Hanged Man’s Tree

The Hanged Man’s Tree is a giant, gnarled tree on a hilltop overlooking the village of Mulbrydale in northern Velen. True to its name, about half a dozen bodies dangle from its branches: deserters from both the Temerian and the Nilfgaardian side, along with some unlucky villagers, left there as a reminder of the cruelty of war. Both armies did terrible things to keep the conquered population in line, and this tree is where Velen shows it most plainly.

In The Witcher 3

For most players this is the first glimpse of Velen. After the Imperial Audience in Vizima, Geralt travels on to Velen and arrives right here at the start of The Nilfgaardian Connection. Several new main quests appear in the journal at the same moment, but the road leads down through Mulbrydale to the Inn at the Crossroads.

One of the bodies belongs to Aldert Geert, the man you may have played gwent with in White Orchard. His unfinished book lies on the ground beneath him, and if you never won his card back then, his Zoltan Chivay card is here too. The game will mark it as missing in White Orchard, which has sent many collectors on a frustrating search.

The tree is also a meeting point. In An Eye for an Eye, Vernon Roche can wait for Geralt here before they ride after Ves, and in A Deadly Plot a wrecked shoemaker’s wagon lies a short way to the north, toward the Border Post.

Quests at the Hanged Man’s Tree

• The Nilfgaardian Connection
• An Eye for an Eye
• A Deadly Plot (the wagon north of the tree)

Good to know

• The tree has a fast travel signpost, one of the most useful in northern Velen.
• A caged merchant waiting to be rescued sits north of the tree, on the way to the Border Post.
• Win Aldert Geert’s card in White Orchard if you can. It saves you a trip.