TL;DR

• The prologue introduces Coen, his family, and the village of Laslea Glen before everything falls apart.
• You have 8 time segments before the Blood Mass — and there are far more quests than you can finish.
• Completing Withering Away correctly (hot water + three spoonfuls of herbs) is the most important choice — it decides if Esme survives.
• Deep Down is the best side quest — you get strong armor, good XP, and keep Lazar alive if done early.
• The prologue ends after a mine disaster, Brencis burns Laslea, and Coen wakes up as a Dawnwalker — a being that is human by day and vampire by night.
• All time-sensitive prologue quests become permanently missable after the Blood Mass ends.

Prologue in The Blood of Dawnwalker — Complete Walkthrough and Quest Guide

The prologue in The Blood of Dawnwalker is where your entire journey starts. It takes Coen, a young man from a small mountain village, through one of the worst days of his life. By the end of it, his home is burning, his family is gone, and he has woken up as something that is no longer fully human. This section is both a story setup and a tutorial — and it is far more important than most prologues you have played through before.

Before the Blood Mass begins at sundown, you will have exactly 8 time segments to spend. That sounds like enough, but the game throws more than 17 segments worth of quests at you. You cannot do everything. Choosing the right quests — and making the right choice when brewing medicine — will shape how the rest of the game begins. If you want a head start on earning resources, check out our Blood of Dawnwalker silver selling guide and learn how to spend early XP wisely with our guide on how to get ability slots in Blood of Dawnwalker.

How the Prologue Works

The prologue acts as the game’s tutorial. It teaches you basic movement, combat, Focus Mode, and the time progression system all at once. Think of it like The Witcher 3’s opening hours — you are being guided through everything you need to know, but the story still moves at a real pace.

Time in this game is split into segments. Each day has 8 time segments, and so does each night. Most quests use one or two segments to complete. Some use zero. A few will eat up more than you expect. The hourglass symbol in your quest log tells you how many segments a task will use. A clock icon means the quest is time-sensitive — skip it and it is gone forever once the Blood Mass arrives.

Getting caught stealing wastes 4 full segments. Unlocking some skills at shrines also uses segments. Keep both of those in mind before you act.

The Story of the Prologue

The day begins on a normal morning for Coen and his family. His mother Esme is sick. His father Pieter wants him to fetch stronger herbs from Anca, the local healer, before the night’s Blood Mass ceremony. You wake up, do some chores, grab your sword, and head out into the village of Laslea Glen.

That normal morning does not last long. The evening’s Blood Mass — a dark ritual tied to the vampire ruler Brencis — kicks off a chain of events that cannot be stopped. Pieter gets caught up in a village rebellion, drags Coen into a raid on the silver mines, and Brencis shows up to crush it all. Coen is bitten, thrown against a tree with a pickaxe, and left for the sun to kill him.

He wakes up in Anca’s house — alive, but changed. He is now a Dawnwalker: human by day, vampire by night. Brencis has taken his family and all the surviving villagers to his castle. They will be sacrificed at his coronation in 30 days. That 30-day countdown is the heartbeat of the entire game. The prologue exists to make sure that number means something to you before the open world begins.

Prologue Main Quests — In Order

All Good Things (Dream Sequence)

The very first thing you do in the game is not actually happening. Coen dreams of following Lunka, his sister, through a forest ravine. Soldiers appear. A fight breaks out. Coen suddenly shifts into his vampire form and tears through enemies using active abilities. You learn directional attacks, guarding, dodging, and target lock all in this one section.

This sequence ends when Coen wakes up. It was a nightmare — but it is also your first real look at what you will be able to do once the game fully opens up.

Withering Away (Main Quest — Do This Right)

This is the most important quest in the prologue. Pieter asks Coen to go to Anca’s house and get herbs for Esme’s medicine before Mass. When you arrive, Anca is not home. Use Focus Mode to spot clues — an unwatered garden, an empty water barrel — and follow her to the river.

She gives you the herbs. The recipe she explains is simple: use hot water and add three spoonfuls of herbs. Do not get this wrong. When you return home and prepare the medicine yourself, you must select hot water and three spoonfuls of herbs. If you use the wrong temperature or the wrong amount, Esme will die during the Blood Mass. That is a consequence that stays with you. For more detail on this specific quest, see our guide on how to make mother’s medicine in Blood of Dawnwalker.

Once the herbs are prepared and Esme drinks the medicine, Pieter invites Coen to train with him on the hill. Do not follow him yet. This locks away your remaining free time. Keep it open for side quests first.

Like Father, Like Son (Training Duel)

This quest is where Coen spars with Pieter on the hillside ruins. Pieter hits hard and uses unblockable moves, including a thrust that flows into a heavy overhead strike. The safest approach is to wait for a missed swing or land a perfect block, then get in two quick hits before he recovers. Play defensively and you will be fine.

The fight ends when Pieter’s health drops low. Stick around for a short conversation, then use the remaining time wisely before heading to the Mass.

Sacred Covenant (The Blood Mass)

Once you are ready, sit beside Pieter and Esme inside the chapel. What happens at the altar during Mass depends on whether you completed the Blasphemy quest earlier. Esme’s survival here depends entirely on whether you made her medicine correctly.

Brencis arrives. A chain of events begins. Pieter and Vladimir head to the silver mines with a plan to resist. Coen goes with them. It goes badly.

Bad Blood (The Mine)

Coen wakes up in the mine after the attack collapses around them. Re-equip your armor and weapon immediately. Follow blood trails and signs of struggle to find the wounded Kostel. A confrontation happens. Both men fall deeper into the mine.

From here, the game teaches you Shadowstep — a traversal ability that moves Coen quickly toward any valid surface. You also learn Planeshift, which lets you walk on walls and ceilings. Both abilities are used to escape the mine. Feed on rats to regain health. Fight through kobolds in a large vertical cavern. Make your way out using Coen’s claws to descend the cliff face.

On the way back toward Laslea, two of Brencis’s soldiers stop you. You can go with them — or fight them and search for Vladimir. Fighting is worth it. Vladimir reveals a shortcut that actually saves you time, so rescuing him costs nothing and gives you extra story context.

First Brencis Fight (This One You Are Meant to Lose)

Back in the burning village, Coen finds Pieter defeated and confronts Brencis. A boss fight begins — and this one is scripted to end with Coen’s defeat. Do not stress about it. Brencis overpowers him, tries to drain his blood, and spits it out immediately. Something in Coen’s blood is wrong for him. Dawn arrives and Brencis is forced to leave, but not before pinning Coen to a tree with a pickaxe and leaving him in the sunlight.

It is technically possible to beat Brencis at this point, but doing so is extremely difficult. If you manage it, you unlock the Realmwalker achievement early by seeing his true form.

Smoke and Ashes (Prologue Ends Here)

Coen wakes in Anca’s house. The pickaxe is gone. His wound has healed. Sunlight has not killed him. He is a Dawnwalker now. Anca walks him back through the ruins of Laslea to search for his family. Use Focus Mode inside the family home to find clues — Lunka’s doll, cloth by the window, soldiers’ boot tracks, a moved bed. There are no bodies. They were taken alive.

Anca teaches Coen his first Witchcraft ability: Compel Soul. Use it on one of Brencis’s dead soldiers. The soldier cannot give you full information at first. Collect Brencis’s banner from nearby bodies and use it as a catalyst. The soldier reveals the truth: the captured villagers will be sacrificed at Brencis’s coronation in 30 days.

You and Anca clear rubble from the village gate. This takes 7 time segments and pushes the clock to nightfall. Coen returns to his vampire form. Anca heads to St. Tyna’s monastery. She asks Coen to meet her at a nearby inn when he is ready. The prologue is over. The open world begins.

All Prologue Side Quests

Live Bait — Do It First (1 Time Segment)

Walk down the hill right after leaving Coen’s house and find your sister Yanna with Lunka and Mirto. Agree to take them fishing. This quest uses 1 time segment and serves as an introduction to your family and the village dynamics. You will also encounter Brencis’s soldiers at the river, which gives early context to the oppressive rule you are living under. A minor dialogue tip: do not play tag with your siblings on the way. It wastes time.

Dead Drop — Free Loot (0 Time Segments)

Take the small path east of Coen’s house up to the outcasts’ graveyard. Inspect the grave in the south corner to begin Dead Drop. Use Focus Mode to follow footprints and carvings into the woods until you find a stash hidden under a tree. You get a Ring of Purging, 19 Denarius, and 100 XP. It costs zero time segments, so there is no reason to skip it.

Deep Down — Best Side Quest (1 Time Segment)

Pick this quest up from Gavril, who is working in his fields near the Laslea Gate. He asks you to find his missing brother Lazar. Head north into Blackwater Hollow. Pick up Lazar’s trail heading west. Kill the wolves guarding a clearing and drop into the deep hole by the gnarled tree.

Lazar is alive — but only if you come here before the evening. If you wait until night, you find his corpse instead. Inside the cave below, inspect all the murals in the round room to read ancient Vrakhiri lore. Open the stone coffin to get the Mireleaf Bracers (30 extra armor) and the Claw Art active ability. Fight The Forgotten Guardian. Loot the Undead Warrior’s Sword from its body and equip it — it is better than anything you have found so far.

This quest rewards you with strong gear, solid XP, and a completed level before the Mass. It is the single best use of one time segment in the prologue.

Withering Away: Page-Turner (Optional, 1 Time Segment)

When visiting Anca, if you choose to stay during the rain, she offers a Latin lesson. This starts the Page-Turner quest. You spend one time segment reading with her, which helps build a relationship if you want to romance Anca later. For the Catullus text, the correct translations are Kisses and Grains of Sand. After the lesson, a tree crashes into her herb shed. Collect all 11 herb bundles before the scene advances — three are tucked behind the door and easy to miss.

This quest is completely optional. If you are not interested in building a closer relationship with Anca, skip it and use that segment elsewhere.

Enter Not (0 Time Segments)

Head northwest through the forest across the bridge near Anca’s house. You will find an abandoned plague house on the left side of the road. Climb the lower roof on the right side and drop down inside. Loot the corpse for the Last Confession and a Figurine of St. Jude. Loot the small chest by the hearth for Denarius, gold tableware, a recipe, and Knyaz Skender’s Orders.

Return the Figurine of St. Jude to Father Florin inside the church before Mass to complete the quest. This costs zero time segments, so it is always worth grabbing.

If A Tree Falls (0 Time Segments)

Near the Northern Foothills shrine, a fallen tree has killed someone. Follow the body trail along the road — fighting wolves on the way — until it ends in a gorge where you pick up the Orders: Patrol off an Uriash guard’s body. Return to elderman Zdislav in Laslea and tell him you found a dead soldier to complete the quest and collect your reward. Zero time cost.

Blasphemy — Do This (1 Time Segment)

Find Gremla crying near the Laslea Centre shrine. She has lost a religious banner — and if it is not returned before Mass, she is killed at the altar. Use Focus Mode to find footprints, cane marks, and a torn piece of banner. Track down Premysl — he is sitting outside the house with hay bales southeast of Coen’s home. Confront him and choose to tell him that angering Brencis puts your family at risk. He will back down and return the banner.

If you want your neighbors to survive the Mass, complete this quest. It takes one segment and has a real consequence if skipped.

Disturbed (1 Time Segment)

Speak to Crina at the graveyard outside the keep. Her grandson’s grave has been disturbed. Use Focus Mode to follow footprints from the grave down into the center of town. They lead to a broken shovel outside Kostel’s shed. Drop through the trapdoor inside to confront Kostel and Vladimir. Choose to give Kvet’s cross back. Return to Crina and tell her you found it lying in the bushes. She feels at peace. One segment well spent.

Quests You Can Skip or Do After the Prologue

Some quests are not time-sensitive and can be completed once the open world starts. Into The Den — a bear fight in the northeast bog — can wait. So can On The Run (finding Iorgu’s pig) and Someone Needs A Lesson (chasing down Vasil). The loot from Into The Den is useful later, and the quest eventually connects to the silver selling mechanic, so save it for after the prologue.

Best Quest Order for the Prologue

Here is the most efficient order based on time cost and reward:

• Morning 1: Live Bait — take the kids fishing (1 segment)
• Morning 2: Dead Drop and pick up quest markers around the village (0 segments)
• Noon 1: Withering Away — visit Anca, get the herbs (1 segment)
• Noon 2: Optional Page-Turner with Anca if you want (1 segment) — skip if not
• Noon 3: Withering Away Part 2 — go home, brew the medicine correctly (1 segment)
• Afternoon 1: Enter Not, If A Tree Falls, Deep Down — forest run (1 segment)
• Afternoon 2: Blasphemy — save Gremla’s banner (1 segment)
• Evening 1: Disturbed — return Kvet’s cross (1 segment)
• Evening 2: Enter Not turn-in, then Like Father Like Son with Pieter (1 segment)
• Evening Mass: Sacred Covenant — sit with your family. Everything changes after this.

Key Decisions That Actually Matter

The Medicine Recipe

This is not optional and it is not forgiving. When you prepare Esme’s herbs at home, select hot water and three spoonfuls of herbs. Getting either of those wrong means she does not survive the Mass. For a full breakdown, see our dedicated guide on how to improve Coen’s mother’s condition.

Rescuing Vladimir After the Mine

When Brencis’s soldiers stop you on the road back to Laslea, kill them and investigate. Following the clues leads you to a burning building where Vladimir is trapped. Saving him saves you a full time segment on the return trip because he shows you a shortcut. It is always worth doing.

The Brencis Boss Fight

You are not expected to win. Do not panic if you lose. The story progresses either way. If you do beat him — which takes serious skill — you see his true form early and earn a hidden achievement. Otherwise, enjoy it as a preview of the final fight you are working toward over the next 30 days.

What Carries Over Into the Open World

Once the prologue ends, all time-sensitive quests are locked forever. Anything with a clock icon that you did not finish is gone. The good news is that quests without time locks — like Into The Den — are still available once you reach the open world.

Your XP, gear, and Denarius all carry forward. Whatever armor and weapons you found in the prologue — especially the Undead Warrior’s Sword and Mireleaf Bracers from Deep Down — are real advantages heading into the first open-world night.

The 30-day countdown begins the moment Smoke and Ashes ends. From here, the story is yours to shape. Understanding how to build Coen’s power early makes a big difference — read our guide on the best skills to level up in Blood of Dawnwalker to hit the ground running.

Prologue Tips Before You Start

• Do not follow Pieter up the hill immediately after the medicine scene. Finish your other quests first.
• Do not play tag with your siblings during Live Bait. It uses extra time you cannot spare.
• Never start a quest with only 1 time segment left. Many quests have follow-up steps that need at least one more segment to finish.
• Getting caught stealing burns 4 time segments. Do not steal unless you are sure it is safe.
• Do not spend segments unlocking skills at shrines during the prologue — save your perk points for after.
• Read the Fextralife quest descriptions in your journal before committing. The hourglass and clock icons tell you everything.

What Happens Right After the Prologue

Anca sends Coen toward St. Tyna’s convent to find knowledge that can help fight the Vrakhiri. You meet her at a nearby inn. From that point, the game opens up completely. You can take quests in almost any order, explore the valley, and start making moves against Brencis’s three vampiric vassals — Ambrus, Bakir, and Xanthe. Angering all three is how you draw out Brencis for the final confrontation.

If you want to know what to expect before diving in, our full Blood of Dawnwalker review covering the time limit mechanic and open world breaks down why this game feels different from anything else in the genre. For those wondering about how long the journey takes in total, our how long to beat Blood of Dawnwalker guide has all the numbers.

You can pick up the game on Steam, PlayStation Store, or Xbox.

Prologue Quests Quick Reference Table

• Live Bait — 1 segment — XP, family lore, early character building
• Dead Drop — 0 segments — free Denarius, Ring of Purging, 100 XP
• Withering Away — 2 segments — critical for Esme’s survival, unlocks Anca relationship
• Page-Turner — 1 segment (optional) — romance route with Anca
• Deep Down — 1 segment — best armor, boss fight, high XP
• Enter Not — 0 segments — loot, Figurine of St. Jude
• If A Tree Falls — 0 segments — quest turn-in, Denarius reward
• Blasphemy — 1 segment — saves Gremla from dying at Mass
• Disturbed — 1 segment — resolution for Crina, story context
• Like Father, Like Son — 1 segment — training duel with Pieter, required
• Someone Needs A Lesson — 1 segment — skippable, no major consequences
• On The Run — 2 segments — skippable, can do after prologue
• Into The Den — 1 segment — not time-sensitive, do after prologue

The prologue in The Blood of Dawnwalker is one of the most carefully built opening sections in recent RPGs. It teaches you how time works, shows you what is at stake, and sets up every major relationship in the game — all before the sun goes down on Coen’s old life. Take your time with it. Make the medicine correctly. Save Lazar early. And when Brencis shows up and beats you into the ground, know that the 30 days that follow are your answer. For more help through the game’s early quests, check out our walkthrough for the Under Watchful Eyes quest and the Live Bait quest walkthrough.