Monsters

The monsters of the witcher world arrived with the Conjunction of the Spheres. In this disaster, separate worlds collided, and creatures from beyond poured into this one. Humans arrived in the same upheaval. They learned to use the power of Chaos, which led to the first mages. Then they made war on the Elder Races until humans ruled the land.

Witchers are the monster hunters of this world. They are trained from childhood and mutated with magic and alchemy. All of them have cat-like eyes and carry two swords. The silver sword is for monsters and other magical beings. The steel sword is for humans and ordinary animals. Witchers coat their blades with oils, and each oil harms one kind of creature most. They also cast Signs, a simple form of combat magic, and throw bombs that hurt and hinder monsters. They earn their living from contracts, posted on notice boards or offered in person. The reward can be haggled over before the hunt.

The bestiary collects what is known about each creature, including the weaknesses worth using. Reading books adds new entries to it. The bestiary sorts every creature into a species, such as Necrophages, Specters or Draconids. Each species has an oil made to harm its members.

Beasts

Beasts are the natural animals of the witcher world: Wolves, Dogs, Bears, Wild Boars and Panthers. Witchers fight them with the steel sword, the blade kept for people and ordinary animals. They coat it with Beast Oil.

Cursed Ones

Cursed Ones are creatures created by a curse, very often from a person. A Werewolf is a man who takes on a beast's form. A Berserker of Skellige turns into a bear in battle rage. The Toad Prince was a man changed into a monstrous toad. Witchers fight Cursed Ones with the silver sword coated in Cursed Oil.

Draconids

Draconids are the smaller relatives of dragons: Wyverns, Forktails, Basilisks, Cockatrices and Slyzards. People often mistake Wyverns, Forktails and Slyzards for true dragons. They are much smaller, but still extremely dangerous. Witchers hunt them with the silver sword coated in Draconid Oil. Aard and Grapeshot bring them down out of the sky.

Elementa

Elementa are beings made of magic. They include Golems and Gargoyles brought to life by spells, elementals of earth, fire and ice, the air spirit called the Djinn, and the Hounds of the Wild Hunt. Most obey the will of the mage who made them. Witchers fight them with the silver sword coated in Elementa Oil. Dimeritium Bombs work against every one of them.

Hybrids

Hybrids are monsters that combine the features of different creatures. The Griffin is half eagle and half wildcat. Sirens look like maidens with silver-scaled tails. A Succubus walks on goat-like legs and has thick horns. Most Hybrids hunt from the sky, so witchers coat the silver sword with Hybrid Oil and use Aard and Grapeshot to bring them down.

Insectoids

Insectoids are the many-legged, armored monsters of the witcher world. They range from the Arachasae of damp woods to the Giant Centipedes that burrow beneath Toussaint. Most of them share venom: Arachasae, Endrega Workers and Kikimore Warriors all poison their prey. Thick, shell-like armor also shields many of them from the sword.

Necrophages

Necrophages are the corpse eaters of the witcher world. They are drawn to graveyards, battlefields and any place where bodies are left to rot. Ghouls, Alghouls, Grave Hags, Rotfiends and Drowners all belong to this species. Many of them turn on the living whenever there are enough of them.

Ogroids

Ogroids are huge, strong brutes. They range from mountain Trolls and one-eyed Cyclopses to giants taller than a tree. The Nekkers that swarm the woods in colonies are Ogroids too. Several of them see men as a meal, but a few can reason and even speak.

Relicts

Relicts are a varied species, and many of them are tied to the wild woods. They include Leshens and Spriggans, which rule the plants and animals of their forests, horned Fiends and Chorts, mischievous Sylvans and shapeshifting Dopplers. They range from timid spirits that avoid bloodshed to some of the most dangerous monsters known to man.

Specters

Specters are spirits that stay in the world after their bodies die, along with phantoms born of curses and dark deeds. Most are bound to a place, an object or an old tragedy. They haunt fields, roads and abandoned houses, and they can lose their solid form to escape a witcher's blade.

Vampires

Vampires are creatures that live on blood, which carries the life force of their victims. They are not undead humans but monsters that appeared after the Conjunction. They range from bat-like beasts that tear their prey apart to Higher Vampires who pass for ordinary people in human cities.