Here, we’ll look at a powerful Witcher 3 build focused on the Aard and Yrden Signs. This build excels at dishing out massive AOE damage to multiple enemies at once and can perma-stun most non-boss enemies. It will work fine on any difficulty, including Death March. 

While it will take a long time to get all the items to perfect the build (unless you are already high level), we have included a progression table in the Skills section so you can gradually create the build as you level up. 

This build is now up to date with Witcher 3: Remastered, incorporating various new Skills that buff Aard-focused builds more than ever.

Table of Contents:

We’ll now cover the basics of how this build works and how to play it. 

Witcher 3 Aard Build Overview

Witcher 3 Aard Build

This Witcher 3 Aard build focuses on high Sign Intensity, and the main tools we use are the Aard and Yrden signs, which combine to give us powerful crowd control and high AOE damage against most enemy types in the game. 

We used the Griffin School Armour set to further enhance our sign-casting abilities and empower our Yrden sign. 

The alternate version of Aard lets us cast the sign in a 360-degree area around Geralt, knocking back and damaging everything nearby, and we use the Piercing Cold Mutation to further boost the damage and add a chance to freeze enemies hit by Aard. 

In combat, it’s usually best to start by placing an alternate Yrden sign if you have time to cast it, or a normal Yrden if not. Then switch to Aard and cast it as often as possible to deal huge AOE damage to enemies. Remember to refresh the Yrden if it runs out; that way, we don’t miss out on any buffs. 

You can see this Aard build in action in the How to Play section.

Witcher 3 Aard Build Armour and Weapons

Aard Build Armour

To create this Witcher 3 Aard Build, we recommend using Grandmaster Griffin Witcher Gear.

You can craft the basic version of this armour early in the game, but you won’t get access to the fully upgraded version until much later. The basic version is still very strong relative to the enemies you’ll face at that point in the game, even on Death March difficulty. Keep upgrading it when you reach the required level for the next tier, and you’ll stay one step ahead of almost everything the game throws at you. 

We need the fully upgraded (Grandmaster) version to maximise this build’s potential; however, it can work without it, but it just won’t be as strong. To learn how to obtain and upgrade the Griffin Armour, check out our Griffin Armour Guide.

Why the Griffin Armour is so Powerful

The Griffin Armour is useful for this Witcher 3 Aard Build for a few different reasons:

  • Sign Intensity – All of your signs are stronger.
  • Free Sign Casting – Whenever you cast a standard sign, you can cast another one for free. This is great for maintaining a Quen shield or dealing extra damage with Igni against enemies who are resistant to Aard.
  • Yrden Buffs – Standing within the radius of a standard Yrden gives a massive 100% buff to Sign Intensity, plus boosted stamina regen and reduced damage taken from enemy attacks. 

Weapon and Armour Upgrades

Here are the recommended upgrades for your gear:

witcher 3 grandmaster griffin armour icon Grandmaster Griffin Chest Armour – witcher 3 entanglement glyphword iconEntanglement Glyphword

  • Effect – Automatically casts a Standard Yrden trap at the location of any enemy hit by Alternate Yrden.
  • How to Get – Fund the first two upgrades for the Runewright, then talk to him and craft the rune in the Enchanting menu.
  • Alternative – If you haven’t unlocked this rune yet, use witcher 3 greater glyph of aard icon Greater Glyphs of Aard or witcher 3 greater glyph of yrden icon Greater Glyphs of Yrden in the meantime.

witcher 3 grandmaster griffin gauntlets icon Grandmaster Griffin Gauntlets, witcher 3 grandmaster griffin trousers icon Trousers & witcher 3 grandmaster griffin boots icon Boots – witcher 3 greater glyph of aard icon Greater Glyph of Aard (all slots)

  • Effect – Increases your Aard Sign Intensity.
  • How to Get – Merchants, random loot, monster loot, or crafted by combining 2x witcher 3 glyph of aard icon Glyph of Aard.
  • Alternative – If you don’t have enough to fill all slots, temporarily substitute with weaker Aard glyphs or greater glyphs of other signs, prioritising Yrden.

witcher 3 grandmaster griffin steel sword icon Grandmaster Griffin Steel Sword & witcher 3 grandmaster griffin silver sword icon Silver Sword – witcher 3 greater veles runestone icon Greater Veles Runestones (all slots)

  • Effect – Gives you a flat boost to your Sign Intensity.
  • How to Get – Merchants, random loot, monster nests, or crafted by combining 2x witcher 3 veles runestone icon Veles Runestones
  • Alternative – Use weaker versions of the Veles Runestone until you can get the Greater tier. Or any other spare runestones if you want to save all your Veles for crafting.

You can find the Runewright in the far northeast of the Novigrad and Oxenfurt region, near the Upper Mill Signpost, east of Brunwich village. 

Witcher 3 Aard Build Skills

Witcher 3 Aard Build Skills

The table below shows the ideal order to unlock Skills for this Witcher 3 Aard Build, so you can start using the build from the moment you begin your adventure. The number in brackets indicates how many skill points to invest in each skill.

Skill Explanation
Muscle Memory (x3) Gives a helpful early-game buff to your fast attack damage, triggered by dodging.
Delusion (x3) Unlocks all Axii dialogue options. Skip this if you don’t want to use Axii to manipulate minds in dialogue.
Far-Reaching Aard (x3) Increases Aard’s range.
Aard Sweep (x3) Hold down Aard to unleash a shockwave in all directions.
Sustained Glyphs (x3) Boosts the duration of your Yrden. We will need this later on to buff Aard.
Magic Trap (x3) Hold down Yrden to create a static trap that zaps nearby enemies, slowing them down.
Supercharged Glyphs (x3) Enemies inside your Yrden traps lose HP every second.
Griffin School Techniques (x3) Each piece of Medium Armour equipped boosts your Sign Intensity and Stamina Recovery.
Shockwave (x3) Increases Aard’s damage by a percentage of your remaining HP.
Catalyst (x3) Greatly increases the intensity of Aard and Igni against enemies inside Yrden.
Focus (x3) Each Adrenaline Point boosts Sign Intensity.
Aftershock (x3) Casting any Sign deals magic damage in a small radius.
Resonance (x3) Casting a sign buffs your next three melee attacks. This helps against enemies resistant to Igni.
Metabolic Control (x1) We only need one point to unlock the next skill.
Synergy (x3) Increases the bonus from slotted Mutagens. Slot red & blue skills next to a matching Mutagen!

To unlock and fully upgrade these skills for your Witcher 3 Aard Build, you need 43 Skill Points. There are two ways to get more skill points: each time you level up, you will receive one, and the first time you interact with a newly discovered Place of Power, you’ll also receive one. 

Important: Remember to slot your skills to enable them! You’ll unlock more slots as you level up. When you can, get an extra stat bonus by rearranging your skills so they are all slotted next to a matching mutagen (applies only to red, blue, and green skills).

Mutation for the Witcher 3 Aard Build

Aard Build Piercing Cold Mutation

To unlock the Mutation system, you’ll need the Blood and Wine DLC and to complete the quest called Turn and Face the Strange. 

For this Witcher 3 Aard Build, it is highly recommended to unlock and activate the Piercing Cold mutation. Doing this will require 6 Greater Blue Mutagens and 6 spare skill points. So, in total, this build needs 41 skill points to complete. 

The Piercing Cold Mutation gives Aard a chance to freeze enemies (the chance scales based on how many Adrenaline Points you have, starting at 30%). Enemies who aren’t frozen take extra damage from the Aard sign instead, and you can also insta-kill enemies who are knocked down and frozen at the same time. 

This makes alternate Aard the bread and butter of this build, able to cause complete havoc among our enemies, and the effort we’ve put into our sign intensity and stamina regen means that we’ll be able to cast Aard and Yrden almost constantly and deal considerable damage with them each time. 

Potions and Bombs for the Witcher 3 Aard Build

Here are the best Potions and Bombs for the Witcher 3 Aard Build:

witcher 3 ekimmara decoction icon Ekimmara Decoction

  • Heals you whenever you deal damage.
  • Gives massive healing from the AoE damage Geralt deals with Aard and Yrden.
  • Find the recipe in a chest on the riverbank south of Ransacked Village in White Orchard.

witcher 3 ancient leshen decoction icon Ancient Leshen Decoction

  • Accelerates your Stamina Recovery every time you cast a sign.
  • This is arguably overkill because we already have lots of Stamina Recovery. But if you want to go crazy with it then this will allow you to.
  • Find the recipe in the ransacked courtyard outside Triss’ House in Novigrad, or in the Allgod’s cellar in Velen.

witcher 3 petris philter icon Superior Petri’s Philter

  • Increases your Sign Intensity for a short time.

witcher 3 swallow icon Superior Swallow

  • Heals Geralt over time.

witcher 3 white raffards icon Superior White Raffard’s Decoction

  • Instantly heals Geralt for a large amount of HP.
  • Despite its name, this behaves like a normal potion rather than a Decoction.

witcher 3 tawny owl icon Superior Tawny Owl

  • Significantly increases Geralt’s Stamina Recovery.
  • Helps with the rapid Sign casting required for this build, particularly when you’re missing items or skills.
  • The basic version is already in your inventory at the start of the game – most new players overlook this very helpful item.

witcher 3 northern wind icon Superior Northern Wind

  • Freezes enemies within the bomb’s radius.
  • Completely optional; bombs aren’t required for this build. But this is a good thematic fit for players who like using bombs.

Note that you can only use one Decoction at a time, because we haven’t invested in any alchemy skills for this build. An active Decoction also means you won’t be able to drink potions as often because of the high toxicity.

Don’t worry if you don’t have all of these right away. The basic and Enhanced versions of the potions are almost as good as the Superior version.

How to Play the Witcher 3 Aard Build, with Video

Here is a quick video about the Witcher 3 Aard Build. You can see the devastation it pulls off with huge explosions to defeat pretty much any enemy around you.

While the above video shows the build’s endgame, you won’t be able to play like that for the whole playthrough (unless it’s New Game Plus). Below are some pointers on how to play the build throughout your adventure:

Early-Game (Level 1-14)

  • We still use melee combat often because we don’t have many buffs for our Aard or Yrden signs.
  • Try and remember to dodge often to activate the Muscle Memory skill.
  • Weave Signs like Aard, Igni and Quen into combat.
  • Around level 10, start collecting the Griffin Armour & Weapon Set, which will set you up for the rest of the game.

Mid-Game (Level 15-33)

  • Aard’s damage still isn’t great, so supplement it with sword attacks and the Igni sign.
  • Begin playing into the Catalyst skill, baiting enemies into your Yrden trap and hitting them with Aard and Igni.
  • Use the witcher 3 tawny owl icon Tawny Owl potion if you need extra stamina recovery. It’s one of the most overlooked potions in The Witcher 3.
  • Keep upgrading your Griffin Armour as you reach the required levels to wear the next tier.

Late-Game (Level 34+)

  • This phase begins as soon as you complete the Mastercrafted Griffin Armour and equip it.
  • Your Yrden AoE is now much larger and buffs Geralt’s Sign Intensity, while also making enemies within it more vulnerable to Aard.
  • Try to ensure Geralt and the enemies are within Yrden, then spam alternate Aard (the 360-degree version).
  • Once you have the witcher 3 entanglement glyphword iconEntanglement Glyphword on your chest armour, start combat with Alternate Yrden, which automatically creates multiple regular Yrdens to buff Geralt’s sign power and debuff enemies.
  • Once you get the Piercing Cold Mutation, your Aard will deal more damage and freeze enemies, instantly killing enemies who are knocked down and frozen simultaneously.

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