Luckily we can talk to Ciri ingame and ask her to fix the timeline.
I don't know about that my friend. These witches that "rescued" and "helped her heal".. I bet they are not like Vysogota. We're going to be looking for Ciri for quite some time.
I don't know about that my friend. These witches that "rescued" and "helped her heal".. I bet they are not like Vysogota. We're going to be looking for Ciri for quite some time.
I don't know about that my friend. These witches that "rescued" and "helped her heal".. I bet they are not like Vysogota. We're going to be looking for Ciri for quite some time.
The Wild Hunt will be very disappointed. By the time they arrive I'll already have burnt all those villages
to the ground and interrogated every single peasant for Ciri's location.
And there is a high chance that at the end of the game I'll be sitting on a pile of ashes playing rock, paper, scissors with Ciri,
while my decisions have condemned the rest of mankind to a fate worse than those witches will experience by my hand.
Recently I have been pondering this timeline again, and lets just start with the basics, because a lot of things aren't really clear in this regard.
What I do know is that there is an Elvish calendar, that roughly divides a year into 8 periods the Elves call "Savaeds". These Savaed periods are based on respective stances of the sun and moon, and determine the cycli of seasons, much like the ancient pagan calendars did in northern European history.
These type of calendars aren't really exact with their dates, so they aren't of use really.
Within the Witcher however years are also counted, and I was wondering what kind of reckoning they actually use as a starting point for their year reckoning..
Apparently Witcher Wild Hunt will play in the year 1272, but what kind of reckoning is used here ? 1272 years since what ??
Our Gregorian calendar bases it's year reckoning on the presumed birth date of Christ, but this doesn't apply in the Witchers world.
It is known many people actually worship the Goddess known as Melitele (The goddess which appears in three forms) but there are also other religious cults and teachings. (The Eternal Fire, The Flaming Rose etc.)
The Year reckoning however doesn't seem to have it's source in any of these religions ?
So who then introduced this year reckoning ?? Nilfgaard perhaps in their mission to bring "civilization" to the north ?? Is any of this information actually available, because so far I haven't found any.
What I do know is that there is an Elvish calendar, that roughly divides a year into 8 periods the Elves call "Savaeds". These Savaed periods are based on respective stances of the sun and moon, and determine the cycli of seasons, much like the ancient pagan calendars did in northern European history.
These type of calendars aren't really exact with their dates, so they aren't of use really.
Within the Witcher however years are also counted, and I was wondering what kind of reckoning they actually use as a starting point for their year reckoning..
Apparently Witcher Wild Hunt will play in the year 1272, but what kind of reckoning is used here ? 1272 years since what ??
Our Gregorian calendar bases it's year reckoning on the presumed birth date of Christ, but this doesn't apply in the Witchers world.
It is known many people actually worship the Goddess known as Melitele (The goddess which appears in three forms) but there are also other religious cults and teachings. (The Eternal Fire, The Flaming Rose etc.)
The Year reckoning however doesn't seem to have it's source in any of these religions ?
So who then introduced this year reckoning ?? Nilfgaard perhaps in their mission to bring "civilization" to the north ?? Is any of this information actually available, because so far I haven't found any.
I don't know any source for the epoch of the calendar. It's well before the First Landing of the humans, ca. 760, so it is likely either an event of Elven culture or one remembered by humans from times unrecorded.
You might be right about it being Nilfgaardian. Their society would be the one that would demand a reckoning of time going back to the time of the Elves, and they would have the scholars able to construct an accurate calendar.
It's not as easy as you might think to set a useful epoch for a calendar. The epoch of the Julian and later Gregorian calendars was devised by a monk, Dennis the Short, who worked out a formula that gave the dates of Easter and wanted to extinguish the use of the Era of Martyrs (based on the reign of Diocletian).
You might be right about it being Nilfgaardian. Their society would be the one that would demand a reckoning of time going back to the time of the Elves, and they would have the scholars able to construct an accurate calendar.
It's not as easy as you might think to set a useful epoch for a calendar. The epoch of the Julian and later Gregorian calendars was devised by a monk, Dennis the Short, who worked out a formula that gave the dates of Easter and wanted to extinguish the use of the Era of Martyrs (based on the reign of Diocletian).
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Well, you are right, it isn't easy to set up a useful epoch.
The Gregorian calendar sort of works, but there are still dates that don't necessarily work.
Easter is still a date depending on moon stances, and we still have to apply leap years to correct other issues.
The Witcher lore however has never been specific about any of these circumstances. This brings several questions.
How many days are in an actual year for example ? How many months are in a year ? How many days are in a month.
Then there is also the question of what this reckoning is actually based on. Humans arrived in the year 746 apparently, so what happened in the year 0 ?
It is also said that Elves arrived a 1000 years earlier than humans, but they did not record any history for at least 254 years, so I'm fairly certain this 0 year is not from their culture.
There are also the gnomes and dwarves, who already inhabited the lands of the north.
Basically the Witcher is set in a world where it's the dark ages, and nothing is certain it seems.
The Gregorian calendar sort of works, but there are still dates that don't necessarily work.
Easter is still a date depending on moon stances, and we still have to apply leap years to correct other issues.
The Witcher lore however has never been specific about any of these circumstances. This brings several questions.
How many days are in an actual year for example ? How many months are in a year ? How many days are in a month.
Then there is also the question of what this reckoning is actually based on. Humans arrived in the year 746 apparently, so what happened in the year 0 ?
It is also said that Elves arrived a 1000 years earlier than humans, but they did not record any history for at least 254 years, so I'm fairly certain this 0 year is not from their culture.
There are also the gnomes and dwarves, who already inhabited the lands of the north.
Basically the Witcher is set in a world where it's the dark ages, and nothing is certain it seems.
Well, but isn't that part of what makes this world so interesting? The knowledge and reckoning gaps, the mysterious parts of history no one really knows about. It's what Witchers and the Wild Hunt and other elements of the world are build on, the mysterious mythological side of things. Times where nothing is really certain and countries are divided instead of unified (a direct contrast to what the globalization in out times is), where every country or race has different calendars, currencies or metric systems. Where every fraction has another (often radical) opinion of things.
A world in which you have to be careful to whom you talk, where you have to be certain about your role in the world while simultaneously not exactly knowing your role because it can change over time. A chaotic time.
I think it makes at least partially the charm of the world.
In a way there is a fight going on between South and North that is far beyond national borders or Kingdoms.
Nilfgard is an Empire, a great economic power which wants scientific progression and growing industry, which works like a well oiled machine. A new system.
The Northern Kingdoms however are the old system, relying on Knights and Traditions, old feuds and (partially) racism.
That's how I see it.
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Well, I feel that the medieval world of The Witcher is very much like our own medieval europe was during the dark ages.
Nilfgaard being this sort of Spainish empire that is on a mission of conquest bringing "civilization".
Furthermore the lands are in chaos by a ravaging plague (Catriona), combined with constant warring of the different nations.
It paints a realistic picture, thats true.
However, the kingdoms sort of agree that we're in the year 127X (the x being variable), so what marked year 0 ?
Can't hurt to have at least that part of the puzzle solved.
Nilfgaard being this sort of Spainish empire that is on a mission of conquest bringing "civilization".
Furthermore the lands are in chaos by a ravaging plague (Catriona), combined with constant warring of the different nations.
It paints a realistic picture, thats true.
However, the kingdoms sort of agree that we're in the year 127X (the x being variable), so what marked year 0 ?
Can't hurt to have at least that part of the puzzle solved.
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OK, I had this wild tangent of ideas how some of the earlier mentioned discrepancies in the timeline might actually work.
I think that most of it, if not all might actually be by design on CDPR's part.
If true it makes for one hell of a complicated storyline, where certain paradoxes are part of the overall story, but it will also give us nice layer of depth.
Here goes,
So it all started in the distant past with the Elven sages. (Aen Saevherne)
These Elven sages were known for their incredible knowledge of the world, but also their incredible magical powers.
The sages were working on a long term plan to create a pure bloodline known as Hen Ichaer (Elder Blood).
The purpose of the elven sages for Hen Ichaer was to create an individual with powers exceeding even their own. This individual was to safe Elven kind from total annihilation, and bring the race as a whole closer to a divine existence.
Two races of elves are known to exist at the time of the Witcher games.
The Aen Elle and the Aen Seidhe. What I do not know for sure is whether these two races actually have the same ancestral origins, but I presume they do.
The Aen Elle appear to live in another realm, and still are a ruling civilization there. The the Aen Seidhe came to the northern lands in their white ships and settled the lands of the North, building a beautiful civilization which fell into decline over a longer period of time.
The Aen Sheide were also driven from their lands by the humans later on, who actually build their own cities and villages on the remnants of the Elven settlements.
In the nothern lands the Elves became a divided race, not strong enough to resist Humanity's ever gaining power, and also losing connection to their ancestral knowledge of the world.
One of the greatest losses the Elves had to deal with in their history, was losing the Elder Blood and it's remarkable properties.
Lara Doren who was of Elven Elder Blood fell in love the human mage Cregannan of Lod, and their daughter Riannon was adopted by Queen Cerro of Redania.
It was because of this that Riannon basically grew up as human royalty.
Riannon later married king Goidemar of Temeria which meant that the Elder Bloodline now no longer was part of the Elven race, but was inherited by Humans instead.
The genes of Lara Doren apparently provide the carriers of elder blood a great aptitude in magical arts, as well as the gift to bend/manipulate time and space.
It is known that the Aen Elle consider the elvish loss of the Elder Blood to be one of the worst disgraces to be ever in existence.
Since we now know that the Wild Hunt in fact are a band of Aen Elle cavalry riders who are basically terrorizing Humanity, and also seem to be able to manipulate time and space, things might actually start to become more clear.
What if these riders are actually on a crusade to reclaim the Elder Blood and in the process use their time bending powers to reset certain parts of history ?
Might it be that Geralt escaped the riders in an alternate timeline, where historical events actually played out differently ?
Might there actually be multiple timelines where things have altered slightly ?
Was Alvin also captured by the Wild Hunt and placed in a different time period ?
I think that most of it, if not all might actually be by design on CDPR's part.
If true it makes for one hell of a complicated storyline, where certain paradoxes are part of the overall story, but it will also give us nice layer of depth.
Here goes,
So it all started in the distant past with the Elven sages. (Aen Saevherne)
These Elven sages were known for their incredible knowledge of the world, but also their incredible magical powers.
The sages were working on a long term plan to create a pure bloodline known as Hen Ichaer (Elder Blood).
The purpose of the elven sages for Hen Ichaer was to create an individual with powers exceeding even their own. This individual was to safe Elven kind from total annihilation, and bring the race as a whole closer to a divine existence.
Two races of elves are known to exist at the time of the Witcher games.
The Aen Elle and the Aen Seidhe. What I do not know for sure is whether these two races actually have the same ancestral origins, but I presume they do.
The Aen Elle appear to live in another realm, and still are a ruling civilization there. The the Aen Seidhe came to the northern lands in their white ships and settled the lands of the North, building a beautiful civilization which fell into decline over a longer period of time.
The Aen Sheide were also driven from their lands by the humans later on, who actually build their own cities and villages on the remnants of the Elven settlements.
In the nothern lands the Elves became a divided race, not strong enough to resist Humanity's ever gaining power, and also losing connection to their ancestral knowledge of the world.
One of the greatest losses the Elves had to deal with in their history, was losing the Elder Blood and it's remarkable properties.
Lara Doren who was of Elven Elder Blood fell in love the human mage Cregannan of Lod, and their daughter Riannon was adopted by Queen Cerro of Redania.
It was because of this that Riannon basically grew up as human royalty.
Riannon later married king Goidemar of Temeria which meant that the Elder Bloodline now no longer was part of the Elven race, but was inherited by Humans instead.
The genes of Lara Doren apparently provide the carriers of elder blood a great aptitude in magical arts, as well as the gift to bend/manipulate time and space.
It is known that the Aen Elle consider the elvish loss of the Elder Blood to be one of the worst disgraces to be ever in existence.
Since we now know that the Wild Hunt in fact are a band of Aen Elle cavalry riders who are basically terrorizing Humanity, and also seem to be able to manipulate time and space, things might actually start to become more clear.
What if these riders are actually on a crusade to reclaim the Elder Blood and in the process use their time bending powers to reset certain parts of history ?
Might it be that Geralt escaped the riders in an alternate timeline, where historical events actually played out differently ?
Might there actually be multiple timelines where things have altered slightly ?
Was Alvin also captured by the Wild Hunt and placed in a different time period ?
Before i massive spoil you.... have you read the books? couse i have the answer to all of your questions lol literaly all the answers are explained there .
have a good day
Well I've read the Engish translations, but unfortunately not all of the books are translated yet.
If you would take time and explain certain things to me, I would appreciate that very much. I do however think that you should write me a PM instead of posting it here, so that other people aren't spoiled
Also I'd like to ask whether or not the dates given in the games make any sense to you, since you reason from a book standpoint.
I think they actually might work, given the fact that the Wild Hunt seems to cause time dialation . It seems as if Geralt basically has been moving around through different timelines when chasing them to reclaim Yennefer.
Cheers !
If you would take time and explain certain things to me, I would appreciate that very much. I do however think that you should write me a PM instead of posting it here, so that other people aren't spoiled
Also I'd like to ask whether or not the dates given in the games make any sense to you, since you reason from a book standpoint.
I think they actually might work, given the fact that the Wild Hunt seems to cause time dialation . It seems as if Geralt basically has been moving around through different timelines when chasing them to reclaim Yennefer.
Cheers !
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Timeline issues in TW game series started right in the intro of the first game, 'cause The Battle of Brenna took place in 1268. So, TW1 should start in 1273, not in 1271 - after that all consequent timing errors doesn't make a big deal
1268 is officially the year in which the peace t of Cintra was declared.
The battle of Brenna actually took place at an earlier time. How much earlier is not really clear.
Anyway, the fact that there is confusion about these dates, and the first Witcher game stating that we are in the year 1270 in relation to the dates given on the website which in many ways are contradictory to the games, is exactly what this topic is about.
I however try to reason that these dates could make sense, because Geralt and Yennefer have been outside of the normal confines of space and time, and Geralt has been chasing the wild hunt for a good while after they captured Yennefer from the Island of Avallach.
After Geralt traded in his soul for the soul of Yennefer with the King of the Wild Hunt he rode with the Wild Hunt for a while.
After a good while he escaped the hunt.
So I am theorizing that the years in the game are actually true, and that Geralt actually entered an alternate version of the Northern lands, right upon his escape from the Wild Hunt.
Things will largely be the same, but with subtle differences.
It's like a quantum break in the timeline and a ripple effect.
Perhaps we will find there are multiple Geralts, just like Alvin seems to be a younger version of Jaques de Aldersberg, but still the same person.
Dijkstra said in dialogue with Boreas Mun that kings had met in Cintra in "Exactly, April second". So, less than in a month after the battle of Brenna which took place in March 1268 (that could be indicated by matching dates when a red comet was visible in the sky)
My god, I'm such a downer
I used to be pretty bothered by dates not matching up between the games and stuff released by CDPR, and quite often, just within the game themselves.
I think what I learned is simply don't worry too much about it. There were clearly made some goofs, but even with attempts at retconning, they can't make everything make complete sense at this point if you're bothered at certain dates not matching.
I think what I learned is simply don't worry too much about it. There were clearly made some goofs, but even with attempts at retconning, they can't make everything make complete sense at this point if you're bothered at certain dates not matching.
I never paid any attention when or where is the game is taking place. Don't take it too seriously its just a game.
TW Timeline
Hello everyone,
i have questions to understand better... everything
i've searched on internet but the more i read, the more confused i get
when does tw3 takes place? how many years after tw2 events? Geralt looks 20 years older
Geralt died at the end of the books? so the games are like... fan fiction?
sorry if this was already posted, just close it and please point me to that tread
thanks
Hello everyone,
i have questions to understand better... everything
i've searched on internet but the more i read, the more confused i get
when does tw3 takes place? how many years after tw2 events? Geralt looks 20 years older
Geralt died at the end of the books? so the games are like... fan fiction?
sorry if this was already posted, just close it and please point me to that tread
thanks
Hello everyone,
i have questions to understand better... everything
i've searched on internet but the more i read, the more confused i get
when does tw3 takes place? how many years after tw2 events? Geralt looks 20 years older
Geralt died at the end of the books? so the games are like... fan fiction?
sorry if this was already posted, just close it and please point me to that tread
thanks
Yes, the games are fan fiction
They all take place after Geralt's "death" and the events in the books.There's also a lot of confusion regarding dates in the Witcher timeline generally, the books and the games, we tend to have long arguments about it that don't reach conclusions.
TW3 starts around 6 months after the end of TW2. The fact that he looks older is presumably because he's had a hard time (or just a change in artistic style, he looks a lot different between TW1 and TW2 as well)