kiryani]

Ok thanks to both, that should do the trick

 

[Carm]

I know this is a stupid question but I'm gonna go ahead and ask anyway.

Is there a way to change the camera settings so you can use WASD to move and the mouse to click the UI and tilt the camera?

I just find RPG's on PC more comfortable that way.

Hit F3. Though you have to hold shift to interact with the ui or just use the hotkeys

 

[Jay Shadow]

Spoiler

Helping the Order in Murky Waters shouldn't put you immediately on the side of the Order. Witcher neutrality has nothing to do with this, Geralt in the books would also not walk away when townspeople were in trouble.

Spoiler

The only way to get the option to help the Order in Murky Waters is by also helping them at the Bank in Chapter 3. So in the big picture that's twice in a row you've been against the Scoia'tael. You may not be best friends with the Order, but you're definitely working against the Scoia'tael at that point. So yeah, it's weird to just leave the situation alone, but that's the big price they make you pay for trying to remain neutral.

 

[SerArthurDayne]

Avoiding spoilers, but just popped in to say I'm working towards beating the game now. I initially got most of the way through Chapter 3 but stopped playing when I went on vacation for about a month (my laptop could NOT handle the game). Restarted from the beginning and just got back into Chapter 3. Hopefully I can knock it out before part 2 gets here in just over a week.

Looking forward to the ending, I've heard good things and amazed myself by not having had it spoiled yet.

 

[Melhisedek]

Just finished it, no Raven armor for me as I didn't have time Daaaamn what a game, but now I'm in agony waiting for the 2nd one.
Can't imagine how you guys who wait for HL:EP3 feel (haven't played that one either)

 

[Mister_Bubbles]

Just finished it, no Raven armor for me as I didn't have time Daaaamn what a game, but now I'm in agony waiting for the 2nd one.
Can't imagine how you guys who wait for HL:EP3 feel (haven't played that one either)

Add three and a half years of absolute silence to the anticipation you now feel, and you might get some idea ¬_¬

 

[BentMyWookiee]

Could somebody give me any tips for beatingthe Chapter 1 Boss? I've gotten my ass handed to me everytime I tried this fight.

Spoiler

I use the group fighting style at first in order to take out the smaller dogs pretty quickly. But when I'm left fighting the boss 1-on-1, he just rapes me. I find myself getting stunned by something, even if I'm rolling/dodging. And when Geralt is stunned, I can't do anything and I end up taking a whole bunch of damage.

I'm sure I just suck, but if anybody has helpful advice for this boss, I would greatly appreciate it. I have older saves that I can reload if I need to get any specific items before hand.

 

[Gully State]

Could somebody give me any tips for beatingthe Chapter 1 Boss? I've gotten my ass handed to me everytime I tried this fight.

Spoiler

I use the group fighting style at first in order to take out the smaller dogs pretty quickly. But when I'm left fighting the boss 1-on-1, he just rapes me. I find myself getting stunned by something, even if I'm rolling/dodging. And when Geralt is stunned, I can't do anything and I end up taking a whole bunch of damage.

I'm sure I just suck, but if anybody has helpful advice for this boss, I would greatly appreciate it. I have older saves that I can reload if I need to get any specific items before hand.

If you have Aard, it might be wise to use it.

 

[Vasilisk 2038]

Could somebody give me any tips for beatingthe Chapter 1 Boss? I've gotten my ass handed to me everytime I tried this fight.

Spoiler

I use the group fighting style at first in order to take out the smaller dogs pretty quickly. But when I'm left fighting the boss 1-on-1, he just rapes me. I find myself getting stunned by something, even if I'm rolling/dodging. And when Geralt is stunned, I can't do anything and I end up taking a whole bunch of damage.

I'm sure I just suck, but if anybody has helpful advice for this boss, I would greatly appreciate it. I have older saves that I can reload if I need to get any specific items before hand.

If you've leveled Aard to stun enemies, with a bit of luck you stun the Beast and it is one-hit kill (even in Hard). Also I recommend using Blizzard, going first for the Beast and then take the rest of dogs.

 

[BentMyWookiee]

Is level 1 Aard enough to do the trick? (I'm not at home so I can't try it out myself at the moment).

 

[capitalCORN]

If you were dumb enough to play this game on hard on the first playthrough, I suggest kiting the entire group for group style, then fast when you`re one on one. If you`re in ANY danger of dying, run away. The witch heals you from time to time, even if she `dies` she respawns again soon enough. It`s a bitch attrition battle.

 

[rogue74]

If you were dumb enough to play this game on hard on the first playthrough, I suggest kiting the entire group for group style, then fast when you`re one on one. If you`re in ANY danger of dying, run away. The witch heals you from time to time, even if she `dies` she respawns again soon enough. It`s a bitch attrition battle.

Why is someone dumb if they choose the hard difficulty? I played it on hard on my one and only playthrough and am confident I made the right choice.

 

[capitalCORN]

I did too, but it really does nothing but make the grind to the midgame more tedious. Once in Chapter 3, you`re untouchable anyways.

 

[Minsc]

If you were dumb enough to play this game on hard on the first playthrough, I suggest kiting the entire group for group style, then fast when you`re one on one. If you`re in ANY danger of dying, run away. The witch heals you from time to time, even if she `dies` she respawns again soon enough. It`s a bitch attrition battle.

I played hard and except for that one battle, it was relatively easy. Anything simpler would have really been boring.

You can apparently one hit kill the thing, even on hard, with stun, so that's the only reason I felt dumb, after running in circles for 20 minutes picking it away a little at a time, witch always died in the first 10 seconds no matter what for me, and I tried like 20 times till I got the running away to heal thing down properly.

 

[woober]

I finished my first playthrough years ago, and I'm up to Act II in my current run. I forgot, but which styles should I focus on? I recall finishing the game back then and wishing I had devoted my skills to a certain style... though it's been so long I don't remember what it was.

 

[racemixing]

Beginner's Inquiry: Is there a single key that is able to cycle through the magic signs, rather than using the 1-5 keys?

 

[Schmattakopf]

Beginner's Inquiry: Is there a single key that is able to cycle through the magic signs, rather than using the 1-5 keys?

Not that I'm aware.

 

[Fjordson]

Hopefully this is okay to ask in here:

Does anyone know where I might acquire a save file or by luck have one I could use? Had some unexpected computer problems a few weeks ago and I lost my progress.

I was playing on easy and it was right after you get to the first big city.

Spoiler

The only thing I did in the city was basically kill the Cockatrice in the sewers to get out of jail.

 

[Carm]

Hopefully this is okay to ask in here:

Does anyone know where I might acquire a save file or by luck have one I could use? Had some unexpected computer problems a few weeks ago and I lost my progress.

I was playing on easy and it was right after you get to the first big city.

Spoiler

The only thing I did in the city was basically kill the Cockatrice in the sewers to get out of jail.

I don't know if this will work or not, I'm using a mod for infinite health/endurance. This save is from the start of Act 2 in the prison. All 3 sex cards from Act 1, and killed the Scoia'tael, saved abigail. Difficulty: Easy.

Link

 

[Vasilisk 2038]

Is level 1 Aard enough to do the trick? (I'm not at home so I can't try it out myself at the moment).

Mmm I don't remember exactly, I think there's a specific talent point to get the stun effect

 

[Grizza]

Just finished last night and I'm roaring and ready for The Witcher 2! I had to lower all the graphical settings to ridiculously low levels just to finish it though. The game ran great until the fifth chapter with everything maxed out (minus the AA) and then bam, my frame rate dropped into the teens. It seemed that the fire effects were what was bringing my frame rate down as I was jumping back up to around 60 fps when I was in wide open areas or not setting groups of enemies on fire. Not sure what was going on there as I can run Crysis 2 on "High" (which is actually low, because those pretentious fucks as Crytek named their lowest setting "High") with no problems, so I'd expect to be able to run a four year old game a little better. But whatever, I loved the story and I'm glad I finished with a week to spare before The Witcher 2.

 

[BentMyWookiee]

Thanks for the help GAF! Beat the boss and finally finished Chapter 1 last night! The fight went very smooth and I felt stupid for losing so many times before.

I doubt I'll beat this game by the time The Witcher 2 is out, but that's fine. I'm not trying to rush through the first game. I will focus on taking my time and simply enjoy the experience. The Witcher 2 isn't going anywhere; I'll just have to avoid spoilers.

 

[Riposte]

So I realized that I would like this game more if the combat wasn't so boring. I get the feeling if I outright say that I think this game is a little below par just because of that and how encounters are designed people would say I am missing the point. I don't particularly like how the game looks either. More so the character models than the environments, which work out somehow.

I also hear that this game is RPG done right, but the changes you can make to the plot are very formulaic and hardly have an effect on each other. The only thing interesting about it is that it doesn't work with good vs evil. That's just an aesthetic though.

 

[mhznet]

Finished it this morning, really liked it and I'm definitely hyped for the sequel.

I think now I agree with those who've said that

Spoiler

the Beast is the hardest boss in the game (atleast while you don't know that Aard can stun-1hit kill almost everything), I also had some trouble with Azar Javed's crab-like pet till I figured I'd to drink those anti bleed potions. Aside from these and four game crashes, I'd no trouble and by the end of it I just had to spam Ignii till everything was down.

Really liked everything about it, next week can't come soon enough.

 

[SneakyStephan]

At the swamp now, it's not as bad as I hear , this part. (I thought the first half of the act was where the game lost too much pacing, it's finally picking up now in the second half of act2).

I really enjoy the choices, though some of them can be really confusing.

Spoiler

I meet Vincent Meis in the warehouse during act2 talking to the salamander bandits.
I can choose to rat him out or go with his story, but I'm like who the fuck is this guy?
Other than being the main guard or something I don't really know what he's about or why he is there or whose side he is on.

I look it up on wiki since I intend to reign terror on anyone involved with the salamanders , but don't want to involve innocent people, and apparently a previous quest (at the docks) tells you that he is'nt involved...
I seriously did not get that from any of the dialog.

Maybe I just haven't been reading all the journal entries well enough or something (I try to keep that somewhat to a minimum, as in DA:O the bulk of it was tripe and it took the pacing out of that game even more).
I did reload my save and go back to read any info about him or his quest but the game didn't tell me anything.

I also ratted out coleman to the innkeeper thinking he was shady (to get him killed or w/e), and it turns out he was just a snitch for vincent?

It's easy to lose track of who these chars who barely got introduced are.

edit: fuck me: the 'show active phases' option is on by default in the quest journal...
I didn't notice it, and the hindsight info in there explains so much.
Why can't they have that turned off by default grrrr.

 

[DarkChronic]

Just bought this game from gog.com the other night. Should have my first rig built by this weekend so I can dive into this game. Very excited to play it and get myself ready for TW2, which is the main reason why I finally decided to build myself a PC.

I'll probably download a bunch of cheat mods (infinite health and such) so I can plow through the combat and just enjoy the story/characters, which is the main draw for me, anyway.

 

[bluedeviltron]

The

Spoiler

Javed fight in Act V

is horrendous. Is there ANY way to beat him without running around the room for 20 minutes?

I'm about to give up and watch the fucking ending on Youtube.

 

[Van Buren]

The

Spoiler

Javed fight in Act V

is horrendous. Is there ANY way to beat him without running around the room for 20 minutes?

I'm about to give up and watch the fucking ending on Youtube.

Preparation is key. You will need Swallow and the potion that prevents being knocked down at the bare minimum. You can also cheese the encounter by consuming Tawny Owl and spamming Igni and running away as well. The first time I think used Swallow, Blizzard, Wolf, the anti-knockdown potion and hanged man's venom I think.

It's a pretty trivial fight with the potions even on hard.

Edit: Regarding watching the conclusion on youtube - don't. The game's drawing to a close and there are huge story payoffs waiting in store for you, depending on the choices you picked. I doubt the ending sequence on youtube will accurately reflect the decisions you made in your game.

 

[bluedeviltron]

Preparation is key. You will need Swallow and the potion that prevents being knocked down at the bare minimum. You can also cheese the encounter by consuming Tawny Owl and spamming Igni and running away as well. The first time I think used Swallow, Blizzard, Wolf, the anti-knockdown potion and hanged man's venom I think.

It's a pretty trivial fight with the potions even on hard.

I have none of those potions. Guess the game's done, then, huh guys?

I just attempted the Igni spamming method, but can't get two steps from him before I get knocked down. Then I sit there and wait for his getting up animation to finish while he massacres me with his fire hammers in about 4 seconds.

 

[Mister_Bubbles]

I have none of those potions. Guess the game's done, then, huh guys?

Rule # 1 - A Witcher without his potions is half a Witcher.

Is there no possibility of loading an earlier save to get yourself better prepared? To be honest I can't remember the leadup to that fight. Do you have any reagents to use?

 

[Psi]

I have none of those potions. Guess the game's done, then, huh guys?

I just attempted the Igni spamming method, but can't get two steps from him before I get knocked down. Then I sit there and wait for his getting up animation to finish while he massacres me with his fire hammers in about 4 seconds.

I guess you killed

Spoiler

Berengar earlier? He helps you in the fight if you let him live. He provided a good distraction for me since I didn't have the knockdown immunity potion.

 

[Minsc]

I have none of those potions. Guess the game's done, then, huh guys?

I just attempted the Igni spamming method, but can't get two steps from him before I get knocked down. Then I sit there and wait for his getting up animation to finish while he massacres me with his fire hammers in about 4 seconds.

Google for the infinite health/endurance patch? I don't really remember having any difficulty with that fight or any other, but it was trivial to carry around 7-10 swallows and 7-10 of the instant heal potions. I even had a super-swallow or two that I used at one point, maybe it was that fight.

 

[Van Buren]

I have none of those potions. Guess the game's done, then, huh guys?

I just attempted the Igni spamming method, but can't get two steps from him before I get knocked down. Then I sit there and wait for his getting up animation to finish while he massacres me with his fire hammers in about 4 seconds.

Not even Swallow ? How did you deal with the previous boss (which I thought was a tougher encounter) ? I recall using the stairs to kite him around all day, while my Igni finished him off. It felt cheap, so I used my old save and killed him with swords and potions.

What are your talent point distributions like, and on which difficulty are you playing on ?

 

[bluedeviltron]

Not even Swallow ? How did you deal with the previous boss (which I thought was a tougher encounter) ? I recall using the stairs to kite him around all day, while my Igni finished him off. It felt cheap, so I used my old save and killed him with swords and potions.

What are your talent point distributions like, and on which difficulty are you playing on ?

Hard difficulty, and I never used alchemy (ever) and never paid much attention to potions. This entire final act has been one awful encounter after another, but everything's been manageable up to this point. This, as far as I can tell, is an impossible fight for me.

Love dead ends in games. LOVE them.

 

[Van Buren]

Hard difficulty, and I never used alchemy (ever) and never paid much attention to potions. This entire final act has been one awful encounter after another, but everything's been manageable up to this point. This, as far as I can tell, is an impossible fight for me.

Love dead ends in games. LOVE them.

Better google that health mod in that case. But the game does warn the user that alchemy is essential to survive in hard difficulty.

I can't imagine the number of game overs I would have come across without relying on alchemy while playing on hard - the entire difficulty is tuned to be played with the aid of potions.

 

[Mister_Bubbles]

Hard difficulty, and I never used alchemy (ever) and never paid much attention to potions.

...

Love dead ends in games. LOVE them.

To be fair, dude, this dead end is completely of your own making ¬_¬ Impressive that you got this far without it, but it does say when you select Hard difficulty that it's designed with use of alchemy in mind.

 

[Minsc]

Hard difficulty, and I never used alchemy (ever) and never paid much attention to potions. This entire final act has been one awful encounter after another, but everything's been manageable up to this point. This, as far as I can tell, is an impossible fight for me.

Love dead ends in games. LOVE them.

FF Tactics burn you too?

 

[bluedeviltron]

Thank you based Van Buren for mentioning the health mod. Don't know why I didn't think to search for one.

This works perfectly, in case anyone else is trying to burn through this before The Witcher 2 and runs into the same bullshit I did:

http://www.fileplanet.com/184337/180000/fileinfo/The-Witcher---Infinite-Health-and-Endurance-Mod

 

[jaundicejuice]

Hard difficulty, and I never used alchemy (ever) and never paid much attention to potions. This entire final act has been one awful encounter after another, but everything's been manageable up to this point. This, as far as I can tell, is an impossible fight for me.

Love dead ends in games. LOVE them.

Especially when they're your own fault? Here's a picture of The Witcher's difficulty selection screen. Read the description for the hard difficulty.

http://steamcommunity.com/id/dangry/screenshot/595811297759484961?tab=public

 

[SneakyStephan]

Seriously , you can't ingore one of the biggest aspects of the game and then complain that fights are bullshit...

edit:
Tip for those still playing through it atm :
While traveling press A or E to equip a sword, then switch to the fast fighting style.

This basically gives you the equivalent of mount speed runspeed in other games.

/pro tip.

 

[bluedeviltron]

I never used alchemy because I never found it necessary. But keep going: I suck at games, I did it wrong, etc...

Spoiler

By the way, I would have raged at that final sequence if I ever managed to get past Javed 'legit'. The number of ridiculously powerful enemies thrown at you is comical. Still, a cool idea.

Bring on 2. There's a lot to improve upon.

 

[Mister_Bubbles]

I never used alchemy because I never found it necessary. But keep going: I suck at games, I did it wrong, etc...

Spoiler

By the way, I would have raged at that final sequence if I ever managed to get past Javed 'legit'. The number of ridiculously powerful enemies thrown at you is comical. Still, a cool idea.

You were playing in the end part of the game, on the hardest difficulty, with a completely gimped character... of course it was comical. The only thing funnier is your idea that because you chose to ignore a big part of the game despite being told not to at the start, the game is somehow at fault for your raging

 

[Bisnic]

Bought the first Witcher game today with the special 5$ at GOG, i'm only at the beginning right after the the mage and professor escaped. I'm still a little confused about the fighting combat, do i just left click on enemies and be quick to react on the flaming sword icon for strong combos?

Also, is it just me or are the character animations during cutscenes a little weird? It doesn't feel very natural most of the time.

About the meditation, does it matter how long it takes? I just took some random time of the day and dunno if it changes anything.

 

[RedSwirl]

Anyway I can get me another Diamond? I think I sold off the one that I found in the cultist lair.

 

[Exuro]

Bought the first Witcher game today with the special 5$ at GOG, i'm only at the beginning right after the the mage and professor escaped. I'm still a little confused about the fighting combat, do i just left click on enemies and be quick to react on the flaming sword icon for strong combos?

Also, is it just me or are the character animations during cutscenes a little weird? It doesn't feel very natural most of the time.

About the meditation, does it matter how long it takes? I just took some random time of the day and dunno if it changes anything.

It's just clicking when the flaming sword appears, but make sure to adjust your stances depending on the enemy.

Animations are a little weird. The game runs on a bad engine and theres quite a bit of amateur animations.

Meditation length doesn't matter, however you'll want to meditate and change the time of day for certain quests or events. Somethings are only available at certain times of the day.

 

[SneakyStephan]

Bought the first Witcher game today with the special 5$ at GOG, i'm only at the beginning right after the the mage and professor escaped. I'm still a little confused about the fighting combat, do i just left click on enemies and be quick to react on the flaming sword icon for strong combos?

Also, is it just me or are the character animations during cutscenes a little weird? It doesn't feel very natural most of the time.

About the meditation, does it matter how long it takes? I just took some random time of the day and dunno if it changes anything.

Yes, time your attacks, you get an alternate weapon later and need to use the 3 stances + your signs (magic) to beat monsters or you'll get your ass kicked often if you do it wrong.
Double tap in any direction rolls/twirls to dodge.

Meditation: it doesn't matter, some npcs are in different places at different times or only show up during a certain time or only at night so you need it to skip time at times (did I say time enough times or one more time?)
Meditating also restores health , endurance and gets rid of the drunken debuff, if your char is very drunk you may need to meditate for a bit longer.
Don't worry it all becomes very clear while playing when you need it.


Press J btw and turn off 'only show active phases' in your quest tab, then it shows all the parts of each questline instead of only the bit you just got as follow up.
Helps keep track and make sense of the quest lines.

Also turn on the 'show object names' in game options, else you constantly have to press alt to see what you can pick up or open.