Return to Crookback Bog

Return to Crookback Bog is a secondary quest in which occurs right after Geralt of Rivia agrees to help the Bloody Baron reclaim his wife, Anna.

Quest Description
"As you recall, the self-proclaimed baron of Velen had asked Geralt to find his missing family. And so, ever a man of his word, find them he did. Tamara, the baron's daughter, he found in Oxenfurt, where she had joined the witch hunters. As for Anna, the baron's wife, she had been kidnapped by the Crones and made their slave, in fulfillment of a bargain she had struck with them earlier. Hearing this, the baron swore to free Anna, with or without the witcher's help, and set off to the place in the bog where Geralt had seen his wife."

- Dandelion

Freeing the spirit in The Whispering Hillock
The orphans will be missing and Anna will have been cursed to be a Water Hag as punishment. After the scene of discovering Anna's condition defeat a couple Water Hags and Drowners to face off with a Fiend. All the while, cursed Anna stands in the center of the village. To break the curse venture into the basement level of the Tapestry hut and choose the doll with the flower upon it. She will return to her human form and die from the curse's drain on her health. The Baron will leave with her body and Geralt will find him later on hanging in the courtyard of Crow's Perch. When asked, his former Sergeant will say the Baron hung himself after he buried Anna's body.

It is possible to receive the quest line ending normally achieved by killing the spirit (seen below) while having freed it, but to do this you must free the spirit before speaking to the ealdorman in Downwarren. In doing so the children will have been saved but Anna spared from being cursed as well.

Killing the spirit in The Whispering Hillock
The orphans will be gone and Anna will be upon the floor of her hut spouting random things about cleaning and food. Take down the necrophages, face off with the Fiend and decide if she can be saved. The Baron will mention a healer and will take her to him.

Meet the Baron
Head to Downwarren either on foot or by fast travel. Depending on the witcher's choice in the Whispering Hillock quest the village will either be ravaged and destroyed or no different from when it was last seen. In either case, the Ealdorman will be alive and will tell Geralt and the Baron about a group of witch hunters that recently passed through the town and went down into the bog. Philip orders his men to immediately march for the orphanage in the center of the bog and asks the witcher to lead the way.



Go to the Crone's Huts
Lead the Baron and his men through the swamp fighting off a few drowners and waterhags along the way. Upon reaching the clearing of huts where the orphanage lies Geralt will find the witch hunter party engaged in combat with more drowners.

Help Fight
Aid the witch hunters by killing all the remaining drowners. Once this is complete a cut-scene will play showing a rather cold reunion of the Baron and his daughter Tamara, who joined the witch hunter cult in Novigrad and is now one of the followers of the Eternal Flame religion. While this news is a maddening surprise to Philip it is all be old news to Geralt if he met with Tamara in Novigrad during the Family Matters quest. Father and daughter put aside their squabbling for now and the party searches the buildings in the clearing for Anna, formerly thought to be Gran. She is found in the third and larger building but her condition will be based upon the choice made in the Whispering Hillock quest. If the spirit in the tree is released then Anna will be found to have been turned into a waterhag, as punishment by the crones for failing to keep the orphan children from being taken from the swamp. If the spirit was killed in that same quest, Anna will be human but will have gone mad from the loss of yet more children dear to her.

Kill the Fiend and other Monsters
As the party discusses what is to be done about the condition of Anna they come under attack by several more drowners and large Fiend. Dispatch these monsters to continue the story. At this point depending on Anna's current state the quest diverges.

Receive 200 after defeating the fiend.
 * If Anna is not cursed as a waterhag, the Baron promises to take her away from Velen to a healing hermit he knew of once long ago. Tamara and Philip reconcile somewhat at the advice of Graden, the leader of the witcher hunter band. The Baron departs holding his dear wife and Tamara continues on with the witch hunters with whom she now serves. The quest ends here if this ending occurs.
 * If Anna is cursed as a waterhag, Anna will implore the witcher to help lift the curse. Geralt is unable to do this without knowing more about what the curse was exactly. Johnny becomes essential yet again, this time to finding out what the crones did to Anna. The quest continues on from this point.

Visit Johnny to find out what Happened
Travel to the map marker and kill some drowners and a waterhag outside Johnny's burrow. After calling for Johnny to come out, it becomes apparent that Johnny isn't actually at home. Using witcher senses, follow his tracks to a small camp where Johnny is sleeping. When questioned, Johnny will tell Geralt all about the crones punishment of Anna for letting the children escape. He'll say that they took a lock of her hair and then went down into the basement of the building. Anna then began screaming and turned into a monster. Johnny begged the crones to leave Gran be but they refused and wanted to punish Johnny for getting in their way. Knowing more about what happened, Geralt can now return to the clearing and investigate the basement. Johnny heads deeper into the bog to establish a new residence away from the reach of the crones.

''Note: There is a signpost for the Ruined Tower nearby where Geralt meets Johnny. Guarding it is an earth elemental.''



Tell the Others what Happened
Run back to the clearing and tell Tamara what Johnny has revealed. Now it is time to explore the cellar.

Find the Door to the Hidden Room
Not really hidden at all the door is an obvious cellar door inside the large building, located immediately to the right upon entering the building.

Enter the cave
Climb down into the cellar and approach the altar. A cut-scene plays and Graden informs Geralt about magic involving the dolls with hair woven into them. It will be up to Geralt to choose which doll is the one that represents Anna based on his knowledge of her. The correct choice is the Hollyhock bloom doll. Anna will be transformed and the curse lifted. However, she will die after a brief reunion with her daughter and husband. The wrong choice will result in Anna's immolation and death. Tamara and the Baron will be outraged at Geralt's mistake, though the end result will be the same as the alternative.
 * Doll with Red Bead - Anna wears a string of beads like this currently, as do half the women of Novigrad
 * Doll with Bird Feathers - Possibly belonging to Philippa Elihart
 * Doll with Violet Hollyhock Bloom - the Baron mentioned that this was Anna's favorite flower
 * Doll with Human Ear - probably one of the peasant's, likely Ealdorman who's ear Geralt recently acquired

Philip tells Geralt he may come collect his payment at Crow's Perch whenever he would like.

Talk to the Baron
As Geralt approaches Crow's Perch keep, a cut-scene will occur. The witcher finds the baron hanging from the large tree in the yard. Apparently the Baron decided life wasn't worth living any longer having lost his wife and his daughter.


 * Note: You can loot the baron's hanging body to find a Cloth Doll quest item.

Closing Quest Description

 * If Geralt killed the Ghost in the Tree:

"Geralt decided to help the baron and went with him into the bog. There they ran into unexpected company: Tamara, accompanied by a band of witch hunters, had also ventured out in search of Anna. They joined forces and, in the end, Anna was found, but, sadly, her mind was lost for good. Driven near mad himself with grief, the baron swore he would take his addled wife away from Velen and search the whole world for someone able to help her. As for Tamara, she and the witch hunters returned to Novigrad. And then... well, dear reader, the ultimate fate of the baron and his family is a tale for another time."

- Dandelion


 * If Geralt spared the Ghost in the Tree:

"Geralt decided to help the baron and ventured with him into the bog. There they happened upon unexpected company - Tamara and a band of witch hunters, who had also set out in search of Anna. They joined forces and found Anna, sadly turned into a terrible beast by a curse the Crones had cast. Geralt decided he would try to lift the curse and went to Johnny, the godling, for help. And Johnny, as always, proved very helpful indeed. He revealed to Geralt that the Crones worked their magic in the basement of the hut with the tapestry. When Geralt and Graden descended into the basement, they found a collection of dolls with various items attached to them. They tried to reverse the curse by removing the doll that represented Anna, but their efforts ended in catastrophe - Anna burst into flames and died. Tamara returned to Oxenfurt following her mother's death, her spirits crushed. The baron, in no less foul a mood, went back to Crow's Perch. Geralt watched him walk away, wondering if he would ever see the man again. OR And Johnny, as always, proved very helpful indeed. He revealed to Geralt that the Crones worked their magic in the basement of the hut with the tapestry. When Geralt and Graden descended into the basement, they found a collection of dolls with various items attached to them. They tried to reverse the curse by removing the doll that represented Anna, but their efforts ended in catastrophe - Anna's curse was lifted, but she died soon afterwards, for the Crones had constructed it to leave death as its parting gift. Tamara returned to Oxenfurt following her mother's death, her spirits crushed. The baron, in no less foul a mood, went back to Crow's Perch. Geralt watched him walk away, wondering if he would ever see the man again. In the end, Geralt decided he would look in on the baron. When he reached Crow's Perch, he inquired after the man but was saddened to learn he was dead. The lord of Velen had hanged himself, ending his reign and his sorrow."

- Dandelion

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