I have 3 savegames but don't know where in Act 1. I have the German game version ^__^
OVERVIEWThe Signs are five spells that Geralt knows, and despite the fact that they are described as "basic spells", in game terms you can become quite a powerhouse if you learn to properly use and upgrade them. Using Signs, Geralt can wreak a lot more havoc a lot faster than by using the swords.Each Sign produces two possible effects. The normal effect happens when you simply click "Cast Sign" button, or click and hold "Cast Sign" button but don't wait for the pink diamond at the bottom of the screen to fill up all the way.The powered-up effect happens if you hold down the "Cast Sign" button until the pink diamond at the bottom of the screen fills up all the way, AND Geralt makes a gesture with his left hand. His fist then begins to glow with the sign's effect: blue lightning for Aard, fire for Igni, yellow lightning for Quen, green glow for Axii and purple glow for Yrden.Normal and powered-up effects are quite different, so learn to use the correct one depending on the situation. Partially powering up a Sign is useful because it produces greater impact, especially with Aard and Igni. But it also takes time, which means that the enemies have a chance to close in on you and start pounding on you. Powering up Signs also consumes more Endurance, so watch your yellow bar. You also cannot move or attack while powering up a Sign; if you do, you receive a "spell failed!" message and have to start all over again.Each Sign has "Novice" through "Master" talents (they are on the innermost ring of the Sign's talent tree). Buying these talents improves ONLY the powered-up effect of the Sign.To be a successful caster, you need Endurance, Endurance Regeneration, and also upgrades to Sign Intensity. Therefore, you should invest your talent points into Stamina tree (for added Endurance and Endurance Regen) and into Intelligence tree (for Sign Intensity and Endurance discounts). Always invest into Intelligence intensity bonuses BEFORE you invest into individual Signs' intensity bonuses because the Intelligence bonus affects ALL of your Signs.You should also carry an ample supply of Tawny Owls, Maribor Forests and a couple of Petri's Philter potions. In my experience, Maribor Forests are only needed for tougher fights or early on in the game; as long as you have a Tawny Owl running and have invested into Endurance Regeneration bonuses, your yellow bar should refill fairly quickly between battles.If you are a heavy-duty Sign user, don't bother buying Ritual of Life and Ritual of Cleansing talents from the Intelligence tree. Every Place of Power you find should be tapped for Ritual of Magic for that toxicity-free Intensity boost.INDIVIDUAL SIGNS1. AardEarliest Available: PrologueNormal Effect: Violently pushes opponents in front of you with a chance to Stun, Disarm or Knock Down.Powered-up Effect: Violently pushes opponents in a 360 degree arc around you with a chance to Stun, Disarm or Knock Down.Can also be used to: Smash weak walls.Aard is your first Sign. It is somewhat unique because it is necessary to complete the game: without it, you cannot smash down "weak" walls and visit certain areas. Early on in the game, it's a lifesaver, because it lets you insta-kill stunned and knocked-down opponents. Most Bosses (except for The Beast) are immune to stun and prolonged knockdown; they'll still fall down but will pop right back up before you can execute a finisher.There's no reason not to buy at least all Bronze levels of Aard. Thereafter, it's up to you; it's still essentially a Force Push, just a "better" one (wider angle with even greater chance to stun/knock down/disarm). Aard works fairly well for crowd control, but later in the game it is significantly overshadowed by Igni. Silver Aard talents include "Blasting Fist", an upgrade to your Strong style Tier 4 attack. It supposedly increases the chances of knockdown. I would not buy it unless you don't know where to put your Silver talents. If you go the "Sign User" route, chances are you won't ever need to execute a Level 4 sword attack.2. IgniEarliest Available: Chapter 1 (in the ghoul crypt)Normal Effect: A close-to-medium range fire blast with a chance to set opponents on fire (Incineration), and, if upgraded, to inflict Pain and Fear effects.Powered-up Effect: Long-range fireball with splash damage that can inflict Incineration, Pain and Fear (if upgraded).Can also be used to: Light fires (in "dangerous" zones).Ah, Igni. This is arguably your greatest tool of mass destruction, and when upgraded, it gets so powerful that using it almost feels like cheating. There's a grand total of 1 enemy type in the whole game who are immune to Igni: the Ifrit (and anything that resembles it). The ugly little fire genies, of course, ignore fire-based attacks - but you encounter them very rarely and they are, for the most part, pushovers. Everyone else burns just fine, including the Koschey, Azar Javed, Professor and any other Boss or Sub-Boss you may find.Unlike Aard, Igni starts out rather mediocre. It consumes a good amount of Endurance, but without upgrades, the damage it inflicts is downright pathetic. Once you buy into it, however, it quickly becomes Geralt's most devastating attack. It pushes enemies back; it sets them on fire for a nice Damage over Time effect; and it even has a built-in crowd control mechanism that sometimes makes humanoids stop, scream and try to beat out the flames. This is different from the Pain effect, but it does stop your enemies from trying to bash your skull in, if only briefly.The fully powered-up Igni produces a long-range fireball that flies towards your target and then explodes. It seems to inflict less damage than the close-range fire blast sometimes, but produces the same side effects. Sometimes, if your enemy gets out of range before you let the fireball fly causes it to strike another nearest enemy; sometimes the spell fails altogether, which can be infuriating. Fortunately, it doesn't happen very often. The fireball can even be used to shoot wyverns and basilisks out of the sky before they land, which is amusing. It also may curve up to fly over friendly units and terrain that happens to be between you and your target, producing an impressive "death from above" effect.Igni should be upgraded with both Pain and Fear effects. Most non-humanoid and monstrous creatures ignore Pain, but Fear will still make the wander AWAY from you (rather than charging you), giving you a chance to fire another attack. Also, even if you don't follow the first fireball with another, the Incineration effect will slowly eat away at your enemies' health while they are running scared. On humanoids, Pain does wonders for crowd control; even though you can't instakill "pained" enemies, it still reliably disables them and lets you pick and choose your targets.I do not advise buying the Burning Blade Silver talent for the same reason as the Aard Blasting Fist talent.3. QuenEarliest Available: Chapter 2 (in the Cave in the swamps)Normal Effect: A shield that absorbs incoming damage.Powered-up Effect: A shield that reflects incoming damage.Can also be used to: Illuminate some caves (?)Quen creates a "force bubble" that prevents PHYSICAL damage from getting through to you. Fire and Acid damage as well as secondary side effects like Knockdown are not stopped (however later you can buy Quen talents that increase your resistances to various effects while the Sign is active).Regular Quen is pretty straightforward. It shields you from harm and fades as soon as you launch any kind of attack, be it another Sign or your sword. The only exception to this rule is Yrden; you can drop a trap without causing the bubble to fade. You can drink potions, apply oils or power up another Sign or a special attack without disrupting Quen.Powered-up Quen reflects the damage back at the attacker. The description of talents for Quen is incorrect; instead of saying "Attacker loses X% of Vitality" it should say "X% of damage is reflected back at the attacker". In combination with Yrden, this creates a possibility of just standing there while your enemies kill themselves trying to kill you. A must-buy talent is Quen Safety Zone, which boosts your Vitality regeneration while Quen is active. 4. YrdenEarliest Available: Chapter 2 (Druids' Camp)Normal Effect: A magic spike trap that damages and knocks back enemies who walk over it, with a chance to inflict Pain, Poison, Blindness and Stupor side effects.Powered-up Effect: An instant circle of spikes that shoots out of the ground around Geralt, inflicting inflict Pain, Poison, Blindness and Stupor side effects.Can also be used to: NothingYrden can be one of your favourite Signs or a pain in the arse, depending on your playstyle. Regular Yrden creates a small circle of spikes that sits and waits until someone steps on it. It takes a moment or two to actually "draw" the trap, so planning ahead is useful. Each trap has a number of charges - that is, the number of times it'll hit the enemies triggering it, and the charges can be increased by upgrading the Sign. Buying up additional talents lets you increase the chance of Pain effect occurring, as well as add some nasty possible side effects. Which is fine I suppose, especially since Yrden is one of the only two ways you can blind an opponent (the other way is to use a bomb), setting up for the Sinister Strike attack.A common Yrden tactic is to put up Quen first, then draw Yrden, and let the enemy come to you. Humanoids suffer from this combo the worst, as they hit the trap, double over in pain, bleed for a while, then come at you again, hit the trap... and even if they bypass the trap, a powered-up Quen reflects their attacks. The only problem with Yrden is that it is a rather "passive" attack, and aggressive witchers like myself may prefer to rely on more offensive-oriented Signs instead.5.AxiiEarliest Available: Chapter 2 (Mage's Tower)Normal Effect: "Hexes" the target, causing it to fight on your side for a while.Powered-up Effect: Causes Fear.Can also be used to: NothingConsidering the potent crowd control options that other Signs offer, Axii is more a novelty than anything else; however, it is an amusing novelty. Almost all creatures and hostile NPCs are susceptible to the Hex effect, and you can sow some mayhem in the opposition's ranks by sending one of their own back to fight on your behalf. It works great as an additional measure of crowd control early on while your other Signs are weak, but later it loses relevance - why hypnotize them when you can just kill them?The powered-up Fear attack is utterly useless. Sure, it sends 'em running, but they aren't taking any damage in process (unlike Igni), and it only stretches out fights unnecessarily. Axii should be your lowest priority as far as upgrading goes as it is, probably, the weakest Sign in your arsenal - however, nobody can deny the amusement factor of watching your enemies butcher one another.
Hey, Damar! I presume you are the same Damar Stiehl who made "Mighty Magic" and other most excellent mods for Oblivion (if I'm wrong, sorry), so I'm not surprised at your interest in The Witcher's magic system 
This is a really good guide with a lot of useful info. I'd also vote that it's made sticky.
This is a really good guide with a lot of useful info. I'd also vote that it's made sticky.Yes, I am the same Damar Stiehl. No more Oblivion for me though And thanks for the compliment.
And thanks for the compliment.Nice Post, Damar. Now I know why my powered-up Yrden wasn't doing what I thought it would do. I expected a trap that would knock enemies back with extra effects. So, if I am reading your post right, a powered up Yrden is good for 1 hit, which is what I am getting. But a single tap Yrden is good for multiple triggers. Have you had any problems with terrain? My traps do not set well in water and sometimes they are not setting well on uneven terrain. I try to set it between two trees for example and evidently there isn't enough room for the trap.I love using Yrden. Especially in combination with a Dragon's Dream. The trap gives the bomb's gas time to spread. When you do use the Igni, the gas has ionized and the explosion vaporizes the targets.
Great and informative work... especially about Yrden, which I tend to use but don't know if it's worthwhile to use talents there.Your work gets a sticky
Not sure if this is of any help, but you can fight while having the sign selected.I mean, I'm still at the beginning or something like that too, but I noticed that you can fight with swords and use the aard at the same time (in my case,by pressing the right mouse button).So that usually ,at the point where I am, I knock them out with the aard(right button) and kill them with the left.I don't think you have to deselect it.
If I can add a possibility of Combo with Aard and Yrden :Aggro some human, fallback, and when they are in range, use Aard to push and knock them, now quickly use Charge version of Yrden.With a good timing you have all opponent in range and make a lot of nasty effect, without using Quen to protect you when you charge Yrden.I use this a lot against Salamandra
What does axii do when you hold down the right button? Enemies start to emit this green fog and that's it, I don't see the real effect of it.
It causes fear, discouragement on the enemies and for a certain time they became your ally but I haven't tried a power up with Axxi, actually I haven't used it very intensively.