The Witcher 3 - The Best Weapons and Armor Guide

All throughout your journey across Velen, Skellige, and beyond, you'll come across a variety of weapons and armor, and while there's no shortage to choose from, figuring out which are the best weapons and armor in The Witcher 3 is a bit overwhelming.

In this guide to the best weapons and armor in The Witcher 3, we'll be guiding you through how to acquire elite weapons like the Griffin School Gear, the Ursine School Gear, and other items like the Aerondight sword.

If you need some advice for how to make the most of your new gear, check out our guide on The Witcher 3's Adrenaline Points system and how to level up fast so you aren't caught short.

The Witcher 3 - Best Weapons

The debate about the best weapon in any game is a familiar one. Players are always looking to get that tiny edge that will put them over the top and see them defeat their foes. Sometimes the debate is a very simple one with a clear winner, and then other times it’s more complicated. With The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the discussion is more complicated, but in a way that will benefit you under any circumstances. Let's start with the best weapons in the game:

• Gesheft Silver Sword
• Griffin Steel Sword – Mastercrafted
• Bloodsword
• Aerondight
• Ofieri Saber
• Black Unicorn Relic Steel Sword
• Harpy Relic Silver Sword

Best Weapons and Armor Stats in The Witcher 3

Choosing the best armor and weapons in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is all about play style. If you don’t use your signs often, you might prefer the Ursine School Gear for maximum protection. If you depend heavily on your signs, perhaps the Griffin School Gear is best for you. If you’re like us and opt for something lighter, relying more on your movement to help you win fights, the Cat School Gear might be the way to go. Each type of gear has four variations (Basic, Enhanced, Superior and Mastercrafted), and what you use will depend on what level your Witcher is at.

The table below shows what level you can start using each type of armor at. For example, once you hit level 30 you will be able to craft and wear the mastercrafted variation of the Feline School Gear. This includes chest armor, gauntlets, trousers and boots.

You must have the diagrams that are required to craft this gear. The second table indicates at what level you can start using each sword type at. They follow the same basic idea as the armor, with each gear set having four different variations.

Minimum Armor and Weapon Levels in The Witcher 3:

The Witcher 3 Griffin School Gear

As we mentioned above, the Griffin School Gear is all about your sign intensity. If you are someone who likes to slam your foes Igni and Aard, this gear set will provide you with that opportunity. It won’t give you as much protection as the Ursine School Gear, but you shouldn’t need it given that you’re a master of magic. Be sure to reflect your choice in gear by adjusting your character customization options so that your focus is on using your signs.

The Witcher 3 Feline School Gear

The Feline School gear is easily our favorite gear set. Part of that has to do with how it looks, and the other part is because of the benefits it provides in combat. The Cat School Gear doesn’t provide you with the same level of protection that you get from The Ursine (Bear) School Gear, but it does allow you to recover stamina more quickly. This means you can use your signs more often, but they won't be as intense as if you used the Griffin School Gear.

It also benefits your play style if the approach to your combat encounters is all about movement. Rather than rely on Geralt being able to take a lot of punishment, this gear is suited for people who prefer to dodge and roll out of the way when their enemy attacks.

The Witcher 3 Ursine School Gear

Next is the Bear (Ursine) School Gear, and it’s all about being able to take crazy amounts of damage when you’re in a fight. It provides maximum protection, but you give up the stamina regeneration that you enjoy with the Feline School Gear. Still, you could make use of alchemy to tip the scales further in your favor, tossing bombs and rubbing your swords with oils to cause your foes more damage. If you’re a big fan of using lots of signs while you’re in combat, you may want to skip this gear.

The Witcher 3 Aerondight Sword

To obtain this elite weapon, you'll have to firstly own the Blood and Wine expansion for The Witcher 3, and you'll then have to undertake the quest called There Can Only be One, which can be found on any notice board in Toussaint. Next, you'll need to complete all of the following quests, as well as completing them with the details that we've noted down next to each one:

• Til Death do You Part - Solve the dispute between the two ghosts, and at the very end of the quest, select the 'actually, just a marital spat' conversation option.
• Father Knows Worst - Save the brother inside the house, and then choose the 'no one dies, not today' conversation option.
• Big Game Hunter - Ask the guards about the Count's life, and then choose the option to attend his exhibition.
• Turn to Face the Strange - You don't have to complete this quest, but you do have to give the messenger a tip when he delivers the note from Yennefer.
• Feet as Cold as Ice - Once you're inside the quest and the Knight starts talking to you, choose the 'take the damned head, go back to Beauclair' option.

Once you've completed all of the above quests, simply head back to the hermit on the lake, where you'll have one final fight to undertake before you can claim Aerondight for yourself.

The Witcher 3 Vitis Steel Sword/Toussaint Armor

There's only one way to get this weapon and armor set, and it's entirely possible to miss it when you're undertaking the Night of the Long Fangs quest in the Blood and Wine DLC expansion. You'll firstly need to choose the option to go after Syanna, and once you're in the fantasy land, you'll need to head towards the tall stone tower, roughly in the middle of the hub area.

Head towards the southern side of the tower, where you'll find a small lake. Near the lake will be the body of a fallen knight, completely dressed in Toussaint Armor and carrying the Vitis steel sword, both of which are now yours for the taking.

The Witcher 3 Gesheft Silver Sword

You'll need to obtain a diagram to craft Gesheft, which you can then only equip once Geralt is level 45 or above, and you'll need to own the Blood and Wine expansion for The Witcher 3. Go to north east Beauclair, past the Dun Tynne Crossroads, and past the river bank. Now enter the nearby Monster Den, and keep heading left, until you come to a small campfire near a stalagmite. There's a chest next to the stalagmites, which contains the diagram needed to craft the Gesheft silver sword.

The Witcher 3 Hen Gaidth Armor

You only have one shot at obtaining the Hen Gaidth armor set, if you choose to go after the Unseen Elder vampire during the Night of the Long Fangs quest, again in the Blood and Wine DLC expansion. You'll emerge from a hole in the ground, and into the cave where you'll meet the Unseen Elder vampire, but if you look next to the hole in the ground, you'll find a chest containing two items of the armor set.

Once you're following the foot marks in the quest to find the Unseen Elder, you'll eventually come to a fork in the road. Follow the path left, defeat the few enemies that you come to in the next room, and you'll find a chest near the wall containing the next two pieces of the Hen Gaidth armor set.

Finally, you'll need to look for the last chest after Geralt has slid down a stone wall. Search near the base of the stone wall that he ends up on top of, and you'll find the final two pieces of the elusive Hen Gaidth armor set.

The Witcher 3 Manticore Armor

One final set of armor that you can go about seeking out in The Witcher 3's Blood and Wine expansion is the Manticore Armor. The diagrams for this set are found in Toussaint, and with the whole set crafted and equipped, you'll find that your Toxicity tolerance is raised. This means Geralt can consume even more potions than he could prior, without becoming victim to the negative effects of them as quickly.

To get your hands on the armor set, take a look at our guide on how to get the Manticore armor (and weapons).

Final note

As for which piece of armor or particular sword is the best, you're always going to want to go with the highest variation that you qualify for. That is to say, if you are a level 31 witcher, you're going to want to use the mastercrafted versions of the gear that best suits your play style.

In terms of swords, there are some out there that offer more damage than what you will find in these three sets, but you also have to factor in how many slots each sword has for runestones. For example, if you can find a sword that does slightly less damage, but has three slots for runestones, you can really bump up its stats for things like armor piercing, causing your foes to bleed, or even setting them on fire. What this all boils down to is that there is no one sword that is better than all the rest, but rather just one sword out there that will meet your unique combat needs.

Whether you're just starting The Witcher 3 for the first time or need a refresh after a long time out of the saddle, check out our Witcher 3 walkthrough for all the essential info, including how to get the best ending and which quests you should actually do in the wide, open world.