The Witcher 3: A Dangerous Game
Help Zoltan Chivay with his problem to reap some delicious rewards - and so he'll be glad to join Geralt and the Kaer Morhen witchers to face the Wild Hunt.
The Witcher 3: A Dangerous Game
Zoltan Chivay is an old dwarf buddy of Geralt and Dandelion, who gets himself into a bit of debt and ends up caught up in the criminal underworld of Novigrad.
This quest is available any time after A Poet Under Pressure and the end of Act One - Novigrad, but is also an important step in the Brothers in Arms: Velen questline.
To kick things off, find Zoltan outside Dandelion's Rosemary and Thyme brothel (or newly named cabaret, if you've progressed that far), and speak to him - he's facing off against some impatient debt collectors, Duke and Earl, who are making a bid to replace Junior.
Zoltan thinks he can raise the necessary funds by selling three rare Gwent cards. the problem is, he doesn't have them - it's up to you to find them. Start with Zed, a pawnbroker with premises to the southwest.
The front door is locked up tight and sounds of trouble can be heard within; skirt the building and find a ladder leading up to the rooftops. Leap across the rooftops until you reach an attic door.
Inside, proceed down the stairs to confront two thugs. However you answer a battle breaks out; when they're down, search their corpses for one of the cards you need. Using Witcher senses, locate a scratch mark on the floor; use Aard to blow up the wooden boards blocking access to the space betneath the stairs. Loot the chest here to find Zed's ledger.
Take the ledger back to Zoltan, who explains what needs to be done next to secure the remaining two cards. Visit Ravik in the Golden Sturgeon first; you may need to adjust your goal in the quest menu. Save your game before you approach him.
There are two ways to secure the card; you can win the game of Gwent the bandits offer you, or you can let a fight break out. If you opt for the latter, take the card from the corpses of the bandits or the corpse of Ravik, or by chatting with Ravik after the brawl if he somehow survives.
Our next goal is to quietly rob an angling buddy of Zoltan's. Meet your friend outside the target's home, and join in the conversation. Answer however you wish; you can make an excuse to leave the table at any point, or wait for Zoltan to suggest you fetch more drinks.
Once you're up, climb the stairs to the second floor. Look for a cabinet with a knife on it; inspect the knife, and a drawer opens. Take the key inside and check the shelves on the other side of the room for the keyhole. A panel slides upon, giving you access to the next floor.
Turns out Caesar is a bit of a weaboo for Nilfgaard, which is gross and makes me feel better about robbing him. Take whatever you like, but be sure to grab the jade statue (a quest item) as well as the card; there are no consequences to robbing Caesar blind. In either case, head downstairs and rejoin the dwarves.
As you arrive, two of Cleaver's henchmen break in; I don't know why. Fight them or not as you please; if you save Caesar, he elects to leave the city.
Outside, talk to Zoltan about the jade statue to trigger The Soldier Statuette secondary quest, as well as Caesar's weird hobby, then go to meet Zoltan's buyer.
Unfortunately, Duke got here first and has murdered your contact. He means to have it away with the gold and the cards, but don't let him; chase him down while Zoltan fights the henchmen.
Don't worry too much about this chase, as you won't fail it if you go too slow. It is possible to catch and cut down Duke before the conclusion of the chase, though.
Don't just charge blindly forward; there are two separate instances where you need to climb a series of ladders (first up, then down). When you eventually reach the sewers, you catch sight of Duke through a locked grate. Go northeast down a ramp, battle a couple of Drowners, then look for a wall you can knock down with Aard. Just ahead, Duke has been wounded by Drowners. You can take the gold from him and choose whether to kill him or leave him to his fate. If you opt to spare him, there is no fallout - you might even find him down here later, apparently quite resigned to standing about in the sewers forever.
Back with Zoltan, you are offered money or the Gwent cards you collected. Take the cards. Money is easy to come by; these cards are not available anywhere else.
Back to Brothers in Arms: Novigrad, or back to Novigrad secondary quests.
Back to The Witcher 3 guide and walkthrough.