Playing with the Devil is a side quest in Kingdom Come: Deliverance. After hearing a tip-off from the Innkeeper of Uzhitz, Henry goes to see Father Godwin, who has recently been involved with some kind of argument with Gertrude, the local herbalist.
If you interfere in the ceremony, you will lose the chance to earn the achievement Virgin; you will also earn the achievement Bad trip.
Synopsis[]
Three village wenches in Uzhitz want to use a magic ointment, risking their lives and immortal souls.
Objectives[]
- Go and see Gertrude, the herb-woman, and find out what she incited the Uzhitz women to do.
- Speak to the village women about the magical ointment.
- Follow the women to the woods.
- (Optional) Go to the village women's meeting place at dusk.
- Try following the women the next night.
- (Optional) Follow the women at a distance and don't interfere.
- Interject the chanting.
- Cavort with the women.
- Speak to the village women about the magical ointment.
- Tell the Parish Priest what happened.
- Tell the herb-woman how it ended up.
Walkthrough[]
Talk to Father Godwin in Uzhitz, and ask him if has any work for you. As rumored, Godwin has been in conflict with the local herbalist, Gertrude. Although he admits she's not evil, he was concerned after some of the local gossips told him she was inciting some of the local women to witchcraft. Until now, Gertrude has only concerned herself with healing minor ailments with her herb treatments, but now she's gone too far.
Father Godwin requests Henry's help
Travel west of Uzhitz to Gertrude's hut, and tell her people are saying she's a witch. She denies the charge, saying it's merely idle chatter. You will need to convince her to tell you more.
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She eventually confesses the truth: three women from Skalitz, now living in Uzhitz, convinced her to make them a magic ointment, against her better judgement. In short, it's a psychedelic, but it can be unpredictable; it's just as likely to show you things of wonder and awe as it is to make you see horrifying visions.
Henry speaks to the herbalist
Feeling pity for the women, who had lost their families and homes in the attack on Skalitz (and probably influenced by the coin they gave her), Gertrude gave them the ointment. It will allow them to speak with their dead families if God wills it, and call upon the devil to drive the Cumans out of Bohemia if He does not.
Now, though, she's overcome with guilt and fear that they will hurt themselves, and she'll be blamed for practicing witchcraft... and burned. Agree to help her, and go back to Uzhitz to find Khuta, Vera, and Zlata, who will let slip they intend to meet at the crossroads. You can talk to them all to get the whole story, but one is enough to figure out their plan.
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Henry confronts the witches in the woods
They're wary about being followed and will decide to try again the next night if they spot you, so be sure to remove any noisy gear and sneak after them. They'll meet at the crossroads west of town at about 21:00 and will set off for the clearing by 22:00 if they don't detect you nearby. They'll light lanterns as it gets dark, so just focus on staying close.
The ladies will make their way to a clearing where a bonfire is raging. Stay back and watch as they begin the ritual, or immediately barge in and interrupt them. As you will eventually fail the quest if you don't enter the clearing, do so and they will spot you, identify you as "The Prince of Darkness", and offer to satisfy your desires if you will satisfy theirs. In their drug-addled state, they stroke your face lovingly and beg you to either rid Bohemia of the Cumans or give the women wealth in order to start new lives in the city.
Henry is watched from the shadows by a demonic figure
Unfortunately for you, it turns out they still have the ointment on their hands, which begins to make you see a vision of a terrifying figure watching from beyond the trees. You pass out for a moment and awaken to find Khuta has turned into a chicken, Vera into a horse, and Zlata into a pig. What a trip.
The horse asks why you don't have horns, hooves, or a goat's tail, then they again beg you to pick one of them to satisfy yourself. The sky has turned blood red, and you find yourself mysteriously back at the campsite if you try to leave, so pick one of the animals... literally, you need to use a lockpick on them. Seriously, kids, don't do drugs, or you'll end up using lockpicks on the behinds of farm animals.
The devils attack
Henry, now truly wasted, wavers on the spot as the women begin asking him when the magic will take effect. At that moment, two "devils" appear and attack the women. Either watch it happen, attack the women along with them, or take out the "devils", before passing out. You'll be unconscious until morning, and will awaken beside either the bodies of the three women or those of two local woodcutters.
In any case, return to Uzhitz and tell Father Godwin what happened, or what little you remember of it. Godwin is aghast that blood has been shed and will chastise you for not doing more. Although the quest is finished, you can return to Gertrude and tell her what happened. She too is horrified, and both Godwin and Gertrude, despite their differences, will tell you that all three of you have blood on your hands and must pray for forgiveness.
Alternatively, when the "devils" spawn, you can just run away. When you wake up and report to Godwin, you won't lose any reputation if you answer "I followed those women to the woods" then any subsequent option instead of "They held a witches' sabbath, so I left". You will still lose reputation if you choose to report back to the herbalist, though. Note that the devils won't stop fighting if you try to fight them with your fists; they only stop fighting when you use a weapon. So to avoid getting blood on your hands, you must run.
Notes[]
- Toward the beginning of the ritual, one of the women starts chanting. The chant is the same as the one recited by the three witches at the beginning of William Shakespeare's play Macbeth.