Hey Duders,

Here is the latest Baby Deep Look! My usual Deep Look videos focus in on a cool gameplay mechanic or story element from a game I have played the heck out of, in the hopes that I can share what makes that mechanic so cool. This Baby Deep Look is just as deep as a normal video, but I focus on a mechanic or ability that is so small that the video is much shorter than usual. I aim to keep Baby Deep Looks around 5 minutes long. These videos should be small little observational nuggets that hopefully give you some useful insight into a game's design that you might not have noticed otherwise.

In this Deep Look I show off the game's combat system by conquering the battle that forced me to change the game's difficulty from normal to easy. I share some of the pitfalls that I fell into during my first playthrough of The Witcher 2 and explain some of what I learned during my hours with the game. If you like watching mutants roll around and cut dudes, look no further!

I still haven't played that branch of the story, so I cannot watch your video in fear of spoilers. Sorry :(

I mean, I did play it, but it was before the Enhanced Edition(that's when they added the Brigida quest) came out.

@mak_wikus: There are only a few moments of story at the very end of the video if you are worried about spoilers. I try my best to talk over the exposition so as to keep it relatively spoiler free (she doesn't tell you anything that makes much sense without doing the missions that come after her mission). Unless you consider the configuration of the enemies in the final fight of that mission to be essential information, you shouldn't have anything to worry about. If you want to be 100% unspoiled then best avoid the video though.

My next video is going to be much more spoiler-y because I plan on discussing the characters and tone of the story explicitly, rather than the mechanics.

@thatpinguino: Nice video! It seems like you may have succomed to the pitfall that I've seen many people who didn't play The Witcher 1 fall into.

I can see that from the skill tree, it may look like you can spec in totally different directions to sort of change your class a la carte like Amalur or the Elder Scrolls games. Like in many RPGs, you can go melee if you want to be a fighter or spec in magic if you want to be a mage, kind of thing. But I think what some folks miss is that, even though you can tweak what you like to do more of in combat, you're not really drastically changing how the game expects you to fight and use all the things at your disposal. In this series, you just don't really play as the character you want to make, you play as Geralt, and he uses a combination of swords, alchemy, and signs to get those monsters killed.

I totally agree, however, that the game does a shit job of explaining the signs and why they're so important. Yrden, in its first level for example, sets a magical trap that can stun enemies for a pretty long time, effectively removing them from the group chasing you, and setting them up for some high damage backstabs (or at least leaving one less person bashing away on the lady you have to protect). Quen, at its first level, deflects all the damage you'd take from one hit, making you kind of invincible if your vigor regens fast enough. And at higher levels, it deflects damage rom you being hit back to the attacker, has a chance to also incinerate them, etc.

The other thing you mention in that video is that the combat is a button mashy kind of thing. That works for some enemies, especially when they're alone (the enemy AI is... not great), but in a group that's guaranteed to get you killed. I was very happy that I'm playing The Witcher 2 (right now, actually) after I played Dark Souls, because the flow and insistence on awareness of your surroundings and enemy attacks is very similar. Every single monster/dude with sword can kill you if you're not careful. And that means you just can't run up to someone, expect to hit X until they're dead, and move on. More like real combat, even if you hit someone they can still hit you back. So the tactic is much more about rolling in, attacking, and then getting the hell away from that person/thing.

Lastly, blocking can be great if you spec in that direction. There's a skill in the training tree that reduces damage to zero if you block when your vigor is full, which is suited for your style where you don't like to use a ton of signs. And I'm not sure if you ever tried to use riposte, but it can be crazy effective. You hold block, but if you attack when a prompt appears before the dude attacks you, you get a free hit which can sometimes be an instant kill.

Again though, the game itself (aside from the pretty good mini story arena tutorial thing which I'm not sure if you played because it wasn't in the game when it was released) does a pretty bad job of communicating everything I said above, so there's no blame coming from me at all. But it's definitely a combat system that gets much more rewarding and satisfying if you take the time to experiment and try to suss out the benefits of using everything at your disposal.

Keep the videos coming!

@joshwent: I'd definitely quantify The Witcher 2 as a "Dark Souls-lite" as it were; though you can't heal yourself in combat. It's very satisfying and generally thought provoking if you're approaching it correctly (though there's several ways to do that). Yrden is a bit OP of course, Quen is the "noob" sign as it were since you use that if you can't win otherwise (which against some enemies is perfectly reasonable), and the others occasionally have their uses/can be overpowered in certain situations.

I saw a person in some other thread say that CDProjekt actually cited Demon's/Dark souls as one of their main influences for the combat system, although I couldn't find the source, but it makes a lot of sense.

And I really love how that kind of deliberate and constantly deadly fighting fits in to the world of The Witcher in general. Just as you may say one wrong thing to someone and fuck up a whole bunch of stuff, you can similarly make one wrong roll or sword swing and totally screw yourself. They boldly do what many games that are dialog/choice heavy are afraid to. Choices matter... in talking and in fighting.

@joshwent: Yeah I definitely saw that you should use all of the tools available to Geralt if you wanted to proceed efficiently, but so many mechanics in that game are really poorly explained. Like I never understood the difference between vitality and vigor while I was playing. I had no idea vigor was the magic juice and vitality was your health bar. I also had no idea what the adrenalin meter would be because it is a completely new meter that the game gives you in like the last 5 hours. I didn't know why I would use 90% of the potions and crafting items (I still don't since the weapons and armor I won in battle were plenty strong). I didn't use most of the spells since I didn't know what they did. I also didn't riposte because I found that when I tried that I would get hit by whichever enemies I wasn't targeting.

My biggest problem with the Witcher 2's combat was that jank would creep in here and there and really seriously impact my ability to win. Like sometimes a bomb wouldn't detonate or a crouching downed shield guy would pivot to face me at all times so he was effectively invincible to sword blows. Sometimes Geralt would target an enemy across the battlefield rather than the guy I was adjacent to, resulting in a long lunge that invariably was too short to hit but just long enough to get me killed. I would also have situations where I would wail on one dude only to have another shield guy wander into my range at the last second and trigger my stagger animation.

I beat Dark Souls 2 99% naked with a club, without blocking or parrying so I am very good at playing hit and run, but just like DS2 I had a problem when weird janky stuff would happen and throw my delicate rolling out of wack. While The Witcher 2 has less outright BS than DS2, it has way more glitches and jank from my experience. At least the Witcher has a forgiving save system to make up for it though.

@fredchuckdave: I didn't have much trouble with the game without quen or yrden on normal until the escort mission I show in my video and the battle with Deathmold. Quen seemed like a waste since I wasn't really getting hit all that much and aard opened my enemies up to my blade work while also breaking their animations. Killing enemies faster than they can hurt you seemed preferable to constantly replenishing my defense. I didn't think yrden would be good because most of the swarming enemies were just so numerous that I didn't see how trapping one dude would help and swarms were my main problem.

@thatpinguino: Yep, the jank is definitely there. More than once I've hit B and just no sign would come out, even when I had full vigor. And multiple times I've had sword blows just go right through enemies, causing no damage, and leaving me open to get hit. I do really love the feel, but it absolutely has some bugs.

Out of curiosity, did you play the tutorial arena thing?

@joshwent: I tried to do it, but it also starts with little explanation so it is obtuse as well. I got up to riposting and I wan't able to do it at all. I'm not sure if it is bugged or if I just never learned how to riposte, but it just never seemed to work for me. My riposte attacks seemed to do more damage than normal attacks during the main game, but I found that the enemy I was targeting would just continue their attack animation as though I didn't counter them. So I have no idea if I know how to riposte or not. I don't think I got far enough in the tutorial to learn about any spells other than aard.

Well we must´ve played a different game because I played the game on nightmare (or the hardest difficulty) and was a blast to play and I didnt suffer a lot , and only used Quen from the signs. And never had wonkyness happen etc.

Also the first mistake you make ... use yer damn granades .... take advantage of crumped together enemies... thats like witcher 101 D:

How did that give you problems but the boss monster of Act 1 didn't? I think once you're past that part it's all downhill and very easy from there on normal.

@zirilius: The boss battle of Act 1 is a gimmick fight and once I looked up the gimmick it wasn't hard. That fight gave me trouble because my escort found a way to run into the line of fire at all times and that mage would use quen and teleport to crappy places. I had plenty of times when the arrows and spells either all targeted me or all targeted her. It is the old problem of dumb AI + multiple enemies that hit from multiple angles.

@aetheldod: Had you played the game before? Or did you go in to Hard with no prep and no prior experience?

@thatpinguino: No prep nor prior experience on Witcher 2 ... but I did played Witcher 1 but it is a tad different than Witcher 2

@aetheldod: Ok so you had some idea of how things worked. Like you knew what the spells did. What was your play time? I finished in 17 hours and 54 minutes and I basically didn't do anything that I thought was side stuff after Act 2. I also hardly used potions or crafting in general.

:O

I played Witcher on Normal for a while before making it harder. Definitely took a while to learn what the spells did, but my bigger challenge was learning to constantly mind my positioning and dodge to a better spot. That single skill, once learned, transformed me.

INTO THE WITCHA

@geraltitude: I crafted some bombs and potions early on, realized I disliked both and then I basically only crafted a handful of bombs near the end. The dodging wasn't a problem so much as the crowd control and the dumb AI I had to protect in the mission I showcased.

@thatpinguino: 22 hours and 31 minutes and I did everything I could , got the best equipment and looking at my skill tree never bought any enhancemnt on the signs tree. And I played it on Dark.

@aetheldod: Ok you did a lot more than I did and understood the game better than me. I struggled quite a bit with grasping what I had to do for a while and by the time everything clicked I made a bunch of mistakes that I couldn't take back. I think I could get through the game much faster if I did it over again.

Edit: I just checked what the speed run times are for this game and apparently you can beat this game in 3 hours...

@joshwent: Thanks for this advice, as someone who played through and loved the first Witcher, I found the combat in 2 quite daunting right away, and didn't have the time/energy/desire to work on figuring it out at the time. So I put it down and still haven't come back to it, but would like to remedy that before 3 comes out.

@pekoe212: Well, I wasn't really even meaning to give advice, but it's my pleasure! ;)

The combat is almost entirely different than Witcher 1, but having played that game, you're at least coming to the sequel with a thorough knowledge of what the signs/potions are used for, and that you need to do a bit of research and subsequently change tactics/use blade oils based on what you're fighting (heavy attacks only for certain monsters, etc.).

The advice that I'd stress again is that everything is dangerous. This is not a "run up to thing you want to be dead and mash the 'use sword to make dead' button". It's all about hit and run and tactics, and using signs, traps, and bombs whenever you feel they're necessary.

Also, (even though I compulsively picked every herb I ever saw which resulted in about as much time sorting my inventory as I spent playing the damn thing) I rarely used potions in the first game. A big difference in the sequel is that you can't drink mid battle, so unless you chugged some swallow or have some fancy items, you have no way to regain health in a fight. Herbs are plentiful and cheap, so get your drink on whenever you fear danger's near. And hey, it sort of adds to the immersion too. If jerks derisively call you "mutant" all the time, you might as well have fun with some cell-structure-changing cocktails.

For some more detailed things, THIS is pretty great article for folks who may be finding it hard to get a grip on the whole thing. (the comments have some good advice there too, but some may be considered spoilery if you care about that)

And as always... play the damn tutorial. Have fun, white wolf!

@joshwent: I found that mashing against most non-human enemies like neckers and endrega worked just fine. So that may be more viable later on for getting through the rabble.

What potions do you advise using? I found rook and the occasional cat vision or story specific potions were the only ones I used.

@thatpinguino:

I finished the game in Dark Mode as well. I actually can't remember specific potions but I know there is a potion that helps with regenerating health while in combat and a bunch of other potions that @joshwent would suggest since its been a while since I played. I usually never use the potions that gave really high buffs that also had a debuff and for higher difficulties (there was one or two that gave a big damage buff and I can't remember the debuff but I remember that was one of the few I used), getting some of the sword skills but then prioritizing alchemy first was a HUGE advantage for me. I remember playing in Normal and going alchemy first then swordsmanship (invested a few points in sword before going into alchemy then went to some swordmaster) and being incredibly overpowered (being intoxicated with potions gave a buff if you went through the alchemy tree).

And Quen...Quen is your best friend. Yrden is also pretty useful for isolating enemies. Aard was also useful but I didn't use as much as Quen.

By the way, I've only played the Enhanced Edition in Dark Mode via the Vergen route so I'm actually watching the video and I'm not familiar with that quest and character at all. I must have missed out on something. 0_o

@gaspower: The Alchemy tree didn't look that interesting, but when I replay the game I'm gonna try to speed through it a little better. I definitely didn't use my points correctly with how I ended up playing.

I found disrupting people with Aard to be pretty damn poweful, especially when it stunned enemies.

You didn't miss much with her mission (damn that AI!), but the mission chain she unlocks is really cool.

@thatpinguino: Yeah, just get the somewhat useful defensive skills from swordsmanship (the one that lessens damage taken from the back and footwork, riposte I feel is somewhat optional since I prefer to just dodge) before going down the alchemy tree. Also alchemy is useful since there are buffs that extend potion duration and other benefits as well. The only one I won't get is probably throwing daggers. Oh, something I almost forgot that is really important. There is a skill in alchemy that amplifies the mutagens. Try to save you're mutagen slots for the greater mutagens and get "Impregnation" from the alchemy tree first before you commit a mutagen to a slot.

At first, I was like you found the alchemy tree to be uninteresting so I went with swordsmanship but in my next playthrough I started experimenting and read up on some build guides and decided on trying out alchemy myself. Its a pretty good build and pretty powerful one by the end game. It is somewhat dependent on potions but you really do need potions to survive anyway so why not amplify its effects, right?

It also helps to farm and save up materials (and lots of gold) to be able to craft the best gear you can make in each act. That helped me out a lot. You kinda have to read guides to do that though since some of the gear/weapons have components that can be pretty hard gather if you didn't know to look for them or to save them and not sell them before hand.

There are also some pretty good Magic builds as well though I haven't tried it myself.

EDIT: I remember now why the Alchemy tree was a bit overpowered. Other than the skills/talents that give buffs to the potions (which can also decrease the negative effects in some potions), there is one that grants a 1% instant kill when poisoned (meaning you're intoxicated with potions). The upgrade grants 3%. Basically, the alchemy tree buffs you for being poisoned. It does make the game easier but your playstyle can still remain somewhat the same.

If you're into using Aard, and not want to go with Alchemy why not try prioritizing a Magic build next? You still have to play it the same way though but at least it just makes Aard and your other signs just more powerful and you still pretty much have to play the exact same way anyway (hitting then dodging and getting into positions).

Lastly, you should still get parrying +upgrade that lets you parry/blcok but as you found out you shouldn't depend on it but you use it in conjunction with dodging in case you dodge and you end up in a situation where the enemy still reaches you you can still parry, at least you won't eat up the damage. Dodging is still the priority though. I found riposte actually to be the least useful. Much better to be able to get into a position to back stab than to wait for a dude to attack me only for other dudes to end up ganging up on me (like in your situation when you depended on parrying a lot the first time).

@gaspower: Wow, alchemy can be stronger than I thought then. I had no idea how mutagens, runes, and armor mods worked until the end of Act 2 so I'm kinda glad I didn't spec to favor mutagens. They seem very strong now that I get how you equip them. Honestly almost all of the abilities in the game seem good if you know how the game works. The game just has a huge teaching and complexity problem. There are way more systems in The Witcher 2 than most games have and several of them just don't have obvious uses. Like I saw no reason to blacksmith anything besides boss armor and some traps here or there. I also never found a use for monster bits. There are whole subsystems that I still don't grasp at all.

TW2 is one of the most balanced RPGs I've ever played. This makes me just want to play through it again.

@thatpinguino: Well in regards to smithing/crafting: there are only a number of weapons and armor found in each act that are really worth saving up on to craft and are actually quite expensive since the recipes are found from merchants for some. It'll take a bit of grinding to get them but they're pretty worth it if you're playing in higher difficulties. Plus a bit of grinding or farming helps with gaining Xp anyway (thats the main reason why I'd use the time lapse while meditating when I ran out of enemies in an area though I'll find a spot first that didn't respawn enemies before meditating).

The best items in every act can give you an advantage for sure. Some of them have like the armors have buffs on them that are pretty good and the stats on them helps a lot with survivability.

I think I'm going to have to pick this up. Especially if I want to be up to speed when Witcher III comes out.

@dudeglove: Thanks! I think I've got my audio set up down now and the production is a lot more straight forward.

@shindig: You should! It's quite a good game.

@gaspower: I think if I play through the game again I'm going to be going for speed so I'll probably never see those crafting items, but thanks for letting me know what they do.

mirrors what I went through, battles became too time consuming for me and I switched to easy thinking i'd switch back to a higher difficulty later. I never did.

in the end the Witcher wasn't for me.

@thatpinguino: No problem. You can probably still craft a few of the items even with a much faster playthrough I reckon.

@gaspower: Yeah the first boss armor is pretty much a gimme.