Philippa Eilhart

Philippa Eilhart (Polish: Filippa Eilhart) was a sorceress and King Vizimir II's advisor, who remained a powerful figure at Redania's court even after his death, for which she was likely responsible. She was one of the few mages with the rare ability to polymorph, and was able to turn at will into a large grey owl.
She led the Thanedd coup against the Brotherhood of Sorcerers, intending to neutralize suspected traitors allied with Nilfgaard. Later, she initiated the founding of the Lodge of Sorceresses and was considered its leader. The all female organization secretly met at Montecalvo, Philippa's home base.
She was one of the victims of the Witch Hunts in the s, having been tortured and killed by Archpriest Willemer's men. Many years later, she was exonerated and canonized as Martyr Saint.
==Biography==
===Early life ===
Philippa studied magic under the auspices of Tissaia de Vries, probably at Aretuza, the magical school for sorceresses on Thanedd Island. She would later claim the position of a royal advisor at the court of Vizimir II, King of Redania, as well as a seat on the Council of Wizards, one of the two ruling bodies of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers, which governed and guided magical use and practice in the Northern Kingdoms.
===First Northern War===
In , during the First Northern War, Philippa travelled with the Brotherhood of Sorcerers to Lower Sodden, where they fought alongside northern armies in the Battle of Sodden Hill, against the Nilfgaardian Army.
===Hunt for Rience===
In , she had a strong relationship with Sigismund Dijkstra, head of the Redanian Intelligence, the two having previously been lovers for three years, and was present at his meeting with Dandelion in Oxenfurt, discussing the location of Geralt of Rivia. She pushed Dandelion for information on Ciri, under the pretense of being worried for her safety, though Dijsktra considered this a hasty move.
Later that night, as an owl she followed Dandelion back to Wolfgang Amadeus Goatbeard's house, a friend of the bards, where she found Geralt, Dandelion and the medic Shani. They discussed Geralt's position of danger in Oxenfurt, and then when the topic of Rience came up, Shani revealed she had met him three days previous, at the shop of a local merchant Myhrman. The four went to the shop, and at the gate Shani lured the man out so he would let down the drawbridge and Geralt knocked him out. After Shani and Geralt attempted to persuade him, Philippa grew angry and turned to torture, using painful magic that led them to the location of an amulet that could summon Rience.
At dawn, after Geralt had found Rience and incapacitated the four Michelet brothers, Philippa found Toublanc Michelet laying dying on the ground. Whispering words of comfort, she was able to deduce that Vilgefortz had recommended the brothers to Rience, revealing the corruption in the brotherhood. She mercilessly finished him off with a stiletto and ran after Geralt and Rience. The two were fighting and as Geralt went to stab Rience, Philippa paralyzed the witcher, allowing Rience to escape through a portal, and partially explained her reasoning.
=== Thanedd coup ===
On the last night of June, she travelled with Dijkstra to Thanedd Island for the Grand Mage's Conclave. That evening, at the banquet, they briefly talked with Yennefer and Geralt about Sabrina Glevissig and her alliance to Henselt. Later she found Geralt again and they spoke about politics until interrupted by Keira Metz.
In the early hours of the morning, Philippa rallied several of the Northern supporters and began to arrest those allied with Nilfgaard. After they were all rounded up, Dijsktra and Keira brought a magically blinded Geralt to Philippa, who restored his eyesight and gave Dijkstra a list of traitors within Redania, found in Vilgefortz's office. The traitors were then led by Radcliffe to Garstang to face trial. Within the palace, Tissaia de Vries let out the Nilfgaardian traitors and a fight broke out between both sides. After Philippa managed to flee the conflict, she polymorphed into an owl and found Ciri being attacked by Artaud Terranova, whom she scratched his eyes deep with her talons, and Geralt finished him off. Believing herself in debt to Geralt for the escape of Rience, she allowed the two of them to flee without the council following, and then fled Thanedd herself back to Redania.
After returning to Tretogor with several other mages left displaced by their rulers newfound hostility, such as Triss Merigold, Keira Metz, and Margarita Laux-Antille, she learnt of Vizimir's assassination the same night as the coup, and so attempted to assist Queen Hedwig in gaining control of the kingdom from her castle, Montecalvo.
===Formation of the Lodge===
On August 5th, the four used a projection spell to begin their first true meeting, mainly around recruitment and their purpose, summoning Assire var Anahid, Sabrina Glevissig, Sheala de Tancarville, and Francesca Findabair. Philippa led the meeting and helped diffuse the tension created after Francesca joined, between her and Sabrina. Despite initial disagreements over the events of Thanedd, they agreed to work together to protect the safe practice of magic. Backed by Margarita's evidence of women performing better with magic (based off comparing pupils from Aretuza and Ban Ard), they agreed women would only be allowed to join, and also the sorceresses would not have to be apolitical.
== Appearance and personality==
Philippa was described as attractive but intimidating by Dandelion, who thinks of her (perhaps using his signature hyperbole) as being "no less than three hundred years old" by . She had dark hair and black eyes, and was known to favour black agate jewelry. She often wore practical traveling outfits when the need required, however to more to formal events, such as the Thanned banquet, she wore a dress lined with diamonds and ermine fur. She also used crimson coloured lipstick, and cinnamon and muskroot perfume.
Philippa was widely known throughout the Northern Kingdoms for both her political influence at the court of King Vizimir II, as well as for her prodigal magical powers, as even Tissaia De Vries considered her to be one of her best students.
====
Even though Geralt never met this sorceress face to face, her name appears in conversation then and again. It is also speculated that either she or Keira Metz was speaking with Triss Merigold through the latter's magic mirror at the very beginning of Chapter III.
* "The sorceress Philippa Eilhart is in town," — says a townswoman in the Trade Quarter.
====
Philippa Eilhart maintained quarters in the dwarven town of Vergen, which she used to share with her "lover" and apprentice, a "leashed sorceress", Cynthia, as well as a house in Loc Muinne. Geralt first had an encounter with her at the end of Chapter I, using Síle's megascope while investigating the disappearance of Triss Merigold, if he aided Iorveth before the fight with Letho.
Her nightstand in her Vergeni quarters is highlighted when the Witcher's Medallion is used, though it seems inaccessible.
=== Associated quests ===
=== 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 traveling 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, and 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.
== ==
Philippa Eilhart was one of the playable heroes in the now defunct MOBA and had a lot of interesting weapons, skills, and skins. She was a mage class hero.
=== Hero Presentation ===
: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!Philippa Eilhart – hero presentation
=== Skins ===
* Avian Legacy - 1500
* Cobalt Dress - €1,99 - 1000
* Lodge Sorceress Dress - €1,99 - 1000
== ==
Philippa reappeared, having survived Loc Muinne, she fled to a hideout in southern Redania. In the quest Return to Crookback Bog, Geralt found a doll with obvious signs of black magic performed by the crones used to control the person this doll represents. The feathers on this doll immediately reminded Geralt of Philippa, but there was no definitive proof that the doll in fact represented her.
She contacted Margarita Laux-Antille, explaining her plan to regrow her eyes by cultivating tissues on precious stones, just as Vilgefortz did, and to revive the Lodge. Then she went to Novigrad to seek help from her former lover, the sorcerer Arthur de Vleester. Having humiliated him in the past, de Vleester convinced her she'd be safer in her owl form, and then attached a dimeritium band around her ankle. Following de Vleester's execution during the witch hunts, Philippa fell into the possession of Zoltan Chivay, who affectionately named her Poppy.
He later lost her to Sigismund Dijkstra, who made the mistake of removing her dimeritium band, and she returned to human form and attacked. Only Geralt's intervention put an end to her rampage. Philippa was then recruited to help stop the Wild Hunt in exchange for amnesty from Emperor Emhyr var Emreis. After Margarita was rescued from Oxenfurt, she and Philippa met with Ciri to offer her equal partnership in the Lodge, to which she declined.
: Philippa spied on a meeting between Geralt, Dijkstra, Roche, Ves and Thaler in her owl form. Subsequently, she changed to human form and spoke with Geralt when he left the meeting, telling him that Radovid won't take his word that he had her captive and provided him Vizimir's ring to legitimize his story. Following the deaths of Radovid's escort by Geralt and the Temerians, Radovid banged on a nearby door, only to find Philippa waiting for him. She blinded him with magic dust as payback for taking her own eyes before stabbing him in the back, killing him, after which she polymorphed into an owl and disappeared.
Philippa later assisted Geralt in seeking out the Sunstone to help in their plan to lure out the Wild Hunt. While searching through the Skellige caves, Philippa criticised Geralt for having an overprotective attitude towards Ciri, stating that the Lodge were not a pack of wolves he could scare away with his sword, to which the witcher insisted that he could because they were. Once they found the Sunstone, Geralt assumed that she would take the artifact for herself, but Philippa insisted that that was not the case. She then revealed her intentions: to take Yennefer's place at Emhyr's court and become Ciri's advisor, and hoped Geralt would take Yennefer with him and leave everything to her.
=== Associated quests ===
=== 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 of 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 had Philippa's eyes gouged out, yet she had fled and he wanted nothing more than to stick the head of "Tretegor'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 to 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 born a grudge, however, for he tricked her and imprisoned her in her owl form. After the with 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 score.
:Luckily for Philippa, Geralt got things under control and saved her from whatever delights Dijkstra was planning.
:Though the Lodge's prior actions were highly controversial, Philippa stubbornly worked toward its reconstitution, offering Ciri the chance to join it as a full and equal member.
:If Geralt chooses to complete Reason of State:
::One can call historical justice the fact that Philippa Eilhart, Radovid's old tutor, ended the crazed monarch's life. In doing so she also exacted revenge for her blinding and the death and persecution of her fellow mages, so many of whom had died in agony on Radovid's orders.
== Notes ==
*It's known throughout the games and novels that Philippa prefers women. In , there are 2 possible cutscenes where she's with her lover, Cynthia. Skalen Burdon also refers to her sexuality by saying: '"My favorite type of magic: lesbomancy."' during the "curing" of Saskia the Dragonslayer. Additionally, in , Marti Södergren mentions that she lost her taste for men some time ago. In , Sabrina Glevissig references this, stating that Philippa's sexual orientation had changed sometime in the past. In , Philippa is wearing a sardonyx cameo brooch which, according to Fringilla Vigo, was a gift from her girlfriend.
**In , Sigismund Dijkstra also mentions it in Now or Never, stating how he once tried to woo the sorceress, but she made it clear she preferred women. In , Yarpen Zigrin tells Geralt that Philippa was once involved with Dijkstra to learn the plans of the Redanian Secret Service, despite the fact that her lack of interest in men was widespread knowledge. It is made clear that the two had an affair before in the novels.
== Videos ==
File:Philippa Eilhart escapes alone
File:The Witcher 3 Philippa Eilhart Boss Fight (Hard Mode)
== Gallery ==
Philippa.png
TW2 chapter2 philippa cynthia.jpg|Playing with her leashed sorceress - Cynthia
Philippablinded.png|Philippa blinded
Filippa-concept-art-1-.jpg|Philippa's early concept art
Fact06_EN.jpg|Concept art of Philippa's eyes for The Witcher 3
Philippa ehilart screen1.jpg|Philippa's projection summoned by Sabrina Glevissig
Owl Philippa.png|Philippa as an owl
Philippa_knife.png|Philippa after killing Radovid
Tw3 cardart northernrealms philippa eilhart.png|Philippa's gwent card art
Gwent cardart northern philippa eilhart.jpg|Gwent standalone card art
Gwent cardart syndicate philippa owl.png|Owl form transformation 
Twba character model Philippa.png|Philippa's character model for TWBA
== References ==
== External links ==
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