The Basics of Witcher 3

Written By: William

Published Date: September 15, 2021 Last Edited: September 15, 2021

You’re probably here because you’ve watched “The Witcher” from a famous online streaming site and know that it was based off of a video game, which was also based from a book published by, Polish author, Andrzej Sapkowski.

We aren’t going to bore you with the details about the story, so let’s get straight on to the gaming basics. If you want to know the storyline, the game starts mostly with cut scenes and few of the basic tutorials to get you going.

Interaction

One of the most common things for games is the characters’ ability to interact with Non-Playing Characters (NPCs). This may have glitches, but none that can’t be fixed with a game relaunch or a system restart. To interact an NPC:

You need to get close to an item, carcass or NPC.
Press E to interact, investigate, or initiate something.

The game requires you to investigate things in order to complete quests and follow the story. If you can’t see things clearly, you can use your Witcher Sense to reveal everything that is hidden. To do so:

Press and hold the Right Mouse Button.
You will see highlighted objects or clues that were previously invisible to you.
Get near them to interact, activate, or investigate.

Combat

Melee

Right after the cut scenes during the start of the game. You are given the option to undergo the tutorial process. However, you may have chosen to opt out of the tutorial or may have forgotten it already. So we’ve taken the liberty of preparing something that will refresh your memory.

To start slashing and slaying foes you will have to:

Draw your sword. It is not good to use fists when facing monsters or armed guards. You have two of them the steel for humans & non-humans and silver for monsters and otherworldy foes. You can draw each by pressing their hotkeys, 1 for steel and 2 for silver. Pressing the buttons again will resheath them.
Before flailing your sword, pick a target by pressing Z or just by using your mouse to point at which direction your enemy is standing. The former is rather effective as you are more focused.
Use the Left Mouse Button to use normal attacks.
To use a stronger attack, hold down Left Shift while pressing the Left Mouse Button.
To move about, use W, A, S, D keys to go forward, left, backward and right respectively.
To dodge attacks, you’ll need press either W, A, S, D and then press the ALT key.
And if you wish to roll, press either W, A, S, D and press Spacebar.
If you’re not a fan of dodging and rolling then you may parry all attacks by pressing the Right Mouse Button.

Magic

Witchers are also able to use magic. They cast various numbers of signs that produce different kinds of magical effects at a time.

Sign	Effects
	Acts as a shield that protects you from damage and certain critical effects.
	Deals fire damage to enemies which may lead to a burning effect. Can be used to blow up gas vapors and incendiaries. Burn spider webs light torches and more.
	Stuns or knocks opponents and other materials to the ground.
	Disorients the opponent temporarily making them vulnerable to attack.
	A magic trap that slows anyone that enters the area of effect.

For you to use them:

Press Tab to open the Quick Access Menu.
Use you mouse to select which sign you wish to use then click on the Left Mouse Button.
Once selected, press Q to cast the selected sign.

Travels

Call your horse. Roach is your main transport as you travel in between quests. In order for you to use your horse:

Press E to mount. That is if he is within your sights.
If Roach isn’t within your reach, you can press X to call him by whistling. Then mount him by pressing E. Press the same key to unmount.
Alternatively, Fast Travel is available by using Sign Posts scattered around your map. This lets you move around explored areas quickly. This definitely beats horseback riding at the expense of not being able to exploring and randomly gather quest items, ingredients and side quests.