Hej, chciałem podzielić się czymś, co od dawna daje mi dużo rozrywki i satysfakcji – grą tekstową RPG Arkadia. To nie jest typowy MMORPG z grafiką 3D, ale coś znacznie bardziej klimatycznego i wyjątkowego. Jeśli lubisz świat Wiedźmina albo Warhammera i masz trochę wyobraźni, to może być coś dla Ciebie!

Na Arkadii wcielasz się w postać, którą sam tworzysz – wybierasz rasę i to, kim chcesz być. Krasnolud rzemieślnik? Elf z komanda Scoia’tael? Dumny krasnolud z Mahakamu? Dumny niziołek z Nilfgaardu? Wszystko zależy od Ciebie. Gra jest całkowicie tekstowa, więc cała fabuła, opisy miejsc i postaci powstają w Twojej głowie. Gracze tworzą społeczności, które odznaczają się skomplikowanymi relacjami, polityką. To przez decyzje i zachowania graczy zawierane są piękne sojusze i wypowiadane trwające latami wojny. Na początku trudno się przyzwyczaić do gry bez grafiki, ale z czasem nabiera do dużo plusów, ponieważ tekst nie ma graficznych i silnikowych ograniczeń.

Arkadia jest tworzona przez graczy, dla graczy. Nie ma tu żadnych mikropłatności czy agresywnej monetyzacji – wszystko jest robione non-profit od 1997 roku. To trochę jak granie w papierowego RPG-a online, tylko w ogromnym, żywym świecie, w którym możesz spotkać innych graczy i przeżywać przygody razem z nimi.

Oczywiście, początki mogą być trudne, bo to nie jest gra, która prowadzi Cię za rękę. Ale społeczność jest naprawdę pomocna – jeśli czegoś nie wiesz, zawsze znajdzie się ktoś, kto podpowie.

Jeśli jesteś ciekawy, wejdź na stronę arkadia.rpg.pl i zobacz, czy to coś dla Ciebie. A jeśli masz pytania albo potrzebujesz pomocy na start, śmiało daj znać – chętnie pomogę!

Temat po polsku, żeby nie denerwować naszych obcojęzycznych przyjaciół na tym subie. Spoilery też w miarę możliwości starajmy się trzymać za ogólnikami, bez konkretnych szczegółów. Jak podejrzewam trochę osób pewnie kupi/dostanie książkę na gwiazdkę, nie psujmy im lektury.

Ode mnie to będą raczej luźne uwagi niż recenzja, ale bardzo chętnie poczytam inne opinie, nawet wypracowania, jeśli komuś będzie się chciało takie napisać.

Jak pisałem już kilkukrotnie w różnych tematach, pierwsze wrażenie jak najbardziej pozytywne. Skończyłem pierwsze czytanie parę dni temu, zabrałem się za drugie. Jak na razie nie mam do czego się przyczepić, może z czasem, i z kolejnymi lekturami to się zmieni. Czytało się dobrze, akcja kiedy trzeba wartka, fabuła do rzeczy, bez dłużyzn. Doskonałe operowanie słowem, dobre dialogi, inteligentny humor, gierki słowne. Ciut za dużo łaciny jak na mój gust, ale nie przeszkadza. Czego znaczenia nie znałem, łatwo było domyślić się z kontekstu.

Krótko, treściwie i na temat. Sapko zdecydowanie wrócił do formy po rozlazłym "Sezonie burz", który dla mnie osobiście był ni w pięć, ni w dziewięć. Chciałoby się oczywiście trochę więcej, ale lepiej, że jest krócej i treściwiej, nawet z lekkim niedosytem, niż gdyby przesadził w drugą stronę.

Co pozostaje, to przeczytać wszystkie książki jeszcze raz, od opowiadań, przez sagę, Sezon, zakończyć na Rozdrożu, zobaczyć jak całość się klei i wtedy dokonać ponownej oceny. Ale to zadanie na przyszły rok.

The title. I try to pinpoint the source for another user who asked the source for this information. I am pretty sure I read somewhere in the books that girls undergoing the trial have lethality rate of 100%. So I was wondering do I remember this info wrong or was this only stated in the games themselves.

Did Geralt maybe discuss this topic with Regis or another companion? In other words are there information to this topic in one of the other books than blood of the elves?

So I always liked Ciri in the books. She was was always a annoying brat who was on one hand very proud of herself, thought highly of herself, relished in her own beauty from time to time. But she was also very insecure and traumatized and went through many horrible experiences. She was the subversion trope of the choosen one. Instead of it being great to be the choosen one it was nothing but a burden to her. I liked that potrayal a lot. Since she was the one everyone wanted for their own political ambitions, with her struggle to choose her own path, but alwways bound by her lineage, by other and the prophecy of her child surpassing her and being the true choosen one.

Now in Witcher 3 she became the choosen one instead, instead of her daughter according to the prophecy who will defeat the white frost, now Ciri defeats the white frost as the choosen one. Not only that but she works with avallach for reasons now plus is still very childish, immature and sulks. Imo book ciri was more mature and had more character development in the books than W3 Ciri so Ciri always fell flat to me in the games, except for the interactions with her and Geralt those were indeed touching. What I meant to say her character growth from the books was not represented in the game, only some charcteristics. So Ciri was still Ciri but it was reduced imo to her surface level traits and they did not flesh her out enough to show her deeper layers from the books. Additionally I hoped because she was a young adult now would be more mature as a young adult, but she felt imo the opposite more immature in the games than her book counterpart.

So I just hope they will improve Ciri characterization going forward with the Witcher 4, by making her more layered like in the books, thus making her more complelling and hopefully address all the lore questions, like e.g. is her lineage now over if she should become infertile, will she loose her elder blood power, why did she do it etc.

So what do you all think about Ciri potrayal in the books versus the games? Do you think Ciri is protagonist material again, after already being a main in the books, when we already know so much from her in the books? Is there more potential to explore of her character?

So, a year or so back i heard from one of my friends who is always more into the witcher than me that a new book with a new protagonist and a whole new cast outside of Geralt but in the continent would come out around this time or early-mid 2025 depending how fast it was finished in polish and then the english translation.

My question is sorta, did I get baited? and my other question is, if after Season of Storms there's anything new? since I think somewhere around I heard Andrzej was wanting to do like one or two more books before moving on to the new stories in the continent

Yes, i purchased the book. No I can not provide a full translation, but if this is any good you can do it yourself.

Ran a few paragraphs through chat gpt. Wondering how accurate it is before i go ahead with the rest.

Ge­ralt mimo naj­szczer­szych chęci – i z ra­czej wa­żnych po­wo­dów – ni­jak nie mógł sku­pić się na ga­da­ni­nie wój­ta. Całą jego uwa­gę po­chła­nia­ła wiel­ka wy­pcha­na wro­na na wój­to­wym sto­le. Wro­na, ły­pi­ąc na wie­dźmi­na szkla­nym okiem, sta­ła na pod­staw­ce z po­ma­lo­wa­nej na zie­lo­no gli­ny, obie nó­żki wro­ny były w ową gli­nę wto­pio­ne. Wro­na tedy, mimo ab­so­lut­nie ży­we­go wy­glądu, żad­nym spo­so­bem żywą być nie mo­gła, nie ule­ga­ło to kwe­stii. Cze­mu za­tem, nie mógł na­dzi­wić się Ge­ralt, wro­na kil­ka­krot­nie już swym szkla­nym okiem mru­gnęła do nie­go? By­ła­byż to ma­gia? Ra­czej nie, bo jego wie­dźmi­ński me­da­lion nie drgnął  ani nie za­wi­bro­wał, ani razu i ani tro­szecz­kę. Czy­żby ha­lu­cy­na­cja za­tem? Omam? Wy­wo­ła­ny cho­ćby tym, że parę razy wal­ni­ęto go w gło­wę?

– Po­wtó­rzę py­ta­nie – po­wtó­rzył py­ta­nie wójt Bu­la­va. – Po­wtó­rzę, choć po­wta­rzać nie zwy­kłem.

Wójt Bu­la­va kil­ka­krot­nie już za­pew­nił Ge­ral­ta, że nie zwy­kł po­wta­rzać. Mimo tego po­wta­rzał co i rusz. Wi­docz­nie lu­bił, choć nie zwy­kł.

– Po­wtó­rzę moje py­ta­nie: o co tak na­praw­dę po­szło? Coś ty miał do tego de­zer­te­ra, żeś go tak okrop­nie po­rąbał? Ja­kieś daw­ne ura­zy? Bo ni­jak, wi­dzisz, nie uwie­rzę, że to o tego wie­śnia­ka szło i o cze­ść dziew­czy­ńską jego có­recz­ki. Żeś to niby na ra­tu­nek po­spie­szył. Ni­czym jaki za­sra­ny ry­cerz błęd­ny.

Wro­na łyp­nęła. Ge­ralt po­ru­szył zwi­ąza­ny­mi z tyłu ręka­mi, sta­ra­jąc się po­bu­dzić krąże­nie krwi. Po­wróz bo­le­śnie wrzy­nał mu się w prze­gu­by. Za ple­ca­mi sły­szał ci­ężki od­dech wiej­skie­go dra­ba. Drab stał tuż za nim, a Ge­ralt pe­wien był, że tyl­ko cze­ka na pre­tekst, by po­now­nie pal­nąć go pi­ęścią w ucho.

Wójt Bu­la­va sap­nął, roz­pa­rł się w krze­śle, wy­pi­ął brzuch i ak­sa­mit­ny ka­ftan. Ge­ralt wpa­try­wał się w przód ka­fta­na i roz­po­zna­wał, co wójt jadł dziś, wczo­raj i przed­wczo­raj. I że przy­naj­mniej jed­no z tych dań było w po­mi­do­ro­wym so­sie.

Despite his most sincere efforts—and for rather important reasons—Geralt couldn’t focus on the mayor’s chatter. His entire attention was absorbed by the large stuffed crow on the mayor’s table. The crow, staring at the witcher with a glass eye, stood on a green-painted clay base, both of its legs embedded in that clay. Thus, despite its absolutely lifelike appearance, the crow could by no means be alive—there was no question about that. Why then, Geralt wondered, did the crow wink at him several times with its glass eye? Could it be magic? Unlikely, because his witcher medallion hadn’t twitched or vibrated, not once and not even a little. Was it a hallucination then? An illusion? Maybe caused by having been hit on the head a few times?

“I’ll repeat the question,” repeated Mayor Bulava. “I’ll repeat, though I don’t usually repeat myself.”

Mayor Bulava had assured Geralt several times already that he didn’t usually repeat himself. Despite that, he kept repeating it. Apparently, he liked to, though he didn’t usually.

“I’ll repeat my question: what was it really about? What did you have against that deserter that you hacked him up so awfully? Some old grudges? Because you see, I can’t quite believe it was about that peasant and the honor of his daughter. That you supposedly rushed to her aid. Like some damned errant knight.”

The crow winked. Geralt shifted his hands, bound behind his back, trying to stimulate blood circulation. The rope painfully cut into his wrists. Behind him, he heard the heavy breathing of a village thug. The thug stood right behind him, and Geralt was sure he was just waiting for an excuse to punch him again.

Mayor Bulava sighed, settled back in his chair, and protruded his belly and velvet tunic. Geralt stared at the front of the tunic, discerning what the mayor had eaten today, yesterday, and the day before. And that at least one of those meals was in tomato sauce.

So until Neon Knight makes an episode I'm a bit curious on what decisions Geralt would make in Witcher 1?

I know that technically speaking Geralt has lost his memories, but assuming he relies on his instincts to make decisions, then the "canon" Geralt, according to Neon Knight, is the type of person to:

• A. Help innocent or seemingly innocent people who are in immediate danger.
• B. Trusts his friends and his "family" and will put them first and foremost.
• C. If he has to choose a side he would prefer to hear out and investigate both sides before making a decision.
• D. Prefers using violence as a last resort. Meaning he would rather find a peaceful solution or lift a curse than slay a beast.

With that said which decisions would Geralt make regarding the following quests:

1. Would he let the Scoia'tael unit in Strangers in the Night go or not?
2. Based on his thorough investigation, would he side with Abigail or the Reverend?
3. Would he give Alvin to Triss or Shani?
4. In Blue Eyes, would Geralt side with the Vampiresses, Patrick, or remain neutral?
5. In Gold Rush, would Geralt side with Siegfried or Yaevinn?
6. In Free Elves, would Geralt side with Toruviel, Rayla, or remain neutral?

What decisions would Geralt make in Witcher 1 in regards to the following?

Discussion

So until Neon Knight makes an episode I'm a bit curious on what decisions Geralt would make in Witcher 1?

I know that technically speaking Geralt has lost his memories, but assuming he relies on his instincts to make decisions, then the "canon" Geralt, according to Neon Knight, is the type of person to:

• A. Help innocent or seemingly innocent people who are in immediate danger.
• B. Trusts his friends and his "family" and will put them first and foremost.
• C. If he has to choose a side he would prefer to hear out and investigate both sides before making a decision.
• D. Prefers using violence as a last resort. Meaning he would rather find a peaceful solution or lift a curse than slay a beast.

With that said which decisions would Geralt make regarding the following quests:

1. Would he let the Scoia'tael unit in Strangers in the Night go or not?
2. Based on his thorough investigation, would he side with Abigail or the Reverend?
3. Would he give Alvin to Triss or Shani?
4. In Blue Eyes, would Geralt side with the Vampiresses, Patrick, or remain neutral?
5. In Gold Rush, would Geralt side with Siegfried or Yaevinn?
6. In Free Elves, would Geralt side with Toruviel, Rayla, or remain neutral?

It isn’t good, cause it’s my first one, but I tried my best. It’s called “A Witchers fight” and he fights an Kikimora 😅😂

Krótkie rozważania na temat 1 części gry z serii Wiedźmin. Dopiero zaczynam, przyjmę każdą uwagę z wdzięcznością :)

https://youtu.be/cMewmc12BwU?si=uwp6b77qnR9YwKhd

Please note I have not yet finished reading. I am about 3/4 through and am taking my time. Finished reading. What a bloody good novel that was. Going to start reading it second time tomorrow and soak up the details I missed in the first pass.

=====

I've seen a bunch of stuff thrown here and there and wanted to gather some things in one place. I may update this post or make a new one at a later date, once I've finished the book once and had read through it for the second time.

The novel itself is great.

Sapkowski is back in shape and his writing is, after somewhat disappointing - at least to me - Season of Storms, on par with what I got used to in previous novels. Good, snappy dialogues, word plays, intelligent, humorous descriptions and situations. Doesn't drag along, very easy and entertaining to read. Coherent narrative. Most importantly, no effing fart jokes!

Hopefully all you non-Polish speakers get a good translation that gets all of this right (I'm particularly looking at you, English language).

NOTE TO MODERATORS: please add new book title to the flair.

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Spoiler territory:

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Geralt's age: >!yes, he's 18 and his birth date is on par what has been stated here: https://www.reddit.com/r/wiedzmin/comments/1ha4mgd/geralts_age_has_been_officially_canonised_in_the/!<

Eskel >!is about the same if not the same age. Gerlat calls him "buddy" (druh). Eskel is also not his real name. He actually has a full first name, second name and a surname.!<

!Geralt on the other hand did not know his true name at the time. Yes, he learns about it later in his life but in Rozdroże Kruków he claims his real name was never revealed to him.!<

!He receives his head band here. But it is not due to anything related to fashion or because his hair got in the way.!<

Nenneke>!was an adept when Geralt was studying in the temple of Melitele. It was 8 years prior, so he was 10 at the time. That means he did not leave Kaer Morhen and went to study at the temple after his training, but was studying there while he was being trained. Along with other boys.!<

!She is about 10 years older than Geralt. She's described as being "nearly (or almost) thirty" at the time of Rozdroże Kruków.!<

Temple of Melitele >!was not in Temeria but in Kaedwen originally. Apparently all young boys from Kaer Morhen were sent there during their training to study. The priestesses are only considering moving to Ellander at the time of the novel, due to political reasons.!<

The pogrom>! at Kaer Morhen was 35 years prior to the events of the novel. 7 out of 8 witchers present in the fortress at the time died, having killed over 2/3rd out of about 100 attackers.!<

Vesemir >!was not present at the fortress during those events. He arrived later. The sole survivor was another witcher!<

!The author of Monstrum is revealed. And the motifs behind writing it.!<

I figured this was probably the best place to ask since this series unfortunately doesn't get much attention in North America

Have any of you guys read anything similar in theme/setting to the Hussite Trilogy? That is, medieval historical fiction with some elements of fantasy. Even just historical fiction in general! I'm just finishing up Lux Perpetua right now and it's making me very sad I won't get to see Reynavan for much longer so I need some more book recommendations :(

Also on Medium & blog.

In 2014 The Witcher 3’s design documents leaked ahead of the game’s publishing. In 2021 the game’s source code and original story drafts escaped. Today I bring you some cold, hard rumour. The Witcher 3 has a slapdash III Act. Battle with the Wild Hunt was supposed to take place in Novigrad. Avallac’h, instead of Eredin, was the “final boss.” Let’s talk about that.

In a follow-up to reading various TW3 story leaks across reddit, I asked for more details on the final twist. I’ll include screenshots of the 2014 documents for correlation and comparison. Keep an eye on the witcher subreddits in February 2025 (current ETA) and on this user’s Nexus page for a compilation of the story changes The Witcher 3 underwent before the 2015 release. (Others have compiled such information in the past.)

It’s a public secret that in the course of development, The Witcher 3 changed considerably: CD Projekt Red toned down the maturity of the story, simplifying when they could not decide on their vision, did not wish to risk audience confusion, or could not find proper technical solutions. One of the casualties of the rewrites of The Witcher 3 was the plotline involving the Wild Hunt, the Aen Elle elves, and the wrap-up of the game.

In the finalé, Geralt would get the chance to stop Ciri from going through with a “ritual” in the elven tower on Undvik. He would consequently fight Avallac’h.

Fans have hypothesized about the nature of the final betrayal for years. The infamous double bottom, however, was supposed to be complicated because Avallac’h was supposed to have a good case for the “noble betrayal.” The player got to know his motives and relationship with Ciri much more thoroughly before the III Act.

Leaks

For starters, UMA was going to be disenchanted in the II Act (q108) during Forefather’s Eve. The curse had two parts: one affecting the body, the other affecting the soul. (The (idea of) curses got reused in the Hearts of Stone DLC for the toad prince.) During Forefather’s Eve the player entered Avallac’h’s mind and witnessed his memories and fears for the future

The memories included a conversation with Ge’els at Tir ná Lia, Auberon’s funeral, human slaves and least one unicorn, Avallac’h’s life, struggles, fears for the future (a frozen Vizima & Ciri dead), and relationship with Ciri. Valuable background information¹ for understanding CDPR’s interpretation and development of Avallac’h’s character and bond with Ciri — lost. Much to the book readers’ chagrin in particular. It would have made the final twist more difficult for the player. In particular since the betrayal was supposed to be a noble one.

Here is a reference to the “noble betrayal” in the storyboard section (2014 leaks).

Here is what the person analysing the story changes told me when I first inquired about the ending of The Witcher 3 that never was. (For the record, here is the reference to the “ritual” in the 2014 leaks, so what the source is saying does check out.)

Alt account because the other 1 got temp banned. So the gig with Avallach was Ciri and him bailed from Novigrad to the tower as I said. The 'ritual' originally included sacrificing his and Ciri's life. The betrayal was about the fact the would not give Ciri a choice and if Geralt convinced her not to agree to that idea Avallac'h would attack them both.

Ritual? One that requires a double sacrifice!? One that requires self-sacrifice from Avallac’h? How interesting.

First, what is the “ritual” for, and what does it entail?

• Is the White Frost as in the published TW3 or is the endgame something totally different? Are we still in the “save all worlds from eventual freezing” scenario (a book retcon) or not?
• If the “ritual” is played straight then CDPR gave Avallac’h’s character a “noble” but fatalistic interpretation from start to finish.
• If the “ritual” is a ruse, a cover for something unknown (a sequel?), then this would dovetail with the “Ciri missing” ending in both the published game and in Andrzej Sapkowski’s books:

• Perhaps death is not an inevitability, but abduction and/or permanent or temporary departure from Sapkowski’s Neverland is?

• In the published game, the player can hear Ciri’s mumblings abroad the ship on Skellige: *“What if tomorrow I will disappear for good? Maybe then no one close to me will have to die anymore.”* Aside exposing us to Ciri’s state of mind, it could be the voicelines are remnants of an earlier draft and point toward one possible ending; with Avallac’h “helping” Ciri disappear forever.

Secondly, it really hammers home the narrative of Geralt & Avallac’h competing over whose influence and philosophy on Ciri wins out. The Greater Good or “if this is what it take to save the world, better let it die.” It also underscores what Avallac’h expressed in The Tower of the Swallow, “…someone else will help her now. you cannot be so arrogant to think that the girl’s destiny is exclusively bound to you.”

Thirdly, the double-sacrifice.

• Dying together with the last soul anchoring you to your memories of perhaps the happiest (and saddest time) of your life while saving the sentient life of the universe sounds pretty tragic or tragi-romantic: after everything to end it (and the Elder Blood line with it); for the greater good.

• Somewhat twistedly this may mirror Lara and Cregennan (died in the name of peace between races; if that was true).

• Moreover Ciri — who, as we will learn in a moment, is there willingly actually — AGREES to Avallac’h’s intentions by default. Ciri’s idealism, but also her unwillingness to let others suffer and die in her place when she could do something about is something that the player should realise during the game.

• And while Elder Blood may be needed for special feats (though Avallac’h also carries Elder Blood), I would like to think that in case this “ritual” is played straight there may be an element of “in the end, you don’t have to be alone when you go.” Oddly befitting for an elf associated with the Afterlife.

A lot to think about.

But it gets better:

Yeah 1 line of dialogue also mentions a noble betrayal. The literal text noble betrayal hence I doubt it got used in-game. The exact scene plays out like that:

323576|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) Greets the witcher grimly, he hoped the witcher would not follow them.

323578|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Tells him to free Ciri.

323580|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) Replies that Ciri is here of her own free will.

323582|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Ciri) Confirms Avallach’s words. (Ciri) Explains to Geralt that they fled Novigrad surreptitiously knowing that Geralt would never agree to Avallach’s plan.

323584|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Ciri or Avallac’h explaining) Tells Geralt what his plan is all about. He (Avallac’h) doesn’t care about power, he just wants to stop the cataclysm that is the white cold.

323586|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Asks what this ritual is about.

323588|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) Says that he must sacrifice his life and Ciri’s. Only the elder blood can close the passages between worlds.

Geralt’s CHOICE:

323590|00000000|| [DEBUG] Convince Ciri to give up her plan.

323592|00000000|| [DEBUG] Allow the ritual to be completed.

Convincing Ciri:

323594|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Convinces Ciri that the plan is madness. It’s unclear if Avallach is right, and even if he is, the cataclysm could be hundreds of years away. There must be another, better solution.

323596|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Ciri) Allows himself to be convinced by Geralt, apologises to Avallach.

323598|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) States with sadness in his voice that he cannot let them do this. The cause is too important and too much depends on it to squander it in the name of selfish motives. Moving on to the fight.

Agreeing to the Ritual:

323600|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Agrees sadly that the cause is noble and Ciri has the right to decide her fate.

323602|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) Thanks the witcher. States that he has taught him a great deal about the human race and that he has judged people too hastily in the past. He bids farewell to the witcher.

323604|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Ciri) Bids farewell to Geralt.

Combat Dialogue (?):

323607|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) States that he doesn’t want to hurt the witcher but will if he has to.

323609|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Replies that he could say the same.

323612|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Declares that it is not too late to stop this madness.

323614|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Geralt) Replies that in that case Avallach should let them go.

323616|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) States irritably that the witcher is stubborn as all dhoine.

323619|00000000|| [DEBUG] (Avallac’h) Exclaims to the witcher that enough is enough. If the witcher does not come to his senses, Avallach will have to kill him.

It's in Polish because I have no idea if the English version of that text even exists and if it does it has different IDs which would make it tiresome to find, just use google translate or deepl. Basically it looks like everything would play out in the tower including combat yet the buildup would be much larger:

The forefathers eve quest was basically completely different and about curing Avallach's curses. Yeah, there were 2, 1 was about his soul and the other body. The curses got reused for Hearts of Stone btw for the toad prince. We basically entered his mind and had a few sections about his struggles and life in general including Ciri. That aside her involvement was much larger as she helped him steal a stone needed to open the gates between worlds, the ruler of Skellige (either Hjalmar or fake Ciri aka Becca) would rile up warriors against Avallach by telling them he was attempting to start ragnarok etc etc.

Basically there was a lot more backstory for the characters so the final betrayal would be a somewhat difficult choice for the player. It's a lot of text and I want to cover everything so it might take me a week before I send you more info, maybe longer.

I took the liberty of adding who says what as I understand this, since the Polish text is in the impersonal voice.

Analysis

What do we learn?

For one, the ritual is still for the retconned White Frost, and it necessitates the closing of passages between worlds. Elder Blood is used to close the passages, implying, perhaps, that the “special individuals” who were able to move freely in the multiverse (e.g. Ciri, the Sages, unicorns) may have invited CDPR’s rendition of the cosmic White Frost in the first place. Further, we can't be certain no deception is involved in the aftermath of the "ritual." (Would Tor Gvalch'ca still serve as a Threshold of Time, would they both still enter it?) Hence there is still some cause to theorize that if Ciri remains missing/presumed dead then she might not actually be dead as some other shenanigans go down off-screen. Finally, this unused ending is wholly about Geralt vs Avallac’h, and their philosophies. The bet boils down to Geralt’s trust or distrust in the sincerity of Avallac’h’s intentions, and to how the player has read the story: is the tale about saving the (impersonal) world/universe or is it about saving (our) beloveds. Which is more important? How broad (in time and space) is your decision scope?

Notably, Ciri’s own choice in this unused ending is entirely subject to the decisions, intuitions, and wants of another (Geralt, the player). If Geralt objects, Ciri changes her mind and aligns with Geralt. If Geralt agrees, Ciri remains in Avallac’h’s sphere of influence (and we can argue about whether this is also her own default position but the point is that functionally Ciri’s fate is being wielded; in contrast to the published game where she enters the Tower no matter what). By default, Ciri and Avallac’h leave Novigrad together and in secret, and Ciri is prepared to sacrifice herself in the Tower. She is not on Undvik against her will. It’s her resolute idealism, amply demonstrated in the books, that the elf is relying on. Avallac’h expresses as much in the published The Witcher 3 too, clashing with Geralt over how well either of them reads Ciri (Geralt says Ciri gets her “fire” from her father, but Avallac’h objects: Emhyr is a pragmatist, Ciri an idealist).

It’s only after Geralt — through his bond with Ciri — tries convincing Ciri to abandon the idea that the “betrayal” comes into play: Avallac’h cannot take this no at this moment for an answer. Geralt interferes with what Ciri herself has already decided (as Geralt notes in case he agrees to the “ritual”). A fate, a Plan, that Avallac’h has worked painstakingly to bring into fruition is to be foiled by a mortal mutant (another echo of Cregennan?). It’s at this stage that Avallac’h is no longer willing to give Ciri a choice. Believing, probably, that Geralt — like Cregennan — is interfering out of pure selfishness; that Geralt’s kind of love, in the grand scheme of things, is selfish.

It’s really interesting how this unused ending can echo the entire Crevan-Lara-Cregennan configuration from the books. The notion of “selfish” and “unselfish” love, for example. In what scale, you might want to ask? Geralt is not wont to believe in prophecies or the ability of individuals to alter the course of history for “its own good”; he will not believe Ciri — a girl who has suffered tremendously and has been the object of everyone else’s desires for power — should have to sacrifice her life for those others. Cregennan probably had, or benefitted from, a similar “follow your heart” mindset. It depends on how you look at it: individual freedom and hope that things will work out anyway, or duty and hope that things will not go badly despite of it. Essentially, the clash is a clash of philosophies for how to deal with prophecies and problems that are bigger than the individual. Who decides? Why them? Are we sure?

Geralt’s viewpoint, among these three characters, is the “normal one.” Avallac’h’s is that of a mystic; he sees time totally. In CDPR’s interpretation, he is also a character who selflessly (?) seeks the Greater Good; his dialogue reflects sadness, reluctance, and even newly-found respect for Geralt and humanity (true, the latter only when Geralt acquiesces). Ciri’s point of view is also that of a mystic and a legend, given both her visions and powers; in this respect, she relates to Avallac’h in a way that Geralt can never understand. But Geralt’s and Ciri’s bond is also something that Avallac’h cannot replicate. And Geralt, who loves Ciri for her own sake alone, somehow loves her selfishly? Well, from Avallac’h’s point of view, yes; in interrupting, Geralt refuses to take a stance on what Avallac’h sees as ultimate Evil. Ciri, famously, always wants to stand against Evil. That’s the Fox’s hook, and it may well be an unintentional one. If the prescient powers of the Aen Saevherne are real then they are unable to close their eyes to things that Geralt can close his eyes to. Consult your Frank Herbert. Therefore Geralt’s love for Ciri, by which all he wishes for her is peace and happiness at last, is blind; blind in how only a parent’s love can be. It reckons with the universe’s unknowns and says, I don’t know, and it reaches for his experiences with men and power and says, I don’t trust them, and so Geralt finds that there must always be another, kinder solution toward the beloved individual. By contrast, if the future can be known and the lives of millions, born and unborn, are set above all, then individual, temporal love pales; no matter how it can hurt or no matter what joy it can bring. A loving act in that case can merely alleviate rather than put a stop to the pain that is seen as inevitable, lest there be even greater pain.

How great a moral duty can even be set on an individual?

I don’t think, however, that Avallac’h was ever intended to be a clear-cut “villain” at the end of The Witcher 3. It does not follow from the way he was written in either the books or the game.

His dialogue is laced with sadness and regret. Not to say that before the III Act the player was meant to get deeper insight into Avallac’h’s reasoning, life, and motives. The choice at the end was supposed to be difficult on account of knowing our opponent better, but also because of knowing Ciri better.

I will say that I like The Witcher 3’s published ending more on account of Ciri’s decision over entering the tower remaining wholly her own. Again, we can argue about the nature of Avallac’h’s influence on her, but if so, then it seems The Witcher 3 currently gives the answer as to what Ciri would decide for: to help. To fight and not run away. Geralt’s success, as a father, is in giving reason for Ciri to return home. No more.

On the other hand, in the published ending, we are not given a real choice as a player to trust Ciri. We are put before the fact that she will do what she will do. We will only have an odd effect on whether or not she returns. In the unpublished version, however, the player has an opportunity to stop Ciri. The player can choose not to trust Ciri’s judgement and character. Consequently the decision to “save her” may actually feel bad and, hence, hit harder, as we intervene and are not allowing Ciri to choose for herself. (You might argue though, that if this was the intended meaning, the writing may have made Ciri protest instead of allowing Geralt to sway her.) It might be that in letting the “ritual” procede, in letting Ciri choose self-sacrifice, the player is asked to accept Ciri staying true to her uncompromising character. In an incredibly painful manner.

Footnotes

¹ The players lost out on background information on the Aen Elle and Eredin in general, since another significant questline that got removed involved Geralt and Avallac’h infiltrating Naglfar in order to convince Caranthir to betray Eredin. Furthermore, the player was supposed to experience Geralt’s time with the Wild Hunt during Geralt’s dream sequences.

I tried searching but couldn't find any info anywhere about when the English translation of the book is coming out. Is it even announced yet?

Moj nosaczowy wiedzmiński medalion.

Hej, czy ktoś ma informacje na temat białej edycji Sezonu Burz? Wg autora zdjęcia, jest to obwoluta, która była dostępna w czasopiśmie do ręcznego wycięcia, jednak nie wiem jakie to czasopismo.

https://preview.redd.it/s0vgqyv7ws4e1.png?width=197&format=png&auto=webp&s=d7bb17fb3891b282e0bf5ec90fd52ed5cda92d00

That you wish they change in the W4?