High Stakes – Witcher 3 Quest

This guide is a walkthrough of a side quest in the Witcher 3 for the area of Novigrad. The guide is composed of a map, map legend, and walkthrough to show readers exactly where to go and what to do to complete the quest.

Map Legend

1 – Kingfisher
2 – Passiflora
3 – Crate
4 – Warehouse

Background

You’ll trigger this quest when you discover the notice board next to the Kingfisher in Novigrad (#1).

Note: This is the most difficult gwent quest in the game, so you might want to complete the other gwent quests first before proceeding.

Walkthrough

To start off in this quest, you’ll need to visit the scribe in the Passiflora brothel (#2), and tell him that you’re interested in entering the gwent tournament. He’ll check your cards to make sure your deck is good enough, and he’ll accept your 1000 crown entry fee. There isn’t any way to avoid the fee. The scribe will then escort you to the waiting room.

Inside the waiting room, you’ll meet Sasha. She’s one of the players in the tournament, and she’ll tell you about your competition. You’ll then need to talk to three of those players — Bernard Tulle, Finneas, and Patrick Hazelnutt. They won’t say a whole lot to you, but afterwards Count Tybult will arrive and start the tournament.

You’ll be paired up against Bernard Tulle. To play him, you’ll just need to talk to him. Tulle will have a plethora of medics, spies, and special cards in his deck, so you’ll need likewise in order to have a chance against him. If you beat Tulle, then you’ll win his Foltest the Steel-Forged (Leader) card, and you’ll also earn 25 xp.

After the match — win or lose — you’ll be approached by Sasha. She’ll tell you that she has a plan to acquire the tournament’s grand prize, but she won’t tell you what it is yet. She’ll just require you to stick around until the end of the tournament. If you agree to Sasha’s plan, then you’ll get to stay with the quest all the way until its end, even if you lose a match. And since you’ll have to work with Sasha eventually anyway, you might as well agree right away. If you decline to work with Sasha, and if you lose a match, then you’ll fail the quest.

As you continue in the tournament, you’ll face three more opponents:

• Sasha. When you beat her, you’ll win her Emhyr var Emreis the Relentless (Leader) card, and you’ll also earn 50 xp.
  
• Finneas. When you beat him, you’ll win his Francesca Findabair Queen of Dol Blathanna (Leader) card, and you’ll also earn 50 xp. However, Finneas won’t like losing to a mutant, and he’ll attack you. You’ll then have to box with him to make him go away.
  
• Tybult. When you beat him, you’ll win his Eredin Bringer of Death (Leader) card, and you’ll also earn 80 xp.

After the final match — whether you’re involved or not — the scribe will run in and announce that the guard upstairs is dead and that the prize money is missing. Sasha will then come up to you to make sure that you’re (still) working together. If you decide to part ways with her, then the quest will end, and you’ll never learn what happened to the money. So you should agree to work with her.

Sasha will then talk her way into the crime scene. When you get there, you should turn on your witcher senses. You’ll notice that the dead guard was killed by blows “delivered from a strange angle.” You’ll also see that something was dragged to the balcony. When you go outside to investigate, you’ll spot a rope tied to a crossbow bolt, and you’ll deduce that the culprit lowered the money to an accomplice.

To continue your investigation, you’ll need to exit the brothel and look for the other end of the rope. You’ll find it behind the establishment next to a fountain. When you examine the rope, you’ll detect the scent of cinnamon, which you’ll be able to follow. The scent will lead you to the south, where you’ll find a crate (#3). Sasha will recognize the logo on the crate as belonging to a trading company that owns a warehouse on the northern side of the docks. She’ll immediately head over there to keep watch. You’ll earn 50 xp when she leaves.

When you join Sasha at the warehouse (#4), you’ll discover that all of the ground floor doors are locked. To get inside, you’ll need to head over to the northern side of the building, climb onto a raised walkway, and then jump across to a platform next to the warehouse, which will allow you to enter via an open window.

Inside the warehouse, you’ll discover that the thief is Bernard Tulle. No matter what you say to him, he and his men will attack you. Sasha — who you’ll learn is really a Nilfgaardian spy — will help you in the battle, which should not prove to be difficult, even though you’ll be outnumbered.

Afterwards, Sasha will suggest that you have dinner together at the Kingfisher to celebrate. This can lead to you having sex with Sasha, if you’re interested. Regardless, you’ll receive your half of the prize money — 4500 crowns — and you’ll also earn 50 xp. There isn’t any way to keep all of the money yourself.