Like most other competitive role-playing games of modern times, The Witcher 2 offers players the luxury to practice crafting.
Crafting is not only fun but can also provide you with some of the most powerful items in the game. Though many learn to craft quickly, the art is challenging to master as it requires quite a bit of exploration and multiple steps of crafting.
How to Craft Items in The Witcher 2
To craft an item, the first thing that you will need is the schematic diagrams. These are basically blueprints for crafting the item. Once you have a schematic diagram, it will tell you the details of the required ingredients.
Most ingredients themselves have schematic diagrams, but you can also find some while progressing. After finding the required ingredients for the item, take the schematic and ingredients to the craftsman. You can find the Craftsman by following the plier icon on the map.
In the case of crafting certain types of items, such as Bombs, etc., it will not require you to find a craftsman. You can craft these yourself once you find the formula/diagram for them in The Witcher 2.
You can collect crafting supplies or ingredients during quests or by coming across NPC merchants. It is best to plan and start collecting ingredients for crafting during the early part of your journey. Once you proceed to the second and third chapters, things get intense.
If a merchant runs out of ingredients, the stock will always generate if you spend some time out of town, meditate for a day or two, and revisit.
How to Craft Potions
Those who have played The Witcher will know the powerful influence potions can have in the game. Though in the sequel, potions are potentially just as potent in terms of effects and buffs, their method of application and duration has changed vastly.
Most crafting addicts tend to invest a lot in crafting potions. While the formula would’ve worked brilliantly in the first game, potions in The Witcher 2 are slightly less significant. There are two reasons for this:
Firstly, Geralt cannot consume potions in the heat of battle. He can only consume them when he is meditating.
Secondly, as always, potions have a limited duration of effectiveness. This is fine for the most part, but the real problem is that the timer runs even during conversations. Because of this, you will notice many times that your potions will run out before you can use their buffs.
But still, I recommend that you invest more time in crafting potions and then focus on other equipment. Similarly, having a strong knowledge of Alchemy is equally essential in keeping you alive and winning those battles. That being said, Alchemy comprises three types: namely Potions, Oil, and Bombs. You will need to spend your time collecting the required alchemy ingredients to craft any of these items in The Witcher 2.
How to find Crafting Diagrams/Schematics
It’s a little challenging to find Schematics/Crafting Diagrams for an item, such as weapons, potions, armor options, etc., that you wish to craft randomly. Most of the crafting diagrams can be purchased from various NPC vendors (Merchants) like Bras of Ban Ard, etc.
Apart from that, you can also search different places, such as Berthold Candeleria, etc., and make sure to open up all the chests you find during your playthrough.
This way, you will be able to discover some of the Crafting Diagrams without having to spend any orens, and most of these schematics can reveal some powerful items. You can then collect the required ingredients and find yourself a craftsman to craft you the required item following the instructions of the Crafting Diagram in The Witcher 2.
