when to side quest?

[JakeURb8ty]

2nd playthrough on hardcore.
Kinda frustrated at the end of the first act already heading to scout pritzlavitz and i still feel like everything is too dire and important to wonder off and do side quests and activities. I did side quests in uhitiz and that cost me time so when i got to the guy in the cave it was 'too late'. I guess if you are fast enough hes uninjured and you two fight off the 3 thugs who attack him. The thing is side quests actually tie into the main story giving you a little help as a reward.
Sometimes stopping and looking at the map to decide where to go makes my brain melt as a result.

I think story-wise, your supposed to find yourself in deep wish peshek long before being taken into ratzigs retune. Doesn't seem very honorable to hide away from ratzig avoiding telling him about his sword for a month while Henry levels up basic skills though. Doing pesheks bidding after being accepted by the lords seems messed up to me.

Correct me if im wrong, you can't really learn combat from cpt Bernard until after you save sir Hans and noihof happens right as you return kicking off the main quest sequence. Think i might start again with the slow learner and tapeworm perks and hold off talking to Ratzig in Rattey and see how hard adventuring is without the xp boost from the first missions. Is it even within reason?

*edit
I've also used this helpful guide to help on my first play through but its not exactly a how too it just has good info about quest availability and if they are timed or not.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2254645308

[DargonBlak]

i have 2 ways to start the game.

1. i go deliver the ring to the other miller, and use all the miller quests to get some money while i improve gear at ambush & skirmish locations. i finish the first two of Woscek before going back to Peschek - do his first and then i finally go into Rattay and talk to my old neighbors and get to know the town, and finish up pescheks quests - i also now do the fight club quest in Rattay - including harassing Kunesh and getting information from him.

All this is without even starting the main quest - i figure Henry is willing to do favors for the Miller since he nursed him back to health, and with friends like Matthew and Fritz, Henry's morals are rather easy going.

At some point, because Henry wants to learn Alchemy, and must learn to read to do so - Henry will head to Uzhitz - where he also buys his horse

2. i go directly to Radzig - then train with Bernard - and then talk to the Bailiff to complete the train hard quest. Then i delay going to visit Nightingale.

I can now train as much as i want wiuth Bernard, and i accept the Ruin side quests - considering it part of my training - while doing these quests i will manage to visit Woscek and deliver the ring - and after i finish Ruin, i move on with the next part in Talmberg with Robard.

I avoid taking the Lady Stephanie quest for a long time though, since that forces me to Sassau, which starts (for me) the Matthew & Fritz quest, as well as the Help the Wounded/Johanka quest

In either case, after i have learned to read, exhausted other ways to make money, have a horse, and have made at least one trip to Skalitz, i then go visit Nightingale to kick off the Main questline.

It's really all about finding an order to the side quests that makes some level of sense to you. And yes - the main questline feels stupidly rushed for absolutely no reason.

[Asmodan]

Before you go to Nightingale to make the Rattay Tour at the beginning you can take as much time as you want to train with Bernhard and make all Sidequests that are available. You will have no Horse but you can buy one after you have some Money and then do the Hans Capon Hunting Quest with a Horse, which makes the Quest a bit different.

Also a good time for a break is imho before you go scouting Prybislawitz, and then after you saved Merhojed from the Plaque.

[JakeURb8ty]

ya i had bayard this play through when i met capon to go hunting. was fun to see. I know anything to do with sasau is super interconnected and time dependent. I guess i should still stay away from there even in my early game travels? It seems nightingale was my departure point. Might just load that save its only a couple days of playing ha ha ha... *its all good. nothing lost nothing gained.

[Asmodan]

Before you speak with Johanka for the first time go and rescue the Priest in Rowna, because her Quest is time sensitive and People start to die if you take too long. It also helps to have First Aid 3 as you don't need to go to the Executioner this way. Other than Johankas First Quest Sasau is fine afaik.

[JakeURb8ty]

ya saving Simon is a pain in the azz cause hes dumb and walks into a tough fortified enemy encampment and gets felled with one blow - even if your nowhere near it. I took them out this time and walked with him all the way to rovna just to make sure. Fending off a second cuman ambush along the way.

Merhojed felt like a 'plague' setting so i knew to delay it. -after confronting the castodian in sasau and people died i reloaded a save from even going there until i was ready and luckily guessed the two locations Sasau and Merhojed were related.

[Asmodan]

After Simon is free and head to Rowna you can wait for an hour or two so he get beamed to Rowna and not run into some bad people, at least thats what worked for me.

[DargonBlak]

Originally posted by Asmodan:

After Simon is free and head to Rowna you can wait for an hour or two so he get beamed to Rowna and not run into some bad people, at least thats what worked for me.

Yeh - i free Father Simon first - before talking to Johanka.

There is a Tip from the Innkeeper in Talmberg that suggests you go visit the "People in Rovna" - then, you can find the one farmer there and he will give you the quest to find Father Simon - so, it's all neat and tidy.

Also, if you've already been to Rattay, you should also have the Scavenger quest, as the prime reason to visit Skalitz (along with any desire to see your parent's grave) - this makes stopping in Talmberg before heading into Skalitz neat and tidy.

Basically, i do many of the available sidequests before ever talking to Nightingale.

My second short wandering break is when i am supposed to be searching for Prib

And then, right after completing the attack on Prib, before going to talk with Radzig to find out what the next step will be, i take an extended wandering break to clean up any and all remaining side quests that i want to do - like Hans, Theresa, Gallows, Matthew&Fritz, Lady Stephanie, etc.

Then if i want to do BoB DLC, i start it while working in Sassau - then complete it after Vranik. But i will also simply start it after Vranik.

[Serk]

You can ''provoke'' some period of inactivity if you time the main quest right and you can also simulate some delays that fit with the story here and there.

Here are a few exemples:

Visiting Limpy Lubosh's place in the evening, then sleeping at the village's Inn for the night and investigate Father Godwin early the next moning means you have the full day off to do some side quest before meeting him in the tavern in the evening. It is even funnier if you get tricked by the devil that night instead and apologise to Godwin the following day for not showing up.

Another exemple, after meeting Radzig at Pirkstein, I usually take a few days to train with Bernard or in archery in the morning, then use the afternoon to explore and do side quest in Rattay (Peshek and vagabond), before talking to nightingdale.

Asking Hagen about Stephanie's wine early in the morning means you have another day off before participating in the archery competition scheduled the next day.

You can also pretend you need to wait a few days to know for sure if the remedy actually work and save the people and the bandit in merhojed, even if the quest tells you to visit after a few hours only.

And finally, I use a modified time scale (about half as fast as the default one), so I can achieve more things in a single day.

[JakeURb8ty]

Having just completed In Gods Hands again I have to say from a narrative standpoint these side missions and activity's make a lot more sense. thanks for all the tips