The Endrega Contract

The Endrega Contract is one of two contract quests in Chapter I of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings.


 * Endrega Contract
 * Faced with the insolence and bestial menace of the creatures known as endregas, and concerned for the people, Commandant Bernard Loredo has decided to post a bounty for the extermination of these creatures. The brave soul who permanently rids the area of this filth will receive a generous reward from the hands of Louis Merse and will be listed in the town chronicles as a true hero of Flotsam.
 * Louis Merse, Town Chancellor

Associated Quest

 * The Nekker Contract, insofar as an additional reward is given for completing both quests

Walkthrough
The contract to initiate this quest can be found in Flotsam, on the notice board outside the inn.

Before running to the forest you need to find more information on the endrega. A book on endregas can be obtained from Einar Gausel in Flotsam. It is also possible to obtain the book from a corpse located in the cave you are sent into for the Malena quest. Instead of buying the book, you can also keep killing endregas until you "acquire" the knowledge.

The endrega nests can be found on both sides of the swampy area in the center of the forest. One nest is located on the west side of the swamp, next to the tree on the map. The other nest is on the east side of the swamp, a little north from the tree on the map. Each nest has 3 large cocoons nestled up against the trees.

To complete this, you must open all 3 cocoons in each area and defeat each of the queen endregas that appear. Remember to clear the area of regular endregas to make this easier. Traps and the Yrden sign are your friends here. The queen is relatively slow, but does occasionally charge. Her normal attacks hurt quite a lot on normal difficulty and above, so do your best to dodge her. Using Yrden will lock her in place, allowing you to get several strong hits on her and once she starts blocking, move away and repeat the process.

An easy way to kill Queens (Assassin ability will be very handy here):
 * 1) Apply the Insectoid Oil to your silver sword

It takes some time for the queen to turn around, so it is really safe to hit her hard 3 times. 4th and 5th hits may be risky.
 * 1) When Queen appears, place Yrden somewhere
 * 2) Lure Queen into the yrden
 * 3) Run or roll behind the queen and make 3-5 powerful attacks with a silver sword
 * 4) Run away and repeat steps 2-4. With Moon blade + 3 Ysgith runes + Assassin ability and on hard difficulty, you will have to repeat it only 2 times

When you have destroyed all the cocoons and killed the queens, go back to Louis Merse to gain the reward (150 ). If you also have completed The Nekker Contract, you will get a schematic to craft a Witcher's superb silver sword.

Alternative methods

 * Before destroying the 3rd cocoon, place several snare traps (the ones that are spread all around the forest) in one place and 'mark' the spot with a Yrden spell for better orientation. Then cut down the last nest and guide the queen to the traps for severe damage (10 traps do about 75% damage to the queen). Another way (which may be considered an exploit) is to run to the end of its 'territory' where the Queen's AI tells it to turn back, here, provoke it (while still inside the territory) until it charges at you. Dodge it and the Queen will find itself way out of its territory, now quickly block its path start hacking away at it as it frantically walks (and fails) to go back to its territory. If done correctly, the Queen does not attack nor parry at all while getting blocked by the witcher. You can also use more traps (more than 25) and kill the queen without any fight (recommended on Dark mode since the queen can kill you in several blows)
 * There is yet another alternative. If you can push the Queen back against a tree with its roots sticking out, you can make the Queen get stuck for a little bit. You can tumble to the right or left of the Queen and hit it 3 times and see if the Queen turns to face you and launch its attack. If the Queen doesn't turn, then you can hit her a lot of times until she is able to turn toward you. Then you just tumble to the opposite side and rinse and repeat.
 * Another alternative is to make the queen appear then run out of its territory, then get nekkers or Scoia'tael warriors from the Malena quest to appear , then have them chase you back to the queen to have your two problems neutralise each other. While the queen is fighting others you can do good damage from behind it.
 * Most people find it quite difficult to take on the Queen early in the chapter. With only the basic Witcher's silver sword and upwards of 6 armor, getting hit in the back with its charging attack is a one-hit-kill. Some might want to hold off tackling this beast until they have the Hunter's armor from the Troll Trouble quest. However, it is quite possible to defeat it right at the beginning of the chapter, just be prepared to reload several times.
 * One method I found useful was just blocking her attacks and then hitting her with 1-2 strong attacks, then immediately holding block again. I was also using the Yrden sign to stun her, but this was more for making space and jumping away than trying to attack. I was taking little to no damage from her attacks, only getting hit by her quick attacks. Combining this with a few hits from some Grapeshot Bomsbs, I was able to defeat both queens farily easily. Granted I was on normal and the skills I put points into are probably different, but this worked well for killing her quickly while not taking damage.


 * There are 2 ways I have come across to defeat the Queens. 1 requires throwing daggers and the other requires kiting( pacing the boss to avoid attacks.) Bear in mind this is not easy to accomplish unless you choose a lesser difficulty. I had to reload many times trying to figure a tactic. Best to save right before opening up the final cocoon to minimize reload time.


 * Method One: Throwing Daggers – This is by far the easiest way to kill the queen. When a thrown dagger strikes the Queen it staggers her. What I did was went through Flotsam and purchase as many throwing weapons as I could. You can also buy the crafting diagram to make Well-Balanced Daggers from the dwarf in the non-human district named Berthold Candeleria. Once you kill all of the cocoons she will appear. It is best to have all of your daggers in your pockets. Simply focus the camera towards her general direction then open up on her rapidly pressing the button you have bound to use pockets. Keyboard is default to 'r'. It is important to note that daggers have a range. She will eventually get to far. Just let her walk back in and begin firing. Very easy and my choice to kill them.


 * Method Two: Kiting – This is some what of a challenge to players still early on in Chapter 1 since the queen hits like a truck and instantly kills you from behind. There are 2 mechanics you have to avoid. Her poison breath and her charge. Both are used randomly while fighting and both will kill you. This method is based around laying traps, Use your Yrden ability to place a magical trap that stuns her. Try to lure the Queen over the trap then rush in and use 3 power attacks or until she is parrying your swings. The area she is allocated in is quite small making it difficult to kite since she walks in a straight path towards you. Snare and Conflagration Traps are effective in dealing damage. If you opt for this method make sure to create or purchase a few Samum to stun the Queen and then get some distance. It is better to run around and allow your signs to recharge. She does run faster than your character so you need to roll every now and then. Once you attempt to kill her you should get a feel when she is close by. Also right after you place Yrden it is best to roll in a linear fashion so she just runs right over it.

One these 2 methods should help to slay the Queens. Remember to use Samum bombs and other ranged weapons.

Journal entry

 * Endregas were multiplying in the Flotsam area. The monsters had become such a scourge that Bernard Loredo, though stingy by his nature, posted a bounty for their extermination. The witcher accepted the job and decided that a little theoretical preperation might pay off. Reading about the endregas' habits would be worth it.


 * Endregas are very similar to butterflies, except that they are ugly, cannot fly, and would choke on cabbage. All right[sic], maybe they are like butterflies, but they do weave cocoons. The witcher learned that destroying the cocoons would draw the endrega queens, and their deaths would mean the end of the swarm.


 * The idea proved to be right on target. The witcher dealt with the endregas and went to see Louis Merse about his reward.


 * Louis Merse filled out the WL-17 form and paid the witcher, but not before deducting a monstrous tax. Thus ended the endrega adventure.

Video
de:Auftrag: Endriagen Le contrat sur les endriagues Contratto per endriaghe