Should I finish the main story before playing the expansions?

[Johannes]

I'm at the "Final Preparations" quest, and I decided to play the base game 100%.

[Udju]

its recommended to be at least lvl 35 for the addons. i played hearts of stone before finishing the main game and now i started blood and wine after the main story. do as you wish

[Cat]

Heart of stone can be played before the end of the game, but blood and wine is technically suppose to take place after the main quest, so it's best to play it after you do so, course it can be played whenever, but some of the scenes make little sense when the main story is on hold.

[Gohenko]

B&W definitely after the main story, HoS whenever you want (but imo it's also best enjoyed after the main game).

[Husocu]

Go for heavy walkthrough, its fun to see everything in this game :)

[Ender Zayne]

Some decisions from the main story effect B&W especially, so yes.

[Kain]

I think it's better after the main story. Specially because HoS is such a good independent story. And B&W 'technically' should take place after the main story.

[private1028]

Originally posted by Sunricer:

Heart of stone can be played before the end of the game, but blood and wine is technically suppose to take place after the main quest, so it's best to play it after you do so, course it can be played whenever, but some of the scenes make little sense when the main story is on hold.

Perhaps that is why my game has been so buggy? I completed both DLCs before the main quest line was finished under the inference that they would no longer be availble if I did not. I know the HoS expansion was locked out once I completed the main quest line during one playthrough. I didn't know Blood & Wine wasn't. I have a lot of issues with monster levels being above 100 and my characater being stuck at 100 in NG+. I kept accumulating EXP above 100 and would never get any skill points while my character was stuck at 100. It made a lot of NG+ quests impossible because they were red skulled. Worst of all it made the Witcher gear the weakest armor and weapons in the game. I got nuked by a level 107 Saratosi in Byways which did 1500 to 2000 points per second to my charcter. Nothing seemed to work. Then I loaded the game and suddenly I was level 108 going on 109. What happened? Same armor and weapons but I finally killed the vampire because its hits were no longer always critical.

The game is very buggy.