The Witcher 3: How to get the best ending

The Witcher 3 is riddled with consequential choices, all of which add up to a whopping 36 possible endgame states. Luckily, most of these are small variations of each other; there are, in fact, just three major endings.

This endings guide is absolutely full of spoilers, of course, so don’t read on if you want to go in clean.

The Fate of the Swallow

No matter what you do throughout the game, the epilogue mission is called Something Ends, Something Begins. The main difference between the three epilogues is Ciri’s fate.

Ciri’s fate is determined by the following seven factors:

1. How you comforted her during Blood on the Battlefield
2. Whether you visited the Emperor during Blood on the Battlefield
3. Whether you accepted coin from the Emperor for bringing Ciri to him in Blood on the Battlefield
4. Whether you accompanied Ciri to a meeting with the Lodge of Sorceresses during Final Preparations
5. How you reacted to Ciri’s temper in The Child of the Elder Blood
6. Whether you took Ciri to Skjall’s Grave as a result of a choice in The Child of the Elder Blood
7. Your completion of the sidequest chain An Eye for an Eye, A Deadly Plot, Redania’s Most Wanted (Act Two) and Reason of State (Act Three)

Her three possible fates are described below along with the steps needed to achieve them.

Ciri dies

Ciri dies if she feels self doubt when she approaches her battle with the White Frost. In the epilogue mission, Geralt hunts down the Crone who escaped Ciri’s wrath and retrieves her Witcher medallion. The credits roll on him sitting sadly alone, remembering her.

To trigger this ending, you must make at least three out of five “negative” decisions in conversation. Here are the possibilities:

1. Say “Relax, you don’t have to be good at everything,” when comforting Ciri during Blood on the Battlefield.
2. Missable: Choose to visit the Emperor during Blood on the Battlefield, and say “Definitely need it more than you” to accept payment for bringing Ciri to him.
3. Accompany Ciri to the meeting with the Lodge of Sorceresses during Final Preparations.
4. Say “Calm down” when Ciri loses her temper during The Child of the Elder Blood.
5. Say “No time” when Ciri asks to visit Skjall’s grave at the end of The Child of the Elder Blood.

Ciri lives, and becomes a witcher

Ciri survives her encounter with the White Frost if she feels confident in herself as a worthwhile human being, and has not been enlightened about the possibility of future authority. During the epilogue, Geralt visits the Emperor and lies about Ciri’s whereabouts, later meeting with her in a tavern to begin her life of adventure as a witcher.

To trigger this ending:

1. Do not bring Ciri to the Emperor
When Ciri suggests visiting Bald Mountain during Blood on the Battlefield, say “Velen, then”, not “Gotta visit the Emperor first”.

2. Make at least two out of four “positive” decisions. The possibilities are:

• Say “I know what might lift your spirits” when comforting Ciri during Blood on the Battlefield.
• Encourage Ciri to speak to the Lodge of Sorceresses on her own during Final Preparations.
• Say “Go for it” when Ciri loses her temper in The Child of the Elder Blood.
• Say “Yeah, I’ll go with you” when Ciri asks to visit Skjall’s grave at the end of The Child of the Elder Blood.

Ciri lives, and becomes Empress

Ciri survives her encounter with the White Frost if she feels confident in herself as a worthwhile human being, and becomes Empress if she has met with her biological father and become convinced of the good she might do in that role. In the epilogue, Ciri and Geralt enjoy one last ramble together, then tearfully say goodbye – for now.

To trigger this ending:

1. Bring Ciri to the Emperor
When Ciri suggests visiting Bald Mountain during Blood on the Battlefield, say “Gotta visit the Emperor first”, not “Velen, then”.

2. Ensure Nilfgaard wins the war
Complete the following secondary quests in Act Two:

• An Eye for an Eye
• A Deadly Plot
• Redania’s Most Wanted

And complete the following in Act Three:

• During Blindingly Obvious, be pleasant to Dijikstra and feed him information about Ciri. This unlocks Reason of State.
• Complete Reason of State and side with Vernon Roche and Ves against Dijkstra.

3. Make at least three out of five “positive” decisions. The possibilities are:

• Say “I know what might lift your spirits” when comforting Ciri during Blood on the Battlefield.
• Missable: Choose to visit the Emperor during Blood on the Battlefield, and say “Didn’t do it for coin”, refusing payment.
• Encourage Ciri to speak to the Lodge of Sorceresses on her own during Final Preparations.
• Say “Go for it” when Ciri loses her temper in The Child of the Elder Blood.
• Say “Yeah, I’ll go with you” when Ciri asks to visit Skjall’s grave at the end of The Child of the Elder Blood.

Other ending factors

Geralt’s actions throughout The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt help shape international politics as well as his own life. These permutations play out in little cutscenes at the end of the game, as well as being reflected in the world state during the three possible epilogue missions. Here’s a list:

The ruler of the North
• Radovid rules Novigrad and Velen
  If you ignore the Assassin questline completely, Radovid wins the north from Nilfgaard. He immediately begins slaughtering magic users and non-humans. The man’s as mad as a ferret. Poor show.
• Dijkstra rules Novigrad and Velen
  If you side with Dijkstra at the end of Reason of State, having completed the Assassin questline, the former spymaster rules the North through fear and a loss of liberty – but industry prospers.
• Nilfgaard rules but Temeria is restored
  If you side with Vernon Roche and Ves at the end of Reason of State, having completed the Assassin questline, Temeria is restored a degree of sovereignty and the war concludes in peace and prosperity.

The Fate of Emhyr var Emries, Emperor of Nilfgaard
• If Nilfgaard rules the North, Emhyr turns his attention to dissent at home, wiping out the traitors with extreme prejudice.
• If Radovid or Dijikstra rule the North, Emhyr’s subjects rise in fury and murder him.

The Ruler of Skellige
• If you backed Cerys during King’s Gambit, Skellige prospers peacefully, although it also mellows a bit.
• If you backed Hjalmar during King’s Gambit, Skelligan forces raid Nilfgaard every spring at great loss of life.
• If you ignored King’s Gambit, Svanrige Bran wages a blood civil war and establishes a totalitarian monarchy on Skellige.

The Fate of Geralt of Rivia
• If you successfully romanced Triss Merigold, Geralt moves to Kovir, where she accepts a place as advisor to the king. Geralt lives in comfort and luxury, with the occasional Witcher Contract.
• If you successfully romanced Yennefer, the pair of them retire from the affairs of the world at last. They live happily ever after and almost never get out of bed till noon. Baths are involved.
• If you didn’t romance either lady, or foolishly tried to romance them both, Geralt ends his days alone – except for Dandelion – as a roaming witcher.

Interim conclusions

In addition to the final cutscenes, there are a number of “mini endings” you can unlock as you progress through the game.

• The fate of the Bloody Baron
  • Kill the creature in The Whispering Hillock: Anna lives, but is struck insane. Velen is at relative peace.
  • Free the creature in The Whispering Hillock: Downwarren is destroyed, Anna dies, the Baron commits suicide, and Velen is ravaged.
• The fate of Sara the Godling
  • Make a deal with Sara: The Godling settles down peacefully with Corrine.
  • Force Sarah out of the “haunted house”: Sara flees Novigrad and joins Johnny on Bald Mountain.
• The fate of Keira Metz
  • Send Keira to Kaer Morhen: Lambert and Keira set off on new adventures together.
  • Let Keira go to Radovid or ignore her quests: Keira is burned at the stake. A Final Kindness is unlocked during Blindingly Obvious.
• The fate of Whoreson Junior
  • Kill Whoreson Junior: Dudu replaces the crime lord and begins a benevolent spree.
  • Spare Whoreson Junior: Brought low by his former associates, Whoreson Junior is a pitiful wretch.
• The fate of Mages
  • Complete Now or Never: The mages escape Novigrad successfully, but violence against non-humans escalates sharply.
  • Ignore Now or Never: Mages are slaughtered indiscriminately. Novigrad is a deathtrap.

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