Dragon (The Witcher 2)
Dragons appear in the journal of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings. In the distant past they were common and held absolute dominion over the continent. Their fire destroyed cities and their hunger was a constant danger to the earliest settlers. Sorcerers opposed them, and witchers were created to fight them.
By the time of the game, dragons are close to extinction, wiped out by professional hunters such as the well-known Crinfrid Reavers. Smaller relatives like forktails and slipzards can still be encountered, but next to a true dragon they are stray cats beside a tiger. The journal names five kinds of dragon: white, black, red, green and rock. Golden dragons, it says, are a fairy tale for children.
Dragons hoard treasure, eat anything that lives, and like to rest in places of power, drawing on their energy for reasons nobody understands. Ingredients taken from a dragon’s body rank among the costliest on the market and are much sought after by sorcerers, and a roasted dragon tail is regarded as a fine delicacy.
In The Witcher 2
A dragon makes its entrance in the Prologue. In Trial by Fire, King Foltest, Geralt, Triss and Vernon Roche are storming La Valette Castle when it attacks. The scouts had reported a forktail; what arrives is a huge, furious, fire-breathing dragon that sets the wooden siege works and the bridge ablaze, and Geralt has to lead the king across before everything burns.
In Chapter 3 a dragon appears over Loc Muinne after the summit falls apart, and in Enter the Dragon Geralt fights it on the tower of Síle de Tansarville. This dragon is Saesenthessis, better known as Saskia the Dragonslayer, a dragon living in human form and kept under mind control by Philippa Eilhart. If Geralt carries the dagger from The Spellbreaker, he can break the spell and free her; in some playthroughs he instead gets to choose whether to slay the dragon or walk away.
Combat strategy
The journal is blunt: a dragon is death for an amateur. It is immune to poisons, ignores bleeding oils and isn’t bothered by traps or bombs. Its fire is the main danger, and its jaws are worse than its claws. The journal’s advice is to fight from high ground and use walls as cover.
- Keep Quen up. The fire does a lot of damage.
- Don’t bother with bombs, traps or poison and bleeding oils.
- Strike hard while it breathes fire, then get out of the flames.
- On the tower in Enter the Dragon, stay near the sides below its wings when it takes off, and counter right after a fire breath ends.
Keep exploring
Plan a Remastered build: skill trees, mutagens, gear and a shareable build image.
Pick a potion, decoction or bomb and see every ingredient you need.
Answer the key choices and find out which Witcher 3 ending you will get.
Every location, quest and monster in the first region on one map.
The Wolf School's hidden valley: the keep, the Bastion, caves and treasure.
Tick off every school gear diagram and crafted piece, with diagram locations.
Search any monster and see the right oil, Signs and bombs.
weapons
Steel for humans, silver for monsters. Explore the craftsmanship, ancient runes, and legendary blades forged to survive the path.
monster
From bloodthirsty vampires in the shadows of Toussaint to ancient leshens guarding primeval forests. Study their weaknesses before the hunt.
characters
Witchers, sorceresses, kings, and bards. Uncover the complex histories, alliances, and fates of those who shape the Continent.
armor
Grandmaster gear from the schools of the Wolf, Cat, and Bear. Discover the protection and hidden powers of legendary witcher armor.