During Chapter 1 of The Witcher 2, you can find a secret quest, The Scent of Incense. You will get this quest from Vencel Pugg, and to complete it, you must fetch a deadly Incense formula from a small shop in Flotsam. There is also a small quest within this side quest that rewards you with some money. Without further ado, let’s start with this Scent of Incense quest.
How to complete The Scent Of Incense in The Witcher 2
After getting the quest from Vencel Pugg, go left from his location and up towards the town of Flotsam. You’ll see a small crowd as you reach the Incense shop in the town. Go up to the woman at the front and talk to her.
She’ll explain how the shopkeeper lad is selling something that is like a drug and bad for others. She promises that the townspeople will reward you if you close down this shop and force the man to leave the town. This will start the Little Shop of Dreams quest, a mini-quest in the Scent of Incense quest.
For this quest, go up to the man named Vilmos Bartok and talk to him about how his product is harmful and to shut down his shop. The man wouldn’t agree, so you’ll need to use Axii Hex to get the information out of him.
Next, ask for the formula of the harmful incense in The Witcher 2, and the man will try to trick you with a fake formula. Here, you will have two options:
- Accept the fake formula.
- Use intimidation and get the real formula.
Once you get the formula, the shop will close or stay open according to your choice. At this point, the Little Shop of Dreams quest would end. Go to the townspeople and get rewarded if you close the shop. Now take this formula to Vencel Pugg, still at the Harbour, and hand him the formula to progress in the Scent of Incense quest.
Result of each choice in negotiations with Vencel Pugg?
As Vencel Pugg gets the formula, he’ll deny you the reward to test if the formula is real or not. He’ll ask you to meet him at the city gate so that he can test the validity and reward you. Go to the quest marker and meet him standing under the tree in the forest.
How to reach the lab
Here, he’ll ask you to be blindfolded, as the location of his lab is a secret. You can choose to go along with it or deny his request. Each choice will have different outcomes, which are:
- If you agree to be blindfolded to reach the lab, you’ll be thrown in the cell in Pugg’s lab.
- If you don’t agree, he’ll give you the location on the map, and you’ll be able to reach the lab yourself. Now you know the location and can visit it later in The Witcher 2.
Validity of Incense
Now, the validity of the Incense matters. Once you are inside the lab by yourself, he’ll ask you to wait while he tests if the formula is real.
- If the formula is real, you’ll be left alone and get the reward. You can leave the cave by the cave entrance or by the boat at the other end of the lab only if you come in by being blindfolded. The quest ends here.
- If the formula is fake, Pugg and his group will attack you in The Witcher 2. If you are in the cell, you must break the door and pick up the sword before fighting, so run to it first.
Fight Vencel Pugg and his group
Fighting can start in two conditions. These conditions are based on your previous choices:
- The formula was real, but you came by yourself and now know the location. To hide the location, they’ll try to kill you.
- If the formula was fake, they’d start the fight, and the other options don’t matter here.
Defeat all the five enemies. They are easy to kill, so just use basic sword attacks. This will end The Scent of Incense quest in The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings.
Once they are dead, loot the area as several chests contain important items. Then, take the boat to leave the lab. This is the suggestive way out as the boat gets a route to return later.
