Ciri

After my brief interlude to check out the newest episode of Life is Strange, I returned to The Witcher 3. Geralt had helped the poor folk of White Orchard and managed to elude the Wild Hunt.  Now in Vizima, Geralt found himself in the royal palace for an audience with the Nilfgaardian emperor.  Upon meeting the emperor Geralt finds out why he was sought out--the emperor wants him to track down Ciri, his wayward daughter.  Having read the short stories I was very confused.  In the stories Ciri is not the daughter of the Nilfgaardian emperor but is being pursued by them so they can obtain the rights to the kingdom that she should be ruling.  Alright, so for the purposes of the game she can be the daughter of the Nilfgaardian emperor.  He urges Geralt to find her as quickly as he can and return her for a much higher than normal rate.  He dismisses Geralt and tells him to speak to Yennefer who is currently in residence at the palace.

Ciri--not quite a Witcher.

Once Geralt finds Yennefer he is updated on Ciri's possible whereabouts.  Yennefer had been tracking sitings of Ciri and presents Geralt with a few options.  Besides just getting down to business, Yen and Geralt have a few moments to discuss the status of their relationship.  There's an uncomfortable exchange as Yennefer mentions that Triss Merigold is one of the people she has been working with in her efforts to find Ciri.  Gerlalt and Triss could have a close relationship (if players went that route) in the previous games so Yennefer bringing Triss up is quite awkward.  Geralt tries to remind her that he lost his memory, but she doesn't seem willing to accept this fact.  With the major discussion over, Yennefer opens a portal and exits leaving Geralt to set out on his quest to find Ciri.  Players then have the option of having Geralt speak to a scholar about the course of the war or to simply set out.  I opted to talk to the scholar and felt like the information he provided painted a picture of the war-torn Northern Kingdoms.

Geralt then headed out to the land of Velen where Ciri had been spotted.  Once there he was told to meet a man named Hendrik who had information about Ciri's location.  You have to do quite a bit of riding, but eventually you track Henrik down to a village that is covered in a thin layer of snow.  After saving a man from attack by a pack of rabid dogs, he informs Geralt that the Wild Hunt had attacked the village and killed everyone including Henrik.  Geralt heads to Henrik's house to search for clues and  after using his witcher senses manages to track down a log book kept by Henrik that details sightings of Ciri near Velen.  Geralt is then given two options--speak to a local self-made noble known as the Bloody Baron who was rumored to have some interaction with Ciri or locate a witch who supposedly saved her.

I opted to go for the Baron since he was closer and I was in need of some repairs and a merchant.  Once at the small fortress held by the Baron and his militia, Geralt questions the man about his interaction with Ciri.  It's here that players get their first taste of playing as Ciri.  Ciri, who is not a fully trained witcher, does not possess the ability to use witcher's signs.  She is, however, a very agile swordsman (woman) who can dodge attacks with ease.  Ciri appears to be fleeing from something and meets a small girl who is hiding from an attack by a large pack of wolves.  After you've cleared out the wolves, the girl informs Ciri that she's hiding from a "wolf king."  Ciri offers to take the girl back to her village and to protect her from any further attacks.  On the way she discovers a badly mangled corpse and uses the knowledge she gained as a witcher to deduce that the "wolf king" is actually a werewolf.  She sets out to craft some blade oil to protect against the werewolf and then follows the girl into a cave.  Once inside the cave she discovers the werewolf about to kill a villager.  She manages to kill the werewolf and the villager offers to take both Ciri and the girl to see the Baron.  Players watch a brief cinematic that shows Ciri and Gretka (the girl), enjoying the hospitality of the Baron.  He offers to let them stay at the fortress and rest.

It's here that the story cuts back to Geralt who learns that shortly after this Ciri left the castle.  The Baron is unwilling to provide any further information unless Geralt finds the whereabouts of his wife and daughter who are currently missing.  Of course it wouldn't be this easy!