Dealing with mages, seers, criminals and schemers is an unfortunately common part of a Witcher’s job; rescuing innocent townsfolk from lurking Drowners or ferocious werewolves is the Platonic ideal of the profession, but the odd and guilty end up involved with monsters far more often than the mundane and innocent. That being the case, Geralt often finds himself in… unusual situations… like wandering through the forests ringing a bell to lure a goat back to its masters. This page will provide a walkthrough for the main quest A Princess in Distress, including how to find the diagram for the Mastercrafted Ursine Steel Sword.

Quest Objectives¶

Starting A Princess in Distress¶

This quest is little more than accessory to the main quest Family Matters, and during the aforementioned quest you’ll need to investigate some rooms in the Bloody Baron’s castle, after which you’ll need to ask a local Pellar about a Talisman you found during your search. Find the Pellar’s Hut north of Blackbough and deal with the Baron’s Henchmen outside, then knock on the door and talk to the Pellar. Before you get your augury from the Pellar he’ll decide he absolutely cannot abide without his pet goat, Princess, at which point Family Matters will go dormant and A Princess in Distress will begin.

Find Princess¶

After agreeing to the Pellar’s ridiculous demands, open the action wheel / and select the Pellar’s Bell item. You’ll need to use this device to get Princess to follow you. Once done, activate your Witcher senses and you’ll spot signs of Princess’s passage all over the ground. Investigate the tracks, then follow them west into the woods behind the Pellar’s House. Aside from the odd Wolf (Lv5) prowling about, there’s not much to distract you from the tracks, but do yourself a favor and go out of your way to cull all the wolves you can find. Best to eradicate predators now when you’re not encumbered by the presence of a dull herbivore.

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(1 of 3) Equip the Pellar’s bell,

Kill the Wolves or not, then follow the goat tracks to the western edge of the search area, where sure enough, you’ll find Princess, and you’ll hear her long before you see her, just to let you know you’re on the right track. Get close enough to update the quest and get Princess curious, then press / to ring the Pellar’s Bell… assuming you have it equipped. Ringing the Pellar’s Bell while Princess is close will get the goat to follow you temporarily, so just walk back east towards the Pellar’s hut while ringing the bell occasionally to keep Princess in line.

Return Princess to the Pellar¶

Simple enough task in theory, but there’s one problem: Princess is a stupid goat and self-preservation isn’t her strong suit. You should notice that Princess has a life bar, and you’ll need to protect her from predators as you lure her back to the Pellar’s hut. If you killed the Wolves off earlier, this escort will be much easier, but you’re not out of the woods yet… figuratively or literally!

At some point during your escort Princess will break free from the compulsion of the Pellar’s Bell and run off. Chase her down and before long Princess will gain the attention of a nastier predator than a mere Wolf - a Bear (Lv6)! You might have fought a similar for back in White Orchard, but by now you should be much stronger, and Princess, for her part, will stay clear of this fight. As long as you can defeat the Bear you shouldn’t have to worry too much - use Igni whenever your stamina is full to hopefully set it on fire, and dodge around the beast, counterattacking when a strong attack immediately after you dodge one of its attacks. Defeat the Bear and get back to Princess, who can now be escorted back the rest of the way to the Pellar.

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(1 of 3) Once you find Princess, use the Pellar’s Bell to lure the goat.

Get an Augury from the Pellar¶

Vanquish the Bear and ring-a-ding your way back to the Pellar’s hut, Princess in tow. When the two are creepily reunited, Geralt will be sent on a final errand (which will occur off-screen) before he’ll finally get the augury he seeks. After the Pellar does his sorcery you’ll get to ask some questions about the scourge born of the Bloody Baron’s misdeeds, after which A Princess in Distress will end and you’ll get some EXP. You’ve two options for dealing with the Botchling - lift the curse, or slay the stillborn creature, and this will be the preoccupation for the next phase of the quest Family Matters, which you can now continue.

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After you get your augury, you can ask about the two ways to deal with the Botchling, which will be the next major objective during the quest “Family Matters”.