I see you struggle with Polish pronunciation so here's a guide: Sapkowski - pronounced as "Sapkovsky" Twardowski - Tvardovsky The "ski" in some Polish last names makes whatever comes before it an adjective relating to the place where the person's ancestors came from. It essentially means "of ". So in the case of Sapkowski his medieval ancestors likely lived in a town called Sapków, Sapkowo, or something similar to that. Andrzej - Sapkowski's first name. Polish for "Andrew". Rz" pronounced as "G" is pronounced in "mirage". "J" is pronounced as English "y". So the name is pronounced somewhere along the lines of "Andgey" with g from "mirage". Rzym - "Rz" is pronounced as explained above, "y" is pronounced as in "syringe" If you ever need pronunciation of Polish words explained or something translated (as long as it's not like an entire book) shoot me a message. I'd be happy to help.
I just love how CDPR had him all planed since literally the beginning. After he talked to Geralt you can see how Geralt turned and Gaunter is already gone. That was the first hint.
@@poolplexer keep in mind that the ancient bruxa Geralt killed in the trailer "A night to Remember" is Oriana , CDPR definitly planned it all from the start if one of their trailers was after the events of Blood and Wine.
Somebody at CDPR is a fan of Onimusha 3. That scene when Gaunter came down from the Heavens was the same thing that the God from that game did. The only real difference is that Onimusha 3 had cherry blossoms with glowing leaves falling from the trees. Onimusha 3 came out on PS2.
He's speaking 3 languages. Each Sentence is in a different language. 1. Ouw se on coq é coq lá sé rwa an lé pil firmié ay. (Antillean Creole French) 2. Shen ggonia momige, ara sts'debi. (Georgian) 3. Man amaran nai. Asauznan fala fashtama azdahznan (Ossetian) It's been suggested that the use of Georgian language was a play on words reference to the Song "Devil went down to Georgia" by the Charlie Daniels Band but I personally doubt it.
@@whoopityscoop5029 he says: "You are a cock and a cock is king atop his pile of manure" "You think you have won but you are wrong" "I cannot die I'm going now but I'll return soon"
I agree. I saw him as an antihero type character who just had a kick for fucking with already evil people until he killed a friendly drunk old man for the simple crime of being slightly annoying. Then it made me think he is just a godlike being drunk on power wanting to torture people for his amusement.
Gaunter is an eldritch god of the Witcher universe. A primordial force as old as the very first sentient beings anywhere in the multiverse of the Witcher, as old as the desire of sentient beings to get what they want without caring for consequences. He's the embodiment of cause and effect. Probably explains why he's so powerful, yet so constrained by rules. He's old, very, very old magic.
A rather unpleasant one. But interestingly the Georgian language also appears in one of the Witcher comics. Maybe we exist in the Witcher universe somewhere
I'm Irish and the amount of our ancient language in the game is absolutely stunning. There are literally islands called The Skellige Islands off the west coast of Ireland. It would be impossible to put all the celtic language/customs/references in one comment so I'll link this if you're so inclined to read about it. www.reddit.com/r/witcher/comments/43tq9j/the_gaelicceltic_cultural_influences_in_the/
That's actually really cool, but influences of the real world on the universe itself are many. It's just when the Devil himself spoke to me, and the line that he said (you think you have defeated me? No, you are mistaken) I actually fot legit scared.
The number of side quests tied to O'Dimm is staggering and scary AF. So many side quests involving bad luck and curses wherein you will ALWAYS, ALWAYS see a broken mirror close by.
@@finesseandstyle spoon wight is implied to have had her curse caused by Gaunter, the dwarves on the isle of mists who are trapped there speak of trading with a man named "Mr mirrorey or something close" he's also in the background of several quests including the hiest where he appears once, he also appears once during the auction, once when geralt first finds the notice starting hearts of stone he also appears before the hiest where you recruit the dwarf and in several pictures including one where he's whispering to a nilfgardian officer
I think he is a representation of the classical devil from different sources in literature. The crossroads scene hints at that, the theme with bargains, fulfilling wishes, and so on. I played a lot of brilliant RPGs, I loved Wild Hunt and Blood and Wine, but to me, Hearts of Stone is still probably the most well written storyline in an RPG EVER. The whole atmosphere, the tragical story of Olgierd - it’s an absolute masterpiece.
Did anyone caught the same detail as i did? Ok you know when you meet the professor on his pentacle, when he says that as long as the candles are lit he'll be protected. Well, when he kills himself (and right before leaving the crumbling place) if you take the time to take out all of the candles, there will be a very loud demonic growl at the last candle. Jesus fucking Christ i slept with the lights on this night.
I did that as well! I made the mistake of being curious and did just that. Terrified me beyond belief and didn't pick it back up for a while after. God it's an amazing game.
I started new game to play hos again. Went to the sewers, i was lvl5 and i came across 6 drowners that were lvl35😂😂 i guess you cant play hos whenever you want😂
Remember that ship you find in the witcher 3? Half in the ocean and half on a mountain? That's just the tip of the ice berg, djins are creatures of pure magic, if one managed to act like a person and have it's own agenda, it would be capable of nearly anything.
WitcherGeorge sure, they're pretty strong... but A Djinn wouldn't need to hide what it is from geralt in such an ominous way. O' Dimm almost makes it sound like geralt would die just by knowing what he truly is.
He didnt say he would die, he said all those who know his name either dead or met even worse fate. He doesnt say its because of knowing the name, he might simply dont want to tell his name and give this example. About the power of djinn, we dont really know the limits of them or Gaunter O'dimm. He might be weaker than we think or djinns might be stronger than we tought. I personally think he is just an very powerfull demon, since knowing the true name of demon means nothing but harm to mortal beings in witcher. Not to mention we also dont know what demons are capable of in witcher.
In witcher 2 during the ”little sisters” quest you find a note that writes about how he or she summoned an incarnation of evil. It also says that the evil walks the earth and makes contract with mortals.
WitcherGeorge I think it may be after you go back to Olgierd and his house is on fire. You find out his first 2 wishes and then speak to Gaunter. Pretty sure Geralt straight up asks him if he's a djinn etc and he denies it and says he detests magic. May not have been when it happened but it for sure happened at one point
The Legend of Twardowski was that he was a rich and educated Polish man living in the city Kraków, but he was ungrateful for everything and one days whilst walking he said "I would sell my soul to the devil for anything I'd want". And the devil appeared out of the fog that has just appeared. The devil has done Twardowski's wishes and they where to meet in Rome for the devil to collect Twardowski's soul. Instead Twardowski went to an Inn called Rome which tricked the devil and as a punishment for tricking him and for being very ungrateful the devil has sent Twardowski to the moon (quite literally according to the legend grabbed him, ans flew up with him to the moon) where Twardowski wouls spend the rest of his infinite life with no end. Legend says he is still at the moon today.
@@WitcherGeorge there is also a kind of spin off or smth inspired by this (i'm Polish but still not sure) called Pani Twardowska (Miss Twardowska) in which Mr Twardowski says that on the contract with the devil it says that he needs to do 3 wishes of mr twardowski before he takes his soul (which can also be the reason for what happens in the game). The first one was that the devil had to make the logo of the inn "Rome" in which they were in into a real horse (cuz the logo was a horse). The second one - the devil has to take a shower in holy water. And the last one the devil has to marry miss Twardowska - Mr Twardowski's sister (or wife i cant rember now), BUT she was so ugly that the devil ran away from the inn and he lived happly ever after
Although the lore is vastly different, Gaunter O'Dimm reminds me of the Daedra in TES. I personally don't think he is a Djinn... He is some kind of evil ancient entity, a relic of sorts.. similar to the Crones but more powerful. Hopefully we get a Witcher 4 and Gaunter O'Dimm makes an appearance!
Cool video. I believe Gaunter is neither a demon or Djinn. He states he can't stand magic, and he has no reason to lie. I think he is a mix of folk lore characters, and the mirror of god, as in the devil of the Witcher multiverse. Hope to see him cameo in Cyberpunk. :)
That would actually make sense! I remember Ciri telling Geralt about one of the worlds she and the elf traveled through, she described the people "wearing metal in their heads" and how everyone had their own flying ship!
I think that Gaunter O'Dimm is really plain and simple darkness itself if you remember when you defeat Gaunter O'Dimm he is in the darkness and then starts to fall apart when the light behind him brightens and I can't 100% remember but I am pretty sure you only see Gaunter O'Dimm when its dark, in the sunflower field and in the tavern even, the wedding too and even when he comes to collect olgierd's soul which also brings up the fact that he takes human souls. also in the game of gwent there is a card you can come across called "Gaunter O'Dimm: Darkness" adding all that together I come to the conclusion that he is darkness in a physical form
Rafael Aníbal Yes. But it is inside the tavern. And you can see he simply disappear while he is talking because the light of the sun coming trough the door hit him.
I love that in the first few minutes of the game in the forgettable tutorial area of the game you have a mildly annoying conversation with an eldritch god in a dirty bar.
He is not a djinn, because djinn can be tamed by mages, and he is obviously too powerful for that (he also says he isn't). He is not a demon, because he cannot be summoned (we see Olgierd try, and fail, to summon him). He is not a mage because he is way too powerful, and what he does is not even "magic". There are no spells involved, reality simply bends to his whims. So he is apparently unique, probably some sort og diety
He isn’t using magic so mage and djinn is out of the question, could be a demon but he seems way to powerful to be one plus he can’t seem to be summoned, and his name’s initials Guanter O’ Dimm G.O.D? Plus the dude is shown watching from afar in a lot of the cutscenes as shown above, until someone says other wise hes a deity or hes *The* Deity.
You know that paradox that goes something like...”can god create and unbreakable object?” If he cannot break it himself then that means he is not omnipotent. if he can break it, then that also means he is not omnipotent. If gaunter cannot break the terms of his contract then it means he is not omnipotent. The only thing he doesn’t seem to have control over are people’s souls and actions. A soul in this context is obviously something that means more than life itself. So in other words, we cannot conceptualize how important it actually is. That kinda ruins it for me. If we at least knew why a soul was important then it would hold more weight.
Enemybird omnipotence also has to follow the principle of non contradiction as well. And the law of causation. The effect can not be greater than the cause. Omnipotent is maximum power so a more powerful or greater thing cannot exist otherwise the creator of said object wouldn’t be omnipotent.
Well I think people underestimate the power of omnipotence. It's the ability to do all you want with existence. So such a being can still be omnipotent if he creates say a boulder too heavy for him to lift since only he can conjure something this powerful. Here's the fun part though, since he can do anything he wishes he can simply give himself the ability to lift the boulder that cannot be lifted, to do what was previously made impossible for him. Logic doesn't really have a place with this power since it's purely illogical from the outset.
He reminds me of Q from Star Trek. A near omnipotent being that is always thwarted by his own ego and the protagonist. Many series have this sort of character because humans are fascinated with the cautionary tale of power. Absolute power corrupts absolutely and all that stuff. Especially in fantasy these characters are useful. Part of the fantasy genre is that you feel small. But spend long enough in a new universe and you feel larger than that universe. Gauntier O’Dimm is the character The Witcher needed to make us feel small again. And to make us question what we established as lore reinstating wonder even if it is only for a fleeting moment.
He may be powerful but he is not omnipotent, he doesn't know everything. For example when geralt asked him where Cerie is and he says he diddent know because she jumps between worlds so that means he himself has limits to his power grand may they be. So I believe he's some sort of trickster god like loki or the devil Lucifer because the wishes he grants always have a catch or they have an unforeseen side effects. As they say always read the fine print.
He doesn't know for gaming purposes, the whole plot of Hearts and Stones is basically separate from the main game, they don't want to tie both narratives so that's his answer
It may be that he's omnipotent but only within this world, or something of the sort. It's hard to believe that he didn't truly know where Yen was when asked in White Orchard, given all the abilities he displays later. One semi-inconsistent thing is that he is obsessed with time, yet has only been shown to freeze it. He didn't turn back time ever, or even speed it up. So, not truly omniscient, but can at least teleport at will to any place he knows and stop time and shape his environment to be whatever he likes. So like God but restricted to being only in one place at a time.
Actually olgeird was trying to summon gaunter after they made the pact because during his ritual he says “I wish to end our pact” this happens during the flashbacks of iris in the house. Now, just a guess, gaunter decides to grant him his wish to end the pact and he had to pay the ultimate price after someone -a proxy- fulfilled 3 wishes for him.
Indeed, the way he is presented seems to me like someone kombined elements of lovecraft and european folklore. The way he appears seems very much like a typical devil figure, but underneath that his character is far more sinister. And who knows, maybe he is indeed some kind of eldrich being from another world, something completely outside of human understanding and reason, that just likes tormenting those beneath him. Maybe he could be like the witcher version of Nyarlathotep.
This could go unnoticed but these videos are FASCINATING and quench my thirst for knowledge and cool speculation for this AMAZING game. My mother absolutely loves and adores this game and she appreciates these videos to help flesh out the incredible lore. Thanks for the entertainment.
I read somewhere before, that Gaunter O'Dimm is simply G.O.D. in acronym. I'm sure most of you, if not all, have already noticed this, but it blew my mind when i first realised it.
Thanks for this video. The "djinn with free will" theory is my favorite so far, or maybe Gaunter was just a simple human once, who encountered a genie, and wished to become one, with free will. I don't think people realize how POWERFUL a genie really is. Cheers!
In one of the many conversations Geralt actually proposes he's a genie. They're supposed to be much stronger. If you read the books at the house of the man who knows a lot about G.O.D. they also say he's simply the manifestation of evil itself, which is also why we will never be able to finally defeat him. Interesting to note however is that he is not omnipotent. He is not able to tell you where Ciri is if you ask him at the end of the Hearts of Stone expansion.
that doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't know though. It just means that he's unable to tell you, which might be by operation of some cosmic rule where he, as a manifestation of a particular ontological principle (evil), can't meddle in the affairs of another such manifestation (destiny/fate)
Bro i watched to the end and i got to say i love all you videos man. I show them to people who see me play this game. And you do an awesome job man explaining everything.
I think he's more of a trickster god like Loki. I believe their are more beings more powerful then him because no way he would of got banished if he was the one and only god
Finally someone that made the connection between Loki and Gaunter, the only difference being the contracts which are traits taken from the Devil and mirror part which is an original trait. Reading about Loki definitely shows how powerful tricksters can be.
Professor said and I quote "He is The Evil Incarnate". He is the embodiment of darkness.There is no Almighty or devil in witcher as far as I know. O'dimms traits in some case are similar to Devil himself. But he ain't devil as I mentioned before. He is the darkness. Everything that is dark(bad,cruel) comes from him. He feeds on mans cruel desires.
He’s not suitable as an antagonist, they’ve already outlined his code and made clear that he doesn’t deviate from it. Any other plot line involving him as the antagonist would likely just involve a contract which the protagonist wishes to get out of/help another to get out of. Heart of Stone has done that already. Plus, expanding too heavily upon his origin etc would spoil his character by removing a lot of the mystique surrounding him. Returning as a minor character would be fine though.
Gaunter as the main antagonist in the next big game isnt good idea because his "mysterious aura" and everything that makes him great villain, would have been lost. He would be great for another 10h dlc or very long quest.
Watched the whole thing and I am very glad that you've also thought of the possibility that he's a "free djinn" (don't remember anyone else bringing that up). My personal believe is probably that he is (not the, but) a devil (based off the tales and the crossroad where they meet. Plus the whole "making pacts for souls" thing kind of reminds me of Faust or classical devil beliefs). And I also agree with your reason, for why he limits his powers to those rules. I also think he just looks for a "challenge". Anyway great video :)
Great research here. There's certainly a lot of debate to be had and I think there will always be a little bit of mystery and sense of unknown when it comes to him. So the popular opinion of him being a Djinn or Genie are reasonable. He does seem to be able to grant wishes and is very particular about how they are granted and the cost for them. His name is also a hint, because O'Dim sounds similar to Djinn, or at least alluding to it. However, I don't think this is the case because in lore Djinn's and Genies are typically only able to use their magic / power in the service of fulfilling wishes - ie they have almost unlimited power, but cannot use it as they want to. You can see several times where Gaunter O' Dim seems to use his power for his own pleasure. The most obvious was when he stopped time and put a spoon in a guy's eye. I'm pretty sure he didn't have to do that as part of anyone's wish. Granted, you can be very broad when it comes to some wishes, and what means to an end they require...but still the casual murder of a helpless guy doesn't seem within the laws of Djinn / Genie power restrictions. I am more fond of the idea that he is a devil, or even The Devil. There is a difference. Sometimes people refer to a single Devil, or multiple devils and demons when it comes to evil powers. I follow the logic that Dungeons and Dragons uses when it comes to Devils and Demons - they're different but both evil. Demons are chaotic in nature while Devils are lawful in nature. This comes from the stories where the Devil creates contracts for people's souls, rather than being able to simply take them from people like a chaotic thief would. So the Devil or Devils in general are lawful and evil, which I think O'Dim falls into both categories. He's not a raving lunatic, but rather lawyer-like in his evil deeds. So I think it's hard to rule out the possibility that he's a Devil or even The Devil in this universe. There are also reasons to think this beyond his lawyer like conduct. He presumably named himself, so you notice that there is the acronym G.O.D in his full name. Devils and in particular the Devil was the first of the Fallen Angels, which were part of God himself/itself. While it's possible O'Dim is actually God, I think it's more likely that he is making fun of God with his name, in essence reminding God that he is part of him/it. The Devil can only exist if God cannot destroy him, because a good God would do that. God might not be able to destroy the Devil because the Devil is part of God, which may end up destroying all of existence, which wouldn't be a good thing to do. That's why there is a struggle between good and evil, rather than one side immediately winning. As for motivation, I think O'Dim as The Devil would want to stick it in God's face any time he can. It's like a rebellious teenager doing stupid / hurtful things just to prove a point to their parents. That is why the Devil likes to corrupt things, presumably trying to dishearten God or prove a point (a difference in ethics perhaps). That's why he follows rules, even though he could ignore them, being almost as powerful as God. That's also why he doesn't always HAVE to follow the rules either, unlike a Djinn or Genie. Hence the unwarranted killing and pain and suffering he causes (spoon in the eye, mental torture of the scholar who didn't have a contract with O'Dim). Finally, the name might have another meaning...the O'Dim part could be short for 'of Darkness'. Dim of course little/low light. It would be like him to be subtle like this, rather than naming himself 'God of Darkness' or 'Dark God', since that would be too obvious. He loves being subtle and technical. As for the ending, when Geralt catches him, I think that the light that showed in the pool could've been God. He was there to make sure Gaunter did not re-neg on his agreement, knowing how invested O'Dim was in these two souls. The light was growing as O'Dim fell backwards. This suggests that God actually came up from behind, essentially trapping O'Dim and forcing him to teleport away. Long response, but I hope people found it interesting. There are certainly a lot of possibilities here and I'm always open to learning more and refining my own theory.
Interesting theory. Rather than the light being god, I had taken it as the physical manifestation of his contract with Geralt being fulfilled upon his defeat in the challenge. He seemed the type to stand by his bets, even if he loses.
Recently found these videos, love them. Little tid bit, he’s not just in the background during hearts of stone, he’s in a lot of major populated sequences in the main story as well.
I always watch every video to the end. I also play your playlist before bed. Often letting them play through the night. Hopefully that's not creepy. Great content.
I believe Gaunter is a genie. When going through Iris' painted world in the HoS expansion, you can find a book titles "Between Worlds" which describes the dangers of summoning a genie and describes them as highly powerful elemental spirits with a will of their own and are intelligent and that their is no way to fathom their drives and intentions. And of a mage named Stammelford who got one to move an entire mountain for him, a seemingly impossible task to most other magic creatures.
except that Gaunter doesn't resemble or behave like any other djinns featured in the Witcher series. He interacts with people, actually communicates effectively with them, appears as a human, strikes up bargains etc. Djinns in the Witcher are mostly just angry, powerful, destructive magical clouds. Gaunter is truly unique, and doesn't resemble any other kind or category of creature or being featured in the Witcher.
He was the only character in game that gave me goosebumps. Something about his demeanor had me intrigued, long before he ever showcased any real magic.
A thought that comes to mind is that there are Lovecraft elements in the Witcher. In the 1st one you fight Dagon and you can find the Necronomicon in the library of the guy who you sell the painting you bought at the auction house to. He isn't a Djinn, he isn't a demon, and to him time is merely a plaything. He takes an interest in the affairs of mortals and enjoys twisting lives by offering something no one can refuse, a wish. Everyone in the world of witcher has gotten cheated, dicked over, or just had a straight run of the mill case of bad luck. It would be insane to think that anyone in that situation would deny a chance to change things in their favor, no matter the consequences. So what does he do? He waits for the poor soul that'll provide the most entertainment to wander their way into his clutches, dangle the bait, watch them swallow hook, line, and sinker, then watch them self destruct as they try to run from the inevitable. So, tying this back to Lovecraft, perhaps Mr. O'Dimm isn't the devil of the Witcher universe but simply a wandering being of extreme power who causes destruction, despair, and pain where ever he goes for one reason alone. He likes to watch us suffer. That's it, just a wandering being of destruction or... a Crawling Chaos if you will.
In the quest where you take Shani to the wedding, when Vlodimir refuses to leave Geralt at midnight, O'Dimm tells him "begone, or I'll take you with me, and that mouldy crypt will seem like paradise in comparison." this has got to be a reference to hell, right? I guess it could just mean he'll imprison and continue to torture him somewhere, I just assumed he meant hell. Love the channel, I'm on my 3rd playthrough and I'm nerding out on all the little details I missed.
fyi "das kalte Herz" means: "the cold heart", the name "Holländermichel" translates as something like: "dutch michel", "Glasmännlein" means something like "man of glas".
Much as I love this channel and the videos - may I make a very small pointer? Have you considered first typing up what you are going to say and trimming it for precision and brevity? I know it probably sounds picky but the conversational/spontaneous style doesn’t quite work for content like this.
There is even more in common with the Twardowski tale, he shares a lot of Traits with Olgierd. They are both sure they will outsmart the devil (added a specific place in which it is only valid, Rome in the tale and Moon in the Witcher) , ungreatfil, engage with the occult after the pact was signed, Twardowski used a mirror (obv reference) to communicate with his dead wife. He also ends up on the moon, and in Witcher Olgierd signed the pact which said they need to meet on the moon for it to be valid. There are many others Polish tales referenced in the game
i think he's a genie, cause you find a book about genies in the room where olgierd first summoned mirror (in iris's dream) also kind of makes sense cause in legends genies grant 3 wishes like gaunter
First of all it's "djin" I highly doubt it. For all we know, djin's can be crontrolled by mages and are forced to do their bidings until their service is over. (And Djins originally can do infinite wishes too. Only christians added the " 3 wishes limit") Djin's also are pure magic, hence their "Form" is just some smoke with a face.. Gaunter on the other hand... is a Demon, but a very powerfull one with self concience, unlike the Hymn, wich seems to be (like vampires can be) a lower demon.
watched it till the end, fucking love your content, devored your whole channel in two weeks. thanks a lot, I am gonna read the books soon enough, but these infos help me. even in my Tabletop RPG's.
It has many names. It has happened many times before in different worlds and universes. And it will happen many times again. Some powerful entities can do it merely using willpower. You can travel between universes beforehand considered just fictional. Everywhere in multiverse it can happen. Even here.
I was replaying the game recently, when I noticed the mark he puts on Geralt's face resembles the Greek rho and phi letters and even more ancient phoencician / arameic "beth" (house) and "qoph" (monkey), with "qop" being also number/symbol of the Sun, basically the mark might mean "the house of Sun" or "the house of the Lord". Tenuous at best, plus the Sun reference might signify Lucifer connection, i.e. the devil, but who knows
The problem with the djin story is that the professor said that stories of gaunter come from thousands of years past. The conjunction of spheres happened only 1,500 years before the events of the novels.
He isn’t the devil or a demon. He is based on the two figures “Glasmännlein” and “Holländermichel” from a German Fairy Tale named “Das kalte Herz” (The cold heart). They are magical forest ghosts.
you're seriously telling me that you think a being so much stronger than anything else featured in the witcher universe, including the most powerful higher vampires you've ever met, is just a 'magical forest ghost'? His characterisation might've taken cues from that fairy tale, but he's clearly not just some ghost.
The writers might've been influenced by Lovecraftian creatures when creating him. This is shown even more when Higher Vampires in BAW see people as we see farming animals. So i definately think Gaunter O Dimm has something to do with a Lovecraftian story.
There is even a series called *Once upon a time* that uses such fables like Rumpelstilzchen or Snow white. I don't want to spoil anything, but Rumpelstilzchen gets called a "dark one". There always is one of them. He is immortal and the most powerful person that exists, only forces of nature might have more power. When you own his knife, you control him, but when you use it to kill him (and at this point he can't resist anymore) you become the new dark one. Gaunter O'dimm might be something like that. 10:00 Das Männlein ~ the little man // das kalte Herz = the cold heart just to help you. a beautiful story, that I watched the movie of. Though "das Männlein" is the good one in this story. The wishes just were worded wrong. for example: "I wish to always have as much money in my trousers as this particular person." once that person willingly lost an all or nothing dice game, all the money won was than taken away by the magic of the wish. Feeling betrayed by this the protagonist went to Holzfäller Michel (Woodcutter Michel) who replaced his heart with a heartshaped stone, promising astounding success in life. Which happened. In this movie Holzfäller Michel actually gets called *man of glas* at least once, because he defended himself by a glas like barrier that only thiose can enter whot he allows to enter.
I love these videos but u should say the pronunciations with confidence. It's annoying to hear them posed as a question every time. The majority of your viewers will understand and won't mind
It's the ones that do and because I get one word wrong dislike and then post critical comments haha, I will try in future and thank you for the help and support!
Well considering all adaptations of this story comes from the polish language. Which without being a polish speaker is notoriously difficult to pronounce or translate just do your best man and try not to worry about the hard-core folk out there! At the end of the day we are all fans of this universe just go with that
Great vids bro keep them up :) I love learning about the world of the Witcher, I’m playing my second play through of the game but not played the dlc as I traded the game in before the dlc came out, but got the game back an can’t stop playing it an it’s great to learn about the lore
The thing is all of this is also very similar to Faust and to another German fairy tale called Rumpelstilzchen though that latter one is rather different still about trading and loss. Faust though Mephistopheles seems really similar to Gaunter O'Dimm
Hi guys, just thought I'd mention I have twitter so, be sure to follow for updates etc. twitter.com/WitcherGeorgeB?lang=en
I see you struggle with Polish pronunciation so here's a guide:
Sapkowski - pronounced as "Sapkovsky"
Twardowski - Tvardovsky
The "ski" in some Polish last names makes whatever comes before it an adjective relating to the place where the person's ancestors came from. It essentially means "of ". So in the case of Sapkowski his medieval ancestors likely lived in a town called Sapków, Sapkowo, or something similar to that.
Andrzej - Sapkowski's first name. Polish for "Andrew". Rz" pronounced as "G" is pronounced in "mirage". "J" is pronounced as English "y". So the name is pronounced somewhere along the lines of "Andgey" with g from "mirage".
Rzym - "Rz" is pronounced as explained above, "y" is pronounced as in "syringe"
If you ever need pronunciation of Polish words explained or something translated (as long as it's not like an entire book) shoot me a message. I'd be happy to help.
WitcherGeorge master mirror is the devil
Yeah, you butchered the German pronounciation a bit, but it was still pretty good. I was able to understand it on the first try.
WitcherGeorge have you done dragons or the golden dragon
There is also another Easter egg with him, in every scene after he freeze time and restart it, someone immediately said the word devil in a sentence
I just love how CDPR had him all planed since literally the beginning. After he talked to Geralt you can see how Geralt turned and Gaunter is already gone. That was the first hint.
They didn't. They just played off him
@@poolplexer wrong. DLC was already in production before the game released.
@@poolplexer keep in mind that the ancient bruxa Geralt killed in the trailer "A night to Remember" is Oriana , CDPR definitly planned it all from the start if one of their trailers was after the events of Blood and Wine.
@@poolplexer they knew what they was doing for sure!
Nah. They built off him
he is just a player, with debug console enabled
Could be aha
🤣🤣🤣
Lol true
If is called "Existence" then, yes that's technically correct lol.
Somebody at CDPR is a fan of Onimusha 3. That scene when Gaunter came down from the Heavens was the same thing that the God from that game did. The only real difference is that Onimusha 3 had cherry blossoms with glowing leaves falling from the trees. Onimusha 3 came out on PS2.
When you defeat him, he starts speaking in Georgian. He says: "If you think that you've beaten me, you are wrong"
He's speaking 3 languages. Each Sentence is in a different language.
1. Ouw se on coq é coq lá sé rwa an lé pil firmié ay. (Antillean Creole French)
2. Shen ggonia momige, ara sts'debi. (Georgian)
3. Man amaran nai. Asauznan fala fashtama azdahznan (Ossetian)
It's been suggested that the use of Georgian language was a play on words reference to the Song "Devil went down to Georgia" by the Charlie Daniels Band but I personally doubt it.
rejvaik so what does each sentence mean?
@@whoopityscoop5029 he says:
"You are a cock and a cock is king atop his pile of manure"
"You think you have won but you are wrong"
"I cannot die I'm going now but I'll return soon"
@@rejvaik00 wow. That's some hardcore linguistic knowledge.
and you can't ...
because the professor tells you one guy was able to beat Odim once.
if he has beaten him why is he still around.
I never really saw him as that evil of a character until he shoved a spoon into someone's eye for no reason.
Wasn’t for no reason, the man interrupted him.
I’d have a fortune if I’d collected a penny for every time Iv stabbed a man in the eye for talking over me 😂
I thought that part was funny
I agree. I saw him as an antihero type character who just had a kick for fucking with already evil people until he killed a friendly drunk old man for the simple crime of being slightly annoying. Then it made me think he is just a godlike being drunk on power wanting to torture people for his amusement.
@@Fishmanglitz he wasnt friendly, he was rude
Gaunter is an eldritch god of the Witcher universe. A primordial force as old as the very first sentient beings anywhere in the multiverse of the Witcher, as old as the desire of sentient beings to get what they want without caring for consequences. He's the embodiment of cause and effect. Probably explains why he's so powerful, yet so constrained by rules. He's old, very, very old magic.
Georgian here, he spoke one of the lines in my language. Scary af
That must've been a surprise haha
A rather unpleasant one. But interestingly the Georgian language also appears in one of the Witcher comics. Maybe we exist in the Witcher universe somewhere
Giorgi Gogolashvili if we assume that the humans came to the new world from our world, it is certainly possible
I'm Irish and the amount of our ancient language in the game is absolutely stunning. There are literally islands called The Skellige Islands off the west coast of Ireland. It would be impossible to put all the celtic language/customs/references in one comment so I'll link this if you're so inclined to read about it. www.reddit.com/r/witcher/comments/43tq9j/the_gaelicceltic_cultural_influences_in_the/
That's actually really cool, but influences of the real world on the universe itself are many. It's just when the Devil himself spoke to me, and the line that he said (you think you have defeated me? No, you are mistaken) I actually fot legit scared.
The number of side quests tied to O'Dimm is staggering and scary AF.
So many side quests involving bad luck and curses wherein you will ALWAYS, ALWAYS see a broken mirror close by.
wow, you have any well known examples?
@@finesseandstyle spoon wight is implied to have had her curse caused by Gaunter, the dwarves on the isle of mists who are trapped there speak of trading with a man named "Mr mirrorey or something close" he's also in the background of several quests including the hiest where he appears once, he also appears once during the auction, once when geralt first finds the notice starting hearts of stone he also appears before the hiest where you recruit the dwarf and in several pictures including one where he's whispering to a nilfgardian officer
I think he is a representation of the classical devil from different sources in literature. The crossroads scene hints at that, the theme with bargains, fulfilling wishes, and so on. I played a lot of brilliant RPGs, I loved Wild Hunt and Blood and Wine, but to me, Hearts of Stone is still probably the most well written storyline in an RPG EVER. The whole atmosphere, the tragical story of Olgierd - it’s an absolute masterpiece.
Did anyone caught the same detail as i did? Ok you know when you meet the professor on his pentacle, when he says that as long as the candles are lit he'll be protected. Well, when he kills himself (and right before leaving the crumbling place) if you take the time to take out all of the candles, there will be a very loud demonic growl at the last candle. Jesus fucking Christ i slept with the lights on this night.
I’m gonna try that!
I did that as well! I made the mistake of being curious and did just that. Terrified me beyond belief and didn't pick it back up for a while after. God it's an amazing game.
I'm gonna have to play it again now, that's awesome.
I started new game to play hos again. Went to the sewers, i was lvl5 and i came across 6 drowners that were lvl35😂😂 i guess you cant play hos whenever you want😂
nice detail, didnt do that
no way he's a Djinn... he seems far stronger
Remember that ship you find in the witcher 3? Half in the ocean and half on a mountain? That's just the tip of the ice berg, djins are creatures of pure magic, if one managed to act like a person and have it's own agenda, it would be capable of nearly anything.
WitcherGeorge sure, they're pretty strong... but A Djinn wouldn't need to hide what it is from geralt in such an ominous way. O' Dimm almost makes it sound like geralt would die just by knowing what he truly is.
Sol Goodguy It could all simply be an act and it's his way of toying with people
He didnt say he would die, he said all those who know his name either dead or met even worse fate. He doesnt say its because of knowing the name, he might simply dont want to tell his name and give this example. About the power of djinn, we dont really know the limits of them or Gaunter O'dimm. He might be weaker than we think or djinns might be stronger than we tought. I personally think he is just an very powerfull demon, since knowing the true name of demon means nothing but harm to mortal beings in witcher. Not to mention we also dont know what demons are capable of in witcher.
Agree..i dont think making pacts and collecting souls is the kind of hobby djinns do in Witcher world.
I always thought he was the Devil, in a more philosophical sense rather than the cliche religious type of Devil.
Ewan Osborne there shouldn't be a difference
Kind of like the Devil Went Down to Georgia style Devil. Makes deals, collects souls, plays tricks. That sort.
Ryan Madison hè is mephistopheles. Hè resembles in all facets like mephistopheles from faust legends
Are you people completly unaware of beasteary?
He's like the daedric gods of Elder Scrolls
In witcher 2 during the ”little sisters” quest you find a note that writes about how he or she summoned an incarnation of evil. It also says that the evil walks the earth and makes contract with mortals.
If you got through the game you'll know Gaunter specifically says he is not a demon, djinn, or mage
When? Can you send me a link to when he says it?
Yeah I remember him saying that in another video that I was just watching the other day.
WitcherGeorge I think it may be after you go back to Olgierd and his house is on fire. You find out his first 2 wishes and then speak to Gaunter. Pretty sure Geralt straight up asks him if he's a djinn etc and he denies it and says he detests magic. May not have been when it happened but it for sure happened at one point
WitcherGeorge you can outright ask what he is as Geralt, I think when you meet him in response to fulfilling Olgeird's third wish
He never denied or confirmed to be a demon, your post is BS.
The Legend of Twardowski was that he was a rich and educated Polish man living in the city Kraków, but he was ungrateful for everything and one days whilst walking he said "I would sell my soul to the devil for anything I'd want". And the devil appeared out of the fog that has just appeared. The devil has done Twardowski's wishes and they where to meet in Rome for the devil to collect Twardowski's soul. Instead Twardowski went to an Inn called Rome which tricked the devil and as a punishment for tricking him and for being very ungrateful the devil has sent Twardowski to the moon (quite literally according to the legend grabbed him, ans flew up with him to the moon) where Twardowski wouls spend the rest of his infinite life with no end. Legend says he is still at the moon today.
Such an awesome legend! Thank you for writing it!
@@WitcherGeorge there is also a kind of spin off or smth inspired by this (i'm Polish but still not sure) called Pani Twardowska (Miss Twardowska) in which Mr Twardowski says that on the contract with the devil it says that he needs to do 3 wishes of mr twardowski before he takes his soul (which can also be the reason for what happens in the game). The first one was that the devil had to make the logo of the inn "Rome" in which they were in into a real horse (cuz the logo was a horse). The second one - the devil has to take a shower in holy water. And the last one the devil has to marry miss Twardowska - Mr Twardowski's sister (or wife i cant rember now), BUT she was so ugly that the devil ran away from the inn and he lived happly ever after
Evil Tom Bombidil?
With Old Man Willow and the Barrow Wight as 'proxy'? Haha. The Ring would have never made it to Rivendell if it was O'Dimm instead.
ZOZO GOGO You’re*
Ikr. 😹
Possibly.
Although the lore is vastly different, Gaunter O'Dimm reminds me of the Daedra in TES. I personally don't think he is a Djinn... He is some kind of evil ancient entity, a relic of sorts.. similar to the Crones but more powerful. Hopefully we get a Witcher 4 and Gaunter O'Dimm makes an appearance!
He us the King if the Djinn. He is their ruler. He us the devil. It's so easy to see.
Clavicus Vile of the Witcher
Master mirror.... Or mirror of God. He basically is the devil in this universe
@@Cyrus-rodn45 mirror of God- Damn I didn't see that coming
I like how he says in the beginning of the game that Geralt will help in the future basically.
great way of foreshadowing a DLC XD
I was so hyped when i played the stand alone GWENT game and saw his card. He's labeled as a demon.
The moment when Geralt asks his real name is so eldritch and lovecraftian
Cool video. I believe Gaunter is neither a demon or Djinn. He states he can't stand magic, and he has no reason to lie. I think he is a mix of folk lore characters, and the mirror of god, as in the devil of the Witcher multiverse. Hope to see him cameo in Cyberpunk. :)
It would be amazing if he was in cyber punk, or maybe if we got a mention of a girl with ashen hair having teleport ed there
Yeah. I really hope that too. ^_^
That would actually make sense! I remember Ciri telling Geralt about one of the worlds she and the elf traveled through, she described the people "wearing metal in their heads" and how everyone had their own flying ship!
Gaunter is Chernobog
HOLY SHIT that would be crazy Grampton!
I think that Gaunter O'Dimm is really plain and simple darkness itself if you remember when you defeat Gaunter O'Dimm he is in the darkness and then starts to fall apart when the light behind him brightens and I can't 100% remember but I am pretty sure you only see Gaunter O'Dimm when its dark, in the sunflower field and in the tavern even, the wedding too and even when he comes to collect olgierd's soul which also brings up the fact that he takes human souls. also in the game of gwent there is a card you can come across called "Gaunter O'Dimm: Darkness" adding all that together I come to the conclusion that he is darkness in a physical form
That's a great theory man!
At the first time you see him. Its in a normal day, Not night. When you spot him in the tavern before finding yennefer.
Rafael Aníbal Yes.
But it is inside the tavern.
And you can see he simply disappear while he is talking because the light of the sun coming trough the door hit him.
Guy Mcfly A solid theory actually it makes sense
@@gabrielvaz2106 p
WOW, it's good to see some recent videos about Witcher 3! Especially about my favorite character!
definitely the most interesting character for sure :) he is even multiple npcs throughout the game just hanging out
I love that in the first few minutes of the game in the forgettable tutorial area of the game you have a mildly annoying conversation with an eldritch god in a dirty bar.
He is not a djinn, because djinn can be tamed by mages, and he is obviously too powerful for that (he also says he isn't). He is not a demon, because he cannot be summoned (we see Olgierd try, and fail, to summon him). He is not a mage because he is way too powerful, and what he does is not even "magic". There are no spells involved, reality simply bends to his whims. So he is apparently unique, probably some sort og diety
Why trust him
WitcherGeorge None of my assumptions were based entirely by what he says alone
He isn’t using magic so mage and djinn is out of the question, could be a demon but he seems way to powerful to be one plus he can’t seem to be summoned, and his name’s initials Guanter O’ Dimm G.O.D? Plus the dude is shown watching from afar in a lot of the cutscenes as shown above, until someone says other wise hes a deity or hes *The* Deity.
He is based on the two figures “Glasmännlein” and “Holländermichel” from a German Fairy Tale named “Das kalte Herz” (The cold heart).
The mark he gave geralt is ancient magic, he's just a mage and djinn combined
You know that paradox that goes something like...”can god create and unbreakable object?” If he cannot break it himself then that means he is not omnipotent. if he can break it, then that also means he is not omnipotent.
If gaunter cannot break the terms of his contract then it means he is not omnipotent. The only thing he doesn’t seem to have control over are people’s souls and actions. A soul in this context is obviously something that means more than life itself. So in other words, we cannot conceptualize how important it actually is. That kinda ruins it for me. If we at least knew why a soul was important then it would hold more weight.
Enemybird omnipotence also has to follow the principle of non contradiction as well. And the law of causation. The effect can not be greater than the cause. Omnipotent is maximum power so a more powerful or greater thing cannot exist otherwise the creator of said object wouldn’t be omnipotent.
who the fuck cares
you would have to prove the credibility of the paradox (has none) for your analogy to make sense.
Enemybird God can't do anything not in his nature.
Well I think people underestimate the power of omnipotence. It's the ability to do all you want with existence. So such a being can still be omnipotent if he creates say a boulder too heavy for him to lift since only he can conjure something this powerful. Here's the fun part though, since he can do anything he wishes he can simply give himself the ability to lift the boulder that cannot be lifted, to do what was previously made impossible for him. Logic doesn't really have a place with this power since it's purely illogical from the outset.
The languages spoken by Gaunter O'Dimm are as followed Antillean Creole, Georgian, and Ossetian
He reminds me of Q from Star Trek. A near omnipotent being that is always thwarted by his own ego and the protagonist. Many series have this sort of character because humans are fascinated with the cautionary tale of power. Absolute power corrupts absolutely and all that stuff. Especially in fantasy these characters are useful. Part of the fantasy genre is that you feel small. But spend long enough in a new universe and you feel larger than that universe. Gauntier O’Dimm is the character The Witcher needed to make us feel small again. And to make us question what we established as lore reinstating wonder even if it is only for a fleeting moment.
He may be powerful but he is not omnipotent, he doesn't know everything. For example when geralt asked him where Cerie is and he says he diddent know because she jumps between worlds so that means he himself has limits to his power grand may they be. So I believe he's some sort of trickster god like loki or the devil Lucifer because the wishes he grants always have a catch or they have an unforeseen side effects. As they say always read the fine print.
He doesn't know for gaming purposes, the whole plot of Hearts and Stones is basically separate from the main game, they don't want to tie both narratives so that's his answer
It may be that he's omnipotent but only within this world, or something of the sort. It's hard to believe that he didn't truly know where Yen was when asked in White Orchard, given all the abilities he displays later. One semi-inconsistent thing is that he is obsessed with time, yet has only been shown to freeze it. He didn't turn back time ever, or even speed it up. So, not truly omniscient, but can at least teleport at will to any place he knows and stop time and shape his environment to be whatever he likes. So like God but restricted to being only in one place at a time.
Gaunter just created his rules for himself and doesn't break them
Well by doing that they still make it canon. Even if it is just to avoid complications, if it's in the official DLC, it's canon.
I'd say a demi-god
Actually olgeird was trying to summon gaunter after they made the pact because during his ritual he says “I wish to end our pact” this happens during the flashbacks of iris in the house. Now, just a guess, gaunter decides to grant him his wish to end the pact and he had to pay the ultimate price after someone -a proxy- fulfilled 3 wishes for him.
He seems to me almost like a lovecraftian entity, with people who wish to know more about him going mad.
Dinofelis And the more you learn about him, the deeper the rabbit hole goes.
Indeed, the way he is presented seems to me like someone kombined elements of lovecraft and european folklore.
The way he appears seems very much like a typical devil figure, but underneath that his character is far more sinister.
And who knows, maybe he is indeed some kind of eldrich being from another world, something completely outside of human understanding and reason, that just likes tormenting those beneath him.
Maybe he could be like the witcher version of Nyarlathotep.
This could go unnoticed but these videos are FASCINATING and quench my thirst for knowledge and cool speculation for this AMAZING game. My mother absolutely loves and adores this game and she appreciates these videos to help flesh out the incredible lore. Thanks for the entertainment.
Np man! Glad you enjoy!
I read somewhere before, that Gaunter O'Dimm is simply G.O.D. in acronym.
I'm sure most of you, if not all, have already noticed this, but it blew my mind when i first realised it.
Remember master mirror is a reflection so what is reflection of GOD? mMyabe devil or so
Leigh-Jean Terblanche ... that actually sounds very plausible!!
Odim is a slavic god (Chernobog)
Oh shit, I too stupid for all these secret references :D
gegen sw oh that's really interesting! What's the mythology?
Thanks for this video. The "djinn with free will" theory is my favorite so far, or maybe Gaunter was just a simple human once, who encountered a genie, and wished to become one, with free will.
I don't think people realize how POWERFUL a genie really is. Cheers!
*G* aunter
*O*
*D* imm
*D* imm
*O*
*G* aunter
nice.....NICE
*O*
*G* aunter
*D* imm
the fuck ya'll lookin' at?
God is evil then?
@@snchez2106 the Great Flood was a thing.. that and the plagues of Egypt.
Dog part was unexpected and very humorous, I thank you for that
Gaunter O'Dimm is perhaps the most intriguing video game character ever. As to what he is? I have to go with the traditional crossroads demon.
In one of the many conversations Geralt actually proposes he's a genie. They're supposed to be much stronger.
If you read the books at the house of the man who knows a lot about G.O.D. they also say he's simply the manifestation of evil itself, which is also why we will never be able to finally defeat him.
Interesting to note however is that he is not omnipotent. He is not able to tell you where Ciri is if you ask him at the end of the Hearts of Stone expansion.
that doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't know though. It just means that he's unable to tell you, which might be by operation of some cosmic rule where he, as a manifestation of a particular ontological principle (evil), can't meddle in the affairs of another such manifestation (destiny/fate)
@@nxvh9062 so he’s not omnipotent
the first time i talked with him i was like HMMMM youre going to be something evil youre just too friendly and i can see something in your eyes...
Germán 998 Then you are already thinking as Geralt: “Hmmm”.....? 😉
Bro i watched to the end and i got to say i love all you videos man. I show them to people who see me play this game. And you do an awesome job man explaining everything.
I think he's more of a trickster god like Loki. I believe their are more beings more powerful then him because no way he would of got banished if he was the one and only god
Finally someone that made the connection between Loki and Gaunter, the only difference being the contracts which are traits taken from the Devil and mirror part which is an original trait. Reading about Loki definitely shows how powerful tricksters can be.
_Cracker gaunter o dimm is mephistopheles. Hè is not necesearly satan but hè is a devil of kind
Professor said and I quote "He is The Evil Incarnate". He is the embodiment of darkness.There is no Almighty or devil in witcher as far as I know. O'dimms traits in some case are similar to Devil himself. But he ain't devil as I mentioned before. He is the darkness. Everything that is dark(bad,cruel) comes from him. He feeds on mans cruel desires.
Perfect villain for the Witcher 4. Make it happen cdpr
Also i love long videos. Make it 40 mins to an hour plz
I think CDPR confirmed they will not make Witcher 4.
Rafael Alódio They confirmed Geralts story is over. The world might still go on though.
I disagree with you on that one. Gaunter is too OP to be full-fledged villain in a Witcher game.
He’s not suitable as an antagonist, they’ve already outlined his code and made clear that he doesn’t deviate from it. Any other plot line involving him as the antagonist would likely just involve a contract which the protagonist wishes to get out of/help another to get out of. Heart of Stone has done that already. Plus, expanding too heavily upon his origin etc would spoil his character by removing a lot of the mystique surrounding him. Returning as a minor character would be fine though.
Gaunter as the main antagonist in the next big game isnt good idea because his "mysterious aura" and everything that makes him great villain, would have been lost. He would be great for another 10h dlc or very long quest.
Watched the whole thing and I am very glad that you've also thought of the possibility that he's a "free djinn" (don't remember anyone else bringing that up).
My personal believe is probably that he is (not the, but) a devil (based off the tales and the crossroad where they meet. Plus the whole "making pacts for souls" thing kind of reminds me of Faust or classical devil beliefs).
And I also agree with your reason, for why he limits his powers to those rules. I also think he just looks for a "challenge".
Anyway great video :)
He's like a Daedric Prince from Elder Scrolls
he's like their father
He's much worser
Gaunter O'dimm is a Crossroads demon. Crossroad demons grant wishes at a cost. A contract you must sign that forfeits your soul.
Great research here. There's certainly a lot of debate to be had and I think there will always be a little bit of mystery and sense of unknown when it comes to him.
So the popular opinion of him being a Djinn or Genie are reasonable. He does seem to be able to grant wishes and is very particular about how they are granted and the cost for them. His name is also a hint, because O'Dim sounds similar to Djinn, or at least alluding to it. However, I don't think this is the case because in lore Djinn's and Genies are typically only able to use their magic / power in the service of fulfilling wishes - ie they have almost unlimited power, but cannot use it as they want to.
You can see several times where Gaunter O' Dim seems to use his power for his own pleasure. The most obvious was when he stopped time and put a spoon in a guy's eye. I'm pretty sure he didn't have to do that as part of anyone's wish. Granted, you can be very broad when it comes to some wishes, and what means to an end they require...but still the casual murder of a helpless guy doesn't seem within the laws of Djinn / Genie power restrictions.
I am more fond of the idea that he is a devil, or even The Devil. There is a difference. Sometimes people refer to a single Devil, or multiple devils and demons when it comes to evil powers. I follow the logic that Dungeons and Dragons uses when it comes to Devils and Demons - they're different but both evil. Demons are chaotic in nature while Devils are lawful in nature. This comes from the stories where the Devil creates contracts for people's souls, rather than being able to simply take them from people like a chaotic thief would.
So the Devil or Devils in general are lawful and evil, which I think O'Dim falls into both categories. He's not a raving lunatic, but rather lawyer-like in his evil deeds. So I think it's hard to rule out the possibility that he's a Devil or even The Devil in this universe.
There are also reasons to think this beyond his lawyer like conduct. He presumably named himself, so you notice that there is the acronym G.O.D in his full name. Devils and in particular the Devil was the first of the Fallen Angels, which were part of God himself/itself. While it's possible O'Dim is actually God, I think it's more likely that he is making fun of God with his name, in essence reminding God that he is part of him/it.
The Devil can only exist if God cannot destroy him, because a good God would do that. God might not be able to destroy the Devil because the Devil is part of God, which may end up destroying all of existence, which wouldn't be a good thing to do. That's why there is a struggle between good and evil, rather than one side immediately winning.
As for motivation, I think O'Dim as The Devil would want to stick it in God's face any time he can. It's like a rebellious teenager doing stupid / hurtful things just to prove a point to their parents. That is why the Devil likes to corrupt things, presumably trying to dishearten God or prove a point (a difference in ethics perhaps). That's why he follows rules, even though he could ignore them, being almost as powerful as God. That's also why he doesn't always HAVE to follow the rules either, unlike a Djinn or Genie. Hence the unwarranted killing and pain and suffering he causes (spoon in the eye, mental torture of the scholar who didn't have a contract with O'Dim).
Finally, the name might have another meaning...the O'Dim part could be short for 'of Darkness'. Dim of course little/low light. It would be like him to be subtle like this, rather than naming himself 'God of Darkness' or 'Dark God', since that would be too obvious. He loves being subtle and technical. As for the ending, when Geralt catches him, I think that the light that showed in the pool could've been God. He was there to make sure Gaunter did not re-neg on his agreement, knowing how invested O'Dim was in these two souls. The light was growing as O'Dim fell backwards. This suggests that God actually came up from behind, essentially trapping O'Dim and forcing him to teleport away.
Long response, but I hope people found it interesting. There are certainly a lot of possibilities here and I'm always open to learning more and refining my own theory.
Interesting theory. Rather than the light being god, I had taken it as the physical manifestation of his contract with Geralt being fulfilled upon his defeat in the challenge. He seemed the type to stand by his bets, even if he loses.
A year late but i watched till the end....Thx for all the great content. Much appreciated!
He is Clavicus Vile. It's a crossover with the Elder Scrolls. lol one can hope
Sanguine
or perhaps he's Stanley, the talking grapefruit from Passwall!
Why would CDPR crossover with a lesser game?
super chickeny no, clavicus vile. Simply because he gives you what you ask for, not what you want
3Eni quantity vs quality my friend. And Witcher is better in every aspect
Recently found these videos, love them. Little tid bit, he’s not just in the background during hearts of stone, he’s in a lot of major populated sequences in the main story as well.
Ah thank you and awesome!
I swear I’ve seen someone who looks exactly like Gaunter O’Dimm in my town
Let’s hope someone hasn’t been making wishes
I always watch every video to the end. I also play your playlist before bed. Often letting them play through the night. Hopefully that's not creepy. Great content.
His name’s capital letters are G.O.D and he is called master mirror and what is the reflection of god, the devil.
When I say that I say nothing 😈
As requested I watched until then end! I only started watching your content because of your review of the tv show :)
I believe Gaunter is a genie. When going through Iris' painted world in the HoS expansion, you can find a book titles "Between Worlds" which describes the dangers of summoning a genie and describes them as highly powerful elemental spirits with a will of their own and are intelligent and that their is no way to fathom their drives and intentions. And of a mage named Stammelford who got one to move an entire mountain for him, a seemingly impossible task to most other magic creatures.
This is an extract from the Last Wish ministory in the Last Wish compilation book. The one where Jaskier gets attacked by a Djinn
except that Gaunter doesn't resemble or behave like any other djinns featured in the Witcher series. He interacts with people, actually communicates effectively with them, appears as a human, strikes up bargains etc. Djinns in the Witcher are mostly just angry, powerful, destructive magical clouds. Gaunter is truly unique, and doesn't resemble any other kind or category of creature or being featured in the Witcher.
Great video, subscribed, wish you the best of luck with youtube matey!
Thank you so much man
Such an interesting and fascinating character ( in a game that's full of them, no less).
He was the only character in game that gave me goosebumps. Something about his demeanor had me intrigued, long before he ever showcased any real
magic.
"Glasmännlein" stands for a man of glass and is pronounced like
"glas-men-line"
A thought that comes to mind is that there are Lovecraft elements in the Witcher. In the 1st one you fight Dagon and you can find the Necronomicon in the library of the guy who you sell the painting you bought at the auction house to. He isn't a Djinn, he isn't a demon, and to him time is merely a plaything. He takes an interest in the affairs of mortals and enjoys twisting lives by offering something no one can refuse, a wish. Everyone in the world of witcher has gotten cheated, dicked over, or just had a straight run of the mill case of bad luck. It would be insane to think that anyone in that situation would deny a chance to change things in their favor, no matter the consequences. So what does he do? He waits for the poor soul that'll provide the most entertainment to wander their way into his clutches, dangle the bait, watch them swallow hook, line, and sinker, then watch them self destruct as they try to run from the inevitable. So, tying this back to Lovecraft, perhaps Mr. O'Dimm isn't the devil of the Witcher universe but simply a wandering being of extreme power who causes destruction, despair, and pain where ever he goes for one reason alone. He likes to watch us suffer. That's it, just a wandering being of destruction or... a Crawling Chaos if you will.
Confirmed!
Gaunter O'Dimm is a dog.
But jokes aside, I really liked this video! Gaunter is a very interesting character.
Keep up the good work! :)
Watched till the end! Just discovered your channel and I love it. You've got yourself one more subscriber.
He reeks of Göthe imagery. Mephisto from Faust.
Goethe
The initials of Gaunter says - G.O.D 😂
He's the devil you meet him at the crossroads he's charming in a scary way and he makes deals for souls he freaks me out but is a well done character
watched to the end. Great job buddy
Thanks man!
The start of the video till 2:49, why is Geralt's face like he has level 5 Darkside points like in KOTOR, lol!?? He looks like a vamp! :D
BECAUSE HE IS THE SENATE
POOOWWEERRRR!! UNLIMITED POOOOWWWEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!
I'm actually curious, why is that? lol
Potion consumption. The higher the consumption, more scarier his face.
Always love watching your videos, hope all is going well!
A few points, he hates magic.
He's not using magic.
He's not a (powerful) demon either.
In the quest where you take Shani to the wedding, when Vlodimir refuses to leave Geralt at midnight, O'Dimm tells him "begone, or I'll take you with me, and that mouldy crypt will seem like paradise in comparison." this has got to be a reference to hell, right? I guess it could just mean he'll imprison and continue to torture him somewhere, I just assumed he meant hell.
Love the channel, I'm on my 3rd playthrough and I'm nerding out on all the little details I missed.
fyi
"das kalte Herz" means: "the cold heart",
the name "Holländermichel" translates as something like: "dutch michel",
"Glasmännlein" means something like "man of glas".
Soooooo glad you did a vid on this one. Cheers
Granting wishes and taking souls... While signing a contract with him.
Sounds familiar?
Crowley
Mephisto
Mephisto is the guy who signed a contract with ...
i watched till the end! Great video, subscribed!
Thanks mate
Much as I love this channel and the videos - may I make a very small pointer? Have you considered first typing up what you are going to say and trimming it for precision and brevity? I know it probably sounds picky but the conversational/spontaneous style doesn’t quite work for content like this.
There is even more in common with the Twardowski tale, he shares a lot of Traits with Olgierd. They are both sure they will outsmart the devil (added a specific place in which it is only valid, Rome in the tale and Moon in the Witcher) , ungreatfil, engage with the occult after the pact was signed, Twardowski used a mirror (obv reference) to communicate with his dead wife. He also ends up on the moon, and in Witcher Olgierd signed the pact which said they need to meet on the moon for it to be valid. There are many others Polish tales referenced in the game
i think he's a genie, cause you find a book about genies in the room where olgierd first summoned mirror (in iris's dream)
also kind of makes sense cause in legends genies grant 3 wishes like gaunter
First of all it's "djin"
I highly doubt it. For all we know, djin's can be crontrolled by mages and are forced to do their bidings until their service is over. (And Djins originally can do infinite wishes too. Only christians added the " 3 wishes limit") Djin's also are pure magic, hence their "Form" is just some smoke with a face..
Gaunter on the other hand... is a Demon, but a very powerfull one with self concience, unlike the Hymn, wich seems to be (like vampires can be) a lower demon.
And there is also a book about Visitants witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Blood_Pacts,_or_On_Foreign_Presences
I watched to the end man 👍 Great content as always
I always thought he was a trickster demon or every single bad thing about God in the form of a living human, just pure evil
watched it till the end, fucking love your content, devored your whole channel in two weeks. thanks a lot, I am gonna read the books soon enough, but these infos help me. even in my Tabletop RPG's.
Glad you love the videos man, thank you!!
in a sci-fi universe, G.O.D = G-man, and Djinn = Akira
Conjunction of the Spheres = Resonance Cascade
Tim Yang akira? Persona?
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akira_(1988_film) in the film/series, Akira represents pure energy in the universe
It has many names. It has happened many times before in different worlds and universes. And it will happen many times again. Some powerful entities can do it merely using willpower. You can travel between universes beforehand considered just fictional. Everywhere in multiverse it can happen. Even here.
I was replaying the game recently, when I noticed the mark he puts on Geralt's face resembles the Greek rho and phi letters and even more ancient phoencician / arameic "beth" (house) and "qoph" (monkey), with "qop" being also number/symbol of the Sun, basically the mark might mean "the house of Sun" or "the house of the Lord". Tenuous at best, plus the Sun reference might signify Lucifer connection, i.e. the devil, but who knows
Look on wikipedia at Randall Flagg. It's very likely that's the inspiration i think
Spoke to soon oops
The problem with the djin story is that the professor said that stories of gaunter come from thousands of years past. The conjunction of spheres happened only 1,500 years before the events of the novels.
He isn’t the devil or a demon. He is based on the two figures “Glasmännlein” and “Holländermichel” from a German Fairy Tale named “Das kalte Herz” (The cold heart). They are magical forest ghosts.
you're seriously telling me that you think a being so much stronger than anything else featured in the witcher universe, including the most powerful higher vampires you've ever met, is just a 'magical forest ghost'? His characterisation might've taken cues from that fairy tale, but he's clearly not just some ghost.
Have been watching some of your videos! Love them! Keep up the Good work!
Btw i watched till the end!😂❤️
Voldemort with nose
ua-cam.com/video/nfQS59vPqFw/v-deo.html
I watched til half way, then took a nap. I woke up and watched again til the end!
The writers might've been influenced by Lovecraftian creatures when creating him. This is shown even more when Higher Vampires in BAW see people as we see farming animals. So i definately think Gaunter O Dimm has something to do with a Lovecraftian story.
There is even a series called *Once upon a time* that uses such fables like Rumpelstilzchen or Snow white. I don't want to spoil anything, but Rumpelstilzchen gets called a "dark one". There always is one of them. He is immortal and the most powerful person that exists, only forces of nature might have more power. When you own his knife, you control him, but when you use it to kill him (and at this point he can't resist anymore) you become the new dark one.
Gaunter O'dimm might be something like that.
10:00 Das Männlein ~ the little man // das kalte Herz = the cold heart
just to help you. a beautiful story, that I watched the movie of.
Though "das Männlein" is the good one in this story. The wishes just were worded wrong.
for example: "I wish to always have as much money in my trousers as this particular person."
once that person willingly lost an all or nothing dice game, all the money won was than taken away by the magic of the wish.
Feeling betrayed by this the protagonist went to Holzfäller Michel (Woodcutter Michel) who replaced his heart with a heartshaped stone, promising astounding success in life. Which happened.
In this movie Holzfäller Michel actually gets called *man of glas* at least once, because he defended himself by a glas like barrier that only thiose can enter whot he allows to enter.
Could be a reference to Walter o'dim the Stephen King character as you said, I think it's closer to that.
Wow. As if you meet this guy so early on and he turns out to be such a linchpin!!!
Great video to listen to while I'm working.
I love these videos but u should say the pronunciations with confidence. It's annoying to hear them posed as a question every time. The majority of your viewers will understand and won't mind
It's the ones that do and because I get one word wrong dislike and then post critical comments haha, I will try in future and thank you for the help and support!
Well considering all adaptations of this story comes from the polish language. Which without being a polish speaker is notoriously difficult to pronounce or translate just do your best man and try not to worry about the hard-core folk out there! At the end of the day we are all fans of this universe just go with that
Samuel Marshall true
Watched to the end! Awesome.
Thanks man!
Gaunter O'Dimm is Nyarlathotep
srottfaen mephistopheles
Great vids bro keep them up :) I love learning about the world of the Witcher, I’m playing my second play through of the game but not played the dlc as I traded the game in before the dlc came out, but got the game back an can’t stop playing it an it’s great to learn about the lore
I'm glad you're enjoying it mate!
The thing is all of this is also very similar to Faust and to another German fairy tale called Rumpelstilzchen though that latter one is rather different still about trading and loss. Faust though Mephistopheles seems really similar to Gaunter O'Dimm
I watched to the end. :) Subscribed; thanks for a great channel.
Thanks you man! Glad you did
subbed after this. keep them coming
Thanks man!
I finished this DLC expansion about 12 hours ago and I can't get over how good it is. Oh and Gaunter O'Dimm is obv. the Devil lol