Thou Shalt Not Pass is a secondary quest in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt in Velen. It can be triggered by speaking to a guard either on the bridge leading to the Border Post or the Western Gate.
Walkthrough[]
Both the Western Gate into Oxenfurt and the Border Post in Velen are closed and heavily guarded by Redanian troops because of the recent war. Until this quest is completed, you cannot use the main thoroughfares to traverse the Pontar. However, some slightly less orthodox methods are available such as swimming across the river at a safe distance from any border posts. Fast-traveling between signposts on opposing sides of the river is also allowed, even without the necessary papers.
It is preferable to start the quest at the Border Post, because you if ask the guard there how to obtain a pass, you can bribe him with 10 
or use Axii (25
, doesn't require Delusion) to get the information. Whether you asked or not though, there are 3 ways to obtain a pass and you may've even stumbled upon one of them already.
Note: after meeting with Gregor in A Deadly Plot, the guard at the Border Post will no longer offer you the bribe and Axii options for asking how to obtain a pass or allow you to complete this quest, so you must complete the quest at the Western Gate.
Official papers[]
Upon reaching a point of the main quest Family Matters where Geralt reports on Tamara's whereabouts to the Baron, he will require you to travel to Oxenfurt and provides a pass to help.
Completing Contract: Woodland Beast can also yield an official pass as a reward.
Fake papers[]
Journey to the refugee camp on the southern side of Border Post to find a shady merchant. He'll sell you a fake pass for 100 (50 with Axii) or 25 if you help his brother-in-law, Albin Hart, in Bitter Harvest. If his brother dies, the merchant will refuse to do business with you.
If you somehow managed to start A Deadly Plot without having any kind of papers, you'll also receive fake ones from Gregor on the other side of the Border Post.
Use the pass[]
Once you have whichever pass in hand, approach one of the border soldiers, show them your pass, and after a bit of banter, you're allowed through and the quest will conclude. (75) You can even use the fake pass at the Western Gate, though the guard there will note it's missing a seal, but wave it off as their people forgetting stuff like this.
Journal entry[]
- The Redanian army had placed blockades on the crossings of the Pontar, something which at one point proved quite inconvenient to the witcher. The guards refused to let him cross without showing a special pass issued by high command.
- Luckily Geralt managed to get his hands on just such a pass and from then on could cross the Pontar border at will. I hope he did not abuse this privilege, jumping back and forth across the border, making faces at the poor wretches stuck on one side and taunting the guards who had no right to stop his antics. He mentioned nothing of the sort, true, but that's just the kind of thing one might choose to keep to oneself.
Objectives[]
- Acquire a pass granting permission to cross the Pontar.
- Use the pass to cross the Pontar. (75
)
Bugs[]
- Regardless of what kind of pass Geralt has, the guard at the Western Gate will say it's missing a seal even though one of the versions does have a seal on its icon in the inventory.
- This is scripted because, story-wise, Geralt has no reason to go to Oxenfurt before the Baron asks him to see Tamara there, giving a version of the papers without the seal. Those are likely development remnants of an earlier version where the different passes weren't universally acceptable at each checkpoint.
Trivia[]
- Thou Shalt Not Pass is a reference to the famous line "You shall not pass" from the 2001 film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.