Summary
The Witcherseries has several factions and fantasy beings that are long-lived. These include witchers, who live as long until they’re killed. There are intelligent monsters, such as high vampires, who live forever. Then there are the sorceresses, who live for hundreds of years. IfThe Witcher 4is going to feature an entirely new cast of characters, it’s going to need a significant time jump if any sorcerers are going to feature as they do in the originalThe Witchertrilogy of games.
Sorcerers inThe Witcherare a faction of magic users who are typically women thanks to their organization and politics. They’re an important group because they’re the only ones who can use magic in any significant way and who cooperate with those in power on the Continent. Because there are so few of them, and their nature necessitates being taught magic, sorcerers all tend to know each other, making it difficult to include one without mentioning or featuring other known sorcerers. This becomes problematic ifThe Witcher 4wants an entirely new cast.
Sorcerers in The Witcher Games
While witchers and other factions are also long-lived, sorcerers are more insular. Most sorcerers knew each other, with only a few magic schools to control their power, mostnotably Aretuza and Ban Ard. Because sorcerers are the only beings capable of using magic in a way that matters inThe Witcher, they tend to feature in the stories thanks to their roles in the political landscape.
Witchers are Isolated
Whilewitchers are also a faction that is insular, there is more than one faction and these factions don’t tend to mingle. Geralt has met witchers in his travels that he’s never heard of before, whereas most sorcerers have either met or know each other by reputation. This problem extends to the audience, who are at least familiar with the major sorcerers.
Because sorcerers are so long-lived and because magical ability is so rare, to have a completely new cast of characters inThe Witcher 4, a time jump either forward or backward that removes the known sorcerers from play would be necessary.The Witcher 4would need to go back several hundred years to eliminate the current generation and their teachers, and forward by at least several hundred years to eliminate sorceresses like Yennefer and Triss.
Solutions to the Insular Sorcerers in The Witcher 4
An alternative solution to a massive time jump would be to introduce new characters and only mention theotherWitchersorcerers who appear in the original trilogy, but this would be a clunky way to avoid them. Sorcerers by their profession are significant because they’re required to go to prestigious institutions to learn how to control their magical talent; those who don’t become consumed by magic and die young. The sorcerers then meet each other at one of the two magic schools, then go on to royal courts or other prestigious positions across the Continent.
It would be unlikely that there is a sorcerer who isn’t at least acquainted with another sorcerer simply because they need to learn magic, as seen with Ciri.
Giving CD Projekt Red More Control
Moving the timeline several hundred years ahead would work well in this situation, as it would also give CD Projekt Red the freedom tochange the world ofThe Witcher 4as they like, including the status of both the sorcerers and the witchers. It would also allow the studio to introduce completely new characters and expand the world, rather than having endless cameos, which possibly has the drawback of making the world feel tiny.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
WHERE TO PLAY
You are Geralt of Rivia, mercenary monster slayer. Before you stands a war-torn, monster-infested continent you can explore at will. Your current contract? Tracking down Ciri — the Child of Prophecy, a living weapon that can alter the shape of the world.PLAY AS A HIGHLY TRAINED MONSTER SLAYER FOR HIRETrained from early childhood and mutated to gain superhuman skills, strength, and reflexes, witchers are a counterbalance to the monster-infested world in which they live.Gruesomely destroy foes as a professional monster hunter armed with a range of upgradeable weapons, mutating potions, and combat magic. Hunt down a wide variety of exotic monsters, from savage beasts prowling mountain passes to cunning supernatural predators lurking in the shadowy back alleys of densely populated cities. Invest your rewards to upgrade your weaponry and buy custom armor, or spend them on horse races, card games, fist fighting, and other pleasures life brings.EXPLORE A MORALLY AMBIGUOUS FANTASY OPEN WORLDBuilt for endless adventure, the massive open world of The Witcher sets new standards in terms of size, depth, and complexity. Traverse a fantastical open world: explore forgotten ruins, caves, and shipwrecks, trade with merchants and dwarven smiths in cities, and hunt across the open plains, mountains, and seas. Deal with treasonous generals, devious witches, and corrupt royalty to provide dark and dangerous services. Make choices that go beyond good & evil, and face their far-reaching consequences.
