By Brenna Hillier

A tough battle in an enclosed space polishes off this difficult Witcher Contract.

The Witcher 3: Mysterious Tracks Witcher Contract

Suggested level: 20

Mysterious Tracks is a tough one, pitting players against one of the more rare enemy types in The Witcher 3. You’ll want to save this one for after your Skelligan adventures at least, despite its Velen setting.

Where to find the Mysterious Tracks Witcher Contract

Visit Lindenvale and check the notice board to discover something is afoot in the woods. Visit the contract giver – a hunter – up the street a little to learn more about his encounter with the beat.

Head for the search area to the south of the village and check out some wolf corpses and large tracks heading southwest.

Follow the tracks uphill to a nearby tree where the creature rubbed against the trunk, which allows you to track it by scent. The scent trail heads further southto a cave entrance (look at some dung nearby, if you fancy).

To get into the cave, climb up on top of the hill and look for a hole. It’s quite well hidden; search around the roots of the trees for best results. You’ll find it on the opposite side of the hill to the cave opening.

Once inside, you’ll discover a dead Fiend. Oh oh – that means something worse is around. Look at the Fien’ds mouth and look around for more prints to try and figure out what you’re hunting. It turns out it’s a Chort, and we need some bait to lure it in.

Climb back out of the cave through the opening you couldn’t reach from outside, and grab some of that fiend dung from nearby. The other ingredient you need is Crow’s Eye, which is a very common herb. If you don’t have any, search around the hill – it’s a medium height plant that looks like some sort of conifer. Brew the lure in your alchemy menu, then walk around the hill to the four search areas, interacting when prompted to place the lure.

When you’re ready to fight the beast, drop back into the cave. Return to Lindenvale to collect your reward once you’ve put it down.

How to kill Howler the Chort

Chorts aren’t that much tougher than fiends, despite Geralt’s fussing. Although Howler is faster than, say, a bear, you can defeat it using pretty standard big quadraped tactics. What you want to do is roll to a position on its flanks, and keep dodging around it as it tries to turn to hit you. If you need a breather, roll away – but be aware that the arena leaves very little room for error, and Howler can close the gap devastatingly fast.

Don’t be afraid to carry Swallow and Thunderbolt into this battle, and consider downing a Decoction if you have one that will be helpful.

As far as Signs go, Yrden is great for giving you more time to dodge Howler’s ferocious attacks, but it’s not especially vulnerable to anything else. Devil’s Puffball bombs will help you whittle its health down faster, and you should use Relict Oil.

How to make Relict Oil, where to find Mistletoe

Relict Oil is pretty easy to make, as long as you know this one exciting secret: herbalists sell Mistletoe. It doesn’t grow anywhere. Visit any herbalist to grab some; examples include the Herbalist you meet during the quests in White Orchard, the Peller, and Keira Metz. You’ll also need Dog Tallow, which is commonly looted from wild dogs and wolves.

Since Howler is a pretty tough beast, it’s recommended you use Enhanced or Superior Relic Oil, if you’re lucky enough to have the recipes. Here’s what you’ll need to upgrade all the way:

• 1x Ursine Tallow – kill bears or buy from herbalists
• 1x Alchemy Paste – common loot or buy from herbalists
• 1x Water Hag Tooth – kill Water Hags
• 1x Devourer Blood – kill Devourers
• 1x Cave Troll Liver – kill Cave Trolls
• 2x Green Mold – buy from herbalists
• 2x Beggartick Blossoms – a medium bush with pink flowers, found fields and swamps in all regions
• 2x Hop Umbels – large bush found in all regions
• 1x Nigredo – buy from herbalists or craft

Back to Witcher Contracts guide, or back to The Witcher 3 guide and walkthrough.