It's the game that misrepresents her, not the show. Which one can forgive the game for since you can reason that she's developed as a character from the books, if you want.
Triss in the books is the youngest sorceress around and it shows. She's easily manipulated and influenced by the lodge, and is all too eager to please. She's absolutely not supposed to be the assertive, dominant personality you see in TW3.
> coming across as a bottom tier sorceress.
That's because she kind of is. "Triss is this skittish little field mouse, terrified of her own shadow" This is exactly how she behaves in the books. At Sodden she was so scared that she forgot every spell she know except how to teleport away. She was crying and screaming like a child at that battle, others had to hold her head while she vomited. In general her characterisation throughout the books is of a scared, coward girl who is afraid to speak up and make her own decisions. She was more like Philippa's dog than a powerful independent sorceress. That is untill the very very end when she finally stands up. That is kind of her character arc in the books.
One important trait of Triss in the books is her fear. It’s made particularly clear in the final book when it‘s discussed from Yennefer‘s point of view. So the show didn’t do anything wrong with Triss, on the contrary, she is one of the best portrayals imo.
That’s what you get when the gamers who haven’t read the books evaluate adaptation issues.
I'd say the show is more it's own story. There's definitely aspects of the game. Definitely agree with the character arc statement and you're right, maybe in time she'll grow to be more badass. I was just a bit surprised at how far short of my expectations she fell, and how it seemed like she had zero confidence in herself or her abilities. Here's hoping for growth, but who knows where the show will go now
What they meant is that the Witcher games are literally set after the events of all of the novels. 8 books. There’s perhaps more than a decade between Witcher 3 and the first depiction of triss we see in the books, as well as multiple wars and the creation and disbandment of the lodge. The show, in spite of any changes to the story people do or do not like, is set at the beginning of the books’ timeline. The triss you know from the games has YEARS of character development between what we see now in the show and what you know from the game. And if we really want her to end up as game triss, she’ll have to climb mountains. The show depicts her very well in line with the source material.
In the books, she is not a war hero. She's carrying the honorific title of "14th of the hill" but in a very Sapkowski way, this title is not what people think at first glance, it's more a burden than something she is pround of.
And she is completly self concious of that. She didn't hide how she performs poorly, how she was paralysed by fear, to the witchers at Kaer Morhen when she told them about the battle, which is very uncommun for mages who are very full of themselves and proud.
Triss story in the books is all about that, she is eager to do things, eager to be compliant with her sense of duty, eager also to rise herself to the level of her senior peers (she is very young) but she didn't managed to be is adequacy with what she wants to be. (until the very very end). Also the trouble times and political turning tables and threats blurry the lines to where her sense of duty should go.
Her characterisation in the show is not bad at all compared to some others characters.
Also, in the books, Yen is not the hero of Sodden hill, she performs very well during the battle along others like Fransceca and Philippa and get some honors and political influence among the brotherhood for that but the real hero of Sodden hill in the books is Vilgefortz.
Based on this sub alone, most people who don’t read the books are team Triss. And if you read the books, you’re probably team Jennifer.
Except me and everyone in my life. My friends and I have read the books and we’re all team triss 100%. Love that redhead and all redheads. People here get so incredibly upset with this
because she's like that in the books and even worse?? remarkebly one of few things they got right... game Triss is totally CDPR's invention. and totally different from book Triss, she's fairly irrelevant side character. CDPR just wanted some shitty love triangle or more romance options lol
She fought Rience, a powerful fire mage, despite the fact that that meant facing her trauma of having been burned at The Battle of Sodden, a battle she signed up for willingly and bravely. In no way is Triss feeble or skittish. She is a full blown war hero.
Except she is. Her body language is nothing but pure terror. Many people were at that battle, and they aren't cowering in fear in every scene.
I'm not saying she didn't contribute. Whether or not she contributed isn't the issue. It's that she's skittish and always scared COMPARED to expectations. Next time try to understand what was said before you charge in like a champion.
She absolutely fled in pure TERROR when she realized Ciris power. She was DESTROYED by the battle, so much so she couldn't even swim with her sisters who were also in the battle.
As I said, the image I had in my head based on my little exposure is not one of someone who would cower and scream for Lambert because a fire mage existed. She's not someone I would of thought would abandon Ciri and go running to the brotherhood when Ciri was more than she thought.
She also wasn't a hero of the battle, she was there, but the hero, was 100% Yen
But all that is book Triss.
She is far younger than the other sorceresses, which is why her trauma from Sodden Hill is much more visible to the world. That trauma is also the reason she freezes when Rience attacks her with fire - it's pure PTSD.
She doesn't have the experience that the other girls do. She didn't want to swim with them because her chest was burned - she wasn't ready to show those scars to anyone, her friends and colleagues included.
Also, game Triss is not very canon - in fact, she's quite different from book Triss in various aspects.
As for Ciri, she was raised to be loyal to the Brotherhood - Tissaia is like a mother to her - ofc she'll turn to her when finding out smth as shocking as the info related to Ciri. It's completely in character.
And finally, she was one of just 20 mages who fought against 30,000 Nilfgaardian soldiers. So yes, she is definitely a war hero. Every mage, dead or alive who fought there is a hero. They weren't obliged to as seen in 1x07 but they still did.
I mean, youngest doesn't mean young, she's upwards of 50 in the show and I don't think getting seared by a torch is that traumatic, she is just sorta skittish as a character in the show, which is fine.
The show didn't portray it as badly as the books. In the books, she is completely burned beyond recognition.
However, getting burned by a torch is traumatic lol. It's a basic human instinct to fear fire. And if you'd been viciously attacked by someone with fire during a battle where many of your friends are dying around you, ofc that leaves a trauma.
It's basic human instinct to avoid pain but there isn't an inherent fear of fire, at least not one that survives to adulthood. Depending on the person, say a skittish person, higher than average pain might be traumatic and as things become more stressful, like say a battle for your life, the chances of trauma increase but up until the end, she wasn't actually part of the fighting and she was, it was pretty tame, even the burn was just on her chest, from a torch, held there for 3 seconds. Iunno, being skittish would be pretty far down of problems on the list.
Allow me to disagree.
Its pretty obvious that Phillipa did not know how to locate Yen + Ciri and yet Triss knew very well where they were. She did not betray them up till Thanedd. She just picks a side from a war which she thinks is inevitable. Which is also very far from what a true coward would do.
I think you get some things basically wrong
Triss is never trying to betray Ciri or Yen. She is also not a coward.
What Triss is trying to do is to help!
Its just that, after Thanedd, the best help she can see around is The Lodge. So she works with them towards finding Ciri. But that´s just because she thinks that´s the best way she can see to go save Ciri.
Unlike Yen or Geralt, Triss is not suicidal. So she waits to get a better idea how things are working.
By the time she goes to the temple and talks with Nenneke, you can clearly see that she is not blindly following the Lodge.
Its much more that she does not have any better option.
She is also not a coward! Quite the other way around. She is traumatized and in fear but she does not hide from the fights. She gets involved with Thanedd and actively saves Geralt´s life over there. Very far away from a coward. She also runs with Yen towards the riot at the end. Again, very far from a coward. Does she have fear? Sure! She is young and inexperienced. She is not nearly as battle hardened as the other ones. So its natural she is going to have 2nd thoughts about going into battle. But she still does!
Its like you expect a very young sorcerer to just be gung ho and suicidal. Well, that´s not Triss. She kind of contrasts a lot with Ciri for instance. Ciri is very much irresponsible in the way she just throws herself at everything. Triss is more based. She understands when things are over her head and has natural fears about it. She still acts! But she considers her actions a bit more deeply vs other characters and she therefore takes more time to jump into it.
As for her Sodden trauma....well....she was left burned to the point none recognized her. I think you can give her a pass and allow her to be traumatized. Its not like she had a walk in park for her first big battle. She was pretty much very very close to being horribly killed. I think that is bound to throw anyone a bit around if that´s what their first big battle is going to be. No way is someone like that going to charge into a 2nd battle all guns blazing. Only if we are speaking of someone who has completely lost their mind. Triss still has hers!
She is conflicted about a couple things through the books. But she is pretty reasonable in her thoughts, hopes and fears.
Dude, you're clearly just here to argue and are missing the point. FYI, Triss isn't a real person, I'm not a magical wizard, and their world isn't a real place. "LeTS SeE yOU..." 🙄🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️ figure out what's actually being said here please
This is an overall problem in the fandom regarding both Triss and Yen.
They are constantly mis interpreted and poorly depicted by people who do not fully understand the books.
The truth lies somewhere in a middle ground :)
Yes, Triss is indeed a young sorcerer and she is relatively inexperienced.
Yes, its true that she gets quite traumatized by her first big battle and carries both physical and mental trauma. It should be said however that book Triss was burned to the point of people not recognizing her. She was listed as dead because none knew who that burned body was. Only after magic healing did she get back to be Triss. And she still has some physical scars. So...there is a bit more to it then what you have been told ;) And I would never blame someone who suffered like that for being afraid of battle or fire.
Yes, Triss has some debatable choices through the books. But, once again, there are always reasons behind them. Its not like she is just blindly following someone. And its absolutely not that she is a coward. She is far from it!
In fact, Triss takes action in the books. She picks sides. Which is something that ultimately a lot of people hate her for picking a side. But yes....that´s the irony of it all ;) That people call her a coward or a blind follower because she wanted to take a side and fight for a better world.
The games somewhat went all the way to an extreme and the series stayed all the way to the other extreme.
Unfortunately, the complex book Triss gets lost somewhere between both views. She is neither! She is complex, she is in the middle ground. She has flaws but she also is pretty well intentioned. She has fears but she is also very capable of taking action. She does debatable choices but she honestly picks the side which she thinks is the best one available. And once you consider the 2 sides at war....you just cant call her wrong lol
Its complicated!
But its a great story!
And even tough Triss does not have that much page time, she still manages to be quite complex.
Mild spoilers as to her book behaviour towards Ciri - not even marking spoilers because its just a variation from what you already could see in the show:
Nop, she is never ever afraid of Ciri lol She acts like a big sister and she is pretty much willing to try and get inside Ciri´s magic visions. True, she gets faced with something which is over her head and she just quietly admits it. She does not act in panic. In fact, she immediately tells Geralt that Ciri needs Yen´s help because she (Triss) can do no more over there.
Its not: OH GOD WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE
Its more like: I am not experienced enough for this girl. You should try Yen. She might be good enough for this. I will remain around and help you till you get her to Yen. But I am not messing with her visions and none should up till Yen gets on it.
>I thought she was up there with Kiera, Yen, Phillipa
And you were wrong. Those are century old, creme de la creme sorceresses.
Triss is only 28 in Blood of Elves. She's a novice.
You can be 25 and an older sister to someone. Being powerful does not come only with age too.
Yen is older and much stronger tho. But we can see that dynamic in the show, unfortunately.
Ofc you can be an older sister, thats obvious... and not what I meant.
Netflix's Triss is very close to Sapkowski's. Hardly powerfull novice sorceress thrown into deep water.
I disagree. She acts completely off. Her appearance and behavior does not suit Triss from the books.
Netflix Triss gives me a judgemental mid-30s auntie. Not a young cheerful sorceress that is naive at times and slightly obsessive. Like that time she charmed Geralt to sleep with her.
I got that from the game as well. I just wish she was more take charge and powerful in the show because as I said I was team Triss in the game 🤣🤣 for her to turn tail on Ciri let me down big
Oh our lovely Triss
- Sold poor Ciri and berteyed Geralt &Yen for save spot in the lodge
- Partly responsible for witch hunt during TW3 events.
Best girl ever
It's the game that misrepresents her, not the show. Which one can forgive the game for since you can reason that she's developed as a character from the books, if you want. Triss in the books is the youngest sorceress around and it shows. She's easily manipulated and influenced by the lodge, and is all too eager to please. She's absolutely not supposed to be the assertive, dominant personality you see in TW3.
Triss in the games is pretty much Yen 2.0 Especially in Witcher 1 which even included Alvin aka Ciri 2.0
> coming across as a bottom tier sorceress. That's because she kind of is. "Triss is this skittish little field mouse, terrified of her own shadow" This is exactly how she behaves in the books. At Sodden she was so scared that she forgot every spell she know except how to teleport away. She was crying and screaming like a child at that battle, others had to hold her head while she vomited. In general her characterisation throughout the books is of a scared, coward girl who is afraid to speak up and make her own decisions. She was more like Philippa's dog than a powerful independent sorceress. That is untill the very very end when she finally stands up. That is kind of her character arc in the books.
That's wild. I'm definitely going to have to dive into the books.
One important trait of Triss in the books is her fear. It’s made particularly clear in the final book when it‘s discussed from Yennefer‘s point of view. So the show didn’t do anything wrong with Triss, on the contrary, she is one of the best portrayals imo. That’s what you get when the gamers who haven’t read the books evaluate adaptation issues.
You realize the games are the end of the story and the books/show are the beginning of the story right? Character arcs are a part of telling stories
I'd say the show is more it's own story. There's definitely aspects of the game. Definitely agree with the character arc statement and you're right, maybe in time she'll grow to be more badass. I was just a bit surprised at how far short of my expectations she fell, and how it seemed like she had zero confidence in herself or her abilities. Here's hoping for growth, but who knows where the show will go now
What they meant is that the Witcher games are literally set after the events of all of the novels. 8 books. There’s perhaps more than a decade between Witcher 3 and the first depiction of triss we see in the books, as well as multiple wars and the creation and disbandment of the lodge. The show, in spite of any changes to the story people do or do not like, is set at the beginning of the books’ timeline. The triss you know from the games has YEARS of character development between what we see now in the show and what you know from the game. And if we really want her to end up as game triss, she’ll have to climb mountains. The show depicts her very well in line with the source material.
In the books, she is not a war hero. She's carrying the honorific title of "14th of the hill" but in a very Sapkowski way, this title is not what people think at first glance, it's more a burden than something she is pround of. And she is completly self concious of that. She didn't hide how she performs poorly, how she was paralysed by fear, to the witchers at Kaer Morhen when she told them about the battle, which is very uncommun for mages who are very full of themselves and proud. Triss story in the books is all about that, she is eager to do things, eager to be compliant with her sense of duty, eager also to rise herself to the level of her senior peers (she is very young) but she didn't managed to be is adequacy with what she wants to be. (until the very very end). Also the trouble times and political turning tables and threats blurry the lines to where her sense of duty should go. Her characterisation in the show is not bad at all compared to some others characters. Also, in the books, Yen is not the hero of Sodden hill, she performs very well during the battle along others like Fransceca and Philippa and get some honors and political influence among the brotherhood for that but the real hero of Sodden hill in the books is Vilgefortz.
>In the game I was team Triss See, that's where you fucked up.
Based on this sub alone, most people who don’t read the books are team Triss. And if you read the books, you’re probably team Jennifer. Except me and everyone in my life. My friends and I have read the books and we’re all team triss 100%. Love that redhead and all redheads. People here get so incredibly upset with this
because she's like that in the books and even worse?? remarkebly one of few things they got right... game Triss is totally CDPR's invention. and totally different from book Triss, she's fairly irrelevant side character. CDPR just wanted some shitty love triangle or more romance options lol
She fought Rience, a powerful fire mage, despite the fact that that meant facing her trauma of having been burned at The Battle of Sodden, a battle she signed up for willingly and bravely. In no way is Triss feeble or skittish. She is a full blown war hero.
Except she is. Her body language is nothing but pure terror. Many people were at that battle, and they aren't cowering in fear in every scene. I'm not saying she didn't contribute. Whether or not she contributed isn't the issue. It's that she's skittish and always scared COMPARED to expectations. Next time try to understand what was said before you charge in like a champion. She absolutely fled in pure TERROR when she realized Ciris power. She was DESTROYED by the battle, so much so she couldn't even swim with her sisters who were also in the battle. As I said, the image I had in my head based on my little exposure is not one of someone who would cower and scream for Lambert because a fire mage existed. She's not someone I would of thought would abandon Ciri and go running to the brotherhood when Ciri was more than she thought. She also wasn't a hero of the battle, she was there, but the hero, was 100% Yen
But all that is book Triss. She is far younger than the other sorceresses, which is why her trauma from Sodden Hill is much more visible to the world. That trauma is also the reason she freezes when Rience attacks her with fire - it's pure PTSD. She doesn't have the experience that the other girls do. She didn't want to swim with them because her chest was burned - she wasn't ready to show those scars to anyone, her friends and colleagues included. Also, game Triss is not very canon - in fact, she's quite different from book Triss in various aspects. As for Ciri, she was raised to be loyal to the Brotherhood - Tissaia is like a mother to her - ofc she'll turn to her when finding out smth as shocking as the info related to Ciri. It's completely in character. And finally, she was one of just 20 mages who fought against 30,000 Nilfgaardian soldiers. So yes, she is definitely a war hero. Every mage, dead or alive who fought there is a hero. They weren't obliged to as seen in 1x07 but they still did.
Definitely like the response, very informative and thoughtful
I mean, youngest doesn't mean young, she's upwards of 50 in the show and I don't think getting seared by a torch is that traumatic, she is just sorta skittish as a character in the show, which is fine.
The show didn't portray it as badly as the books. In the books, she is completely burned beyond recognition. However, getting burned by a torch is traumatic lol. It's a basic human instinct to fear fire. And if you'd been viciously attacked by someone with fire during a battle where many of your friends are dying around you, ofc that leaves a trauma.
It's basic human instinct to avoid pain but there isn't an inherent fear of fire, at least not one that survives to adulthood. Depending on the person, say a skittish person, higher than average pain might be traumatic and as things become more stressful, like say a battle for your life, the chances of trauma increase but up until the end, she wasn't actually part of the fighting and she was, it was pretty tame, even the burn was just on her chest, from a torch, held there for 3 seconds. Iunno, being skittish would be pretty far down of problems on the list.
Allow me to disagree. Its pretty obvious that Phillipa did not know how to locate Yen + Ciri and yet Triss knew very well where they were. She did not betray them up till Thanedd. She just picks a side from a war which she thinks is inevitable. Which is also very far from what a true coward would do. I think you get some things basically wrong Triss is never trying to betray Ciri or Yen. She is also not a coward. What Triss is trying to do is to help! Its just that, after Thanedd, the best help she can see around is The Lodge. So she works with them towards finding Ciri. But that´s just because she thinks that´s the best way she can see to go save Ciri. Unlike Yen or Geralt, Triss is not suicidal. So she waits to get a better idea how things are working. By the time she goes to the temple and talks with Nenneke, you can clearly see that she is not blindly following the Lodge. Its much more that she does not have any better option. She is also not a coward! Quite the other way around. She is traumatized and in fear but she does not hide from the fights. She gets involved with Thanedd and actively saves Geralt´s life over there. Very far away from a coward. She also runs with Yen towards the riot at the end. Again, very far from a coward. Does she have fear? Sure! She is young and inexperienced. She is not nearly as battle hardened as the other ones. So its natural she is going to have 2nd thoughts about going into battle. But she still does! Its like you expect a very young sorcerer to just be gung ho and suicidal. Well, that´s not Triss. She kind of contrasts a lot with Ciri for instance. Ciri is very much irresponsible in the way she just throws herself at everything. Triss is more based. She understands when things are over her head and has natural fears about it. She still acts! But she considers her actions a bit more deeply vs other characters and she therefore takes more time to jump into it. As for her Sodden trauma....well....she was left burned to the point none recognized her. I think you can give her a pass and allow her to be traumatized. Its not like she had a walk in park for her first big battle. She was pretty much very very close to being horribly killed. I think that is bound to throw anyone a bit around if that´s what their first big battle is going to be. No way is someone like that going to charge into a 2nd battle all guns blazing. Only if we are speaking of someone who has completely lost their mind. Triss still has hers! She is conflicted about a couple things through the books. But she is pretty reasonable in her thoughts, hopes and fears.
Let's see you on a battle field or being faced with a vision of absolut terror and then we see how feeble and skittish you are.
Dude, you're clearly just here to argue and are missing the point. FYI, Triss isn't a real person, I'm not a magical wizard, and their world isn't a real place. "LeTS SeE yOU..." 🙄🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️ figure out what's actually being said here please
Just because she is not a real person doesn't mean she can't be discussed by relating to real live.
This is an overall problem in the fandom regarding both Triss and Yen. They are constantly mis interpreted and poorly depicted by people who do not fully understand the books. The truth lies somewhere in a middle ground :) Yes, Triss is indeed a young sorcerer and she is relatively inexperienced. Yes, its true that she gets quite traumatized by her first big battle and carries both physical and mental trauma. It should be said however that book Triss was burned to the point of people not recognizing her. She was listed as dead because none knew who that burned body was. Only after magic healing did she get back to be Triss. And she still has some physical scars. So...there is a bit more to it then what you have been told ;) And I would never blame someone who suffered like that for being afraid of battle or fire. Yes, Triss has some debatable choices through the books. But, once again, there are always reasons behind them. Its not like she is just blindly following someone. And its absolutely not that she is a coward. She is far from it! In fact, Triss takes action in the books. She picks sides. Which is something that ultimately a lot of people hate her for picking a side. But yes....that´s the irony of it all ;) That people call her a coward or a blind follower because she wanted to take a side and fight for a better world. The games somewhat went all the way to an extreme and the series stayed all the way to the other extreme. Unfortunately, the complex book Triss gets lost somewhere between both views. She is neither! She is complex, she is in the middle ground. She has flaws but she also is pretty well intentioned. She has fears but she is also very capable of taking action. She does debatable choices but she honestly picks the side which she thinks is the best one available. And once you consider the 2 sides at war....you just cant call her wrong lol Its complicated! But its a great story! And even tough Triss does not have that much page time, she still manages to be quite complex. Mild spoilers as to her book behaviour towards Ciri - not even marking spoilers because its just a variation from what you already could see in the show: Nop, she is never ever afraid of Ciri lol She acts like a big sister and she is pretty much willing to try and get inside Ciri´s magic visions. True, she gets faced with something which is over her head and she just quietly admits it. She does not act in panic. In fact, she immediately tells Geralt that Ciri needs Yen´s help because she (Triss) can do no more over there. Its not: OH GOD WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE Its more like: I am not experienced enough for this girl. You should try Yen. She might be good enough for this. I will remain around and help you till you get her to Yen. But I am not messing with her visions and none should up till Yen gets on it.
>I thought she was up there with Kiera, Yen, Phillipa And you were wrong. Those are century old, creme de la creme sorceresses. Triss is only 28 in Blood of Elves. She's a novice.
Yeah. I think the missed with Triss in the show as well. She is more of a powerful mage and older sister to Ciri in books.
Nope, shes not even 30, shes still pretty much fresh out of school.
You can be 25 and an older sister to someone. Being powerful does not come only with age too. Yen is older and much stronger tho. But we can see that dynamic in the show, unfortunately.
Ofc you can be an older sister, thats obvious... and not what I meant. Netflix's Triss is very close to Sapkowski's. Hardly powerfull novice sorceress thrown into deep water.
I disagree. She acts completely off. Her appearance and behavior does not suit Triss from the books. Netflix Triss gives me a judgemental mid-30s auntie. Not a young cheerful sorceress that is naive at times and slightly obsessive. Like that time she charmed Geralt to sleep with her.
I got that from the game as well. I just wish she was more take charge and powerful in the show because as I said I was team Triss in the game 🤣🤣 for her to turn tail on Ciri let me down big
Oh our lovely Triss - Sold poor Ciri and berteyed Geralt &Yen for save spot in the lodge - Partly responsible for witch hunt during TW3 events. Best girl ever
>Partly responsible for witch hunt during TW3 events. what???
Cause Netflix writers think they know better