So do I get full XP when I kill a mob that has the red skull showing above it?
"Plus, if you've already maxed out the experience cap for that stage of the game "
Sorry, but what does "stage of the game" mean?
Sorry, but what does "stage of the game" mean?
Sorry, clarifying:
The game does not function like other RPGs that just let the player grind levels indefinitely. The game is built in stages, all of which require the player to advance the main quest to the next "milestone" in order to continue gaining XP. So, for example, White Orchard caps off around level 4. Once you reach that level, you will stop gaining any meaningful experience from either random enemies (even if they are red-skull level). For quests, doing quests at that level will also stop granting XP (but you can still play them for story and coin). However, if I hit the cap then find a quest that's in the orange or red, I'll still wind up getting a chunk of experience...but completing such quests may prove extremely difficult unless Geralt's gear is up to the task. (It's possible to break 2-3 swords trying to fight creatures while under-leveled.)
In order to get passed the cap, I need to advance the story to the next part. Once the scenes play out and I complete the story quest, the world will advance. New quests will appear, old quests may become unavailable, and I'll start gaining experience normally again. (It's a method that ensures the game remains mostly balanced for the main questline.) In this regard, it's not really possible to "grind" in TW3. It won't offer any real return.
The game does not function like other RPGs that just let the player grind levels indefinitely. The game is built in stages, all of which require the player to advance the main quest to the next "milestone" in order to continue gaining XP. So, for example, White Orchard caps off around level 4. Once you reach that level, you will stop gaining any meaningful experience from either random enemies (even if they are red-skull level). For quests, doing quests at that level will also stop granting XP (but you can still play them for story and coin). However, if I hit the cap then find a quest that's in the orange or red, I'll still wind up getting a chunk of experience...but completing such quests may prove extremely difficult unless Geralt's gear is up to the task. (It's possible to break 2-3 swords trying to fight creatures while under-leveled.)
In order to get passed the cap, I need to advance the story to the next part. Once the scenes play out and I complete the story quest, the world will advance. New quests will appear, old quests may become unavailable, and I'll start gaining experience normally again. (It's a method that ensures the game remains mostly balanced for the main questline.) In this regard, it's not really possible to "grind" in TW3. It won't offer any real return.
Hard to say exactly. All you need to do is look at the color of the quest in your journal. If it's green, you're at level and will receive normal XP. If it's orange / red, you're under-leveled, perhaps dangerously so, and you'll probably have a miserable time but get a fair chunk of XP. If it's grey, you're over-leveled for it. It'll probably be a cakewalk, and you'll get little or perhaps no XP.
Oh yeah I though you were talking about another that was tied to a specific quest in the main story lol.
Hm. But I'm still in Velen, and the main quests I'm working on are level 6. I am level 12, almost 13. What went wrong? Is it because I did too many side quests at my level? If the world waits for me to complete main quests, why was this possible?
Not sure (don't remember the level breakdown of Velen, exactly -- guess it's nearly time for another TW3 playthrough!
), but it doesn't sound like you're wildly off. It depends on how much of the main quest you've completed so far. If you've visited Novigrad and have the Gangs of Novigrad / Get Junior quest in your journal, you should be right on target.The game does not lock / unlock areas around Velen as you progress, it's simply that the "situation" in places (the quests available, the quests that become unavailable, whether or not you can tackle certain quests, etc.) will evolve as you progress through the main story. If you have not progressed far enough in the main story, the game will award you less and less XP every time you do something, making it very difficult for people to be over-leveled and virtually impossible to power-level through grinding.
If that's not what happened, then it's likely a result of a mod. If you're not using any...I'd be at a loss. What are the quests you've already completed and which ones are presently active?
It's always worth another play-through!
As far as I know, Velen (and Skellige) contain so many side quests, if you wander off from the main story, it is very possible to slip above the suggested level, without trying too hard. A simple rule for quest levels is as follows: If you are more than 5 levels above or below a quest's level requirement, this will affect how much experience you receive. For example, if you are on level 13, and a quest is level 6, you will not receive full experience for completing it. However, if you are on level 13, and a quest is level 7 or 8, you should receive either full or partial experience for completing it.