No other side character in The Witcher franchise has been given more spotlight than Triss Merigold. From being a mere friend to Yennefer, Triss rose through the story ranks and became a power player in all three Witcher games. At one point, she even tried to replace Yennefer. While it’s clear that the developers see potential in her, they took some liberties with Triss’ video game adaptation.
Anyone who has read the book will note several key differences in Triss whether physical appearance or behavior. As such, Triss in The Witcher III: Wild Hunt isn’t really the most faithful adaptation of the character. At the same time, the developers do nail plenty of traits about Triss. Here are five ways her video game version is faithful to the source material and five ways it isn’t.
10 TRUE: HER LOVE FOR GERALT
Starting off with the most apparent quirk for Triss, that would be her undying affection for Geralt of Rivia. In the third game, they start off rather rough as ex-lovers but it soon became apparent that Triss hasn’t moved on.
It’s pretty much like the Triss in the books who pursues Geralt relentlessly– even after knowing he’s with Yennefer already. Initially, it was just mere infatuation with Geralt but it eventually blossomed into something more serious.
9 UNTRUE: LESS OBSESSIVE ABOUT GERALT
Despite Triss’ unwavering love for Geralt in all three games, she’s not exactly as desperate as she was in the books. Triss in the third game even knew when to respect Geralt’s boundaries or his decisions.
Meanwhile, Triss in the books really doesn’t take Geralt’s rejection as a hindrance to her advances. She even went as far as to use magic in order to seduce Geralt and at one point, shamelessly asks Geralt for some intimacy after being separated for a long time. It’s hard to imagine Triss in the third game doing something like that.
8 TRUE: MORE YOUTHFUL DEMEANOR
Compared to most other sorceresses in The Witcher universe, Triss is generally regarded in the books as a radiant and warm person. That’s because she’s one of the youngest sorceresses in the Lodge.
In the books, she was estimated to be only around 30 or 40 years of age. This lent much to her more youthful qualities and kinder way of expressing what she wants or needs– at least compared to someone like Yennefer who’s pushing 100.
7 UNTRUE: HER HAIR IS TOO RED
Triss is no doubt a redhead both in the books and the games– even in the Netflix show but she seems to sport a different hue of red in the third game. It was rather bright and crimson, almost unnatural.
Her book version actually sports more like a chestnut or auburn red which is dark and almost looks brunette. This does give her a significantly less intense or vibrant appearance which could mean she’s not as beautiful in the books as she was in the games.
6 TRUE: TREATING CIRI LIKE A SISTER
Since Ciri’s age is only a mere few decades apart from Triss, it would make sense for their relationship to be more like siblings instead of parental. That sounds bizarre but it’s a fantasy world anyway.
When Ciri got reunited with the Kaer Morhen family, Triss notably greeted her as “little sis.” It’s similar to how she treated Ciri in the books. Ciri also treats Triss much like an older sibling and they’re also quite close.
5 UNTRUE: LACK OF A BATTLE SCAR
Geralt… and the players have certainly seen Triss’ neckline and collar bones liberally. Oftentimes, her in-game clothing also tends to be generous with the neckline. It’s one of the gripes of those who have read the books up to the Battle of Sodden Hill.
That’s because Triss was gravely injured in that fight and apparently suffered a severe wound to her chest area that magic couldn’t supposedly fix. Triss even swore that she’d never be able to wear clothes with plunging necklines from that point on. Her clothes in the third game contradict this.
4 TRUE: TENSION WITH YENNEFER
One of Triss’ biggest crimes in The Witcher games is taking advantage of Geralt’s amnesia and Yennefer’s disappearance. By the third game, this brought the tension level between the two sorceresses sky high.
Similarly, such tension was already brewing prior in the books where Yennefer discovered that Triss was making unsolicited intimate and romantic advances towards Geralt. Yennefer promptly told her to back off but the two remained watchful and anxious friends.
3 UNTRUE: SHE’S A MAIN CHARACTER
As stated earlier, CD Projekt RED simply gave too much spotlight and screen time to Triss Merigold in all three Witcher games. In fact, she was even an important plot driver in each game, effectively making her a main character.
This was never the case as book author Andrej Sapkowski seem to have intended. Triss was nothing more than a side character who had a brief tryst with Geralt and helped Ciri occasionally. Her role in the saga was never that big.
2 TRUE: GENUINELY GOOD
Perhaps due to her youth or her less rough upbringing, Triss was a ray of sunshine– at least when compared to her overly-intimate and witchy colleagues in the Lodge of Sorceresses. She didn’t seem as full of schemes or nefarious plots as her sisters in the Lodge.
Moreover, Triss in the books was always willing to put herself in harm’s way and help others without expecting anything to gain. The third game pretty much captured this essence of Triss, making her a stark opposite to Yennefer.
1 UNTRUE: SHE’S TOO POWERFUL A SORCERESS
While Triss was talented enough to be admitted to the Lodge of Sorceresses at such a young age, she was nowhere near as powerful as she was portrayed in the games. Triss, being a younger sorceress, didn’t really possess the same skill as Yennefer or other members of the Lodge.
In the third game, players can easily see Triss raining fire down on the Wild Hunt, killing them by the dozens and even using telekinesis to control their weapons. This easily puts her on the same playing field as Yennefer and makes her just as useful as the older sorceress in battle. Sadly, Triss isn’t really that powerful in the books whose story only takes place a few years before the games.
NEXT: The Witcher: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Triss
