Penitent

The penitent is a rare and powerful kind of wraith. Wherever it haunts is quickly swallowed by thick fog and darkness. It’s also agile for a specter: it can vanish and reappear in the blink of an eye to strike from behind, and it calls in other wraiths to protect it. Like most specters it’s bound to its haunting ground, and you can’t truly destroy it until that bond is broken.

In The Witcher 3 the penitent is the phantom of Eldberg, the target of Contract: The Phantom of Eldberg in Skellige. Jorund in Arinbjorn’s tavern tells Geralt that two men and the lighthouse keeper Mikkjal have disappeared, and the fog around the Eldberg Lighthouse has stopped ships from reaching port. You find Mikkjal hiding in a hut, then discover markings on the tower that point to a curse.

A letter inside the lighthouse reveals that Mikkjal hasn’t told the whole story. Only he can light the lighthouse fire to lift the curse, so you escort him back and hold off the penitent while he runs for the tower. Once the fire is lit the specter can die, and it drops a wraith trophy and the Ashrune. Depending on timing, returning to Arinbjorn can lead into Stranger in a Strange Land.

Combat strategy

This is a tough fight. Until Mikkjal lights the fire, you can damage the penitent but you can’t actually kill it, so the first part is about surviving. It also summons up to four regular wraiths that are much stronger than the weak copies a noonwraith creates. Keep moving, since it likes to teleport behind you, and lean on Yrden to keep it solid. Reliever’s or griffin decoctions help a lot here. Once Geralt remarks that the fire is lit, switch from defense to full offense and bring it down.