In the Heart of the Woods – Witcher 3 Quest

This guide is a walkthrough of a contract side quest in the Witcher 3 on the Skellige Isles. 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 – Fayrlund
2 – Standing Stones
3 – Altar
4 – Totems
5 – Leshen Fight

Background

You’ll trigger this quest by reading the note “Contract: Woodland Spirit” on the notice board in Kaer Trolde in Ard Skellig.

Walkthrough

The note will inform you that the Woodland Spirit is “the cruel oppressor of the inhabitants of Fayrlund,” and that the villagers there have put a bounty on its head. When you travel to Fayrlund (#1), you’ll find Harald, Sven and a few other townsfolk just to the south of the village examining the spirit’s latest victim. Unfortunately, Harald and Sven won’t know much, so you’ll have to search for clues on your own.

To learn more about the spirit, you’ll need to follow its tracks away from the victim. They’ll lead you to the west, where you’ll come to a few standing stones guarded by white wolves (#2). When you examine the stones, you’ll realize that the spirit must be a leshen. This will earn you 10 xp. You’ll next need to read the bestiary entry for the spirit (under relicts), where you’ll learn that it must have marked one of the villagers, and that such markings allow it to be reborn every time it dies.

When you return to Harald and Sven in Fayrlund, you’ll learn that there are two ways to complete the quest:

• Harald’s way. Harald will tell you that the spirit is the guardian of the village, and that you should appease it by submitting to its trial. To do this, you’ll need to travel south to the spirit’s altar (#3). When you get there, you’ll get attacked by five white wolves, and each one will drop a Wolf Heart. When you place the hearts on the altar, nearby crows will notice your offering, and the leshen will be content. This will earn you 20 xp.
  
  When you return to Harald, he’ll pay you for your work, but then Sven and a few other townsfolk will show up, angry at Harald for protecting the leshen. If you stay out of the matter, then the townsfolk will kill Harald. If you intervene, then they’ll attack you and Harald both. Nothing interesting will happen if you manage to keep Harald live.
  
• Sven’s way. Sven will ask you to kill the leshen, which will require you to figure out which villager is marked. To do this, you’ll need to turn on your witcher senses and examine the townsfolk. Eventually you’ll run into Hilde (probably near the blacksmith), and you’ll see that she’s the one. When you relay this information to Sven, you’ll be able to convince him to kill Hilde or banish her from the village. Either way, with the marked one gone, the leshen will be vulnerable.
  
  To confront the leshen, you’ll need to destroy its three totems (#4). The totems will attack you if you stand next to them, but all you’ll need to do is use Aard, Igni, or your weapon on them to destroy them. The totems will also be guarded by some white wolves, but the wolves might just stand around and let you kill them. Destroying the totems will make the leshen angry, and this will allow you to track it by turning on your witcher senses and following the sounds that it makes.
  
  You’ll encounter the leshen to the south (#5). It’ll summon wolves and hit you with roots, but it’s vulnerable to fire, so you can simply dodge around and cast Igni on it every so often, and watch it burn. When the leshen dies, it’ll drop an Ancient Leshen Mutagen, a Leshen Trophy, and more.
  
  When you return to Sven, he’ll give you a pair of Assassin’s Boots, but you’ll discover that he and his friends murdered the village elders while you were gone. No matter what you say to Sven, you won’t be able to attack him.

Regardless of how you complete the quest, you’ll earn 60 crowns and 50 xp at its conclusion.