Swords in The Witcher 3 are the most important weapons for Geralt. His dual blades draw blood in every battle and never remain sheathed for too long. His silver sword slices into beasts; steel swords bring humans to the ground. These are the most powerful and aesthetically beautiful swords the game has to offer. Witcher swords from the various schools have been left out of this list in favour of relics and easter egg blades which hold rich backstories and varying stat boosts.

5. Bloodsword (early to midgame)

Draw blood with this silver blade!

Bloodsword Stats:

• 219 – 380 Damage (depends on level)
• +5-20% Critical hit damage bonus
• +1-4% Critical hit chance
• +9% Chance to cause bleeding
• +1-2% Chance to dismember

The Bloodsword is a beautifully crafted blade with a dark backstory. We find it during the Inheritance quest in a ruined house and discover it belonged to a soldier father who left the sword for his six-year-old son. Despite not being able to return the blade to its rightful owner, we can use it against beasts and monsters on the Continent.

As soon as you see a sword with a specific name, you know it’s going to be an item worth keeping. This silver sword deals out great damage from the early game when we can easily loot it. We can combine the bonus to critical hits with the Precise Blows and Crushing Blows abilities to maximise our destruction with a new character.

During the first stages of the game, beasts and monsters can easily overwhelm us. I remember dying to the first group of ghouls at the beginning of the game numerous times before realising the Witcher requires careful dodging and precise swordplay. Having a great sword with an even greater name allows us to break through the initial difficulty plateau before getting better equipment.

What Bloodsword is good for:

• Bloodsword’s impressive critical hit damage and chance bonuses increase the overall damage we can deal against monsters during the first part of the game.
• The 9% bleeding chance improves our battles as we can deal passive damage, leaving our enemies wounded throughout the fight.
• Bloodsword is easy to find, making it an effective blade for new players. We barely fight any enemies to finally loot the chest we find the sword in.

How to get Bloodsword:

Bloodsword can be looted during the Inheritance Treasure Hunt quest from a chest in the ruined house near Boxholm.

4. Moonblade (early to midgame)

Moonblade, the elven cutlass.

Moonblade stats:

• 79 – 362 Damage (level-based)
• +1 – 5% Yrden Sign intensity
• +10 – 15% Critical hit damage bonus
• +1 – 5% Critical hit chance
• +1% Chance to freeze

Moonblade is a beautifully crafted elven cutlass that sports a golden hilt supporting its thin, razor-sharp edge. The blade is detailed with glowing blue elven hieroglyphics, making it one of the most lovely and unique swords we can obtain. The blade itself is legendary; it belonged to a former Wolf witcher named Olach of Ban Glean and has remained in the game since the first instalment of the Witcher trilogy.

In the third game, we can obtain the legendary sword in three different ways making it easy to get a hold of. It reflects its original owner through the boosts the blade offers to our Yrden sign and the classic critical hit boosts. Additionally, the sword has a chance of freezing an opponent, leaving them vulnerable to the next flurry of slashes.

Towards the middle of the game, Moonblade is a helpful weapon which suits players who spend their abilities in Yrden. When we combine the sword with its sign, trapped and slowed-down enemies are left open to our critical hits within the purple sphere. However, its drawback is that the locations we find the blade in are difficult for low-level players and its damage can’t carry us into the later stages.

What Moonblade is good for:

• Moonblade offers an impressive amount of damage at the level we find it. The legendary sword will often outrank Witcher silver swords at their lower upgrade states.
• The sword is an almost perfect pairing for Yrden by increasing its effectiveness in battle.
• Though the chances of freezing an opponent are low when it happens, it truly incapacitates the monsters we face.

How to get Moonblade:

• After completing The Tower Outta Nowheres quest in Skellige Isle, Sigo Buntz rewards us with it.
• Can be dropped by Mad Kiyan, the insane Witcher, below Temple Isle.
• Looted at the Spoils of War below Swamp Bint Harbour.

3. Belhaven (midgame)           

Belhaven is the most powerful steel sword in the game!

Belhaven stats:

• 364-444.8 (at level 45)
• +30% Aard Sign intensity
• +100% Critical hit damage bonus
• +15% Critical hit chance
• +15% Chance to poison
• +5% Bonus experience from humans and nonhumans

Belhaven, named after the city to the north of Toussaint, is a blade that damages our human and non-magical enemies. It’s regarded by many players as the greatest steel sword in the game. As a relic, the sword contains a great number of stat boosts that enhance our execution of the soldiers, bandits, and thugs we eviscerate with it. Lastly, that serpentine look makes it a beautiful piece of steel in battle.

The sword was added to the Blood and Wine expansion, and we could not be more thankful for this addition. Although it is a blade for mid to late game, it won’t let you down in battle and likely will never have to be replaced once you have crafted it. During this stage of the game, even human enemies can pose a substantial threat.

A powerful technique involves coupling Belhaven with the Whirl combat ability to unleash a tornado of critical hits upon groups of enemies. There is no greater sight than seeing a ridged sword of raw power tearing through those foolish enough to surround us.

What Belhaven is good for:

• Tear through your enemies and coat Belhaven crimson with the sword’s incredible damage.
• Combining the 30% boost to Aard intensity with the sign in battle allows us to easily knock our foes to the ground before finishing them off. This sword can also be paired with Far-reaching Aard and Shock Wave to improve the damage the sign can do.
• The blade’s 15% chance to poison is impressively useful against humanoids who are vulnerable to slow-acting toxins.
• Belhaven increases our critical hit damage by 100%. This makes the silver sword perfect for one-hit builds.

How to get Belhaven:

The sword can be tricky to obtain. We find its Crafting Diagram from an underwater chest during Waiting for Goe and Doh. The sword must then be crafted using Leather scraps, Enriched Dimeritium ingots, acid extract, and a sapphire at a Master Blacksmith such as Hattori.

2. Aerondight (late game)

When a beautiful water nymph gifts you a sword in an RPG, you know it’s valuable!

Aerondight stats:

• Damage 477 - 638 (level-dependent)
• Every blow generates charges that increase damage by 10%. At full charge, every hit deals critical hit damage.
• Killing enemies while fully charged permanently increases damage.

Aerondight is another sword of legend that reflects the heroism and pure heart of its bearer. This is easily one of the most difficult swords to acquire as we make specific choices in various quests to be eligible as its owner. This silver blade was added to the trilogy in The Witcher 2; however, its most powerful rendition is in this last game.

The elven sword gifted to us by the Lady of the Lake is the second most powerful sword in the game because of its compounding damage effect. We can use its boost effectively with a Quen shield to prevent our charge from being lost when we’re hit. Another strategy involves stunning foes with Axii and dealing a simple one-hit kill to increase its damage.

Towards the end of the game, high damage is essential in a blade for powerful beasts and formidable bosses. Once we’ve maximised the sword’s damage, it easily destroys the health bars of numerous enemies, oftentimes we can one-hit kill weaker ones.

What Aerondight is good for:

• Without the increased damage boost, Aerondight has a relatively great starting damage.
• The sword can be combined with Witcher signs such as Axii, Quen, and Aard to defend against incoming blows and retain its full charge.
• Once the blade is completely charged, every hit can become a one-hit kill.
• We can couple the sword with abilities such as Precise Blows to maximise its critical hit damage.

How to get Aerondight:

We must display the five chivalric values during various quests in the game:

• Valour

During The Warble of a Smitten Knight, Geralt must complete and win the tournament or destroy any huge beast in Witcher contracts.

• Honour

During the same quest, we can display honour by keeping Vivienne’s secret or defeating a knight in the mounted duel during the tournament.

• Wisdom

Geralt can lift Vivienne’s curse during The Warble of a Smitten Knight or lift the curse on the Spotted Wight during La Cage au Fou.

• Compassion

There are various ways to display compassion such as sparing the Shaelmaar during The Beast of Toussaint or freeing the panther in The Big Game Hunter.

• Generosity

The easiest way to fulfil this virtue involves paying the boy after the Blood Run quest for information on Detlaff.

After acquiring these virtues, we can defeat the hermit at Lac Celavy east of Corvo Bianco to get the blade.

1. Gesheft (late game)

The elegant Gesheft with its beautiful silver hilt trimmings and mysterious inscription.

Gesheft stats:

- Land of a Thousand Fables

• Damage 459-561
• +20% Aard Sign intensity
• +20% Igni Sign intensity
• +20% Quen Sign intensity
• +20% Yrden Sign intensity
• +20% Axii Sign intensity

- Crafted

• Damage 508-620
• +30% Aard Sign intensity
• +100% Critical hit damage bonus
• +15% Critical hit chance
• +15% Chance to poison
• +5% Bonus experience from monsters

Gesheft is a Witcher’s dream; it boosts every Witcher sign by 20% and scales to Geralt’s level. This sword is a final game item that completes almost every build. The blade is an easter egg that hints at Dark Souls and truly reflects its origin. The sword stands up against mighty beasts and may even be a worthy weapon in a Souls game. Gesheft deals tremendous damage against the highest-level enemies the game can offer.

The sword comes in two variants. Its crafted rendition is perfect for one-hit kill builds due to its great critical hit chance boosts; the quest version boosts every sign. Both swords are great for the final phases of the game as they deal a significant amount of damage and enable us to use our signs at their most powerful level.

What Gesheft is good for:

• Gesheft’s damage scales to the player beyond Level 40, allowing us to use the sword throughout the ending act of the game.
• The quest version of the sword boosts all signs. We can use the sword alongside all of our Witcher signs in combat.
• Combining the quest sword’s boosts with sign abilities maximises their usage in battle.
• The crafted rendition is perfect for one-hit kill builds as it combines poison effects with critical hit bonuses.

How to get Gesheft:

• The quest item can be found during the Land of a Thousand Fables quest by following the Will o’ the Wisp before entering the castle and sitting beside the campfire.
• The crafted item’s diagram is acquired in the monster den north of Basane Farm in eastern Toussaint.

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