Witcher 2 revisited

Definitely one of the best RPG's I've ever played. Can't wait for the third one.

Coincidentally, I just finished my fourth playthrough today. Technically it wasn't an entire fourth playthrough as I started from a save point directly prior to helping either Iorveth or Roche at the Elven Ruins.

Anyone care to delve into some political philosophy regarding which decisions will make for the strongest Northern Kingdoms in The Witcher 3?

Probably not, but I'll post the decisions that I think leave everything in the best possible shape on a grand geopolitical scale. Note that this franchise has a knack for exposing flaws in your decisions later, so these could be completely misguided.

MASSIVE SPOILERS AT 6 O' CLOCK - DON'T READ UNLESS YOU HAVE PLAYED THIS GAME THOROUGHLY

































1. Spare Aryan La Valette - this one doesn't really seem debatable, as the alternative leads to the lands being ceded to Nilfgaard.
2. Do not give Iorveth his sword at the Elven Ruins. Allowing the Squirrels to win a victory over the Temerian Blue Stripes leads to chaos in Flotsam.
3. Side with Iorveth. This one seems counter-intuitive at first, but it's the only way to ensure that both (a) Henselt does not get his hands on Upper Aedirn and (b) there is a strong, unifying ruler to fill the vacuum. I have a feeling that Aedirn will play a pretty large role in repelling the Black Ones' invasion.
4. Save the women rather than pursue Loredo. He may be scum, but he's in good company. This choice is ultimately the difference between Flotsam remaining Temerian or being sold to Kaedwen. I choose the latter because as Temeria will be split between two kings at the end of this playthrough, it is better for Flotsam to belong to Henselt alone rather than both Henselt and Radovid as a remote piece of meat to fight over.
5. Allow the mob to lynch Stennis. If we're being completely impartial here, it seems very likely that Stennis had a hand in Saskia's poisoning, yet the evidence is not undeniable. Could have just as easily been Philippa who masterminded the poisoning as a vehicle for taking control of Saskia (the dragon). Nonetheless, I think that Saskia, terrible secret or not, is a better choice to rule Upper Aedirn (even if it's through a scheming sorceress). Aedirn under Stennis would only further heighten the unrest between humans and nonhumans and lead to a shitty nation in the long run. Aedirn needs Saskia as a unifying figure.
6. Save Triss rather than Philippa. This is possibly the toughest decision in the game, whether you side with Iorveth or Vernon Roche. On one hand, saving Philippa allows you to disenchant Saskia and make her a strong, independent ruler (who can control her dragon aspect). On the other hand, saving Triss allows you to retain the Conclave. I think the mages, a few bad eggs aside, are important as an advisory body for the Northern Kingdoms. There's also the fact that while Philippa may be a spiteful bitch, she is also incredibly deft and intelligent and will probably use Saskia cleverly. She won't let it be known that Saskia is the dragon, and she also has no interest in letting Nilfgaard conquer the Northern Kingdoms.
7. Let Sile die. I don't think much else needs to be said here. She sucks. She has to go.
8. Spare Saskia. Again, I think she will be better for Aedirn in the long run than Stennis or Henselt, even under the thrall of Philippa.
9. Kill Letho. There's really no upside to allowing him to walk away. He sided with Nilfgaard and generally did a bunch of douchey shite. He will never be your ally as long as you like the Northern Kingdoms the way they are, so you might as well get rid of the bastard as a future obstacle. He has proven to be the only sort-of match for Geralt so far.

Minor decisions that could be important:
Kill any Nilfgaardians whenever you get the chance. Especially the mages (Cynthia and the other guy) at the end of "Secrets of Loc Muinne". By the end of this playthrough, Shilard (the "ambassador") will be dead, four Nilfgaardian mages, Renauld, and some other guys I don't know off-hand. By the time Nilfgaard invades, most of the people they already had in the North will be worm food and unable to make any inside moves.
Leave Iorveth to rot near the end of Chapter III. I know, harsh, but he will never allow Philippa to maintain her control over Saskia. He will continue on with his obnoxious acts of "terrorism" until Vergen ends up like Flotsam. He'll probably turn the nonhumans against the humans again if he is left alive.

There are a few betrayals and hard choices involved in this style of playthrough, but I think it leaves the North in the best shape. There are a lot of possible combinations of decisions, so I hope at least one person will bother to offer some counterpoints. Siding with Roche and delivering Anais to Natalis or Radovid seems like an interesting avenue, though this leads to the dissolution of the Conclave (via anal impalement) and also gives Henselt too much land, assuming he has a deal with Nilfgaard.

From a role playing perspective, it doesn't necessarily make a lot of sense that Geralt would be concerned with making the North as strong as possible. If forced into a momentous decision, he would probably do what felt best at the time or what opened up the most future opportunities for whore-ploughing and whiskey-guzzling. But the ability to play Geralt as an idealist, a Temerian loyalist, a pragmatist, etc. is one of the best things about this series.

It's been so long since my last playthrough, I don't remember half of my choices. I know I did one run through each camp, (siding with Iorveth and siding with Roche). I spared Letho in both. Idk why, but I get a gut feeling that he'll be an ally in the future. He's just a simple mercenary that works for the highest bidder. I didn't see the need to kill him. I saved Triss, let the dragon lady live, saved the elven women in both....and that's all I can remember. I may need to get the pc version and do a playthrough on it now that I have a rig capable of running it.

Anyone got a safe torrent of it?

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but this is one of the best game devs out there spend the $20 on GOG and buy it.

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Agree. But I've already spent full price on the deluxe version on the 360. Not really down to pay for the same game twice.

will play through again once i finish bioshock and tomb raider

I guess I might have to try this game out next time its on sale on Steam. Sounds right up my alley.

Nice response. I will continue the discussion later this afternoon when I can.

Sould I play the first one, or just get 2?

More spoilers.

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1.) Agreed. (though I killed him and regretted it)

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I did on my first playthrough. It's difficult not to indulge your testosterone and kill any clown with the balls to challenge a Witcher. Don't they know that he's like a Jedi... before the Jedi were castrated by the prequels and KOTOR expanded universe?

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2.) Agreed. (though I gave him his sword and regretted it)

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Yeah, it seems shitty to rely on someone for help and then let him sit there defenseless while Puppy Hat Vernon Roche Leroys in and kills all of the nonhumans. This is a decision, like others, that you have to see the consequences of in order to change your mind.

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3.) Agreed. (but I didn't do it reluctantly, I think the elves have power to share under the right circumstances)

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Right, you don't have to completely fall in line with Iorveth's helter skelter plan. It seems practical for Geralt to side with the nonhumans here because Witchers often get lumped in with the "freaks" who would be disenfranchised. Plus, Zoltan is the coolest non-white-haired character in these games and he sides with Vergen. How could you not want to be where that little guy is at all times?

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5.) Disagree. (if unity of the valley is something that we are trying to achieve then more lynchings aren't going to help anyone, human or non-human, decide to be forthcoming and trusting. But I do agree Stennis is a jerk and should be executed.

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I considered it this way too. Geralt even brings up the shady precedence a mob lynching would introduce. The best ruler(s) for Aedirn are yet to be determined, but I'm just shooting from the hip and predicting that Stennis will end up dead at the hands of the nonhumans, the human serfs, or both.

It's been established that royalty doesn't mean much anymore in that region because the Pontar Valley has sort of developed its own "identity" independent from the nations that continually throw their armies at it. The people who work the land are keenly aware that their direct efforts in harvesting its rich resources are being exploited, and they've had enough of it.

Saskia is the ideal icon for their cause - a peasant herself, an attractive and charismatic woman, and a soldier with more legends surrounding her than anyone can keep up with. There's the fact that she is secretly a fricking dragon and currently being used like a pet by one of the most powerful and dangerous sorceresses in the world, but that's another matter.

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6.) Disagree. My reasoning is that the sorcerer's are powerful but their loyalties cannot be trusted completely, therefore we should try to limit the sorcerers' power. I feel like Saskia's character is unique and is perhaps the only chance the valley will ever have in changing the relationships of all of these peoples and their futures for a long time to come. Phillipa has proven to be a liar and also tried to kill Geralt in her chambers.

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Well, the magic-users are obviously a perceived threat to Nilfgaard, otherwise Shilard and his ilk wouldn't have jumped through so many hoops to have them publicly condemned and hunted. Shilard even has one of Nilfgaard's own sorceresses killed when she has outlived her usefulness. Obviously the Black Ones are afraid of what the Conclave and The Lodge might be able to do to them. Philippa can bend people to her will, turn into a damn owl spirit and zap enemies like gnats, and scheme with the best of them.

I also don't think there's much of a chance that the most powerful Northern sorceresses will side with Nilfgaard. At least one thing they all agree on is that they don't want the empire to expand its territory. They are too ambitious and self-absorbed to want to be assimilated into that nation of dull zealots. In addition, Philippa has been personally scorned by Cynthia and her hatred for Nilfgaard burns. The only question with her is whether she will be too "blinded" by her hatred for Radovid (sorry) to focus on repelling the foreign invaders.

I anticipate that if Saskia remains under Philippa's control in The Witcher 3, King Radovid will receive a little visit from a big fricking dragon.

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7.) Agreed. If she would have banged, then perhaps. But no, she dies.

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Haha. She tells you where Yennefer is, but I think Letho basically clues you in on that as well. It is far too satisfying to let her pop.

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A union of witcher's guilds would be really awesome.

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The only way for the School of the Viper to be rebuilt is if Letho continues his service to Nilfgaard, and you can bet emperor dances-on-graves, or whatever, isn't going to have the school rebuilt and then let it return to its former neutrality. The Viper Witchers would either become personal assassins and all-around mercenaries for Nilfgaard or they would be disposed of as a threat. I don't see any way Geralt and Letho could ever find common ground. I also don't think the smug prick is as clever as he sees himself, if he doesn't anticipate that he is in for either a lifetime of service to Nilfgaard or a lifetime of being hunted by them if he doesn't agree to these terms.

solid protip

And this was probably my favorite game of 2012.

Gw2 was solid too, of course.