You’re wandering through the rain-slicked streets of Novigrad, minding your own business, when Zoltan Chivay pulls you into a mess. Typical. If you’ve spent any real time in The Witcher 3, you know that a "quick favor" for a friend usually ends in a pile of corpses or a massive blow to your coin purse. A Dangerous Game is exactly that kind of mess. It’s a side quest that feels like a main story beat because, honestly, the stakes are weirdly high for a bunch of cardboard rectangles.
We’re talking about Gwent cards. Rare ones. Specifically, the Fringilla Vigo, Isengrim, and John Natalis cards.
Most players stumble into this quest after finishing "A Poet Under Pressure," and while it seems like a simple fetch-and-retrieve mission, it’s one of those rare moments where your choices actually dictate whether you walk away with a completed collection or a gaping hole in your deck. It’s buggy. It’s frustrating. It involves a lot of running around. But if you want that "Collect 'Em All" trophy, you literally cannot skip it.
The Setup: Why Zoltan is Broke Again
Zoltan owes money. A lot of it. He’s trying to clear his debt by selling three ultra-rare Gwent cards to a buyer who probably has more money than sense. This is where Geralt comes in. You aren’t just a monster hunter anymore; you’re a high-stakes debt collector and art recovery specialist.
First stop is Zed’s place. It’s never easy, is it? You find him dead. Two thugs are ransacking the house, and you have to teach them some manners. Once they’re dealt with, you’ve got to find the Isengrim card. Most people miss this: search under the stairs. Use your Witcher Senses. If you don't find Zed's ledger, you're going to be wandering around his house like a lost puppy for twenty minutes.
The ledger reveals the other two cardholders: Caesar Bilzen and Ravvy. This is where the quest splits, and you can tackle them in any order, though Bilzen’s segment is significantly more interesting if you like snooping through people’s private lives.
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Breaking Into Caesar Bilzen’s Stash
Caesar Bilzen is a dwarf with a penchant for fishing—and apparently, a very secret hobby. When you arrive with Zoltan, the vibe is awkward. Zoltan’s plan is to get Caesar drunk while you "look for a bottle of wine." It’s a classic distraction play.
Upstairs, the room looks normal enough until you start poking around. There’s a knife on a table that acts as a key. Use it on the bookshelf. Suddenly, a secret door opens. This is the kind of environmental storytelling CD Projekt Red excels at; the room is filled with artifacts and, most importantly, the Fringilla Vigo card.
Don't just grab the card and bolt.
There’s an antique jade figurine on the dresser. Pick it up. This kicks off "The Statuette" side quest with Triss Merigold. If you forget it now, you might lose the chance to complete that quest later depending on where you are in the main story arc. It’s these little overlaps that make The Witcher 3 feel so alive, but they’re also a nightmare for completionists who hate backtracking.
As you leave, Cleaver’s henchmen show up. They want Caesar. You have a choice here: let them take him or intervene. Honestly? Caesar’s kind of a creep, but letting him get hauled off feels wrong. If you save him, he leaves Novigrad, and you’ve done your good deed for the day. If you don't, well, the city gets a little quieter.
The Tragedy of Ravvy and the Golden Sturgeon
Ravvy is a different story. He’s at the Golden Sturgeon, and he’s in way over his head. You’ll find him playing a game of Gwent against a guy named Earl. The stakes? Ravvy’s life.
You can try to win the John Natalis card in a game, or you can just wait for things to go south and fight your way out. If you're confident in your Northern Realms or Nilfgaard deck, play the game. It’s faster. If you lose, or if you just want to vent some steam, be prepared to draw your steel sword.
The Earl isn’t a tough fight, but the tight quarters of the tavern can make the camera go a bit wonky. Use Igni to create space. Once they're dead, loot Ravvy’s body—or talk to him if he survived—to get the final card.
The Duke Encounter: Don’t Let Him Get Away
Once you have all three cards, you meet Zoltan to finalize the deal. Surprise! It’s an ambush. The Duke, the guy who was supposed to buy the cards, kills the intermediaries and flees with the money.
The chase scene that follows is a notorious point of frustration. You’re running through the sewers and across rooftops. It’s linear, but if you lose sight of him, you fail the pursuit. He eventually ducks into a hideout.
When you corner him, he’s wounded. He offers you a deal. Or you can just finish him. There isn't a massive long-term consequence for the world state here, but finishing the job feels a lot more "Witcher" than letting a thief scurry off into the night. Check his body for the gold.
The Choice That Actually Matters
At the very end of A Dangerous Game, Zoltan offers you a choice. You can take the gold he owes you, or you can take the three rare cards.
Take the cards.
Money is easy to find in Velen and Skellige. You can sell monster parts, loot bandit camps, or just haggle better on contracts. But these three cards? You cannot get them anywhere else. If you choose the money, you are effectively locking yourself out of the "Card Collector" achievement/trophy for that entire playthrough. It’s a trap for players who are short on crowns in the mid-game. Don't fall for it.
Why People Get This Quest Wrong
Most guides treat this as a simple checklist. They miss the nuance of the timing. If you trigger certain world events—like the departure of the mages from Novigrad—the NPCs involved in this quest can become unavailable or the quest might fail entirely if you've already started it and left it hanging.
Also, the Isengrim card is technically a "missable" item. If you finish the quest and don't take the cards as your reward, you're done. There is no merchant in the game that will sell them to you later.
Actionable Steps for a Perfect Run
To ensure you don't mess up this specific thread of the Novigrad storyline, follow these specific beats:
- Clear your schedule: Start this quest only after you’ve rescued Dandelion but before you start the final preparations for the "Now or Never" quest with Triss.
- Loot everything at Zed's: Don't just grab the card. Read the ledger. It triggers the necessary map markers so you aren't guessing where to go next.
- The Jade Statuette: Double-check Caesar’s secret room for the figurine. It’s on the right-hand side as you enter the secret area.
- Save Ravvy: It’s just easier. Playing the Gwent match is the "cleanest" way to finish that segment without making a scene in the tavern.
- The Chase: Stay close to the Duke. Use your mini-map to track his icon if he rounds a corner and you lose visual contact.
- The Reward: Always, always choose the cards. If you need money, go kill some Sirens in Skellige and sell their fins.
This quest is a microcosm of why The Witcher 3 works. It takes something trivial—collecting cards—and wraps it in murder, debt, and secret societies. It’s messy, it’s a bit chaotic, and it requires you to pay attention to the environment. Completing it doesn't just give you a better Gwent deck; it cements Geralt's loyalty to one of the few true friends he has left in a world that’s falling apart.
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Once you’ve got those cards, your next move should be heading to the High Stakes tournament at the Passiflora. You’ll finally have a deck strong enough to actually compete with the sharks there. Just make sure you save your game before entering—that tournament is a whole different level of pain.