Witcher 3 Feet as Cold as Ice: Full Walkthrough, Choices and Rewards

Updated October 3, 2026. "Feet as Cold as Ice" is a monster-hunting quest from the Blood and Wine expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Jacquette in Beauclair asks Geralt to find her betrothed, the young knight François le Goff, who went off to kill a beast called Grottore. The beast turns out to be a spriggan living in a cave at the foot of Mount Gorgon. The choices that matter come down to two things: whether you keep François alive, and whether you talk him into going home.

Where "Feet as Cold as Ice" fits in The Witcher 3

This is a Blood and Wine quest set in Toussaint, so you need the expansion installed (it ships with the Complete Edition). Some guides list it as a contract. The Witcher wiki and GameBanshee file it under Blood and Wine side quests. Almar's Guides notes that you don't get it from a notice board. It comes from talking to people or from stumbling onto the cave.

The quest's Polish title, according to the Witcher wiki, is "Jeśli nie chcesz mojej zguby…" ("If you do not wish my downfall"). That's a line from the Polish comedy Zemsta, which fits a story about a knight making grand vows to a woman he isn't sure he wants to marry.

Quest summary

Recommended level and preparation

CD Projekt Red recommends level 35 to begin Blood and Wine. Guides such as MMO4Ever list this quest at around level 45, which makes it one of the tougher fights in Toussaint. The fight itself isn't complicated, though. Gamepressure calls Grottore "not a very requiring task" once you know what it is.

The trouble is that you won't know what it is until you're inside the cave and have read its Bestiary entry. So prepare ahead of time:

• Relict Oil on your silver sword. Grottore is a spriggan, which is a relict.
• Dimeritium Bombs. Almar's Guides and Gamepressure both list them as effective against Grottore.
• Igni. You need it to complete the quest, and Grottore is weak to fire. The Witcher wiki notes that it resists Aard, so don't rely on that sign.
• Golden Oriole (GameBanshee recommends Superior Golden Oriole) to deal with the poison from the archespores.

If you're still working out a build, our guide to Witcher 3 combat basics is worth reading. Grottore punishes players who stand still.

How to start Feet as Cold as Ice

There are three ways in, and the opening journal entry changes depending on which one you use.

1. Jacquette in Beauclair. She waits near the Nilfgaardian Embassy in the southwestern part of the city. She tells you that François left about two weeks ago to hunt the beast Grottore and prove his love for her. You can haggle over the fee here. Starting this way, the journal opens with Dandelion's line "Any semblance of false modesty aside…".
2. François's camp. If you find the knight first, he's asleep at a hilltop camp northwest of Beauclair Palace. Gamepressure places it west of the Tourney Grounds.
3. The cave itself. Wander into Grottore's cave and the quest starts on its own. Starting from the camp or the cave, the journal opens with "Few know just how nosy Geralt actually is…".

Starting with Jacquette is the cleanest route, because it settles the fee before you head out.

Full walkthrough, step by step

1. Find François

Follow the quest marker to the camp. Talk to François, then follow him to the nearby cave. This is the most important moment in the quest. If you let him go in alone, or you're slow to follow, he dies. GameBanshee says that if you don't follow him in right away, "he'll get killed". The Witcher wiki's dialogue branch says the same thing: letting him fight alone gets him killed.

2. Investigate the cave with Witcher Senses

Inside, switch on your Witcher Senses and look at the red-highlighted clues. Guides describe these as:

• bones and tools on the southern side,
• flowers growing around the underground lake,
• moving vines in the southern section,
• a cradle with children's shoes, and infant bones.

The clues point to a creature that has been preying on children. Once you've checked them, the next objective is to read the Bestiary entry.

3. Read the Bestiary entry on Grottore

Open the Bestiary and read Grottore's entry. It confirms that the beast is a spriggan. Part of the entry reads: "Spriggans usually prefer isolated backwoods and rarely make dens in caverns. Yet Grottore seemed to have taken a liking to 'grottos'". Reading it unlocks the next step.

4. Burn the flowers with Igni

Use Igni to set the red flower clusters on fire. GameBanshee says burning three of the four clusters draws Grottore out. Gamepressure describes burning large plants in three spots in the cave. GameBanshee also marks roots blocking access to Grottore's lair, which you clear the same way.

5. Defeat Grottore

Kill Grottore, and if François is with you, keep him alive while you do it. Tips for the fight are in the next section.

6. Talk to François and return to Jacquette

If François survives, talk to him after the fight to make your choice (see below), then go back to Jacquette in Beauclair to collect your reward. If he died, his body is in the main chamber, and you still return to Jacquette with the bad news.

How to beat Grottore (spriggan boss fight)

Grottore fights much like the other spriggans and leshens in the game. Archespores come out of the ground around the arena, and the boss closes gaps by teleporting. The Witcher wiki's advice is to dodge between its strikes and keep your distance right after it teleports, because a burst of attacks follows.

• Apply Relict Oil before you light the last flower cluster.
• Open with a Dimeritium Bomb, then hit it with Igni and your silver sword between its attacks. That's the order Gamepressure recommends.
• Kill the archespores first if they're crowding you. GameBanshee notes that if you have the right setup (for example, Golden Oriole while poisoned), their poison can actually heal you.
• Stay close to François. The wiki's advice is to fight near him so he isn't left alone with the boss. GameBanshee recommends killing the spriggan quickly so he doesn't fall.

If you keep getting caught by its combos, practise parrying and counterattacking elsewhere first. Against a fast monster like this, dodging is usually safer than blocking.

Choices and consequences: save François or not?

Two decisions shape how the quest ends. Here is how the guides describe each outcome.

Which choice is best?

Always go in with François and keep him alive. It's the only route where nobody dies, and per the Witcher wiki it also counts toward a virtue for the Aerondight questline (more on that below). After that, it depends on what you care about.

• For the story: convince him to return. It's the only ending where the couple gets married.
• For loot: let him go and keep the Grottore Trophy. Its bonus, a +5% chance to find an additional herb, is small. Most players won't miss it.

Either choice pays out, so the decision is mostly about which ending you'd rather see. Choices like this don't affect the ending of the main story. For those, see our Witcher 3 endings explained guide.

Rewards, loot and missable items

• Jacquette's fee. You can haggle when she offers the job. Guides don't agree on the exact amount, which depends on how the haggling goes.
• XP. GameBanshee lists 200 XP for both endings. Quest XP in The Witcher 3 is reduced if you are far above the quest's level.
• Grottore Trophy. Only available if François survives and you let him leave. It gives a +5% chance to find an additional herb.
• Fen'aeth. GameBanshee reports a leveled silver sword called Fen'aeth on Grottore's corpse. Loot Grottore before you leave the cave.
• Armor dye formula. GameBanshee reports a random armor dye formula on a skeleton in Grottore's lair. It's easy to walk past, so search the lair with Witcher Senses after the fight.

What you can miss

The only outcome you can lose for good is François surviving. Talk to him and then wander off, and he goes in alone and dies. That locks you out of the wedding ending, the trophy and (per the wiki) the Valor proof. Save before you speak to him at the camp.

Related quests: There Can Be Only One and Aerondight

The Witcher wiki's page for this quest says that saving François counts as proof of Valor for "There Can Be Only One". That is the Blood and Wine quest where Geralt shows five knightly virtues (Valor, Honor, Compassion, Generosity and Wisdom) to earn the silver sword Aerondight. GameBanshee also links this quest to Valor.

The wiki's own page for "There Can Be Only One" lists winning the tournament in "The Warble of a Smitten Knight" as the way to prove Valor. Don't count on François alone. If you want the sword, win the tournament as well. Our Aerondight guide covers every virtue, and the full Witcher 3 quest list shows where this quest sits among the other Toussaint side quests.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources checked on October 3, 2026 against the Witcher wiki (witcher.fandom.com), GameBanshee, Almar's Guides, Gamepressure, MMO4Ever and CD Projekt Red's Blood and Wine level guidance.