Vilgefortz

Vilgefortz of Roggeveen is the great villain of Andrzej Sapkowski’s Witcher saga: a mage of enormous talent, handsome, charismatic and a deadly fighter even without magic. To the world he was a hero. In secret he wanted the power hidden in Ciri‘s Elder Blood, and he was willing to do anything to get it.

Early life

Abandoned as a baby in Lan Exeter in Kovir, Vilgefortz was found and raised by druids, who discovered his magical gift. He left them to wander the world as a mercenary and a spy, a road that led him into robbery and murder before he ended up joining the Brotherhood of Sorcerers. His apprentices included the thug Rience and his secretary Lydia van Bredevoort.

Sodden and the Thanedd coup

Vilgefortz led the mages at the Battle of Sodden Hill and was celebrated as a hero of the North. What nobody knew was that he had long been working with Emhyr var Emreis, helping him win the Nilfgaardian throne. During the mages’ conclave on Thanedd Island in The Time of Contempt, he offered Geralt a place on the winning side, and when the coup broke out he beat the witcher with a staff without using any magic at all. Chasing Ciri, he was caught in the explosion of the Tor Lara portal and lost an eye, which he later replaced with a crystal that let him see through magic.

Stygga Castle and his death

From his hideout at Stygga Castle, Vilgefortz hired bounty hunters to catch Ciri, carried out horrific experiments and captured and tortured Yennefer to find her. In The Lady of the Lake, Geralt and his company storm the castle. Vilgefortz burns the vampire Regis and nearly beats Geralt again, until a magical illusion from Geralt’s amulet throws him off balance and Geralt kills him.

Vilgefortz in the games

Vilgefortz never appears in person in the games, but his shadow is everywhere. In the first Witcher game he is credited as the author of the book Elder Blood, and Triss worries they may soon face “another Vilgefortz”. In The Witcher 3, Geralt and Philippa Eilhart discuss his experiments to regain his lost eye, and in Blood and Wine Regis asks Geralt what became of him. He also appears as a card in the standalone Gwent: The Witcher Card Game.

Vilgefortz in the Netflix series

In Netflix’s The Witcher, Vilgefortz is played by Mahesh Jadu. Season 3 builds him up as a respected mage before revealing his betrayal during the coup at Aretuza: he opens portals that bring Francesca, Cahir and Scoia’tael fighters into the castle, defeats Geralt in a duel and follows Ciri through a portal into the desert.

In season 4 he works from Stygga Castle, draining the chaos of captured mages to power a network of portals. He hands Emhyr a false Ciri while keeping his own plans for the real one, attacks Montecalvo and escapes wounded. When Yennefer gets into his mind, she learns that he is planning a ritual to steal Ciri’s power. A fifth and final season has been announced.

Frequently asked questions

Is Vilgefortz in The Witcher 3? No. He died years before the game, so he is only mentioned, by Philippa Eilhart and, in Blood and Wine, by Regis.

What did Vilgefortz want? Ciri’s Elder Blood. He planned to use her power for himself, which is why he helped Nilfgaard on Thanedd and hunted her across the Continent.

How does Vilgefortz die? Geralt kills him in a duel at Stygga Castle at the end of the saga, in The Lady of the Lake.

Who plays Vilgefortz? Mahesh Jadu in Netflix’s The Witcher.