Conquering the Beast

[Crowley42]

I am also off topic but also new, thus I can't make threads.
My question is, how am I supposed to kill the Beast? It seems impossible, i am using every tool the game gives me, I use spectre oil, blizzard, swallow, I blast it with Aard, and when the fight starts I quickly apply all this, then kill the barghests, but it does not matter at all since the Beast is by itself far stronger than me, I simply die to it 1v1, every time it uses that attack that stuns me I loose almost half my health.

To add insult to injury I have to skip through the entire dialogue sequence, two loading screens, and a cutscene before I can retry the fight and die in 2 minutes again. And the fight immediately switches the time to midnight, which resets all my potion effects, meaning I have to apply them mid-battle, thus Abigail dies before I can even land a hit. I'm no pansy but with this game I have no option but to continuously trade damage, I feel like there is nothing I can do. I checked online and everyone says I can insta kill the dog with Aard, but it looks like that's been patched or something cause nothing like that happens for me. Looks like I'm legit quitting the game on the first boss since it looks plain impossible. And there's no way I'm replaying from the start on a lower difficulty.

PS: apparently writing salty comments gives you good luck cause on my very next attempt Abigail somehow didn't die instantly and with her help the fight was easy.

 

[SigilFey]

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As to the Beast issue:

This is probably your first, real combat test in the game! And I'll admit, the difficulty spike is pretty steep. But, it's actually not impossible at all.

1.) It's a little annoying, but if you tell Abby you need to prepare, then ensure you rest until midnight, you'll have oils and stuff left. (The potions expiring, despite the player having actively prepared, simply for the sake of a cutscene is, arguably, really wonky design. There are a few things like that in the game. [Hey, it was their first attempt!]) However...you really don't need them for the fight.

2.) You will need to ensure you have both Swallow and Blizzard brewed. If you don't, it's still possible to win, but it will be a lot harder.

3.) Next, as soon as combat starts, take the first Swallow right away. You will get hit, and you will need to let it happen so that you can keep Abby alive. Best bet is to just be healing at the start so you can maximize damage.

4.) You'll need to make regular use of the different combat styles as well as pausing regularly to both assess the situation and ensure you plan out what actions you need to perform. This also makes dodging and rolling precisely much easier, and this is vital during combat (not only for this fight). It's does feel weird, but the game is specifically designed with a combination of pausing and issuing orders (like Baldur's Gate) and controlling Geralt in real time (primarily to build up and land critical hits). It's definitely an odd, off-beat system...but it's really, really enjoyable once you get the hang of it. You can pull off some really slick stuff.

5.) Prioritization and using the correct combat style at every moment is key. Get as much damage in on the Beast as you can at the beginning, ensuring it does not attack Abby. It can kill her in 1 hit sometimes. I recommend using Aard. If it hits, use Strong style. If it misses, use Fast style. Basically, if you or Abby manages to stun the beast, immediately pause, pop the Blizzard, switch to Strong style, and time every strike to maximize criticals. If you get lucky, this can be done on the very first hit, and the fight is won without the Beast ever getting to attack.

6.) When the Beast howls, dodge away -- don't get caught in the radius and stunned. That can be game over directly.

7.) When it howls, it will also summon regular barghests. Immediately switch to Group style and get on them -- mercilessly -- no defense. (Part of why it's good to already have taken the Swallow.) Switching to back and forth from Group to Fast style to finish off weaker ones can save time. Think: fewer enemies means fewer possible attacks coming at you and Abby at any instant. So, always go after the weakest target first, and cull the numbers.

7a.) The one exception to this is if Abby falls under attack, which is almost guaranteed at some point. Immediately dodge/flip to her location and get whatever is attacking her to attack you instead. Land behind the enemy so that it has to completely turn around and leave her alone.

(Here, you can see why pausing every few seconds is virtually necessary. If playing on anything over default difficulty, there is exactly zero room for error in this fight, so use the pause feature to study and plan out your moves.)

8.) On average, you'll probably have to repeat the pattern above 2-3 times to win. Some of it is RNG. Sometimes, Abby just drops instantly and there's nothing you can do. Sometimes, Geralt will wind up getting stunned or knocked prone, and you're equally screwed. It's dice. But on the whole, the fight is very manageable as long as you use the tools you've got (most importantly, that pause feature).

But, yes, this is a drastically more difficult fight than anything the game throws at you up to that point.