Gaming Guide

The Witcher 3: All Viper School Gear Diagram Locations

Track down the two free White Orchard sword diagrams and the six missable Hearts of Stone pieces before each window closes.

Track down the two free White Orchard sword diagrams and the six missable Hearts of Stone pieces before each window closes.

The Viper School Gear gives Geralt a look close to his default Kaer Morhen outfit, split across eight pieces. Two low-level sword diagrams sit in White Orchard from the start of the game, and the full armor set plus two venomous swords arrive with the Hearts of Stone expansion. Six of those expansion items can be permanently missed, so the order you collect them in matters.

Quick answer: Grab the two Serpentine sword diagrams in White Orchard at any time, then during Hearts of Stone buy four armor diagrams from Countess Mignole, loot the Venomous steel diagram in the Borsodi vault, and pull the finished Venomous silver sword in Gaunter’s world.

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Every Viper School piece and where it comes from

The set has two freely recoverable sword diagrams and six items tied to Hearts of Stone quests. The base-game swords never expire, but each Hearts of Stone window closes for good once you move past it.

PieceSourceLocationMissable
Serpentine silver swordDiagram on Kolgrim’s remainsWhite Orchard cemetery cryptNo
Serpentine steel swordDiagram in a chestAmavet Fortress Ruins watchtowerNo
Viper armorBuy from Countess MignoleBorsodi auction house (Open Sesame!)Yes
Viper trousersBuy from Countess MignoleBorsodi auction house (Open Sesame!)Yes
Viper gauntletsBuy from Countess MignoleBorsodi auction house (Open Sesame!)Yes
Viper bootsBuy from Countess MignoleBorsodi auction house (Open Sesame!)Yes
Venomous steel swordDiagram in a chestBorsodi vault (Open Sesame!)Yes
Venomous silver swordFinished weapon in a stoneGaunter’s world (Whatsoever a Man Soweth…)Yes

The Viper set has no Grandmaster tier like the other Witcher schools. It does gain a Legendary version if you carry it into New Game Plus.

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Both Viper sword diagrams in White Orchard

The base-game hunt gives you two crafting diagrams, both in White Orchard and both around suggested level 6. Reading the letter or report at either location points you to the other, so you can start from whichever you reach first.

Serpentine silver sword in the cemetery crypt

Travel to the White Orchard cemetery, where a chapel lies in ruins north of the area’s center. A wraith patrols the grounds near a Place of Power.
Fight the wraith outside. Once badly wounded it retreats into the crypt, which is a phase change rather than a finished kill.
Cast Aard on the boarded chapel door to break it open, descend the stairs, and finish the wraith underground. Emerald Dust can drop here, and both early Viper recipes need it.
Use Witcher Senses and search Kolgrim’s skeleton against the wall. It holds the Diagram: Serpentine silver sword and a letter from Witcher Kolgrim of the Viper School.

Serpentine steel sword in Amavet Fortress Ruins

Fast-travel to the Ransacked Village and ride west to the ruined brick watchtower on the raised plateau, marked by a bandit camp icon.
Approach from the west or northwest, then scale the low rock shelves. The sharply sloped southern face sends Geralt sliding back down.
Clear the deserters on top, then open the chest inside the ruined watchtower. It contains the Diagram: Serpentine steel sword and an Interrogation Report that points back to the cemetery.

Both diagrams craft cheaply at the amateur blacksmith in the Nilfgaardian Garrison, and their poison and bonus experience make them strong prologue weapons.

SwordMaterials
Serpentine steel1 Leather Straps, 1 Iron Ingot, 1 Emerald Dust, 1 Venom Extract
Serpentine silver1 Leather Straps, 2 Silver Ingots, 1 Emerald Dust, 1 Venom Extract
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Four armor diagrams from Countess Mignole (Open Sesame!)

The Viper armor, trousers, gauntlets, and boots diagrams are sold by Countess Mignole during the Hearts of Stone main quest “Open Sesame!” She appears once, and there is no second chance to reach her.

Go into the Borsodi Brothers’ Auction House as Vimme Vivaldi’s guest. Before the auction starts, he identifies several guests you can mingle with.
Go up to Countess Mignole near the window and ask about her interest in witchering. That unlocks a merchant icon in the conversation.
Open her merchant inventory and buy all four diagrams, the armor, trousers, gauntlets, and boots. Talking to her alone does not add anything to your inventory.

Bring roughly 1,200 to 1,500 crowns before the auction starts. You cannot earn or withdraw money once the quest is underway, and once the auction sequence ends the Countess is gone for that playthrough.

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Viper Venomous steel sword diagram in the Borsodi vault

Later in “Open Sesame!”, you can loot the Venomous steel diagram during the heist. It is a crafting diagram, not a completed weapon; taking the House of Maximilian Borsodi alone does not grant the sword.

Continue the heist until you and your crew reach the inner vault beneath the auction house.
Search the chest near the pedestal displaying the House of Maximilian Borsodi for the Diagram: Viper Venomous steel sword. Use the pedestal as a reference point and check the nearby containers with Witcher Senses.

Grab the diagram before you leave the vault. However the Borsodi standoff resolves, the entrance seals permanently and you cannot return for anything you skipped.

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Viper Venomous silver sword in Gaunter’s world

The final piece has no diagram. It is a finished weapon retrieved during the ending of “Whatsoever a Man Soweth…”, and only if you set it up in advance.

At the start of the quest, complete the optional objective with Shani in Oxenfurt to reach Professor Shakeslock. He explains how to challenge Master Mirror. Skipping this removes the intervention option entirely.
At the Temple of Lilvani, when Gaunter O’Dimm claims his prize, choose to help Olgierd. Geralt challenges Master Mirror and is transported into a twisted world with a timer.
Head down the path away from the temple. At the fork, take the right branch and cross the bridge past the Foglets.
Turn left, pass under the next bridge, and follow the path toward the red glowing point of interest. Defeat the Hym guarding it and pull the Viper Venomous silver sword from the stone.
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Take the sword before you solve the fountain riddle at the mansion. Once the riddle is complete you cannot return to that world, and the weapon is lost for that playthrough.


Crafting and confirming the full set

The four armor diagrams and the Venomous steel diagram all craft at level 39 in a normal playthrough. The Venomous silver sword is already a finished weapon, so there is no material grind or diagram to chase for it.

You will know the collection is complete when the two Serpentine diagrams and the six Hearts of Stone pieces all appear in your inventory. The scavenger hunt journal closes once both White Orchard diagrams are found, while the expansion items simply register as new crafting diagrams or, for the silver sword, a finished blade the moment you pull it from the stone.

Before entering the auction house and before deciding whether to challenge Gaunter O’Dimm, make a manual save. Those two moments gate half the set, and none of the expansion pieces can be recovered from ordinary free roam afterward.