O'dimm only tortured Vlodemir went against the midnight rule. it was past midnight and he refused to leave. O'dimm might be pure evil but he is unusually respectful with a code
I'm not sure you know about this but there's a polish poem about Mr. Twardowski. He makes a pact with the devil that goes similary to how it does in HoS. The Devil has to meet Twardowski in Rome but Twardowski is tricked into going to a bar of the same name as the city. When the devil demands his soul Twardowski gives him 3 jobs. He's to make a whip out of grains of sand, bring the horse from the emblem of the tavern into life ( make it into a real horse) and spend a year with the wife of Twardowski. Upon hearing the third request the devil flees and breaks the pact. Olgierd, his companions and a few other things in the expansion are also moddeled after a polish epic "Ogniem i mieczem" (With Fire and Sword.) Some lines of dialogue Olgierd has during your duel with him are a direct take on dialogue from "Potop". (Deluge.) I think those stories are a much bigger influence on the themes than the story of Faust. Also from what I remember the wife's name is Iris. Mentioned per request :P. Fun fact that you probably noticed it but I didn't hear this mentioned in the rumination: There are I think three instances where after O'Dimm dissapears someone mentions The Devil in some sense. I think that O'Dimm is limited, if you ask him about the location of Ciri he says she's beyond his power to locate. He can only give you the correct responses in order to get the best ending.
I think Gunter is limitless in his abilities. But the contracts he creates are actually limiting him, binding him. Because being absolutely limitless is dull and boring. Weaseling your way out of a contract to bring pain and suffering - that's fun. Having that little bit of danger, little chance of failure makes life so much more exhilarating. We know that Gunter does crazy stuff outside of his contracts - the spoon incident, the old man in the circle. Those are fun too. But the main source of entertainment for Master Mirror are his contracts. That's how I felt, at least.
Im sure that is not the case. It's a classic depiction of Devil in polish folklore, he is limited by rules beyond his control suggesting there is an entity ( God) that laws he must obey.
I think the best scene that show just how horrible O'Dimm is, is the one with the old guy In Oxenfurd Olgired hired to find out stuff about O'Dimm. Sure, killing someone just for interrupting you is horrible, but he did go to that guy, made a circle on the Ground and told him "as long as you don't leave that circle you are save from me" That I tought was really awful, that poor guy spend a long time in that circle going mad. And those Dreams O'Dimm made him have (well, I'm pretty sure thats O'Dimms doing but I think thats explicit confirmed), that guy really had a horrible time. A Qucik death may have been better. Oh, and btw. at the end when Olgried was bleeding Geralt did drink some Wine, Blood and Wine :D
There's actually a better scene in the base game that gives more insight into the afterlife in the game. It's in Skellige when you compete in the fist fights, after you defeat the 3 local champs and the bear you're sent to face the Champion of Champions but first have to lift the curse of a former contestant who was cursed to lose for all time even after death. You lift his curse and his spirit is free and during this moment he describes what he's experiencing and hearing in the next world as his spirit leaves this one.
I’d like to thank you for pointing this out. Never thought of it that way in my first playthrough. I’ve been wrestling with my own ideals and beliefs, trying to rationalize my decision of--[ POSSIBLE SPOILER ]--taking the rose *well* over a year after I put the controller down and the credits started rolling. I never really believed in the afterlife hence my internal debate, but your comment made me realize that it’s definitely possible in-game. Gave me peace of mind, really
For anyone who hates terrible, contrived, absurd stories that give no fucks about the preexisting setting and lore of the source material. For anyone who hated the trash filler bandit camps every 50 meters populating the world in the base game. Or maybe for anyone who wanted their choices to actually have an impact and not be just an illusion with the writers flipping you off with every ending being shit.
Hearts of Stone is probably one of the best written expansions and hell maybe even games ever, the way it's done is just so clever, enjoyed the video :)
6 bosses actually. The giant Toad, Ofieri mage, Olgierd (if you save one of his men from execution) painted world Olgierd, the caretaker and then Gaunter.
Shani being melancholic if you dont romance her makes sense though. Because no matter wether you chose her in W1 or not, Geralt *did* have a bit of a thing with her in the books. So, theyve had a relationship of sorts no matter what the player chooses.
Nailed it on the head with the "Hearts" in "Hearts of Stone", one of the more memorable quotes of Gaunter is how he tries to sell off Olgeird as an evil and despicable man at the start of the expansion yet he is the real evil bastard behind it all whether Olgeird also deserves redemption for his actions prior to his deal with Gaunter or not.
Actually you can get "two" nice Swords if challenge Master Mirror. You can find the Viper venomous silver sword, resting in a Stone in the Puzzle World. So if you want to get the whole Viper Set, you have to do it ;)
Won't be useful much later. In Blood and Wine you can get much better gear. Aerondight tops all other silver swords, if you're good at swordfight. "Iris" is nice, but also not most powerful steel sword.
Yeah of course, as I wrote: if you want to have the whole Viper Set you can only get it there. Never said it is the best Silversword :) But I display the whole Set in my Villa :D
It's not based directly on Faust Bargain but polish version of it called "Pan Twardowski" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski_(1936_film) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski
The thing with Shani romance in HOS is that it is not Geralt who wanted it, but Shani, and the player gets to decide whether or not to be seduced. This is a throwback to the first novel where she basically uses him as a one-night stand just because she was curious how it was to have sex with a real witcher.
Great clarification in regards to Shani being interested and seducing Geralt instead of the other way around. I would have never thought about that, and it makes a lot of sense.
You are right. But Pan Twardowski's legend was heavily based on Faust legend. He is even called Polish Faust. Also, "pan" in Pan Twardowski means rather "lord" or "master", not "mister".
No, it wasn't 'based on' Faust. They probably influenced each other, but we don't know which one is older. Also, there are too many differences between these two tales to say that they are just a one legend in two versions.
Romancing Shani is for the players and book readers, as you said you can choose who your geralt is, but in the books geralt was always a very lonely character, a character who saw himself as a bit of a monster and even if he had a great mind, he had a hard time connecting with other people, getting close to others was always very hard, but sex is easy, its a very easy form of closure to other human beings, so in the books geralt gets to "romance" alot of female characters exactly of these reasons
6:16 -- Are you thinking about the German term _raubritter_ (robber knight)? Not exactly appropriate here, I think Olgierd's actions have more to do with the Polish tradition of forays ( _zajazd_ ), which involves raiding lands of other nobles, rather then robbing travelers passing through your lands. Also, regarding the Skellige comparison, I think there's a big difference in that Olgierd's party seems less interested in the loot, and more in having fun, which makes it more disturbing.
Not sure if there is a definite name for the phenomenon but is did indeed exist at one point - looking up a history of serial killers throughout the ages sees them usually take this form if they're of noble birth around the correct time-period. China is particularly rife with this in it history - additionally, robber-barons of the American West also fit a loose description but they weren't nobles - just our modern day capitalistic version of "nobility." And almost always inspired by money more than bloodlust.
A few little things I'd like to add to an already great analysis. Nothing of great importance but still worth noting nonetheless, in my opinion: When you first meet O'Dimm at the White Orchard inn, you ask him of Yennefer's whereabouts and he tells you he had seen her going to the Nilfgaardian garrison but she later took off. When Geralt asks him where to, he responds with " ask at the garrison. I'm not omniscient", which is obviously a lie as he actually is omniscient. Not only he showed up "miraculously" at the Ofieri prison barge to "help" you in exchange for a deal, but he's also probably the one to inform the Ofieris of their prince's whereabouts so they can catch you killing him, thus forcing you to accept his deal at the Ofieri ship, as there was no indication that this was a curse or that the Ofieris knew anything of it beforehand. Regarding O'Dimm being bound by his contracts, I think he's only bound by his contracts towards the people he make contracts with. He had no problem killing a random peasant, using time manipulation and... a spoon, yet he obviously couldn't do shit to Olgierd until the contract was fullfilled, just as he couldn't do shit to Geralt if you opt to beat him at his own game and turn successful.
I don't consider O'Dimm to be categorically malicious - I think it depends on the person. He's the "Master of Mirrors" for a reason - he reflects the person with whom he's interacting. That's why for the most part he's decent towards Geralt - Geralt isn't a shithead. I consider him a manifestation of self-destruction.
That doesn't take into account poor proffessor, who had the misfortune of reading the wrong book, or a man at the inn, killed out of pettyness, on a whim. Or torturing Vlodimir's spirit, which O'Dim very clearly enjoyed. He IS malicious, but he needs the Witcher, and, maybe, to some limited extent, respects Geralt, which is why he doesn't screw him outright -- this time.
Shani romance is fitting the character. They have a tryst in the books and even caught in the act she doesn't blush, she smiles impishly. She is constantly around death and kind of bemoans the fact that her calling will never give her time for a family. She pretty much tells Geralt that a relationship isn't possible but some shared affection with a friend is what she takes in leu of love. No spoilers but her epilogue in the books just reinforces this.
Yet another brilliant rumination Lore. I was particularly struck by your observation at around the 25 minute mark as pertains to Shani's motivation for bringing Geralt along to the wedding. Another piece of evidence to support your claim is Shani's gloomy admission after midnight that she 'had expected too much of the wedding', and been given 'the wrong impression.' In my opinion, it didn't matter to Shani, ultimately, that Geralt (while possessed by the ghost of Voldimir) treated her to, what was arguably, the time of her life. She had already discovered (through a series of leading questions) that the witcher Geralt retained no control over his actions while possessed; and was thus guilty (in her books), once again, of placing another's enjoyment over his own. The depth of these interactions never ceases to surprise me.
Gauntler O'Dim is obviously not limited by contracts. He killed the innocent peasant. You might find traces of him (Gauntler O'Dim) again in Blood and Wine.
If you're still curious, I think another name for a pillaging noble is a robber baron, based off of late middle age dukes who's estates were located along rivers/canals and they would threaten trade ships into paying them tribute for sailing through their territory or they would demolish the ships with cannon implacements mounted along the shore.
That comment i made on the TW3 rumination, i was more than half asleep, probably shouldn't have posted it. But hey, second chance. Because this DLC touches on one of the central themes of the Witcher series, in my view. In a work of fiction, there's a certain lens you look at your world from. Star Trek is squeaky clean and optimistic, Battlestar is grimy and pathologically cynical, both of them being very insistent on their particular view, often to their own detriment. The Witcher is not an optimistc series, but not because it's cynical. The things the narrative puts forth as important, that the characters care about, are usually all the things that are important in an optimistic setting, yet the story holds itself to a standard of semi-ruthless pragmatism that very often threatens to take those things away, and succeeds just often enough to keep you guessing. This however, doesn't make the story take a cynical approach to itself. Despite not being optimistic, it very noticeably wants to be, and doesn't stop trying. Hearts of Stone is a prime example of this knife-edge balancing act. It's up to you whether you care about Olgierd and his plight, or just go along with O'Dimm's tale of him being an evil man. Likewise, even should you decide on the former, you may be outright powerless to help him out of his circumstance. And even when you do find a way to save him, O'Dimm does make sure to go out of his way to terrify you into compliance. Knowing Geralt from the books, i can say for certain that he would not be indifferent to Olgierd's plight. I think he would most likely put himself on the line to try and help him, but i think even he would feel a cold shiver down his spine at the thought of eternity in torture at the hands of evil incarnate. And that's another thing this DLC does that's brilliant. In this setting, there is no such thing as an all encompassing evil that's a threat to entire world. There are people with needs and designs, who are well connected enough to cause tremendous damage to an untold number of lives, and there's an unstoppable force of nature that has no awareness of the utter devastation that it will slowly but surely rain down on the whole world. O'Dimm is another kind of enemy entirely. It is Evil itself, in the most terrifying sense of the word. Yet, it has no interest in making a big impact on the world, or most of it's people. It just watches and smiles, and every once in a while it decides to approach someone. His smile fair as spring, as towards him he draws you. His tongue sharp and silvery, as he implores you. Wishes he grants, as he swears to adore you, etc. And then nothing that Emhyr, Radovid and the White Frost combined could ever do to you would even compare to the agony he will slowly inflict, until you're a withering husk of misery with nothing left but your soul. And then he'll take that too, eyes glowing afire. To gore and torment till the stars expire. And all the while, the world keeps on turning. Most don't notice, the rest try to forget, the ones that fail wish they'd never been born. You probably have no reason to worry, it happened to someone else. Not like he'll ever come knocking on your door one day. Probably. Kind of a sour note to end in, but i really just wanted to gush on what a great job CDPR did introducing a type of villain that had never featured in the story before, yet make it feel completely organic.
Pillaging noble can be called a "Robber baron" or a "Raubritter". I prefer the latter name, myself ;) Btw - almost whole plot (with some minor changes here and there, of course) of this expansion is based of an old polish tale about a guy named Pan Twardowski (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski). And yes, it is an typical faustian bargain, because it's a really old tale ;) A nice touch, indeed. That was "wink" towards the Polish audience (there are a lot of them in every game, actually - quite obviously). Thanks for the vid, have a nice day.
I got my friend back into the Witcher 3 (he got up to the Kaer Morhen battle and things got in the way) through telling him just how tightly told and thematically cohesive this story is. Needless to say, he'll thank me when he gets to it.
The vast legions of dead soldiers from Aedirn and Kaedwen in the second game exist as ghosts. You have to lift the curse in either path. But they're kinda all dumb wraiths.
One thought about Gaunter O'Dimm, since we are almost certain imo that all the other worlds are in fact planets, what if Gaunter is something like Q from Star Trek, and perhaps there are others like him out there but he is the only one that took interest(in a sadistic way) on the Witcher planet, Just something that would be interesting imo.
I’ve read a lot of people who found Olgierd to be a victim in HofS. He had $ troubles, so sold his soul & had his brother killed. Yeah, he was tricked by this devilish O’dimm, but duh.....which is why I chose NO REWARD at the end, because O’dimm scares me. I let O’dimm suck his soul....and then walked away....like a boss. Hearts of Stone is great based solely on O’dimm and Olgierd. Both phenomenal characters. I loved the old cannibal couple as well. That was creepy AF. Also, Shani......I would have left Yen & Triss in the dust if I had known Shani was around.
In regard to Shani and Geralt, I think it much more than just want to take care of him. If you see Geralt interaction with normal people (without superpowers) you could see that almost always it is a negative one, most see him as a freak of nature, a mutant (he even comment of it during one of the quests) someone whose not quit human, even characters that are nice to him (because they need him aid) see him as beyond the pale as a person. Shani isn't like that, yeah she fancy him and want to bed him but even ordinary women who are attracted to Geralt don't bother invite him on a date - Shani is, because I think she probably the only ordinary human in the game who look at Geralt as a fellow human being. She doesn't want anything from Geralt, just a fling and then for them to keep in touch as friends. This I think add great depth to her character and is one of the reason I like her so much.
My big reason for saving Olgeird was mostly to spite Gunter O'Dimm for murdering that innocent man in the Inn. And for being a gigantic hypocrite- self righteously condemning people to horrible things blah blah blah.
I like the idea that O'Dimm is God, pretty much the old testament way. Someone on youtube pointed this out, 'cause he created the storm at the start of the expansion. But even more I like the idea that I'll never know what he is. Great job with the video! Watched it over three years late. :D
In respects to Odimm being the devil you'll notice he asks you to meet at the crossroads as well....which is a place said to go if you wish to meet the devil
I really enjoyed your rumination on HoS and I agree it's an excellent addition to Witcher 3. Sorry for the long post, but I wanted to add a couple of ideas concerning O'Dimm and witcher emotions. The idea that mutations strip emotions from witcher is disproven throughout Witcher 3 IMHO. Hotheaded Lambert is a prime example. The man has a tendency to react before thinking and you get the sense that Geralt has had to bail him out of trouble more than once. Vesemir shows great affection towards Ciri. His final words to her were, “You were always were an unruly child. I always adored that about you.” Geralt, upon finding Ciri on the Isle of Mists believes her dead. He picks her up and holds her for what seems like an eternity and you can almost sense him crying. I would say, if anything, the mutations actually enhance emotions. Now on to Gaunter O'Dimm.... A very well written and well acted character. O'Dimm is a very intelligent and cunning individual. He's been around a long time and has studied man long enough to know how to game the system to get the results he wants. That being said, besides possessing certain abilities like walking on air or appearing to stop time (more on that later), he may not possess nearly the power he tries to portray himself as having. In fact, he may have very little power except what he can get others to give over to him willingly and so uses trickery, smoke and MIRRORS and convoluted contracts to gain an upper hand. Like the con man on the street, he knows he cannot take your money unless he can get you to give it willingly, so he hustles you by appealing to your ego and greed and cons you into playing his shell game. O'Dimm appearing as an ordinary peasant may also have some significance. in that it may be a REFLECTION what he really is in a cosmic sense. A cosmic squatter forever on the outside looking in (man of glass) only able to influence human affairs to the degree that he is allowed to by human will. As far as stopping time, Geralt didn't appear overly impressed. O'Dimm admits that he learned how to do it so he isn't all knowing. In fact, Yennefer or Triss could probably do it and have actually put on greater displays of raw power than O'Dimm ever did in HoS. Then again, you may be right in that O'Dimm is really just a manifestation of all that's wrong with the world. The Id Monster who knows everything about you because...he IS you. Regards.
ah man, I really loved this video. Great to hear you thoughts on the game, and its a big plus that you have notes and structure, Pleasent to listen to.
Sapkowski's books and games based on them often use legends or myths and twist them in their own way as a basis for a story. Olgierd's story is just one of those instances. There is a polish tale about nobleman Twardowsky who pacts with the devil. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski . He ends up being tricked by finding himself in a location he never thought it was possible to arrive but eventually tricks devil a bit by running to the moon. You can see, moon is clearly symbolic in heart of stone as well. Since it is based on this legend, one would assume O'Dim is in fact a devil. Since there is no christianity in world of witcher, we can guess he is some sort of devil's equivalent.
The Master Mirror was honestly one of the best characters in gaming ive come across in a long time. I didn't help Olgeird out just out of pure respect and fear of meddling in his business. I just sat back and was like yea you do bro.
Very good commentary! I must say I didn't feel as much sympathy for Olgierd as I did the Baron or Syanna, but still, I did a little bit (as you say, he's got some positive traits, truly loves Iris and his brother). What really made my final choice easy is that O'Dimm is a character you can't let win. He's absolutely inhuman and unempathetic. He plays with people, toys with them and that's it. Not only is there no nuance with him, but also beings like him grow more and more powerful and awful the more they win. I don't see how anyone would want to let that happen.
In my eyes Olgierd absolutely does deserve redemption. Almost all the evil we know he did he did AFTER O'dimm turned his heart into stone (for the "live as if there was no tomorrow" wish or however it was worded).
Wasn't that only implied though? I'm not sure but I understood it like this: He had to sacrifice something dear to him, and because he only cared about his wife and his brother, one of the two he had to sacrifice. Or rather, had to die as a result of the contract. He explicitly did not want to lose his wife, and thus implicitly agreed to the sacrifice of his brother without fully realizing it. At least I got that impression somehow, I believe it was implied in the dialogue with the professor at Oxenfurt, but I'm not sure.
Yes. Olgierd was not aware of the part of the contract, probably because it was oral, where his brother will perish in exchange. As do all of G.O.D's contracts, like the meeting "on the moon". Although I think they are indeed bandits before the demon showed up, but that is because they are a family of peasants.
Your senses do work in Gaunter's dimension, but there may not be much to see there. You can see the fractured wall though. Also, did you miss the quest with the guy trapped in a circle? He has a lot of insight into Gaunter, which is important because in spite of Gaunter killing the poor peasant with a spoon, the players may still side with him. But the guy trapped in a circle pushes the narrative enough to potentially sway the player towards siding with Olgierd.
I think for me what shows the most whether Gaunter is limited or not is the fact he can't interfere with Ciri's Destiny. Now obviously this was done because this is an expansion pack but in the Witcher story Destiny is a force like magic. When at the end he says something like "There are powers that not even I can change" I think that shows his weakness. And for me that's why I don't think he's "The Devil" but just a powerful demon or monster.
"Live" ghosts in the witcher: In Witcher 2 there is the Dun Banner chump that you trick into giving you the standard.In Witcher 3 the ghost of the unlucky in the ring at the end of the fist fighting quest in skellige.The couple in the Blood and Wine crypts.The pelar's father in Witcher 3.The old dead woman in Blackbough, Witcher 3.The Nilfgardian in the hospital in Witcher 2.Some of the guys in the spectral battle in Witcher 2 could be called sentient. Abigail, if killed, in Witcher 1. Probably many more. . .From what I can tell from the games, there is evidence for an afterlife, but it's not what any group claims it is. It seems to be more of some etherial happy place mush that one can be called back from. Not some great feast of heroes or anything.
Hey Arch, this video was waking up to Christmas, thanks for taking the time! Any who, For my Geralt personally, and perhaps the "macro" Geralt, I believe he would make the choice to let Olgierd die. He has risked everything to find Yenn (least in my play through) and Ciri. The risk of having "Satan" as an enemy to take it all away, is too great for a strangers soul. Master Mirror is a unknown and Geralt likes to know a enemy ( Oils, bestiary, etc). He also needs to be compensated for his work, and he knows O Dimm is going to reward him. So would he take the risk to run into the void to save Olgierd? I am not so sure he would.
Depending on what exactly the Fair Folk are in the Witcher setting, Odym could be a fae. This would perhaps be a better fit for the universe than a literal The Devil figure.
Considering Olgierd playing emotionless but NOT dull, have you seen Akta Manniskor (Real Humans) series? Actors there effectively manage to play humans, androids, androids who became humane, humans who so like androids so they try act like them, androids impersonating humans and vice versa. Acting there is amazing. Much better than Spiner's Data IMHO, however much I love him.
gaunter o dimm and the unseen elder are truly powerful entities. In witcher 1 the king of the wild hunt was on the same level. In witcher 3 Eredin is a pushover. I don't like what they did with the wild hunt in witcher 3. They are way to weak.
23:02 As Gauntler O'Dim said something like "Women are simple... only men are hopelessly dumb" (sorry, I played Polish version). Even if you "romance her" (it's not a proper word this time), it won't establish a long term relationship. Shani likes Geralt, but knows their lives are far too different for more. Everything after main quest, both expansions, are just casual sex... either paid for, or "deserved".
I think O'dimm likes geralt. He seems to react negatively or positively depending on who he's interacting with, kinda like a reflection ;) Geralt is rather neutral on the good side which i think a man(or whatever he is) who sees people as good or bad would appreciate.
Actually, B&W and the other are expansions AND DLC. CD Projekt calls them expansions, DLC is only the method of distribution. They are not mutually exclusive.
Gaunter O'Dimm is limiTED. He's not limitless. Even when you get him to help Ciri, he can't do it. Even though it's part of the contract with Geralt. Even though he wants to, because it would save the world. The only thing he can do is predict what will happen with Ciri and tell you what you need to know so that she can defeat the White Frost.
I'm pretty sure that Olgierd wasn't just robbing, it is something to do with so called (,,zajazd''),''forey'' en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foray Although it is dispiutable
Of all the people on the internet that commented on this game and dlc....you are the ONLY ONE who saw and said and asked 'why is Hearts of stone plural'? We (the others) understand now since you mentioned it but we didn't see that question...witch is HIGH embarrassment for myself...for others I do not know....
in books Geralt meets Death, and talks with her. And she said that she only come to hold somebodys hand and to lead a person to the mists and she dont know what is behind mists but she thinks that ther is nothing in there just emptiness. the conversation with daeth is in something more short story.
Actually you do see a BIT of positive character traits in the present with Olgerd... When his pirate mate slaps the lady's rear... (first time you see him, discussing the toad contract) Even being an emotionless being, he is till like "hey not cool!" Is this a low standard to have? Probably.
It's a lot like Mass Effect, in that players will EXPECT to knock boots with SOMEONE throughout the course of the experience. I think it's a bit of a shame, as it caused CDPR to stitch a romance option into the story where it was perhaps unneeded, but choice is choice and I am generally for more choice in games. Real choice, of course.
Heh, just thought that you refusing to romance her is very similar to Geribaldi not romancing the soldier in Babylon 5. Some pleasure and affection for a good and self sacrificing person who has no life of their own. Your prudish honor denies a good woman some simple love heh heh. I'm the same way though. Shit.
well in regards to your Q example, i dont think Q would renege simply for the reason that he has unlimited powers. Having ultimate power and knowledge would get extremely boring after a while. i think that O'dimm (as does Q) does this as a form of gambling. The constraints and free choice of the participants is the sides on the dice and the rules of the game. a game with no rules is boring. I always get the feeling o'dimm is bored and looking for amusement. Q loves to mess with picard for the exact same reason. and like Q with picard, i think o'dimm gets to like geralt whether it be like a favored pet or something more.
Admittedly I didn't like this expansion as much as the next one you're going to cover, and that's because really I disliked being a ghost's lackey for a couple hours. It does get really, really good beyond that though, and I think you've uncovered some layers of subtlety and nuance that I hadn't considered or seen before, so, good job Arch.
Olgierd is a bad person, but the choice is - Do you think we have a chance to redeem ourselves? or not? The "good" ending from letting Oldgeird survive is a testament of our western ideals of be able to change for the better. The other choice is eternal damnation for his choices and I dont Olgeird deserves that fate. Thank god we don't have eternal damnation and we should give people the chance to change as we are not ideally an authoritarian society.
I felt the same about the whole Shani relationship. I had romanced Triss at this point already and the whole thing was pretty hard to maneuver - the choices were either be unfaithful to Triss or hurt Shanis feelings when I was hoping for some middle ground. I can't remember if there was even an option to 'let her down easy'. Great rumination once again... and now I have a huge urge to play W3 again (not that I mind !)
The reflection of God is dog. Gaunter O'Dimm is a dog, Half Life 3 confirmed.
I wonder if you could get the dog to eat its own tail.
Seems like you can only trick the dog as Gerald did, nothing else. Otherwise the dog just plays around, except he’s his own master.
O'dimm only tortured Vlodemir went against the midnight rule. it was past midnight and he refused to leave. O'dimm might be pure evil but he is unusually respectful with a code
I'm not sure you know about this but there's a polish poem about Mr. Twardowski. He makes a pact with the devil that goes similary to how it does in HoS. The Devil has to meet Twardowski in Rome but Twardowski is tricked into going to a bar of the same name as the city. When the devil demands his soul Twardowski gives him 3 jobs. He's to make a whip out of grains of sand, bring the horse from the emblem of the tavern into life ( make it into a real horse) and spend a year with the wife of Twardowski. Upon hearing the third request the devil flees and breaks the pact.
Olgierd, his companions and a few other things in the expansion are also moddeled after a polish epic "Ogniem i mieczem" (With Fire and Sword.) Some lines of dialogue Olgierd has during your duel with him are a direct take on dialogue from "Potop". (Deluge.)
I think those stories are a much bigger influence on the themes than the story of Faust.
Also from what I remember the wife's name is Iris. Mentioned per request :P.
Fun fact that you probably noticed it but I didn't hear this mentioned in the rumination: There are I think three instances where after O'Dimm dissapears someone mentions The Devil in some sense.
I think that O'Dimm is limited, if you ask him about the location of Ciri he says she's beyond his power to locate. He can only give you the correct responses in order to get the best ending.
Dog:he still loves his wife Cat:no he only remebers he should love her.....
O Dimm is clearly a god. The God of Lawyers to be more specific.
:D
Well his initials are G.O.D ;)
The whole "his initials are G.O.D" is only valid in English.It was probably unintentional
Boy would that fit in rather well.
And bankers
I think Gunter is limitless in his abilities. But the contracts he creates are actually limiting him, binding him. Because being absolutely limitless is dull and boring. Weaseling your way out of a contract to bring pain and suffering - that's fun. Having that little bit of danger, little chance of failure makes life so much more exhilarating. We know that Gunter does crazy stuff outside of his contracts - the spoon incident, the old man in the circle. Those are fun too. But the main source of entertainment for Master Mirror are his contracts. That's how I felt, at least.
Ya agreed. God mode in games gets boring real fast, nevermind 1000s of years of it. He puts constraints on himself to make it fun.
Im sure that is not the case. It's a classic depiction of Devil in polish folklore, he is limited by rules beyond his control suggesting there is an entity ( God) that laws he must obey.
It could be, that the "limit" is his pride. "I do not need my godly powers to crush you. I can crush you even with a contract limiting me, muahahaha."
He can’t see what’s going on in other worlds this he couldn’t tell G where Siri was.
I think the best scene that show just how horrible O'Dimm is, is the one with the old guy In Oxenfurd Olgired hired to find out stuff about O'Dimm. Sure, killing someone just for interrupting you is horrible, but he did go to that guy, made a circle on the Ground and told him "as long as you don't leave that circle you are save from me"
That I tought was really awful, that poor guy spend a long time in that circle going mad. And those Dreams O'Dimm made him have (well, I'm pretty sure thats O'Dimms doing but I think thats explicit confirmed), that guy really had a horrible time. A Qucik death may have been better.
Oh, and btw. at the end when Olgried was bleeding Geralt did drink some Wine, Blood and Wine :D
There's actually a better scene in the base game that gives more insight into the afterlife in the game. It's in Skellige when you compete in the fist fights, after you defeat the 3 local champs and the bear you're sent to face the Champion of Champions but first have to lift the curse of a former contestant who was cursed to lose for all time even after death. You lift his curse and his spirit is free and during this moment he describes what he's experiencing and hearing in the next world as his spirit leaves this one.
I’d like to thank you for pointing this out. Never thought of it that way in my first playthrough. I’ve been wrestling with my own ideals and beliefs, trying to rationalize my decision of--[ POSSIBLE SPOILER ]--taking the rose *well* over a year after I put the controller down and the credits started rolling. I never really believed in the afterlife hence my internal debate, but your comment made me realize that it’s definitely possible in-game. Gave me peace of mind, really
Excellent commentary. Reminds of why I enjoyed that expansion so much. Recently subbed. You will love Blood and Wine.
B&W was a massive disappointment.
For whom? Most of us enjoyed it a great deal...
He's real good, SD. I recommend checking out his other ruminations and streams.
For anyone who hates terrible, contrived, absurd stories that give no fucks about the preexisting setting and lore of the source material.
For anyone who hated the trash filler bandit camps every 50 meters populating the world in the base game.
Or maybe for anyone who wanted their choices to actually have an impact and not be just an illusion with the writers flipping you off with every ending being shit.
Blood & Wine was fantastic but Hearts of Stone was the better of the two IMO.
Hearts of Stone is probably one of the best written expansions and hell maybe even games ever, the way it's done is just so clever, enjoyed the video :)
6 bosses actually. The giant Toad, Ofieri mage, Olgierd (if you save one of his men from execution) painted world Olgierd, the caretaker and then Gaunter.
Shani being melancholic if you dont romance her makes sense though. Because no matter wether you chose her in W1 or not, Geralt *did* have a bit of a thing with her in the books. So, theyve had a relationship of sorts no matter what the player chooses.
Love your videos. One of the few people that go in depth about video games
Nailed it on the head with the "Hearts" in "Hearts of Stone", one of the more memorable quotes of Gaunter is how he tries to sell off Olgeird as an evil and despicable man at the start of the expansion yet he is the real evil bastard behind it all whether Olgeird also deserves redemption for his actions prior to his deal with Gaunter or not.
Actually you can get "two" nice Swords if challenge Master Mirror. You can find the Viper venomous silver sword, resting in a Stone in the Puzzle World.
So if you want to get the whole Viper Set, you have to do it ;)
Won't be useful much later. In Blood and Wine you can get much better gear. Aerondight tops all other silver swords, if you're good at swordfight.
"Iris" is nice, but also not most powerful steel sword.
You can easy use Iris to the end of B&W and is good partner of Aerondight.
Yeah of course, as I wrote: if you want to have the whole Viper Set you can only get it there. Never said it is the best Silversword :)
But I display the whole Set in my Villa :D
It's not based directly on Faust Bargain but polish version of it called "Pan Twardowski" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski_(1936_film)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski
The thing with Shani romance in HOS is that it is not Geralt who wanted it, but Shani, and the player gets to decide whether or not to be seduced. This is a throwback to the first novel where she basically uses him as a one-night stand just because she was curious how it was to have sex with a real witcher.
Great clarification in regards to Shani being interested and seducing Geralt instead of the other way around. I would have never thought about that, and it makes a lot of sense.
55:02 He also does the spoon thing. There is a proverb "to eat a soup with the devil, you need a long spoon".
10:30 it is based on legend about "Pan Twardowski"(Mister Twardowski)
You are right. But Pan Twardowski's legend was heavily based on Faust legend. He is even called Polish Faust. Also, "pan" in Pan Twardowski means rather "lord" or "master", not "mister".
Sadly no "Giant Cock" from that legend :D
... and went to heaven and back to Earth.
No, it wasn't 'based on' Faust. They probably influenced each other, but we don't know which one is older. Also, there are too many differences between these two tales to say that they are just a one legend in two versions.
Romancing Shani is for the players and book readers, as you said you can choose who your geralt is, but in the books geralt was always a very lonely character, a character who saw himself as a bit of a monster and even if he had a great mind, he had a hard time connecting with other people, getting close to others was always very hard, but sex is easy, its a very easy form of closure to other human beings, so in the books geralt gets to "romance" alot of female characters exactly of these reasons
6:16 -- Are you thinking about the German term _raubritter_ (robber knight)? Not exactly appropriate here, I think Olgierd's actions have more to do with the Polish tradition of forays ( _zajazd_ ), which involves raiding lands of other nobles, rather then robbing travelers passing through your lands.
Also, regarding the Skellige comparison, I think there's a big difference in that Olgierd's party seems less interested in the loot, and more in having fun, which makes it more disturbing.
Debatable they need the loot to have fun.
Not sure if there is a definite name for the phenomenon but is did indeed exist at one point - looking up a history of serial killers throughout the ages sees them usually take this form if they're of noble birth around the correct time-period. China is particularly rife with this in it history - additionally, robber-barons of the American West also fit a loose description but they weren't nobles - just our modern day capitalistic version of "nobility." And almost always inspired by money more than bloodlust.
A few little things I'd like to add to an already great analysis. Nothing of great importance but still worth noting nonetheless, in my opinion:
When you first meet O'Dimm at the White Orchard inn, you ask him of Yennefer's whereabouts and he tells you he had seen her going to the Nilfgaardian garrison but she later took off. When Geralt asks him where to, he responds with " ask at the garrison. I'm not omniscient", which is obviously a lie as he actually is omniscient. Not only he showed up "miraculously" at the Ofieri prison barge to "help" you in exchange for a deal, but he's also probably the one to inform the Ofieris of their prince's whereabouts so they can catch you killing him, thus forcing you to accept his deal at the Ofieri ship, as there was no indication that this was a curse or that the Ofieris knew anything of it beforehand.
Regarding O'Dimm being bound by his contracts, I think he's only bound by his contracts towards the people he make contracts with. He had no problem killing a random peasant, using time manipulation and... a spoon, yet he obviously couldn't do shit to Olgierd until the contract was fullfilled, just as he couldn't do shit to Geralt if you opt to beat him at his own game and turn successful.
I don't consider O'Dimm to be categorically malicious - I think it depends on the person. He's the "Master of Mirrors" for a reason - he reflects the person with whom he's interacting. That's why for the most part he's decent towards Geralt - Geralt isn't a shithead. I consider him a manifestation of self-destruction.
That doesn't take into account poor proffessor, who had the misfortune of reading the wrong book, or a man at the inn, killed out of pettyness, on a whim. Or torturing Vlodimir's spirit, which O'Dim very clearly enjoyed. He IS malicious, but he needs the Witcher, and, maybe, to some limited extent, respects Geralt, which is why he doesn't screw him outright -- this time.
I was looking forward to this! The story for HoS always captivated me more than the main game.
Shani romance is fitting the character. They have a tryst in the books and even caught in the act she doesn't blush, she smiles impishly. She is constantly around death and kind of bemoans the fact that her calling will never give her time for a family. She pretty much tells Geralt that a relationship isn't possible but some shared affection with a friend is what she takes in leu of love.
No spoilers but her epilogue in the books just reinforces this.
wow! never noticed the necklace part! sweet! Your reviews are awesome!!
The toad prince in the sewers of Oxenfurt is a boss fight in my book.
Yet another brilliant rumination Lore. I was particularly struck by your observation at around the 25 minute mark as pertains to Shani's motivation for bringing Geralt along to the wedding. Another piece of evidence to support your claim is Shani's gloomy admission after midnight that she 'had expected too much of the wedding', and been given 'the wrong impression.' In my opinion, it didn't matter to Shani, ultimately, that Geralt (while possessed by the ghost of Voldimir) treated her to, what was arguably, the time of her life. She had already discovered (through a series of leading questions) that the witcher Geralt retained no control over his actions while possessed; and was thus guilty (in her books), once again, of placing another's enjoyment over his own. The depth of these interactions never ceases to surprise me.
I really enjoyed both David Beckham and Adam Sandler characters and their story
Gauntler O'Dim is obviously not limited by contracts. He killed the innocent peasant. You might find traces of him (Gauntler O'Dim) again in Blood and Wine.
My take on it is that since he is very powerful, he tries to set himself limits to not get bored.
Kyle Dolor Certainly. But then why did he seemingly get banished in the ending?
he is a bit of a drama queen
The Will of G cause he never cheats and is fair so he banished himself, so he would honor his word and not just kill everyone
By far my most favorite game ever.. appreciate the commentary and depth man
Hey man, I usually can't listen to longform like this as it becomes waffle but all your Witcher discussion videos have been excellent and engaging
If you're still curious, I think another name for a pillaging noble is a robber baron, based off of late middle age dukes who's estates were located along rivers/canals and they would threaten trade ships into paying them tribute for sailing through their territory or they would demolish the ships with cannon implacements mounted along the shore.
That comment i made on the TW3 rumination, i was more than half asleep, probably shouldn't have posted it. But hey, second chance. Because this DLC touches on one of the central themes of the Witcher series, in my view.
In a work of fiction, there's a certain lens you look at your world from. Star Trek is squeaky clean and optimistic, Battlestar is grimy and pathologically cynical, both of them being very insistent on their particular view, often to their own detriment.
The Witcher is not an optimistc series, but not because it's cynical. The things the narrative puts forth as important, that the characters care about, are usually all the things that are important in an optimistic setting, yet the story holds itself to a standard of semi-ruthless pragmatism that very often threatens to take those things away, and succeeds just often enough to keep you guessing. This however, doesn't make the story take a cynical approach to itself. Despite not being optimistic, it very noticeably wants to be, and doesn't stop trying.
Hearts of Stone is a prime example of this knife-edge balancing act. It's up to you whether you care about Olgierd and his plight, or just go along with O'Dimm's tale of him being an evil man. Likewise, even should you decide on the former, you may be outright powerless to help him out of his circumstance. And even when you do find a way to save him, O'Dimm does make sure to go out of his way to terrify you into compliance.
Knowing Geralt from the books, i can say for certain that he would not be indifferent to Olgierd's plight. I think he would most likely put himself on the line to try and help him, but i think even he would feel a cold shiver down his spine at the thought of eternity in torture at the hands of evil incarnate.
And that's another thing this DLC does that's brilliant. In this setting, there is no such thing as an all encompassing evil that's a threat to entire world. There are people with needs and designs, who are well connected enough to cause tremendous damage to an untold number of lives, and there's an unstoppable force of nature that has no awareness of the utter devastation that it will slowly but surely rain down on the whole world.
O'Dimm is another kind of enemy entirely. It is Evil itself, in the most terrifying sense of the word. Yet, it has no interest in making a big impact on the world, or most of it's people. It just watches and smiles, and every once in a while it decides to approach someone.
His smile fair as spring, as towards him he draws you. His tongue sharp and silvery, as he implores you. Wishes he grants, as he swears to adore you, etc. And then nothing that Emhyr, Radovid and the White Frost combined could ever do to you would even compare to the agony he will slowly inflict, until you're a withering husk of misery with nothing left but your soul. And then he'll take that too, eyes glowing afire. To gore and torment till the stars expire.
And all the while, the world keeps on turning. Most don't notice, the rest try to forget, the ones that fail wish they'd never been born. You probably have no reason to worry, it happened to someone else. Not like he'll ever come knocking on your door one day. Probably.
Kind of a sour note to end in, but i really just wanted to gush on what a great job CDPR did introducing a type of villain that had never featured in the story before, yet make it feel completely organic.
Pillaging noble can be called a "Robber baron" or a "Raubritter". I prefer the latter name, myself ;)
Btw - almost whole plot (with some minor changes here and there, of course) of this expansion is based of an old polish tale about a guy named Pan Twardowski (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski). And yes, it is an typical faustian bargain, because it's a really old tale ;) A nice touch, indeed. That was "wink" towards the Polish audience (there are a lot of them in every game, actually - quite obviously).
Thanks for the vid, have a nice day.
I got my friend back into the Witcher 3 (he got up to the Kaer Morhen battle and things got in the way) through telling him just how tightly told and thematically cohesive this story is. Needless to say, he'll thank me when he gets to it.
The vast legions of dead soldiers from Aedirn and Kaedwen in the second game exist as ghosts. You have to lift the curse in either path. But they're kinda all dumb wraiths.
Great stuff man, I loved it.
One thought about Gaunter O'Dimm, since we are almost certain imo that all the other worlds are in fact planets, what if Gaunter is something like Q from Star Trek, and perhaps there are others like him out there but he is the only one that took interest(in a sadistic way) on the Witcher planet, Just something that would be interesting imo.
Anelikital m
I’ve read a lot of people who found Olgierd to be a victim in HofS. He had $ troubles, so sold his soul & had his brother killed. Yeah, he was tricked by this devilish O’dimm, but duh.....which is why I chose NO REWARD at the end, because O’dimm scares me.
I let O’dimm suck his soul....and then walked away....like a boss.
Hearts of Stone is great based solely on O’dimm and Olgierd. Both phenomenal characters. I loved the old cannibal couple as well. That was creepy AF.
Also, Shani......I would have left Yen & Triss in the dust if I had known Shani was around.
Here is about Pan Twardowski, Olgierd's prototype: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski
In regard to Shani and Geralt, I think it much more than just want to take care of him.
If you see Geralt interaction with normal people (without superpowers) you could see that almost always it is a negative one, most see him as a freak of nature, a mutant (he even comment of it during one of the quests) someone whose not quit human, even characters that are nice to him (because they need him aid) see him as beyond the pale as a person.
Shani isn't like that, yeah she fancy him and want to bed him but even ordinary women who are attracted to Geralt don't bother invite him on a date - Shani is, because I think she probably the only ordinary human in the game who look at Geralt as a fellow human being. She doesn't want anything from Geralt, just a fling and then for them to keep in touch as friends.
This I think add great depth to her character and is one of the reason I like her so much.
My big reason for saving Olgeird was mostly to spite Gunter O'Dimm for murdering that innocent man in the Inn. And for being a gigantic hypocrite- self righteously condemning people to horrible things blah blah blah.
I like the idea that O'Dimm is God, pretty much the old testament way. Someone on youtube pointed this out, 'cause he created the storm at the start of the expansion.
But even more I like the idea that I'll never know what he is.
Great job with the video! Watched it over three years late. :D
In respects to Odimm being the devil you'll notice he asks you to meet at the crossroads as well....which is a place said to go if you wish to meet the devil
I really enjoyed your rumination on HoS and I agree it's an excellent addition to Witcher 3. Sorry for the long post, but I wanted to add a couple of ideas concerning O'Dimm and witcher emotions.
The idea that mutations strip emotions from witcher is disproven throughout Witcher 3 IMHO. Hotheaded Lambert is a prime example. The man has a tendency to react before thinking and you get the sense that Geralt has had to bail him out of trouble more than once. Vesemir shows great affection towards Ciri. His final words to her were, “You were always were an unruly child. I always adored that about you.” Geralt, upon finding Ciri on the Isle of Mists believes her dead. He picks her up and holds her for what seems like an eternity and you can almost sense him crying. I would say, if anything, the mutations actually enhance emotions.
Now on to Gaunter O'Dimm....
A very well written and well acted character. O'Dimm is a very intelligent and cunning individual. He's been around a long time and has studied man long enough to know how to game the system to get the results he wants. That being said, besides possessing certain abilities like walking on air or appearing to stop time (more on that later), he may not possess nearly the power he tries to portray himself as having. In fact, he may have very little power except what he can get others to give over to him willingly and so uses trickery, smoke and MIRRORS and convoluted contracts to gain an upper hand. Like the con man on the street, he knows he cannot take your money unless he can get you to give it willingly, so he hustles you by appealing to your ego and greed and cons you into playing his shell game. O'Dimm appearing as an ordinary peasant may also have some significance. in that it may be a REFLECTION what he really is in a cosmic sense. A cosmic squatter forever on the outside looking in (man of glass) only able to influence human affairs to the degree that he is allowed to by human will.
As far as stopping time, Geralt didn't appear overly impressed. O'Dimm admits that he learned how to do it so he isn't all knowing. In fact, Yennefer or Triss could probably do it and have actually put on greater displays of raw power than O'Dimm ever did in HoS.
Then again, you may be right in that O'Dimm is really just a manifestation of all that's wrong with the world. The Id Monster who knows everything about you because...he IS you.
Regards.
Thank you for doing this and thank you patrons
ah man, I really loved this video. Great to hear you thoughts on the game, and its a big plus that you have notes and structure, Pleasent to listen to.
Oh, and one more thing - Gaunter o'Dim is an obvious reference to this guy en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randall_Flagg aka Walter o'Dim. Another nice touch ;)
Sapkowski's books and games based on them often use legends or myths and twist them in their own way as a basis for a story. Olgierd's story is just one of those instances. There is a polish tale about nobleman Twardowsky who pacts with the devil. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Twardowski . He ends up being tricked by finding himself in a location he never thought it was possible to arrive but eventually tricks devil a bit by running to the moon. You can see, moon is clearly symbolic in heart of stone as well. Since it is based on this legend, one would assume O'Dim is in fact a devil. Since there is no christianity in world of witcher, we can guess he is some sort of devil's equivalent.
The Master Mirror was honestly one of the best characters in gaming ive come across in a long time. I didn't help Olgeird out just out of pure respect and fear of meddling in his business. I just sat back and was like yea you do bro.
45:50 OMG i didnt know this!!! thats so cool!! thanks man
Gaunter O'Dimm in Pirates of The Carribean, good stuff
Very good commentary!
I must say I didn't feel as much sympathy for Olgierd as I did the Baron or Syanna, but still, I did a little bit (as you say, he's got some positive traits, truly loves Iris and his brother). What really made my final choice easy is that O'Dimm is a character you can't let win. He's absolutely inhuman and unempathetic. He plays with people, toys with them and that's it. Not only is there no nuance with him, but also beings like him grow more and more powerful and awful the more they win. I don't see how anyone would want to let that happen.
Love your Witcher and Elder scrolls stuff!!! Keep it up
Amazing video. Thank you
Hey Lore, I don't remember if you mention this but what were your thoughts on Vesemir's old flame at the audition house?
In Austria the "pillaging nobles" were called "Raubritter" = robber knight.
Such a underrated channel great video!
the term for a noble who raids for their primer income is Robber Baron. :)
In my eyes Olgierd absolutely does deserve redemption. Almost all the evil we know he did he did AFTER O'dimm turned his heart into stone (for the "live as if there was no tomorrow" wish or however it was worded).
Except the whole giving up his brothers life to get rich and being a bandit thing.
Wasn't that only implied though? I'm not sure but I understood it like this: He had to sacrifice something dear to him, and because he only cared about his wife and his brother, one of the two he had to sacrifice. Or rather, had to die as a result of the contract. He explicitly did not want to lose his wife, and thus implicitly agreed to the sacrifice of his brother without fully realizing it.
At least I got that impression somehow, I believe it was implied in the dialogue with the professor at Oxenfurt, but I'm not sure.
You say it like getting rich was his primary concern.
Yes. Olgierd was not aware of the part of the contract, probably because it was oral, where his brother will perish in exchange. As do all of G.O.D's contracts, like the meeting "on the moon". Although I think they are indeed bandits before the demon showed up, but that is because they are a family of peasants.
It's also unfair to consign him to an eternity of suffering if he has only caused a lifetime of it.
Your senses do work in Gaunter's dimension, but there may not be much to see there. You can see the fractured wall though. Also, did you miss the quest with the guy trapped in a circle? He has a lot of insight into Gaunter, which is important because in spite of Gaunter killing the poor peasant with a spoon, the players may still side with him. But the guy trapped in a circle pushes the narrative enough to potentially sway the player towards siding with Olgierd.
I think for me what shows the most whether Gaunter is limited or not is the fact he can't interfere with Ciri's Destiny. Now obviously this was done because this is an expansion pack but in the Witcher story Destiny is a force like magic. When at the end he says something like "There are powers that not even I can change" I think that shows his weakness. And for me that's why I don't think he's "The Devil" but just a powerful demon or monster.
i think he was referring to her being on that mist island not her destiny as he can tell geralt how to change her destiny so she survives.
"Live" ghosts in the witcher:
In Witcher 2 there is the Dun Banner chump that you trick into giving you the standard.In Witcher 3 the ghost of the unlucky in the ring at the end of the fist fighting quest in skellige.The couple in the Blood and Wine crypts.The pelar's father in Witcher 3.The old dead woman in Blackbough, Witcher 3.The Nilfgardian in the hospital in Witcher 2.Some of the guys in the spectral battle in Witcher 2 could be called sentient. Abigail, if killed, in Witcher 1.
Probably many more. . .From what I can tell from the games, there is evidence for an afterlife, but it's not what any group claims it is. It seems to be more of some etherial happy place mush that one can be called back from. Not some great feast of heroes or anything.
I actually think there are many more boss fights in the game: The Toad Prince, the Ofieri Sand Sorcerer and the fight against Olgierd van Everec.
Brilliant stuff. Love it!
Love this rumination lore keep up the good work!
Briliant video, was sad though that you didn't talk about third wish.
Hey Arch, this video was waking up to Christmas, thanks for taking the time!
Any who, For my Geralt personally, and perhaps the "macro" Geralt, I believe he would make the choice to let Olgierd die. He has risked everything to find Yenn (least in my play through) and Ciri. The risk of having "Satan" as an enemy to take it all away, is too great for a strangers soul. Master Mirror is a unknown and Geralt likes to know a enemy ( Oils, bestiary, etc). He also needs to be compensated for his work, and he knows O Dimm is going to reward him. So would he take the risk to run into the void to save Olgierd? I am not so sure he would.
Depending on what exactly the Fair Folk are in the Witcher setting, Odym could be a fae. This would perhaps be a better fit for the universe than a literal The Devil figure.
Yessss! Sorry world, I'm busy for the next 64 minutes
2.....3 bosses
I didn't expect that!
HOS has the best story and characters I have played in a video game, I thought they couldn't top the main game, but boy I was wrong.
Considering Olgierd playing emotionless but NOT dull, have you seen Akta Manniskor (Real Humans) series? Actors there effectively manage to play humans, androids, androids who became humane, humans who so like androids so they try act like them, androids impersonating humans and vice versa. Acting there is amazing. Much better than Spiner's Data IMHO, however much I love him.
Romancing Shani leads to one of the funniest moments in all of TW3. (The boat scene.)
gaunter o dimm and the unseen elder are truly powerful entities. In witcher 1 the king of the wild hunt was on the same level. In witcher 3 Eredin is a pushover. I don't like what they did with the wild hunt in witcher 3. They are way to weak.
23:02 As Gauntler O'Dim said something like "Women are simple... only men are hopelessly dumb" (sorry, I played Polish version). Even if you "romance her" (it's not a proper word this time), it won't establish a long term relationship. Shani likes Geralt, but knows their lives are far too different for more. Everything after main quest, both expansions, are just casual sex... either paid for, or "deserved".
Oh God, he's doing it.
I think O'dimm likes geralt. He seems to react negatively or positively depending on who he's interacting with, kinda like a reflection ;) Geralt is rather neutral on the good side which i think a man(or whatever he is) who sees people as good or bad would appreciate.
Actually, B&W and the other are expansions AND DLC. CD Projekt calls them expansions, DLC is only the method of distribution. They are not mutually exclusive.
Gaunter O'Dimm is limiTED. He's not limitless. Even when you get him to help Ciri, he can't do it. Even though it's part of the contract with Geralt. Even though he wants to, because it would save the world. The only thing he can do is predict what will happen with Ciri and tell you what you need to know so that she can defeat the White Frost.
Shani is a romance option because Geralt has romanced her in the past lore. Plus Geralt has a reputation for 'romancing' many ladies.
I'm pretty sure that Olgierd wasn't just robbing, it is something to do with so called (,,zajazd''),''forey''
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foray
Although it is dispiutable
Of all the people on the internet that commented on this game and dlc....you are the ONLY ONE who saw and said and asked 'why is Hearts of stone plural'? We (the others) understand now since you mentioned it but we didn't see that question...witch is HIGH embarrassment for myself...for others I do not know....
in books Geralt meets Death, and talks with her. And she said that she only come to hold somebodys hand and to lead a person to the mists and she dont know what is behind mists but she thinks that ther is nothing in there just emptiness. the conversation with daeth is in something more short story.
Actually you do see a BIT of positive character traits in the present with Olgerd... When his pirate mate slaps the lady's rear... (first time you see him, discussing the toad contract) Even being an emotionless being, he is till like "hey not cool!" Is this a low standard to have? Probably.
Awesome video thanks
There was a sentient ghost in witcher 1.
Gaunter O Dimm = Twisted Human Desire Given Form/being?
It's a lot like Mass Effect, in that players will EXPECT to knock boots with SOMEONE throughout the course of the experience. I think it's a bit of a shame, as it caused CDPR to stitch a romance option into the story where it was perhaps unneeded, but choice is choice and I am generally for more choice in games. Real choice, of course.
Heh, just thought that you refusing to romance her is very similar to Geribaldi not romancing the soldier in Babylon 5. Some pleasure and affection for a good and self sacrificing person who has no life of their own. Your prudish honor denies a good woman some simple love heh heh. I'm the same way though. Shit.
well in regards to your Q example, i dont think Q would renege simply for the reason that he has unlimited powers. Having ultimate power and knowledge would get extremely boring after a while. i think that O'dimm (as does Q) does this as a form of gambling. The constraints and free choice of the participants is the sides on the dice and the rules of the game. a game with no rules is boring.
I always get the feeling o'dimm is bored and looking for amusement. Q loves to mess with picard for the exact same reason. and like Q with picard, i think o'dimm gets to like geralt whether it be like a favored pet or something more.
Admittedly I didn't like this expansion as much as the next one you're going to cover, and that's because really I disliked being a ghost's lackey for a couple hours. It does get really, really good beyond that though, and I think you've uncovered some layers of subtlety and nuance that I hadn't considered or seen before, so, good job Arch.
IRIS
Olgierd is a bad person, but the choice is - Do you think we have a chance to redeem ourselves? or not? The "good" ending from letting Oldgeird survive is a testament of our western ideals of be able to change for the better. The other choice is eternal damnation for his choices and I dont Olgeird deserves that fate. Thank god we don't have eternal damnation and we should give people the chance to change as we are not ideally an authoritarian society.
Witcher style: Odimm claims Ogeird. Geralt asks for nothing. Thug life.
This is awesome
and just to say it now cuz i know you most likly forgot her name as weill in blood and wine the bird lady's name is vivienne...sigh...lol
Thank you :)
I felt the same about the whole Shani relationship. I had romanced Triss at this point already and the whole thing was pretty hard to maneuver - the choices were either be unfaithful to Triss or hurt Shanis feelings when I was hoping for some middle ground. I can't remember if there was even an option to 'let her down easy'. Great rumination once again... and now I have a huge urge to play W3 again (not that I mind !)