Elin Ratzinger (or Wilma Wessely, if you like)
@cauldronoffae.bsky.social
Reads. Thinks. Tells stories.
Site: https://www.blathancaerme.com/
Links: https://linktr.ee/elinratzinger
🇪🇪 in 🇬🇧
Site: https://www.blathancaerme.com/
Links: https://linktr.ee/elinratzinger
🇪🇪 in 🇬🇧
Pinned
Sapkowski on Le Guin: The Waste Land Motif in The Witcher
The loneliness and alienation, the Waste Land of the human heart, is a recurrent motif in The Witcher. Re-reading "Pirog, or There’s No Gold in the Gray Mountains" by Andrzej Sapkowski I get stuck on ...
www.blathancaerme.com
www.blathancaerme.com/sapkowski-on...
Love is the essence. Love and lovelessness walk hand in hand at the heart of everything in The Witcher, and with them the good and the evil.
As Tenar to Ged in Sapkowski’s reading of Ursula K. Le Guin, so Ciri to oh, so many characters.
Love is the essence. Love and lovelessness walk hand in hand at the heart of everything in The Witcher, and with them the good and the evil.
As Tenar to Ged in Sapkowski’s reading of Ursula K. Le Guin, so Ciri to oh, so many characters.
Anyway, I think if there is going to be a DLC, it will be in Dol Blathanna instead. (And in the stories I write in my head, it wouldn't be on the Continent at all, and at least partly in various in-between dimensions Ciri and other special beings (unicorns, finally? more elves obvs) can access.)
January 8, 2026 at 4:54 PM
Anyway, I think if there is going to be a DLC, it will be in Dol Blathanna instead. (And in the stories I write in my head, it wouldn't be on the Continent at all, and at least partly in various in-between dimensions Ciri and other special beings (unicorns, finally? more elves obvs) can access.)
Zerrikania DLC the rumour mills say? How about the North Pole? Or an archipelago of Times and Places?
January 8, 2026 at 4:31 PM
Zerrikania DLC the rumour mills say? How about the North Pole? Or an archipelago of Times and Places?
Ever since moving to this island I am amazed at the speed at which the Brits' society comes to a halt at the first signs of snow. It's at once hoped for and feared. Never would I wish for rain to wash it away, and yet some do.
January 8, 2026 at 10:09 AM
Ever since moving to this island I am amazed at the speed at which the Brits' society comes to a halt at the first signs of snow. It's at once hoped for and feared. Never would I wish for rain to wash it away, and yet some do.
Gimme amber barons and songsmiths!
January 6, 2026 at 4:00 PM
Gimme amber barons and songsmiths!
For obvious reasons I really like the thought that the map of the Witcher amounts to the Baltic coast rotated 90 degrees counter-clockwise, with Kovir and Poviss ending up as the Baltic and Finnic kingdoms with the promise of mysterious Lapland and Finnic witches up in the far North.
January 6, 2026 at 3:52 PM
For obvious reasons I really like the thought that the map of the Witcher amounts to the Baltic coast rotated 90 degrees counter-clockwise, with Kovir and Poviss ending up as the Baltic and Finnic kingdoms with the promise of mysterious Lapland and Finnic witches up in the far North.
Boorman and Sapkowski seem to be creative soulmates.
unherd.com/2026/01/exca...
unherd.com/2026/01/exca...
'Excalibur' is English fantasia
unherd.com
January 4, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Boorman and Sapkowski seem to be creative soulmates.
unherd.com/2026/01/exca...
unherd.com/2026/01/exca...
brandspotting in helsinki
#holidayposts
#holidayposts
December 21, 2025 at 7:51 PM
brandspotting in helsinki
#holidayposts
#holidayposts
December 19, 2025 at 10:29 AM
i have been wanting to write about ciri's and avallac'h's relationship based on sapkowski's works alone forever. so I did a thing this year.
December 19, 2025 at 10:29 AM
i have been wanting to write about ciri's and avallac'h's relationship based on sapkowski's works alone forever. so I did a thing this year.
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Lady of the Lake confuses The Witcher readers bc Nimue is us – Ciri's lighthouse. Ciri, a girl become legend, forever adrift in mythosphere, searches for one more moment with Geralt and Yennefer & needs to find 'a Nimue' - to show her the way out of eternity.
Lady of the Lake confuses The Witcher readers bc Nimue is us – Ciri's lighthouse. Ciri, a girl become legend, forever adrift in mythosphere, searches for one more moment with Geralt and Yennefer & needs to find 'a Nimue' - to show her the way out of eternity.
History and Fantasy. Or 'How to Think About Time Travel in The Witcher?' | Part 4
Why does Lady of the Lake confuse The Witcher readers? Because Nimue is us – the lighthouse. Readers complete stories. Ciri, adrift in timeless mythosphere, searches for one moment with Geralt and Ye...
www.blathancaerme.com
December 14, 2025 at 5:54 PM
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Lady of the Lake confuses The Witcher readers bc Nimue is us – Ciri's lighthouse. Ciri, a girl become legend, forever adrift in mythosphere, searches for one more moment with Geralt and Yennefer & needs to find 'a Nimue' - to show her the way out of eternity.
Lady of the Lake confuses The Witcher readers bc Nimue is us – Ciri's lighthouse. Ciri, a girl become legend, forever adrift in mythosphere, searches for one more moment with Geralt and Yennefer & needs to find 'a Nimue' - to show her the way out of eternity.
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Ciri is an amalgam of Morgana, Bradamante, Vivianne, the Triple Goddess. In Mythic Time, Ciri is ‘nieistniejące’. She takes on legendary identities & is attributed them. She chooses to be called Ciri of Vengeberg just before Yennefer herself passes into legend.
Ciri is an amalgam of Morgana, Bradamante, Vivianne, the Triple Goddess. In Mythic Time, Ciri is ‘nieistniejące’. She takes on legendary identities & is attributed them. She chooses to be called Ciri of Vengeberg just before Yennefer herself passes into legend.
History and Fantasy. Or 'How to Think About Time Travel in The Witcher?' | Part 3
What do the Aen Elle want? What does 'eternity' mean in a meta fantasy? The Conjunction closed the door to infinite stories, trapping them in The Witcher's. So the freedom they seek might be about exi...
www.blathancaerme.com
December 7, 2025 at 7:11 PM
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Ciri is an amalgam of Morgana, Bradamante, Vivianne, the Triple Goddess. In Mythic Time, Ciri is ‘nieistniejące’. She takes on legendary identities & is attributed them. She chooses to be called Ciri of Vengeberg just before Yennefer herself passes into legend.
Ciri is an amalgam of Morgana, Bradamante, Vivianne, the Triple Goddess. In Mythic Time, Ciri is ‘nieistniejące’. She takes on legendary identities & is attributed them. She chooses to be called Ciri of Vengeberg just before Yennefer herself passes into legend.
This time on Time in The Witcher: archetypal existence, what do the Aen Elle mean by 'eternity,' and why everyone should read at least Maladie to untangle Lady of the Lake.
Causation in Mythic Time is symbolic and thematic. The characters in it are made of story-stuff not materia.
Causation in Mythic Time is symbolic and thematic. The characters in it are made of story-stuff not materia.
December 7, 2025 at 7:11 PM
This time on Time in The Witcher: archetypal existence, what do the Aen Elle mean by 'eternity,' and why everyone should read at least Maladie to untangle Lady of the Lake.
Causation in Mythic Time is symbolic and thematic. The characters in it are made of story-stuff not materia.
Causation in Mythic Time is symbolic and thematic. The characters in it are made of story-stuff not materia.
Hm, thank you for clarifying. No message/e-mail, but a few days ago, when I posted this Q, my application was archived, so I guess no dice.
December 5, 2025 at 7:05 PM
Hm, thank you for clarifying. No message/e-mail, but a few days ago, when I posted this Q, my application was archived, so I guess no dice.
December 4, 2025 at 12:39 PM
On The Witcher's paper trail... Looking for the archetypes.
December 4, 2025 at 12:39 PM
On The Witcher's paper trail... Looking for the archetypes.
Hi! Since I never heard back from you (neither nay or yay), was wondering if you ever sent out any notifications to the applicants?
December 3, 2025 at 3:37 PM
Hi! Since I never heard back from you (neither nay or yay), was wondering if you ever sent out any notifications to the applicants?
Reposted by Elin Ratzinger (or Wilma Wessely, if you like)
One of the best games ever made
Probably should have saved this for Random Game Saturday, but it's too cool not to share. This is a legit copy of King of Dragon Pass. When the designer ran out of printed copies and you ordered one from them, they burned you a copy and mailed it.
November 12, 2025 at 11:22 AM
One of the best games ever made
Now, in The Witcher storyworld, that elves would take an archetypal form by way of the Wild Hunt suggests a conscious attempt at re-mythizing themselves: a half-way restoration of their pre-Conjunction way of being. The Hunt signals the elves’ one remaining, semi-successful escape from their fate.
November 29, 2025 at 12:30 PM
Now, in The Witcher storyworld, that elves would take an archetypal form by way of the Wild Hunt suggests a conscious attempt at re-mythizing themselves: a half-way restoration of their pre-Conjunction way of being. The Hunt signals the elves’ one remaining, semi-successful escape from their fate.
when they are in turn displaced, mythologized, and transformed into the next iteration of fairy tales. They will ‘go away’ in one form to survive in another. History’s progression (to the end of the Plot) inevitably ends in an act of blending – into the substrate of all Fantasy.
November 29, 2025 at 12:30 PM
when they are in turn displaced, mythologized, and transformed into the next iteration of fairy tales. They will ‘go away’ in one form to survive in another. History’s progression (to the end of the Plot) inevitably ends in an act of blending – into the substrate of all Fantasy.
They are neither dead nor alive in Myth. Euhemerized, these are the elves who ‘left for a more interesting reality.’ But as migration forms the Ur-Myth of this storyworld, nothing new happens without being a repetition of the same archetypal pattern. Elves are what humans will one day become –
November 29, 2025 at 12:30 PM
They are neither dead nor alive in Myth. Euhemerized, these are the elves who ‘left for a more interesting reality.’ But as migration forms the Ur-Myth of this storyworld, nothing new happens without being a repetition of the same archetypal pattern. Elves are what humans will one day become –
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Elves do not vanish without a trace, they become, for example, the Wild Hunt – existing in an altered modality as humans ‘inherit’ elven lands and language, consuming their civilization. ‘It was the end of one… race, followed by the appearance of another.'
Elves do not vanish without a trace, they become, for example, the Wild Hunt – existing in an altered modality as humans ‘inherit’ elven lands and language, consuming their civilization. ‘It was the end of one… race, followed by the appearance of another.'
History and Fantasy. Or 'How to Think About Time Travel in The Witcher?' | Part 2
The Conjunction of Spheres trapped elves and other fantastic beings in The Witcher's historical time. Before it, legendary, pre-rational elves moved freely between story-worlds. Elder Blood preserves ...
www.blathancaerme.com
November 29, 2025 at 12:30 PM
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Elves do not vanish without a trace, they become, for example, the Wild Hunt – existing in an altered modality as humans ‘inherit’ elven lands and language, consuming their civilization. ‘It was the end of one… race, followed by the appearance of another.'
Elves do not vanish without a trace, they become, for example, the Wild Hunt – existing in an altered modality as humans ‘inherit’ elven lands and language, consuming their civilization. ‘It was the end of one… race, followed by the appearance of another.'
The Conjunction of Spheres trapped elves and other fantastic beings in The Witcher's historical time. Before it, legendary, pre-rational elves moved freely between story-worlds. Ciri's Elder Blood preserves this power. And Ithlinne's prophecy is the elves' map back into eternity.
November 29, 2025 at 12:30 PM
The Conjunction of Spheres trapped elves and other fantastic beings in The Witcher's historical time. Before it, legendary, pre-rational elves moved freely between story-worlds. Ciri's Elder Blood preserves this power. And Ithlinne's prophecy is the elves' map back into eternity.
The most important element of The Witcher cycle, after Love, is Time. Time not Place. Place serves the Plot, but Time serves Meaning.
This is Part 1 of a four-part piece on how Time works in The Witcher, and why Lady of the Lake makes perfect sense actually.
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
This is Part 1 of a four-part piece on how Time works in The Witcher, and why Lady of the Lake makes perfect sense actually.
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
History and Fantasy. Or 'How to Think About Time Travel in The Witcher' | Part 1
Why is Ciri so powerful? Can Ciri time travel in The Witcher books? With Elder Blood, the Lady of the Lake accesses Mythic Time where past, present, and future exist simultaneously. Sapkowski writes f...
www.blathancaerme.com
November 22, 2025 at 7:04 PM
The most important element of The Witcher cycle, after Love, is Time. Time not Place. Place serves the Plot, but Time serves Meaning.
This is Part 1 of a four-part piece on how Time works in The Witcher, and why Lady of the Lake makes perfect sense actually.
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
This is Part 1 of a four-part piece on how Time works in The Witcher, and why Lady of the Lake makes perfect sense actually.
www.blathancaerme.com/history-and-...
Ciri doesn't time travel – she exists in Mythic Time where past, present, and future are simultaneous. The Witcher is a meta fantasy. It has no creation myth. Sapkowski traps archetypal beings in History to show how legends are born in Leśmian's mirror tunnel where a fairy tale unfolds endlessly.
November 22, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Ciri doesn't time travel – she exists in Mythic Time where past, present, and future are simultaneous. The Witcher is a meta fantasy. It has no creation myth. Sapkowski traps archetypal beings in History to show how legends are born in Leśmian's mirror tunnel where a fairy tale unfolds endlessly.
Witcher fans, an evening with Andrzej Sapkowski held in The British Library on 01.11.2025 is now available for watching until 8th of November.
www.blplayer.co.uk/eventlink/10...
www.blplayer.co.uk/eventlink/10...
November 3, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Witcher fans, an evening with Andrzej Sapkowski held in The British Library on 01.11.2025 is now available for watching until 8th of November.
www.blplayer.co.uk/eventlink/10...
www.blplayer.co.uk/eventlink/10...