New gamer suggestions/advice?

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Hey everyone! I'm not really an "avid gamer" per se, and this is my first time on a game forum, but I've been enjoying playing The Witcher 3 the past couple of weeks. I am currently a level 17 and have intentionally not gone to Skillige so that i could level up and become more familiar with the game. I'm running around trying to collect items for better weapons and armor, and upgrading as i go. Also, I'm trying keep a decent amount of crowns as things become more expensive as the game progresses. Are the exclamation point quests worth it at all? I've done on and got a measley 25 xp for it. sure that adds up over time but some of the bigger quests have literally taken days to do. What potions are recommended to keep handy? I've been using Swallow for vitality and that's pretty much it. I'm also trying to keep my abilities leveled out so that i can have a well rounded character. My main fear is getting to any point in the game, especially an important point in the game and not being able to progress due to not having what i need, whether its good, armor, weapons, potions or stats. Or, even some quest i missed earlier in the game. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much in advance and looking forward to meeting fellow witchers. Happy Hunting!
 
Welcome to the Forums, @SagittaRaidmax!

To answer you, you'll need to decide which version of "worth it" you really mean.

If you mean is the loot worth it...then no, not usually. Most stuff like that is randomly generated, so it's hit or miss.

If you mean is it the story worth it -- largely yes. Virtually all side-quests are small, complete, narrative arcs. There are very few "go kill / fetch this thing and come back" types of quests. Even those that do ultimately revolve around finding a thingy or killing a foozle have surprising dramatic action based upon the unique situation of the NPCs involved. Therefore, all quests in the game are worth it for this.

Abandoned places can be reclaimed to open up merchants. Can be useful if you need to sell stuff or help with Gwent.

The "?" locations can be monster nests, places of power, abandoned sites, or quests. So you'll need to investigate. ;) (Word to the wise, though -- the ?'s all over Skellige's sea are mostly smuggler caches that serve very little purpose.)

In the end, there is no amount of "grinding" needed in the game, and the game is balanced so that grinding is more or less impossible. (You can do it, but you'll get little for it.) The game always ensures that you get what you need for the next main plot event, and then it strangles the amount of experience you receive. Keep an eye on the color of the quests in your journal. As soon as they're green, it's time to go do them, and they'll likely be very easy. If they're grey, you're very overleveled, and you'll get almost no experience for it.

My impression is that the game was meant to be played through multiple times to see everything. Many quests are dependent on other quests, and others are no longer available after you advance the story enough. It seems that the devs intended for players to focus on the main quest in different ways, encountering all sorts of new things each playtrhough. The system is not conducive to trying to 100% the game (the way people may play Assassin's Creed or FarCry, for example).

Anyhoo, hope that helps!
 
As already mentioned XP is scaled, so you will be getting 1 XP per kill soon (at last in Velen). If you want to pimp yourself up, you need to mix potions and skills based on your enemy.

Because this game is based on story, you will miss some content for sure. I've made it through game 4 times already and still finding something new. I think that some side quest are generated, so you have to be in right place and right time to start them.

Pro tip: no armor is as good as Quen.
 
Don't play this game thinking about XP, gear and your build too much. Yes TW3 is an RPG, but I would highly recommend focusing more on the story and world, and less on XP, gear and builds. Of course switch out gear, level up, craft new things etc., but never worry if you're high level enough or if you got the absolute best min-max build you can get.

If you want to do that because it's fun to you, then by all means go ahead, but you shouldn't worry that you can't enjoy the game unless you reach a certain threshold of XP or gear level.
 

Quen is your friend...
Quen is your best friend...
Quen is your best friend forever...
 
Wow, I really want to thank everyone for replying and for your time. I really love this game, and working on just doing a couple more side quests before I go to Skellige at level 19 for the first time. Now that I think on that, I remember seeing somewhere that it takes some coin to get there initially, and right now I'm a bit low on coins from crafting all the Feline gear. I've done a lot of those exclamation point quests, and most proved to be almost worthless, and I've gone through a bunch of question mark areas as well. I figure if I need monster body parts for crafting I can always just hang out at a swamp or coastline and collect it all there. My next question for you wonderful people is how are you setting up your character abilites? I know that question is partly answered by setting up Geralt as you wish him to be either more of a combatant or wizard type. I've started trying to set him up to be even around the board, so to speak, and I'll post a picture of what I have done so far. Is it possible to upgrade all abilities to the max? Thanks so much again everyone!
 

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Thanks Muffliato. I'm definitely trying to make the strongest, most powerful character i can . i guess we'll see how it goes over time haha.
 
do you mean to keep the play screen blank without the vitality bar and such showing up?

I personally do play without any HUD. This is like my fifth playthrough though so I don't need it.

If you so need the health bar and whatnot, I think you can set that so that it becomes visible in combat or when taking damage and invisible when at full health.

Or maybe that's just a feature of Friendly HUD. I'm not sure.
 
I'm also like SagittaRaidmax playing a new adventure, level 16 now. I got the idea I am a bit overpowered. Right now I'm doing the "Get Junior" quest, suggested lv 12. It's really easy killing all those guards. There are dozens of other quests and points of interest in different places that are way lower then my level. Isn't a waste that if I do these now it's like a "walk in the park"? Im the kind of guy that wants to investigate every little thing in this Witcher world but it feels useless if Im way too strong.

Any tips to overcome this overpowered thing? I play on Blood and Broken Bones!
 
My next question for you wonderful people is how are you setting up your character abilites?

Something like this is what I ended up with toward the end of the base game....

http://www.rpg-gaming.com/tw3.html?...010520e30140650c62372082d914a12b33&m=02122535

If you'd like clarification on the choices feel free to ask. Rather not spoil anything :).

I'm also like SagittaRaidmax playing a new adventure, level 16 now. I got the idea I am a bit overpowered. Right now I'm doing the "Get Junior" quest, suggested lv 12. It's really easy killing all those guards. There are dozens of other quests and points of interest in different places that are way lower then my level. Isn't a waste that if I do these now it's like a "walk in the park"? Im the kind of guy that wants to investigate every little thing in this Witcher world but it feels useless if Im way too strong.

Any tips to overcome this overpowered thing? I play on Blood and Broken Bones!

You could try turning enemy upscaling on, at least temporarily. Just be mindful some very specific encounters are problematic with it on (very specific as in 1-2 in the entire game). You could also try jumping up to DM. If memory serves the difficulty can be changed mid play.
 
Sorry I been out of the loop everybody. I'm a level 19 now and I've made my way to Skellige and have had my romance time with Yennifer (yum, haha) I've also downloaded both DLC's because they were pretty heavily discounted, so I figured why not? I can't believe it cost me a grand to get there but thankfully now can just fast travel back and forth. anyone have any warnings or advice on this Skellige place? Seems kinda shady here and there lol. Also, where can I buy individual maps? Thanks everyone. And thanks everyone for following this post and responding and grateful for all the info and teamwork put together on this. Thank you!
 
... you will come across traveling merchants when you roam Skellige open world. Stop them and buy things.
... they will have maps for you. Also armorers and weapons smiths... do all those many many - ??????? - loot and sell. All that are free - monies for you. Hope that helps.

Skellige is a tough place to be. Many beastly creatures and powerful enemies. Be prepared Master Witcher, and good luck on the witchering path...

... always remember...
Quen is your friend...
Quen is your best friend...
Quen is your best friend forever...

Edit : ... hint... while in Novigrad, within the city wall, running around doing quests and what not... did you ever hear Geralt all of a sudden say...
..."....mmmmm... that's interesting...." ... when and if you do, stop and look... it is so easy to miss this one...
 
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anyone have any warnings or advice on this Skellige place?

Get comfortable on boats if you're a completionist :). Lots of sunken treasures around Skellige. It takes a great deal of patience, boat riding, swimming and work with your crossbow to get all the shinies. It's one of the better ways to solve financial issues too (be warned, I think almost all of this loot is leveled so saving it for later can be wise too). Oh, and don't break your boat in the middle of the ocean....
 
... tip...
You will encounter alot of them Sirens when you're out boating. I'm not kidding. ! ALOT !
Make sure to equip Geralt with the bow thingy. Watch the first 2 mins or so of my gameplay clip.
...oh... try not to hit anything in the water with your boat. Not a good thing to do...
NG+ Death March
 
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