Contract: Lord of the Wood is a contract quest in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.
- Dear witcher, sir (if any be present hereabouts, that is)
- I've a hunch - eh, what am I saying - I'm dead certain that the woods I was lucky enough to gain possession of - or at least, I felt lucky about that till recently - that these woods are home to a cruel evil, a devil of some kind. I hired a gang of dwarven loggers not long back to harvest lumber. Strapping lads, every last one having cut down many a mighty tree in his life. So you can imagine my surprise when said loggers disappeared, all save one, and he claimed to have seen a monster. I've marked out a bounty for freeing my stretch of woods from all foul creatures, and dearly hope that soon I will have the pleasure of giving it to someone.
- Sincerely,
- -Brean Hotsch
Walkthrough[]
To start this quest, pick up the contract notice off of either the Cunny of the Goose's notice board or Farcorners', then head into Cunny of the Goose's inn and talk with Brean near the innkeep. He'll tell you how he started up a lumberjack camp only for something to attack his men, with only one surviving the ordeal. Note: You can also pick this quest up by finding the wagon mentioned further down, but if you do so, you won't be able to haggle for a reward.
After agreeing to take it, you can talk to the nearby witness, who's sitting on the opposite side of the inn. After a few curt words, once you reveal you're tracking down the monster, he'll only be able to reveal he heard a horrible wolf's howling and was told to grab some weapons, but on returning he found only a massacre.
With that, head out to the Loggers' Hut where you'll only find one clue to examine: the wagon's tracks. Follow them on foot or on Roach along the road until you find the wagon. There are nekkers very close in the woods near the road, so you may have to deal with some of them. When you reach the place, there's a number of things to examine, including the sword/blood, the blood splatters, the dwarf tracks, and the claw marks on the nearby stone. Follow the blood tracks a short distance to find one of the dead dwarves to examine, then go back and follow the footprints to find the other body and examine it. Once everything has been examined Geralt will deduce it's a young leshen, Kernun, earning 25 
. You'll then need to find its totem to draw it out.
The correct location is the one farthest east, in the middle of the woods. Prepare yourself, then destroy the totem for a cutscene where it'll start to rain and Kernun will appear, clearly not pleased. He'll fight like any normal leshen, like summoning wolves, disappearing in a flock of crows, and using roots to try and ensnare you. However, even with the rain Igni is still very effective against him. Once dead, loot the body for a trophy and the Black Unicorn, then head back to Brean. He'll be thrilled, giving you 250 and 195 
, completing the quest.
Journal entry[]
- Start quest by talking to Brean:
- A certain halfling named Brean Hotsch had hung a notice stating he was in need of a professional monster slayer. Geralt decided to see what was the matter.
- Start quest by finding the wagon:
- While traversing the woods outside Novigrad, Geralt came across some monster tracks that struck him as unusual. He decided it was worth his time to see what sort of beast was prowling around this close to the North's great metropolis.
- After a detailed investigation of the shrubbery and thicketry lining the forest floor (what exactly he looks for during such investigations is a complete mystery to me - I see nothing but endless chances to tear one's hose), Geralt concluded he was tracking a leshen. In order to defeat this elusive monster, he would first need to provoke it into attacking him. That's right, dear reader: he planned to deliberately provoke a leshen - the very thought sends shivers down my spine.
- Once Geralt had defeated the leshen, the halfling paid up without making any fuss. There's no denying it: Brean Hotsch proved himself an honorable individual.
Objectives[]
- Start quest by talking to Brean:
- Talk to Brean Hotsch.
- Find the woodcutter's hut where Hotsch is staying.
- Talk to witnesses.
- Find the site of the attack using your Witcher Senses.
- Use your Witcher Senses to follow the wagon tracks to where the monster attacked.
- Investigate the site of the monster's attack. (25
) - Use your Witcher Senses to follow the sounds and find the leshen's totem.
- Lure the leshen out by destroying its totem.
- Kill the leshen.
- Take a trophy.
- If one started the quest by finding the wagon:
- Check the nearest notice board.
- Collect your reward from Brean Hotsch. (250)
Notes[]
- The spot where Kernun appears is very close to the Scoia'tael merchant's camp and it's possible that the archers there try to help during your fight, especially if the leshen summons wolves. They are quite literally useless though, so there's no point in trying to exploit that.
Videos[]
