The Devil’s Pit is a place that carries its name like a warning. In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, the old mine sits in the center of Velen, south of Novigrad and southwest of Oxenfurt, and it holds a mystery wrapped in corpses, ghosts, and a possessed man named Reinald. The quest tied to it, “In the Eternal Fire’s Shadow,” rewards players with the Forgotten Wolf School armor diagrams, modeled after the armor worn by Geralt in the Netflix series. Here’s how to reach every ending in the quest and collect those schematics.
Starting the Quest at The Devil’s Pit
To begin “In the Eternal Fire’s Shadow,” talk to the Eternal Fire Deacon at The Devil’s Pit. He’ll ask for help, and agreeing sets the whole thing in motion. The mine itself is a maze of tunnels, and the entrance is marked by a double door with strange white symbols near the northwest exit.
Before you dive in, know that the caves are full of loot. Collect everything you can, because once the quest ends, the caves are sealed. That includes five notes left by a man called Reinald, which you can find scattered throughout the tunnels. If you’ve finished Keira Metz’s quests, her magic lamp lets you see some ghosts too. None of it is required, but searching thoroughly unlocks extra dialogue lines and a potion recipe for the boss fight ahead.
Clues and Voices in the Caves
As you explore The Devil’s Pit, a mysterious voice will urge you to save someone trapped in the mine. The voice tells you to avoid certain paths, but the guide advises doing the opposite. When the path splits and the voice tells you to go right, go left instead. That move gathers extra clues about what’s really happening down there.
The clues themselves are simple but telling. Corpses line the passages, and some carry Witcher symbols. The notes from Reinald add context, though the guide doesn’t say what they say. The ghosts, visible only with Keira’s lamp, add a layer of dread. None of it changes the outcome, but it makes the descent feel less empty.
Crafting Reinald’s Philter
Once you’ve gathered most of the clues, two optional objectives appear. One is reading about the Red Miasmal in Geralt’s bestiary, which teaches you the best ways to defeat it. The other is crafting Reinald’s Philter, a potion that should make the fight against the Miasmal easier.
To craft the philter, open the alchemy menu, scroll down to “quests,” and select it. The recipe comes from the reddish shack in the large room with the plague victims’ ghosts, where you should find both the recipe and the ingredients. The priest’s testament, read at the alchemy station, also holds important information about the Miasmal.
“Apply specter oil to your weapon.”
That line comes from the Red Miasmal’s bestiary entry, which explains the three ways to get the upper hand in battle. The other two are trapping the specter with the Yrden sign and expelling it from the host’s body with Aard, and consuming Reinald’s Philter. But there’s a catch: if you give the potion to Reinald himself, you make the fight harder than it needs to be. Geralt should drink it instead.
The Boss Fight Against Possessed Reinald
The final chamber of The Devil’s Pit holds a large arena and a mysterious figure trapped in stones. He claims to be Reinald, but he’s clearly not himself. He’s possessed by the Red Miasmal, and the fight against him takes two phases.
First, defeat Possessed Reinald. He uses his Quen shield constantly, so don’t waste stamina attacking while it’s up. The easiest way to expel the Miasmal is to trap it with Yrden, then blast it with Aard. The second phase pits you against the Red Miasmal in its non-human form. It can teleport, summon minions, and fire a powerful ranged attack, so be ready to dodge whenever it teleports away.
Ending the Quest With a Choice
After the fight, Reinald asks you to bring the priest to him. You have two options.
- “Fine, I’ll get the priest.” Reinald and the priest meet at the bottom of The Devil’s Pit. Whether the priest survives depends on your next dialogue choices.
- “No. Not worth the risk.” Geralt and Reinald argue, but Reinald concedes. Geralt burns his body, and the priest never meets Reinald.
If you didn’t bring the priest to Reinald, you return to the priest outside. You can tell him what happened or say the details don’t matter. Neither choice changes much — the priest won’t believe you if you speak of the Eternal Fire cult’s crimes.
If you brought the priest to Reinald, you reach one of two endings. In the good outcome, the priest survives, leaves the Eternal Fire, and founds a hospital in The Devil’s Pit. Reinald’s ghost finds peace. In the bad outcome, Reinald murders the priest, does not find peace, and The Devil’s Pit becomes haunted by ghouls.
The guide offers specific lines to steer each ending. For the good ending, say “Boy’s innocent” and “Don’t need a church to do good, priest.” Those two lines should suffice, though the optional lines “Found a priest who sacrificed his life” and “What would you do, Reinald?” count as positive remarks too. For the bad ending, be critical of the priest. Say “Reinald’s right” and “Crimes like these can’t be forgiven.”
What We Make of This Guide
The guide is a useful companion for anyone working through “In the Eternal Fire’s Shadow,” but it’s worth noting that the quest itself is not new. It was added as part of The Witcher 3’s next-gen update in December 2022. That means players who upgraded their hardware saw content they may not have had access to before.
The structure of the quest — clues, a boss fight, and a branching ending — is standard Witcher fare. But the details are memorable. The voice urging you to save the trapped figure, the ghosts revealed by Keira’s lamp, the split paths you’re told to ignore — these are small touches that make the mine feel lived-in.
The boss fight is the highlight. Trapping a specter with Yrden and blasting it with Aard is a clever design, and the two-phase format keeps the encounter fresh. The potion system adds a layer of strategy too. Giving the philter to Reinald is a mistake you’ll regret, and the guide makes that clear.
The ending choices are the real draw. A hospital founded by a reformed priest, or a pit full of ghouls — that’s the kind of decision The Witcher 3 is known for. The guide’s advice on dialogue lines is practical, and it’s nice that it doesn’t force you into one path. You can make a strong case for the priest and live happily ever after, or you can let Reinald win and watch the pit fall apart.
The Forgotten Wolf armor diagrams are a neat reward too. They tie into the Netflix series, which has its own take on Geralt, and seeing that reference in a quest is a small nod to fans of both versions.
Key Facts Box
- Quest: “In the Eternal Fire’s Shadow”
- Reward: Forgotten Wolf School armor diagrams
- Added: The Witcher 3 next-gen update, December 2022
- Boss: Possessed Reinald / Red Miasmal
- Good ending: Priest survives, founds a hospital, Reinald’s ghost finds peace
- Bad ending: Priest murdered, The Devil’s Pit haunted by ghouls
The quest is a tight package of exploration, combat, and choice. It respects the player’s time by rewarding thorough investigation, and it gives you a reason to search every corner of The Devil’s Pit. The guide does its job well, pointing you toward the clues and the lines that matter without spoiling the surprise of finding them yourself.
Anyone who wants to reach the good ending should remember the two key lines: “Boy’s innocent” and “Don’t need a church to do good, priest.” Those words help shape the outcome, though the guide’s advice on dialogue lines is practical and flexible. The choice is yours, and the guide only points the way.
Source material: “'In the Eternal Fire's Shadow' quest walkthrough in The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt,” Polygon.
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