In the Claws of Madness – Witcher 2 Quest

This guide helps players with a specific side quest of chapter 1 in The Witcher 2. It has a map, legend, and walkthrough to show you exactly how to complete the quest.

Map Legend

1 – Cedric
2 – Start of the ruins
3 – Entrance to the asylum
4 – Non-enflamed passage
5 – Climbing spot
6 – Chest with Hospital Files III
7 – Dropdown spot
8 – Chest with Hospital Files I
9 – Gridley
10 – Gridley’s medicine
11 – Chest with Hospital Files II
12 – Archway
13 – Nilfgaardian ghost
14 – Chest with Hospital Files IV
15 – Gridley (after getting his medicament)
16 – Town butcher
17 – Loredo’s estate entrance
E – Circle of Endurance

Background

Along with the other contracts on the notice board, you’ll find an announcement that two people from the town are missing. Cedric is the one who’s put up a plead to find the missing people.

Walkthrough

This quest is initiated once you talk to Cedric (#1) and then ask him for some witcher’s work. Cedric will then explain the situation about the ruined hospital in detail and how the two men went there. Your job will then be to investigate the asylum, as it is said to be haunted.

Head over to #2, where you’ll meet one of the missing men, Rupert Brandhuben. Apparently, these two are medics who came here looking for a rare herb species. After a while, the conversation will get interrupted by a barking dog and several nekkers. Pull out your silver sword and protect Rupert. Then he’ll tell you to find his companion.

Start exploring the ruins and you’ll find a passage at #3, descending into the asylum. Once you’re inside, look around for the only passage which isn’t in flames (#4). You’ll witness a Nilfgaardian ghost mumbling something about the events which took place in the hospital. Go all the way forward and climb over (#5) into the next room on the right. Once you loot the chest at #6 (Hospital Files III), two wraiths will spawn in the room.

Fighting wraiths can be challenging on harder difficulties as they hit pretty hard. Make sure to keep up Quen all the time, and use either Axii to mind control one and then beat the other one, while the mind control lasts. Then just finish off the one you mind controlled. Wraiths also have a consistent chance to dodge your attacks, so keep that in mind when trying to make up a tactic. Probably the best way is to let them swing, leaving them exposed for a certain hit (dodge their attack of course!).

Hospital files that you acquire while progressing through this quest will slowly unveil the real story underneath. The herb the medics were looking for apparently besides healing properties, is hallucinogenic and forces the imbiber to speak truth.

Location of the fires will shift over the course of the quest and now you’ll be able to reach #7, where you can drop down and face another pair of wraiths. The chest at #8 contains another piece of the puzzle (Hospital Files I).

Now you’re on the lower level of the asylum. Follow the tunnel and reach Gridley at #9, who’ll be experiencing hallucinations and will require medicine at #10. Before reaching the medicine though, another pair of wraiths will attack in this tight space so be ready to fight. The chest in the room (#11) right next to medicine has Hospital Files II. There’s also a Circle of Endurance (armor bonus) at #E.

Once you give him some tranquilizers he’ll start telling the whole truth. In fact, him and Rupert were carrying out dangerous experiments on the Nilfgaardian prisoners they caught because Nilfgaardians were supposedly the ones guarding a big treasure in Aedirn. Since they were unyielding, the medics resorted to local herb which they used as the truth serum. The others guards started to revolt against this plot, and the medics and their commander set up a fire in hope of removing any trace of the real story. The only survivor they pulled from the fire was a young woman, who slit their commander’s throat one night and made off with the treasure map. In hope of finding the map again, they came back this asylum.

After finding out the truth, fire will subside in one of the archways (#12) and you can go to catch the Nilfgaardian ghost (#13). In the same room, there’s a chest behind the ghost at #14 which has Hospital Files IV. Gridley will go to #15.

Nilfgaardian ghost will of course want to take revenge on the two medics or he’ll continue to haunt the asylum. He asks for their eyes and hearts. Go visit Gridley at #15 first and then you’ll automatically go outside to meet up with Rupert.

You are now in a position to choose: you can take the medics to the Nilfgaardian ghost and he’ll take their eyes and hearts while the curse is lifted. The quest is complete and you earn 100 experience points. Use the ladder behind where the ghost was standing (#13), to get up to the main level, and then successfully get out of the asylum at #3.

Alternative to this is to try to trick the ghost by giving him animal eyes and hearts, either pig or nekkers ones. You can find the pig organs at #16. Either way, deceiving the ghost isn’t possible without a fight. He’ll swear an oath which breaks the curse, but will soon realize what you really brought him. After fighting him, you can go and speak with the medics.

Once again, you can choose to either punish them by taking them to Loredo (#17). At the door, his mother takes over. Later on you’ll learn that the young woman they pulled out from fire decades ago is actually Loredo’s mother, as she’s mildly insane. The other option is to just let them go. Either way, 100 experience points are yours and the quest is done.

During the quest, you’ve also come across some notes from the asylum which describe the Wild Hunt. You can talk to Roche about it for some additional information.