Forefathers’ Eve – Witcher 3 Quest

This guide is a walkthrough of a side quest in the Witcher 3 for the area of Velen. The guide is composed of a map, map legend, and walkthrough to show readers exactly where to go and what to do to complete the quest.

Map Legend

1 – Keira Metz’s Cottage
2 – Ritual Circle
3 – Swamp
4 – Pellar’s Cottage

Background

You’ll receive this quest from the pellar outside of Keira Metz’s cottage (#1) after completing the quest A Towerful of Mice.

Walkthrough

The pellar will tell you that on each Forefathers’ Eve, he performs a ritual to put wandering spirits to rest. However, he’ll add that the ritual sometimes attracts damned spirits as well, and so he’ll ask you to be there to protect him. If you agree to this request, then you’ll need to show up at the ritual circle on Fyke Isle (#2) around midnight. You’ll find the pellar there plus numerous peasants watching from the seats at the edge of the circle.

When you talk to the pellar, he’ll start the ritual. This will cause a few drowners / drowned dead / water hags to show up from the south. They won’t try to disrupt the ritual or anything, so you’ll just need to worry about killing them rather than protecting anybody. All of the enemies are necrophages, so some Necrophage Oil on your silver sword is a good idea.

Once you’ve killed the enemies, the pellar will continue the ritual and call forth a spirit. The spirit will accuse the pellar of patricide, but before you can learn more, three witch hunters will show up. They’ll want to break up the ritual, which they’ll consider to be necromancy. This will give you two ways to proceed:

• If you stay out of the matter, then the quest will come to an end, and you’ll earn 200 xp. But the pellar will no longer deal with you.
  
• If you kill the witch hunters, then their blood will taint the ritual, and the pellar won’t be able to continue with it. Worse, three wraiths will show up, and you’ll have to defeat them. Afterwards, the pellar will admit to killing his father Ambros, but he won’t say why. You’ll decide to protect him from his father anyway, which means you’ll need to sever Ambros’ link to the world. To help you out, the pellar will reveal that he left his father’s remains in a swamp far to the east. This sequence will earn you 200 xp.
  
  You’ll find Ambros’ body in the middle of the swamp (#3). To set his spirit free, you’ll just need to burn the corpse using Igni. You won’t have to fight a wraith or anything. Afterwards, when you return to the pellar in his cottage (#4), he’ll explain that Ambrose was an “evil man” who did terrible things to his mother, and who deserved his fate. You’ll then receive your reward: 50 crowns, 50 xp, and cheaper prices from the pellar. Of course, the pellar will also reduce the amount he pays you for items, so it’s not a total win.