So finding all those optional quests isn't too complicated once you know what to look for. I've missed a few myself at first but learned that taverns are actually your best friends here - the innkeepers usually have some interesting stories to share and they're marked with those grey shield icons with blue exclamation marks which makes them pretty easy to spot.

A really useful thing I've found is keeping an eye out for those grey map markers with yellow stars, since that's where most side quests actually start. The game lets you juggle about 3 side quests at once which is pretty manageable, and they'll sit in your journal until you're ready to tackle them.

One thing that caught me off guard at first - there are definitely some points where you'll want to wrap up your side activities before moving forward with the main story. Like, before jumping into quests called "Necessary Evil" or "Oratores," it's worth taking a breather and clearing up any loose ends in those areas. I learned that the hard way my first time through! And hey, once you unlock carriages in Kuttenberg, you can bounce between regions pretty freely to clean up anything you missed, which is super convenient. There's actually quite a lot of side content to discover - I keep finding new stuff even after spending loads of time exploring the settlements and wilderness areas.