There's an official Witcher school in Poland to transform you into a monster hunter (original) (raw)
Become like Henry Cavill's Geralt of Rivia.
Published on August 11, 2021 12:55PM EDT
Forget Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which is problematic right now. Instead, try the School of Witcher-craft.
An unofficial "Witcher School" has been active in Poland for the last six years with more than 2,000 LARPers (a.k.a. live-action role-players) from 52 countries following in the footsteps of Geralt of Rivia, the lead character of Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher books, the CD PROJEKT RED video games, and Netflix's live-action series. But this week, CD PROJEKT RED teams up with the event's organizer, the 5 Żywiołów agency, to make this an officially licensed affair.
Over the course of three days, Witcher School brings attendees inside the world of The Witcher. They live in a real Polish castle, undergo Witcher training (as will be depicted in season 2 of the Netflix show this December), hunt monsters (i.e. people dressed in monster garb), and meet characters from the games and books.
It's like Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia except 1,000 times more fun because instead of an entire community where people act like pilgrims, they act like characters from the _Witcher_-verse. Also, there are pyrotechnics.
"You do not need any special requirements to take part in Witcher School," 5 Żywiołów agency's Dastin Wawrzyniak said in a statement. "The ticket price includes a basic costume, a witcher adept character created by our scenario team, and before the game there are workshops explaining the game and safety rules, with special consideration for people who are at the event for the first time."
Wawrzyniak also mentions there's a schedule already in place for this autumn, but because of CD PROJEKT RED's involvement, the event has expanded. More information, including ticketing, is available the official Witcher School website.
Even if you can't travel to Poland for whatever reason — including the ongoing pandemic — there's still a lot more of The Witcher you can experience. An anime film, telling the story of a young Vesemir, Geralt's mentor, is coming to Netflix this Aug. 23. Then, season 2 of The Witcher, starring Henry Cavill as Geralt and Freya Allen as Ciri, will arrive on the streaming platform Dec. 17. There's also a live-action prequel series, The Witcher: Blood Origin, in the works.
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