Yaren Bolt

Yaren Bolt is a dwarf who leads a crew of woodcutters in the lumberjacks’ glade in the Swamp Forest outside Vizima, where they fell the ancient yews of the swamp for fine wainscoting. He keeps his men on a tight leash, which he insists is for their own safety, since some of them would never make it home without him. He has a low opinion of the local brickmakers, whom he sees as trainable simpletons useful to his business.

In The Witcher

Geralt meets Yaren in Act II. Ask him for work and he offers Flowers and Gold, a little side business: Geralt picks five beggartick blossoms, the ferryman at the swamp landing buys them, and Yaren expects half the money for the tip. Geralt can share the profits or keep the lot, but keeping it leaves Yaren sore for a while.

After that comes A Long Way from Home. The lumberjacks are cut off from their supplies, and Yaren has two problems for the witcher. First, the road between the glade and the Clay Pits has to be cleared, which means fighting off bloedzuigers, drowners and echinopsae. Second, there is the matter of the vodyanoi:

• Fight: a vodyanoi warrior appears at the altar by the Clay Pits around midnight. Killing him is the simple route, and Yaren pays 400 orens.
• Make peace: Vaska, the brickmakers’ eldress, suggests the lumberjacks offer their weapons as a peace gesture. Yaren thinks it is nonsense but hands over his axe. Leave it on the altar, and that night the vodyanoi warrior swaps it for a Vodyanoi Amulet, which Yaren will pay for. This route gives a little more experience.

Good to know

• If Geralt kept all the beggartick money, wait a day and Yaren brings up A Long Way from Home himself.
• Do not leave the Swamp Forest while A Long Way from Home is active: the quest fails, and Yaren accuses Geralt of sightseeing.
• A homesick lumberjack at the camp needs money to get back to his sick children. Buying his junk lets him go home.