Before the dust has settled after the battle of Kaer Morhen inThe Witcher 3,Geralt and Ciri set off for Bald Mountain to have their revenge on Imlerith, the wretch that killed Vesemir. The pair take advantage of a ceremony on the mountain to kill the Crones of Crookback Bog and the elf in one fell swoop.

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With such formidable opponents waiting on the mountain, your victory will not come easy. Each enemy would be a challenge if faced individually. With both fights in the same quest, you might need tips and tricks included in this guide to come out on top.

Reaching Bald Mountain

After dealing with the aftermath of the Battle of Kaer Morhen inBlood on the Battlefield,Ciri wakes Geralt up togo to Bald Mountain.This is no mere hike; she expects to find Imlerith, the man who killed Vesemir attending a ceremony on the mountain.

They get going,arriving at the Road to Bald Mountainafter a short cutscene. Afterwalking up the mountain,the pair will be stopped by a man wielding a crossbow and a wiser man who invites them to join the festivities.

Geralt and Ciri arrive at a mountain on a dark day, looking weary and ready for battle.

You canask him about the celebration,to learn more about Velen’s traditions, before pressing on. Before leaving, he tells you tolook for Thecla,who is responsible for choosing the people who get to meet the crones.

There aretwo merchants and a blacksmithin this area. They can help youget more alcohol,repair your equipment, and sell extra loot.Considering that you have just finished a long sequence without a chance to catch your breath, their services may go a long way.

Geralt and Ciri enter a tent on top in the middle of a celebration, with a white-haired woman in the foreground.

Earning Your Audience

Follow the quest marker up to Thecla’s tent. Sheinstantly allows Ciri throughand predictably rejects Geralt. Not all hope is lost, though. She gives Geralt a challenge; he has todive into a deep lakeand retrievethe Defiler’s Oren,an old coin.

This task should be familiar to you. Justtake the plunge and swim to an underwater tunnel.There will bea pair of drownersthat you will need to kill with your crossbow. With the imminent threats removed, you canpick the coin up.

A screenshot of Geralt swimming next to a sunken coin in a lake.

If youare running short of breathat this point, it would be faster toswim to the cave’s south tunnel.It leads to a pocket of air that will save you from drowning.

With the challenge complete,return to Thecla.You will pass by a fiend after climbing out of the water.This monster is entirely optionaland can be ignored by quickly leaving the area before it tries to kill you.

Geralt and Ciri walk together toward a large monster in a candlelit cave.

The only loot the fiend protects is the handfuls ofcoins left on its past victims.You miss out on nothing by leaving.

With the coin returned,Thecla allows Geralt and Ciri to see the Crones.

Geralt makes a spinning slash at a red-skinned monster while Ciri prepares for her own attack.

Fighting Fugas

Follow Thecla’s directions to end upin the cavewhere the pair are confronted by the sylvan, Fugas. Geralt shows him the coin as proof that he should enter. Instead, Fugas reveals thatthe coin marks Geralt for death.He would never have met the crones even though he passed the challenge.

The only way forward would be tokill Fugas,something that he seems eager to achieve. He fights identically to other sylvans, relying onphysical attacksfor most of the encounter. You will need to fight him like you would a large monster.Dodge around the blowsand seize the brief opportunities todeal damagebefore returning to the defensive.

A trio of monstrously deformed women gather in a cave covered in blood.

Fugas, like all sylvans, isvulnerable to Relict Oil.He will take more damage when your silver sword is coated in the substance.

Be mindful of hisfire breath.On occasion, he willstop attacking to breathe fire at Geralt.This attack willset Geralt alightand quickly deplete your health. The best defense for this is toroll away from himto avoid the worst of the damage.

A screenshot of a deformed woman with a basket on her head stands in a pool of blood.

This fight is just a warm-up for the rest of the quest. Geralt and Ciri pause to consider their options, deciding tosplit up and fight the Crones and Imlerith individually.After a short game, they settle onCiri facing the CronesandGeralt going for Imlerith.

How To Defeat The Crones

This isone of the game’s most punishing fights,especially on higher difficulties like Death March. Ciri will fightall three Crones at the same timein a large, circular arena. The fight focuses onavoiding their area-of-effect abilitiesby making the most ofCiri’s agility and the space available.

Ciri’s unique abilities are both a blessing and a cursein this fight. On the one hand, they enable her to befar more mobile than Geraltwhile being able toclose large distancesthat the witcher would struggle with. On the other, she isfar less durableand hasfewer optionswhen it comes toattacking the Crones.

A deformed woman wearing netting over her face reaches a claw out to swipe someone.

It’s especially important to useCiri’s lunge attacktodash toward a distant Cronelike a missile. The Crones will teleport throughout the fight, making the lunge a useful tool in thwarting their attempts to evade her.

While general advice will be helpful,understanding the Cronesis essential. As you may tell, there arethree Crones, Brewess, Whispess, and Weavess.Each one is as unique as their looks, and use their own set of attacks. We cover each one below.

A monstrously deformed woman with tattered clothes walks through a bloody cavern.

Brewess

She is thelargest Crone, with a basket on her face.In combat, she uses aslow but hard-hitting attack patternsimilar to larger, vaguely humanoid monsters such astrolls and sylvans.She is arguably theeasiest to fight,thanks to her predictability.

That does not mean that Brewess doesn’t have any special attacks. She is responsible forcreating a moving red circlethat willdamage your healthif it touches you. It’s something to be mindful of, butcan be easily avoided with a quick teleport away.

A humongous elf with red paint on his face ponders a leaf as he sits on a throne.

Brewess willstart to teleportafter one of her sisters is felled,becoming more mobilethan before.

Whispess

Whispess isnotable for having red netting on her faceand forhauling a pouch with extra armsaround her waist. you may compare her attacks toa water hag,thanks to her tendency todive underwaterlike the necrophages and her ability tothrow debris at Ciri.

This Crone has a familiar moveset, making her easier to fight. The most important thing is tobe aware of her locationand to beprepared to dodge her projectiles.

Weavess

This Crone wears ared, conical hatand hasan extra pair of legs hanging from her waist.She has aNekker-likeattack pattern, made up ofleaping claw attacks.Her speed and deceptively long reach make her challenging to avoid.

She also makes use of ateleporting attackthat sees herdissolve into a flock of crowsthat willstun and damage Ciribefore reforming elsewhere. The crows will occupylarge parts of the arena,making the attack difficult to avoid.

Strategy

You will want tofocus on either Whispess or Weavessat the start of the fight.Brewess’lack of mobility makes her easy to avoid early on.Use Ciri’s lungeto close in with either foe, keeping the pressure on them.

Try totarget one Crone at a time,focusing your efforts on killing that particular one. It’s better toremove a source of damagequickly than tochip away at all three at the same time.The fight becomes easier with each one killed.

As with all fights, it’s important toavoid being greedyand toprioritize avoiding damageinstead dealing it. While Ciri has a degree of health regeneration, it pales in comparison to Geralt’s Swallow or White Rafford’s Decoction potions.

Be patient and pick them off one-by-one. A cutscene will play immediately after you win before switching to Geralt’s battle.

How To Defeat Imlerith

The massive elf is partaking in earthly pleasures at the summit of the mountain. You start this encounter with Geralt a short distance from the elf. After exchanging a few words, the fight is on.

Forget the usual strategies with fighting humanoids;Imlerith is too strong to be fought as such.His oversized mace isimpossible to parry,leaving you withdodging as your sole defensive option.

All that armor isn’t just for show. He isnot affected by restraining effects like Northern Wind bombs and Axii.

He does have two weaknesses to exploit.First, he can beblinded by Samum bombs,disorienting him long enough for you to land a few good hits in. Second, he has a layer of frost for additional protection which can bemelted off with Igni and Dancing Star bombs.

As a general strategy, you cannot go wrong bymaking two fast attacksand immediatelydodging away.While simple,sticking close to himwill limit his offensive options while dodging after two attacks lets youavoid a shield bashthat he uses after receiving two hits.

After depleting over half his health,Imlerith will enterhis second phase.In this stage, heabandons his shield to use his mace two-handed.His pattern will change from a defensive one to an entirely offensive one. He willmake a long chain of attacksbeforegoing in for an overhead swing.The final swing willleave him stunned for a few seconds,giving you a chance to attack him.

Your strategy needs to change here. He will startswinging faster and will force you to focus on dodging.As an added bonus, he willstart teleporting behind youevery few hits, which can catch you by surprise.

Roll forwardas soon as he disappears. It will bring you to safety. Attempting to wait for him to appear before rollingleaves you with an extremely short window to avoid the oncoming strike.

The second phase can be frustratingly slow, though the cutscene that follows will be cathartic. With success on both fronts, Geralt and Ciri meet again to plan their next move, starting the questFinal Preparations.

Next:The Witcher 3: Complete Guide And Walkthrough