A guide to the Imperial audience in The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt’s Main Quest
In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Imperial Audience is the game’s prologue’s final quest. The quest takes Geralt to Vizima, where he meets Emhyr var Emreis, the Emperor of Nilfgaard.
Below is a quick walk through the Imperial Audience:
- Get dressed and talk to the chamberlain.
- Follow the chamberlain.
- Talk to Yennefer.
- Retrieve your equipment from the chamberlain.
Below is a quick walk through the Imperial Audience:
This quest starts out nicely as you are being washed by a number of beautiful women in Vizima, the capital of the Nilfgaardian Empire, which is surrounded by wealth and luxury.
The chamberlain of Emhyr, Mererid, and his assistant Cledwyn soon disturb your bath. You must get your beard shaved, due to the chamberlain’s strict standards and dislike of facial hair.
Currently undergoing a shave Voorhis enters and starts interrogating you; the dialogue may vary depending on whether you decided to import a save or not.
If you import a save or decide not to simulate one, Voorhis will only inquire as to what transpired with his men, and you are free to respond as you like.
If however, you chose to simulate a save the conversation will be a lot longer with Voorhis asking many questions. You can find these here.
You will have three quite similar options to choose from when this interrogation is through to wear for the audience.
Meeting Emhyr:
Learn how to salute the emperor by bowing (left leg forward, right hand on chest). Once you have shown you can you can follow instructions follow the chamberlain through the castle to meet the emperor.
Whilst in the castle you will find many containers ready to be looted. These contain books, manuscripts, and useful alchemy ingredients.
Once you are in front of Emhyr VAR Emreis you get to decide if you want to bow or not and this will slightly change the conversation.
During your private audience with the emperor, he will propose a contract whereby you find his daughter Ciri. Ciri has returned to the area and is being chased by the Wild Hunt. You are then promised a substantial payment and sent on your way.
Once the meeting is concluded you will be led by Mererid through the castle and he will comment on your decision to bow or not. At this point, you may chat with Voorhis in the throne room before you get led to Yennefer’s quarters.
Talking to Yennefer:
Go to Yennefer’s room nearby and ignore ambassador var Attre for now. In addition to confirming Emperor Emhyr’s story, she tells you about her own attempts to locate Ciri so far.
As a team, you devise a plan to split forces by asking Hendrick for assistance in Velen while she investigates a magical explosion in Skellige. You are also recommended to meet up with Triss in Novigrad, a mutual acquaintance.
After Yennefer departs, you can gather any loot you might have overlooked, chat with the ambassador var Attre to obtain the latest news, and then leave to return your gear to the Mererid and complete the task.
One tip here is to keep the clothes you acquire from the Chamberlain as they will come in handy for all other quests that require Geralt to wear the “proper” attire.