Extreme Cosplay

Extreme Cosplay is a secondary quest in the Blood and Wine expansion.

Important: This quest is proximity sensitive and will disappear if you find it but then leave without starting the quest.

Walkthrough[]

Heading east, away from Francollarts, you'll pass the Doren Alma Estate where a man, Gaston, is trying to tend to a wounded man on the main road. Respond however you like then, if you wish to investigate, select that option. No matter what you say to Gaston afterwards, he'll go with you to investigate.

Examine the trail, then the spot to the left of the door. You can further examine the door if you wish (it's locked though) all the while with Gaston making small commentary. Blast the door with Aard then head in to find a gruesome scene.

Note: While the door here glows red, it's not breakable with Aard. The reason for this is more to due with it being a clue (which also show as red with Witcher Senses) rather than noting it's a breakable door.

There are a number of things you can examine in the estate:

the burned body right by the door
the overturned tables
the various bodies along the path
the silverware on the small table next to the servant's body
the ceremonial bowls near the red chair
the burn mark near the steps which will have a scent trail you can follow

Follow the scent up the stairs where there's a couple more bodies. However, the real interest is the door at the far end of the trail, from which you will hear loud breathing. Interact with it for a man in hiding, Durand, to appear and who'll explain that some spirits came alive and attacked him and the rest of the group after reenacting a scene from the past. To deal with the problem you must reenact the play with at least 3 individuals. Respond however you wish, but it won't matter, Durand and Gaston will help.

Important: After this happens, time will fast-forward to midnight and you will be locked in with saves and meditation disabled.

You must now play the Aen Seidhe ruler. Once you've regained control, light all 6 torches in the courtyard and Gaston will read the next part/instructions. Grab the elven wine and bread from the chest near the ceremonial bowls and place them on each bowl, then grab the elven shield and sword from near Gaston and equip them. Geralt will have automatically equipped a ceremonial mask as well, but it's not required and may be replaced.

Important: The next step triggers a fight against extremely strong enemies and you will start right in the middle of them, possibly with undesirable gear too. Take your potions and decoctions in advance; any means of increasing your damage resistances are highly recommended. If you're using Protective Coating, put your Hanged Man's Venom on both the ancient elven sword and any that you would replace it with during the fight. Northern Wind is particularly useful to give yourself some breathing room.

Now kneel before Durand and as Durand speaks Ludovic's lines, the statues suddenly come to life. 4 of them will fight with pikes, but the other 2 are mages who strike with fire from a distance. Once they are defeated, Durand explains that the statues once stood in Divethaf's palace and must have been golems meant to come to life during the yearly homage, but didn't have the chance as Divethaf died before the next one. You can then respond however you wish and the quest will finish.

Journal Entry[]

If Geralt follows the blood trail to the estate and doesn't talk to Gaston:

Though many find it hard to believe, witchers can catch the scent of blood from over a league away. It thus comes as no surprise that, one day as he traveled in toussaint, Geralt departed from the beaten path towards a seemingly peaceful residence. When he found bloody marks on it's locked doors, he began investigating...

If Geralt finds Gaston first:

Sometimes traveling can be deadly dull – nothing but the slow crawl of the horizon, the sun beating down on your neck and the chirping of crickets. Other times, however, it can be surprisingly eventful, as a certain Gaston, a simple merchant from Toussaint, learned for himself when he happened across a mortally wounded man by the roadside. Though he provided aid as quickly as he could, the mysterious man soon bled to death. Right as he did, up walked the hero of my tale, Geralt.

If Geralt refuses to help Gaston:

Upon hearing Gaston's account, Geralt decided this was not a job for a Witcher and went on his way.

If Geralt refused but then returned within the vicinity:

Eventually, however, he changed his mind and decided to investigate the matter after all.

Though Geralt usually works alone, he made an exception in this case and agreed to let Gaston accompany him. Together they set off following the dead man's tracks towards a residence in which all seemed calm and quiet. Yet once they entered, they found overturned tables, cracked dishes and... more bodies. Luckily, the owner of the villa, Durand Faucher-Plamondon de Savarin, had survived the massacre and was able to tell them what had happened. It seemed Durand and his companions from the Society of Friends of the History of Toussaint had accidentally summoned some kind of monster. Geralt knew his duty was to draw the beast there again and exterminate it before it could shed more blood.

The story had a surprising finale. They discovered the massacre had been committed by... elven statues. Durand had purchased these a few weeks prior. They were in truth golems, meant to be part of a trap set by the last elven ruler of Toussaint, Divethaf, to take out his vanquisher and tormentor, King Ludovic. Divethaf's trap was never sprung, so his golems slept through the centuries, undisturbed until Durand repeated a formula during an act of historic reconstruction and they awoke...

Objectives[]

Follow the tracks of the murdered man using your Witcher Senses.
Investigate the estate grounds using your Witcher Senses.
Use your Witcher Senses to follow the smell of burning.
Light all the lamps in the garden. 6/6
Take a loaf of elven bread.
Place an offering of elven bread in front of Durand's throne.
Take a bottle of elven wine.
Place an offering of elven wine in front of Durand's throne.
Pick up an elven shield.
Pick up an elven sword.
Draw the elven sword and shield.
Kneel before Durand.
Defeat the living statues. (250)

Notes[]

Two books related to the involved curse and elven history in Toussaint can be found around the benches in the estate: The Civil War in Toussaint and Noble Houses of Toussaint: Volume LVII.

Bugs[]

The breathing at the door where Durand was hiding can be heard for the entire time before leaving the estate. Amusingly, even while he speaks, but after the quest is completed too.