The Witcher S3: How Does Vilgefortz Beat Geralt So Easily?
Contains spoilers for "The Witcher" Season 3, Episode 6 — "Everybody Has a Plan 'til They Get Punched in the Face"
Season 3 Volume 1 of "The Witcher" ends on a cliff-hanger, with Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill) and Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra) discovering that Vilgefortz of Roggeveen (Mahesh Jadu) is a spy for Nilfgaard. Unfortunately, before they can act on that information, Sigismund Dijkstra (Graham McTavish) and Philippa Eilhart (Cassie Clare) enact their own scheme. Season 3 Volume 2 begins with a three-sided conflict between the mages of Aretuza, the soldiers of Redania, and the elves serving Nilfgaard. Lives and lies are laid bare in pools of blood, all in the name of controlling the Brotherhood of Sorcerers ... and Princess Cirilla of Cintra (Freya Allan).
Geralt spares only a brief moment to ensure that Dijkstra's joints never function properly again before speeding Ciri away from the palace — but he isn't fast enough. After an awkward battle between Ciri and Cahir (Eamon Farren), who claims to have switched sides in order to protect Ciri's best interests, the pair's flight is cut short by Vilgefortz himself. The mage has been waiting for them as if he knew exactly where they would run. Geralt sends Ciri on ahead and faces Vilgefortz alone. And after a terse exchange of words, Vilgefortz lays waste to the White Wolf, shattering both his sword and his spine. To Geralt's credit, he fights bravely. But at no point during the confrontation does he ever achieve the upper hand.
Now, we've followed Geralt through three seasons of slaughter, and we know for a fact that the Butcher of Blaviken is an accomplished warrior. So how does Vilgefortz beat him so easily?
Vilgefortz's power has baffled the fandom for years
Geralt's humiliating defeat to Vilgefortz will only be a new curiosity to "Witcher" fans who have only enjoyed Netflix's live-action adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski's high fantasy novel series. To book readers, however, this same curiosity stretches as far back in time as 1996, when "Baptism of Fire" was published. Ironically, despite Netflix's loose approach to adapting the "Witcher" book series, the Netflix series adheres fairly well to the spirit of the battle between Geralt and Vilegfortz.
"[Vilgefortz] stomped Geralt so badly it wasn't even funny," a since-deleted Redditor posted in r/witcher in 2015. "The guy seems to be a beast and I heard he takes on Regis, Yennefer and Geralt at the same time later. ... How is it possible for someone to be that good, especially since Vilgefortz spent a lot of his life being a good[-]for[-]nothing merc before taking up magic?" For Netflix-centric fans, Regis, whom fans of "The Witcher" want to see played by Peter Capaldi, is a friendly vampire who packs an incredible punch.
As for Vilegortz's skill set, the most useful responses came from u/Darth_Gerbil, who suggested that the mage's tenure as a mercenary shouldn't be undersold when it comes to combat mastery, and u/Odinus, who said, "One or maybe both of his parents were mages so he had the genes on his side. Sorcery is like any other skill, takes talent and practice. He had a lot of talent." Combine these two ideas, and it explains why Vilgefortz, a mage, can wield a staff, regardless of its magical properties, so lethally.
Geralt never trained to fight anyone like Vilgefortz
It is not impossible to watch the battle between Geralt and Vilgefortz and leave with the impression that the White Wolf's defeat is more plot-based than skill-based. Again, fans have witnessed the titular witcher defeat scores of monsters, mages, and men for the better part of three seasons. But that's where another point of interest arises: Vilgefortz doesn't perfectly slot into any of those categories. All the soldiers whom Geralt fights in previous episodes are incapable of casting magic, and almost all the mages are incapable of holding their own in a physical skirmish.
But perhaps these well-earned victories induced an unearned sense of arrogance in Geralt. Or perhaps he allowed his righteous fury against a man threatening Ciri's safety to blind him. Or perhaps he simply wasn't prepared to enter into combat against a legitimate battle mage. He's a witcher, after all; his sole purpose is to slay creatures for coin.
The truth is probably some combination of all three because Geralt never adjusts his strategy during the fight; he just gets angrier and surlier. And so Vilgefortz lands blow after blow after blow, only stopping when he knows Geralt can no longer stand. It isn't mercy, though. No, Vilgefortz decides to make an example of the witcher by leaving him broken but breathing.
Unfortunately, Season 3 of "The Witcher" is Henry Cavill's swan song with the franchise, so the star may not be around when it's time for Vilgefortz's head to roll. That'll be up to Liam Hemsworth, Netflix's replacement Geralt, as well as showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, who has already planned the show's grand finale.