Geralt of Rivia Saga

delve into Geralt of Rivia Saga it’s the easy part, the hard part is not getting caught up in it and the universe built around it. In iGamesNews We have approached it through The Witcher video games, of course, as well as from the Netflix series and even animation productions. Now we’re taking the initiative one step further and diving headfirst into the source material: the literary saga. More specifically, helping you to get into her through her books.

About El Brujo and the origin of Geralt de Rivia

The first is the first. Although, from the start, we confirm that the book that officially begins what we know as the pentalogy of Geralt of Rivia Saga is the novel of the blood of the elvespublished in 1994, the origin of Andrzej Sapkowski’s dark fantasy universe print story dates back to a short story written in 1985. The name: The witcher, which in Polish translates as the Wizard.

The story itself fits into the format of a story contest for the magazine Fantastic, whose name -even without translation from Polish- reveals the theme and the public to which it was dedicated. Krzysztof, Sapkowski’s son, was a reader of it and encouraged his father to participate, who after participating with The witcher finally came in third place.

An honorary podium since, according to the authorthose writings were supposed to be aimed at a young audience. The witcherGeralt’s first adventure was definitely not.

the plot of The witcher introduces us to Geralt of Riviaa sorcerer who earns a living and pays for his beers by hunting monsters and demons, charging a small fee for his services.

After a heated argument in a Vizima tavern, Geralt is brought before the town’s burgomaster, who has a delicate errand for him: a striga has appeared and, as expected of this cursed monstrosity, has begun to torment and attack to the hab itants. However, the task is not to eliminate her: the burgomaster seems to have a special interest in keeping her alive.

Despite being a short story, The witcher, was later adapted to all media. It had a short novel treatment, it was included in the first game of The Witcher and it was even adapted to the Netflix television series through its third episode, titled treacherous moon.

In what order to read the books of the Geralt of Rivia Saga

Although there is an editorial order that we wanted to keep in mind when considering how to approach Geralt of Rivia Sagathe truth is that it makes much more sense to immerse yourself in it and its events following a chronological order. The witcher, el reato, is the perfect starting point in all senses but, like the good adventures of the White Wolfthere is always a loose element that gives a very different nuance to the whole.

The witcher, the short story published in Fantastyka, was the touchstone that began the gradual incursion of the Polish author in the literary field and, finally, his subsequent conversion to a professional writer. What’s more, Geralt’s first adventure will end up included in the short story anthology also titled Wiedźmin, five stories signed by Sapkowski in a single book published in 1990.

Why haven’t we included the compilation book? The witcher in our list? The truth is that it has a reason for being: in addition to being currently out of print at the editorial level, it is considered obsolete since, after publishing The Sword of Destiny, the first novel, Sapkowski will publish last wish, a new anthology of seven stories that also includes the Wiedźmin story.

1- The last wish (1993)

the last wish formally supposes both the starting point to later address The Saga of Geralt of Rivia chronologically as a compilation of the early adventures of the legendary warlock known as the Butcher of Blaviken. A reading prior to the five books that make up the saga of The Witcher, yes, but for fans it is also a must read.

In fact, as a starting point it is superb, since we are talking about an anthology made up of seven stories, namely: The voice of reason, The sorcerer, The seed of truth, The lesser evil, A question of price, The edge of the world and, of course, The Last Wish. Something that simplifies reading and engages.

On the occasion of the premiere of the Netflix series, the publisher Alamut relaunched The last desire with a cover that very intentionally sought to capture the new fans of Geralt of Rivia. In any case, it’s a great way to dive into Sapkowski’s fantasy world.

2 – Season of Storms (2013)

If we want to follow the chronological order we come across a curious aspect: our second stop takes us to the most recent book in the saga: Storm season. A compilation of stories that settle the background of the fantasy world, enrich the stories of the last wish and suppose the return of Sapkowski after concluding Geralt of Rivia Saga coinciding with the turn of the millennium.

3 – The Sword of Destiny (1992)

If we place the tiquismiquis the sword of destiny It is the first great work published around the character of Geralt de Rivia at an editorial level: it hit the shelves in 1992. As in last wish,

Sapkowski offers us six short stories in which we can see how the Polish author has much more defined his world of dark fantasy and invites us to discover it through the stories of Geralt, who will go in search of a legendary golden dragon, the rescue of a little princess who will have a major role in the saga itself and will have to bail out the poet, bard and troublemaker of Buttercup.

4 – The Blood of the Elves (1994)

If you entered the world of The Witcher Through the Netflix series, Blood of the Elves will take you directly to the events of the first season, if you have enjoyed the short stories of the previous books, the blood of the elves the formal beginning is the pentalogy of The Saga of Geralt of Rivia, Sapkowski’s great work.

After the relentless attack of the Nilfgaard Empire on the kingdom of Cintra, a young woman manages to flee desperately. her name is Features, the Leoncilla de Cintra, and is none other than the granddaughter of Queen Calanthe. With no home and no purpose, Ciri sets off in search of the only person she can trust: the sorcerer Geralt of Rivia.

5 – Hate Time (1995)

The direct continuation of the blood of the elves resumes its events making the stories of Geralt, Ciri and the skillful sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg intertwine, converge and finally end up separated in dramatic circumstances. Meanwhile, the outbreak of the great war between the Nilfgaardian Empire and the Northern Kingdoms, from the Time of Hate, serves as a backdrop and forces them to channel their destinies.

6 – Baptism of Fire (1996)

After their separation in hate time, Geralt joins a motley company made up of dwarfs, refugees, a vampire and even an officer of the Nilfgaardian Empire whose life the wizard will spare. The purpose of his journey is to find the Leoncilla de Cintra. Meanwhile, Ciri herself survives as best she can after joining a group of bandits known as The Rats incognito.

7 – The Tower of the Swallow (1997)

After the extermination of Las Ratas, Princess Cirilla finds herself in the eye of the hurricane again. The Nilfgaardian empire wants her to marry the emperor, the sorceresses want the princess to join her cause and gain greater political influence; and there are those who want to experiment with her unique nature. For her part, and in contrast to all of the above, Ciri aspires to something as simple as it is unusual in the world of The Witcher: being able to decide your own destiny.

8 – The Lady of the Lake (1999)

The Lady of the Lake is the culmination of the saga of novels that began with the blood of the elvesbeing the conclusion of the war between the Nilfgaardian Empire and the Northern Kingdoms, leading Ciri, Yennefer and Geralt himself to face what is predicted by an ancient elven prophecy and, by extension, their own destiny.

The history of the world of The Witcher does not end here

We set out to do more than tackle the literary saga of Geralt of Rivia: to organize it so that it would be easy to tackle for those who are passionate about video games, the television series and even readers who are passionate about the rawest fantasy. Nevertheless, the stories of the world of The Witcher continue. Both video games, as in comics, the small screen and, of course, through books that will complete the collection.

Below we show you three exceptional proposals that, if you are passionate about everything related to The WitcherThey deserve a spot on the shelf.

Road of No Return (2000)

One year after closing with The Lady of the Lake what we can call the pentalogy of The Saga of Geralt of Rivia, Andrzej Sapkowski himself published through road of no return a selection of short stories in which, in addition, the author himself provides the reader with new nuances about his fantasy world.

The World of The Witcher III

If you come from the video game The Witcher III or directly want to dive right into it after reading Sapkowski’s books, this compendium is the best way to get your foot into CD Projekt RED’s must-have open world RPG. It is not a guide to the game itself, but rather a work that fully introduces us to the third installment of the saga, being especially generous in details and illustrations.

The Witcher Ronin

There are a veritable infinity of comics that expand and enrich the universe of The Witcher. Some adapt the stories and events of Sapkowski’s books and others seek to go further.

In the case of The Witcher Ronin, which is currently in reserve, they also dare to reimagine their world in terms of manga, going from the dark fantasy of medieval Europe to a Geralt of Rivia who must purge of demons a world inspired by exotic feudal Japan.

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