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endiness · 3 months

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(the following contains book and show spoilers.)

i have to say, i think the main reason why radovid was aged up beyond the romance with jaskier was to provide redania with the stability it lacked in the books after vizimir was assassinated in order for the show to have a central pov for the north. because the show almost has that with philippa and dijkstra, but the one area that's really lacking — if the show stuck exactly to the books — is the war itself as redania was not in a place where it could fight until the end of the series. but aging radovid up old enough to be king should fix that issue by virtue of redania actually having a leader and therefore not falling into chaos. and even with that change, the show could still feature later issues redania runs into with the war just by having them run out of money by the end of the series and needing more and/or facing so many losses in their army that they need to hire more soldiers.

and within that whole idea, i can see the show using radovid as a substitute for other northern nobility and royalty. like, given the little that is known about radovid in the books and what philippa's plans in them are, the show could easily use radovid in tankred's role as both characters were almost betrothed to ciri in the books. (and i say this fully as a radskier shipper in radskier shipping mode, but i am still ✨ manifesting ✨ radovid being used as a daniel etcheverry replacement.) (also, like, insert speculation about radovid being jaskier's anna henrietta here.)

all of which is to say that i think it makes sense that the show would do something like that — having a central pov for the north and condensing things a bit — because it is a tv show, and one with only 8 episodes per season at that, and as such there's a limited amount of time to work with. the show's focus just with next season alone will already be split enough as it is between geralt, jaskier, and the hansa; ciri and the rats (and bonhart); yennefer and the lodge; francesca and the elves and the scoia'tael; and nilfgaard with emhyr (plus wherever vilgefortz may fall into.) philippa, dijkstra, and king!radovid round out a northern pov — the one pov that's missing — without having to split the focus even more if the rest of the northern nations were really featured. (just to say: i don't think that means the show will erase the rest of the nations, i just think that when it comes to having a central one to focus on, it'll likely be redania.)

(also just to add: i think radovid being aged up old enough to be king likely has to do with philippa, too, and her storyline — or lack thereof. because yennefer has largely taken her role in the lodge, so she kind of needs another storyline to focus on. at least initially, anyway, as i suspect yennefer will eventually leave the lodge to go to skellige and try to find ciri. but in the meantime, philippa still needs a plot and puppeting king radovid makes sense given everything that happened last season.)

but just to bring it back around to the radskier of it all... i think these reasons are why it does make sense that the show would make them love interests. jaskier is already connected to redania by virtue of being the sandpiper, so they have completely feasible reasons to know of each other, meet each other, and fall for each other — and all without taking up time introducing someone that would never have the same political impact and ramifications to the plot that radovid does by being older. (which i do still largely think was the point of aging him up.)

and then there's how their relationship will affect everything in the future — and we know per lauren that their relationship is going to have ripple effects in the future. i know there's been some speculation that losing jaskier on top of everything else will turn radovid ~evil, but i think that's speculation largely based off of the games — which the show has nothing to do with. i think what will happen is actually the opposite and that radovid will try and do his best to remain a good person and a good king — which imo also makes the most narrative sense, too, given that the place we last left off with them was radovid basically vowing to jaskier that he would prove himself to him. he can't exactly do that in person anymore, but he can still try to prove himself to jaskier even if he’s not with him.

plus i still think that the show hasn't based radovid solely off the stern, either, and that he'll end up being more of an amalgamation of all of the king radovids throughout redania's history. and as far as i know, no one on the show has ever confirmed which radovid he's supposed to be based off of and the only thing we do know is that lauren said he's a character that "continues to show up in the books." but that's a description that fits the stern, the bold, and the great. so i think it's entirely possible that through having met jaskier and falling for him, radovid will end up as the great rather than the stern. (also something something radovid, like the bold, going to kovir.)

and just as far as jaskier's side of things go... obviously there's speculation about radovid being jaskier's anna henrietta. which imo does have merit given radovid's status in society and how what we saw of their relationship in s3 fits the picture (and even the timeline, if only vaguely) of jaskier and anna henrietta's romance prior to the books. i don't know how the logistics of it would work exactly, but i think it's completely possible that when jaskier and geralt (+hansa) separate that jaskier somehow stays with radovid. because jaskier really does need to be put on a busTM to escape the fate of the rest of the hansa, and radovid fulfils the same role of jaskier's love interest that anna henrietta did.

and just for one last thing. but it includes season 4 spoilers. like, for real writer's room spoilers. so, y'know, beware of the following if you're trying to avoid those.

imo the leak that happened already kind of proves at least some of my speculation and theories, specifically about radovid and redania being used as a central pov for the north. because they say radovid will lead the troops out into battle when geralt and jaskier escape the northern army camp. but in the books, the forces at the northern army camp were from cintra and temeria. but in the show, the only forces we know for sure are there are from redania as radovid is the one leading them. so either redania has replaced both forces (i don’t see this as likely as the show could’ve just said ‘redanian army camp’ if it were only them, but it’s referred to as ‘the northern army camp’ which implies multiple northern forces), they're there in addition to both forces, or they've replaced one of the forces — likely temeria. either way, it probably means that radovid will either be there as a daniel etcheverry replacement or a vissegerd replacement.

#radskier #radovid #jaskier #the witcher #!txt: the witcher #the witcher spoilers #spoilers for the books and s4 #...

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yellowspiralbound · 10 months

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Since season 3 of The Witcher Netflix comes out tomorrow...here are some of my concerns on adaptation from this season onward. Potential spoilers for the future seasons and definite spoilers for the books. Long post ahead.

The Hansa's Dynamic

I am so worried about how the Hansa is going to be handled in the show. Like shaking in my boots terrified. The showrunners already really messed up Dandelion & Geralt's dynamic...and that's one of the easier dynamics present in the Hansa imo. The dynamic is already going to be screwy because Cahir is a middle aged man and not a petulant teenager if he's present in the Hansa at all (though I think he will be since Emhyr called him and Fringilla out at the end of s2).

Emhyr as a Character

Speaking of Emhyr...I think they might attempt to give him a redemption arc, and I cannot emphasize how bad of an idea that is. They're going to retcon the whole "wanting to impregnate Ciri" bit, which I have mixed feelings on. Like yes, on one hand that's fucking gross but on the other hand, that bit is in there to show how fucked up Emhyr is and why Geralt needs to get to Ciri so quickly; it adds a sense of urgency to the Hansa's travels. If I see Emhyr sympathizers on my dash after this season I will lose my fucking mind.

Milva's Pregnancy & Related Scenes

I suspect that Milva's pregnancy is going to be cut entirely or play up the rest of the Hansa's concern for her as a weird "men think they can control women's bodies" thing which Milva will have to fight with them about so the show can be appropriately pro-choice without exploring any of the pro-choice nuance the books bring up. I can just see Regis talking to the guys about it being turned into a "the father deserves a say in a woman's choice to abort" scenario instead of the "I will give this woman her abortion regardless of what you all think about that (and I've made that VERY clear) but I think she's making this choice because she believes you all will abandon her/not support her if she wants to keep this baby and someone needs to make sure that she knows that won't happen" scenario that it actually is. This is also plays into my concerns about the Hansa's dynamic as changing that scene changes it irreparably.

Characterizing Nilfgaard as a Nation

Right now I feel like the show could go one of two ways 1) Nilfgaard is wrong in everything it does or 2) Nilfgaard is right in everything it does (if Emhyr gets a redemption arc). The show has already made a show of the Northern Realms' racism, which is book accurate mind you, but I fear this will translate to a sort of "Nilfgaard is the better nation as its less racist" scenario. While Nilfgaard is better in that aspect and a few others, it is still a militant slave nation. Nilfgaard and the Northern Realms both have their evils and their virtues; that's a big point in the books and the games. Neither nation is 100% good or 100% bad - they're just nations. I don't think the show will be able to handle that kind of nuance.

Jaskier & Radovid...

Apparently, Radovid is supposed to be one of Jask's love interests this season. Radovid is a massive racist, a war criminal, and a teenager. I'm sure all of that's going to be retconned but for fuck's sake just make a new character if you're going to age up and completely change the personality and insanity of an existing one. Important note: I am 1000% in support of queer Jask. I have never shipped that man with a woman in my life (even in the books and games) but for the love of God why did his LI have to be fucking RADOVID??

Mistle & the Rats

If they make Ciri and Mistle a love story, I am going to be disappointed but not surprised. Let me be clear: Mistle is a rapist and an abuser. I suspect they will change that to shoehorn in a queer relationship (even though Triss and Philippa are RIGHT THERE if they want a semi-canon wlw couple). The Rats as a whole are definitely going to be made into more robinhood-like characters because God forbid a main character like Ciri is morally grey or does questionable/bad things.

Geralt's Disability

If this season ends with the Vilgefortz and Geralt fight, as I suspect it might, Geralt will be disabled permanently by the end of this season. The dryads do not fix it. Magic does not fix it. Geralt becomes disabled and stays disabled. His disability becomes a hindrance during the books and the reader actively sees him grapple with the fallout of this. I do not trust this show to handle that - especially with how much more closed off Geralt is in the show compared to the books. If I had to guess, Geralt's disability will be handwaved away or mentioned in passing and never actually shown to impact him which is not cool.

#the witcher #the witcher books #the witcher netflix #twn critical #books vs show #the hansa #milva barring #maria barring #regis #cahir #cahir mawr dyffryn aep ceallach #emiel regis #jaskier vs dandelion #jaskier #dandelion #geralt of rivia #cirilla fiona elen riannon #the witcher s3 #spiral's thoughts

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thelostgirl21 · 13 days

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(Edit: Someone pointed out I'd mixed up Francesca and Triss! My apologies!)

Okay, but should we... worry that Dijkstra and Emhyr switched seats at some point during the reading or...?

I mean, does it actually mean anything? Are we supposed to be concerned about that?

They had seemed to start the reading by sitting everyone with who they were last seen with in S3, or "thematically", at least, somehow...

With Yennefer being where she is because she's part of the main cast, and they needed people to see how she and the new Geralt looked together, I guess!

Otherwise, you have Jaskier next to Geralt and Milva; and since Regis is at the end of the table I'm guessing they kept things a bit more Hansa or Hansa-mission related on that side...

Ciri next to Yennefer with her new girlfriend and the Rats on the other side...

Radovid sitting opposite Jaskier (a bit to his left, I think) with the Redanian Intelligence...

Vilgefortz next to Philippa with Triss and the Lodge of Sorceresses... So Yennefer and Ciri are sitting in front of a wall of the mages...

Then, suddenly, Philippa's flanked by... Vilgefortz (that was already there) and Emhyr Var Emreis (ah... where the fuck did you come from)?!?!?!

Did they start S5's reading, and had some actors "relocate" accordingly?

Did Philippa have a falling out with Dijkstra?

More importantly, where's Radovid? And who's looking after him now?

You had one job, Dijkstra! (Although, no offense, Radovid might be better off without you... Not sure, however, that the fucking Emperor of Nilfgaard is a better replacement! I wouldn't exactly trust him to have the King of Redania's best interest to heart, let me put it that way...)

#Sigismund Dijkstra #Philippa Eilhart #Emhyr Var Emreis #Radovid #Jaskier #Go get your boyfriend #He looks a bit lost sitting there on the other side surrounded by dangerous evil devious no good people #That won't even invite him to have turkey at Thanksgivings even though he bought Dijkstra that electric carving knife thingy...#At least maybe they'd be into playing that drinking game where you take a swig each time you see a bit of blood...#Somehow I feel that's what poor Radovid's actually been doing his whole life....#An actual in-universe drinking game...#Radovid sees blood and he just goes to hide and have a drink!#That's why Hugh was so quick to suggest it! Like Joey with Jaskier he's got an inner Radovid that shows up every now and then...#I swear my tags make sense if you've been watching interviews of Hugh Graham and Cassie together!#But yeah where did Dijkstra go?#My Posts #My Thoughts #My extreme overthinking

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zoeysdamn · 10 months

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Fanarts and illustrations masterlist

[MAIN MASTERLIST]

[Instagram art account]

Meet the artist (TW: mention of mental health issues)

The Wicther

The Witcher Tarot - Major arcanas

Jaskier

Yennefer of Vangerberg

Philippa Eilhart

Anna Henrietta

Emhyr var Emreis

Avalla’ch

Yennefer and Geralt

Geralt of Rivia

Angoulême

Emiel Regis

Cirilla of Cintra

Radovid V

Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach

Eredin

Eithné

Leo Bonhart

Tor Zireael

Triss Merigold

Milva Barring

Mistle

Tissaia de Vries [TW: blood]

Ciri

The Witcher tarot - Figures

King of Swords - Eskel Queen of Swords - Cerys an Craite Knight of Swords - Sigismund Dijkstra Page of Swords - Fringilla Vigo Ace of Swords - Ida Emean aep Sivney

King of Wands - Lambert Queen of Wands - Falka Knight of Wands - Olgierd von Everec Page of Wands - Assire var Anahid Ace of Wands - Sabrina Gleivissig

King of Pentacles - Vesemir Queen of Pentacles - Francesca Findabair Knight of Pentacles - Margarita Laux-Antille Page of Pentacles - Shani Ace of Pentacles - Sheala de Tancarville

King of Cups - Crach an Craite Queen of Cups - Lytta Neyd Knight of Cups - Iris von Everec Page of Cups - Hjalmar an Craite Ace of Cups - Keira Metz

Geralt’s Hansa (books)

Philippa Eilhart (cosplay/fanart)

The witcher 3 genderbends

More The Witcher 3 Genderbends (Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri)

Fem!Radovid x Male!Philippa Eilhart (TW: blood)

Empress!Ciri || Another Empress!Ciri

Cahir x Empress!Ciri

Queen of Cintra!Ciri

Ciri x Cahir Pirates of the Caribbean AU

Witcher!Yennefer

MET Gala looks for Yennefer, Triss and Philippa

Witchersona sketches

Triss x Philippa (cosplay/fanart)

Witcher!Ahsoka Tano (Star Wars x the Witcher AU)

The Sandman

There shall be night series fanart

Crack headcanon crossover Hamilton x The Sandman

Wednesday

Tatto artist AU (Xavier Thorpe, Wenclair)

Glitter and Gold Rave’n outfits for Bianca, Enid and Xavier

A-Z double characters challenge

A & B

C to K

Original Art

Golden Aphrodite [redraw] Lady Loki [redraw] Party Medusa [redraw] Greek Mythology women - color palettes study Art progress from 2018 to 2023 Modern!Medusa x Athena Monstersona V4 Pole dance struggles Brush and layer mode theory [practice]

#Fanart #wednesday fanart #the witcher fanart #meet the artist #the sandman fanart #zoeysdamn art #artists on tumblr

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limerental · 5 months

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ficletvember 2023 - day 21

a vaguely one-sided radskier drabble today!

Moonlight washed over falling snow as peaceful Toussaint slept. There would be no peace for the Witcher's hansa, trudging through the cold. Jaskier lingered by the window, wondering if he would ever forgive himself his lack of bravery. At his back, Radovid slipped close to hold him. His whispered reassurance fell empty. The flow of wine worked to dull his worry, and the prince tried other means to distract him. His mouth, sweet and focused. The bed warmed by firelight. He had chosen this. Touched the golden crown of Radovid's hair. On an exhale whispered Geralt's name as he spent.

#my fic #ficletvember #radskier #radovid x jaskier #i have no energy today lol have 100 words bye #drabbles are so quick why do i torture myself by doing full ficlet all month (because it's fun and satisfying actually)#it still takes me an annoyingly long time to write drabbles though gotta get the word choice perfect

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dancingwiththefae · 4 months

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2023 writing round up

Tagged by @loki-is-my-kink-awakening

I have written 30 fics this year (I included wips in this). All are the Witcher unless otherwise stated:

JANUARY

Love be brave (geraskefer, M, 2.9k)

Jaskier is held captive and tortured for information on Geralt and Ciri. Geralt and Yennefer are on their way to rescue him, but not before his resolve finally breaks.

Pearl and Verbena (ciri & Jaskier, Essi & Jaskier, T, 1.3k)

Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri and Jaskier head back to the Temple of Melitele for some respite. When Jaskier can’t sleep, he heads to library and finds a book that brings up memories he had tried to bury.

The price of justice (geraskier, M, 2.4k)

Jaskier lands himself in trouble again, execpt this time in a town that likes that adopts cruel methods of punishment.

APRIL

New beginnings, old friends (geraskier, E, 25.3k)

Geralt and Jaskier try to manage their new relationship, Jaskier's recovery from his blood addiction, and call upon an old friend to help.

Part 2 of Love & Blood

MAY

once is enough (geraskefer, M, 27.1k)

When the dust settles in Kaer Morhen and everyone returns to their routines, Jaskier is left alone. A spare part amongst the rest with nothing but the drink and his own neverending thoughts for company. He finds himself sinking further and further. But how long can you last in the sea of your own mind before you drown?

JUNE

Jewel of my eye (Anna Henrietta/Dandelion, M, 1.4k)

The palace of Beauclair is hosting a masquerade ball in honour of their guests, the hansa. Dandelion and Anna Henrietta are playing a game of their own.

A lucrative purchase (yennskier, E, 2.8k)

Jaskier visits a sorceress in Rinde, hoping she can create something specific for him. He gets a little more than he bargained for.

JULY

Then take me here (radskier, E, 1.2k)

what Jaskier and Radovid got up to in that scene

Light the fire (radskier, E, 1.7k)

After an evening of merriment, Jaskier and Radovid wander into the throne room where the prince has an interesting proposition for him.

Challenge the mighty titan and his troubadours (yennskier, M, ongoing - 11.6k currently)

Pirate Queen Yennefer discovers a stowaway on her ship. She plans on making an example of him, but it's a long way to their destination. And perhaps she is more interested in this man than she lets on. But nothing is ever smooth sailing in the life of a pirate. And politics, secrets and lies are never too far behind

Bitter water (yenralt, T, 742)

It had become some kind of game. This thing between them. Geralt and Yennefer always seemed to run into each other. They always parted wanting more

What it’s like to be you (yennskier, T, 1k)

Emotions are raw after the dragon hunt. Jaskier and Yennefer take comfort in each other, even if they would regret it the next day.

If he sinks to darkest night (radskier, M, 1.9k)

A prince gave up the life he knew for his siren until he could not

Sweet as wine (yenbrina, E, 1.8k)

Yennefer is bored at a dull court until she finds she has to bunk with her old Aretuza rival. You know what happens next

AUGUST

When you know I can’t love (geraskier, G, 731)

Blue eyes caught his from across the room. A subtle smile offered that Geralt could not return. Jaskier didn’t seem to notice.

These inconvenient fireworks (geraskier, G, 1.1k)

Jaskier is running late for work and in his rush he doesn't see the terrifying hulk of a man until his coffee is already down his shirt.

It’s not a want, it’s a need (geradskier, E, 2.4k)

Jaskier revealed a fantasy to Radovid that the prince was more than willing to fulfill. And he knew the perfect person to help him.

SEPTEMBER

here we go again (Jaskier/Vespula, E, 2.9k)

Vespula is mad at Jaskier after catching him in his latest tryst. He has a plan to make it up to her. But maybe she is the one making the rules of this game they play. And perhaps she has a few secrets of her own to share.

The beast you’ve made me (radskier, E, 4.1k)

Radovid didn't believe the rumour about the werewolf that was spotted outside of the city until he came face to face with it. He couldn't have predicted what would happen next. Nor the all too familiar face that would greet him come morning.

OCTOBER

You only need to ask (geraskier, E, 3.4k)

Geralt has seen the way the bard looks at him. And at other men. It's none of his business, of course. it was up to Jaskier to discover himself. But that didn't mean Geralt couldn't give him a little push in the right direction.

At the end of all things (milva & jaskier, T, 1.3k)

In a quiet moment in Brokilon, Milva and Jaskier come to understand each other

NOVEMBER

Lamentable (radskier, M, ongoing - currently 5.3k

The trajectory of Radovid's life takes a sharp turn when King Vizimir is killed and he ascends to the throne. The weight of expectations, whisperings in his ear, and a strained relationship trigger a rapid downward spiral.

Meanwhile, Philippa and Dijkstra's plans are all falling into place. They have the perfect king to mould. But it's time to cut some loose threads. Jaskier's life is in danger - and betrayal may come from the person he trusts the most.

Sins laid bare (Tomb Raider, Jacob/Lara, M, 2.3k)

Lara has been obsessed with the mysterious Prophet figure for a long time so goes in search to meet him. When he finally agrees to talk with her via a confessional, things escalate quickly.

A rosebud by any other name (geraskefer, E, ongoing - currently 50.6k)

Jaskier gets a client in a certain white haired witcher who just keeps coming back. The pair find themselves growing close. It's a little complicated, but they think they could make it work. Until one day, in walks a violet eyed sorceress looking for Jaskier.

What follows is an enlightening conversation, a precarious relationship, a new career and a little bit of subterfuge

DECEMBER

Spymasters and secrets (Dijkstra/Radovid, E, 3.4k)

Radovid always pushed and pushed Dijkstra. Sometimes he needed to be put in his place.

I’ll tell you no lies (Tomb Raider, Jacob/Lara, T, 3.3k)

Jacob, having been fatally wounded during Trinity's invasion, asks Lara to kill him. Lara grits her teeth and pulls the trigger. Then she witnesses something extraordinary.

In the bleak midwinter (yenralt, G, 2.9k)

Ciri had been down lately. With Yule coming up, Geralt and Yennefer decide to do something to cheer her up.

The eye of the storm (frinfran, M, 1.2k)

After escaping Thanedd, Francesca and Fringilla find themselves alone with only each other for comfort.

The sea and the sun (yennskier, E, 9.8k)

Finding himself getting into trouble while swimming in the sea, Jaskier is saved by the most captivating creature he had ever seen. A goddess. He makes it his mission to find her again and, when he does, he finds the goddess who saved him comes with a tail and very sharp claws

Mind, body, yours (Rience/Jaskier, geraskier, E, ongoing - currently 36.9k)

Jaskier wakes up tied to a chair, injured and no memory of what had happened. Rescue comes in the form of a strange mage who gives him refuge as he heals. Jaskier quickly finds himself falling under Rience's spell. And when he tells him that Ciri would be safer with him than with Geralt and asks him to take her from under the witcher's nose, Jaskier cannot say no.

Tagging a bunch of people I know write: @bambirex @swanfloatieknight @flootzavut @between-thepages @janjan-the-ninth @cherryjuicegf @damatris @kuwdora

#the witcher #tomb raider #the witcher fanfic #ao3 #fanfic authors #fanfic #2023

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roughentumble · 8 days

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like i guess im just shocked everyone acted like there were no ulterior motives at play here when this is a relationship absolutely mired in ulterior motives. no matter how genuine they are when they meet in the middle, their only connection is that radovid wants ciri and thinks he can use jaskier to get to her, and jaskier knows this but thinks maybe he can twist the situation into one where ciri is protected. in the process selling ciri down the river by pulling the exact same move triss later does, where triss sells ciri out to the lodge thinking its what's best for her. jaskier is becoming yet another adult that thinks beyond the absolute truth of giving ciri full control and autonomy over her own life to an easier end where she just capitulates to higher powers in order to be "safe" in a world that will never be safe for her, because those higher powers see her as a bargaining chip and a breeding vessel before they see her as human

geralt and yen no longer have jaskier at their back and dont yet have the hansa with them, having ciri's best interests at heart whether they succeed in their endeavors or not. they're alone now, just the two of them. jaskier wants to sell ciri to radovid. triss wants to sell her to the lodge. vesemir wants to use her to create more witchers. less and less people on ciri's side. it's a really heartbreaking turn the netflix series has decided to pursue, but i havent seen any discussion about it, and it kind of breaks my heart/makes me worried im not following enough witcher blogs if i missed it!

#witcher tag #s3 spoilers

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panur · 6 months

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post elopement/Hansovid Radovid settles into what passes as 'domestic' life with his disaster bard, and finally finds a fulfilling profession by writing trashy romance novels

like, he invents bodice rippers but for men (doublet rippers??? XD) under the pen name R.C. Prince (THANKS FOR THE BEST PSEUDONYM EVER @flawney)

Radovid: they called me insane, but i know what the market wants!

he writes 2-4 of these a year and they sell like hot cakes XD

Yes, Cahir knows they're terrible, yet reads all of them. For the plot.

Radovid: the plot about noblemen getting railed?

Cahir: write one about knights.

#radskier #hansa radovid #hansovid #jaskier #radovid the stern #the witcher #the witcher netflix #not canon but should be #AU'S AND UA'S MAKE PANUR A HAPPY GIRL #it's free real estate prompt just tag me so i can read #prancing plotbunnies

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jebbifurzz · 9 months

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The Witcher Netflix speculation regarding Radovid/Jaskier and Anna Henrietta/Jaskier

With the addition of the Radovid/Jaskier relationship to The Witcher Netflix, I am wondering if the Duchess Anna Henrietta's relationship with Jaskier is going to be seriously altered later in the show.

In the books, Anna Henrietta is the duchess and sole ruler of Toussaint, and Jaskier is extremely taken with her, in a way he had never been shown to be before, to the point that he leaves the Hansa to stay with her. Jaskier's relationship with her is partially what keeps the Hansa in Toussaint for so long, and enables Fringilla to seduce Geralt and further forestall his company/ take information from him.

Here's where my wondering comes in: Jaskier's story with Radovid is very similar to that of Anna Henrietta. With both, Jaskier has a heretofore unseen romance with a royal who goes on to become sole monarch. This powerful lover can feed and take care of him in supreme comfort and luxury, and takes him away from his commitment to Geralt for a time, before it ends kind of badly. Manipulative mages are close to either monarch (Philippa and Fringilla), using the situation for their own gain.

With these close similarities, I wonder if they are giving this plotline to Radovid over Anna Henrietta? Is Radovid going to come in later and put up the whole Hansa in a castle, and keep them from moving on? It could easily work, except Redania isn't Toussaint. They were in Toussaint because they had been traveling to Nilfgaard to save Ciri. Redania... is not really on the way. Although, the Netflix series is a little weird on locations sometimes, so they may just gloss over it.

Or maybe the Hansa will stay with Anna Henrietta, but since her plot already went to Radovid, Jaskier won't be as enamoured of her, and he will move on with the Hansa, and not stay behind. After all, Netflix has Yennifer completely fine after Thanedd, presumably to give her more screen time. Maybe they'll want to keep Jaskier in the Hansa, to give him more screen time too, since everyone loves him.

Or, for sheer hilarity, is Jaskier just going to have another serious romance with another ruler of a country? That would be pretty funny, Jaskier traveling around the continent romancing all the royalty. Watch out, Emhyr! Jaskier's coming to sweep you off your feet!

#anna henrietta #the witcher #the witcher netflix #jaskier #dandelion #geralt of rivia #fringilla vigo #toussaint #redania #radovid #book spoilers #but those books have been out for a while #nilfgaard

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aro-tarot · 9 months

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Just finished vol. 2 of The Witcher s3, and ah, this season has been so good!

And now I will proceed to probably ramble with spoilers:

First off, our bard is still shoveling things into his mouth.

I am so happy to see Milva! She’s my favorite book character, and I already love her here. She brought a laugh out of me, and of course, she’s a badass. Then Jaskier with the whole there’s this weird energy between you two. Then the song bit out of Geralt’s death. Oh, I am exciting for the hansa. Let’s gooo. lol.

How Radskier left off. Like, knew Radovid would become king, but ah, he was trying to leave! He wants to be with Jaskier and help him, and now he can’t! Ahhhh! Will need to go and read some fanfics. Maybe write one. I still have that one plot I was reworking for my first The Witcher fanfic that would work nicely.

And going off what Yennefer says, it looks like Geralt is still going to struggle with pain in his leg while fighting. I remember back in s1 seeing people hope that stayed in, and it looks like it.

Ciri’s dark arc is coming.

I was happy to see more of Radovid and Jaskier in e7 since when I watched e6 during the fan event, I was like, “Nice. Jaskier standing up for himself. He’s finally getting that self-worth.” Which I’ve reblogged posts and have talked about it a bit on here. With like s2 and like Jaskier in s3 and how people treat him and how he’s seeing himself. But then I was also like, “That was over quickly. I know that we needed to get to all the shit going down, but before the title card and that’s it?” And it turned out that was not it. Jaskier still isn’t just going to take him back. He’s hurt. There was a maybe because obvi Radovid needs to make it up to him and actually show that he’s not lying. And of course, now he’s trapped. He was going to give it all up. I’m really curious to see how that’s going to go down. And obvi Radovid is just going to be manipulated. He’s never been useful, and he finally found how he could and the person he could be with if the other forgave him, and that’s all been taken from him. Oh, I know while we all wait for the next season, the fanfics are going to be good.

Jaskier saying his family.

I’m still processing things. Obvi my brain is just like: Jaskier! Milva! Family! So good! This season was just so good!

And like, other random things in there.

I have some other things I need to paint first, get some of that done, but after that, or at least getting a good chunk of that done or make it clear I have time to do more than I need to for that, I’m definitely doing some fanart lol

#I'm never good at expressing how much I really like something in words #and just do so by bringing it up a ton and surrounding myself with it #so I'm sure others have said their enjoyment of this season better than I #des says stuff #the witcher spoilers

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endiness · 9 months

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This comes just before Radovid was about to chase after Jaskier (you didn’t think Jaskier would let Geralt be alone for an adventure, did you?!) and help him and Geralt on their quest to get to Nilfgaard.

(affectionate)

HANSA!RADOVID COULD’VE BEEN REAL!!!

#radskier #radovid #jaskier #the witcher #!txt: the witcher #volume 2 spoilers #the witcher spoilers

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musamulta-arc · 2 years

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Who do you ship Jaskier with out of the Witcher characters?

Oh heck, uh... many. It’s all chemistry based, really? When it comes to Geralt, he does tend to have some level of feelings no matter if we’re talking show, books, or games. Outside of that...

Mmmm Yennefer (though it takes some plotting), could do Eskel or Lambert, maybe even someone from the hansa like Cahir. Anna Henrietta is on the list. Maybe a sorceress. Filavandrel’s on the list, too. It kind of just depends!

Essi and Priscilla are both likely not people he’d ship with, more like sibling material.

The only people I’m against are like... Ciri, Radovid, Vesemir, Triss, that sort of thing.

#ooc #he's a really open character for shipping tbh #but i highly value chemistry #if something clicks then it clicks

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bomberqueen17 · 3 years

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a primer on the 3rd Nilfgaardian War

So someone sent me a note, pertaining to the last chapter of Fit For Pearls where I’d had Morvran explaining the political situation, asking me a few questions about specific scenarios, and from the questions I eventually realized that while I had a pretty clear idea of how the war ended up, the commenter did not. And it struck me that, well, it is sort of breezed-over in the game. It’s just presented as a bare fact that Nilfgaard has almost the whole North-- well, everything up to the Pontar-- and if you’re not paying attention it’s easy to overlook.

So here’s a basic summary of what has happened in the Third Nilfgaardian War, and how it ends if you’ve wound up on the Empress Ciri ending, which is what I’m taking as the foundation for the stories I’m writing. (No shade to the other endings, I just wanted to write about court intrigue and bookish lesbians; fair play if you’ve got other dreams, and more power to you.)

My sources are of course all Witcher 3, at this point. Emphasis added in quotations is mine. We have the backdrop of the books, which take place during the Second Nilfgaardian War, which ends in, mmm, a tactical retreat from the North, for Nilfgaard. As a part of that, there were many lovely stories of resistance from Lyria and Rivia, and so on. Thronebreaker, which is the story of Queen Meve’s resistance during the second war, has brought this idea back to the forefront of people’s minds. (In the books, we encounter that mostly because Geralt’s hansa runs into them trying to cross the Yaruga River, and winds up fighting on Meve’s side, hence Geralt getting knighted as Geralt of Rivia; it’s addressed briefly in Blood and Wine when Meve’s surviving son demands satisfaction since Geralt ran off after being knighted, and Meve took that as desertion. I’ll come back to him, though.)

So here’s the thing about Witcher 3: it is not about the war, and so the war is given extremely light-handed treatment. It is obviously going on, but there is absolutely no attention paid to how, except a few very minimal conversations, clearly just enough to hang the plot on. So it’s quite easy to miss the details, so I figured I’d just sort of collate them here for easy reference. All of this is pretty easily findable by just messing around in a search engine, if you’d like more information now that you know what to look for, and I’ll link to the map so you can look at place names in high-res.

So, in Witcher 3, we first get an explanation of How The War Is Going when Geralt is brought to see Emhyr at Vizima. Now, Vizima is the capital of Temeria, so the fact that the Emperor of Nilfgaard is sitting in the palace at Vizima speaks very eloquently as to the state of Temeria. (That, and how devastated the countryside is around White Orchard and in Velen, both of which are in Temeria.)

Ambassador var Attre is sent in to debrief Geralt, and gives us this snippet of dialogue:

Geralt: How is the war going? I mean, apart from the fact that Nilfgaard's triumph is imminent.

Ambassador Var Attre: I assume this to be a private conversation. We've no witnesses, so let's dispense with propaganda, even that shrouded in irony. Our offensive was going splendidly - until winter came. Aedirn was in such disarray that we encountered no resistance. We had reached the Pontar before the first snows.

He then goes off about the Kaedwen/Redania situation (which, if you haven’t played the games, is that Radovid of Redania attacked and conquered Kaedwen, which otherwise might have succumbed easily to Nilfgaard, and now controls both as a united front, and Nilfgaard is worried about it), but that’s it, a single line, that’s all Aedirn gets. Which, tragically, means that Lyria & Rivia don’t even get a mention-- but, to get to Aedirn, that’s got to be the route Nilfgaard took.

In addition, later in the game, Geralt encounters Temeria’s own Vernon Roche, living in a cave as a literal underground resistance. (This cave is technically located in Redania, just west of Novigrad.)

Roche says, “When Nilfgaard crossed the Yaruga, I dropped everything, threw it all away to hell, and rode for the front to fight the invader. Joined the 2nd Temerian Army under John Natalis. We were to stop the Black Ones’ advance along the Dol Blathanna - Mount Carbon line.” [image description: W3 screenshot featuring Vernon Roche, firelit, reciting the quoted line of dialogue above.]

So I’ve taken the liberty of inserting a bit of a map [original source] upon which I’ve circled Mt Carbon and Dol Blathanna, and drawn a dotted line between them to give some indication of what Roche could possibly be talking about. [image description: a map of the Continent, with crude yellow circles around the two locations, both of which are in Aedirn.]

This makes apparent a startling truth: neither of the endpoints of that line are in Temeria. This indicates that Temeria has to have invaded (or been invited into) Aedirn in order to attempt to stop Nilfgaard.

I know, this is kind of a lot to just-- not mention, but. Remember Witcher 3 is entirely from Geralt’s POV (except when it’s Ciri’s in weird flashbacks), and Geralt was distracted and, we must conclude, not in a position to give a whole ton of fucks about what was going on in the greater world.

So the 2nd Temerian Army, we are told, was stretched across basically the dead center of Aedirn (for some fucking reason, IDK, nobody gets into it; I could see if they were level with Mt Carbon but in Temeria somehow, except why mention Dol Blathanna? No, that’s the other side of Aedirn; they have to be east of Mahakam for the whole thing. WHY. I don’t know), and managed to hold out for three days before Nilfgaard “smashed us to splinters”, says Roche, and since then, the 2nd was reduced to guerrilla resistance, and to learn the rest of Temeria’s status, we can return to the initial briefing with Ambassador var Attre, comfortably ensconced in the palace at Vizima:

Geralt: Hm... how do things look in Velen?

Ambassador: As bad as ever... perhaps worse. This land never flowed with milk and honey, and now it flows with blood. Armies have swept through it several times, trampling fields, looting granaries, burning villages. Famine grips the populace.

Geralt: Mhm. So how's ruling that earthly paradise going for you?

Ambassador: Not well, to be honest. Our forces are spread thin as it is, and Velen is chiefly swampy forests that are difficult to control. We've had several patrols never return to their camps. Thus, we've temporarily delegated authority in this region to a certain Nordling, a former low ranking officer in the Temerian army, one Phillip Strenger. Better known by his nom de guerre, the Bloody Baron. I advise you well - avoid him.

At any rate-- this is what we know, then, of the Third Nilfgaardian War.

Nilfgaard apparently (? we don’t know, I’m assuming here) thought Temeria too tough a nut to crack from the south, so they crossed the Yaruga to the east, went up through Lyria and Rivia, smashed through Aedirn where Temeria had come to try to forestall them (for reasons we just don’t know! We aren’t told! We can’t know! Tight 3rd per POV babey!) and then-- we actually don’t know whether Nilfgaard then wheeled west through Vergen and the Upper Pontar, and then came into Temeria that way around Mahakam, OR if once Temeria was weakened by its unexplained defense of Aedirn, Nilfgaard then found Sodden a soft enough target to launch a second attack that way. We don’t know! We know there’s a large Nilfgaardian army post in the south of Velen, and we know there was just a major battle in White Orchard, but those could have resulted from an attack from either the east or the south.

It’s possible there exist more materials on this, perhaps lists of what Nilfgaardian units we know about-- if it’s the same unit that smashed through Aedirn that’s now stationed in Velen, there’s our answer, but if it’s a different one well that doesn’t necessarily mean anything.

(It’s possible that Nilfgaard crossed the Yaruga in several places, and Temeria’s resistance forced them eastward, and so Temeria’s army sort of accidentally wound up in Aedirn because that’s where the battle went, in a struggle to keep from being outflanked, and then Temeria’s army was pushed backwards into Aedirn, and by the time Roche caught up with them they’d been forced back as far as Mt Carbon? It’s possible! We don’t know. If so, it happened fast enough that Ambassador Var Attre could dismiss it as “we encountered no resistance”, unless he was being specific and the only resistance they countered was Temerian (who, Roche admits, they “smashed to splinters” in a matter of days). It’s... not necessarily contradictory or a plot hole, it’s just very obviously that our POV character does not care enough to seek out the entire coherent story.)

But what we know, for sure and for certain, is that Nilfgaard utterly controls the North as far as Redania and Kaedwen, and this expressly includes Aedirn, and presumably includes Vergen, and, sorry to say it, implicitly includes Lyria and Rivia because there’d be no way to have gotten to Aedirn without going through them. That is the line where they stopped, at the Pontar.

[image description: a cropped map of the Continent with everything below the Pontar highlighted in yellow for “pretty sure” and orange for “probably”, indicating areas Nilfgaard isn’t mentioned as conquering but probably effectively has some measure of control over, with the white labeled “nope!” for expressly unconquered areas.]

Here’s our friendly map again, this time with the areas Nilfgaard controls highlighted. No, we know nothing explicit of Kerack, of Verden, Cidaris, everything off to the left there-- it’s just not mentioned, but it’d be pretty unlikely that they find themselves uninvolved somehow. (Also Mahakam, nominally but never really under Temeria’s control, home to large numbers of dwarves with more power than anyone realizes-- there’s no WAY Nilfgaard conquered that, but I also doubt they’re actively fighting against Nilfgaard in any way, nor would they be friendly with any human resistance fighters.) (IDK Dol Blathanna was already a vassal state of Nilfgaard’s, so I figured it hasn’t been reconquered, so I colored it orange, but who even knows how to categorize that.)

(Depending on the end of the game, whether Dijkstra lives or dies, whether Radovid lives or dies-- well, for the Empress Ciri ending, all those things have to fall into place like dominoes, and she winds up controlling Redania and Kaedwen too, though I’m fuzzy on who is a vassal state and who just pays tribute. Which really leaves not a lot of white on that map.)

We can console ourselves that 1) there was a huge amount of cut content involving Iorveth and Roche which presumably would have delved into, I don’t know, literally anything about the underlying situations up north. Who knows? The imagination here is fertile, and 2) we meet Meve’s surviving son Anséis in the Blood and Wine expansion and he talks about his mother and if you snoop you can find this letter from her to him among his gear:

[img description: a photo of the screen from a playthru of Witcher 3. Transcript: “Anséis’s Letter: Dear Son, Judging by your prolonged absence from the palace, I must conclude you have yet again rode off to join the knights’ tourney in Toussaint. Despite my asking you not to do so. Twice in a row you begged coin from me for the tourney, boasting with confidence you would win the tourney if you could but have a new horse, armor, and sword. Twice in a row I gave in to your pleading. This year I forbade you from going, yet I see I merely rule my realm, not my own son. Enjoy yourself, but know that your monthly allowance ends today. No matter your place on the podium. I am sending a messenger with this letter to Beauclair and trust he will find you there. Your Loving Mother, Meve” end transcript]

So, Meve still rules, despite Nilfgaard having rolled over her; we can presume then that she made some sort of arrangement with them. Because there’s just no way that Nilfgaard somehow tore through Aedirn in a matter of days, on the way to Temeria, without having passed through Lyria and Rivia.

We can assume that likely Nilfgaard has established vassal states, similarly retaining the old heads of state, in other countries as well, and that’s what I’m going with. i do believe some of that is made explicit in game dialogue toward the end of the game, as we find out the end-state after Radovid is killed in the endings where that happens, etc. But, the point I’m making with all this, is that Nilfgaard pretty convincingly controls most of the North by the beginning of Witcher 3.

At any rate-- this is a more in-depth discussion than I put into Morvran’s mouth, but to those who haven’t played the games, perhaps this is a useful bit of information.

(h/t to @akilah12902 for the shot of Anséis’s letter!)

#information post #witcher 3 #canon primer #not all details may be accurate #this is just my best effort #also i physically restrained myself with those text effects #you bet your ass i did that in full Photoshop #i don't know how to use Paint #witcher 3 spoilers

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