New Witcher Game: Everything To Know About The Lynx School

CD Projekt Red recently revealed in a shock announcement that another The Witcher game is on the way, teased with an image of an unfamiliar Witcher medallion partially submerged in snow. This next installment in The Witcher series seems to be moving away from Geralt as its protagonist and aims to begin a new saga. This brings into question whether familiar characters from The Witcher franchise will appear in the next game, and when and where it will take place.

The last installment in The Witcher series, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, was released back in 2015, and a new upgrade for the game is set to launch later in the year. This is the first news that CD Projekt has shared regarding a potential new installment, with the studio until now busy focusing on updates to Cyberpunk 2077. With this new Witcher saga in development (not Witcher 4), fans have begun questioning the setting of this new installment if the fan-favorite Geralt of Rivia is not involved.

The teaser image for the new Witcher game consists only of a Witcher medallion partially submerged in crisp, white snow. The medallion does not resemble any others seen in previous Witcher media, having distinctly feline characteristics and glowing red eyes. As this feline medallion does not match the known School of the Cat pieces, speculation has begun surrounding whether this represents the School of the Lynx. While this is not yet an official school in The Witcher books or games, there is a lot of fan-made content on the Lynx School out there that CD Projekt Red could canonize.

Fan-Made Origins & History Of The Witcher’s School Of The Lynx

The Witcher games are based upon the fantasy novels by Andrzej Sapkowski, and The Witcher 3 deviates from the books in surprising ways. However, throughout the media, the existence of Witcher Schools is maintained, which are responsible for acquiring, training, and equipping new Witchers. The schools based on the source material include Wolf (Geralt’s school), Cat, Griffin, Bear, Manticore, and Viper, and they each have their own signature medallion. However, the glowing medallion shown in CD Projekt Red’s teaser image does not match any of the known Schools. Its closest resemblance is to the School of the Cat, with its feline pointed ears and whiskers.

This has caused speculation about whether this could be a School of the Lynx medallion. While the Lynx School is currently not canon, there is a lot of fan-made material on this School, which could form the basis of a compelling canon backstory. As told in The Witcher Fanon wiki, following Vesemir’s heartbreaking death at the end of Witcher 3, the remaining members of the School of the Wolf went their separate ways, with Eskel going east (possibly to join up with the Manticore School) and Lambert traveling south with his lover, the sorceress Keira Metz. At some point in 1273, Keira and Lambert converged with veteran members of the nomadic Cat School and planned to join forces to recover the Cats’ Dyn Marv caravan from Nilfgaardian soldiers.

Their plan is successful, and with the caravan recovered Lambert is made leader, along with the Witcheress, Dragonfly. Hence, the School of the Cat is radically reformed into the School of the Lynx. Keira (whom players can romance in The Witcher 3) became the School Mage and helped with the recovery of Witcher mutagens, and subsequently found a cure for the deadly Catriona Plague within her research.

The fan wiki goes on to say that, by 1290, the School of the Lynx has become fully operational and is producing Witchers. In order to demonstrate their capacity and shed the infamous legacy of their Cat predecessors, Lambert throws the Second Witcher Tournament to demonstrate that a new era has begun. This took place at Kaer Morhen and was attended by members of every extant School – except the Rats – and was won by the Owl School (both additional fan-made Schools). Lambert successfully regained the respect of the other schools, except the Griffins who remained skeptical of the Lynx School.

What Is The Cat School In The Witcher Books & Media?

It could be possible that the new Witcher game saga could include some off-shoot of the Cats due to the teased feline medallion, so it is worth understanding the history of this infamous Witcher School. The Cats feature in the Witcher books and Geralt is able to collect Cat School gear in Witcher 3. This School utilizes fighting styles focused on speed, poison, and agility, donning flexible armor to allow for movement. However, it appears their morals and politics were as flexible as their armor, as this School grew a nasty reputation prior to The Witcher games.

Possibly due to a failed mutagen causing psychosis, the Cats gained a proclivity for murder, assassination, and other things outside of the Witcher curriculum. The Zdrada graphic novel depicts the Cats’ betrayal of the Wolf School that led to the blood bath at the First Witcher Tournament and the massacre of the Wolves. It is believed that the Cats are the only School to have accepted women candidates for Witchers, which is apt as Ciri claims the Cat medallion of the fallen rogue Witcher, Brehen, for herself.

Although it is not necessary to play the first Witcher games before Witcher 3, there is a lot of captivating Continent history that features in the source materials, early games, and even fan-made content. The Witcher media reveals that the Cat School was originally based out of Stygga Citadel, but following a mysterious event that occurred by the 11th century, the Cats had transitioned to operating from the mobile caravan, Dyn Marv (‘Dead Man’), that Lambert later helps recover in the fan material. In fact, Lambert is appointed leader of the Lynx School as he wants to continue the legacy of his good friend, Aiden, of the Cat School, who died in an unfortunate ambush, as explained in The Witcher 3 quest, Following The Thread.

Where The New Witcher Saga Could Take Place

It seems that the next Witcher game does not need Geralt as its protagonist, demonstrated by the plethora of existing fan-made material filled with other characters and settings. The next Witcher saga could take place in any sort of timeframe, perhaps dealing with the Cat School prior to their derangement in Stygga set even before the Witcher books, or looking at when the Cat School became nomadic. The new Witcher saga could also involve the formation of the Lynx School, or even be set decades after Witcher 3 (set in 1273) as the Lynx School went on to be the first established School in the newly colonized Western Continent by 1310.

Hence, the new Witcher game saga could deal with various off-shoots of the Cat or Lynx School. CD Projekt Red could even avoid continuity issues by placing the new Witcher saga in a similar alternate universe, as it is known that Ciri is capable of interdimensional travel due to her magical capabilities in being a Source. Ciri appeared in Cyberpunk 2077, and in Witcher 3 she references her time spent in a strange world with personal flying ships and metal in their heads. While it may seem unusual that Lambert would set up a new School as he is notoriously against making new Witchers due to his own trauma, it seems this could be overwritten by his want to honor his friend Aiden and continue his legacy in the form of a reformed Cat School.

Source: The Witcher Fanon

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