The Witcher 3: Wild Huntintroduced a new Mutations system to the game later on, but some fans may have overlooked it or simply did not choose to utilize its benefits and learn the ropes of its learning curve. The Mutations system was not introduced into the game until the release of theThe Witcher 3: Blood and Wineexpansion, which came out a year after the core game’s release.
The Mutations offer a new layer of depth toThe Witcher 3’scombat, and may be enticing for fans who may wish to go back and replay or continue the game to create a powerful build for Geralt.
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For fans just finishing the main story quest inThe Witcher 3: Wild Hunt,there is much to gain by understanding and taking advantage of theThe Witcher 3’sMutations system at this critical point in the game, and the benefits it provides for Geralt can make a huge difference in confronting some ofThe Witcher 3’shardest battles.
Unlocking the Mutation Abilities
Specifically, amongThe Witcher 3’sside quests, players need to complete “Turn and Face the Strange” to unlock the Mutation abilities. But to obtain this quest, players first need to complete the third Main Story quest inThe Witcher 3: Blood and Wineexpansion, “Blood Run.” The recommended level for completing Blood Run is 36.
To obtain the “Turn and Face the Strange” quest, immediately after finishing “Blood Run”, talk to the boy who will almost certainly approach Geralt to give him a letter from either Yennefer or Triss, depending on the player’s preferences forromance inThe Witcher 3earlier on in the game. This will activate the quest.
After finishing the quest,The Witcher 3’s Mutation abilitiesand its new menu will be unlocked in the character screen. Unlocking the abilities at this point in the game will leave a lot of content and quests for players to pursue with the new abilities.
How to Obtain Mutations and Mutagens in The Witcher 3
Mutations are able to augmentGeralt’s abilities inThe Witcher 3, which he already may possess, and evolve them further. Most importantly, only one mutation can be active at a time, but switching to a different one is simple.
These Mutations can offer generous benefits which increase damage, resistance and other unique abilities to aid players until theending ofThe Witcher 3: Blood and Wine. To obtain Mutations, players need to gain both a certain number of Ability Points and a certain number of Greater Mutagen items of a particular color or a combination of colors, which include blue, red or green Greater Mutagens. Furthermore, to obtain certain Mutagens, first the player must unlock specific Mutagens previously, as it is akin to a linear skill tree.
Mutagens can be gained by fightingThe Witcher 3’screepiest monstersby completing their related monster contracts, or simply slaying more other various monsters when confronted. Players can even proactively plan ahead well and collect a surplus of these necessary items earlier in the game to save them for later on, when the Mutations abilities become available. This can enable players to unlock mutation abilities at an earlier point soon or immediately after the menu becomes available.
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UsingThe Witcher 3’sAlchemy abilities, players can create a Greater Mutagen by combining three regular Mutagens. And, similarly, a regular Mutagen can be created by combining three Lesser Mutagens. Even if a player does not have the needed Mutagens, and instead has ones of a different color, it is important to hold onto them.
InThe Witcher 3: Blood and Wine, a formula becomes available utilizing Mutagen Transmutators, which allows players to change the colors of Mutagens. This is especially useful for creating Red ones, which do not drop very often, and are necessary for unlocking some of the best Mutation abilities to help players throughThe Witcher 3’smany optional side quests, and main ones as well.
In addition to utilizing the necessary items normally needed for the Mutagen Transmutator, players will also need additional ingredients for each color of Mutagen: Winter Cherries for Red Mutagens, Nazairi Basil for Green Mutagens, and Blue Lotus flowers for Blue Mutagens.
Luckily, all these additional ingredients can be obtained by harvesting them from the renovated garden at Corvo Bianco. It is much easier than scavenging for them out in the wilds. In order torenovate the garden inThe Witcher 3: Blood and Wine, Geralt will need to complete the quest “No Place Like Home” which enables him to complete the restoration process of the garden. Luckily, this quest can be obtained almost immediately in the Blood and Wine expansion simply by inquiring about the garden to Barnabas-Basil Foulty at the site.
The Twelve Mutations
After mastering the craft of obtaining the necessary ingredients to create these Mutations, players have a total of 12 different Mutation abilities at their disposal.
Toxic Bloodinflicts 1.5% damage on enemies, for each point of the player’s Toxity level, everytime the player endures damage in melee combat. In other words, it allows the player to inflict damage by taking damage, which could be great for certain type ofcharacter builds inThe Witcher 3, especially one’s that rely on heavy defense.
Euphoriaallows players to increase damage utilizing swords and signs, and the amount increase for each point of Toxicity.
Mutated Skindecreases damage up to 45% for each Adrenaline point.
Magic Sensibilitiesincrease the chance of scoring a critical hit when using signs, while also increasing the damage output drastically. Furthermore, if an enemies are killed by a sign’s critical hit results in a much satisfying explosion.
Piercing Coldis great for players who utilizeThe Witcher 3’sAard signa lot, which increases the chances of freezing enemies by 25%. If they are knocked down and frozen, they are immediately killed, but otherwise they still receive 2,820 of extra damage.
Conductors of Magicincreases sign damage by 50% if a sword is drawn which possesses sign damage.
Deadly Counterenables a 25% damage increase from sword attacks when unleashed on human enemies if they are immune to counterattacks and monsters.
Bloodbathturns every fatal strike into a dismemberment or a finisher. This one is particularly enjoyable for those wishing to ramp up the overall visual violence in their combat, while also providing a tactical advantage. Everytime this activates, the attack power is increased by 5% as well, until the end of combat transpires or the player endures damage. While this will not benefit players as they confront all ofThe Witcher 3’smost powerful bosses, it adds great fun and advantages for regular combat encounters.
Cat Eyesincreases crossbow damage, while also increasing the critical hit chances by 50%, and enemies with full health will immediately lose 15% of their vitality.
Metamorphosistriggers a decoction effect on the player for 120 seconds whenever a critical effect is applied.
Adrenaline Rushincreases sign intensity and attack power by swords for 30 seconds for each additional enemy.
Finally,Second Liferegenerates the player’s vitality to 100% if it reaches zero, essentially doubling their overall vitality.
Fully understanding the various hoops a player must go through in order to obtain the necessary ingredients and then unlock the particular Mutation can seem overwhelming at first. But by completing the keyWitcher 3questsabove, the necessary ingredients will naturally come with ease, and the processes become familiar after a couple tries at it.
Not only will these Mutations come in handy for challenging quests, but they also can provide an additional level of fun and enjoyment, especially dismembering countless enemies by taking advantage of the Bloodbath mutation inThe Witcher 3.The Witcher 3’sexpansions set a high bar for DLC, and the Mutation system is one of its great examples and features.
The Witcher 3is currently available on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
