#bear school (the witcher) | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

donovaneagle2098 · 18 days

Text

A Complete Encyclopedia of the Lore of Every Witcher School

This is a project I've been working on for a long time. The Witcher Schools in general have lore spread across 3 or 4 different sources, so it's very easy to find inaccurate details about each school due to a person only going off of one source without even knowing of the others. Hell, I've been guilty of this in the past. So I've gone out of my way to find every source available for the various Witcher Schools and compile it into one master post, mostly pulling from the standalone Gwent game, and the Witcher TRPG. Without further ado, let's start out with the original school, the Order of Witchers.

Witcher schools are like the Clans of Skellige, subtly different, but largely united by their common ground, and that common ground is the Order of Witchers.

The Order of Witchers began as an experiment by the rogue mages Alzur and his mentor Cosimo Malaspina. They "recruited" tests subjects from orphanages, buying them from neglectful parents, or outright kidnapping street kids.

From Cosimo's Gwent Card:

"Children keep asking him for gifts. He doesn’t know why, but it really helps with finding subjects for his experiments."

The main goal of this project was to create an order of knights artificially mutated and imbued with extreme levels of magic to protect people from a world where, at the time, monsters were often literally around every corner.

The mutation experiments were grueling, and most early candidates died horribly, the girls especially, as the mutagenic compounds the mages were working with at the time were better suited for a boys physiology, and they quickly stopped trying to find a mixture that worked well with women, instead refining the more successful candidate pool. Even with these refinements, however, the Witchers couldn't actually generate much in the way of magical power, at least not nearly as much as those funding the project had hoped for.

These early candidates were encouraged to stick to political neutrality, were told of their duty to protect the common people, and their sword instructor tried to encourage them to take on knightly virtues to live their lives by, though only a few candidates actually bought fully into these particular knightly ideals.

The school developed a training regimen that all later Witcher schools would put their own small twists on. They perfected the whirling sword style, practiced on the Pendulum and Gauntlet training courses. They learned the Witcher Sign magic, created by Cosimo. They were taught hunting and monster lore from experts hired from across the world, and master alchemists crafted the famous Witcher potions.

Ultimately, funding from this school would be pulled due to the Witcher candidates lack of truly powerful magic ability, and the order would start to fracture. Witchers dissatisfied with their lot in life after being forcibly mutated, and railing against the Order's enforced ideals began getting combatative with other Witchers over petty contracts. At this time, contracts were so plentiful that there was no real need to fight over them, but these dissident Witchers did so anyway out of a desire for autonomy and to be free of the Order's code, which they saw as having no practical purpose to prepare new Witchers for the road ahead. This culminated in one such outspoken Witcher, Arnaghad, attacking another Witcher who poached a contract from him.

After being forced into the painful life of a Witcher, Arnaghad loathed anyone who imposed their will upon him, the Order and it's codes especially. He led an attack on the Order proper, aided by fellow Witchers who respected his defiance towards authority. Once they were beaten back, these dissidents fled to the Amell mountain range to start the next Witcher school, the School of the Bear.

The School of the Bear is one of the most misunderstood schools of them all, owing to the first major lore drop about them being largely in-universe rumors and conjecture surrounding the school, and as such I may need to go more in depth. The two major misconceptions stemming from this is the rumor about their armor, which claims that they don't bother dodging like the other Witchers and instead take blows head on (generally a bad idea, according to Geralt in the books), and the rumor about them attacking most Witchers they meet.

I contacted Cody Pondsmith, who wrote a great deal of this lore, and he mentioned that Bears do often threaten or even fight other Witchers, but in a very Skellige way, only to ward off the other Witcher from contracts they want. The Bears just want to live lives where they aren't commanded by others, and were trained especially brutally, and so will fight for what contracts they want. However they will NEVER kill another Witcher, just draw first blood (outside of duels to decide who runs the school, which occasionally turn deadly. It's unknown if Arnaghad has ever lost these duels) and if that other Witcher stands up to the Bear, they'll let them have the contract and if they meet up and work together enough even maybe become a lifelong friend.

To quote Cody himself: "I like to think of the Witcher Order as a big family in which the Bear School is the blunt, no-nonsense brother. He can be prickly and a bit of a bully sometimes but he takes his job seriously and he can be a good drinking buddy if you get to know him. Not the friendliest of people but far from evil. If you stand up to him and show him you're not afraid of him, he'll respect you."

The other rumor is also an exaggeration. The Witcher TRPG mentions that the Bear armor was designed with flexibility in mind, and while they trained to take on weaker blows with their armor and "mastery of the Quen sign", they also trained how to move quickly in their armor if they needed to dodge a fatal blow. The Bears also still trained on the gauntlet and pendulum like the other schools. Cody Pondsmith also confirmed that the Bears are just as agile as the other Witchers.

The Bears' core philosophy is almost very Lambert like, viewing Witcher's work not as a duty, or knightly virtue, but as difficult, brutal work. The only reason they stick to this work is to do a job where no one else commands them and they're left in peace. They focus only on the practical aspects of their profession, and as such discourage their students from working together in training, since Witchers work alone. As Arnaghad said, "We pass through life alone, better get used to it!" As a result, Bears are very isolated, preferring their own company to that of other Witchers, and were encouraged to value their autonomy and self care above all else. The Bears' final trial involved climbing to the top of Mt. Gorgon and back, and any who died from the cold were left "as a sobering reminder of the dangers of their trade". Despite this, the TRPG has a list of random early training events Witchers from all schools can have, and Bears could sometimes make friends amongst their fellow witchers in training just like members of every other school.

Once the new Bear students left their keep of Haern Caduch, most wouldn't return to winter there, unlike the other schools. They developed a reputation as being terrible to fight, and for being firebrands, often speaking very bluntly, not matter who they spoke to, authority included. Once such Witcher, named Gerd, was asked by a Duchess to help kill her father. He insulted her so badly he got a warrant for his death placed on him, though all the peasants he met spoke rather highly of him. As a result, Bears found it easiest to make friends amongst the similarly minded Dwarves and Gnomes of the Amell mountains, and people of the Skellige Isles. According to Cody Pondsmith, this is the main reason the Bears stayed together as a group at all. They valued autonomy above all else and so long as they functioned as a Witcher school, they were left alone and no rulers would try and command them. They also take their ideals of free will and apply it to others, never seeking to rule over others. They simply wish to live their lives free.

One of the original Witchers to side with Arnaghad, Ivar Evil-Eye, had extra mutations done to him by the Order of Witchers during his trial, allowing him to see into other worlds. In these visions he saw the Wild Hunt rampaging across them, conquering them. Ivar became obsessed with stopping them, and tried to kill Arnaghad to take command and lead the Bear school against the Hunt. This failed, so he and his supporters left to form the Viper School.

The Witchers of the Viper school, based in Gorthur Gvaed, were said to be the most secretive, taking contracts as both assassins and witchers. They at first dedicated themselves finding a way to stop the Wild Hunt, amassing a massive library on the subject. Fighting with an unpredictable, ambushed based variant of the Witcher fighting style, Viper Witchers employed poisons, brewed by skilled Viper alchemists, on both their swords, and a dagger in their offhand, their biggest deviation from typical Witcher combat techniques.

Vipers, for an unknown reason, eventually forgot their purpose. In his time, Letho of Gullet could only guess at why the school had been founded. Instead, they became famous for their skill at political killings, dealing with the nobility of the southern countries before Nilfgaard had even become a large-scale power.

Viper students had a different type of trial, after more grueling than typical training. Instead of any physical task like the other schools, the Viper students were given a pet at their induction to the school. And to graduate, they simply had to hunt it down and kill it, showing their lack of mercy.

While most of those who supported Ivar followed him to the Viper school, one group broke off and west east, across the Korath desert, to Zerikania, founding the School of the Manticore.

The School of the Manticore was founded by the Witcher Iwan, from the School of the Bear, following Ivar's assassination attempt on Arnaghad. They got work in the Korath desert as caravan guards, earning the attention of the Zerrikanian Queen after a deadly battle with a manticore. The Queen sponsored the Witchers of the Manticore, making them the only school to be officially backed by any government. They were experts on potions and anti-toxins, a necessity of dealing with the poisonous creatures of the Korath desert.

A unique adaptation to the monsters of the desert also had Manticore Witchers employ shields into the whirling combat of their Witcher training. Given their extra support, the Manticores held two keeps, Behelt Nar and Bailsuf Alsarea, on opposite sides of the desert, so that they might better patrol and guard those within it.

The Manticore is the final school to come from the schism Arnaghad had led. The other voices of dissent against the ideals of the Order would soon hear of these new schools and decide to break off as well to form the School of the Cat.

The School of the Cat was founded out of a response to the hatred and distrust Witchers received. They desired to be seen in a better, more respectful light. Ironically, they would end up doing the opposite. The Cat School stole away with several of the mutagens needed to make more Witchers and headed to Ebbing, and Stygga Citadel, where they would begin to experiment on human-elf children in an attempt to perfect the mutations. Its possible that the mages at this time furthered experiments on making women Witchers, but this is not confirmed yet.

Attempting to make a name for themselves, the Cats hired themselves out as spies, assassins, and mercenaries, genuinely earning them some respect from common folk for killing bandits.

In their attempts to perfect the mutations and further dull the emotions of their Witchers, the Cat school experimented harshly on a group of children that resulted in the opposite, giving these Witchers hightened emotional responses instead. These students, cast aside and left for dead, fled into the arms of a group of elves, who agreed to support them if this branch of the Cat School supported the elves' fight for freedom.

This branch, led by Gezras of Leyda, attached itself to the Dyn Marv caravan and traveled the continent, lending their services mostly to those nonhumans who could pay, while the main Cats at Stygga ended up getting assaulted by angry royals incited by their political maneuvering. This left the Dyn Marv branch as the only functional element of the School of the Cat. These Cats would train students' agility in a light, fast Elven take on Witcher fighting style, and would train their balance by making students walk a tightrope, starting low to the ground at first, but getting higher and higher each attempt.

The Cat school's breaking of Witcher neutrality and reputation for bloodlust earned Witchers such a bad name that those in the Order who most cherished their old swordmaster's knightly virtues would leave to form the School of the Griffin.

The School of the Griffin, led by Erland of Larvik, wished to truly achieve the dream of the original Order, and Gryphon, the Order's sword instructor. They traveled north to Kaer y Saren, an old fortress the Order once used, and cleansed it of the spirits of those who died in the first Witcher mutations. From there, they began a Witcher school focused on respectability and honor, believing in their knightly duties. And it worked, somewhat. The Griffins were sometimes advisors to nobility, and seen as honorable, but the prejudice against Witchers would never leave, and most would never see a Griffin Witcher as anything more than a monster playing at being a knight.

These Witchers tried their best to cushion their students against the pain of their lives on the Witcher's path, and were more brotherly than the other schools, though their knightly virtues and brotherhood were oftentimes cold comfort to Griffin students.

From the Witcher TRPG Sourcebook:

"Witcher I knew couldn’t really remember much ‘bout his past. Heh, too young to really form a lotta memories when they took him to Kaer Y Seren. Told me that the memory he did have made the mutations easier. Poor bastard clung to a memory of his pa takin’ him on a horse for a ride in the fields. Don’t know why he chose that one. Probably the only normal memory he had."

The Griffins amassed a huge library of magical knowledge, though they could only push sign magic so far, and the books were likely wasted being in a Witcher library. The library held several incredibly famous tomes on magic within, and was the envy of full mages across the Northern Realms. Despite all their efforts, they never could achieve their goal of bringing about the Order of Witcher's vision. The Griffins even had their own breaches of Witcher tradition in pursuit of their knightly heroics. An often said mantra of the Griffin school in Gwent is "To slay dragons! Tis our knightly duty!" despite dragons being largely innocent, intelligent beings who mostly wish to be left in peace.

Code Pondsmith had this to say about the Griffins:

"The Griffins stuck to the knightly traditions that the original witcher order tried to uphold. As a result it's safe to say that the Griffin school taught that monsters were the enemy of mankind and must be defeated. I don't think they would all be blindly overzealous but they wouldn't have any qualms about slaying sapient monsters if they believed it was for the good of mankind. Similarly, it's likely that they would side with humans in any conflict between monsters and humans. In a way, the Griffins' knightly virtues made them easier to manipulate than the other witcher schools. They were bound to protect humanity and thus were more likely to be convinced to hunt a monster if a local noble or alderman claimed it would be for the good of the people. This is the case with the dragons. The kingdoms and jewelers guilds of the North convinced the Griffin School that dragons were a blight upon humanity and the Griffins started slaying dragons regardless of whether all of the dragons they slew deserved it. Additionally, the knightly values might make Griffin school witchers more likely to take pity on desperate humans and work for free."

Those few Witchers remaining in the Order by now traveled to northern Kaedwyn, and started a school based on their tempered, traditionalist, and realistic view on the Order's goals. They based themselves in Kaer Morhen and dubbed themselves the School of the Wolf.

The School of the Wolf is the most famous Witcher school, known for their professionalism and efficiency. They don't kill humans like the Viper or Cat. Aren't bold or brash like the Bear, or put Knightly virtues above Witcher ideals like the Griffin. I mean, anyone reading far this knows who the Wolf Witchers are, so I'm not going to get into to much detail. They're Geralt's school. Ciri's school.

They took a balanced approached to Witcher life and as such trained Witchers who were the best adjusted out of the schools, with neither the Bear's harshness nor the Griffin's egocentrism. For this, Wolf Witchers were lauded all across the Continent.

With all Schools formed, the Golden Age of Witchers began, at first with the Bears and Griffins making peace. From Erland of Larvik's Journal (The TRPG's monster manual):

"Surprisingly enough the fracturing of the witcher order had lead to a more effective organization for us witchers. Spread across the Continent and each making more witchers independently, it was no longer the task of 60 or 70 witchers to patrol the entire Continent from Nilfgaard to Kovir. Each school patrolled their own path and when a Gryphon met with a Bear each knew they had their territory and any infighting wouldn’t be worth the bloodshed. We managed to broker peace and live as somewhat estranged brothers rather than bitter enemies"

Witchers at this time were seen largely as heroes, with their detractors' voices largely simmering underneath. With Witchers around to kill monsters, people felt safe and so ignored any misgivings they might have.

Witchers, no matter the school, aren't too dissimilar from each other, and so the Cintinent at large formed an overall opinion of the Witchers based on the traits they all shared. From the TRPG:

"In the heyday of witchers there were many many seperate schools, which all mutated new witchers and taught them the neccesary skills to hunt monsters and lift curses. While it’s generally agreed that there is a core set of skills required to a be a witcher,

each school taught its students differently and focused on different aspects of witcher training. Thus, witchers from different schools often act differently and go about their jobs in similar but varied ways."

During this time, the Schools all produced hundreds of Witchers, and each was their own person, With their own preferences and personality, despite the schools themselves having reputations for Witchers with only a few certain traits. For instance, the Bear Witcher Ivo of Belhaven fought like a Viper or Cat Witcher, but in personality was a perfect fit for the Bear School with how standoffish he could be.

They also all customized their gear in different ways, usually keeping their gear in similar fashion to their school's, as its what they trained in an were used to. For example, Bear Witcher Junod of Belhaven wore what appears to be a set of Wolf School armor he had modified to fit Bear Witcher style.

Witchers also at this time experimented with signs. The Griffins obviously focused on making them more powerful, and the Bears pushed Quen to a level beyond any other school. But the most interesting case is that of Warrit, a blind Viper Witcher who used the lesser known Somne sign as a form of echolocation.

The Golden age lasted for around 150-200 years or so, ending around 1160 when the monster populations had been hunted down enough that people's main concern stopped being the monsters, and became the Witchers themselves.

The Griffin School, refusing to share the knowledge of its library, was destroyed by jealous mages. A group of peasants and mages attacked the Wolves' keep out of nowhere. The Bears failed to destroy a powerful cabal of vampires and, when peasants rioted and came for their keep, chose to disband rather than engage in needless slaughter. The Cat's keep of Stygga is destroyed, but the Dyn Marv chapter may still be alive and well. The Manticore School failed to protect an important prince from a fire elemental, and so lost their funding and closed. The Viper refused to support the Nilfgaardian usurper and were destroyed.

If you've made it this far, holy shit, thank you! I hope you have a great day!

56 notes · View notes

firefly-graphics · 6 months

Text

Witcher School Dividers

Please like and reblog if you use or save.

Requested by @mochibunne

Dividers List

#the witcher #witcher #witcher schools #bear #viper #wolf #cat #griffin #manticore #divider #dividers #divider request

144 notes · View notes

justhereforeskel · 1 year

Text

A little warm up doodle because reasons 💜🐻

#eskel #bear!eskel #in the literal sense not in the witcher school sense #tw3 fanart #my art

325 notes · View notes

islenthatur · 2 years

Photo

Made this for my Mark of a Lark Universe, Bear Witcher Jaskier! © Falling Stars

Posted this on my other Tumblr as well, forgot this was also here oops!

#witcher jaskier #Jaskier #The Witcher Fandom #the witcher fanfiction #The Witcher Fanart #Fanart #School of the Bear #Geralt/Jaskier #BAMF!Jaskier #Mark of a Lark Universe

288 notes · View notes

cheaploafs · 1 year

Text

“—and so the mighty witcher was slain by a ferocious creature of the night, his heart stole.”

is what the bard would’ve said to add some flavor to the story you know? twitter isn’t looking to great right now so i figured i should start reposting some old art from there and why not start with witcher au! this was the first drawing i did of it and it’s grown a lot since then so i’m happy to share more of it!

[x]

#art tag #arcane fanart #jayce talis #viktor #(( or well . viktor is a bat because vampire . you know ))#jayvik #witcher au #arcane au #for short summary if you don’t follow me on twt: jayce is a bear school witcher while viktor is a vampire !! there’s more to it obviously #but that probably won’t fit in tags so <3 yeah ahsjdkf #will gladly dump about it in case anyone is interested! i know many people don’t have twitter so ! woe niche fandom content be upon ye

117 notes · View notes

inblackwoods · 9 months

Text

I've been designing characters to be witchers from each of the witcher schools so I can think about the differences between how the schools function and maybe even how their mutations might vary! Vernon is my first and oldest, from the School of the Bear, but I'm working on the rest as well. Maybe I'll even make up posters for each of them eventually! But for now, my favorite guy.

#The Witcher #Witcher 3 #School of the Bear #Knight #Illustration #Artists on Tumblr #nabiscart #OC: Vernon Moore #OC: Jeremiah Quill

29 notes · View notes

vodka-and-ocs · 8 months

Text

Owen, witcher style

#it's the manticore armor set !#i think they would be school of the cat based on their fighting style but aesthetic wise this set fit them better #it also gives an alchemy boost iirc and their main thing is potions/mutagens #being order of the mutant #witcher #blood hunter #they are basically the same ok. some more than others #owen #my art #planning to draw will in the bear set in a bit

16 notes · View notes

farieshades · 1 year

Note

What do you think about the Witchers and their schools?

When talking about the Witchers, I think it best to start at the beginning, before the schools then.

The Order of Witchers was an attempt in the 10th Century (Continent time ofc) to create knights that would take on the monsters regular knights were incapable of fighting, the initial mutations were seen as disappointments and thus labeled "witchers" [can't remember why - who knows - fun name anyway, probably some lore there].

The Order itself didn't last long, those who were initially mutated had lost their 'knightly' values quickly as the Schools began showing up. As it was, of the 'original' order that did exist, Arnaghad moved out to found the School of the Bear in the Amell mountains (which would later split again to create School of the Viper in Tir Tochair Mountains, then again, School of the Manticore near the Korath desert) and when he did so another group moved out to Stygga Castle becoming the School of the Cat (which may possibly lead to a school of the lynx but that's not confirmed and fan hypothesis I do believe due to the medallion that showed up on a… The Witcher 4 game(?) that wasn't recognizable?). From there, the remaining Order split again with Erland of Larvik creating the School of the Griffin/Eagle at Kaer Seren with the last remaining Order heading to Kaer Morhen to found the School of the Wolf.

Not much to speak on here, bullshit kings making their subjects suffer ‘for the greater good’ or some shit which makes me very much not like said kings who think mutating kids is cool.

We're doing this chronologically, so we start with the first branch, The School of the Bear. It should be mentioned that Older Witchers (particularly the ones that were from the time of the branching and just after it or so) call the Bears 'kinslayers', both for the betrayal against their brothers causing the Order to split into factions, but also the rumor that begun to spread that should a Bear meet another on the path only one may potentially walk away from the meeting. Supposedly, the Bears had little to no brotherly bonds with each other and no true loyalty to their school, and so abandoned the school and their brothers to their fate abandoning them.

Arnaghad believed that Witchers should focus only on the job aspect of the profession, forming no strong bonds with their brothers and thus walking the path alone, and any knightly code was all 'ego' based bullshit. Thus, autonomy is a key aspect of Bear Witchers. Along with the general swordfighting, it is believed that Bears once used shields (according to the Gwent Card Game) and are known for range fighting like the School of the Cat.

The Bear school also seems to spend much time in Skellige, despite their 'home' being on the Amell mountain range, which basically is seperating Cintra from the south. The connection between Skellige and the Bear School was that the two were similar minded. The school, like many others, came to a downfall with one particular contract of Vampires with which they failed to 'stop the terrors' and the town 'destroyed' the Bear School Witchers with riots and destroying the school itself.

Now, I’m going to go on and disagree slightly here, not with the background or how it's portrayed or anything but, more so with the animal. Many fics (and headcanons I’ve read) have the Witchers adopting more characteristics of their school (notably ‘cutagens’ = purring wolves/cats, certain habits, hissing Aiden, potential fangs, cat cheek rub (i’ll be honest most of that is wolf/cat thoughts but oh well)), so now let's look at Ursus.

Bears as animals are highly social animals with great intelligence, often sharing friendship, resources, and security with others and forming hierarchy and kinship relationships. This isn't to say, of course, that Bear's aren't solitary, because they are. Outside of mated pairs and raising cubs, bears travel and live alone, but also congregate in high food density areas.

They aren't mean or malicious, and are in fact gentle and tolerant. I'm sure people have heard the term "mama bear" as someone extremely protective of the young, which is very true, but Mother bears are also affectionate and attentive with their young. Bear's have an acute sense of smell that informs them of the environment, their hearing is excellent, far exceeding human range and sensitivity, and they are twice as fast as an Olympic sprinter, even having the chance to outrun a racehorse over short distances (although the speed cannot be kept up, little endurance for speed - only short bursts).

Now, Bears are relatively quiet creatures with notable communication exceptions, such as cubs in distress, a grunting purrwhen content, and when threatened, there is no roar or growl in most of the species but more of a 'huff' of air or a 'pop' of teeth that often scares off predators. Bears also live in dominance hierarcy based on age, size, and tempermant (and if you're interested looking into "The Boss, Banff" might be a good idea), this hierarchy places mature males at the top with youths/cubs at the bottom with their place in the hierarchy determened by posturing/acting agressively, but not by being agressive.

[Bears also range in information due to having 8 species so who knows if we are talking Ursus, Ailuropoda, Melursus, Tremarctos, or Helarctos - but the Information above is mainly focused on Ursus due to the ‘Ursine school gear’ Witchers have in the third game.]

What I’m kinda suggesting then, isn’t a school that has no connection to each other and their brothers, but the opposite. It’s just that it's hard to see it from an outside perspective, especially when compared to Cats and Wolves bears are asocial. Instead, you have Bear School with its members being the strong/silent type but fiercely protective of another, and the reason that Scroll 3 states “Unlike witchers from the Wolf School – who possess strong bonds of friendship and brotherhood – those from the Bear School prefer a solitary lifestyle, away from the company of other witchers. Should they encounter others on the path, however, rarely does it end without bloodshed.” isn’t anger or solitary bullshit, but rough ‘play’.

Bear cub play looks like quiet fighting, with bites and pawings, but even adult bears do not fight with eachother unless absolutely necessary, it's all posturing. So the reason it 'rarely ends without bloodshed’ is that they aren’t Bears bears, but their play still ends with rough tackling, bites, and what they consider playful, looking very much not from the outside view.

Now, some time after the conception of the Bears, Ivar split off with his own band to create The School of the Viper with a main purpose of preparing to take out the Wild Hunt which he believed would threaten the continent in the future due to some weird vision thing. Ivar, it should be noted, gained the moniker "evil-eye" due to an experiment which left one of his eyes able to see various worlds, in which he found the Wild Hunt killing and conqurering world after world, and knowing his world would come to meet them at some point, Ivar dedicated the School of the Viper to learn as much as possible about the Wild Hunt and to how to fight them, leading to the Viper School having one of the best libraries on the subject.

Many years after the conception of the school, Nilfgaard destroys their keep making the students scatter, but years later, Emperor Emhyr sets them up to be kingslayers of a few northern kings in exchange to restore the school (which really, why is anyone going to trust a King/Emperor, Witchers and Rulers don't get along, haven't since the bloody conception of Witchers, but sure, why not, let's trust Emhry var Emreis to stay true to his word?).

Gorthur Gvaed, deep in the Tir Tochair mountians, is where the Viper School calls home, and an interesting thing that Vipers do that is not mentioned in any other School is raising a pet as a child only to kill it later. This is supposed to show a militaristic teachings and a cruelty of the school, likely plucked from WW2 in which the rumoures of SS trainies did the same but with dogs, although it would have been quite impractical due to the amount of trainies and dogs needed, not including that the during the Third Reich dogs were quite popular and protected (unlike, you know, human life I guess). [This is also seen in many other books, such as the Unsullied in ASoIaF (George Martin), and in tv Such as "ragtag" AoS(Marvel)]

Much of this school stressed cold, ruthlessness, and preparing trainies for the harsh life of the Path. They trained with 'fangs' (twin small blades) and used assassin-based approaches to killing monsters (what did hamilton say "strike by night/hit em quick, get out fast" that probably sums it up I'd say). It probably helped that their blades were coated in poison so when they took on human targets a single cut would probably be all that was needed to kill the target, which was also part of their training, to "embraced the poison of the viper”… whatever that was supposed to mean.

Despite all this, they are Vipers, so let's examine that bit further. Viperidae adapt to just about any climate (with the exception of Antarctica, Australia, Arctic circle, and a few islands) and all are venomous. Fitting so far I'd say. Almost all have distinct triangular heads (which interestingly Letho basically has on his head as a scar, not sure where that's from but, cool), due to the fact that their venom glands reside in the mouth. They have keeled scales, vertically elliptical pupils, and camouflage colourings (and I'd definitely love to see Viper Witchers ending up with vertically elliptical pupils, that would be cool... I'm also now thinking about poisonous Witcher bites but that should probably stick to the poisoned 'fang' weapons they carry ). Due to vipers having a kill strategy of 'inject with venom and release - follow to find body' there's definitey no reason as to why certain beasts Witcher Vipers face wouldn't be handled similarily, especially with an unlimited amount of potential coatings for their blades.

The School of the Manticore, also kown as the Alqatil (the Zerrikanian term for 'slayers') lays in the far east. When Ivar Evil-Eye split from the Bears, a large portion followed him, and in this group a faction became known once again. Iwan (later known as Imad Asem) split off again with his own group after doubting/disagreeing with Ivar's views heading to the Korath Desert. Not much is really known about the Manticore school, however, it is known that they do have ties to the Zerrikanian royal court and the Court Mage Nasira Faizan works with them to recreate the mutations. The Manticore School is known for a focus on defense and potions, along with meteoritic steel and silver shields. Most of the school was killed off by 1147 after being wiped out by a fire elemental. Merten, one of the survivors, is known to have been converted to Lebioda's teachings, changing his name to Shavel, and becoming a priest, renouncing his witcher past.

Now, this is about to be conjecture, but I'm sticking with it. Manticore School was named due to the beast they had fought and killed, however, like the other schools, there is likely an animal behind the mutations. Theoretically, they may have stayed with the original Bear mutations to begin with, but I'd like to think they based it off a tiger genome (I also have no idea how witcher mutations work so idk if genome is the right word). This is mainly due to the Caspian Tiger, if we ignore half the media that presents Mantigore with wings and examine the linguistics that also spell Manticore as mantichora / manticora / mantiger((backed by Pausanias and Apollonius of Tyana (through Philostratus' biography of him) - although the understanding of Man + tiger would suggest false etymology of iranian and persian origin so take that with a grain of salt).

If one looks up images of a Caspian tiger, as most feline animals, it has 'a body of a lion' but it also has a distinctive curve of a tail, similar to that of a scorpion (without the spike or the venom), the 'human head and 3 rows of sharp teeth' are also explainable when looking at a tiger I suppose, their heads are rather anthropomorphic for a cat in some ways, and the rows of teeth is fine to assume when you see any feline having lots of sharp teeth and going "by the gods they have so many teeth!" type scenario.

This isn’t exactly what you probably expected when you asked the question, but the Manticores don’t have much knowledge on them.

Unlike many of the other Schools, the best known for not having political neutrality is The School of the Cat. Like the Vipers, they take on human contracts and with more augmented mutations, their School's emotions are heightened rather than suppressed giving a volatile range of expression. Many depict this as feral or mad or likely to explode with little provocation, but I'm thinking otherwise, but we'll get to that later.

This School is one of the original branches from the Order that seperated following Arnaghad's departure which left unrest in the Witchers. At Stygga Castle in Ebbing the Cats emerged as a political power as well as a training facility, and with this power they removed the 'neutrality' understanding that had been with the Order and other Schools, sending out their Cats as spies, assassins, and mercenaries. Later, however, the school fell but was succeeded by the Dyn Marv Caravan which was led by Gezras, a friend of the Aen Seidhe (which really didn't help the popularity of Feline Witchers), and this group traveled togehter for the most part doing any job for pay. Under the leadership of Guxart, the school was slightly rebuilt during the 13th century due to the threat of monsters arising again (I say skipping entirely over the whole Treyse and Wolf thing), although the future is unclear considering the whole… eh, Honorton thing with Gaetan?

"Members of the School of the Cat are ill-famed due to their penchant for frenzy and bloodlust in the heat of battle. Even when their enemies capitulate, beg for mercy... They never stop killing." (Gwent Card Game, also echoed with Harlan Tzara in Season of Storms) This here is, er, interesting. In the canon sourses Cats are shown as becoming unstable under certain scenarios, but then come back to themselves after the event (the books, I believe, mention psychopathy not psychosis, but this feels like short term psychosis due to stressors or, as seen with Gaetan "Where the Cat and Wolf Play" in which Gaetan is set up to fall in a way, though that is my take on that. Interestingly, this 'problem' appears solely with the Cats as a believed symptom of the warped mutations, suggeting the possible counteraction with potions in the bloodstream causing this? Unclear, I'm not a scientist or therapist).

Really, the school is a mess in characterization and @t4tlambert and @pedantic-inquisition have great commentary on this that I stumbled across ages ago and I... remember agreeing and can't remember what was said anymore cause that memory is gone apparently. I'd suggest going to find that for more Cat School thoughts.

Annnyway, the School developed fighting based off speed, precision, and agility, which went hand in hand with their tightrope blindfolded training they went through I assume. It is suggested that the warped mutations and the time with the elves made morals loose and flexible, with the theory that as long as they got paid for the job it was a job worth taking.….

Now our registered break in thoughts to talk about Felines/Cats cause kitty time is important.

Ok, that's kinda a lie cause I'm not about to talk about household cats but wild ones, and their feline cousins. Wild cats are solitary both in their hunts and in their day to day lives, usually with a large territory that is 'theirs' and will be defended by others, especially if there is a mate or cubs. This isn't always the case, as they can form groups for large prey or defending territories from others, and I'm sure Warrior Cats does great at this explanation. Idk. I've never read it but it seems like it would, Warrior Cats has that vibe.

Cats are often very tactile in greetings (especaily households or lions), and they have a behaviour called 'chinning' in which they rub chin/lips/cheeks against allies and friends (something I've read with Aiden/Lambert pairings often). Most cats are ambush predators, from leopards and their watering holes or the orange mess of a cat that stakes out the birdfeeder outside. Felines, wild cats in specific, communicate often with visual cues, such as raised hair, tail movements, and ears, although amongst humans they pick up more vocal cues. In the wild, vocal cues are often aggressive hisses and yowls, affectionate purring, and a form of squeak to make cubs quiet (the vocalizers often also seen in fics, specificlly the hissing, yowling, and purring).

Lions in specific (particularly because I've seen/read "lioness of the cats” before), are highly social cats, forming groups/prides as a way of potentially surviving the savanna landscape and the hunting success of groups rather than singles. Interestingly again, this shows up with Axel/Cedric pairings that 'hunt in a pack' I suppose. This is why out of Tigers, Leopards, and Cheetahs the Lion is being mentioned specifically, as the Tigers and Leopards are solitary cats, and while the cheetah is somewhat social, they often have coalitions of 2 and 3 rather than prides. Like other animals, Lion cubs 'play', which often involves chasing, wrestling, pawing, stalking, and rushing, either with other cubs or adults.

After the Bear, Viper, and Cat schools were founded, the Order grew weaker, but Erland of Larvik decided that he would uphold the original ideal of the Order and with it (and 13 friends) founded The School of the Griffin/Eagle/Gryphon (depending on what you read), with their Keep in Kovir and Poviss named Kaer Seren. The school was named so after Erland's mentor Taliesin Bleddyn Yorath Aep Lywelyn, nicknamed 'Gryphon'. The school focused on magic, being prepared for anything, flexibility in what they might face, along with proper etiquette.

The school held great respect, even so far as to have the grandmasters as partial advisors to courts, even though they retained neutrality. This school was also skilled in battling dragons, which the other schools were, eh, weary of. There of course was a downfall due to Mages being angry with the Witchers (a common theme, angry mages), and this caused a revenge avalanche(?) killing several Witchers and badly damaging the keep itself.

Now, outside of Old Keldar and Coën, we don't have much on Griffin Witchers, so I'm moving on to look at Eagles, cause that is part of the name and, well, why not? So, Eagles... Eagles are often solitary type flyers, well, as much 'solitary' as one could get with a mate and a clutch. Eagles are powerful fliers, with boath soaring and gliding and with distance and speed.... and yeah i don't know much about eagles actually.

Symbolically, and especially in Poland, Eagles are a symbol of the Republic and a symbol that is a fierce protector of the young (and defenseless). During the second WW the Polish flag would be a symbol of pride, determination, and sheer grit. Lots of symbolism goes into it really, not sure what bits show up in the "Eagle/Griffin" Witchers, but on that thought, Griffins themselves were also signs of srength and protection, a 'superhero' against evil in lots of accounts. The Griffin was also heralded as noble, fearsome, and was meant to keep Evil from breaching its territory.

[I'd love to insert a Crane Medallion but I can't find a picture so you have to suffer this owl instead]

Potential conjuncture here, but with unclear Origin, I’m likely to believe that The School of the Crane comes from the Griffin school. Mostly due to the theme of birds, which has absolutely no backing considering we went from Bear > Viper > Tiger/Manticore/Slayer scenario before, but why not you know? The School of the Crane shows up after the Second Conjunction as a way to protect ships traveling around from sea and air monsters, meaning they are trained greatly with ranged weapons and early forms of guns, along with the traditional swords. Now, ok, this group only shows up in Tales from the World of The Witcher, and long after everything happens and stuff, but, well, good thoughts and such. Cranes are also, as the species not the Witcher, known for their elegance and their loyalty, probably very important things in the time frame. Cranes also are graceful, harmony symbols, and a symbol of eternal youth. Not exactly something one might think of as, well, 'pirate style witcher' but, interesting all the same.

Finally, we get to The School of the Wolf. With only a small group remaining of the Order of Witchers, they travelled to Morhen Valley in the North, specifically Kaer Morhen by the 11th century. Originally the keep and the Wolves were one of the most recognized Schools, the members being professional and reliable, but with the Pogrom, all the Witchers present at the Keep were killed (which would have likely been the trainies and the Trainers), while those on the Path survived. A second Massacre happened for the Wolves later on, between a competition/tournament with the Cats in which King Radowit II more or less caused a lot of death he would probably later regret when Monsters returned to his land but he was a fuckwit as most kings seem to be. So, by the 1230s it's basically, maybe the main 4 (Lambert, Eskel, Geralt, Vesemir) and anyone whose just avoiding Kaer Morhen. Then, by 1270~ Kaer morhen falls with the Wild Hunt and Salamandra.

Unlike the other Schools, the Wolves appear most ‘balanced’ in training, there is no speciality that is held above others, they do, however, have a stronger focus on sword techniques from what we as an audience can see, but that also might be from the fact that the Fencing Instructor is the ~current head of the school and the other 3 do trainings that he dictates so, who knows how that changed from pre-pogrom.

Wolves, the animal, are very social as a species. They are playful, devoted to their families/packs, and their dynamics are centered around care for others. [oh... hmm... debating if i'm about to bring in pack dynamics and alphas...yeah ok] Then in pack dynamics, we get to the Alpha leader of wolves, now it should be mentioned the 1947 study by Rudolph Schenkel that gave rise to the alpha wolf concept is outdatted and incorrect, but packs do have what may be considered "Alpha" in terms of breeding. [And Guys I'm lowkey hating myself for this topic. Someone correct me too if this is wrong].

Wolf packs have heads of families, usually matriarchs, with the one producing pups as a leader of sorts (the male of this couple could also be a lead, the two formerly known as 'alpha male/female'). Hierarchy is important for pack structure, with the entire pack raising the young and the 'omega' as a scapegoat of the pack, usually a stress-reliever and instigator of play(the jester role kinda). "Play" for wolves isn't something that really ever stops, unlike in other species, even the elders participate in play. This is also seen as a way of caring for eachother in that knowledge is passed through play.

Then we get to the interesting "lone wolf". From the above, it is easly identifiable that wolves are social creatures, and while a lone wolf is often seen (by humans) as an individualist who is independent and all the grit and 'forging your own path', not many wolves would choose to be alone. There are periods of being alone, especially when a youth is searching to create their own pack as a form of dispersal, or the omega or a sickly alpha who can no longer lead is challenged to the point of leaving. Because wolves are territorial, lone wolves must be cautious about trespassing and without a pack to support them they're more likely to die without one.

Now, in terms of behaviour, there's lots of posturing, snarling to agressive/dominant behaviours while one also can find the purring, and small yips in more playful behaviours.

With unclear origins and muddled links, but there is one more school that gets notable mention after being confirmed roughly back in March this year(2022). The School of the Lynx shows up with The Witcher 4, with not much lore backing it outside of fanfiction. According to fanfiction, the Lynx school shows up after Vesemir’s death, potentially with Lambert and the Cats mixing Wolf/Cat schools into one. However, there’s really nothing to know outside of the medallion really. Whether it will have links to Lambert or the Cat school is a mystery.

Lynx however, as a form of wildcat, share similarities with other felines, but in particular, and what sets them apart, is that their eyes (in myths) could always see the truth and ‘see beyond’. The Lynx is the keeper of secrets, the elusive cat that will only be seen if it wants you to see it. Interestingly, Lynx are excellent snow hunters (and the Lynx medallion in the image is covered in snow 👀) and are solitary hunters that use the similar tactic or wait-chase and also stalking that which is burrowed in the snow. Is any of that ever going to be of use to Witchers that take on this name, who knows, but with the other schools and their animal namesakes, there seems to be a high probability for it.

#order of witchers #school of the griffin #school of the bear #school of the wolf #school of the viper #school of the cat #school of the manticore #school of the lynx #school of the crane #the witcher #analysis #animal dynamics #cutagens?#the witcher spoilers #Alphas and Omegas are mentioned in reference to wolves

61 notes · View notes

mod-bars · 8 months

Text

yaaaaay! i finally finish my funko boi! 🥰🥰

#witcher #milosh #bear school #the witcher #witcheroc #witchermilosh #my art #myart #custom funko #funko pop #countbarsart #zbrush

10 notes · View notes

donovaneagle2098 · 24 days

Text

Something I really like about Gwent's Witcher Mentor cards is the little things their armor design's imply. We see throughout the books and games that Geralt generally sticks to similar outfits to the armor of the School of the Wolf, simple jackets and loose clothing that doesnt impede movement, and its the same with each mentor.

The Cat School's mentor is wearing a simple jacket and hood over what looks like an old vest from the enhanced version of the armor set. He clearly likes the anonymity of the hood, but as his set has started to take damage, just used simple clothing to replace it rather than repair it. So as his armor got destroyed, he kept the look but made due with whatever he liked, which fits how Witchers are generally portrayed as poor and working almost gig economy jobs.

One of the biggest questions surrounding the Bear school is how they afford to repair their gear, and while their school being better stocked and having quartermasters is one answer, the Bear Mentor's outfit shows that he ended up also ditching his chainmail instead of repairing it and keeping the under layer of gambeson, which is both warm and protective, perfect for the Bear's more defensive twist on the Witcher fighting style and gives credence to more recent lore drops that imply the Bear's tactic of tanking blows to stay in sword range is more up to their skill with the quen sign and they still dodge and fight similarly to other Witchers. It makes sense, since even their sturdiest armor is still designed around flexibility. The gloves are also not from the Bear school set, and it looks like he bought new ones and modified them to include the traditional Witcher silver studs, in the event he loses his sword mid-fight.

This is less apparent in the armor of the Griffin and Viper, though the Griffin mentor does swap out his gloves for a more basic pair you'd find throughout the Witcher 3

All in all I love the implication that each of these mentors were given a set of armor, and as it took wear and tear, found similar bits of gear to what they were familiar with, similar to Geralt buying himself a nice leather jacket similar to Wolf School tradition.

#the witcher #school of the cat #school of the griffin #school of the bear

10 notes · View notes

kryptosippos · 8 months

Text

some gooey oc art

#witcher oc #school of the bear himbo #not-a-mage merchant alchemist curseboy extraordinaire #THESE are my CROCS

7 notes · View notes

nucleiaster · 10 months

Text

Long time no Witchers!

My partner's Witcher oc Ezé (left) teaching my Mikhail (right) how to look for monster tracks

#witcher oc #the witcher 3 #digital sketch #artfight #artist on tumblr #the artowl #ch : mikhail #l'ours et le loup #Ezé is from the wolf school and adopted Mikhail when they met on the Path #Mikhail is a bear and has a hard time understanding proper manners and people in general #also yes Mikhail looks like raki : he's the Witcher AU version of our favorite grumpy cyborg

8 notes · View notes

yellowspiralbound · 2 years

Text

Witcher School Headcannons

A collection of head canons about each Witcher school.

Wolf School

Specialization: Curses

Wolf Witchers specialize in the breaking of curses. By the time of their descent from Kaer Morhen, all Wolf Witchers know cures for common curses such as lycanthropy. They are also well versed in discovering curses, their origins, and their possible cures. Many Wolf Witchers die at the hands of Cursed Ones during their first year on the Path as they try to cure instead of kill. Typically, those that return to the Path for a second time have discovered how to tell when Cursed Ones are lost causes.

Specific/Distinct Mutations: N/A - The School of the Wolf still uses the same mutagens first used by the Order of Witchers before it split into the separate schools.

Combat Tactics/Fighting Styles: All Witchers will develop their own fighting style with time, but most wolves have a tactic in common: exhaustion. Similar to their animal counterparts, which are endurance hunters and will follow their prey for miles, Wolf Witchers often rely on tiring their opponent out through the strategic use of oils, dodges, and Signs.

Trial of the Medallion: Any Witcher to emerge from Kaer Morhen goes through the grueling Trial of the Mountain during which they ascend Troll’s Head Mountain without being killed by Old Speartip, the cyclops in the caverns, or by the trolls beyond the caverns. Then, the trainee would place their Withcher’s medallion in the Circle of Elements to activate it. (Canon)

Headquarters: Kaer Morhen in Kaedwan near the Gwenllech River.

Fun Facts:

Geralt and the others that died during the second round of mutations were the first attempts at a specially mutated Wolf Witcher. Vesemir was afraid Geralt would end up with the Madness common in Cat Witchers as a result, but it never materialized.

Wolf Witchers are considered by most to be the most traditional of the Witcher schools and many of their teachings date back to the Order of Witchers.

Wolf Witchers have a relatively good reputation with humans, as far as Witcher-human relationship goes because Wolf Witchers are reliable and fair with their prices.

(rest of the schools below cut)

Cat School

Specialization: Revenge

It is commonly believed by other Witchers (and the Cats are quite content to let them believe this) that Cat Witchers will kill any human for any price. This is not, in fact, the full truth. Many consider the hardest part of hiring a Cat Witcher assassin to be convincing them that their victim truly deserves to die. It is, naturally, up to the individual Witcher to pass judgment and some Cat Witchers are more willing assassins than others.

Specific/Distinct Mutations:

Pheromone control (using their scent to manipulate others/situations)

Retractable claws between the fingernail and nail bed

Fangs

Whiskers

Flexible musculoskeletal system (a fancy way of saying their muscles/bones are different and allow for more flexibility and insane jumping height)

The Madness.

No Cat has all of them, but all Cats have the Madness to some level. The variation in mutations among Cats stems from the long history of experimentation on them.

Combat Tactics/Combat Styles: Naturally, Cat Witchers prefer stealth. A typical Cat Witcher will hang in the shadows for as long as possible and, when they do emerge, they will attempt to make the kill as quick and as clean as possible. Cats tend to fight…surgically. Rather than the hack-and-slash method employed by Wolves, Cats prefer to strike areas that will cause immediate results. It’s not unusual for assassination victims to be found with slashed Achilles’ heels to prevent running. Part of Cat training involves learning the most effective places to slash on as many creatures as possible.

Trial of the Medallion: The final Trial for a Cat Witcher is called the Trial of the Noose. The Trial of the Noose involves a complex aerial obstacle course of sorts. Trainees are expected to complete the course, which is in the shape of a noose, in a set amount of time. Before the day of the trial, bait is set for harpies nearby, which adds an extra layer to the challenge.

Headquarters: Dyn Marv Caravan in…um…wherever they want it to be.

Fun Facts:

Although experiments were conducted to remove emotions from Cats, they failed. Cats have the same emotional capacity as other witchers...in theory. In truth, prolonged experimentation has caused most older Cats to have so much trauma that their emotional scope is narrower; younger Cats do not have this problem to the same extent

A Cat can only be contacted on assassination contracts through underworld networks; contacting one at all is considered part of the proof that the client really is desperate to have their victim disposed of

The women of the continent are often the most knowledgeable about when and where a Cat can be contacted for assassination

There is a popular myth in some parts of the Continent that all Witchers have fangs. This myth was spread by a fanged Cat seeking to bolster his own image. His plan failed when he forgot to mention his name during gossip exchanges.

Bear School

Specialization: Politics

An unexpected side effect of Bear Witchers’ solitary natures is their involvement in Skelligen politics. Prior to the fall of the school, Bear Witchers served Skellige in an official capacity. Each clan had at least one Bear Witcher in their employment at all times. A clan’s Witcher would handle all contracts in that clan’s domain. They worked closely with Skelligen druids and enjoyed a hesitant respect from most Skelligens. Bear Witchers also acted as advisors to the clan leaders in a manner similar to sorceresses on the Continent.

Specific/Distinct Mutations:

Shapeshifting (may become a bear at will)

“Steroid” blood (the more blood a Bear loses, the more powerful their attacks become)

Combat Tactics/Combat Styles: Bear Witchers rely on their own strength during battle. Like all Skelligens, they are not afraid of injury and often rely on said injuries to draw strength due to their blood mutations. Another common strategy among Bear Witchers is to keep their bear form in the reserves and break it out when they are almost defeated, often fatally stunning their enemy with their transformation.

Trial of the Medallion: Called the Trial of Salt by Bear Witchers, this Trial of the Medallion is one of the most brutal faced by any school. In the Trial of Salt, Bear Witchers are expected to take on a swarm of aquatic monsters in the sea with a plethora of open wounds inflicted by their masters. The salt of the sea agitates the wounds and makes all movements painful. Bears that survive the Trial carry permanent scars. Many get intricate tattoos of the beasts they defeated over the scars.

Headquarters: Kaer Gelen on Ard Skellige, near Gedyneith ( non - canon; Canon headquarters is Haern Caduch in the Amell Mountain that separates Nilfgaard and the Northern Realms.)

Fun Facts:

Berserkers were created by Bear Witcher mages in an attempt to perfect the mutagens for the school. Since the mutagens supposedly failed completely, they were not sterilized which is why Berserkers are still found today.

Bear Witchers only rarely returned to Kaer Gelen in the winter; most chose to stay with their clan and a few would winter with the druids in Gedyneith

Bear Witchers are often heavily tattooed in accordance with Skellige tradition. After a particularly difficult hunt that they wish to commemorate, a Bear can always be found adding ink to his skin.

Viper School

Specialization: Assassination

Much of the reputation held by Cat Witchers can be more accurately attributed to Viper Witchers. This misunderstanding is used to the Vipers’ advantages. It isn’t unusual for a Viper to don a Cat medallion before enacting an assassination. Vipers will kill anyone for the right price and pry information out of them first for an additional fee.

Specific/Distinct Mutations:

Black Blood (Viper blood is toxic to almost everything - think the black blood potion but all the time.)

Toxic saliva (different Vipers have different effects. For example, one witcher may have saliva that paralyzes, while another has saliva that intoxicates.)

Combat Tactics/Combat Styles: Due to their toxic blood, two main forms of combat have evolved within the vipers: ranged and close-combat fighters:

Close-Combat Vipers lean into their toxic blood. Close-combat Vipers will occasionally allow their foe to get hits on them to poison them or corrode their blades. They fight with two "fangs" tipped with poison. Fangs are typically silver/steel daggers but can be made of anything the Viper desires. Some notable alternatives include bone, actual fangs, glass, and stone.

Ranged Vipers adhere to the fact that while their blood is deadly, they're no good to anyone if they're dead. Instead, ranged Vipers use poisoned arrows to attack their foes. The arrows are poisoned with their own blood.

Trial of the Medallion: The Trial of Sacrifice is the final hurdle a Viper faces before receiving their Medallion. As Vipers often work behind enemy lines and kill those they laid with only a moment before, they can’t get too attached to anything. Ever. The Trial of Sacrifice ensures they are prepared for this. When a Viper trainee arrives, they are invited to select a pet. That pet is then their companion and best friend for the entirety of their Withcer training. During the Trial of Sacrifice, a Viper must look their pet in the eye and kill it. (Canon)

Headquarters: Gorthur Gvaed in the Tir Tochair mountains between the Korath Desert and Nilfgaard. Most inhabitants of the mountains are non-humans.

Fun Facts:

Due to the Trial of Sacrifice, Vipers struggle to form attachments to anyone or anything

The Schools of the Cat and the Viper do not have good relations and the rivalry is overshadowed only by the one between the Wolves and Cats.

Griffon School

Specialization: Magic, the Dead

Griffons specialize in the art of magic. While their magic is not as powerful as that of a sorcerer or sorceress, it is quite powerful. Griffons can make use of magic beyond the usual Signs. They specialize in a type of magic that is cast using not Elder but Common. Extremely talented Griffons may be able to cast telepathically. Their heavily enchanted Witcher Medallions allow them to fly for short periods of time as well.

Griffons chose to inhabit a deeply haunted land. To combat this, they quickly adjusted magic to help them communicate with the dead. This magic is considered necromancy and is therefore frowned upon by almost everyone, but Witchers are already frowned upon so what’s one more rumor?

Specific/Distinct Mutations:

Magic enhancers (the mutation that allows the use of Common instead of Elder in spell casting.)

Air sacs

Light bones

Combat Tactics/Combat Styles: Griffons are advantageous fighters. They make use of their surroundings in any way possible, whether that’s by knocking opponents off cliffs or taking advantage of flammable materials. Griffons are also well known for using gravity to their advantage. Some Griffons are known for lifting their foes a considerable distance into the air and dropping them.

Trial of the Medallion: The Trial of the Egg is the final trial a Griffon Witcher must face. The trainee must locate a Griffon egg, steal it without the parents noticing and transport it to a secondary location. Griffons may choose to take the Trial of the Book instead. During the Trial of the Book, they must recite the Liber Tenebrarum. No trainee has ever selected the Trial of the Book. (Canon)

Headquarters: Kaer Saren in the Kestrel Mountains in the Kingdom of Kovir and Poviss.

Fun Facts:

The Griffon and Crane schools work closely together due to the typically dual flying/swimming nature of aquatic beasts.

Kaer Seren was standing for centuries before the Griffons took it over

The library of Kaer Seren was one of the greatest in the world and contained many book on mutagens and Common magic

Common magic was feared by mages because they would lose their power if the commoners could cast without Aretuza and Ban Ard. This led to considerable tension between the groups.

Griffons do not have issues with killing dragons, unlike other Witcher schools.

Crane School

Specialization: Aquatic creatures

Cranes specialize in societies that live underwater, such as the Vodyanoy, and the monsters that plague them like water elementals, sea serpents, and krakans.

Specific/Distinct Mutations:

Gills

Webbed fingers/toes

Second eyelid

Pressure resistance

Combat Tactics/Combat Styles: Of course, Cranes use their underwater skills. Like Water Hags, they often use silt and sand to blind their opponents. If they’re fighting a creature from a boat, they wrap a thick silver rope around it and yank it upward, out of its element. If they are stalking an amphibious creature, they take a page out of a crocodile’s book and keep still and silent.

Trial of the Medallion: The Trial of the Frog is the final trial for Crane trainees. The Trial of the Frog focuses on adaptability in combat, like how a Frog adapts to living on land. Similar to a triathlon, the Trial of the Frog takes place in all three of the main fighting environments of Crane Witchers. Provided they survive, the trainees become full fledged Witchers.

Headquarters: Kaer Nhon in the Silk Islands (Headcannon; no cannon headquarters. Kaer Nhon does not exist at all, unlike Kaer Gelen which can be found in Skellige in Witcher III)

Fun Facts:

Cranes are considered good luck on ships and are often allowed to travel on them for free - a rare reaction to the presence of a Witcher

The School of the Crane is the only predominantly female school

Many sea shanties are written by or reference Crane Witchers

Myths about sirens being desirable originated due to drunk soldiers spotting Cranes in the depths.

Cranes are generally the most well-natured and amicable Witchers

Crane Witchers typically face the least persecution from humans despite being the most inhuman Witchers. This is because Crane Witchers do not belong in the uncanny valley like other Witchers; they’re seen as fully inhuman to the point where they enjoy a status not unlike the status of dragons - some people still fear them, but they’re largely respected.

Manticore School

Specialization: Defense

Specific/Distinct Mutations:

Bulky frames

Tough skin (even by witcher standards)

Reinforced bones

Combat Tactics/Combat Styles:

Manticores, unlike all other witchers, are a preventative measure, not a reactive one. While they will kill monsters already present, they focus more on keeping monsters out of human settlements. They achieve this in many ways: they focus on finding and eradicating nests, building walls lined with silver, and teaching the common man how to handle the common monster.

Manticore fighting styles also reflect their defensive nature. Manticores typically use large shields as their primary weapons. These shields are usually jagged along at least one edge and feature a large spike in the center. This shield effectively protects the witcher, and damages their opponent in one swift move. In the hand not holding the shield, Manticores are equipped with a small "stinger." A stinger is typically a small knife tipped in poison or enchanted to burn the flesh of an opponent.

Trial of the Medallion: Trial of the Sands is the name given to the Manticores’ final trial. The Trial consists of the trainee making their way form one fortress to the other while taking no injuries - not even one from a cactus spine. It is not uncommon for a Manticore trainee to attempt the Trial multiple times. Because of the nature of the Trial of the Sands, Manticores train for much longer than the Witchers of other schools.

Headquarters: Behelt Nar & Bialsuf Alsarea are the twin fortresses of the Manticores. One fort is at each end of the Korath desert.

Fun Facts:

Manticore Witchers are also called Alqatil

Women can be Manticore Witchers

Manticore Witchers are considered dragon protectors by the dragon worshipers of Zerrikania

#witcher #witcher headcanon #witcher school #crane witcher #manticore witcher #wolf witcher #griffon witcher #cat witcher #bear witcher #mutagen #mutation #viper witcher #the witcher #spiral's thoughts

138 notes · View notes