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bloededhoine · 4 years

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world building cause twn doesn't pt. 1: the northern realms

okay i'm making this because 1 witcher netflix is the most convoluted and confusing thing i've ever seen and does literally no world building and 2 special interest make autism brain go brr.

basic info

this is gonna be a multi part series about the witcher universe but this is all about the northern realms!

ciri's timeline in twn encompasses the entirety of the first northern war, beginning with the attack on cintra and ending with the battle at sodden

this is just covering the human portions of the north. i'll talk about vergen, brokilon, and dol blathanna later

colour code cause i fucking love colour codes - already happened/introduced, probably s2, important background info, stuff that might be in the prequel, extras

general

so the entire witcher takes place on the continent

it's divided into multiple kingdoms, vassal states, and territories

now borders change a lot but this is the general idea before the first northern war (started 1263 with the invasion of cintra but we'll get more into that later)

also important to note that the show ends in 1264 with geralt meeting ciri in sodden

i'm sorry, i don't have quite enough spoons for an image discription for that map, but if someone wants to take over i'll link it here!

maps not mine, reddit link here

the continent is mainly divided between south and north, with nilfgaard and its dependencies and vassal states (including toussaint, mettina, vicovaro, nazair) in the south and the northern realms (redania, temeria, kaedwen, aedirn, lyria and rivia, cidaris, kovir and poviss, and creyden) in the north

aedirn

this is where yennefer is from! more specifically, it's capital vengerberg. as of twn, its king is virfuril. he's briefly name dropped in blood of elves and assassins of kings, you might remember him dancing with yennefer in the ball.

[I.D: picture of white man with a light brown beard and moustache. he is wearing a gold shirt and a gold crown. he is smiling slightly and has blue eyes. end I.D.]

that's him right there. for some extra trivia he's the 15th king of aedirn, his son is demavend III and his grandson is stennis

aedirn is mainly manufacturing. in the north (upper aedirn), dwarves control the continent's best mines. the south produces more finished goods like textiles, weapons, and dyes

for some notable aedirnians we have yennefer, saskia/saesenthessis (borch three jackdaws/villentretenmirth's daughter), letho, aplegatt, and seltkirk

aedirnian cities include vengerberg, gulet, and hagge

next up - redania!

as of the first northern war, redania's king was vizimir II. i don't think we saw him in twn, but i could be wrong. redania is known for having the best intelligence network on the continent, along with control of the best farmland

redania is a super important kingdom, and we've already met quite a few important redanians and will probably meet a lot more.

dandelion/jaskier, chireadan, shani, philippa eilhart, sigi dijkstra are all redanian

redanian cities - novigrad, oxenfurt (home of oxenfurt academy, dandelion's alma mater), tretogor (the capital), blaviken, and rinde

for temeria!

we briefly visited temeria in the episode with the striga (adda the white). as of the first northern war, the king is foltest. he lives in the capital vizima (controlled by nilfgaard in wild hunt). that's him right there

[I.D: photo of an older, overweight white man. he is wearing gold armour and a gold crown. he has a grey beard and is scowling. end I.D]

temeria (especially foltest) is notoriously xenophobic and racist. but, it is one of the best places for sorceresses as its home to thanedd isle and aretuza.

temeria controls the mahakaman mountains, and therefore some of the most prosperous mines in the continent. these mines, along with highly developed agricultural and trade systems, make temeria mad rich

a lot of my favourites are temerian we have keira metz, vernon roche, thaler, *barf* triss merigold, codringher and fenn, jan natalis, and ves

temeria has a lot of important cities like gors velen, vizima (also spelled wyzim or wyzima), and maribor. there's also some territories/provinces like brugge, ellander, maribor, sodden, and velen

kaedwen

kaedwen is in the far north west, and is where the witcher fortress of kaer morhen is located. kaedwen is always feuding with aedirn over control of the pontar valley, a profitable area on the kaedweni-aedirnian border. as of the first northern war, kaedwen is ruled by king henselt, who might have been name dropped once or twice in twn i dont really remember.

kaedwen is very cold, a large portion of it is the blue, kestrel, and fiery mountains. it's also home to ban aard, which is basically the aretuza for boys and where stregobor taught istredd

the only really notable kaedwenis are sabrina glevissig (that's her in twn) and cregennan of lod

[I.D: photo of a young white woman with blonde hair tied back. she is wearing a low cut blue dress and has a blank expression. end I.D]

some kaedweni cities are ban aard, ard carraigh, lod, and ban gleán

kaedwen, temeria, aedirn, and redania make up the four kingdoms, a group of human-majority states that nilfgaard really likes attacking. the northern wars are pretty much all nilfgaard vs the northern kingdoms, since most smaller realms are usually absorbed into either the north or south, but that doesn't mean they're not important!

cintra

twn gave us a solid introduction to cintra, which as you know was ruled by queen calanthe. her suicide after the nilfgaardian invasion was basically the first major casualty of the first northern war. cintra then became a nilfgaardian dependency, ruled by emperor emhyr var emreis

notable cintrians - princesses cirilla fiona elen rhiannon and pavetta fiona elen, angoulême, and the house of attre

cintra isn't very big, but does have the provence attre and cities like erlenwald and cintra (the capital)

cidaris

ruled by king ethain, one of the many people calanthe betrothed to ciri and then was like lol nevermind. also includes the province bremervoord, which is ruled by duke agloval and supported by the harvesting and trade of pearls

notable cidarians - dorregary, valdo marx, and vilgefortz (thats him there)

[ID: photo of a young south-asian man with black slicked back hair and a moustache. he is wearing medieval armour and i can't quite tell what his expression is. end ID]

cidarian cities include vole, roggeveen, and cidaris (the capital)

hengfors league

a group of 4 city states (caingorn, malleore, barefield, and cinfrid) that are ruled by king niedamir from the capital hengfors

notable residents include queen hedwig, boholt and the reavers, and deidre ademeyn

from what i've found all the city states have a capital of the same name

lyria and rivia

these are a little complicated, but basically lyria and rivia are the two main kingdoms of the confederation of realms in the dol angra valley. as of twn, queen meve of lyria and king reginald of rivia are married, therefore uniting the two realms

in the summer, the capital is lyria and in the winter it's rivia. lyria is also primarily agricultural while rivia is more industrial

queen meve is really the only important one here

kovir and poviss

kingdom in the far north that is responsible for the most exporting of minerals on the continent. as of the first northern war it is ruled by esterad thyssen

notable residents include stregobor, renfri, sheala de tancarville, coën, and istredd

important cities - creyden, tancarville, lan exeter, aedd gynvael, and thwyth

skellige

skellige is different from the other northern kingdoms in a few ways. one, it's not really a kingdom but a collection of 7 clans each led by a specific jarl. a clan is based on kinship, and the jarl rules them. what's confusing here is that there's also a jarl of skellige, who is in charge of the entire archipelago's armed forces. the king or queen of skellige is chosen by all of the jarls to help unify the clans against nilfgaard

skellige is also the only island kingdom. its an archipelago to the west of cintra, but is almost always allied to the north

the clans are brokvar, an craite, dimun, drummond, heymaey, tordarroch, and tuirseach, and they generally each occupy a specific island

the main islands are ard skellig (an craite and drummond), an skellig (tuirseach), faroe (dimun), hindarsfjall (heymaey), spikeroog (brokvar), and undvik (tordarroch)

some skelligers - crach an craite, eist tuirseach (that's him there), mousesack/ermion, draig bon-dhu, cerys and hjalmar an craite, and birna bran

[ID: photo of a middle-aged white man with dark brown hair and light stubble. he is wearing a gold doublet and has some sweat on his forehead. he appears slightly drunk. end ID]

tldr: as of the first northern war, the main northern kingdoms are virfuril's aedirn, vizimir's redania, foltest's temeria, and henselt's kaedwen

thank you so much for reading this! i'm definitely gonna make more parts and will link them here when i do!

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inmyfxith · 2 years

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Friends out of interest

Pairing: Dijkstra x OC!reader / Vizimir x OC!reader

OC: Seirsa of Ard Carraigh

Warnings: None

A/N: Sisters' thoughts // The Sisters of Ard Carraigh / The Wolf and The Griffin / Meet Again / The End of a Myth

Words: 1 498

Of all the girls of Ard Carraigh, Seirsa was the only one who ever attained a role as important as that of a queen. While visiting the court of King Radowit I of Kaedwen, she attracted the attention of his son, Henselt, who had become King of Kaedwen after his father's death. Being madly in love, he asked for her hand in marriage as soon as he was master of his destiny and she accepted. After her marriage, she became Queen of Kaedwen, Lady of Ard Carraigh, Archduchess of Ban Ard, a city mainly known for its magic academy and for its mines which made it a real jewel for the crown, and ruler of Vespaden, a duchy located in the North of the kingdom. A few years after she settled down, she gave him a son, who himself had time to have a son before mysteriously dying during a hunting trip. Seirsa never really got over it.

Even though her husband was the sole ruler of Kaedwen, the young woman almost always had a say in the decisions taken by King Henselt, but never in an official way so as not to make him look weak. A few weeks before the slaughter of Cintra, she sent a letter to Queen Calanthe proposing to strengthen the alliance already in force against Emhyr of Nilfgaard. She even went to the Court of the latter where she had the chance to meet the young princess that everyone called the Lion cub of Cintra, Cirilla. Seirsa knew how to talk to people, she was always very persuasive, and, like many of her sisters, like Cedrel or Celda, she was very eloquent.

Unfortunately, Kaedwen's forces did not have time to intervene at the time of the massacre, so the queen suggested to her husband that he send his troops to Sodden Hill, where she had heard that a battle was being prepared. Although they lost a large number of their warriors in this battle, they were victorious. Therefore, the alliance between the northern kingdoms was the most beneficial thing for Kaedwen. Having heard about the movements of the elven population in Cintra and their alliance with the Nilfgaardians, Seirsa received a letter from one of the advisors of King Vizimir II of Redania, Sigismund Dijkstra. The latter invited her to a meeting with the king to discuss a possible alliance in addition to the one already in place. Having small problems with a group of non-humans, she jumped at the chance to destroy all those who opposed her husband's power. So she went to Redania to meet the king.

"Ah, my dear friend, it is a pleasure to see you again at last." Rising from his seat, the Redanian king approached Seirsa to leave a kiss on her knuckles. He then invited her to sit on the seat opposite his desk so that they could talk in privacy.

"You look lovely, just like all the times we've crossed paths." Seirsa knew full well that Vizimir was a handsome speaker but that, just as in her kingdom, he was not the one making the decisions.

"We'd better get to the point, Vizimir, it's been a long road and I hope to get some rest before dinner." Standing upright in her chair, the young queen crossed her hands in her lap. Vizimir, for his part, settled back into his seat before leaning slightly over his desk to speak to her.

From her seat, the young queen could hear the great city of Tretogor, the capital of the kingdom, living through the small window. The air rushing into the room blew a few strands of her dark hair. Seirsa's face remained impassive, she rarely showed her feelings, even with her family. Vizimir took a deep breath before beginning her speech.

"My sweet queen Seirsa, as you know, the elven people have allied themselves with the Nilfgaardians..." Questioning his guest with his eyes, the latter shook her head in response "...they have settled in the city of Cintra, held by Emhyr's troops, with the sole purpose of reviving Xin'trea." He paused afterward to pour himself a glass of Redanian lager.

Knowing his game perfectly, Seirsa let out an annoyed sigh.

"So what? What does that have to do with me? Vizimir, I don't have your time." Raising his eyebrows, the king finished his drink before continuing.

"Very well, very well, I wish to recover Cintra. Cleanse it of non-human vermin..."

"And make it part of your kingdom, what business is it of mine?"

"Like yours, my troops suffered many losses after Sodden. We are allies, I have not betrayed you, so yes I have come to ask for your help in liberating the city from the late great Queen Calanthe."

Seirsa took a few minutes to think about his proposal. She had met Vizimir before, most notably at the signing of the alliance between the northern kingdoms and the last time when the black knight was not executed by the mage council.

"And, may I ask, who gave you this idea?" The young woman was no fool, unlike the king in front of her, it was almost obvious that Vizimir was not entirely the sole brain behind this desire to dominate Cintra.

Seirsa had a small idea of who might be behind it, but she wanted to be sure.

"It's me." A voice rose behind her, a male voice. The man approached her before bowing, placing a kiss on the back of her hand, and introducing himself.

"Sigismund Dijkstra my queen, at your service." Frowning, Seirsa carefully examined her new interlocutor. A tall, bald man, who nonetheless seemed incredibly strong, and yet, as he was approached, the young woman had felt uncomfortable. Trying to regain her composure, the young woman refused the glass the counselor handed her for fear of finding poison in it.

After several minutes, the young woman finally spoke.

"And how does taking over Cintra benefit me? What's in it for me?" Questioning his master with his eyes to see if he could speak, the counselor set out to coax the young queen.

"Imagine a world where you were both Queen of Kaedwen and co-ruler of Cintra. The money from your mines could help rebuild what was destroyed during the capture of the city into a city of great exception. You, Queen Seirsa of Kaedwen, would become one of the most powerful women in the whole world and everyone would bow down to you. This can only happen if you help us if we go. Otherwise, King Vizimir would take Cintra alone and wipe out all traces of your lineage from history." Not accepting the threats, Seirsa stood up, her eyebrows furrowed as if ready to fight. She turned to the king, glaring at him, waiting for him to rebuke his advisor for his bad behavior.

Suppressing her anger so as not to make the situation worse, her hands tightened. It was obvious that King Vizimir was controlled by his advisor, which was why he had not been indignant about Dijkstra's threats. She couldn't help but think of her son, it was obvious from his physical form and demeanor that he had not lost his life simply by accident. As she sat back down, the young woman turned solely to the king.

"Let's say I manage to convince my husband to participate in your... reconquest of Cintra. That he agrees, and we win this battle, what guarantees do I have that you will not turn against the Kaedwen?" Dijkstra placed one of his hands on the back of the chair the young queen was sitting in while the second was resting on the king's desk, preventing Seirsa from leaving the room.

"You will have to trust us. But think how sad it would be if your grandson ended up like his father."

[Cedrel] - Seirsa, stay strong. Don't let him get to you, you know he won't. Accept his proposal, in case it's a trap, you know perfectly well that we have the means to intervene.

[Nareth] - Even if he doesn't betray us, and I doubt it, we will take Cintra... and Redania.

Contrary to what the counselor expected to see on the face of the young queen he liked to threaten, Seirsa smiled a little at what Nareth had just suggested to her. Kaedwen could certainly not claim to be invading Redania, but with the necessary forces, anything becomes possible.

"I promise you to tell King Henselt of your proposal, he will make the decision himself..."

"On your wise advice I hope so." Vizimir spoke, at last, rising to offer his guest his hand and escorting her to the door "...He only listens to me anyway. I'll let him think about it and we'll talk about it again over a map of the territories." Placing a kiss on the back of her hand again, the king smiled at her, pleased with the encounter before his advisor faced a curtsy in thanks and farewell.

#the witcher #the witcher netflix #vizimir II #sigismund dijkstra #the witcher imagine #the witcher imagines

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warsofasoiaf · 3 years

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I've got a video game suggestion-you've mentioned that your favorite quest in Witcher 3 is Reason of State, and I would like to hear your analysis of that quest.

This is truly a god-tier quest, a very good example of well-done quest design, that culminates a world’s worth of quest-building and features some exceptional character work. Since we’re going to be up to our necks in spoilers, there’s a cut here.

Reason of State might be the grand climax and resolution of the quest arc, but context in this is critical and that goes. The northern wars between Nilfgaard and the Northern Kingdoms is all over the games. Nilfgaard’s plan to assassinate Northern kings using Letho of Gulet is the entire plot of Witcher 2, and the war between Radovid and Emhyr forms the backdrop for Witcher 3. The Northern Kingdoms are almost all broken by the time of the Witcher 3. Temeria is occupied, Foltest was murdered in the Witcher 2. Natalis missing from the Witcher 3, and Vernon Roche forced to fight a guerilla war in caves. Velen is a broken land thanks to this war and under the absentee rule of the Bloody Baron. Aedirn is a non-entity, Stennis is absent no matter what happened in Witcher 2. Kaedwyn is gone, Henselt either being killed by Roche or Radovid and forcibly integrated into Redania. Only Redania remains, forcibly integrating Kaedwyn, but it is run by Radovid V. By the third game, Radovid is a cruel, psychotic king, but has a solid understanding of tactics enough to fight the Nilfgaardians to a stalemate (and he will win, without player intervention). Nilfgaard is responsible for a lot of Northern disorder, their campaign to use Letho to kill Northern kings successfully rid themselves of Demavend III and Foltest, the first of whom was able to successfully predict Emhyr’s movements while the latter is the leader of the most powerful kingdom and successfully defeats Nilfgaard’s invasion. But it’s not all Nilfgaard, Philipa Eilhart murdered King Vizimir II, Radovid’s father and one of the chief architects of the First Northern War victory, largely out of a bid for personal power. This paragraph shows that things are bad all around. Emhyr is a blatant expansionist responsible for a great deal of suffering, and the only man capable of resisting him is an open sadist relentlessly persecuting mages, which might be the only hope for the North to remain independent (it won’t be, but you have no way of knowing that at present)

When the player begins to be introduced to the characters, they’re framed as desperate men on the fringe. Roche is waging a crusade with his Blue Stripes, but the Nilfgaardian advance has been stymied largely by Redania and the two sides attempting to compete for the fleets and treasures of Novigrad. He’s forced to working with Radovid, who he openly doesn’t like, out of a practical need to do something. Ves is even throwing herself into suicide missions against Mulbrydale, out of a desire to do something worthwhile, a far cry from the man who was such a major mover of the plot in Witcher 2. King Radovid does not present well, acting psychotic in his introductory scene with the chessmen, and acting poorly toward Geralt, the player character and thus the vector for exploring the game world even if he is an established character (it’s worth noting that one of the best ways to get a player to dislike a character is to have them be rude to the PC, no matter how justified it may be in-universe). His mage hunts are also not likely to endear themselves to the player; the two primary love interests to Geralt and friends to Ciri are mages, and the witch hunters attempt to bilk Geralt of his reward by demanding the megascope crystal in Redania’s Most Wanted. Djikstra is helpful enough to Geralt during his hunt for Dandelion, but the two end on a bad note which isn’t entirely Djikstra’s fault since Geralt did lie to him; he’s notably nicer if you secure him his vault key, but that requires botching a quest and ends up causing Triss to commit torture to progress the storyline. The player character inclined to be friendly to Roche, if only because he tends to be straight and polite with you. Sure enough, Roche and Ves help out during the climatic fight in Kaer Morhen. Radovid isn’t even an option (and will kill Kiera Metz, further engendering hatred from the player since she’s another character Geralt can shack up with and Kiera’s absence means fellow Wolf School witcher Lambert dies). Djikstra doesn’t help you at all if you don’t get his key back, and if you do he gives you gold, which isn’t likely to be very significant since you’re likely swimming in coin by that point in the game.

One of the things I like in this questline is that this is a big and monumental quest, but you will lose it if you don’t take the time to get in good with the plotters, you’ll simply miss this quest. If you don’t get in good with the plotters, they won’t trust you. And if you beat down Djikstra instead of giving him information, he despises you and won’t bring you in on the plot, Geralt’s effectiveness as a Witcher and as a protagonist be damned. That’s something that more games need to be doing, rewarding players for investing themselves in the game with content. A lot of Triple-A games these days are so scared of players missing or cutting themselves out of content that they refuse to do this, which makes a lot of RPG’s feel far more shallow. I’m sympathetic to a point to game developers, content is expensive. Graphics and voice acting are expensive and losing content means spending money on content that’s not going to hit 100% of the audience. Thing is though, the same argument can be made for sidequests, or even for alternative conversation paths, so I don’t consider it a good enough excuse on its own. Avoiding this is as brainless as it is lazy.

When the game circles back after the Isle of the Mists, things are clearly reaching a breaking point. Djikstra has recruited like-minded conspirators to his cause to kill Radovid, each of whom have their own reasons. Djikstra, who worked with Radovid’s father, finds him a poor king unlikely to continue Vizimir’s great reign. Gregor the Redanian guard sees the devastation wrought by Radovid’s lynchings and persecutions and despises it, his loyalty to his country is too high to desert but he feels he needs to do something. Thaler and Roche are devoted to the idea of a free Temeria that they’re willing to back Djikstra’s play to bring an end to the Third Northern War. The player is likely to support the conspirators, Radovid’s support of the witch hunters has led to the deaths of non-humans since you need to complete Now or Never and save the mages; pogroms aren’t a great way to endear a player character to Radovid, especially since Zoltan the dwarf has been nothing but a straight-up pal to Geralt. This is a good tactic in RPG quest design, by making the least appealing result the default, it encourages the player to do the quests. As any GM can tell you, you have to make your players want to do the quests, otherwise they’ll do something else. Games are not able to just make up a new quest off the cuff like an improvisational tabletop GM can (this was one of my strengths as a GM, if you trust my players’ judgment), so they must heavily rely on getting the player to do quests. Some are mechanical, do this quest for XP and loot that makes you better at the game. The Witcher excelled though, at getting people invested in characters.

The conspirators’ play won’t work though, not without help from Phillipa; the hated mage is the bait that they need for the trap to work (and coincidentally, it won’t work without Geralt as well both because Phillipa won’t give her ring to any of the other plotters and by virtue of Geralt as the protagonist in the RPG). The trap is laid for Radovid, and if the player goes through with it, Radovid is executed by Phillipa, who flies off into the night having murdered yet another Redanian king.

Then, after the conspirators escape, the stage is set for Geralt to make a moral choice when Djikstra betrays the conspiracy. It’s a wonderfully set and acted scene, from Djikstra quoting a Macbeth stand-in to the patriots’ giddy excitement at the future. Then, the shoe drops and the conspiracy falls apart. Djikstra plans to become the next Vizimir, taking Radovid’s consolidated northern kingdom of Redania and Kaedwyn and fighting Emhyr to a standstill. Temeria would be subsumed into that, ceasing to exist. Naturally, this enrages the Temerian patriots, who refuse to go along with that scheme. It leaves Geralt with a choice, leave and allow Djikstra to murder Roche, Ves, and Thaler, or stay and defend them, resulting in a fight that will end in Djisktra’s death. This is often the case in partisan movements throughout history, where a power struggle over the shape of the victory to come causes disunity and strife, ending with one faction murdering the other ones, so points for historical and thematic elements being on point for the gritty fantasy. Similarly, by making the choice being the resolution of a conspiracy, it threads the needle between the protagonist doing everything and solely resolving the ending for one faction, which often feels shallow, and giving the player no agency which robs investment in the ending. By allowing the conspirators their machinations and taking advantage of others already in place, it allows the player to feel a meaningful impact that has wide implications. Fallout’s ending slides could be hit or miss, though the small scale of post-apocalyptica does make it more relevant. It hits a nice sweet spot, where it’s probably a bit too much to be realistic in a straight history but works just nicely for the scope of fantasy fiction. By forcing the player to do the quests for these people, not only does it meet the threshold of believability by explaining why they would bring Geralt on the quest save that he’s the protagonist, but it invests the player in the characters. Of course, this can only be done because the game did such wonders with its character work. Even if you don’t play Witcher 2, you see Roche love his country, you see Ves try to defend Mulbrydale, and they both can contribute meaningfully in the Battle at Kaer Morhen. Djikstra does influence the main plot and he can be funny with his sarcastic quips delivered by excellent voice acting. Thaler is less of a presence, but he’s also side-splittingly hilarious when he taught the trolls to swear, the player likes these characters and so likes the quest they’re in, and picking between them does actually cut deep in a way that Telltale Games “pick which character you want” drama can only hope to achieve in its wildest dreams. It’s political game storytelling at it’s best, using character work which is easier for players to identify with as I mentioned in my geopolitics essay.

Backing Djikstra is tough in the short run, because you lose three characters that you probably like. Roche and Ves, after all, did join you in Kaer Morhen and it seems cold for them to help and then betray them, unless of course, you didn’t ask for their help. Djikstra rules and reforms the North on a program of modernization, often contrary to the wishes of his subjects. Plenty might think that to be a path of success for the North, since Djikstra will build a military that will defend them and ensure a general level of prosperity. You just have to turn a blind eye to the Temerian patriots being slaughtered by Djikstra.

The alternative, backing Roche and Thaler isn’t a pure win either. Temeria becomes a province of Nilfgaard, but Emhyr gets Aedirn and Lyria. Emhyr finally wins his war and isn’t likely to stop his expansionist ways unless Ciri becomes Empress. Even then, he’s a senior statesman and can exert influence if he wants, Ciri even says so. We can get Roche’s perspective, and we like Roche. After all, he (probably) helps us out in the grand fight at Kaer Morhen, but he’s not an unbiased observer. He’s a Temerian partisan happy to sell out the other Northern Realms for a dubious pretense at some internal autonomy for Temeria alone. In plenty of ways, the Roche path is a collaborationist success story, selling out the North for Temeria alone.

The choice is yours to take and to make what you will. Plenty of folks might hope for a change in direction if they put Ciri on the Nilfgaardian Throne, but they might instead desire for her to adventure on her own as a de facto Witcher. In that case, Emhyr fails, is killed, and who knows what happens next? Could more provinces break away, might there be further wars in Nilfgaard, or power struggles, or something else. It could go a lot of different ways and it’s up to the player to decide. In a way, that’s amazing in its own right, because it’s actually what the real world is like. The absence of a golden ending is standard fare for grimdark, but that so much is left open shows a level of restraint and trust in the player that I admire in a developer.

Thanks for the question, Anon. Hope you liked it.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

#witcher #witcher 3 #video game reviews

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garmonboziasworld · 3 years

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So here it is, my first fanfiction ever. Centred around my OC Mari and our favourite Temerian, Vernon Roche (because I love that grumpy old man).

As to right now, there will be three parts and I have 100k words ready and I am nowhere near finished. So we will see.

After the second northern war redanian court sorceress Mari Molinar has a fateful encounter with King Foltest's newest member of the temerian intelligence, Vernon Roche. An encounter destined to be. A story about two souls holding on to each other while the North falls apart and both lose the things they hold dearest.

(A multi-part, OC-centred Witcher fanfiction. Part 1 will take place from 1263 to 1275, so there will be spoilers for the books and games)

Chapter 1: Nice To Know You

~1263~

Pompous, colourful banners were hanging from the high ceiling of the royal hall. The redanian silver eagle on a red field, silver temerian lilies on a black field, a black unicorn on gold for Kaedwen and Aedirn’s chevron of gold and red in black. Mari’s sight left the coat of arms, watching some servants taking down the chandeliers to replace the burned down candles. In the background, the royal chamberlain was instructing the servant staff. Her thoughts were wandering off until happy laughter and screams brought her back to reality. She tilted her head only to see the royal couple’s children, Dalimira, Melina and Radovid, running past the entrance.

“Hey!” she called out after them. “No running in the hallway!” But the three had already left around the next corner.

“Don’t be so harsh on them, Mari. At least not today.” Queen Hedwig of Malleore, King Vizimir’s wife, stepped besides her. “They are just excited about the banquet tomorrow. The whole city of Tretogor is. Except one individual, I suppose.”

Mari said nothing, her lips twitched in an almost unnoticeable way.

“Seriously. Enjoy yourself for once.”

“A bunch of loud and drunk northern war heroes. I cannot imagine anything more enjoyable.”

“Do not be so ironic.”

“And I do enjoy myself quite often.”

“Then enjoy yourself once without burying your nose in some old poetry book.”

“Is that my Queen’s royal order?”

“Do I have to make it one?”

“Fine,” she sighed. “If that’s what my Queen commands.”

Mari Molinar was sitting at the dressing table in her room, combing her long, wavy mahogany hair. She laid down the brush and contemplated herself in the mirror. Grey eyes were looking back at her. Looking at her high cheekbones, her averaged nose and lips. For a sorceress she was quite ordinary. Not one of those stunning, out-of-this-world-beautiful sorceresses who were just breathtaking. She never cared for beauty, she always wanted to stand out because of knowledge and magical skills. Being born as the only child to a married couple of millers in 1120, her magical talent manifested quickly. Despite the humble job and the money it brought to the family, her parents paid the fee for the magical academy of Aretuza so she could study there. And after her studying was finished, she was assigned to the redanian royal family in Tretogor since the king reigning at that time was displeased with the already assigned sorceress, Philippa Eilhart. And, to no one’s surprise, Philippa was not pleased about a second sorceress. She never liked her since the beginning. And the fact, that Mari became an appreciated and respected advisor and diplomat not only within the royal family but also outside of Tretogor’s walls did not improve the relationship between Philippa and her.

And now here she was. 1263. The northern war with Nilfgaard just ended after the battle of Sodden Hill, where she and 22 other mages fought alongside the northern armies, united by the king of Redania, King Vizimir II. The battle ended in a disgraceful defeat of the nilfgaardian Army. And to celebrate the end of the war, King Vizimir was holding a great banquet at Tretogor. And she had to participate. Of course she had to. If it wasn’t because of her status as royal advisor then because of her participation in the battle.

She opened a glass vial and used the stopper to apply the perfume oil on her wrists, her neck and behind her earlobes. The scent of sweet vanilla mixed with earthy patchouli reached her nostrils as she stood up from the dressing table. She walked through the room and stepped towards her bed where she laid out her dress. A long dress made out of red velvet fabric with long sleeves which became wide from the elbows and almost fell to the floor. The hems were decorated with silver braid. The belt made out of beautiful woven ribbon in red and silver, hanging down decoratively long in the front. She slipped out of her dressing gown and got dressed.

“If you will excuse me?” With a courteous smile Mari left the conversation she was just having. She was trying to get only one minute of not having to talk to aristocrats, nobles or military leadership ranks. But those plans were suddenly interrupted by Queen Hedwig who appeared by her side.

“So? How is it going?”

“Just a lot of talking and listening.” She sensed Hedwig’s telling gaze and kept on. “I know, usually I don’t mind at all. That’s what you do at banquets like this one. But I miss the subtle political tension. Everyone is just so …”

“Happy? Relieved?”

Mari sighed. “I’m sorry, my Queen, that was an unrefracting thing to say.”

“Well …” Queen Hedwig looked at the hall’s entrance as loud cheers echoed through the hall. “There you have your political tension.”

She followed her Queen’s glance and caught sight of King Foltest, the king of Temeria, entering the room.

“Come on, go over there and talk to him.”

“Me?”

“Of course, sweetheart. You know his relationship with Vizimir has grown quite cold since he rejected the marriage proposal. And he adores you. Now, come on.”

She knew, her queen was right. The relations between Redania and Temeria have not been the best those last years. The rejection of Vizimir’s marriage proposal by King Foltest nearly caused a war between Temeria and Redania. But King Foltest was a mighty ruler of a powerful kingdom. It would not be wise to let such an important ally become a strong enemy. With a last approving nod from Hedwig, Mari started moving through the hall until she reached him.

“Lady Molinar!” he greeted her with spread out arms.

“Your Majesty?” Following the court etiquette, she made a low bow in front of him.

“We haven’t seen each other in a while but as I can see you are still as beautiful as you have ever been,” he said while reaching out his hand.

Straightening up again she laid her hand in his and received a kiss on the hand, although it was rather his lips touching her knuckles than a real kiss. That would have been rather inappropriate in the formal environment. “You flatter me, your Highness.”

Foltest released her hand again and gestured beside him. “May I acquaint you with Vernon Roche, my new and very promising member of the temerian intelligence.”

She looked at the man standing beside the king. A man probably around his thirties, his physique rather lean. He wore a chaperon on his head, emphasizing his chiselled features. And he met her glance with fiery brown eyes.

“It’s an honour to meet you,” he said with a slightly raspy voice, reaching out his hand just like his king did just a few moments ago. She laid her hand in Roche’s too and as he repeated Foltest’s gesture. His hands were rougher than Foltest’s but not in an unpleasant way. For not even the second the hand-kissing took she could feel his breath tickling her skin. When he let go of her hand, those piercing brown eyes looked at her again.

“New to the job and already thrown in at the deep end by your king.”

“The sooner he learns the better,” Foltest replied.

“If that’s the case then you should talk to the head of the redanian secret service, Sigismund Dijkstra. He is a valuable conversationalist in that field of work.”

“I will.” Roche nodded in agreement.

“What about you?” Foltest intervened. “I bet you could give some excellent advice, too.”

Mari looked at the king, a smile curled her lips. “I appreciate your unquestioning trust, your Majesty, but I am no expert in the matter of spying and sabotage”

“But you are when it comes to tactics and strategy of war. The victory in the battle of Sodden Hill showed that once again.”

“That was not my doing.”

“Modest as always.”

“I did not defeat the nilfgaardian troops alone, King Foltest, there where twenty-two other mages and every one of them contributed to our victory. Speaking of, I am sorry for your loss of the Lady Triss Merigold.”

“Thank you for your condolences. At least I still have Keira Metz and Fercart.”

“They are both capable and good advisors.”

“They are indeed. Yet, I’d dismiss them from their royal service immediately if you’d agree to take Merigold’s place.”

Mari couldn’t help but chuckle. “You did not want his daughter but you do want his advisor. I do not think King Vizimir would be delighted about that.”

“He still has Philippa Eilhart to advise him, doesn’t he?”

“I would rather not leave the duty of royal advice to Lady Eilhart.” The displeasure in her voice was impossible to ignore.

“You still don’t like each other.”

“Not to like someone and not to trust someone are two very distinctive matters.”

“And why do you not trust her?”

She took a deep breath and ground her teeth imperceptible. As much as she wished she could vent her fury, she pulled herself together. After all, it was the King of Temeria she was talking to. “To talk badly about Miss Eilhart in your majesty’s presence would be rude.”

"And I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t, your Majesty, I shouldn’t have brought up the topic.”

“Alright, I will forgive you if you promise me a dance later.”

She smiled at him and nodded. “I promise.” From the corner of her eye she saw King Vizimir standing next to Queen Meve and her general and advisor, Reynard Odo. Vizimir beckoned her over and she looked at Foltest again. “I am sorry, your Majesty, but my king requests my presence.”

“And you don’t keep a king waiting. I have to know. So don’t keep me waiting for the dance you promised me.”

“I won’t,” she said with a faint smile. “It was a pleasure seeing you again, King Foltest.” She slightly bowed down in front of him before she turned her eyes to the man beside him. “Vernon Roche.” Politely, she tilted her head, then she walked by the two men and headed for King Vizimir.

As she walked past Roche couldn’t help but follow her with his gaze. And he wasn’t the only one doing so. Her hair falling down her back like a waterfall, her motion elegant and self‑assured. His nose still had a hint of her scent and he could still feel the soft skin of her hand in his. And on his lips. Roche didn’t even know where the thought came from but he wondered whether the rest of her skin felt so soft, too. And how the rest of it would feel on his lips.

“Impressive, isn’t she?” Foltest voice interrupted Roche’s digressive thoughts. “Nothing like the other sorceresses. Different from them she is not interested in power and influence. She has devoted her life to the Northern Realms, has sworn to serve it and to do everything in her power to its peace. She is said to be one of the most intelligent people in the North, a master in the fields of politics and diplomacy. With a woman like her by your side you could achieve anything.”

Roche swallowed. His throat was dry. He didn’t even notice until now. He desperately needed some ale to wet his whistle. ”Is that why you asked her to join the temerian court, my Majesty?”

“I saw an opportunity and I took it. I could make better use of her in Temeria than Vizimir is doing here in Redania. Not to mention his only considerable heir. Rumour has it the boy has his head in the clouds. Nowhere near being the future leader of this kingdom.”

“He’s a kid of eight years.”

“Still he will be king someday. There is nothing wrong about learning the hard and ugly ways of life at an early stage. You know that better than anyone else.”

He gritted his teeth. Foltest was right, he did know better. But in contrast to the young prince of Redania, Roche didn’t have much a choice.

“Alright, enough of that. Let’s get you to meet some people, shall we?”

Later that evening when the moon was already shining bright, Mari stood on the terrace, taking a short break from the banquet. She could still hear the laughters, the lively conversations and the clinking mugs over a toast. Torches lightened the terrace and the bordering gardens. She leaned on the marble balustrade, watching the fountain centred in the garden in front of her eyes. When she heard someone stepping out on the terrace, she peered over her shoulder.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know this place was already occupied.”

And there he was. Vernon Roche. Pretending like he did not know. There was no chance he did not know she was here. Question was, why did he come? Was it genuinely interest or royal instruction?

“No, it’s fine. Please …” She gestured to the spot beside her and he took that offer by stepping up. As soon as he stood beside her, that beguiling sweet-woody scent reached his nostrils.

“Do you mind?” He pulled out a wooden pipe. Mari shook her head in response. “I don’t. Go ahead.” In fact, she always liked the smell of a smoked pipe. So she inhaled with relish when he lightened his pipe and dragged on it.

“So,” she started. “How are you holding up between all those high born nobles and flamboyant personalities?”

He huffed and nibbled on his pipe “I am not comfortable in situations like these. I just don’t like the way I am eyed by people like those inside.”

“You mean how they are condescending towards you because unlike them you are a simple man?”

Surprised by her words, he looked at her. “How did you…?”

“Figured that out? I’m dealing with the best of circles since decades. So I do recognise one who doesn’t.”

“So why don’t you treat me like the dog from the streets I am?”

“You think I was born as a child from a rich and respectable noble family? I wasn’t. And besides, why should I care about where you come from when the more important question is where you want to be.”

Roche let those words sink in. He never thought about it. He always lived from one day to the next, never cared about the big picture. Not until Foltest gave him this life changing opportunity. But still, he didn’t know if he ever was capable on living up to his king’s expectations. To what he saw in him. Resigning, he shook his head. “There would have been a lot more suitable people for the king of Temeria to bring along. Not me.”

Mari watched him as he slowly exhaled the smoke of his pipe. In that moment she realised that he looked older than he probably was. Probably he did see and experienced a lot of things that caused it. A troubled, maybe even torn mind. Full of self-doubt and the feeling of never being good enough. “You really don’t see why he did that, do you?”

He turned his head towards her and looked at her. “… I guess not?”

“He is testing you. To see if you can blend in, make contacts, have your eyes and ears where he needs them to be. If you have what it takes to become whatever he wants you to.”

“Then I hope I didn’t fail his trust miserably.”

“King Foltest has knowledge of human nature. He would not have picked you if he didn’t.”

“I think I understand it now. Why King Foltest speaks nothing but very highly of you.”

With a soft smile on her face she looked at him. “May I give you an advice, Vernon Roche?”

“Of course, Lady Molinar.”

“Kings come and go, as so do their morals, ideals and opinions. You better start quickly having your own.”

“You want me to start with my opinion about you?”

For a short moment, she was caught off guard. Was he … flirting? “Whatever pleases you.” Wait. Was she flirting?

And then they just stood there, side by side, looking into each other’s eyes, studying their faces. She tried to get any hint from his facial expression, but she couldn’t. She simply couldn’t read his face. No hint of any emotion. He’d really make a good spy. He carried it off well. But she really did want to know what was going on in his mind right now. What he was thinking about her while he watched her. But then, on the other hand, what could it possibly be he was thinking? Apart from the conversation they just had he hardly spoke to her. He didn’t know anything about her so how was he supposed to have any opinion on her?

She was broken in her thoughts when someone passed by in the gardens. She had a look, as so did Roche, and they spotted a couple taking a walk. They walked past the fountain, arms wrapped around each other’s waist. The man whispered something in the woman’s ear that made her giggle like being a young girl being in love for the first time again. “Oh stop it,” she laughed and playfully put her hand on the man’s chest. “Something you’re not going to say to me again for the rest of the evening …” he answered and with more giggles and laughter they wandered off again.

Somewhat embarrassed, Mari looked to the ground. How stupid of her not to consider the option him having a lover. Maybe he was already married? And had kids? He was about the right age and he was an attractive man, so why shouldn’t he. And why was she thinking about something like this anyway? Why did she even care? She hardly knew him, met him just a few hours ago. If, at all, they were supposed to work together. She was supposed to keep this strictly professional. So what has gotten into her? Realising how close she was standing to him, feeling the warmth radiating from his body, she took a step away from him. He seemed to notice since he cleared his throat.

“So, I … I got the chance to talk to Dijkstra. And to Philippa Eilhart.”

“And how did it go?”

Roche shrugged with his shoulders. “Depends on what her intention was. Since she was the one busting into my conversation I was having with Dijkstra.”

“To see how much of an ally or enemy you make.”

“Then I guess I disappointed her either way.”

Mari huffed and slightly shook her head. “Nothing to be sad about.”

Roche took a pull on his pipe. “So … why don’t you like Lady Eilhart?”

Feeling like finally having her senses back, Mari looked at him and paused before she continued speaking. “As a future spy you should work on your subtlety.”

He met her eyes and exhaled the smoke. “So now you do give me advices.”

And that was when Mari realised. “Because you were sloppy on purpose. Because you knew I’d tell you so. Getting the truth from the opposite be telling a lie yourself. You’re good, Vernon Roche, I give you that.”

“Foltest knew I couldn’t fool you.”

So it has been a test after all. Of course it had been. How could she even consider something different? She should have known better than that. Her lack of instinct disappointed her. “… Okay, what were you supposed to draw out of me?”

“Nothing special. He just wanted you not to recognise my questioning.”

“We already talked about that,” she answered. “What was on the line? What did you bet for?”

“That dance you promised him.”

“And you didn’t even make an effort. Hurtful.” Okay, now she was being sarcastic.

“Not as hurtful as when you found out I lied to you later. And a quiet, private talk away from the crowd is worth much more to me than some ballroom dance with hundred eyes watching.”

“Alright, then have your talk. You’re right, lying to me right from the beginning is not the smartest idea. But you will work for Temeria’s secret service. I will question everything you say from now on. I know the type of people working in secret service, I dealt with them enough throughout my time as advisor. Maybe I will never know if you tell the truth or not. Or what you really want.”

He looked her straight in the eyes when he answered. “I want to serve Temeria and King Foltest. He did a lot for me. I owe him my life and service. That’s it. Simple as that.”

And she recognised that this was the truth. She could see it in his eyes. And she heard it in his voice. The way he talked about King Foltest assured her that the man in front of her would do anything his King asked for. Anything. And she knew, Foltest wouldn't hesitate to ask for everything. That she was sure of. “Foltest trusts you. If you play your cards right, you could become his right hand man.”

“And how do I do that? Play my cards right?”

“You’ll find out. You are an intelligent man.” She pushed herself of the balustrade and turned away from him to go back inside.

“Wait!” She stopped when she heard his call and turned around again to look at him. “Can I … reach out to you? Or write you?”

“Why would you want that?”

“Well, I … in case I don’t know what to do.”

She looked at him and thought about her answer. After a few seconds, she nodded in response. “Of course you may.”

#fanfic #own work #also on ao3 #archive of our own #ao3 #vernon roche #original character #vernon roche x OC #roche x OC #No one is going to read it anyway

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veralevina15 · 1 year

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I want to put more emphasis on Radovid's relationship with his parents. Despite the fact that Radovid learned a lot from Philippa and Dijkstra, who became mentors for him and played a huge part on Radovid's path to becoming "the Stern", Vizimir and Hedwig were those who truly loved Radovid.

Although "Though rumor has it father and son barely knew one another" (Radovid V the Stern - The Hard Slog to Greatness) these words should be treated as rumors, not facts, that is, having only a piece of the truth. The fact that Radovid avenges the death of his father, that when he remembers his dad, he is very worried about Vizimir's death and that his father's merits were forgotten at the end of the war, indicates that Radovid loved Vizimir. So you can love and respect your father, as a rule, when your father also loves you. I have no doubt that Vizimir loved his son. However, Vizimir, apparently, was very busy with royal affairs, which is not at all surprising, and could not devote enough time to his son. I think he, out of good intentions, instructed Philippa to educate Radovid, because he trusted her.

But Philippa's harsh lessons clearly left a lasting mark. Where did the boy look for love and support? At his mother Hedwig. I also think it was Hedwig who taught Radovid to play chess. The closeness of mother and son is especially visible during the time of the Regency Council, when Radovid and Hedwig were together insulted from the members of the council. And Radovid paid back the offenders not only for himself, but also for his mother. "A king, who – after paying back all the insults borne by himself and his mother – would pass into the history as Radovid V the Stern" (The Lady of Lake)

The Gwent says that Radovid was a gentle and friendly boy, as rambunctious as other child, before Philippa became his tutor (btw this is a clear indication that she did not become his mentor immediately after birth and Vizimir and Hedwig did not push all care of their son onto her). I believe that prince grew up as a joyful child, because he felt the love and care of his parents, especially from his mother. But unfortunately at some point almost all of his time was devoted to study, and then he inherited the throne at such an early age due to the death of his father. It is not surprising that Philippa and Dijkstra had more influence on the young king.

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veralevina15 · 6 months

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Hello! I have 1 slot for commissions in digital: a portrait of The Witcher character up to his shoulders (as in the examples).

Feel free to DM me if you're interested or have any questions :)

#the witcher #ведьмак #adda the white #princess adda #radovid #radovid v the stern #радовид #millegarda #dalimira #king vizimir ii #queen hedwig #redania #the witcher 3 #witcher fanart

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veralevina15 · 1 year

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Радовид и Адда белая из книг, что вы о них думаете и есть ли у вас хэдканоны на внешность, поведение, хобби, отношение с семьёй/друзьями и отношения Адды с её мужем (она вроде вышла замуж в книге, поправьте меня если это не так)?

I have left English translation below Russian text

Адда Белая в книгах не замужем, она появляется лишь в самой первой книге "Последнее желание", где ей 14 лет) Она выходит замуж за Радовида в первой части игры, никаких других браков у обоих нет. Что касается самого Радовида, то на момент книги "Владычица Озера" ему 12-13 лет.

Если я правильно понимаю, то Вы спрашиваете про мои хедканоны на Радовида и Адду книжного периода? Тогда начну с внешности. Я хедканоню, что у Ради никогда не было пышной шевелюры в силу наследственности (вспомним его прадеда Радовида IV Лысого) и стресса от занятий с Филиппой. Мальчик довольствовался коротким "ёжиком".

Что касается Адды, то поскольку её волосы побелели ( не сразу), где-то в возрасте 14-15 лет она ходила беловолосой и очень из-за этого переживала. Позднее цвет её волос частично восстановился, но частично ей приходится подкрашивать белёсые пряди.

Поведение:

Радовид по канону был жизнерадостным и озорным ребёнком, добрым и весёлым. К этому я могу добавить, что он, безусловно, очень умный, старательный, с детства проявлял лидерские качества. При этом он нетерпелив, порывист, иногда действует в порыве эмоций, не подумав.

Адда лишь в 14 лет освободилась от проклятья, и уровень её развития поначалу был как у ребёнка 4-5 лет. Девочка из-за остатков проклятья склонна к агрессии, её часто захлёстывают эмоции, которые она пока не может контролировать, ей тяжело даётся учёба...Ей одиноко, она чувствует, что почти все вокруг её боятся и сторонятся, несмотря на увещевания её отца Фольтеста.

Хобби:

Радя с 9 лет играет в шахматы, его научила мама Гедвига. Позднее уже Филиппа стала на занятиях с мальчиком давать ему различные шахматные задачки и была очень довольна его успехами. Также юный королевич умеет вырезать по дереву фигурки, обожает читать в тишине библиотеки и разгадывать какие-нибудь сложные головоломки.

Адда любит петь и танцевать. А ещё она научилась очень хорошо ткать полотна и гобелены, вышивать замечательные узоры ( впоследствии она и Радовиду будет украшать сорочки :))

Отношения с семьёй и друзьями:

Радя очень сильно любит своих родителей, это канон. С матерью Гедвигой у них более тесная связь, чем с отцом, потому что Визимир часто бывает занят. Старшая сестра Милена покинула Третогор, когда Раде было 4 года, но к тому времени сестра и брат успели крепко подружиться. Со второй сестрой, Далимирой, Радовид тоже не мог особо видеться, потому что она стала монахиней. Зато он всегда с удовольствием изучал рукописи, которые сестра оставила в замке, и, вообще, Радя восхищается умом и эрудицией Дальки. У Радовида есть несколько друзей из знати, но у мальчика не так много свободного времени на игры. Самая любимая их ребяческая забава - нарядиться в рыцарей и отыскивать духов в какой-нибудь дальней башне.

Адда, с одной стороны, любит отца, но с другой - обижена на него, поскольку он косвенно виновен в ей проклятье. К тому же Фольтест тоже не в силах уделять Адде достаточно времени. Девочка очень расстраивается из-за того, что никогда не видела маму. К единокровным брату и сестре - Анаис и Бусси Адда чувствует ревность и обиду, ведь те "здоровые" и именно их Фольтест собирается сделать темерскими наследниками вместо Адды.

Ну и бонус. Краткое описание отношений Радовида и Адды (РадоАдды) в браке: они во всех смыслах огненная парочка))

________________

The question about headcanons of Radovid and Adda from books.

Adda the White is not married in the books, she appears only in the first book "The Last Wish", where she is 14 years old. She marries Radovid in the first part of "The Witcher", neither of them has any other marriages. As for Radovid , at the time of the book "The Lady of the Lake" he is 12-13 years old.

I'll start with the looks. I have headcanon that Radya never had a lush head of hair due to heredity (remember his great-grandfather Radovid IV the Bald) and the stress because of Philippa's lessons. The boy has a really short haircut. Adda's hair turned white (not immediately), then somewhere at the age of 14-15 she went white-haired and was very worried about this. Later, the color of her hair was partially restored, but in part she has to touch up whitish strands.

Behavior. According to the canon, Radovid was a kind, joyful and mischievous child. I can add that he is, of course, very smart, diligent, from childhood he showed leadership qualities. At the same time, he is impatient, impulsive, sometimes acts in a fit of emotions without thinking. Adda was freed from the curse only at the age of 14, and mentally she was like a 4-5 years old child . Because of the curse, the girl is prone to aggression, she is often overwhelmed by emotions that she still cannot control, she has a hard time studying ...She is lonely, she feels that almost everyone around her is afraid and shunned, despite the admonitions of her father Foltest.

Hobbies. Radya has been playing chess since the age of 9, he was taught by his mother Hedwig. Later, Philippa began to give him various chess problems in class with the boy and was very pleased with his success. Also, the young prince knows how to carve figures on wood, loves to read in the silence of the library and solve some difficult puzzles. Adda loves to sing and dance. And she also learned how to weave canvases and tapestries very well, embroider wonderful patterns (later she will decorate shirts for Radovid) :D

Relationships with family and friends. Radovid loves his parents very much, this is a canon. He has a closer bond with his mother Hedwig than with his father, because Vizimir is often busy. The older sister Milena left Tretogor when Radya was 4 years old, but by that time the sister and brother managed to become close friends. With the other sister, Dalimira, Radovid also could not see much, because she became a nun. Nevertheless, he always studied with pleasure the manuscripts that his sister left in the castle, and, in general, Radya admires Dalka's intelligence and erudition. Adda, on the one hand, loves her father, but on the other hand, she is offended by him, since he is indirectly guilty of her curse. In addition, Foltest is also unable to devote enough time to Adda. The girl is very upset because she has never seen her mother. To half-brother and sister - Anais and Bussi Adda feels jealousy and resentment, because they are "healthy" and Foltest is going to make them heirs of Temeria instead of Adda. A bonus. RadoAdda are a fiery couple in every sense!

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veralevina15 · 1 year

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Radovid's chess monologue: devotion, betrayal and *lub-dub, lub-dub*

Today I’m going to explain to you the criminally overlooked Radovid’s chess monologue. That is not a comical crazy nonsense. That’s absolutely gorgeous speech about devotion, betrayal and *lub-dub lub-dub*.

Chekmate. They say that's the game of kings. That chess teaches one to think strategically. What a load of rubbish! Both sides have identical pieces, the rules stay invariably the same. How does this mirror real life?

Radovid, despite his young age, is a rather experienced ruler. He had to solve this most difficult puzzle called “politics” more than once. Politics is not chess, and here no one plays by the rules. Therefore, Radovid had very quickly accustomed himself to cold calculation, flexibility of mind and a certain amount of cynicism.

Witcher, do you know why I play chess?

Whatever the answer, Radovid ends the introductory part of the monologue and proceeds to the main one.

I play chess to reveal the game's secret. Blood thumps inside this chessmen. You need only listen - and you will hear. Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub...A heart pumping with life. I take a pawn - and hear flesh being rent. I win a piece - and hear screams from the depths of its bowels. I want to break the chessmen open, squeeze the truth from them. Do you see what I mean?

This whole piece is one continuous metaphor. Let's look at it in more detail.

Blood thumps inside this chessmen. You need only listen - and you will hear. Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub...

This is the most memorable moment, although Radovid only poetically compares the figures with people, and “lub-dub” is nothing more than an imitation of a heartbeat; a symbol of how noisy life is in a chess piece, if instead of it we imagine a living person, but on the political "board" of kings.

A heart pumping with life. I take a pawn - and hear flesh being rent. I win a piece - and hear screams from the depths of its bowels.

Through chess images, Radovid paints a picture of real political life with numerous deaths and sacrifices in the name of a certain goal. Dead flesh, death screams - this is what remains of the "pawns" that kings sweep away from their political board with a wave of their hands.

I play chess to reveal the game's secret.

Do you see what I mean?

What secret is he talking about? What is the "truth" that Radovid set out to squeeze out of chess? Perhaps these are the most difficult questions of the chess monologue. In order to fully understand them, you need to answer the king “No, I don't” and listen to Radovid’s further explanation.

You do not beacause you are not a king. Pawns see only the comrades at their sides and the foes across the field. The king has the differen view of the chessboard. His greatest foes surrounds him. His own chessmen might trap him. And that is check...and death. You see, witcher : сhess is a art of sacrificing your own pieces. Now do you see?

This is the key point of the monologue. Here is a real possibility in chess, when the king gets a checkmate only because he is blocked by his own pieces, and an analogy with royal power, when lieges betray their monarch. This is a clear allusion to a conspiracy against the king of Redania, arranged by the Temerians and Dijkstra (which is typical, none of the king's inner circle or from other Redanians, with the exception of a traitor soldier, is involved in the conspiracy. This makes one seriously doubt the veracity of Dijkstra's speeches and the journal entry that, they say, everyone would be happy about the death of the White Eagle).

The king is afraid of betrayal, because recently several rulers of the North have fallen victims of evil intentions: Demavend III, Foltest, and even earlier - his own father, Vizimir II, who was killed by Philippa Eilhart. Radovid is very afraid of repeating his fate. The situation is doubly aggravated by the war with Nilfgaard and the beginning of the Witch Hunt. The king is always on the alert, because he knows for sure: a lot of spiteful critics have divorced around, who in the most decisive way decided to throw him off the throne.

Thus, the “truth” that Radovid wants to squeeze out is the desire to obtain convincing evidence of the loyalty of his pawns, close associates and subjects (Geralt, Roche, etc.). Not without reason follows the explanation of the message about the king, locked in a trap by his own pawns.

His greatest foes surrounds him. His own chessmen might trap him. And that is check...and death.

He is absolutely right. Vernon Roche and Geralt are exactly those "pawns" that can lure the king into a deadly trap.

Another aspect of this monologue is reasonable sacrifices for the common good. In chess, one must be able to sacrifice one's pieces, as well as on the field of big politics - one's subjects (for example, Whoreson Junior). In the context of the infidelity of the lieges to their king, Radovid probably also takes into account the need to sacrifice unreliable pawns in time so that they do not harm the monarch. No wonder he orders to kill Geralt on the bridge of St. Gregory, because he suspects him of treason and barrier of all kinds. This is a fair assumption, given that on behalf of the witcher, the player can interfere with the plans of the king more than once.

You see, witcher: сhess is a art of sacrificing your own pieces.

It turns out that, on the one hand, chess doesn't mirror the real life (after all, no one plays by the rules in politics!), and on the other hand, how many figurative references can be found in chess to the real life of kings (and not only kings! ). Here is such a duality and depth. Perhaps, this is precisely the “secret” of chess for Radovid. Speaking more globally, chess in an incomprehensible way combines many different motives: ethics, metaphysics, music, mathematics, philosophy, and even love. The game is full of a bottomless amount of hidden meanings, and Radovid, as a talented chess player, understands and feels this very well.

And if we go back a little and answer the king's question "Yes, I do"?

Radovid: …I want to break the chessmen open, squeeze the truth from them. Do you see what I mean? Geralt: Yes, Sire, believe I do.

Radovid will react quite sharply to this.

You know shit. You're merely humoring me! I was not speaking literally.

These words of Radovid destroy any ridiculous assumption that the king, they say, in a fit of madness treats chess as if it were alive. And the king clearly does not tolerate any sycophancy. Perhaps it is for this reason that His Majesty will not give such a detailed explanation and will limit himself to only one phrase:

First hidden truth: a monarch is always surrounded by fools. Understand?

Around the monarch there are always a lot of sycophants who naively think that they are smarter and more cunning than their ruler and can easily deceive him. Radovid was surrounded by the ambitious sorceress Philippa Eilhart, who wanted to rule over Redania through obedient “pocket king”, and arrogant, blooming nobles, who did not respect the young heir.

At the end of the scene, Roche gives an extremely strange assessment of the king's speech:

Radovid's sinking ever deeper into madness, as I see it.

Also, an equally strange entry appears in the journal on behalf of Dandelion, where, among other things, it is indicated that

Geralt's meeting with Radovid confirmed the rumors circling around the king's mental state. The Redanian king was a dangerous madman trapped in his own world of disturbing visions

It is completely incomprehensible, on the basis of what Radovid's phrases we should have the impression that His Majesty is insane. If you listen to the king carefully, it is quite obvious that he says the right and logical things, in fact, describing his royal life, and the Eagle uses very beautiful images for this.

The words about the "mad king" looks like a deliberate denigration of Radovid. "Madness" is an inappropriate word to describe the state of mind of His Majesty, his pain and his anguish. But, of course, by the events of The Witcher 3, the king is on the verge of breaking, and a real abyss has opened up inside him. However, this is not about chess at all.

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