Highlights

• Different skills in The Witcher 3 cater to various playstyles, such as magic-oriented or sword-heavy combat approaches.
• Finding the best abilities involves trial and error, as player preferences and strategies vary in the game.
• Skills like Adrenaline generation and damage bonuses can be crucial in combat, enhancing Geralt's effectiveness in battles.

The Witcher 3's various skills and abilities can be overwhelming for a player who is not used to making their character builds. What the best ability is can be dependent on whether the player uses more magic or swords in combat. It can all depend on an individual's play style.

However, fans have tested out all kinds of builds in the game and have determined what skills and abilities have been most useful to them. These skills help Geralt not only stay alive but thrive on his journey. Some are for combat, some are for healing, and others can help problem solve in various questlines.

Updated on April 17, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: The Witcher 3 continues to be one of the most epic and impressive RPGs on the market. Geralt's story ends on a satisfying note, with players gradually falling in love with this character and the many epic ways he deals with conflicts, helps his friends, and accomplishes whatever he sets his mind to. Combat is a huge part of The Witcher 3, and players must ensure that they have the best abilities and skills that can be used to take out their enemies. Given the limited skills that players can equip at a time, it's important to choose the best ones that are suited for a player's build. With that in mind, a few more of Geralt's best skills have been added to this list in its latest update.

20 Attack Is The Best Defense

Defensive Actions Generate Adrenaline Points

• Best Way To Use: Slowly generate Adrenaline Points with basic defensive moves before unleashing powerful moves

Most players won't really bother to invest in General abilities, since they can't be used to augment a player's build. However, investing in a few isn't the worst idea, and abilities like Attack is the Best Defense prove why these abilities can turn the tide of battle and turn regular actions into beneficial ones for Geralt.

After all, Adrenaline is a huge part of what makes combat so satisfying in The Witcher 3. If players want to rack up Adrenaline Points, then equipping this skill and schooling Geralt's foes is as satisfying as it gets Dodging and blocking enemies to generate Adrenaline is one of the best ways to enhance a player's damage and launch critical counterattacks in the blink of an eye.

19 Protective Coating

Offers Protection Against Certain Monster Types Based On The Blade Oil Used

• Best Way To Use: Protect Geralt against tough enemies that will rip him apart like mincemeat by using the right Blade Oil for the job

With the Next-Gen Update, using Blade Oils is as easy as can be. Instead of going through a cumbersome menu and selecting the best oil for the situation, players can just auto-apply these oils and save themselves the hassle. This can completely change the way players approach the game, with Protective Coating being a skill that pretty much offers a passive benefit whenever players take on tough foes.

With this skill, players can enjoy a decent level of protection from the enemy based on the blade oil used. This allows players to enhance both their defense and offense against a tough enemy, which is a boon for obvious reasons.

18 Killing Spree

Critical Hit Chance Increases Based On Enemies Killed While Toxicity Is Above 0

• Best Way To Use: Use quick attacks to nail as many criticals as possible and imbibe potions to keep Toxicity up

After a point, players will realize just how important it is to use Witcher brews against tough enemies to even the field. This is especially true in the DLC areas, where each fight can decimate Geralt if he's not buffed to kingdom come. While drinking too many potions increases Geralt's toxicity, there's a nifty way that this mechanic can be turned around to benefit the Witcher.

The White Wolf can unlock an ability called Killing Spree that increases his critical chance with each enemy killed as long as his Toxicity is above 0. If players buff themselves regularly with potions, they should have no problems with taking out a group of enemies, showing them who's boss by landing multiple critical hits in quick succession.

17 Rend

Consume Stamina To Deal A Deadly Blow

• Best Way To Use: Hit a slow or pinned-down enemy for immense damage

There are many combat abilities that players can invest in to make Geralt stronger, but not all of them add new abilities for the Witcher to mess around with. This is why players should invest in Rend, an ability that lets players unleash an immensely powerful attack after consuming Adrenaline Points.

The attack takes a while to execute, so pinning enemies in place is recommended before unleashing this blow. It hits like a truck and shaves off a ton of health from an enemy health bar, with fewer enemies being taken care of in a single hit.

16 Razor Focus

Instantly Gain An Adrenaline Point In Battle And Generate Adrenaline At A Faster Pace

• Best Way To Use: Get a quick boost in battle

Adrenaline is something that fans should build up as much as possible in The Witcher 3 if they want to ace the game's combat. So, any ability that instantly hands players an Adrenaline Point when they enter combat is welcome.

Razor Focus is perfect for players who want to rip through battles in record time. Geralt's abilities can work in tandem with his free Adrenaline Point, and players will also benefit from a heightened generation of Adrenaline if they invest more points in this upgrade.

15 Sun And Stars

Regenerate Vitality In The Day And Stamina At Night

• Best Way To Use: Passively increase health during the day or enhance stamina regeneration at night

This is a skill useful for all builds, especially ones that dislike investing in alchemy (which means fewer healing items). It slowly regenerates Geralt's health when he is not in combat during the daytime. Some players have argued that regeneration is so slow that the skill is useless. However, it is a good safety net. Many players make the mistake of getting a skill and never utilizing it. But since Sun and Stars is a passive skill, it is always useful.

Even with slow regeneration, the healing can be welcome since the game can have the player travel long distances.

14 Muscle Memory And/Or Strength Training

Increase The Damage Of Both Fast & Strong Attacks

• Best Way To Use: Enhance basic weapon attacks

Two other must-have passive skills are Muscle Memory and/or Strength Training. They increase the damage enemies take by Geralt's physical attacks. For players who prefer fast attacks and light armor, Muscle Memory is one of the best skills in The Witcher 3. For those that prefer strong attacks and heavy armor, Strength training should be picked. A lot of players get both, though.

If these skills reach level five, additional damage can reach 25 percent.

13 Focus

Stocked Adrenaline Increases Weapon and Sign Damage

• Best Way To Use: Stock Adrenaline Points to kill enemies quickly

The base effect of Focus is that Adrenaline Points increase weapon and Sign damage. Due to its versatility, players are recommended to get it for a vast variety of builds. Some would call it a must-have skill for any playthrough.

For those who are struggling in fights, taking up this skill can make all the difference in the world. It is especially useful when dealing with enemies of higher HP values.

12 Strong Back

Geralt Gains More Carry Weight Capacity

• Best Way To Use: Gather more loot before heading to a merchant

Natural gamer behavior in any game is to hoard items. After all, everything can seem useful whether it can be used in alchemy or to sell later in town. A severe limiter to players collecting items, though, is inventory weight. If the player hoards too many items, Geralt will be encumbered, and some loot will have to be dropped.

However, with Strong Back, Geralt will get encumbered way less. Strong Back is a skill that adds the maximum weight capacity by 60.

11 Whirl

Hold Down The Light Attack Button To Become A Whirlwind Of Death

• Best Way To Use: Attack a mob of enemies all at once

Whirl is a favorite attack of many players, as it is a fun way to deal with mobs. It's an attack that turns Geralt into a blender, dealing damage to anyone near him in a wide circle. The attack does consume adrenaline and stamina, but it's worth the kinds of hits the player can deal with it.

To even better utilize this skill, some players have attached the rune "Severence" from the Heart of Stone expansion to their sword. It can increase the range of the Whirl attack.

10 Fleet-Footed

Negate Any Damage While Dodging

• Best Way To Use: Dodge around attacks without incurring any damage

Fleet-Footed is a defense-based skill found in the combat branch. It requires eight points, but the payoff is worth the cost. The skill reduces damage to hits received while dodging by 20 percent. The skill can be leveled up to the point of reducing damage by 100 percent, but the next-gen patch tweaked these values and made it so that a single point invested in this ability would be enough to negate all damage, making it one of the best skills in The Witcher 3.

There is a con to the skill that is important to know: Some fans have difficulty using the skill, as it is not effective with all kinds of dodging.

9 Delusion

Use Axii In Conversations To Brainwash People And Slow Enemies In Combat

• Best Way To Use: Manipulate people in conversations and effectively use Axii in combat

Violence is not always the answer. Sometimes a little touch of mind control can save lives. Delusion is a skill that is more useful in character conversations than in actual combat. The option to use the sign in a conversation appears often enough that many players call it a "must-have" skill and recommend leveling it up as fast as possible.

While mind control is pretty sketchy, it always leads to good outcomes, and the player is even rewarded with some experience points if they use the skill successfully. To add another bonus, Delusion also makes Axii more viable in combat by slowing down enemies as Geralt is casting the Sign, leading to enemies being stunned and brainwashed with greater ease.

8 Melt Armor

Igni Reduces Enemy Armor

• Best Way To Use: Weaken enemy armor before peppering them with blows

Located in the Sign branch under the Igni skill, Melt Armor will make Igni permanently weaken the armor of enemies. This effect scales up with Sign intensity, capping at 75 percent. The skill is loved for its increase in damage output and is cheap to get on the skill tree.

However, there are cons to this skill. Not all enemies in The Witcher 3 possess armor. It is also not the best for every build. Strong attacks bypass armor already, so this skill is perfect for players who use fast attacks regularly.

7 Gourmet

Food Regenerates Vitality For 20 Minutes

• Best Way To Use: Knock back food at higher difficulties to regenerate Vitality with ease

This ability makes eating food regenerate Geralt's vitality for 20 real-life minutes. With Gourmet, players can make the most out of their consumables. It can especially be helpful for those playing the game on a higher-than-normal difficulty.

Food is especially less abundant at the beginning of the game, so this ability is recommended for the beginning. It may get less useful as more protective abilities get unlocked, but players are thankful for its existence at the beginning of their journey.

6 Resolve

Lowers Loss Of Adrenaline When Taking Damage

• Best Way To Use: Be aggressive in combat without worrying about taking hits and losing efficiency

Adrenaline Points are spent for many of Geralt's skills, so maintaining them is important for a long-lasting round of combat. Resolve is an underestimated skill that lessens the number of points lost when taking damage. Many builds depend on having Adrenaline Point reserves in stock, so this makes Resolve especially useful.

Players should remember that Geralt's DPS is heightened by the level of Adrenaline Points he has stocked up. If players want to deal more damage per second, then this is the skill for them.

5 Active Shield

Alternate Form Of Quen That Blocks Incoming Attacks

• Best Way To Use: Put up a shield to get a breather in combat while regenerating precious Vitality

For six branch points under the Quen Sign, Active Shield blocks attacks while draining Geralt's stamina. The best part is that the damage absorbed by the shield restores Geralt's vitality. Active Shield can be leveled up so that it drains less and less stamina.

This is a skill that is useful for various builds, especially for builds that also use Exploding Shield, Quen Intensity, and Quen Discharge. There's something quite cathartic about watching Geralt encase himself in a bubble, being completely unaffected by attacks from lesser foes who can't make so much as a dent on him.

4 Undying

Use Adrenaline Points To Restore Geralt's Health If It Falls To 0

• Best Way To Use: Be dangerously aggressive in combat, hoard Adrenaline Points, and absorb some damage to maximize DPS without fear of death

If used in a certain way, this skill can make Geralt immortal. Basically, if his health reaches zero, then this skill automatically will bring him back to life by spending Adrenaline Points. If the player can get the Adrenaline Points back up within 30 seconds (Undying's cooldown time), then Geralt is virtually unkillable.

Of course, the skill needs to be developed from level one to level five to actually restore all of Geralt's health. Until it reaches level five, it will only restore a certain percentage, but that is also quite useful if Geralt is saved from the brink of death. The next-gen patch tweaked this skill so that it reached level 3 and restored 2/3rds of Geralt's health bar at the highest level instead.

3 Deadly Precision

Each Adrenaline Point Adds A One Percent Chance Of Insta-Killing An Enemy

• Best Way To Use: Stack Adrenaline Points to occasionally take down an enemy with full health in one blow

Under the combat branch in the defense skill tree, Deadly Precision makes it so every Adrenaline Point adds a one percent chance of killing an enemy instantly. It can be upgraded once to make the chance two percent. So the maximum of both Adrenaline Points and the upgrade can cap this skill to a six percent chance to kill an enemy instantly.

While the chances are very low, the skill is both fun and useful. It is a must-have for a build that focuses on offensive potential, and players will get a kick out of watching strong enemies die with a single hit, which is quite useful for players who unleash a flurry of attacks with moves like Whirl.

2 Crippling Strikes

Use Fast Attacks To Make Enemies Bleed

• Best Way To Use: Bleed enemies with light attacks to slowly chip away at their health

This ability is not for all builds (it is best for light armor and fast attackers), but it does damage over time and certainly won't hurt to have. Damage over time is from a bleed status affliction that is going to chip away at enemy health while Geralt continuously attacks.

As players level up more skills to boost up Geralt's base fast attack, they will find Crippling Strikes less useful for smaller enemies. For big fights, though, Crippling Strikes will always be useful.

1 Survival Instinct

Increases Maximum Vitality

• Best Way To Use: Enhance player Vitality to make it harder to die in combat

Survival Instinct, plain and simple, will boost Geralt's health pool. It is useful for any build and is especially nice to have early in the game. For players that are having issues surviving enemies, they should check to make sure they have this skill. Extra health is nothing for a gamer to turn their nose up from.

Alchemist players would argue there are other ways to increase health, but it's not doable around the beginning of the game. Also, this skill plus alchemy creations is all the better than one without the other.