Fans of Netflix’s The Witcher series are on the edge of their seats in anticipation of season 3, and for good reason. It’s been two years since audiences last traveled the continent with Geralt of Rivia, Yennefer, Jasiker, and Ciri. If you’re a new Witcher fan or someone just returning after the long hiatus, then we’ve got you covered with a comprehensive rundown of everything to know about Netflix’s The Witcher before season 3.
The Witcher Season 1: Introducing Geralt, Yennifer and Ciri
The show starts in 1231, where audiences are introduced to Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill), the show’s hero and titular Witcher. Like many other witchers, Geralt has been genetically modified to be a superhuman monster-killing machine for hire. We first meet him as he’s hired by the sorcerer Strengobor, who asks Geralt to kill Renfri, a princess-turned-bandit leader. After Geralt kills Renfri, her dying words inform him that a princess in a forest will be his eternal destiny.
Next, audiences are introduced to Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra), who, when we meet her in 1210, is a hunchbacked, quarter-elf teenage girl whose unique heritage gives her not only her deformity but also a talent for magic. Yennefer is allowed to attend Aretuza, a magical academy for young women. Upon graduating from Aretuza, Yennefer is given a choice to obtain her “ideal image,” thus getting rid of her hunchback but at the cost of her fertility. Yennefer accepts the transformation but is constantly researching ways to restore her ability to have children.
Lastly, The Witcher introduces Princess Cirilla or Ciri (Freya Allan), the crown princess of Cintra with magical Elder Blood. After Cintra was invaded by forces from Nilfgaard in 1263, Ciri was sent away by her grandmother, Queen Calanthe, and told to find Geralt of Rivia. Technically, Ciri belonged to Geralt before she was even born after Geralt saved her father’s life in 1249 and claimed the Law of Surprise as his reward. Ciri’s mother was secretly pregnant, unbeknownst to her, making Ciri a Child of Surprise.
Throughout the first season, Geralt and Yennefer find each other after she saves the life of Jasiker (Joey Batey), a bard traveling with Geralt. The two become romantically entangled and then separate, and Geralt tries and fails to claim his Child of Surprise – aka Ciri – just before Cintra falls. Eventually, Ciri and Geralt meet for the first time in a forest, making Renfri’s prophecy come true as season 1 of The Witcher ends.
The Witcher Season 2: Kaer Morhen and the Conjunction of the Spheres
Season 2 of Netflix’s The Witcher picks up with Ciri and Geralt together, while Yennefer is presumed dead after the Battle of Sodden Hill. Geralt, intent on keeping his sort-of daughter safe at all costs, is training Ciri in sword at Kaer Morhen, the Witcher training school where Geralt learned his craft. Ciri Meanwhile, we learn that Yennefer isn’t actually dead like Geralt has been told she is; instead, she’s been drained of her magic and imprisoned by Fringilla, a Nilfgaardian mage and her old rival from Aretuza.
After escaping from Fringilla, Yennefer reunites with Jasiker, who Geralt had left behind at the end of season 1. The pair end up arrested, and right before she’s due to be executed, a demon named Voleth Meir tells Yennefer that she can get her magic back if she captures Ciri and turns her in. Yennefer agrees, and it’s important to note that at this point, she and Ciri have never met, and Yennefer doesn’t know Ciri is with Geralt.
While this is happening, Ciri has been suffering from mysterious visions. Speculating that the visions are happening because of Ciri’s Elder Blood, Geralt seeks out the sorcerer Istredd, an old classmate of Yennefer’s. Istredd concludes that the Conjunction of the Spheres could cause the visions. This ancient big-bang-type event allowed magic and monsters to enter the human realm as they worked together to uncover whether the spheres were conjoining again. Istredd tells Geralt that Yennefer is alive. Meanwhile, Ciri is trapped in a dreamlike state while pursued by the Wild Hunt, and she accidentally summons Chernobog, a massive demon from another realm.
The Witcher season 2 concludes with our Big Three finally reunited at an ancient temple. Faced with more mages hunting Ciri, Geralt sends her away with Yennefer; unbeknownst to him, Yennefer takes Ciri directly to Voleth Meir, the demon from earlier in the season. Voleth Meir possesses Ciri and starts killing witchers at Kaer Morhen but is stopped by Geralt and Yennefer, who offers herself as a vessel instead. The trio escapes to safety, and it’s hinted that Yennefer’s magic has been restored.
Season 3 of The Witcher series will premiere June 29 on Netflix. It will pick up with several kings and queens across the Continent, knowing Ciri is alive and putting a price on her head. The Nilfgaardian king Emhyr, who’s been hunting Ciri all season, is revealed to be her father, the same man Geralt saved way back in season 1.
