In times of strife and war neighbor often turns against neighbor, as calamity and hardship rouses suspicion and stokes long-buried resentments, especially of a racial nature. A dwarven blacksmith, Willis, finds himself the victim of arson and seeks to use the keen senses of a traveling witcher to find the perpetrator. Depending on your choices you’ll be able to bring the firebug to justice or spare him from the harsh fate due saboteurs; this page will provide a walkthrough for the quest Twisted Firestarter in The Witcher 3, covering the aforementioned choices and their outcomes.
Quest Objectives¶
Use the following table to help you navigate to your desired place in the quest:
| Quick Search |
|---|
| Starting Twisted Firestarter |
| Follow the Trail Using Your Witcher Senses |
| Let the Arsonist Go |
| Apprehend the Arsonist |
| Unlocking the Blacksmith |
Starting Twisted Firestarter¶
From the Notice Board head south to find a very angry Dwarven blacksmith cursing as he works at his forge. Talk to the poor guy and, as one would expect, he’s rather snippy. Keep cool and he’ll tell you that somebody set his hut on fire, an act of arson he feels was brought on by tensions that arose when the Nilfgaardians came. Offer to help him for a price and he’ll agree to give you whatever he has left to find the cause of his misfortune. This begins the quest Twisted Firestarter .
(1 of 4) Talk to Willis and after snapping at you, he’ll ask for your help in tracking down the arsonist.
Follow the Trail Using Your Witcher Senses¶
Head behind the blacksmith’s house and search to the south-east using your Witcher Senses to spot some evidence on the ground. Investigate and Geralt will deduce the arsonist’s actions. Further south-east Geralt will find footprints, which seem to belong to a large man. Follow them more or less east to a tree, where Geralt will detect the smell of piss and vodka, a common combination. Keep following the tracks east to reach a road, then north-east until they terminate near a boat. As drunk as our arsonist was, he was at least wise enough to try and cover his trail. Loot a chest to the north and pass under the bridge to find where the tracks continue, north of the bridge. Signs of a struggle are noted - apparently your arsonist was attacked by Drowners and lost his boots in the scuffle. The trail continues to the west and onto the road that runs through White Orchard. Follow the wounded arsonist’s trail to a house just south of the tavern.
Let the Arsonist Go¶
Head inside and Geralt will comment that he’ll be able to spot the arsonist by the wounds he bears. Search the eastern room to find Napp, who is obviously drunk and injured. Talk to him and he’ll confirm that blacksmith’s suspicions: a combination of racism and hatred of the Nilfgaardians led the arsonist to torch the business of a suspected collaborator. Knowing that he’s in trouble, however, he’ll offer to give you 20 Crowns to let him go. If you accept, the blacksmith will be upset that you couldn’t find the arsonist, but he’ll still offer his services to you.
(1 of 4) You have three options for dealing with the arsonist: first, you can choose to let the arsonist go for a small bribe,
Apprehend the Arsonist¶
Alternatively, you can attempt to apprehend him, although doing so will provoke him to attempt to fist fight you. You can indulge him and pummel him into submission, or you can use the Axii Sign to subdue him and get him to come along peacefully. In the former case, you’ll instantly appear back near the blacksmith, in the latter case, you’ll have to escort Napp to him, but you’ll also gain some bonus EXP for using the Axii sign. Whether you beat Napp into submission or use the Axii sign to bewitch compliance out of him, the end result is the same, and after some harsh Nilfgaardian justice Willis will reward you with 20 Crowns and offer to work his forge for you (see below).
If you let Napp go, he’ll continue to spew racist rhetoric, making it clear that no lessons were learned on his part. Not the best indication of harmonious long-term coexistence. If you bring him to Willis, he’ll be hanged by the Nilfgaardians as a saboteur. You’re pretty much stuck between insufficient and overly harsh punishment on this one, with Willis’ long-term safety being in doubt should the Nilfgaardians ever leave whichever choice you make. It’s also worth noting that Willis seems to promise a discount at his store, but he never actually follows through. Maybe the locals are right to hate him?
Unlocking the Blacksmith¶
One way or another, you have a blacksmith at your disposal, which allows you to repair our gear, craft new items, break down old items for components, and of course, peruse his wares. Dismantling hides, tools, and inferior weapons is a good idea, as it’s a fine way to score components at little cost. You also are able to turn more refined components into more generic ones (Ingots into Ore, for example), but at this point in time, there’s little need to do so. Consider dismantling all your Junk, while leaving Crafting Components and Alchemy Ingredients alone.
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