Cursed Ones

As befits the name, cursed ones are humans who have been cursed via magical means to take, by choice or not, an inhuman form. Their rarity compared to many other monsters does not mean a witcher should go unprepared to face them.

Berserkers

“Now finish your soup, or a berserker’ll come and swallow ye whole.”—Skellige mother scolding a child.

Skellige legends speak of men known as berserkers who transform into bears when overwhelmed by battle rage. In doing so, they lose all self-awareness and are driven by a bloodlust which they must satiate in order to return to human form. Few believe these blood-curdling tales, however, not even in Skellige, where the inhabitants usually treat even the least probable legends with the utmost gravity. This indicates either that berserkers are in fact mere figments of mead-sodden imaginations, or else that they have learned to hide their abilities from the rest of the islanders.

The skalds’ ballads indicate a berserker transformed in the heat of battle cannot be distinguished from a true-born bear. Only minute anatomical details—such as the shape of their tongues and teeth—reveal their secret. Descriptions of their fighting prowess paint them as invulnerable to pain and able to heal any wound received almost at once.

If these men-turned-bears truly do exist, one can suppose that, like werewolves and lycanthropes, they are particularly vulnerable to oils that harm cursed creatures. But if we are to give credence to ancient songs about these creatures’ deeds, about the mass murders and massacres they have committed, we can only hope that no witcher will have to test this hypothesis.

Combat Tactics

A berserker begins as a human. Steel swords and hanged man’s oil do well against them, and any tactics learned from fighting other humans will serve you well here. It is when they transform into their bear form that a silver sword, tainted with cursed oil, will show its worth.

Outside of anatomical differences, a berserker’s bear form can be treated like fighting a real bear, save that these bears are much tougher and more relentless.

If you have invested in improving Igni, this is where the Melt Armor enhancement can really show value. If you have this available, be sure to activate it before you deal with a berserker.

Werewolves

“Wolves aren’t as bad as they’re made out to be. Werewolves, though—they’re every bit as bad and worse.”—Elsa Vilge, archer

Werewolves are creatures with both men and wolves inside of them. When in beastly form, they take the worst traits from each: the wolf’s drive to kill and hunger for raw flesh and the man’s cruel and calculating intelligence. A werewolf’s condition comes about as the result of a curse and the transformations happen outside his conscious control. When he returns to human form, he has no memory of his deeds—otherwise he would surely go mad or take his own life.

Werewolves are active at night, particularly when the moon is full. Though they hunt alone, when threatened they summon wolves to aid them. Werewolves rarely feel the need to flee, for few adversaries put up much of a fight against them. They strike as swiftly as lightning with claws sharp as razors and regenerate any damage received in mere moments. When fighting werewolves a witcher should wield a blade covered in oil harmful to the cursed and have a large supply of Devil’s Puffballs handy.

A werewolf’s curse can at times be lifted, yet there is no universal, surefire method for doing this. A witcher seeking to undertake such a task must therefore equip himself with a great deal of patience, and sturdy armor.

Ulfhedinn

“Ulfhedinn? What’s that, some kind of fish?”—Professor Artibus Joannes Rack, geographer, disappeared during a surveying expedition in Skellige

Ulfhedinn are a breed of werewolf found mainly in Skellige. The harsh and barren conditions of the isles might explain why they primarily hunt men and are stronger than their continental brethren. Older and particularly dangerous ulfhedinn are called vorefs. Only a few daring warriors in all of Skellige history have managed to defeat an ulfhedinn, and each of them is commemorated in ballads as a hero to this day.

Like werewolves, ulfhedinn and vorefs are active at night, particularly when the moon is at its fullest. Fast, strong and amazingly resilient, these creatures kill with disturbing ease. Silver blades should be brought against them, as should Devil’s Puffball. Take note that when near death an ulfhedinn becomes particularly dangerous and will attack with doubled fury, while calling on wolves to come to its rescue.

Combat Tactics

These breeds of cursed ones are some of the fastest, and most lethal. They can leap great distances at such speeds that it can be a challenge defending against them. Yrden is of great use in avoiding their attacks.

Counterattacks against a werewolf or ulfheddin can be difficult to time. It is best to use footwork and evade them.

When possible, use Igni. Setting these foes aflame can force cursed ones to stay still long enough to score critical strikes on their flanks. Fire, bleeding, and poison effects can be used to slow the regeneration of these creatures.

Avoid fighting werewolves in tight spaces if at all possible, since the speed of their assault can quickly overwhelm even highly skilled witchers. Werewolves have incredible reach, and you want to have space to work with while fighting them.

Explosive bolts for a crossbow can be useful at dealing fire damage, should the werewolf be caught at range.

Watch for the dual overhand claw swipe, it cannot be parried and causes grievous wounds and bleeding.

Near death, ulfhedinn become extremely dangerous, striking with increased strength. They can even call upon a pack of wolves for assistance.

Botchlings

“Saying a botchling’s ugly is like saying shit’s not particularly tasty: can’t say it’s a lie, but it doesn’t exactly convey the whole truth, either.”—Lambert, witcher of the Wolf School

Botchlings are perhaps the most repulsive creatures a witcher will ever have the displeasure of meeting. Born of dead, unwanted babies discarded without a proper burial, their appearance is that of a partially-decayed fetus, their unformed flesh twisted with hate, fear and malice. These hideous creatures feed on the blood of pregnant women, driven by a mad hunger that most often leads to their victim’s death.

A botchling emerges from its lair at night to lurk by the bedside of an expectant mother, draining her strength and that of her unborn progeny as she sleeps. A woman thus beleaguered first suffers from troubling dreams, then fever, delirium and a general weakening of the flesh. After a few such nights she is enfeebled and unable to defend herself—it is then the botchling attacks directly, sinking its long, sharp fangs into her body and drinking of her blood until mother and fetus perish together.

A botchling stands around a foot and a half in height, but, when threatened and if gorged with blood, it can change form. At such times it grows into a deformed man, hunched over and striding, ape-like, on its forearms. Stronger and fiercer after this alteration, it hurls itself into direct, physical combat, gnashing at its opponent or attacking him with sharp claws.

A botchling’s curse can be lifted by transforming it into a lubberkin—a guardian spirit of the hearth that watches over the family it never knew in the house it never could call home.

Combat Tactics

Your chance to fight this gruesome creature comes while helping the the Bloody Baron deal with his Family Matters. You can either attempt to kill it immediately, starting the fight, or you can use Aard to knock the Baron over while he carries the monster.

Should you choose to kill it and draw its blood, be prepared. It changes to a ghoul-ish appearance, and fights similarly. Watch it closely and be prepared to parry and counter any of its claw swipes.

As you deal damage to it, the botchling become enraged, growing spines similar to those of an alghoul. During this time, the botchling will begin to regenerate at an alarming rate, and the spikes will harm Geralt should he attempt to strike with swords.

The botchling is weak to Axii. Use this weakness to pacify the monster, retracting its spines and keeping it in place while you circle around it to deliver punishing sword strikes. This also cuts off the rapid regeneration.