Monster Essence in The Witcher 3 is a rare crafting component that is required for creating some of the best weapons, armor, and gear in the game. It’s a Relic item with great value and use in crafting high-tier gear like the Grandmaster Griffin and Ursine armor sets, as well as Legendary Swords and Runestones.
Monster Essence is available to loot from the start of The Witcher 3 and becomes very useful later on when you unlock blueprints (called diagrams) for advanced gear by completing Treasure Hunt quests. To find the materials needed to craft the Essence, look for them by heading to the Crafting tab in your inventory. Hit Backspace (or a specific button on your platform) and select Crafting. Read on to learn how to get Monster Essence and the way to dismantle items.
Where to Find Monster Essence in The Witcher 3?
Monster Essence can sometimes drop from defeated monsters. One of the more reliable sources to farm is Golems, though they’re rare in the game. Keep an eye out for Golems during your contracts and quests—they’re tough but often rewarding in terms of loot. You cannot purchase the Monster Essence from the merchant shops because this material itself is a craftable item, unlike the other crafting components you can use right away to create gear.
The only best way to get Monster Essence is by dismantling specific materials at a Blacksmith or Armorer. If you have monster parts like Endrega Embryos, Essence of Wraith, or Shaelmaar Hair, dismantling these materials will yield Monster Essence.
Here are all the items you can dismantle to get Monster Essence:
- Barghest Essence
- Crystallized Essence
- Dark Essence
- Elemental Essence
- Endrega Embryo
- Essence of Wraith
- Golem’s Heart
- Light Essence
- Shaelmaar Hair
- Water Essence
Essence of Wraith drops from Wraiths and their rarer cousin, the Penitent. Wraiths are usually seen throughout the map, so you’ll find them scattered here and there. Light Essence is a drop item from Noonwraiths and The White Lady. Noonwraiths creatures are common and easy to kill. One such creature appears in the early White Orchard region during the Devil by the Well quest.
How to Dismantle Items in The Witcher 3
You will have to visit the Armorer and Blacksmith to dismantle the materials. They will do the job for you by charging some fee.
Note that more advanced gear requires expert level craftsmen—there’s a master Blacksmith in Novigrad
Here’s how to dismantle it:
- Find an Armorer or Blacksmith and press E on PC to trigger a conversation.
- Find Dismantle in the inventory menu.
- Browse your inventory for any of the materials listed earlier (e.g., Essence of Wraith, Crystallized Essence). Select the item you want to dismantle and check the dismantling cost.
- Look at the list of items in your inventory that can be dismantled.
- Select the spare items you want to break down and pay the fee.
- The dismantling process will begin, and Monster Essence will be added to your inventory.
And there you have it! That’s everything you need to know about getting Monster Essence in The Witcher 3. While this crafting component might not be that useful at the beginning of your playthrough, it turns out to be a necessary part of creating powerful gear and weapons as you progress. So, next time you’re about to sell off the random monster parts, head to the nearest craftsman and dismantle them instead.
