The Brotherhood of Sorcerers is the organisation that unites the mages of the North in the saga. It decides who may practise magic, trains new mages and keeps a careful (some would say greedy) eye on how magic is used at royal courts. Its highest authority is the Chapter, supported by a wider Council, and its most famous schools are Aretuza for young women and Ban Ard for young men. Mages of the Brotherhood serve kings as advisors, but in theory their first loyalty is to magic itself.
Famous members
Many of the saga’s best-known mages belong to the Brotherhood, including Tissaia de Vries, rectoress of Aretuza, Vilgefortz, the brilliant star of his generation, and Stregobor, whom Geralt would happily never meet again. Yennefer and Triss also come out of its world.
The fall on Thanedd
The Brotherhood’s end comes on Thanedd Island, above the town of Gors Velen, during a great conclave of mages. Vilgefortz and his allies, secretly working with Nilfgaard, try to seize power. Other mages strike back first, and the night ends in a magical civil war. The Brotherhood never recovers, and Philippa Eilhart builds the Lodge of Sorceresses from its ruins.
In the games
By the time of the games, mages are again trying to act together. In The Witcher 2 they gather for the great summit at Loc Muinne, hoping to win back the trust of the kings. It does not go well. In The Witcher 3, Radovid’s war on magic means organised mages are a thing of the past, and the survivors either hide, flee or, like Keira Metz, pretend to be village witches.