Philippa Eilhart

Philippa Eilhart (Polish: Filippa Eilhart) was King Vizimir's advisor, and remained in Redania's court even after his death, for which she was likely responsible. In "The Lady of the Lake", she tries to expand her influence on the very young Radovid V and his mother. She is one of the few sorceresses able to polymorph.


 * Philippa appears for the first time in "Blood of Elves" together with Dijkstra and Ori Reuven, who try to interrogate the bard Dandelion in Oxenfurt about the whereabouts of Witcher Geralt and Ciri. In her owl form, she follows the bard to Geralt's hideout in Oxenfurt where she also meets the seventeen-year-old Shani. Shani knows more about Rience and can bring them to her contact person, the charlatan Myhrman, where she had seen Rience. When Myhrman denies to reveal any information about Rience, Philippa tortures him and forcefully enters his mind to uncover knowledge about an amulet, which is able to send messages, but also works as a warning system. Rience and the Michelet brothers then try to kill Geralt, but the Witcher slaughters the professional assassins and pursues Rience. Toublanc Michelet reveals his knowledge about the person who pulls the strings in the background to Philippa, who then murders him with a stiletto. Geralt and Rience meanwhile are in a fight in front of a portal. Philippa enters the scene and helps Rience to escape. Geralt, Dandelion and Shani are taken aback and name her a traitor, but Philippa ensures them, that she just did this for a greater cause. Ciri can follow this scene through the eyes of a nocturnal bird, which is possibly Philippa in her owl form.


 * In the book "Time of Contempt", Philippa appears again at the banquet on Aretuza. There she promises Geralt that he must be patient until the next day, and she would finally give him Rience. She led the Thanedd coup against the Brotherhood of Sorcerers, intending to neutralize suspected traitors allied with Nilfgaard. In her owl form, she helped Ciri to escape the sorcerer and traitor Artaud Terranova. Later, she helped found the Lodge of Sorceresses and is considered its leader.


 * Throughout the novels, the spy Dijkstra reports back to her, unknowing his love for her is not mutual. He finally has to flee, when he tries to involve her into his findings about who had ordered the assassination of Vizimir II.


 * She was, among several other Lodge members, one of the victims of the Witch Hunts. Her tortures and death by the hand of archpriest Willemer's men are described in introduction of chapter 11 of the The Lady of the Lake. Many years later, she was exonerated and canonized as Martyr Saint.


 * She has different fates between game and novel. In the novel，her failure in the political struggle and because of the raging Catriona plague leads to her being tormented and finally executed. In-game she was seized by Radovid V on the summit at Loc Muinne. The resentful Radovid V let his henchmen then have her eyes gouged out. She went into Nilfgaardian exile at last.

Philippa returns in The Witcher 3, on the run from witch hunters while preparing to exact revenge against Radovid. Different from the ending of novels，

Associated quests

 * Blindingly Obvious
 * Final Preparations
 * Reason of State
 * Redania's Most Wanted
 * The Sunstone

Journal entry

 * Philippa Eilhart, one-time advisor to King Vizimir II (called the Just), member of the Council of Mages and later founder of the Lodge of Sorceresses, had played a momentous part in the history of the world as well as in Geralt's life.


 * There could be no denying her talent, yet neither could one claim she did not also at times demonstrate sickly ambition. Very trustworthy reports indicated she had had a hand in King Vizimir II's death, and as a member of the Lodge was implicated in the murder of two other monarchs as well – Demavend of Aedirn and Foltest of Temeria.


 * For this reason the one-time "Jewel in the Court at Tretogor" was now a wanted woman, the quarry of special forces from the North and Nilfgaard alike.


 * Vizimir's son and successor, Radovid V, was particularly eager to capture her. During their last encounter in Loc Muinne he had Philippa's eyes gouged out, yet she had fled and he wanted nothing more than to stick the head of "Tretogor's Jewel" on a spike above the city gates.


 * Thanks to her mastery of the difficult art of polymorphy, Philippa had been able to evade her pursuers by transforming into an owl. Then she had holed up in a hideout outside Novigrad to wait out the worst.


 * Everything seemed to indicate that Philippa had not only been investigating magic cures for her lost vision, but had also taken concrete steps towards the reactivation of the Lodge of Sorceresses. Her current location, however, remained unknown.


 * Imagine our surprise when we learned Philippa had been right under our noses the whole time! During her flight from her pursuers she had sought shelter with an old lover and fellow mage. He must've still borne a grudge, however, for he tricked her and imprisoned her in her owl form. After the witch hunters carted him off, his house was plundered and the owl wound up in the hands of… our dear friend Zoltan. Sadly Triss discovered this right after Zoltan had lost the owl in a game of cards - meaning our search had to continue.


 * Philippa's new "owner"? Dijkstra. Was it a coincidence that she was now in the hands of her spurned-ex-lover and hated enemy? Triss certainly didn't think so, instead suspecting the former spy had woven a gwent-centered web of subterfuge in order to settle some old scores.


 * Luckily for Philippa, Geralt got things under control and saved her from whatever delights Dijkstra was planning.

Philippa Eilhart is a main character in The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings.

Journal entry

 * This was hardly the first time Geralt and I encountered Philippa Eilhart – jewel of the court at Tretogor and once the trusted sorceress of King Vizimir II. Philippa was one of the most talented mages of those times – only a handful ever mastered the art of polymorphy. Her intellect and the influence she held at the Redanian court were not to be underestimated. Proud, independent and extremely beautiful, as graceful in a fanciful yet elegant dress as in a man's travelling outfit, she was beyond any doubt one of the most attractive women I have ever known. Yet I would not count Philippa among the most pleasant of females, despite her indisputable though chilly charm. Her gaze alone was enough to make the most confident men shudder, and the mere thought of spending a night with her would make their flesh creep.


 * At the time Philippa Eilhart was staying in the town of Vergen as part of Saskia the Dragonslayer's inner circle. Her motives remained unclear, to say the least – the former court magician had never been known for her altruism.


 * However, one cannot deny that without her help Geralt would not have found his way through the magical mist. Philippa rendered him an invaluable service at that time.


 * Her qualifications in the area of curses, magic and supernatural phenomena were undeniable. If there was anyone to help the witcher in this regard back then, it was certainly Miss Eilhart. Still, I was extremely glad that it was Geralt, and not I, who was forced to speak with the Tretogor magician.


 * It was Philippa who gave the witcher the list of the ingredients for the antidote for the poison plaguing Saskia. The knowledge of recipes, ingredients and their specific properties is always extremely helpful in learning magical arcana, and few could equal Eilhart in that regard.


 * Philippa tricked everyone, not only casting a charm on Saskia under the guise of aid, but also using Geralt and Iorveth in her machinations. On the one hand it was inevitable. On the other, it left a bitter aftertaste, giving rise to the thought that sorceresses' misdeeds are responsible for the widespread mistrust towards their profession and perhaps even towards the female gender. Eilhart abducted Saskia and left for Loc Muinne. Back then we did not know what she was planning.


 * If the Kaedweni win the siege of Vergen:
 * Fleeing the victorious Henselt, Philippa Eilhart moved with Síle and Saskia to Loc Muinne, where a summit of sorcerers and crowned heads was to take place.


 * If Philippa Eilhart had counted on her troubles coming to end in Loc Muinne, she miscalculated. She was arrested by the Redanians just after arriving, and placed in a dungeon where she awaited the king's judgment.


 * In retribution for certain events of the past, not to mention her recent activities, the sorceress was brutally blinded during an initial interrogation. Death seemed an increasingly likely prospect, and it seemed only a miracle could save her.


 * If Geralt chooses to help Philippa instead of saving Triss:
 * Geralt had no desire to help a magician who repaid his trust with treason, but Philippa's arguments were justified. Only she could lift the spell from Saskia, thus the witcher was forced to trust her words once more.


 * One might have thought that a blind, exhausted sorceress would have no hope of flee. Yet she seized a moment in which both her guardians were distracted and deceived them. Philippa Eilhart risked it all on one gambit and transformed into an owl, fleeing Loc Muinne. Given the presence of the vengeful Iorveth, one might say that fear gave wing to her escape plan.

Even though Geralt never meets this sorceress face to face, her name appears in the conversations then and again.


 * "They say the sorceress Philippa Eilhart has come to town." or "They say the sorceress Philippa Eilhart has arrived in town." or "The sorceress Philippa Eilhart is in town." — say the townspeople in the Trade Quarter.
 * "Phillippa Eilhart is one of Redania's most prominent citizens. She took a seat on the regency council until such time as the king achieves the age at which he can begin to govern." — stated in the game.

"Philippa Eilhart is a force to reckon with. Wielding immense power, she’s one of the few sorceresses who possesses the ability of polymorphy--she can change into an owl. She specializes in area of effect attacks, and her every spell can target multiple enemies. Her passive skill makes her stronger with every kill.

Heart of the Storm is a skill that can be used in many ways. Touch a place on the screen, and Philippa will summon a pillar of thunder which both slows down enemies, and deals damage to foes caught in its range. Additionally, the character located in the center of the spell’s area of influence will be lifted into the air and immobilized, which allows Philippa’s team members to launch their attacks.

Chain Lightning is a skill of choice when you want to deal tons of damage. There’s a trick to it though--being a channeled spell, it requires the sorceress to stand in one place during casting. This means that she can be stunned, silenced of lifted up in the air and the spell will be interrupted. The key to success is positioning!

Dome of Storms, Philippa’s powerful special ability, turns the sorceress into an owl and casts a dome of storms around t--It’s an immensely powerful spell which inflicts damage upon everyone who winds up within it, and speeds up Philippa’s movement by 50%. Use with caution!"

- CD Projekt

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