Pls don't unsubscribe if you like Triss. that was a joke 🧡 Also remember that this is a booktube channel! I will be putting out more Witcher videos (bc it is the most important series in my life) but they will be spaced out :)
@@obergefreiterhack647 Yennefer and Geralt both have their share of affairs... but I don't think Triss ever did or ever would cheat on Geralt. She's the real keeper.
if yennefer has a thousand fans, i'm one of them. if she has ten fans, i'm one of them. if she has zero fans, someone should check-in on me bc that means i'm dead
Netflix changed Dandelion fundamentally, and it's not just about his relationship with Geralt. As harsh as it sounds, book Dandelion isn't a comedian, but the punchline. He's supposed to be an _unintentionally_ funny, semi-oblivious dreamer, not a sarcastic rock star.
Semi-oblivious. That's a perfect word. You can't tell if he's pretending to be oblivious or if he's actually oblivious but kind of knows about it. Probably both
Ehhh, im part way through Lady of the Lake and can def understand turning his character into a rock star type personage. He’s exceedingly well known and when he lets his fame get to him he’s very much a sarcastic rock star. I view that more as a character flaw than anything though, as naturally his character is as you describe it; unintentionally funny but deep down, past his elitist douchiness, he cares for his friends greatly. I just see sequences like the audience at the Bleobheris Tree in the first chapter of blood of elves treated Dandy like he’s a superstar (and a little sacrifice) and in lady of the lake where he breaks his promise to Geralt about finding Ciri and choosing to stay with Anarietta in Toussaint as particular examples of him becoming that douchey sarcastic rock star.
@@elvancor to be honest, those last couple of books are indispensably important to understanding the main characters of The Witcher lol. Hard times drive them to desperate measures where you see their real characters get drawn out. I suggest you finish up the series - it’ll make the decision to make Dandelion a sarcastic rock star quite understandable.
@@johnstewart2981 I might, though the last one I've read already felt tedious to get through. Judging by the five books I know, I seem to enjoy CDPR's take on the universe more than Sapkowski's original vision.
I’m so happy to watch content of other women loving the Witcher. I’m obsessed with the books and the Witcher 3, but I literally know nobody else in my life who knows about them, so this is wonderful
hot girls love the witcher. its just a fact 👸🏼 so glad to see other women finding this video! don't get me wrong, love the gentlemen, but seeing girls get excited about it is super special
You're not alone! Glad to see as well more women who like the books and want to talk about the Witcher. 👍 I loved the books since they've been translated into Czech in the late 90's - for me one of the best fantasy series (aside from Salvatore's The Legend of Drizzt, although that one's now a bit weird in the latest books - but that's another story). I've always appreciated how CDPR managed to picture the Continent and the characters so very close to their book originals. Even though they did deviate from some of the stories/canon here & there, overall the games in the Witcher series are spectacular! @valliyarnl - Great video, good discussion! Although I admit I've never liked Yennefer from the start since the books. And it has nothing to do with the games, nor with Geralt or Triss. Understand her very important role in raising Ciri and shaping her character & abilities, but I still think she's one of the worst (behaving) characters I've read in a book - and that's actually a testament to how wonderfully Sapkowski managed to write her. She's written very well - to the point she's so believable, that I wholeheartedly dislike her. 😏 In short - just because she had a tough life, it doesn't give her the right to treat everyone now like a piece of... well, you know... Aside from that - I tend to see things rather from a bigger perspective, so for the ending of the Witcher 3 game I believe Ciri as Empress is the best outcome, that has the most positive impact on the Continent. Even though she herself might be not so happy about it, but I think Ciri as a character would understand this as a form of responsibility, that she has towards the world and would accept it in the end.
My unpopular take is that from Radovid's perspective it makes sense that he burns witches. Not only did the lodge (Philipa) assasinare his father and humiliate him all his childhood, sorceress are helping Nilfgaard with the war. And the way I see it, he just has a lot of paranoia in the witcher 3. His chess speech makes sense if you let him explain it to you, and he is a great strategist, allying himself with the church of the eternal fire to win Novigrad and beating Nilfgaard (when they heavily outnumber him and Emyr is a good strategist as well) so bad that Emyr's own councelors decide to off him.
I always drew mental parallels between Radovid and King James the 1st of England (and 6th of Scotland) - he was convinced a bunch of witches conjured up a storm to prevent him from marrying Anne of Denmark and wrote his book Daemonologie on diabolism. He was also responsible for the insane exacerbation of witch trials in Britain right before the scientific revoloution. Both are very similar to me - paranoid, in their minds justified and self proclaimed "philosophers". (James was certainly a bit more rational/sceptical despite common belief)
Yes definitely. Radovid is a bit coocoo for cocopuffs when we meet him in W3 but I love how we see him get more and more paranoid throughout the series. Fascinating character 100%
@@valliyarnlwhen playing W1 i wondered how did he get so crazy in W3 then after playing W2 it made sense. THEN after reading the books I thought that CDPR made good work with his character.
He may be right in his reasoning to some extent, however burning every single one of them, forming special units specifically for extermination, banning all kinds of magic, no matter how big or small it is. I believe Djikstra has said it best, saying that Redania is ruled by a madman - a cunning one, but still a madman, no matter his past, reasons or beliefs. Djikstra is obviously biased as well, however when it came to people I believed he had a good outlook on everyone.
@@therealnmsis that is a great opinion, i forgot to mention that non-humans and sorcerers sided with Nilfgaard from what I understand, therefore he is also weakening his enemy. I agree with you that he has gone way out of the necessity, but that is what paranoia does to ppl
I personally love the ending where ciri becomes a witcher, because i like the idea of her following in her "father's" footsteps. After training with geralt as a child and everything they have been through, it's awesome to see her fully adapting her witcher trait. Also the scene where geralt gives her the new sword is so freaking wholesome ❤
I prefer the bittersweet Empress Ending, because the Witcheress Ending feels too much like your average happy Fantasy coming to your average happy conclusion. Not to mention, the Witcheress Ending is incredibly selfish, because Ciri will do a lot more good as the Ruler of the North and South than playing Witchers, which she will never be because she never undertook the Trials. Yes, yes, she's strong and she can teleport, but realistically, she'll never have Geralt's reflexes, and a single mistake would be fatal to her as she doesn't possess a Witcher's endurance nor ability to consume potions. Lastly, to each their own i guess, but following the Blood and Wine Ending where Ciri visits you in Corvo Bianco (if you're crazy and you romanced no one or you're using Mods), it's clear that Ciri will have ample opportunities to visit her "Father" in Toussaint who's enjoying a well-deserved retirement, while it's also suggested that her relationship with her actual Father is improving as well, and i find that wholesome.
@@Tomcat_CentauriI disagree with this stance on so many levels lol. You’re treating the Witcher like it’s some sort of fallout new Vegas type universe, where factions are the ultimate concern of its main characters. This could not be further from the truth. In the novels, which the games are sequeling, this idea that it’s “selfish” to not become an empress is unbelievable. It’s genuinely jaw-droppingly misinformed. Are you aware of Nilfgaard lmao? What they did, what Emhyr did? Who they employed? How close they brought the end of the world? How much death they waged in the name of “progress”? And most notably of all, what they did to Ciri lmao? Emhyr’s pursuit of her is to blame for several near-death scenarios for Ciri. Her taking the teleportal to the Korath Desert in Tor Lara. Skellen sending Bonhart after her. Vilgefortz exacerbating his maniacal search for the elder blood (which he did by tearing out the wombs of women). Cintra being razed down. The second war with the north. Emhyr and Nilfgaard deserve absolutely NO sympathy from Ciri or Geralt. To them, they are both completely disenfranchised and hated figures by many. So it’s honestly ridiculous to consider it “selfish” not to force yourself to become the emperor for an objectively heinous faction. You would greatly reconsider this perspective if you read the books. And please do - they are phenomenal. But get it out of your head that Nilfgaard is this group of forceful benefactors bringing order to the chaotic North. They are evil, continuously commit heinous war crimes, rape, pillage, and the definition of contemptuous violence in the entire series. Not only did they put Ciri at risk of death, but they literally destroyed her entire life. But nooooo, it’s selfish to not want to permanently be the empress of a country you despise, based off some backwards logic of succession. No, my friend, that’s simply untrue. Everything about this series makes the witcheress ending 10 times more optimal than the Nilfgaard ending. For one, it concludes Ciri’s story finally, and in a way that is true to the books. Also, we’re one to talk about “average fantasy endings” considering how the books end lmao. If you’ve played the games then this isn’t a spoiler, so imma just say it. After being killed at the pogrom in Rivia, Ciri literally uses space aged teleportation powers to bring Geralt and Yen to the Isle of Avalon, where they live happily ever after in King Arthur’s court. Is that a cop out or what lmao? So even if you don’t like the Witcheress ending, its happiness is completely in line with the series.
@@johnstewart2981 Very bold of you to assume my entire stance on the Witcher world based on a short message, because there's clearly some things you've misunderstood. I'm well aware The Witcher isn't like Fallout and that our Protagonists are about navigating between the warring Factions, not joining them. Which doesn't mean i can still think that the Witcheress Ending is a selfish Ending, because as i wrote before, Ciri will never be a Witcher. She hasn't undergone the Trials, she'll never be able to consume potions, and despite her abilities, she'll never have a Witcher's reflexes or constitution. One mistake and she's dead, period. However, the Empress Ending allows Cirilla to do a lot more good on a vast scale throughout the Continent, more so than just hunting the occasional Monster. Besides, since you've read the books you'll remember that Geralt insists since the very first one that the Witcher profession is a dying one because there's fewer Monsters every year, so there isn't even much of a "point" to become a Witcher or pretend you're one. But ascending the Throne of the most powerful Nation on the Continent and perhaps try to guide them in a gentler direction. Sometimes the "right" choice isn't about what You/Ciri wants, but it might be about putting aside your own personal happiness to do what's best for the Continent. After all, after defeating the Wild Hunt and essentially saving the World, why not go all the way ? While you're right about the Games sequeling the Books ( obviously ) it's also worth noting that CDPR did make some "adjustments" to both story lines and characters, altering a few things and waving some of the more dubious plotlines of the books. So i know that a lot of people love to use to books to support their games arguments otherwise most of said arguments tend to fall apart, but personally i consider the CDPR lore to be sort of its own thing. And thus, the CDPR version of the characters slightly different as well. I absolutely am reading the books as we speak, unfortunately i'm not done with them yet ( i want to finish them, but also i don't because then they're over, you know what i mean ? ) and what i'm most interested about is the nuance of the characters in them compared to the CDPR interpretation. I know how they end and i know what happens through them as well, but it seems to me people have a lot of varied opinions and interpretations about them, and while they love to bring to the table the same arguments from the books, they also love to ignore some other elements of them. I also don't know where you got the idea that i think Nilfgaard is some kind of benevolent Faction. They're harsh, ruthless and brutal. What i think is that none of the main Factions of the Continent are good, and all are evil in their own way. The Northern Kingdoms aren't any better, if not downright worse for their constant attempts to genocide the Elder Races whenever they can, but i'm also aware that the books and games take place from a Northern perspective, and thus are to an extent biased. One thing is for certain, everyone loves to play the poor innocent victim in the Witcher. Even the Scoia'tael are from from being guiltless. So yeah, as you said, Ciri saving Geralt and Yen is an absolute cop out, but then again without that we wouldn't have any Games either, so they had to survive somehow. Right after however, the Games go back to following the Dark Fantasy vibe of the Witcher and immediately start to get pretty grim. Heck, the Witcher 3 is probably the least grim Game of the series, and that's saying much. Last but not least, we don't HAVE to agree on everything and it's usually okay to have diverging opinions regarding The Witcher 😄 It's a complex Universe, and not everyone will have to same outlook on it. Genuine Radobitch supporters are wrong though, and that's factual, not an opinion.
@@Tomcat_Centauri I personally do agree with the fact that CDPR’s continuation is odd, considering the retconns of crucial plot points from the books like the lack of false Ciri anywhere in the games. But I can assure you that after reading the books thoroughly, the character of Ciri as you see her in TW3 is extremely similar to the Ciri in Tower of Swallows and Lady of the Lake. That same Ciri who only cares about her loved ones. To me, that demeanor is intrinsic to her character and handing her over to Emhyr betrays not only that character, but Geralt’s as well. He’s done an insane amount of heinous things against Ciri’s pursuers. Has put himself in death’s path to make sure she lives her own life. The whole idea of them saving Ciri was to make sure she lives a lovely life, free from the shackles of overlords breathing down her neck. And she ends up doing so. In the books, she’s the lady of space and time. Her reward for her insane hardships that she overcame is limitless exploration of the multiverse. Quite poetic; the swallow in the cage has been freed. And considering this, the Witcheress ending makes complete sense as well. Considering Ciri is quite similar in TW3 to the same Ciri who escaped Tir Na Lia in the last book, I view the argument that her becoming an empress is “the best ending” just due to some political consequences is not sound. Not in the slightest. Geralt gives Ciri to Emhyr and permanently ruins her chances of living life as that free spirit that she was destined to be. That’s fucking awful lmao. It’s contradictory to the entire series. So if we’re going to be fans of this series who decry the Netflix series, perhaps we should also be looking at this ending in a similar lens because it makes literally no sense for Geralt to do. To each their own, but Geralt is not a blank slate. He is not a Tav or a Courier. He has an incredibly storied history, he is his own person through and through. The fact that this choice exists is a cop-out, a gameplay additive to make the ending of TW3 feel as impactful or more so than TW2 TW2 could get away with it because Geralt was still an amnesiac when it came to making decisions. But not in TW3. There, he knows everything. The years of chasing Ciri. Of protecting her. Of finding her. All of it. To hand her over to the same guy who employed fucking Vilgefortz to hunt her down is so unbelievably out of character, that it’s a laughably Deus-ex-machina kind of ending where it expressly seeks to add artificial “player choice” to an array of endings. And I, for one, view Deus ex machina in narratives to be the lowest form of story writing. It’s lazy. It’s cheap. And if by some logical metric it “fosters peace in the realm”, I don’t really care. Even past the character contradictions, it conveniently undermines the entire story of this saga. For that reason I cannot possibly subscribe to the idea that it’s “the best ending” lol. Discussing political consequences in The Witcher is laughable, it’s always been and always will be about the bond between family and friends.
Triss seems nice and sweet at first glance, but when you know her whole story, that's when you know she's not at all as nice and sweet as she looks. In the books and the game, she betrayed Yennefer (her best friend) several times - when she seduced Geralt despite knowing how much he meant to Yennefer and when she didn't lift a finger when Yennefer literally begged her for help at the end of the books. Triss then chose the lodge of the sorceresses, an organization that wanted to use Ciri as a pawn for their own benefit. Thats not how a kind and sweet person behaves :). Even in the last book, where after everything that happened Triss is like „Geralt will forgive me bla bla bla”, Yennefer literally tells her that Geralt would be able to forgive her for what happened to him, but he will never forgive her for what was done to Yennefer and Ciri, and thats 100% true. Geralt doesnt care about himself, but he would kill for Ciri and Yen and Triss betrayed them both. So yeah…on the other hand Yen seems cold and aloof at first glance, but she would do anything for the people she loves, regardless of the consequences, and for that she has my undying respect🫡
Well, I didn't read the books, I've only played the games and read most of the lore. I got attached to Triss because she's featured in all 3 of them but this puts everything into another perspective. I do like Yen, but since I recently replayed all the 3 games I sticked with Triss coz Im a hopeless romantic lol. I guess most people who choose Triss are Gamers, while those who choose Yen also read all the books, perhaps I should read them aswell Edit: I use to play the way I want, I always considered Yennefer being the best pick for Geralt, that is quite obvious to be fair, but yeah, I guess, some go with Triss coz they don't think/care what's best for Geralt, but instead go for what THEY want Plus... Ginger haired girls make me weak 🤷🏼
For me Triss of the books is not the same as Triss of the games. In the books, she is more like a manipulative person who like to do thinks only for her own happiness. For example, she uses magic to f*ck with Geralt when he just had a argument with Yen. ( I'm learning English so sorry for the mistakes.)
It's a shame that Iorveth ended up being cut content in Witcher 3. It's actually a damn shame that these CD Projekt Red's projects are plagued with development problems and rushed releases. About the ending, I remember getting Ciri as a Witcher ending and I was really emotional about that. Seeing the sword with Zirael written on it was pretty fantastical to me.
The thing that I dislike about The Empress ending is how we got there. I don’t think that Geralt would take Ciri to Emher in the first place, and how things went with Dijkstra and Roche in Radvid's assassination mission
I also can't see Geralt taking Ciri there and about the assassination mission, it's very important to have a deep conversation with Dijkstra and learn that his goal is to establish a more modern and civilized government and when you learn that Roche has some secret agreement with the emperor, the choice is easy to do. I choose to follow Roche before but when i had some hints that he was just a guy ready to bend the knee for some power i turned on him.
@@kukipett Roche is pretty open about his absolute loyality to Temeria. He's also not very bright when it comes to politics. In Witcher 2, he's willing to sell himself out to Radovid to prevent civil war and preserve Foltest's bloodline, and Geralt has to explain to him why it's a bad idea. I find Thaler more convincing. It at least sounds like a good deal, providing Emhyr won't screw them over. Maybe not even surprising he didn't, since at that point it was victory speedrun any % for him, before someone shoves knife in his back.
@@kireta21Temeria's alliance with Nilfgaard is the best outcome for the both of them. In The Witcher 2 it's very much explicitly said that with the lack of Temerian Monarch, Radovid is quick to try and take over Temeria for himself. Their deal with Nilfgaard ensures Temeria not only maintains its Sovereignty, but most likely that Anais will become Queen as Foltest's legitimate Heir. And in turn that means Emhyr gets one less thorn in his side to worry about, because clearly saving resources to win the War as quickly as possible is a matter of life or death for him.
I'm 100% sure that Geralt never forced her to go to the emperor - he informed her about it and gave her the option to choose. This is the most canonical Geralt.
Only ever taken the "best" ending where Geralt and Ciri meet up in White Orchard to go off witchering together. I can't bring myself to choose anything else.
I can't remember which UA-camr it was (probably xLetalis if we're being honest lol) but I recall someone saying that the bad endings of the base game and both DLCs are most in line with how the Witcher would actually play out. And I hate that I agree. I don't think Geralt would sell Ciri out (like xLetalis loves showing) but a the other choices you make really do feel like those of a man who's just gotten his daughter back and is now over protective of her. Blood and Wine's bad ending is the most in line with the world. Geralt needing to be bailed out of prison by Dandelion with several important people dead
yeah i think that was xLetalis (our king) but Neon Knight also has really good videos where he goes through each decision book Geralt would make in the games. very very good videos
I stand by my Dijktra comment and will not tolerate any Big D slander!!! Thank you for validating my stance, even if you said scrubbed pig and glossed over the “FRESHLY” scrubbed pig part 😌 my man cleannnn 🧼 Great video as always!
My preferred ending: 1) Geralt ends up with Yen 2) Cerys rules Skellige 3) Dijkstra rules the united northern realms 4) Emhyr is finally dead 5) Ciri becomes a witcher I read the books too, didn't get to play Witcher 1 or 2 so didn't care much about Roche
I agree with all your points except Dijkstra. The North has committed far too many crimes against non-humans and mages for me to allow them to win under Dijkstra. An independent Temeria with Nilfgaard winning the war is what's best for everyone.
@@MrNeosantana With Dikstra, the non-humans and mages are a normal part of society and the north is finally investing in industrialization (therefore education aswell very likely which eventually will improve the life quality of non-humans and basically everyone)
I like Triss because my first game was Witcher 2. I stayed with her in Witcher 3 as I knew her better than Yen. But objectively I agree that Yen is a better fit for Geralt. Triss is more of a naive lady while Yen is a proper woman. In many ways it's odd they even added this whole romance between Triss and Geralt considering her character and actions. It should have just been plain and simple "I seduced you because I wanted you. Sorry about that. If you want to repeat, let me know". None of this love nonsense when their characters are so different.
4:34 I think pretty much everyone had a crush on either Regis, Detlaff or both of them while playing through Blood and Wine. Like, how can you not love how chill Regis is and how dedicated Detlaff is
Great video! I actually got into The Witcher series because of Netflix during the pandemic. Then I played The Witcher 3 and read all of the books. The Witcher 3 became one of my favorite video games of all time. And needless to say I now try to forget that the show ever existed haha
Ahhh I love this comment! See that’s the one good thing that came out of the TV show! It got the Witcher out to new people like yourself and have you a gateway to fall in love with the world and characters thru the video game and novels 🥰
@@miguelangelgarciamunoz4793 In the short stories she treats him like crap, as he does to her, but in the novels they actually form a healthy relationship as the books progress.
Also I adored how long TW3 was, when I finished it, it felt like such an achievement, like I’d gone through so much and the cohesive, compelling story all the way through was such a breath of fresh air in video games
My unpopular opinion: Book Geralt would not want any of the Wild Hunt endings for Ciri, he wouldn't want her risking herself as a Witcher, he wouldn't want her being "brood mare" of Nillfgaard (his words, blood of elves), nor would he want her out of his life. I wish there was an ending where she is the apprentice of Yennifer, as I think this fits best, and would be what the characters want.
Funnily enough, I agree with your conclusions! - but I don't agree with your reasoning - Witcher ending: I never felt like Ciri should become one. I actually wrote a long, rambling reddit post about my reasoning for it a little while ago! It's too "neat" an ending for the world, and tries to reframe being a witcher as something worth aspiring to, when, afaik, no one ever *wanted* to be a witcher, not even Ciri, who only got her training due to necessity (what the only guy who didn't want to use/kill her being a witcher). There are also the logistical issues of her being physically only human, not being able to drink witcher potions/antidotes to compensate for physical shortcomings, and only having, like... at most half a year of actual witcher training. Everyone always plays up how she's been trained by the best witchers ever, but forget that she spent *one winter* at Kaer Morhen. A *decade* ago. The only things she knows about monsters was whatever she managed to pick up at *twelve* years old. - Empress: my personal favourite, but I agree that neither version of Geralt would want that for her if she didn't want it herself. For game Geralt, the brood mare thing probably wouldn't be that big an issue, though. The situation's changed quite a bit since the end of the books, after all; Ciri is acknowledged and widely known to be Emhyr's daughter. She'd also a sword-swinging, teleporting menace. Ain't no one forcing her into anything, as game-Geralt now full well knows. Completely disagree on the Yen thing. Those two would love more time together, I'm sure, but Ciri couldn't be apprenticed to a sorceress even if she wanted to be. She completely gave up on "classical" magic after the incident in the desert and only has her Elder Blood powers left, which Yen doesn't really have any idea about.
@@eldara3to be fair, in the Witcher ending it’s said that she does train with Geralt more before going off on her own, so she will at least have the necessary training by the time she needs it.
Strongly disagree on the last one... SPOILER WARNING I guess? But yeah Geralt would never take Ciri to Emhyr. Basically he would let her make her own decision. But only when you choose the "you shouldn't" option Geralt actually tells her, that Emhyr only wants to see her because he has plans for her. Only then does Ciri know the full picture. And she then makes her own decision. Geralt would never take Ciri to Emhyr. He says that in the books during the end. He says in game that he will only if she wants it - which she doesn't, that's also stated in a little off screen conversion between her and Yen as she tries to convince her. And if you choose the "you should" option Geralt has to convince her with "he's your father" which Is a bullshit point in his case... With the Choices lore accurate Geralt would make, Ciri would become a Witcher. And I'm gonna die on that hill! XD
The game lets you choose what kind of father to be to Ciri. You can be judgmental and demanding or you can care about her feelings and let her make her own choices. But follow one path too far and she ends up dead.
I like the Last Wish sidequest, cuz it's just proof that Yen is not as confident as she portrays herself. She is not immune to doubting herself, her relationship with Geralt. It's made very clear that once the spell has been lifted, NOTHING has changed, it was all in her head. And if you choose Yen still, it's a great quest. Which is initially how the game devs intended for you to play it, anyway, I'm pretty sure.
I'm Czech and I love playing the Witcher games in polish. It's the best language for both the humor and the emotions, and Gerald sounds SO MUTCH better. Also the Polish version of The Wolven Storm Is my favorite piece of videogame music, makes me cry every time. Polish also sounds a lot like hystorical czech so I can understand a fair portion without reading the subtiteles if I pay attention. Here In czech we love Witcher so mutch we made our own con(Blavicon)
To me the worst ending is the most beautiful, cinematic and powerful from a purely artistic standpoint. Empress being the best for the world and bitter-sweet for Geralt and the player. And Ciri as a Witcher (my personal favourite) as the one that *isn't* better for the world, but for her. She deserves to make the selfish choice after literally saving the world and all of her life fighting people trying to use her for power. (I also love Mark Grayson from Invincible doing a similar thing though so maybe it's me liking that trope) :) And at the end of the day every ending can be argued for and against, they are all just that good.
I also got the empress ending the first time around. However, I think that the canon ending should be her becoming a witcher and forsaking her claim to the throne of Nilfgaard. After everything she experienced with the emperor hunting her down, there's no way that she would then willingly side with him, even if it was for the good of the world. Becoming the empress may have been her destiny, but as Geralt would say, "Destiny can go f*** itself."
yeah that works too with the idea of subverting prophies and all. idk i'm very conflicted because I find all three main endings plausible. i'm curious which will be canonised (if it will be)
Everyone says that, no one considers the logistical issues ._. Ciri's got, what, half a year of witcher training under her belt? The winter of 1295/1296? She spent more time at the Temple of Melitele with Yen than she *ever* did at Kaer Morhen. There's only so much a twelve-year-old kid is gonna pick up in a few months, even less that she's going to reliably remember a decade later, especially when considering that an actual witcher's training takes, what, a decade? She's also only human, physically, can't use any witcher potions to compensate for her physical shortcomings or neutralise monster venoms, and teleportation ain't gonna help her if some vampire or something decides to take advantage of her dull human senses to sneak up on her and open her jugular. Also, that ending makes out being a witcher to be something to aspire for. It might be for us living in the boring normal world, but in the witcher world, no one actually wants to be a one, because it's a dangerous, thankless, and increasingly pointless job, because canonically (see; separation of story and gameplay) monsters are dying out. Even Ciri only trained because it was like, the only thing to do at Kaer Morhen, and she wanted to learn to kill Nilfgaardians, not because she had the burning desire to be a witcher...
Absolutely. I agree with you wholeheartedly. Especially about the point regarding the focus of the novels versus the short stories. A good number of people think that the books focus on Geralt just being a Witcher when even the short stories were simply setting the stage for his building resentment of his profession and discovering what he really wanted out of life, and that took the form of Yen and Ciri. At which point he spent a good bit of time trying to realize it was ok to step away from the only life he knew to make something else out of it. But yes, it's all really a matter of taste and misconception of what people think the books are about.
As for empress ending being the right one, it is rather simple. It happens if Ciri is given an option to accept Emhyr's offer. The choice isn't forced upon her. The witcher ending happens if Ciri is never given an opportunity to choose anything else. If the witcher ending was better, Ciri would have picked being a witcher over going back to Nilfgaard. Also, a fairy tale happy ending just doesn't fit in the universe of The Witcher. However, a bittersweet ending fits perfectly within the overall atmosphere of this universe. And that is precisely how I call the empress ending.
I used to believe this too but after watching that “All choices Geralt would actually make in W3” video, the creator kinda swung me back toward Ciri Witcher ending. Basically when the opportunity to tell her about Emhyr wanting to see her arises, Geralt would still tell her and present that option. But Ciri asks for Geralts opinion on whether she should or not. Even if you tell her it should be her decision she still says she wants to hear what Geralt thinks. And after all the nonsense from Emhyr and knowing that she’s just going to be used for politics - Geralt would tell her that he thinks the emperor just has plans for her. That’s when she says she doesn’t want to go and they skip it and thus a Ciri Witcher ending without lying to or refusal to tell her.
No way bro. Letting all of the other stuff aside like how that ending affects Geralt, Yen and Ciri herself, Ciri is not Empress material. It's quite curious how everyone says it's best for the world, but i really can't see that. Ciri as an Empress will be a mere figurehead and in the end her advisors will control the Empire.
I always thought the ending where Dijkstra becomes ruler of the North was the best for the world, because he's a pretty just ruler who commits comparatively few atrocities. Although if the Nilfgaardian Empire collapses or becomes worse because of his victory, that would probably be a worse outcome than Emhyr winning.
@@valliyarnl I only know about Annarietta and Dandelions relationship from the games. And little at that since I never got the bad ending where Dandelion shows up. I don't know how deep it is or if there is more in the books. I have only read the short stories and the first book. I just really like Annarietta.
The first time I played Witcher 3, I didn't know about the books or the other games but the impression I got was that Yennefer was like a wife acting aloof because she was emotionally hurt even if Geralt never intended to, while Triss acted like a needy, please choose me, side chick.
5:56 Considering the entire opening scene of the game, and just some moments in general, I'd say the scales are fairly balanced in terms of women and men being sexualized in the Witcher
Triss has a more outwardly kind personality, but she's subversively manipulative. In the games they reaaaally buffed up her charismatic / romantic side to help her appeal to players. Yen is far more brash and straightforward, but doesn't try to hide when she's pulling strings. They're both gonna use you. I've grown to weigh a persons genuineness in gold, so my favor goes to Yen. Aaaah fuck. Somehow the Last Wish ended up in my lap xP.
Lmao I knew it was sacrilege to rag on witcher 3 😅 I didn't know others also felt that way. Maybe there's hope for humanity after all 😛 thanks for responding to my comment in this video Wera. You da best! 😊
I remember how I accidentally got into the books when I was like 10 with Sword of Destiny It really shaped my future self... Now I realized that I really like mean witches with black hair
@@valliyarnl Auntie knew I was reading some fantasy so went into store, took first fantasy looking book and gave it to me on Christmas But it is funny to reread them through times and understanding more and more pasages And of course learned some about the stuff which schools are too afraid to explain when you aren´t 15
Is amazing to have finally found someone that talk about this amazing world and your videos are so interesting and passionate. Anyway it could be commonplace maybe, but my favorite ending is the classic good ending where Ciri becomes a Witcher and stay with Geralt but i must admit that the bad ending with Geralt that comes back to fight the ladies of the wood has pheraps the most powerful atmosphere and it left me truly emotionally destroyed when i saw it for the first time.😅
My brother and sister in law gifted me Blood of Elves in December and I just got around to reading it. After finishing it, I spent almost $100 on the rest of the series because I can't not finish these books lol. I was only familiar with Yennefer from the game, which I only put like ~25 hours into (enough to finish the main story and some interesting side quests along the way), and the show and I liked her as a character. She always felt like the one for Geralt, so I went with that choice. [SPOILERS] Seeing her dynamic with Ciri at the end of Blood of Elves and in The Time of Contempt when she tells her to "Run, my daughter." as all the sorcerers are battling it out, really sent it home for me that she was an outstanding character. Sapkowski nails her complexity in the way she speaks versus what Ciri and others are able to read from her body language or lack of responses. My SUPER unpopular opinion is that I liked they way they displayed Geralt's intelligence and handled his general disposition/demeanor in the Witcher 3 game and season 1 of the show (I only ever got as far as the end of season 2 before I tapped out). In the books, Geralt is verbally intelligent and eloquent. Not so much so as characters like Vilgefortz or Djikstra, as you're able to see when he goes toe to toe with them, but Geralt's character is intentionally meant to be an enigma in that way. A gruff, often dirty, sword swinging type who can hang with the likes of sorcerers, spies and kings almost as an equal. The amount of respect and interest that Geralt attracts from these types displays that well. The game and show did this without Geralt having to literally voice this complexity and intelligence. You just feel it and the respect that he commands from those around him. It's not a rarity that, in the books, Geralt's dialogue can be lengthy, complex and deeply insightful. I think that's a necessary component of his character that makes him so compelling, but the game and the show do a pretty great job of having him speak in such a lengthy manner sparingly as a way to disarm those who underestimate and/or put him in a box. Whereas, those who already know that about him respect him. They know that what he chooses to portray to the world is partially an illusion, one that even Geralt has to convince himself of at times. It's an interesting dynamic that I think they executed very well in the visual representations of Geralt (which is likely easier to do), as opposed to the books where, if you didn't have a deep knowledge of Geralt, you could mistake him for a scholar the way he verbally spars with some of the most well spoken characters in the story. FYI, as I mentioned before I didn't take a SUPER deep dive into the game, which I know is where a lot of the good things can be found such as side stories, DLCs, etc. I'm also on Baptism of Fire, so there's more to be read, which means my opinion could just suck lol. Would love to hear any disagreements on this. (I don't care about spoilers because I'm going to read all the books and play the game again anyways)
Honestly, mostly surprisingly reasonable takes. I was very surprised to not be angry at any of them, except perhaps a bit peeved about the "story too long comment"
First, wanna say love your whole vibe and you have gained a happy subscriber with this one :) Second, I get what people mean by the suggestive outfits the females wear, for me the worst part was Ciri wearing high heeled boots lol. And then of course the DLC outfit they had Triss wear that completely ignored the fact that she has scars. Third, thank you for defending the books so passionately; they are seriously so good and I can't even bring myself to watch the netflix series because I know it will make me physically angry haha. I'd love to see a video about some of the differences in the original Polish edition and the English translation!
They do briefly explain the motivation for Wild Hunt in the third game, but it's easy to miss. Still they are so callously pragmatic, fully willing to sacrifice Ciri, it's hard to sympathize with their motivation. Also I've never chosen Triss because she's impossible to please. No matter what you choose she's always crying about something.
After watching everything i think i can safely say that we can all agree that Netflix's writing will never top the iconic moment: "jesteś piękny smoku"
My unpopular take is that the ‘bad’ ending is the best in the W3. It fits the world vibes rly well and the ‘good’ ending feels too happy in comparison. Still, all three are amazing!
I think I commented this on your last Witcher video but I’m not really familiar with the series at all. Hearing you talk about all the lore definitely has me intrigued though 👀 do you think it would be a good series to listen to as an audiobook or should I get a physical copy?
i really like that the og Geralt group(milva, kahir...) is in the quent card, but sadly not really in the dialog of Geralt und Regis, and i enjoy the books in English and German and sometimes the German translation is more fiting/imersiv, especially in the battle of brenna
5:50 I just finished playing through the main story for the Witcher 3 (Halfway through Hearts of Stone, I just finished von Everec Manor and I haven't done Blood and Wine yet) and I have to say that I don't feel attracted to Ciri. Sure she's pretty, but having gone through the story and looked at it through Geralt's eyes, I see her more as a daughter. I feel pride and joy when I look at her, not lust. P.S I got Geralt and Yen, Chancellor Dijkstra, Witcher Ciri. Roche or Dijkstra was easily the hardest choice I had to make simply because I had no time to make it. I thought I would have a bit longer but I was going to side with Dijkstra no matter what. He is a man of vision. Roche is a rebel and a patriot. But what happens when the soldier no longer has his war? Granted, I recognize it's not the choice Geralt would make, but I don't care.
Witcher Ciri has always been my favorite ending, but after reading the books, it kind of became my personal canon ending as well. A major topic throughout the books and Witcher 3 is that Ciri is seemingly the only person with no control or say over her life. EVERYBODY else has plans for her or is telling her what to do, and she's pulled in 1000 different directions the whole time because she plays into so many agendas and plans. I don't know if this was an intentional callout of her entire story, but she even has that moment after Vesimir's funeral where she blows up on everybody because everybody is plotting and scheming Ciri's next step, and nobody is actually speaking to her. In my mind, getting to basically fake her death and run off into the woods with Geralt feels like a hard reset on her life... for the first time, she's the one holding the reins and is dictating what her next steps are. I have to admit that I'm split on Yenn and Triss, and I've played it both ways. I've played it as Yenn in part because they were together throughout the books and Geralt would probably stay loyal to that. But I've played it as Triss as well, and Geralt discussing Triss vs Yenn with Ciri kind of summed up my feelings perfectly. Him and Yenn are constantly just battling each other in the books and the game... they're a very passionate couple, but that passion pendulum swings in both the good and bad directions. He doesn't have that constant conflict with Triss.
Triss’ “eye-area” (eyes+brows dunno how to explain this lmao) is what made me chose her. Her being soooo much nicer than triss IN THE GAME (I haven’t red the books I don’t care) was just a super nice bonus to her freaking flawless face lmao
After 8 years, I realized that it is impossible to convince a person if he is confident in his choice and decision. Therefore, personally, I don't care who Geralt stays with or doesn't stay at all. After a lot of playthroughs, I didn't choose anyone at all and left Geralt with Jaskier or Ciri
if you look at 8:00 - geralt try to clam down ciri by breaking things in avallach lab and ciri then joines with geralt. and yen just watch them seems doing nothing..but at 8:05 she saw the avallach's portrait and scribbled over the painting 8:09, by doing this she also joins with them silently, without showing😎
Yeah I was a Triss fan until I read the books. Now Yennefer is probably my favorite female character of all time. I think most people disregard her because she has a mind of her own and takes control. She’s incredibly complex and I enjoy every second of reading about her.
I think that Geralt is happier with Triss overall tho. He has his experiences with Yenn throughout the books. And the game is a progression of his story after the books and things can change. He even says it in game when Ciri asks why he chose Triss over Yen and the way he says that it just feels right with her and it’s more comfortable with her and he can be himself. I just think that hits. Great video I dropped a sub! (Even tho you said unsub lol 😆. I like both!)
⚠️Witcher 3 ending spoilers⚠️ ...... Regarding the end, I feel it's an impossible choice when you go through hours of the game, looking for Ciri and Yen, only to give them up and get coin in return. However, as you said, my first play through I was invested in the role of Geralt. So I wanted no part in politics, I didn't care who offended who, just wanted to get the job done. And to me, it made sense that Cirilla would be Empress. She's young and powerful, and a good head on her shoulders (unlike most everyone else in power). Emhyr knows this. I think that's why he wanted her back, he could have so easily chosen someone he could puppet but he wanted Ciri to take his place. I think, as you said, the world would also benefit from her being in power. But it's a hard thing to tell someone you love that they have to act on duty and not desire. Especially because Ciri got a taste for freedom, with the Witcher she would be happy and at home. But she could do so much more good in a place of power. It won't be fair on her, and I think Geralt wouldn't forgive himself. And neither would she. Bottom line would be that she'd grown into her crown, as did her grandmother, and would prove the enlightened era for nilfgaard. As an aside, I do think their world is so brutal that even the best case scenario, Ciri following Geralt and becoming a witcher, sees a high probability that they die a violent death. The politics alone are enough to drive a princess to the wilds 😂😂
Hey. First video I’ve seen on your channel. Would like to ask, did you play the games first or read the books? And how did you feel about the games portrayal of the characters?
Great question! I read the books first. Book 1 was mandatory reading in late middle school for me. I think the games nailed it mostly. Personality wise their success rate is 95% (discounting W1 for this btw bc it’s a bit wonky bc they were still figuring stuff out). Looks wise I’d say their success rate is 85% (some being exactly who I imagined like Philippa and some being absolute misses like Sabrina)
What hurts about the empress ending isn't necessarily that she becomes the empress. Obviously she'd be happier as a witcher, but as a player I didn't mind. What hurt was that, if you go by the game's mechanics, her decision to become empress is because she felt like Geralt does not love her as much as in the witcher ending. The key decisions you make that influence her like the snowball fight and taking the money from the emperor along with letting her speak for herself... those are all what decide the ending, and those are all directly success/failure on Geralt's part to undertand what Ciri needs. If Ciri chose to be empress for external reasons I could live with it, but I can't make the "wrong" choices to essentially hurt her and push her away onto that path
Love the video Wera! You points about the Wild Hunt makes sense. I haven't read that far into the novels yet but I do know they get more backstory :) Also don't get me wrong - I don't think they're better than Gaunter or Detlaff, I enjoy them all equally!
I’ve played Witcher 3 but it’s been a couple years so I don’t remember which ending I got haha By the way, very nice scarf!)) PS I like Polish accents 😂
On my first playthrough, I got the worst ending and it absolutely broke me. After spending so much time in the game, exploring every last corner of it, seeing ciri basically being dead and geralt following her i was mad fucked up
You really have the beauty of person you see at an airport and never forget, very pretty. Weird comment, ik lol. But, also your content is great!! The Witcher books are actually what got me into reading 2-ish years ago, I had always thought it was boring when we were forced to in school and that kind of made me hate reading. But I've read so many more books now, currently reading ASOIAF and am on the second book. But I will probably take a look at your recommendations for a break inbetween all the vivid food descriptions hahah 😅
After watching this video, as well as our discussion in the previous video's comments, I think you do have a lot of valid points for why Triss not a good choice for Geralt.
hehe 😈 again. i get it if the player chooses Triss bc they like cute redheads but Geralt catches one whiff of lilac and gooseberries and hes down bad 🥰
The main reason for choosing Triss for me was that Ciri got ending that she wanted. Choosing Yen means dead end for Ciri at the court, while when choosing Triss, she gets to do whatever she wants. That's just another thing to consider...
I'm so glad I never started watching the Witcher TV show. They almost tricked me with a half decent first season, but I was busy and figured I'd get around to it later. I'm so glad that I never got around to it and just played Witcher 3 again instead.
My most unpopular decision is siding with Dijkstra over Roche. I just thought Dijkstra was so funny and I had to side with the tank! Also he's a decent ending and I just couldn't let that creep Emhyr win...
Always love me a breakdown of Netflix's butchering the franchise. Your assessment on the whole Jaskier/Dandelion topic and how they handled it in the show was totally on point. Instant sub.
On my first playthrough, I got Ciri as a Witcher, and I was really happy with this! I didnt even know you could take Ciri to see Emhyr, I just made the choice I felt Geralt would truly make 😅 I was shocked when i found out about the bad endings! I also chose Yennefer over Triss, it sort of made more sense. And this was before I even read the books, and now, I would definitelly choose Yennefer. I sort of lucked out into making the best decisions, I guess.
SPOILER I got Witcher Ciri ending and it’s easily my favourite because I think Geralt would not bring Ciri to Emhyr and because I think that being a Witcher with Geralt as her mentor is what Ciri would want and it’s the best ending for her
So for anyone who’s interested the Witcher games are currently on sale on Steam for really cheap. Witcher 1 is like $2 and Witcher 2 is like $4 I believe.
Great video Wera! This is my first time watching you, already subscribed and looking forward to watching you grow your channel! Greetings from Greece. P.S.: I must say, shoving Djikstra aside (forcefully) made me rethink many of my life choices fr
when i played witcher 3 for the first time, i went in blind. you see yennefer for a bit, but then the game throws triss at you, picked her the first run, yennefer the second, and i discovered that you get much more interesting dialogue out of picking yennefer. if you pick triss she's kinda angry mostly, and triss gets a bit boring after the whole novigrad quest line to be honest, feels like she's just along for the ride, while choosing yennefer meshes with the in game events way better, because wether you choose her or not, the end game of the main story is alongside yennefer. still gotta read the books but i've learned enough of the backstory of triss and geralt to have another reason why i'd rather go with yennefer
I must have good intuition because from my first ever playthrough before I even knew there were books that the game was based on I’ve always preferred yennefer to triss. I always liked yen because she seemed like an actual person with personality and aspirations and flaws. Someone who was still a strong character entirely independently of Geralt.
Pls don't unsubscribe if you like Triss. that was a joke 🧡
Also remember that this is a booktube channel! I will be putting out more Witcher videos (bc it is the most important series in my life) but they will be spaced out :)
Thank's for saying this! I had already runned out of tissues!
*Top 10 anime betrayals*
Pls do a part 2, your videos about The Witcher are gold 🙃
@@Icy_Cream94 gonna do a poll :)
On the instagram
Triss is Geralt's true love when he becomes more emotionally mature... at least when I play.
@@obergefreiterhack647 Yennefer and Geralt both have their share of affairs... but I don't think Triss ever did or ever would cheat on Geralt. She's the real keeper.
if yennefer has a thousand fans, i'm one of them. if she has ten fans, i'm one of them. if she has zero fans, someone should check-in on me bc that means i'm dead
This is so real
Least Naughty Yennefer's fanboy POV:
Ik that Wera said it in the video too btw lol
So based
Same 🥰
We love yen
Netflix changed Dandelion fundamentally, and it's not just about his relationship with Geralt. As harsh as it sounds, book Dandelion isn't a comedian, but the punchline. He's supposed to be an _unintentionally_ funny, semi-oblivious dreamer, not a sarcastic rock star.
Semi-oblivious. That's a perfect word. You can't tell if he's pretending to be oblivious or if he's actually oblivious but kind of knows about it. Probably both
Ehhh, im part way through Lady of the Lake and can def understand turning his character into a rock star type personage. He’s exceedingly well known and when he lets his fame get to him he’s very much a sarcastic rock star. I view that more as a character flaw than anything though, as naturally his character is as you describe it; unintentionally funny but deep down, past his elitist douchiness, he cares for his friends greatly.
I just see sequences like the audience at the Bleobheris Tree in the first chapter of blood of elves treated Dandy like he’s a superstar (and a little sacrifice) and in lady of the lake where he breaks his promise to Geralt about finding Ciri and choosing to stay with Anarietta in Toussaint as particular examples of him becoming that douchey sarcastic rock star.
@@johnstewart2981 I didn't mean to say that he wasn't popular or selfish. Admittedly though, I haven't read the last couple of books, so fair enough.
@@elvancor to be honest, those last couple of books are indispensably important to understanding the main characters of The Witcher lol. Hard times drive them to desperate measures where you see their real characters get drawn out. I suggest you finish up the series - it’ll make the decision to make Dandelion a sarcastic rock star quite understandable.
@@johnstewart2981 I might, though the last one I've read already felt tedious to get through. Judging by the five books I know, I seem to enjoy CDPR's take on the universe more than Sapkowski's original vision.
Henry Cavil doing a Polish accent would be quite something lmfao
Medaljon is hamming, mast be a plejs of połer... 💀
🤣🤣🤣
Łind ees hałling
@@valliyarnl YF aj hef tu czus bitłin łan iwul end enoder, ajd rader not czus at ol.
I’m so happy to watch content of other women loving the Witcher. I’m obsessed with the books and the Witcher 3, but I literally know nobody else in my life who knows about them, so this is wonderful
hot girls love the witcher. its just a fact 👸🏼
so glad to see other women finding this video! don't get me wrong, love the gentlemen, but seeing girls get excited about it is super special
Witcher Sisters must unite ! We must form an Alliance, the whole... 20 of us or something 😄
@@Tomcat_Centauri literallyyyy you should see the statistics on these videos 😪😂
Omg same!! I feel like there’s no one I can talk to about the series outside of my male friends
You're not alone! Glad to see as well more women who like the books and want to talk about the Witcher. 👍
I loved the books since they've been translated into Czech in the late 90's - for me one of the best fantasy series (aside from Salvatore's The Legend of Drizzt, although that one's now a bit weird in the latest books - but that's another story). I've always appreciated how CDPR managed to picture the Continent and the characters so very close to their book originals. Even though they did deviate from some of the stories/canon here & there, overall the games in the Witcher series are spectacular!
@valliyarnl - Great video, good discussion! Although I admit I've never liked Yennefer from the start since the books. And it has nothing to do with the games, nor with Geralt or Triss. Understand her very important role in raising Ciri and shaping her character & abilities, but I still think she's one of the worst (behaving) characters I've read in a book - and that's actually a testament to how wonderfully Sapkowski managed to write her. She's written very well - to the point she's so believable, that I wholeheartedly dislike her. 😏 In short - just because she had a tough life, it doesn't give her the right to treat everyone now like a piece of... well, you know...
Aside from that - I tend to see things rather from a bigger perspective, so for the ending of the Witcher 3 game I believe Ciri as Empress is the best outcome, that has the most positive impact on the Continent. Even though she herself might be not so happy about it, but I think Ciri as a character would understand this as a form of responsibility, that she has towards the world and would accept it in the end.
My unpopular take is that from Radovid's perspective it makes sense that he burns witches. Not only did the lodge (Philipa) assasinare his father and humiliate him all his childhood, sorceress are helping Nilfgaard with the war. And the way I see it, he just has a lot of paranoia in the witcher 3. His chess speech makes sense if you let him explain it to you, and he is a great strategist, allying himself with the church of the eternal fire to win Novigrad and beating Nilfgaard (when they heavily outnumber him and Emyr is a good strategist as well) so bad that Emyr's own councelors decide to off him.
I always drew mental parallels between Radovid and King James the 1st of England (and 6th of Scotland) - he was convinced a bunch of witches conjured up a storm to prevent him from marrying Anne of Denmark and wrote his book Daemonologie on diabolism. He was also responsible for the insane exacerbation of witch trials in Britain right before the scientific revoloution. Both are very similar to me - paranoid, in their minds justified and self proclaimed "philosophers".
(James was certainly a bit more rational/sceptical despite common belief)
Yes definitely. Radovid is a bit coocoo for cocopuffs when we meet him in W3 but I love how we see him get more and more paranoid throughout the series. Fascinating character 100%
@@valliyarnlwhen playing W1 i wondered how did he get so crazy in W3 then after playing W2 it made sense. THEN after reading the books I thought that CDPR made good work with his character.
He may be right in his reasoning to some extent, however burning every single one of them, forming special units specifically for extermination, banning all kinds of magic, no matter how big or small it is. I believe Djikstra has said it best, saying that Redania is ruled by a madman - a cunning one, but still a madman, no matter his past, reasons or beliefs. Djikstra is obviously biased as well, however when it came to people I believed he had a good outlook on everyone.
@@therealnmsis that is a great opinion, i forgot to mention that non-humans and sorcerers sided with Nilfgaard from what I understand, therefore he is also weakening his enemy. I agree with you that he has gone way out of the necessity, but that is what paranoia does to ppl
I personally love the ending where ciri becomes a witcher, because i like the idea of her following in her "father's" footsteps. After training with geralt as a child and everything they have been through, it's awesome to see her fully adapting her witcher trait. Also the scene where geralt gives her the new sword is so freaking wholesome ❤
Too sweet for the Witcher, unsatisfying to me.
I prefer the bittersweet Empress Ending, because the Witcheress Ending feels too much like your average happy Fantasy coming to your average happy conclusion.
Not to mention, the Witcheress Ending is incredibly selfish, because Ciri will do a lot more good as the Ruler of the North and South than playing Witchers, which she will never be because she never undertook the Trials. Yes, yes, she's strong and she can teleport, but realistically, she'll never have Geralt's reflexes, and a single mistake would be fatal to her as she doesn't possess a Witcher's endurance nor ability to consume potions.
Lastly, to each their own i guess, but following the Blood and Wine Ending where Ciri visits you in Corvo Bianco (if you're crazy and you romanced no one or you're using Mods), it's clear that Ciri will have ample opportunities to visit her "Father" in Toussaint who's enjoying a well-deserved retirement, while it's also suggested that her relationship with her actual Father is improving as well, and i find that wholesome.
@@Tomcat_CentauriI disagree with this stance on so many levels lol. You’re treating the Witcher like it’s some sort of fallout new Vegas type universe, where factions are the ultimate concern of its main characters. This could not be further from the truth. In the novels, which the games are sequeling, this idea that it’s “selfish” to not become an empress is unbelievable. It’s genuinely jaw-droppingly misinformed.
Are you aware of Nilfgaard lmao? What they did, what Emhyr did? Who they employed? How close they brought the end of the world? How much death they waged in the name of “progress”? And most notably of all, what they did to Ciri lmao? Emhyr’s pursuit of her is to blame for several near-death scenarios for Ciri.
Her taking the teleportal to the Korath Desert in Tor Lara. Skellen sending Bonhart after her. Vilgefortz exacerbating his maniacal search for the elder blood (which he did by tearing out the wombs of women). Cintra being razed down. The second war with the north. Emhyr and Nilfgaard deserve absolutely NO sympathy from Ciri or Geralt. To them, they are both completely disenfranchised and hated figures by many. So it’s honestly ridiculous to consider it “selfish” not to force yourself to become the emperor for an objectively heinous faction.
You would greatly reconsider this perspective if you read the books. And please do - they are phenomenal. But get it out of your head that Nilfgaard is this group of forceful benefactors bringing order to the chaotic North. They are evil, continuously commit heinous war crimes, rape, pillage, and the definition of contemptuous violence in the entire series. Not only did they put Ciri at risk of death, but they literally destroyed her entire life.
But nooooo, it’s selfish to not want to permanently be the empress of a country you despise, based off some backwards logic of succession. No, my friend, that’s simply untrue. Everything about this series makes the witcheress ending 10 times more optimal than the Nilfgaard ending. For one, it concludes Ciri’s story finally, and in a way that is true to the books.
Also, we’re one to talk about “average fantasy endings” considering how the books end lmao. If you’ve played the games then this isn’t a spoiler, so imma just say it. After being killed at the pogrom in Rivia, Ciri literally uses space aged teleportation powers to bring Geralt and Yen to the Isle of Avalon, where they live happily ever after in King Arthur’s court. Is that a cop out or what lmao? So even if you don’t like the Witcheress ending, its happiness is completely in line with the series.
@@johnstewart2981 Very bold of you to assume my entire stance on the Witcher world based on a short message, because there's clearly some things you've misunderstood. I'm well aware The Witcher isn't like Fallout and that our Protagonists are about navigating between the warring Factions, not joining them. Which doesn't mean i can still think that the Witcheress Ending is a selfish Ending, because as i wrote before, Ciri will never be a Witcher. She hasn't undergone the Trials, she'll never be able to consume potions, and despite her abilities, she'll never have a Witcher's reflexes or constitution. One mistake and she's dead, period. However, the Empress Ending allows Cirilla to do a lot more good on a vast scale throughout the Continent, more so than just hunting the occasional Monster. Besides, since you've read the books you'll remember that Geralt insists since the very first one that the Witcher profession is a dying one because there's fewer Monsters every year, so there isn't even much of a "point" to become a Witcher or pretend you're one. But ascending the Throne of the most powerful Nation on the Continent and perhaps try to guide them in a gentler direction. Sometimes the "right" choice isn't about what You/Ciri wants, but it might be about putting aside your own personal happiness to do what's best for the Continent. After all, after defeating the Wild Hunt and essentially saving the World, why not go all the way ?
While you're right about the Games sequeling the Books ( obviously ) it's also worth noting that CDPR did make some "adjustments" to both story lines and characters, altering a few things and waving some of the more dubious plotlines of the books. So i know that a lot of people love to use to books to support their games arguments otherwise most of said arguments tend to fall apart, but personally i consider the CDPR lore to be sort of its own thing. And thus, the CDPR version of the characters slightly different as well.
I absolutely am reading the books as we speak, unfortunately i'm not done with them yet ( i want to finish them, but also i don't because then they're over, you know what i mean ? ) and what i'm most interested about is the nuance of the characters in them compared to the CDPR interpretation. I know how they end and i know what happens through them as well, but it seems to me people have a lot of varied opinions and interpretations about them, and while they love to bring to the table the same arguments from the books, they also love to ignore some other elements of them. I also don't know where you got the idea that i think Nilfgaard is some kind of benevolent Faction. They're harsh, ruthless and brutal. What i think is that none of the main Factions of the Continent are good, and all are evil in their own way. The Northern Kingdoms aren't any better, if not downright worse for their constant attempts to genocide the Elder Races whenever they can, but i'm also aware that the books and games take place from a Northern perspective, and thus are to an extent biased. One thing is for certain, everyone loves to play the poor innocent victim in the Witcher. Even the Scoia'tael are from from being guiltless.
So yeah, as you said, Ciri saving Geralt and Yen is an absolute cop out, but then again without that we wouldn't have any Games either, so they had to survive somehow. Right after however, the Games go back to following the Dark Fantasy vibe of the Witcher and immediately start to get pretty grim. Heck, the Witcher 3 is probably the least grim Game of the series, and that's saying much.
Last but not least, we don't HAVE to agree on everything and it's usually okay to have diverging opinions regarding The Witcher 😄 It's a complex Universe, and not everyone will have to same outlook on it. Genuine Radobitch supporters are wrong though, and that's factual, not an opinion.
@@Tomcat_Centauri I personally do agree with the fact that CDPR’s continuation is odd, considering the retconns of crucial plot points from the books like the lack of false Ciri anywhere in the games. But I can assure you that after reading the books thoroughly, the character of Ciri as you see her in TW3 is extremely similar to the Ciri in Tower of Swallows and Lady of the Lake. That same Ciri who only cares about her loved ones. To me, that demeanor is intrinsic to her character and handing her over to Emhyr betrays not only that character, but Geralt’s as well. He’s done an insane amount of heinous things against Ciri’s pursuers. Has put himself in death’s path to make sure she lives her own life. The whole idea of them saving Ciri was to make sure she lives a lovely life, free from the shackles of overlords breathing down her neck.
And she ends up doing so. In the books, she’s the lady of space and time. Her reward for her insane hardships that she overcame is limitless exploration of the multiverse. Quite poetic; the swallow in the cage has been freed. And considering this, the Witcheress ending makes complete sense as well. Considering Ciri is quite similar in TW3 to the same Ciri who escaped Tir Na Lia in the last book, I view the argument that her becoming an empress is “the best ending” just due to some political consequences is not sound. Not in the slightest. Geralt gives Ciri to Emhyr and permanently ruins her chances of living life as that free spirit that she was destined to be. That’s fucking awful lmao.
It’s contradictory to the entire series. So if we’re going to be fans of this series who decry the Netflix series, perhaps we should also be looking at this ending in a similar lens because it makes literally no sense for Geralt to do. To each their own, but Geralt is not a blank slate. He is not a Tav or a Courier. He has an incredibly storied history, he is his own person through and through. The fact that this choice exists is a cop-out, a gameplay additive to make the ending of TW3 feel as impactful or more so than TW2
TW2 could get away with it because Geralt was still an amnesiac when it came to making decisions. But not in TW3. There, he knows everything. The years of chasing Ciri. Of protecting her. Of finding her. All of it. To hand her over to the same guy who employed fucking Vilgefortz to hunt her down is so unbelievably out of character, that it’s a laughably Deus-ex-machina kind of ending where it expressly seeks to add artificial “player choice” to an array of endings. And I, for one, view Deus ex machina in narratives to be the lowest form of story writing. It’s lazy. It’s cheap. And if by some logical metric it “fosters peace in the realm”, I don’t really care. Even past the character contradictions, it conveniently undermines the entire story of this saga. For that reason I cannot possibly subscribe to the idea that it’s “the best ending” lol. Discussing political consequences in The Witcher is laughable, it’s always been and always will be about the bond between family and friends.
Triss seems nice and sweet at first glance, but when you know her whole story, that's when you know she's not at all as nice and sweet as she looks. In the books and the game, she betrayed Yennefer (her best friend) several times - when she seduced Geralt despite knowing how much he meant to Yennefer and when she didn't lift a finger when Yennefer literally begged her for help at the end of the books. Triss then chose the lodge of the sorceresses, an organization that wanted to use Ciri as a pawn for their own benefit. Thats not how a kind and sweet person behaves :).
Even in the last book, where after everything that happened Triss is like „Geralt will forgive me bla bla bla”, Yennefer literally tells her that Geralt would be able to forgive her for what happened to him, but he will never forgive her for what was done to Yennefer and Ciri, and thats 100% true. Geralt doesnt care about himself, but he would kill for Ciri and Yen and Triss betrayed them both.
So yeah…on the other hand Yen seems cold and aloof at first glance, but she would do anything for the people she loves, regardless of the consequences, and for that she has my undying respect🫡
I want to frame this comment on my wall. I want to make it a card that I could give out to people who say Triss is better *for Geralt*.
Well, I didn't read the books, I've only played the games and read most of the lore. I got attached to Triss because she's featured in all 3 of them but this puts everything into another perspective.
I do like Yen, but since I recently replayed all the 3 games I sticked with Triss coz Im a hopeless romantic lol.
I guess most people who choose Triss are Gamers, while those who choose Yen also read all the books, perhaps I should read them aswell
Edit: I use to play the way I want, I always considered Yennefer being the best pick for Geralt, that is quite obvious to be fair, but yeah, I guess, some go with Triss coz they don't think/care what's best for Geralt, but instead go for what THEY want
Plus... Ginger haired girls make me weak 🤷🏼
100%
For me Triss of the books is not the same as Triss of the games. In the books, she is more like a manipulative person who like to do thinks only for her own happiness. For example, she uses magic to f*ck with Geralt when he just had a argument with Yen. ( I'm learning English so sorry for the mistakes.)
Triss belongs in da streets
It's a shame that Iorveth ended up being cut content in Witcher 3. It's actually a damn shame that these CD Projekt Red's projects are plagued with development problems and rushed releases.
About the ending, I remember getting Ciri as a Witcher ending and I was really emotional about that. Seeing the sword with Zirael written on it was pretty fantastical to me.
I love how most comments are about triss and yen, the fact that debate is still going on is absolutely amazing XD Great video Wera! 💜
shocking since there is a correct answer.... ;)
thank you!
@@valliyarnl Correct answer = Fringilla.
@@valliyarnl You mean Essi Daven?:)
The thing that I dislike about The Empress ending is how we got there. I don’t think that Geralt would take Ciri to Emher in the first place, and how things went with Dijkstra and Roche in Radvid's assassination mission
fair enough!
I also can't see Geralt taking Ciri there and about the assassination mission, it's very important to have a deep conversation with Dijkstra and learn that his goal is to establish a more modern and civilized government and when you learn that Roche has some secret agreement with the emperor, the choice is easy to do. I choose to follow Roche before but when i had some hints that he was just a guy ready to bend the knee for some power i turned on him.
@@kukipett Roche is pretty open about his absolute loyality to Temeria. He's also not very bright when it comes to politics. In Witcher 2, he's willing to sell himself out to Radovid to prevent civil war and preserve Foltest's bloodline, and Geralt has to explain to him why it's a bad idea.
I find Thaler more convincing. It at least sounds like a good deal, providing Emhyr won't screw them over. Maybe not even surprising he didn't, since at that point it was victory speedrun any % for him, before someone shoves knife in his back.
@@kireta21Temeria's alliance with Nilfgaard is the best outcome for the both of them. In The Witcher 2 it's very much explicitly said that with the lack of Temerian Monarch, Radovid is quick to try and take over Temeria for himself.
Their deal with Nilfgaard ensures Temeria not only maintains its Sovereignty, but most likely that Anais will become Queen as Foltest's legitimate Heir.
And in turn that means Emhyr gets one less thorn in his side to worry about, because clearly saving resources to win the War as quickly as possible is a matter of life or death for him.
I'm 100% sure that Geralt never forced her to go to the emperor - he informed her about it and gave her the option to choose. This is the most canonical Geralt.
Only ever taken the "best" ending where Geralt and Ciri meet up in White Orchard to go off witchering together. I can't bring myself to choose anything else.
Same. To heck with the rest of the world. Father/daughter quality murder times forever! Lol
I can't remember which UA-camr it was (probably xLetalis if we're being honest lol) but I recall someone saying that the bad endings of the base game and both DLCs are most in line with how the Witcher would actually play out. And I hate that I agree. I don't think Geralt would sell Ciri out (like xLetalis loves showing) but a the other choices you make really do feel like those of a man who's just gotten his daughter back and is now over protective of her.
Blood and Wine's bad ending is the most in line with the world. Geralt needing to be bailed out of prison by Dandelion with several important people dead
yeah i think that was xLetalis (our king) but Neon Knight also has really good videos where he goes through each decision book Geralt would make in the games. very very good videos
@@valliyarnllove Neon Knight, been watching him since almost the beginning and catch every video on release
@@valliyarnli still wait for him to make B&W choices video. By the way, do you too have a feeling that they are the only big witcher youtubers?
Right, Gaunter tells you what to do for her too.
Nice to see fellow Witcher fan that's passionate about the books and likes Yennefer 💜
I stand by my Dijktra comment and will not tolerate any Big D slander!!! Thank you for validating my stance, even if you said scrubbed pig and glossed over the “FRESHLY” scrubbed pig part 😌 my man cleannnn 🧼
Great video as always!
ahh yes sorry! how COULD i have misquoted Big D's appearance! Sexiest man on The Continent 100%. He could "push me aside forecfully" any day
I never knew i would live to the day where somebody calls Djikstra BIG D, but i'm not complaining
You just like him because he hangs out at a sauna club.
@@whssy MAYBE. I can't say that doesn't help.. but that's not the sole reason!! (only 75% of it)
@@valliyarnl Am I to believe Skellige has an equal? Who? That brute Hjalmar or the old druid Ermion?
This video popped up on my reccomended and I'm glad it did :D. It just feels nice seeing someone with the same passion for the witcher universe.
My preferred ending:
1) Geralt ends up with Yen
2) Cerys rules Skellige
3) Dijkstra rules the united northern realms
4) Emhyr is finally dead
5) Ciri becomes a witcher
I read the books too, didn't get to play Witcher 1 or 2 so didn't care much about Roche
So my unpopular opinion: Dijkstra is the best ruler of the northern realms
@@SatiaroSanchezthat is not unpopular. It's just the way to get there is idiotic.
@@songschannel9059 yeah true, I called it unpopular because to me it seems like most people side with Roche
I agree with all your points except Dijkstra. The North has committed far too many crimes against non-humans and mages for me to allow them to win under Dijkstra. An independent Temeria with Nilfgaard winning the war is what's best for everyone.
@@MrNeosantana With Dikstra, the non-humans and mages are a normal part of society and the north is finally investing in industrialization (therefore education aswell very likely which eventually will improve the life quality of non-humans and basically everyone)
I like Triss because my first game was Witcher 2. I stayed with her in Witcher 3 as I knew her better than Yen.
But objectively I agree that Yen is a better fit for Geralt. Triss is more of a naive lady while Yen is a proper woman. In many ways it's odd they even added this whole romance between Triss and Geralt considering her character and actions. It should have just been plain and simple "I seduced you because I wanted you. Sorry about that. If you want to repeat, let me know". None of this love nonsense when their characters are so different.
just found the channel and i get a witcher video immediately perfect lol
4:34 I think pretty much everyone had a crush on either Regis, Detlaff or both of them while playing through Blood and Wine. Like, how can you not love how chill Regis is and how dedicated Detlaff is
Great video! I actually got into The Witcher series because of Netflix during the pandemic. Then I played The Witcher 3 and read all of the books. The Witcher 3 became one of my favorite video games of all time. And needless to say I now try to forget that the show ever existed haha
Ahhh I love this comment! See that’s the one good thing that came out of the TV show! It got the Witcher out to new people like yourself and have you a gateway to fall in love with the world and characters thru the video game and novels 🥰
If you've read the novels, you should automatically be a Yenn fan
If you have good tastes, you should automatically like Yennefer 💜💜💜
yeah I read the books, and I just can't choose Triss
i read the novels and i hate yen, she treats geralt like his dog
@@miguelangelgarciamunoz4793
In the short stories she treats him like crap, as he does to her, but in the novels they actually form a healthy relationship as the books progress.
@@bretalvarez3097 yeah, because they spend almost the entire novel separated from each other
Also I adored how long TW3 was, when I finished it, it felt like such an achievement, like I’d gone through so much and the cohesive, compelling story all the way through was such a breath of fresh air in video games
Agree! I didn’t want it to end’
@@lilacsnozzberries6972same. Maybe I’ll replay again…
My unpopular opinion:
Book Geralt would not want any of the Wild Hunt endings for Ciri, he wouldn't want her risking herself as a Witcher, he wouldn't want her being "brood mare" of Nillfgaard (his words, blood of elves), nor would he want her out of his life. I wish there was an ending where she is the apprentice of Yennifer, as I think this fits best, and would be what the characters want.
Funnily enough, I agree with your conclusions! - but I don't agree with your reasoning
- Witcher ending: I never felt like Ciri should become one. I actually wrote a long, rambling reddit post about my reasoning for it a little while ago! It's too "neat" an ending for the world, and tries to reframe being a witcher as something worth aspiring to, when, afaik, no one ever *wanted* to be a witcher, not even Ciri, who only got her training due to necessity (what the only guy who didn't want to use/kill her being a witcher). There are also the logistical issues of her being physically only human, not being able to drink witcher potions/antidotes to compensate for physical shortcomings, and only having, like... at most half a year of actual witcher training. Everyone always plays up how she's been trained by the best witchers ever, but forget that she spent *one winter* at Kaer Morhen. A *decade* ago. The only things she knows about monsters was whatever she managed to pick up at *twelve* years old.
- Empress: my personal favourite, but I agree that neither version of Geralt would want that for her if she didn't want it herself. For game Geralt, the brood mare thing probably wouldn't be that big an issue, though. The situation's changed quite a bit since the end of the books, after all; Ciri is acknowledged and widely known to be Emhyr's daughter. She'd also a sword-swinging, teleporting menace. Ain't no one forcing her into anything, as game-Geralt now full well knows.
Completely disagree on the Yen thing. Those two would love more time together, I'm sure, but Ciri couldn't be apprenticed to a sorceress even if she wanted to be. She completely gave up on "classical" magic after the incident in the desert and only has her Elder Blood powers left, which Yen doesn't really have any idea about.
@@eldara3to be fair, in the Witcher ending it’s said that she does train with Geralt more before going off on her own, so she will at least have the necessary training by the time she needs it.
Strongly disagree on the last one... SPOILER WARNING I guess?
But yeah Geralt would never take Ciri to Emhyr. Basically he would let her make her own decision. But only when you choose the "you shouldn't" option Geralt actually tells her, that Emhyr only wants to see her because he has plans for her. Only then does Ciri know the full picture. And she then makes her own decision.
Geralt would never take Ciri to Emhyr. He says that in the books during the end. He says in game that he will only if she wants it - which she doesn't, that's also stated in a little off screen conversion between her and Yen as she tries to convince her. And if you choose the "you should" option Geralt has to convince her with "he's your father" which Is a bullshit point in his case...
With the Choices lore accurate Geralt would make, Ciri would become a Witcher. And I'm gonna die on that hill! XD
100% agree, and from Ciri's perspective there is no way she would want to be an Empress especially having read the books
The game lets you choose what kind of father to be to Ciri. You can be judgmental and demanding or you can care about her feelings and let her make her own choices. But follow one path too far and she ends up dead.
I like the Last Wish sidequest, cuz it's just proof that Yen is not as confident as she portrays herself. She is not immune to doubting herself, her relationship with Geralt. It's made very clear that once the spell has been lifted, NOTHING has changed, it was all in her head. And if you choose Yen still, it's a great quest. Which is initially how the game devs intended for you to play it, anyway, I'm pretty sure.
This 💜
Popular opinion: If you kill trolls in Witcher 3 that you could talk to and spare you are a psychopath
I'm Czech and I love playing the Witcher games in polish. It's the best language for both the humor and the emotions, and Gerald sounds SO MUTCH better. Also the Polish version of The Wolven Storm Is my favorite piece of videogame music, makes me cry every time. Polish also sounds a lot like hystorical czech so I can understand a fair portion without reading the subtiteles if I pay attention. Here In czech we love Witcher so mutch we made our own con(Blavicon)
I prefer the Polish language because the temperament makes more sense. It's why I can't listen to the English audiobooks for so long.
Disagree Czech dabbing of Witcher 1 is the best, cant change my mind
This opinion type of videos are really interesting to watch. You are making such a high quality videos, it's impressive!
To me the worst ending is the most beautiful, cinematic and powerful from a purely artistic standpoint.
Empress being the best for the world and bitter-sweet for Geralt and the player.
And Ciri as a Witcher (my personal favourite) as the one that *isn't* better for the world, but for her. She deserves to make the selfish choice after literally saving the world and all of her life fighting people trying to use her for power. (I also love Mark Grayson from Invincible doing a similar thing though so maybe it's me liking that trope) :)
And at the end of the day every ending can be argued for and against, they are all just that good.
Very good take. I agree 💯
100% with that guy saying short stories are better than novels.
I also got the empress ending the first time around. However, I think that the canon ending should be her becoming a witcher and forsaking her claim to the throne of Nilfgaard. After everything she experienced with the emperor hunting her down, there's no way that she would then willingly side with him, even if it was for the good of the world.
Becoming the empress may have been her destiny, but as Geralt would say, "Destiny can go f*** itself."
yeah that works too with the idea of subverting prophies and all. idk i'm very conflicted because I find all three main endings plausible. i'm curious which will be canonised (if it will be)
Everyone says that, no one considers the logistical issues ._. Ciri's got, what, half a year of witcher training under her belt? The winter of 1295/1296? She spent more time at the Temple of Melitele with Yen than she *ever* did at Kaer Morhen. There's only so much a twelve-year-old kid is gonna pick up in a few months, even less that she's going to reliably remember a decade later, especially when considering that an actual witcher's training takes, what, a decade? She's also only human, physically, can't use any witcher potions to compensate for her physical shortcomings or neutralise monster venoms, and teleportation ain't gonna help her if some vampire or something decides to take advantage of her dull human senses to sneak up on her and open her jugular.
Also, that ending makes out being a witcher to be something to aspire for. It might be for us living in the boring normal world, but in the witcher world, no one actually wants to be a one, because it's a dangerous, thankless, and increasingly pointless job, because canonically (see; separation of story and gameplay) monsters are dying out. Even Ciri only trained because it was like, the only thing to do at Kaer Morhen, and she wanted to learn to kill Nilfgaardians, not because she had the burning desire to be a witcher...
One thing i want to say is the music from witcher 3 when you meat the 3 old Crones is so satfiying but also very creepy !!!!!!!
Marcin Przybyłowicz outdid himself
The Soundtrack of the Witcher 3 is incredible. I always feel oppressed by the music every time I go to Vizima.
Absolutely. I agree with you wholeheartedly. Especially about the point regarding the focus of the novels versus the short stories. A good number of people think that the books focus on Geralt just being a Witcher when even the short stories were simply setting the stage for his building resentment of his profession and discovering what he really wanted out of life, and that took the form of Yen and Ciri. At which point he spent a good bit of time trying to realize it was ok to step away from the only life he knew to make something else out of it.
But yes, it's all really a matter of taste and misconception of what people think the books are about.
I LOVE YOUUUU for everything you said especially about Yennefer and Olgierd and about male gaze, I want to buy you a coffeeeeee
I actually would like to have Eskel as the main character in the Witcher 4
As for empress ending being the right one, it is rather simple. It happens if Ciri is given an option to accept Emhyr's offer. The choice isn't forced upon her. The witcher ending happens if Ciri is never given an opportunity to choose anything else. If the witcher ending was better, Ciri would have picked being a witcher over going back to Nilfgaard.
Also, a fairy tale happy ending just doesn't fit in the universe of The Witcher. However, a bittersweet ending fits perfectly within the overall atmosphere of this universe. And that is precisely how I call the empress ending.
yes tonally 100%. The Witcher rarely has happy endings. Maybe there's a reason why the Empress ending is also the longest epilogue?
I used to believe this too but after watching that “All choices Geralt would actually make in W3” video, the creator kinda swung me back toward Ciri Witcher ending. Basically when the opportunity to tell her about Emhyr wanting to see her arises, Geralt would still tell her and present that option. But Ciri asks for Geralts opinion on whether she should or not. Even if you tell her it should be her decision she still says she wants to hear what Geralt thinks. And after all the nonsense from Emhyr and knowing that she’s just going to be used for politics - Geralt would tell her that he thinks the emperor just has plans for her. That’s when she says she doesn’t want to go and they skip it and thus a Ciri Witcher ending without lying to or refusal to tell her.
No way bro. Letting all of the other stuff aside like how that ending affects Geralt, Yen and Ciri herself, Ciri is not Empress material. It's quite curious how everyone says it's best for the world, but i really can't see that. Ciri as an Empress will be a mere figurehead and in the end her advisors will control the Empire.
Gaunter O'Dimm is the most interesting character in any media I consumed, period.
He is fascinating
(As a book fan) I like both of them and I've played through the game several times because the game gives you a choice.
Which is why I was devastated with their casting for Yen on Netflix!!
As the strongest TW3 fanboy I subscribed before I even watched the video and I was not disappointed.
I always thought the ending where Dijkstra becomes ruler of the North was the best for the world, because he's a pretty just ruler who commits comparatively few atrocities. Although if the Nilfgaardian Empire collapses or becomes worse because of his victory, that would probably be a worse outcome than Emhyr winning.
100% agree on the yennefer talk lmao
Triss is a hussie. Yen is badass and what she goes through in the books for Geralt and Ciri would melt any heart. 💪
Im so so glad I’m finding people with the correct opinion
@@valliyarnlBut where was that Anna Henrietta romance option in Blood and Wine. That was the true crime of the game. 😂
@@nikjovan4816 Geralt wouldn’t wanna steal Dandelions ex
@@valliyarnl I only know about Annarietta and Dandelions relationship from the games. And little at that since I never got the bad ending where Dandelion shows up. I don't know how deep it is or if there is more in the books. I have only read the short stories and the first book. I just really like Annarietta.
Makes me happy when beautiful people talk about the books I love
The first time I played Witcher 3, I didn't know about the books or the other games but the impression I got was that Yennefer was like a wife acting aloof because she was emotionally hurt even if Geralt never intended to, while Triss acted like a needy, please choose me, side chick.
THIS!!
exactly same thoughts.
5:56 Considering the entire opening scene of the game, and just some moments in general, I'd say the scales are fairly balanced in terms of women and men being sexualized in the Witcher
Triss has a more outwardly kind personality, but she's subversively manipulative. In the games they reaaaally buffed up her charismatic / romantic side to help her appeal to players. Yen is far more brash and straightforward, but doesn't try to hide when she's pulling strings. They're both gonna use you. I've grown to weigh a persons genuineness in gold, so my favor goes to Yen.
Aaaah fuck. Somehow the Last Wish ended up in my lap xP.
Lmao I knew it was sacrilege to rag on witcher 3 😅 I didn't know others also felt that way. Maybe there's hope for humanity after all 😛 thanks for responding to my comment in this video Wera. You da best! 😊
Haha glad you took my response comedically!!! And thank you for submitting!
@@valliyarnl happy to contribute gal. Your videos are great craic. Looking forward to the next one 🙂
I feel like I’m the only witcher fan around glad to see theres still people 💀🙏🏿
I remember how I accidentally got into the books when I was like 10 with Sword of Destiny
It really shaped my future self... Now I realized that I really like mean witches with black hair
wait wait wait... you were TEN!?!?
(glad to hear it was important to you 🥹)
@@valliyarnl Auntie knew I was reading some fantasy so went into store, took first fantasy looking book and gave it to me on Christmas
But it is funny to reread them through times and understanding more and more pasages
And of course learned some about the stuff which schools are too afraid to explain when you aren´t 15
Is amazing to have finally found someone that talk about this amazing world and your videos are so interesting and passionate. Anyway it could be commonplace maybe, but my favorite ending is the classic good ending where Ciri becomes a Witcher and stay with Geralt but i must admit that the bad ending with Geralt that comes back to fight the ladies of the wood has pheraps the most powerful atmosphere and it left me truly emotionally destroyed when i saw it for the first time.😅
My brother and sister in law gifted me Blood of Elves in December and I just got around to reading it. After finishing it, I spent almost $100 on the rest of the series because I can't not finish these books lol. I was only familiar with Yennefer from the game, which I only put like ~25 hours into (enough to finish the main story and some interesting side quests along the way), and the show and I liked her as a character. She always felt like the one for Geralt, so I went with that choice.
[SPOILERS] Seeing her dynamic with Ciri at the end of Blood of Elves and in The Time of Contempt when she tells her to "Run, my daughter." as all the sorcerers are battling it out, really sent it home for me that she was an outstanding character. Sapkowski nails her complexity in the way she speaks versus what Ciri and others are able to read from her body language or lack of responses.
My SUPER unpopular opinion is that I liked they way they displayed Geralt's intelligence and handled his general disposition/demeanor in the Witcher 3 game and season 1 of the show (I only ever got as far as the end of season 2 before I tapped out). In the books, Geralt is verbally intelligent and eloquent. Not so much so as characters like Vilgefortz or Djikstra, as you're able to see when he goes toe to toe with them, but Geralt's character is intentionally meant to be an enigma in that way. A gruff, often dirty, sword swinging type who can hang with the likes of sorcerers, spies and kings almost as an equal. The amount of respect and interest that Geralt attracts from these types displays that well. The game and show did this without Geralt having to literally voice this complexity and intelligence. You just feel it and the respect that he commands from those around him. It's not a rarity that, in the books, Geralt's dialogue can be lengthy, complex and deeply insightful. I think that's a necessary component of his character that makes him so compelling, but the game and the show do a pretty great job of having him speak in such a lengthy manner sparingly as a way to disarm those who underestimate and/or put him in a box. Whereas, those who already know that about him respect him. They know that what he chooses to portray to the world is partially an illusion, one that even Geralt has to convince himself of at times. It's an interesting dynamic that I think they executed very well in the visual representations of Geralt (which is likely easier to do), as opposed to the books where, if you didn't have a deep knowledge of Geralt, you could mistake him for a scholar the way he verbally spars with some of the most well spoken characters in the story.
FYI, as I mentioned before I didn't take a SUPER deep dive into the game, which I know is where a lot of the good things can be found such as side stories, DLCs, etc. I'm also on Baptism of Fire, so there's more to be read, which means my opinion could just suck lol. Would love to hear any disagreements on this. (I don't care about spoilers because I'm going to read all the books and play the game again anyways)
Amazing that you have all these fantasy books and then the Iliad as well. Great stories are of all eras.
Honestly, mostly surprisingly reasonable takes. I was very surprised to not be angry at any of them, except perhaps a bit peeved about the "story too long comment"
First, wanna say love your whole vibe and you have gained a happy subscriber with this one :) Second, I get what people mean by the suggestive outfits the females wear, for me the worst part was Ciri wearing high heeled boots lol. And then of course the DLC outfit they had Triss wear that completely ignored the fact that she has scars. Third, thank you for defending the books so passionately; they are seriously so good and I can't even bring myself to watch the netflix series because I know it will make me physically angry haha. I'd love to see a video about some of the differences in the original Polish edition and the English translation!
They do briefly explain the motivation for Wild Hunt in the third game, but it's easy to miss. Still they are so callously pragmatic, fully willing to sacrifice Ciri, it's hard to sympathize with their motivation. Also I've never chosen Triss because she's impossible to please. No matter what you choose she's always crying about something.
6:03 Talking about male gaze and subconsciously Wera adjusts her top✌️
Overall some interesting takes on the witcher
And shows more boob than Ciri, Ciri you can see some bra which will barely get a glance rather than gaze.
After watching everything i think i can safely say that we can all agree that Netflix's writing will never top the iconic moment: "jesteś piękny smoku"
Jezus zapomniałam o tym 💀
My unpopular take is that the ‘bad’ ending is the best in the W3. It fits the world vibes rly well and the ‘good’ ending feels too happy in comparison. Still, all three are amazing!
I think I commented this on your last Witcher video but I’m not really familiar with the series at all. Hearing you talk about all the lore definitely has me intrigued though 👀 do you think it would be a good series to listen to as an audiobook or should I get a physical copy?
i really like that the og Geralt group(milva, kahir...) is in the quent card, but sadly not really in the dialog of Geralt und Regis,
and i enjoy the books in English and German and sometimes the German translation is more fiting/imersiv, especially in the battle of brenna
5:50 I just finished playing through the main story for the Witcher 3 (Halfway through Hearts of Stone, I just finished von Everec Manor and I haven't done Blood and Wine yet) and I have to say that I don't feel attracted to Ciri. Sure she's pretty, but having gone through the story and looked at it through Geralt's eyes, I see her more as a daughter. I feel pride and joy when I look at her, not lust.
P.S
I got Geralt and Yen, Chancellor Dijkstra, Witcher Ciri.
Roche or Dijkstra was easily the hardest choice I had to make simply because I had no time to make it. I thought I would have a bit longer but I was going to side with Dijkstra no matter what. He is a man of vision. Roche is a rebel and a patriot. But what happens when the soldier no longer has his war? Granted, I recognize it's not the choice Geralt would make, but I don't care.
Witcher Ciri has always been my favorite ending, but after reading the books, it kind of became my personal canon ending as well. A major topic throughout the books and Witcher 3 is that Ciri is seemingly the only person with no control or say over her life. EVERYBODY else has plans for her or is telling her what to do, and she's pulled in 1000 different directions the whole time because she plays into so many agendas and plans. I don't know if this was an intentional callout of her entire story, but she even has that moment after Vesimir's funeral where she blows up on everybody because everybody is plotting and scheming Ciri's next step, and nobody is actually speaking to her. In my mind, getting to basically fake her death and run off into the woods with Geralt feels like a hard reset on her life... for the first time, she's the one holding the reins and is dictating what her next steps are.
I have to admit that I'm split on Yenn and Triss, and I've played it both ways. I've played it as Yenn in part because they were together throughout the books and Geralt would probably stay loyal to that. But I've played it as Triss as well, and Geralt discussing Triss vs Yenn with Ciri kind of summed up my feelings perfectly. Him and Yenn are constantly just battling each other in the books and the game... they're a very passionate couple, but that passion pendulum swings in both the good and bad directions. He doesn't have that constant conflict with Triss.
Triss’ “eye-area” (eyes+brows dunno how to explain this lmao) is what made me chose her. Her being soooo much nicer than triss IN THE GAME (I haven’t red the books I don’t care) was just a super nice bonus to her freaking flawless face lmao
4:56 this for sure. Dandelion is genuinely Geralt’s friend and I’m not a fan of how they handled their relationship.
I'm curious about what your take would be concerning the Black company novels.
After 8 years, I realized that it is impossible to convince a person if he is confident in his choice and decision. Therefore, personally, I don't care who Geralt stays with or doesn't stay at all. After a lot of playthroughs, I didn't choose anyone at all and left Geralt with Jaskier or Ciri
if you look at 8:00 - geralt try to clam down ciri by breaking things in avallach lab and ciri then joines with geralt. and yen just watch them seems doing nothing..but at 8:05 she saw the avallach's portrait and scribbled over the painting 8:09, by doing this she also joins with them silently, without showing😎
Yeah I was a Triss fan until I read the books. Now Yennefer is probably my favorite female character of all time. I think most people disregard her because she has a mind of her own and takes control. She’s incredibly complex and I enjoy every second of reading about her.
I think that Geralt is happier with Triss overall tho. He has his experiences with Yenn throughout the books. And the game is a progression of his story after the books and things can change. He even says it in game when Ciri asks why he chose Triss over Yen and the way he says that it just feels right with her and it’s more comfortable with her and he can be himself. I just think that hits. Great video I dropped a sub! (Even tho you said unsub lol 😆. I like both!)
Been binging you’re channel keep up the content (i literally rab into this channel a few hours ago lmao)
🫶🏻
⚠️Witcher 3 ending spoilers⚠️
......
Regarding the end, I feel it's an impossible choice when you go through hours of the game, looking for Ciri and Yen, only to give them up and get coin in return.
However, as you said, my first play through I was invested in the role of Geralt. So I wanted no part in politics, I didn't care who offended who, just wanted to get the job done. And to me, it made sense that Cirilla would be Empress. She's young and powerful, and a good head on her shoulders (unlike most everyone else in power). Emhyr knows this. I think that's why he wanted her back, he could have so easily chosen someone he could puppet but he wanted Ciri to take his place.
I think, as you said, the world would also benefit from her being in power. But it's a hard thing to tell someone you love that they have to act on duty and not desire. Especially because Ciri got a taste for freedom, with the Witcher she would be happy and at home. But she could do so much more good in a place of power. It won't be fair on her, and I think Geralt wouldn't forgive himself. And neither would she. Bottom line would be that she'd grown into her crown, as did her grandmother, and would prove the enlightened era for nilfgaard.
As an aside, I do think their world is so brutal that even the best case scenario, Ciri following Geralt and becoming a witcher, sees a high probability that they die a violent death. The politics alone are enough to drive a princess to the wilds 😂😂
What a cool video! Didn't know there was this kind of creators out on UA-cam.
Hell yeah! Those are things ppl that never read books dont get at all! I wish i could like it twice!!!
One of the best thing in game is when you go find that Gin and remove the spell. And just nothing change
Hey. First video I’ve seen on your channel. Would like to ask, did you play the games first or read the books? And how did you feel about the games portrayal of the characters?
Great question! I read the books first. Book 1 was mandatory reading in late middle school for me. I think the games nailed it mostly. Personality wise their success rate is 95% (discounting W1 for this btw bc it’s a bit wonky bc they were still figuring stuff out). Looks wise I’d say their success rate is 85% (some being exactly who I imagined like Philippa and some being absolute misses like Sabrina)
What hurts about the empress ending isn't necessarily that she becomes the empress. Obviously she'd be happier as a witcher, but as a player I didn't mind. What hurt was that, if you go by the game's mechanics, her decision to become empress is because she felt like Geralt does not love her as much as in the witcher ending. The key decisions you make that influence her like the snowball fight and taking the money from the emperor along with letting her speak for herself... those are all what decide the ending, and those are all directly success/failure on Geralt's part to undertand what Ciri needs. If Ciri chose to be empress for external reasons I could live with it, but I can't make the "wrong" choices to essentially hurt her and push her away onto that path
Love the video Wera! You points about the Wild Hunt makes sense. I haven't read that far into the novels yet but I do know they get more backstory :) Also don't get me wrong - I don't think they're better than Gaunter or Detlaff, I enjoy them all equally!
I hope you enjoy the last two books because they’re the big wild hunt ones!
@@valliyarnl Super keen for it!
I’ve played Witcher 3 but it’s been a couple years so I don’t remember which ending I got haha
By the way, very nice scarf!))
PS
I like Polish accents 😂
On my first playthrough, I got the worst ending and it absolutely broke me. After spending so much time in the game, exploring every last corner of it, seeing ciri basically being dead and geralt following her i was mad fucked up
You really have the beauty of person you see at an airport and never forget, very pretty.
Weird comment, ik lol. But, also your content is great!! The Witcher books are actually what got me into reading 2-ish years ago, I had always thought it was boring when we were forced to in school and that kind of made me hate reading. But I've read so many more books now, currently reading ASOIAF and am on the second book. But I will probably take a look at your recommendations for a break inbetween all the vivid food descriptions hahah 😅
I got Ciri as a witcher and wouldnt change it. It was what i felt she wanted
After watching this video, as well as our discussion in the previous video's comments, I think you do have a lot of valid points for why Triss not a good choice for Geralt.
hehe 😈 again. i get it if the player chooses Triss bc they like cute redheads but Geralt catches one whiff of lilac and gooseberries and hes down bad 🥰
The main reason for choosing Triss for me was that Ciri got ending that she wanted. Choosing Yen means dead end for Ciri at the court, while when choosing Triss, she gets to do whatever she wants. That's just another thing to consider...
I've chosen Yen every time I've played, and always get the Ciri Witcher ending...which is the ending I assume Ciri would prefer.
The biggest and only flaw I have with cyberpunk is that it was way too short, its so sad that they made it too short because of a complaint like that.
The male gaze deserves more respect
9:15 And I took that personally !
Wait... April?!
Gotta be April Fools' then! 😭
… ;)
(Don’t spoil the others 🤫)
Picked up on that too
I'm so glad I never started watching the Witcher TV show. They almost tricked me with a half decent first season, but I was busy and figured I'd get around to it later. I'm so glad that I never got around to it and just played Witcher 3 again instead.
My most unpopular decision is siding with Dijkstra over Roche. I just thought Dijkstra was so funny and I had to side with the tank! Also he's a decent ending and I just couldn't let that creep Emhyr win...
Dont know why this channel pop out on my feed, but I’m staying.
Pretty girl & Witcher universe is my thing
I'm only at the bloody baron part of the Witcher 3 but really enjoying your commentary!
Thank you!
I've got the "happy" ending on my first playthrough and every time I tried to go with the options to get other endings it feels just wrong
Always love me a breakdown of Netflix's butchering the franchise. Your assessment on the whole Jaskier/Dandelion topic and how they handled it in the show was totally on point.
Instant sub.
I would jump in front of a fire breathing dragon to protect Dandelion from being butchered any further by Netflix.
On my first playthrough, I got Ciri as a Witcher, and I was really happy with this! I didnt even know you could take Ciri to see Emhyr, I just made the choice I felt Geralt would truly make 😅 I was shocked when i found out about the bad endings! I also chose Yennefer over Triss, it sort of made more sense. And this was before I even read the books, and now, I would definitelly choose Yennefer. I sort of lucked out into making the best decisions, I guess.
SPOILER
I got Witcher Ciri ending and it’s easily my favourite because I think Geralt would not bring Ciri to Emhyr and because I think that being a Witcher with Geralt as her mentor is what Ciri would want and it’s the best ending for her
So for anyone who’s interested the Witcher games are currently on sale on Steam for really cheap. Witcher 1 is like $2 and Witcher 2 is like $4 I believe.
Great video Wera! This is my first time watching you, already subscribed and looking forward to watching you grow your channel! Greetings from Greece.
P.S.: I must say, shoving Djikstra aside (forcefully) made me rethink many of my life choices fr
when i played witcher 3 for the first time, i went in blind. you see yennefer for a bit, but then the game throws triss at you, picked her the first run, yennefer the second, and i discovered that you get much more interesting dialogue out of picking yennefer. if you pick triss she's kinda angry mostly, and triss gets a bit boring after the whole novigrad quest line to be honest, feels like she's just along for the ride, while choosing yennefer meshes with the in game events way better, because wether you choose her or not, the end game of the main story is alongside yennefer.
still gotta read the books but i've learned enough of the backstory of triss and geralt to have another reason why i'd rather go with yennefer
I must have good intuition because from my first ever playthrough before I even knew there were books that the game was based on I’ve always preferred yennefer to triss. I always liked yen because she seemed like an actual person with personality and aspirations and flaws. Someone who was still a strong character entirely independently of Geralt.