When the Conjunction of the Spheres took place, the face of the Continent changed forever. Elves, men, and dwarves are forced in the same world and driven to coexist, until humans overwhelm the elves in war. Along with this crossing of races and worlds, monsters that came from other worlds were brought over. The monsters of The Witcher series are a partial focus for the protagonist, Geralt of Rivia, a Witcher that is trained and made to hunt down and kill them for a price.

Many of the creatures in The Witcher are based on spirits or actual monsters from Slavic and Celtic folklore, with some having major references to their myths. The monsters are categorized in species and types, each one has different strengths, resistances, and weaknesses. They also make for terrifying encounters that drive Geralt at the edge during suspenseful battles. Geralt and most witchers have two different types of swords to fight these monsters. Steel swords are effective on more natural monsters while silver swords are effective on more magical entities.

Players of Projeckt Red’s Witcher Trilogy Are bound to come face to face with many fearsome beasts from the books, A fun and engaging element in these games, especially in The Witcher: Wild Hunt, is to track down Geralt’s contracts and research their weaknesses to make their grueling battles easier. Due to the open world structure of Wild Hunt, sudden encounters in the wild can lead to terrifying fight or flight moments in the savage ecosystem of the world of The Witcher.

10. Swooping Griffins

Players of The Witcher: Wild Hunt will have their first real monster hunt in the game with their encounter against the large hybrid monster known as the Griffin in White Orchard. Griffins in The Witcher games are shown to be different from the classic appearances of the creatures. They look like lions with eagle traits on the forewings, feathered tail, and beaked mouth. Steel swords and the Aard spells are effective at fighting them.

The first fight leaves an impactful impression for the rest of the game and teaches players how to use the new crossbow weapon against flying monsters. Players must beware of the high leveled archgriffin that hunts near a treasure area in Skellige Island.

9. Swarming Nekkers

In select regions across the Continent, Geralt will encounter nests of nekkers. These small ogroids that are harmless on their own but overwhelming in numbers. With warriors and queens, they can turn what appears to be an easy fight into a nightmarish struggle to avoid being flooded with attacks. Silver swords, igni spells, and flaming bombs can make short work of their numbers. Nekkers also appeared in the Netflix series in a sequence where they ambushed Geralt, resulting in a tense battle.

8. The Grotesque Kikimora 

These are the first monsters seen fighting Geralt in The Witcher Netflix series. The appearance of the beast as well as the intense sequence where Geralt resorted to drinking certain potions to defeat the monster was a great way to introduce the harsh monster full world of The Witcher. In the show, the kikimora has a human head and torso on a multi limbed spider like body. In the games, kikimores are more bug-like with a hive system and different types from warriors to workers and queens.

7. The Elusive Forest Spirit Leshen

Leshens are relics that are worshiped and feared as forest guardians. They appear like humanoids with arms and legs like tree bark and a deer skull for a head. They have elemental control over roots, branches, and command packs of wolves and murders of crows to fight Geralt. Leshens made an appearance in a collaboration for Monster Hunter: World, where they are three times as strong due to the energy in the Ancient Forest. In Season two of the Netflix show, a special leshen was revealed with uncanny human features and the ability to infect witchers like a virus.