Barricade (quest)

**Barricade** is a quest in the Prologue of *The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings*. The quest is part of At the Fore quest and starts when Foltest orders Geralt to prepare the ballista in the courtyard under the castle walls.

## Walkthrough

**Spoiler warning:** *Significant plot details follow.*
Geralt and Foltest's army approach La Valette Castle walls by the siege tower. A group of defenders block the way. After the crew has been eliminated, the king orders Geralt to activate a ballista in the courtyard of the castle and break down the first gate.

Geralt must use a wooden scaffolding to reach the courtyard below. As he arrives, three soldiers attack him. The fight is not that hard, but take care not to be surrounded. There are more arbalists on the stairs to the right of the scaffolding. Kill them. When the area is safe, you can use it as a shelter to recover Geralt's vitality and vigor before the next fight.

On the left of the wooden scaffolding, there is the ballista protected by more soldiers. This area can be reached using two slightly different routes. Two of them are well armored knights, so this fight is more difficult than the previous one. Once again, be careful to not let them surround Geralt. You can use the safe area to recover, since they will not pursue Geralt that far. They always stay around the ballista. Use Quen sign to protect Geralt. You can also cast Axii to charm one of the opponents and let him attack the others. Or you can use some bombs, like Samum, to stun them and divide the group.

When the group has been eliminated, you can prepare the ballista using . Keep rapidly clicking the mouse button until the bar to the right is fully charged (this takes a bit of dedication). The yellow bar must be filled quickly enough or else more soldiers arrive and Geralt must kill them and then attempt to cock the ballista all over again. Then repeat the operation to aim the ballista in the right direction. Another group of enemies attacks Geralt. This fight is much easier than the previous one. After the preparation is complete, Geralt fires the ballista and the blow destroys the gate.

At this point, Geralt can continue on past the ballista toward the back of the courtyard. While facing the gate, there is a small alcove on the right with a hay wagon where a body dressed in white can be seen. Finding this body confers the Assassin skill, though the side trip is optional.

The next step of the quest is to join Foltest on the walls. You cannot climb back up the same scaffolding used to enter the area. This time you need to go up the stairs to reach a higher point where Geralt can climb a different scaffolding and rejoin the king.

Note: there's a Circle of Power to the left of the ballista when you approach it from the place where you dropped down. It will give you extra sign intensity.

## Journal entry

*Foltest's assault lost momentum at one of the castle towers. The army that had raged like a hurricane until now suddenly stopped at the barricade the defenders had erected at the tower's entrance. There was no way to approach it, as La Valette arrows rained down from above like snowflakes at Yuletide. Luckily, in a nearby square stood a ballista that the defenders had failed to position on the walls. Geralt spotted the war machine and decided to use it to destroy the barricade. First, however, he had to overcome the soldiers guarding it.*
*Seeing what was about to happen, La Valette soldiers converged on the ballista to stop the witcher. Our hero would need to repel them, and only then could he aim the machine at the barricade blocking access to the tower.*
*In a desperate bid to stop the witcher, another wave of La Valette soldiers swarmed upon him. Our hero was forced to step away from the ballista once again to defend himself. He could launch the bolt only after dealing with the attackers.*
*In the end, Geralt manned the ballista with the skill of a consummate artilleryman. Hit by the heavy bolt from the machine, the makeshift barricade shattered into bits, and Foltest's troops resumed their assault on the tower. The witcher followed them to rejoin Foltest on the walls.*
*With Geralt back at his side, Foltest continued the assault on La Valette Castle.*