The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a masterful RPG, and will undoubtedly go down as a timeless classic in the genre. Ever since its original launch, countless games have taken inspiration from its systems in terms of combat, exploration, dialogue, and more. The influence of CD Projekt Red's magnum opus is unmistakable, and there's so many moments throughout Geralt's final journey that I fondly remember. But even now, after playing it several times, nothing shines brighter than the Bloody Baron questline.
Content Warning: This article contains mention of domestic violence and suicide
It's perfection, a strong distillation of the game's moral themes and how our own decision making can have a profound impact upon them. The remainder of the campaign is filled with a number of excellent quests, but none remain as prominent in my mind as the Baron’s story, one that requires Geralt to investigate, empathise, and delve into a mystery that expands so much further than he ever could have imagined. It takes time to introduce and develop characters who are fleeting, and yet they matter just as much as Geralt, Ciri, Yennefer, or Triss.
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When you first meet Phillip Strenger, he’s a figure you feel sympathy towards. His wife and daughter have gone missing, and the tale that unfolds before you paints him as someone who has been abandoned by his family through no fault of his own. Crow’s Perch has grown into a place of drink, blood, and misery – no place for two women who simply want to settle down and carve out a new life. So, he enlists the help of Geralt, asking him to investigate the scene of the crime and uncover exactly where his family have gone. Unfortunately for him, Geralt isn’t an idiot, and is quick to discover that the bedroom is a scene of drunken violence and domestic struggles, making it clear that the Baron has been lying to us.
The Baron realises his mistakes, still under the influence of alcohol as he stumbles towards us and attempts to justify lying to a man who set aside valuable time to help him. Geralt’s endgame is to learn the location of Ciri and Dandelion, but we can choose to make him care about this situation, to do the right thing even if it never results in coin or the information he wants. Your behaviour towards the Nilfgaardian army prior to arriving at Crow’s Perch could also have an impact on things, changing Geralt’s standing in the wider picture and whether or not he can be trusted. Knowing your decisions have a lasting impact, however simple, helps the Bloody Baron questline feel so tangible.
It also extends far beyond Crow’s Perch, Geralt’s hunt for the Baron’s wife and daughter taking him to Crookback Bog where grotesque witches await with everything he could ever want. For a few hours, the struggles of Phillip Strenger become a thing of the past as we reunite with Ciri through an engaging sequence of flashbacks and learn how she came to encounter the witches and how vital they are to the thread of mysteries we’re trying to unwind. Like so many moments in Wild Hunt, questions are simultaneously answered and raised, leaving behind a breadcrumb trail of intrigue similar to the treats that have led so many children astray.
This questline is so vast, with writing that makes your decisions matter in a way that few RPGs manage to accomplish. It isn’t the obvious black and white morality of Mass Effect or Dragon Age, and dialogue options reflect that ambiguity and require an added sense of scrutiny to figure out exactly how Geralt will react. So many missions in games like this have a defined beginning, middle, and end. You can embark on a quest and finish it in the same sitting, but the Bloody Baron manages to supersede this predictability by folding itself into the game’s first act so perfectly. The rest of the game is still masterful, but it almost feels disjointed by comparison, with the hunt for Dandelion proving especially long in the tooth. He’s an annoying character anyway, so I was just glad to have it over and done with.
Given the next-gen upgrade is coming our way soon, I’ll throw out a spoiler warning now before I discuss the quest’s later moments. Teaching the Baron how to deal with the botchling and learning about his involvement with Anna’s miscarriage is a harrowing moment, but an essential one – it’s a horrible act necessary to bring peace to this broken man’s conscience while ensuring his unborn child is able to find similar peace in the afterlife. Our own choices will determine how this sequence plays out. The end result can vary enormously, with the Baron accepting his own inner turmoil and confronting the grief that continues to consume him, or it can all continue to fall apart while culminating in a conclusion so tragic I’m surprised CD Projekt Red ever went through with it.
His wife and daughter refuse to return home with him as the Baron ventures into Crookback Bog, and they’re absolutely in the right. Here is a man who has battered and beaten them beyond repair, and while he realises the need to change, you also can’t expect those most affected to look past their trauma and accept a man like this back into their lives. So he returns home, and Geralt’s reaction to this news will determine whether Phillip decides to make himself a better person, or hang himself from the rafters and leave his life behind. Neither of these conclusions are happy, and returning to Crow’s Perch hoping to greet my problematic friend only to discover he’d hung himself threw me into a state of silence, a solemn moment of contemplation as I’d tried to think about what I did wrong, or if there was anything I could have done to prevent this. No game has hit me like this before.
So many games like to paint you as untouchably righteous or comically evil, while The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt just wants you to act like a human being. Make mistakes, and you’ll face the consequences. Be a good person, and people will welcome your perspective and come to you for aid. In the case of the Baron, he had nowhere else to turn. His men viewed him as a drunk, his family despised him, and Geralt isn’t the ally he had hoped for. The only way out was darkness, and that’s a bleak ultimatum that few games dare encroach upon, but it’s also befitting of this fantasy universe. Because of this, The Bloody Baron remains a benchmark for RPG storytelling, a high point in an experience absolutely filled with them.
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