Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for The Witcher Season 3.
The Big Picture
- Season 3 of The Witcher revealed a shocking twist with the arrival of the fake Ciri in Nilfgaard, posing as Emhyr's daughter. This spells doom for the Continent.
- Vilgefortz, the rogue mage hunting Ciri, created the fake Ciri by kidnapping half-Elf apprentices. Although Geralt learned the truth and tried to stop him, one of the apprentices named Teryn escaped.
- Vilgefortz needs the fake Ciri to convince Nilfgaard to abandon their search for the real Ciri, allowing him to take her for himself. The fake Ciri also helps the Emperor gain more political power.
Season 3 of The Witcher ended by shaking the entire Continent’s status quo. Political alliances shifted, villains were unmasked, and even Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill) decided to abandon his precious neutrality in his quest to rescue Ciri (Freya Allan). There’s a lot of information to unpack in The Wicther’s Season 3 finale, even more because the show leaves many loose threads behind for Season 4 to tie. However, one of the most cryptic scenes of The Witcher’s Season 3 last episode is the arrival of Ciri to the kingdom of Nilfgaard. That’s because, instead of Geralt’s daughter, the girl who shows up in the court is actually Teryn (Frances Pooley). But who is the fake Ciri? And how does her arrival spells doom for the Continent?
Who Is the Fake Ciri in ‘The Witcher’ Season 3?
In the first Volume of Season 3, Geralt realizes he cannot keep Ciri hidden from the rogue mage hunting the girl. So, the White Wolf decides to go after the villain. Geralt’s quest takes him to an abandoned castle in the kingdom of Redania, a place the rogue mage reportedly uses as a base of operations. While Geralt is prepared for a trap, he can’t anticipate the horrors hidden inside the castle’s stone walls. That’s because Vilgefortz (Mahesh Jadu), the mastermind behind the hunt for Ciri, had been experimenting with Aretuza students, reshaping their flesh and minds to create a Ciri doppelganger.
Since he helped to rule over Aretuza, Vilghefortz had access to every student's background. To make his own Ciri, Vilgefortz kidnapped half-Elf apprentices and took them to the abandoned castle, turning the failed subjects into a gruesome flesh monster that could protect the dungeon. The only survivor of these experiments is Teryn, who truly believes she’s Ciri after having her memories scrambled by Vilgefortz.
In Volume 1, Geralt rescues Teryn and takes her to Anika (Catherine McCormack), a druid who was a friend of his mother. After finding where the girl comes from, the White Wolf journeys to Aretuza, leaving the girl behind. In Volume 2’s finale, we find out that Vilgefortz tracked Teryn, finished molding her mind, and took her to Nilfgaard. It’s a shocking reveal that indicates Anika is dead. Furthermore, the presence of fake Ciri in Nilfgaard might help to spread chaos in the Continent.
Why Does Vilgefortz Need Fake Ciri?
While Season 3 of The Witcher revealed that Vilgefortz is the rogue mage hunting Ciri, we don’t really know what the villain wants. Vilgefortz’s plan involves Ciri’s Elder Blood and the girl's ability to use Monoliths to cross the barriers of space and time. In addition, Vilgefortz wants to reshape the Continent according to his will. Finally, even if Vilgefortz has been using Nilfgaard to get what he wants, he doesn’t truly support the kingdom’s conquest campaign. Vilgefortz just pretends to be an ally to Emperor Emhyr (Bart Edwards) to get what he wants. So, since the Emperor is after his daughter, Ciri, it would make sense for Vilgefortz to create an impostor. That way, he could convince Nilfgaard to abandon its search for the girl and clear the path to take Ciri for himself. It’s a bold plan that might blow up in Vilgefortz’s face, as the Emperor is a ruthless man with no space in his heart for forgiveness.
There’s also a change as to whether Emhyr is aware of the fake Ciri plot. In Volume 2, Nilfgaard’s attack on Aretuza officially starts the great war against the North Kingdoms, led by Redania. While Nilfgaard’s forces are mighty, the Emperor knows his conquest will move faster if he has as few enemies as possible, which is where the fake Ciri might come into play.
Ciri is the Princess of Cintra, the first kingdom that fell before Nilfgaard’s army. By having Ciri publicly support Nilfgaard and join Emhyr’s court of her own volition, the Emperor ensures that kingdoms with close ties with Cintra will stand down during the war. That’s because if the Princess herself supports the invaders, there’s no reason to avenge Cintra. Furthermore, some kingdoms loyal to Cintra might even join Nilfgaard’s side if ordered by the princess. So, by having a Ciri doppelganger by his side, Emhyr has increased his political reach in the Continent. Only time will tell whether or not the Emperor is aware of Vilgefortz's ruse. Nevertheless, while the fake Ciri is in Nilfgaard, both villains have more power.
Does Teryn Exist in ‘The Witcher’ Books?
While Teryn doesn’t appear in Andrzej Sapkowski’s The Witcher novels, the books have a Ciri doppelganger storyline that can shed some light on what will happen in Season 4 of Netflix’s adaptation. In the books, the doppelganger is not the product of an evil experiment but a war orphan who looks like the real Ciri. The fake Ciri is indeed taken by Vilgefortz to Nilfgaard so that the rogue mage can have the real girl for himself. However, the Emperor is aware of the deception all the time.
In the books, Vilgefortz is unaware that the Emperor is Ciri’s father, as the White Flame hides his true identity from everyone. Still, while the Emperor can recognize his daughter and knows Vilgefortz is tricking him, Emhyr plays along, presenting Ciri to the people to keep the political stability of Nilfgaard. Emhyr even marries the fake Ciri to ensure his rightful domain over Cintra would not be questioned by the North Kingdoms. Since no one knows the blood relation between the Emperor and the real Ciri, no one can accuse him of incest, which means Vilgeforstz's deception only favors the White Flame.
Netflix’s The Witcher is known for making drastic changes to the source material, for better or worse. So we can’t say if the TV show will follow the books to the letter. Still, so far, the series did keep the fake Ciri plotline almost intact. With Season 4 already in the oven, it’s just a matter of time before we learn if the weird marriage between the Emperor and fake Ciri will also happen in the series.
The Witcher Season 3 is currently available on Netflix.
ncG1vNJzZmibn6G5qrDEq2Wcp51kwamxjLCgrZuYmr9uv8SaqqimXWh6p63KnmScoaKeeqbEz6WYoqaVmXw%3D