KCD2 An Oath To Keep Walkthrough — All Outcomes & Key Choice

Quest context

An Oath To Keep is the second main story quest of KCD2's Act 2, triggered after Necessary Evil concludes. The setup: Hans Capon's family lineage is challenged by a Trosky council member who claims documentary evidence of fraud. The Trosky council convenes to rule on the matter, and Henry — as Hans's sworn companion — is called to give testimony.

The quest's design rewards players who completed Necessary Evil with the stealth-spare ending. The Bandit Token from that quest unlocks a fourth ending option: 'diplomatic exposure', which reveals the Trosky council member's earlier dealings with the bandit camp (Kuno was one of his agents). This ending satisfies both Hans and the council and gains reputation with both factions.

An Oath To Keep affects Hans Capon's Act 3 companion arc directly. Supporting Hans gives full companion access; supporting Trosky reduces Hans to background-only; neutral arbitration reduces Hans interactions by 50%; diplomatic exposure gives full companion access AND opens a hidden Hans Capon endgame quest. The choice has the largest single-quest impact on Hans's character arc in the game.

Quest prerequisites

1. Complete Necessary Evil (any ending) — An Oath To Keep triggers 12 in-game hours later.
2. Speak with Hans Capon at the Trosky tavern. He briefs you on the council situation and asks for your loyalty.
3. Optional but required for diplomatic ending: have the Bandit Token from Necessary Evil's stealth-spare ending.
4. Speech 8+ recommended for the testimony Speech check (Speech 12 for neutral arbitration).
5. Defense 8+ for the council chamber duel sequence.
6. Bring noble outfit — court appearance requires Charisma 6+ during the council testimony.

Phase 1 — Pre-council preparation

Quest opens at the Trosky tavern where Hans Capon explains the situation. He asks Henry to support him in council and provides three pieces of context: the challenging council member's name (Markvart Trosky, no relation to the village name), the allegation (Hans's family lineage is fabricated), and the council's stake (the ruling determines who controls 30% of Trosky's tax revenue).

After Hans's briefing, Henry can investigate before the council. Three optional investigations: speak with the Trosky archivist about Hans's family documents (Speech 8, reveals one piece of supporting evidence), speak with Markvart Trosky's manservant about his master's recent dealings (Speech 10, reveals Markvart visited a bandit camp recently — only meaningful if you have the Bandit Token), and read the Trosky council records in the tavern (Reading 4, reveals a procedural rule that supports the neutral arbitration ending).

Investigation phase is timed — you have 24 in-game hours before the council convenes. Skipping investigation locks the neutral arbitration and diplomatic exposure endings, leaving only support-Hans and support-Trosky.

Phase 2 — The council chamber

The council convenes in the Trosky castle's central hall at 14:00 on the day after Henry's briefing. Attendance is mandatory — failing to attend defaults to the support-Trosky ending.

Council sequence: Hans presents his case, Markvart presents his counter, Henry is called to testify. The testimony dialogue has 4 branches: support Hans (no skill check), support Markvart (no skill check), neutral arbitration (Speech 12), diplomatic exposure (Bandit Token required + Speech 8).

After Henry's testimony, the council votes. The vote outcome is determined by Henry's testimony branch:

Support Hans → 5-2 vote in Hans's favor → quest ends with Hans victorious. Markvart challenges Henry to a duel for honor.

Support Markvart → 3-4 vote against Hans → Hans loses council standing. Hans Capon becomes hostile for 24 hours then reconciles minimally.

Neutral arbitration → 4-4 vote → Bohuslav (council elder) breaks tie based on Henry's investigation evidence quality. Hans wins 60% of the time, loses 40%.

Diplomatic exposure → 6-1 vote in Hans's favor + Markvart is arrested for bandit dealings → both factions thank Henry, full reward set.

Recommended loadout (council day)

Council testimony step-by-step

1. Arrive at the Trosky castle central hall by 14:00 wearing noble outfit. Wrong outfit = -2 to all Speech checks during testimony.
2. Hans presents his case (auto-cutscene, no input).
3. Markvart presents counter (auto-cutscene, no input).
4. Henry called to testify. Dialogue options appear:
5. • 'I support Lord Hans's claim' — support Hans ending.
6. • 'Lord Markvart's evidence is compelling' — support Markvart ending.
7. • 'The council should review by procedure' (Speech 12) — neutral arbitration ending.
8. • 'I have evidence of Lord Markvart's dealings' (Bandit Token required) — diplomatic exposure ending.
9. After dialogue choice, council votes. Outcome plays out as above.
10. If support-Hans selected: Markvart challenges to duel immediately. Accept (combat begins in council chamber) or refuse (Speech 10 to refuse without honor penalty).
11. Receive rewards from the winning faction's elder NPC.

Ending comparison

Verdict: Diplomatic exposure is the canonical 'best' ending — only one that satisfies Hans, Trosky council, and unlocks the hidden Capon endgame quest. Requires Necessary Evil stealth-spare ending for the Bandit Token. Support Hans + duel is the second-best for completionist Hans content. Support Markvart is the only path that prioritizes Trosky main ending over Hans companion arc.

Phase 3 — Markvart duel (support-Hans only)

If you chose support-Hans, Markvart challenges Henry to a duel for honor immediately after the council ruling. The duel takes place in the castle courtyard, standard combat rules apply — no allies, no potions during fight, first to 0 HP loses.

Markvart Trosky has 220 HP, a one-handed longsword (55 slash), and trained Defense 7. He uses perfect block consistently and chains 3-hit combos. The fight is medium-hard for Defense 8 Henry — average length 4 minutes.

Strategy: open with feint-to-stab combos (Markvart's perfect block is weak against feints). Use stamina management — Markvart's combos drain his stamina faster than yours. After his second combo chain, you have a 3-second window where his stamina is empty; commit to a heavy attack chain for 60+ damage.

Win the duel: 200 groschen bonus from the council. Lose the duel: Henry survives (duel ends at 1 HP) but reputation -10 with Hans and Trosky council both.

Common mistakes that ruin An Oath To Keep

• Skipping the pre-council investigation. Without evidence, neutral arbitration and diplomatic exposure dialogue options do not appear.
• Missing the 14:00 council deadline. Defaults to support-Trosky ending automatically.
• Wearing combat armor to the council. Charisma 6+ required; combat armor drops Charisma below threshold.
• Choosing support-Markvart for the gold reward. Locks Hans Capon's Act 3 companion arc (significant content loss).
• Refusing Markvart's duel without Speech 10. Triggers honor penalty -20 reputation with all noble NPCs.
• Selling the Bandit Token before the council. Permanent lock-out of the canonical diplomatic ending.
• Speaking to Hans aggressively pre-council. Drops his trust below the threshold required for support-Hans dialogue branches.