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The Witcher 3's Hearts of Stone packs in a lot of content, despite its short six-quest main storyline. Between rumors of a Toad Prince, being taken prisoner, fulfilling impossible tasks, lifting curses, and seeing out a magically binding contract with a soul-eating devil-like figure, Geralt will find himself rather busy. What's more, he'll have all of this dropped on him straight out of the gate in the very first quest, Evil's Soft First Touches.
When perusing the notice board outside the Seven Cats Inn for the first time, a man will come to post another contract while Geralt surmises the trivial matters in the other ones. After some chit-chat about what the job entails and inquiry into who ordered it, Geralt can turn back to the board to grab the quest. Though keep in mind, Evil's Soft First Touches has a suggested level of 32, so if you stopped by the Seven Cats on Geralt's first trip into Novigrad, he would likely be woefully underprepared to take on the challenges ahead.
Evil's Soft First Touches Quest Locations
When Geralt is ready to meet the demands of this undertaking, which will include going head to head with three of the four most significant fights in the Hearts of Stone expansion, he should seek out Olgierd Von Everec at the Garin Estate. The Garin Estate lies Northeast of Novigrad, out past the Winespring Grange.
Here you will run into a band of ruffians who've taken up residence and, depending on how Geralt goes about dealing with the "band of idiots," he'll need to throw down in a fistfight against one of them before they will take him to Olgierd. Geralt may avoid a brawl if he can refrain from witty retorts to their mockery.
The Sewers of Oxenfurt
Without giving too much away for any first-time players, Geralt will be sent to deal with a monster lurking in the Oxenfurt sewers, which need to be accessed from the well in the northern square of the city. Once in the sewers beneath the city, Geralt will have to rely on his witcher senses to navigate the sewers and pick up a set of female footprints, which will lead him unexpectedly to his old acquaintance, Shani.
Navigating further into the sewers with Shani isn't terribly difficult after using Aard on the crumbling wall nearby, with only a handful of Drowners to deal with. After slaying the first batch of Drowners, loot the fallen soldiers in the vicinity to find the key that Shani mentions opens the gate to the further part of the sewers. Continuing on, Geralt will need to continue utilizing his witcher senses to deduce the monster is drawn to alcohol, and after dispatching another group of Drowners, use alcohol in the large opening to draw the monster out.
The Toad Prince
Don't make the mistake of thinking this is a typical monster contract because it's the very first quest of the Heart of Stone Expansion.
We've already written up a detailed guide on how best to defeat the Toad Prince, just know the cursed monster can dole out grievous damage in a single strike. This is one instance where a strong sign build will serve Geralt well as Quen is essential and tactical usage of Yrden and Igni can help Geralt turn the tides.
Indeed, it wasn't just rumors contrived to ensnare fanciful maidens. The monster Geralt slays is, in fact, a cursed prince, which will land the witcher in his next predicament.
The Ofieri
After succumbing to toxins in the sewer, Geralt will come to only to find himself a prisoner on a ship of the Ofieri soldiers whose prince he just killed. Again, leaving the details up to CD Projekt Red's excellent storytelling, Geralt will be reintroduced to Gaunter O'Dimm, who will offer to help him out of his current bind for a favor in return. This pact is the true catalyst of the expansion as Geralt will spend the rest of the expansion trying to remove the evidence of the arrangement from the side of his face.
The Ofieri Mage
Gaunter's form of helping turns out to be crashing the ship by supernatural means. However, Geralt once again finds himself knocked unconscious and awakes, this time, bound and being dragged across the beach. After the cutscene, the soldiers aren't too difficult to dispatch, as long as you remember to reequip Geralt's gear and remain tactful while largely outnumbered.
The mage guiding the soldiers is another matter. The Ofieri Mage is the second boss fight of the expansion, and we've given an entire rundown of how to deal with him as well. Unlike other mages, this one seems oddly resistant to Dimeritium Bombs. Still, by loading up on witcher decoctions and studying the sorcerer's patterns, Geralt can find a way to get close enough to strike. The best thing to do is avoid the mage altogether until Geralt has dealt with the soldiers.
The Garin Estate
Upon returning to the Garin Estate, Geralt will find it ablaze with a personal gang execution about to take place. There are three dialogue options here, the first and last ending with the man's death. However, if Geralt decides to step in by threatening the other bandits, he will have to face Olgierd Von Everec.
Dueling Olgierd Von Everec
Von Everec is deemed one of the most difficult human enemies Geralt will have to face throughout the entire game, though not technically a boss, as the encounter is technically optional and bears no weight on the proceedings of the questline. Olgierd's strength is capable of one-shotting Geralt with nearly every move. This power, coupled with his ability to flash around the makeshift arena, makes him very dangerous. Still, Olgierd's not infallible, and one of his most significant weaknesses lies in his savage attacks. Von Everec uses a charge attack that Geralt must dodge for evident reasons. But he should stay poised to strike as well because if he can catch Olgierd mid-charge, he will falter in his attack, giving Geralt an additional opening to whittle his health down. Overall, patience is key here.
No matter the fight's outcome, Olgierd will prove a man of his word and pay Geralt their agreed sum. He will then further enlist Geralt's services for the quests, Open Sesame! and Dead Man's Party.