In between all the political squabbling, magical shenanigans, and leisurely hikes in the woods, Netflix’s The Witcher also allowed us to take a close look at Geralt’s career. Which is good, because monster hunter is probably the most interesting vocation you could find at a job fair.
As good as Geralt is at being a witcher, there are definitely some beasts that gave him a harder time than others. There was a surprising amount of monsters shown off in Season 1, and today, we're going to find out which of these creatures is the strongest of them all.
Hirikka
Initially, this little guy seems fairly adorable and harmless. Even Jaskier has no problem strolling up to one to marvel at how cute it is. Of course, it soon stands on its hind legs and reveals itself to be much bigger than originally thought.
The Hirikka, while reasonably large, isn’t actually all that dangerous unless it’s hungry. They’re also an endangered species, which is a shame since the douchey noble traveling with Yennefer brutally slaughters the poor beast for no good reason. He did contract horrible explosive diarrhea after eating it, so at least the Hirikka got some form of revenge.
Strength Rating: Not much to worry about other than a strong case of food poisoning.
Sylvan
Torgue, the sylvan that shows up in The Witcher series, is much svelter than your usual sylvan. In the games, most sylvans were exceedingly rotund humanoid figures with horns and cloven hooves like a goat. Because of their look, a lot of villagers tend to regard them as devils or demons, but they’re actually relatively harmless herbivores that live in the forests. We still wouldn't recommend messing with them too much though, as they do breathe fire.
Strength Rating: Unless you're a root vegetable you should be fine.
Magic Brain Worms
Not sure how to classify these creepy little invertebrates let loose by one of Fringilla's minions, but they're definitely deadly. Seemingly straight out of an Animorphs book, they burrow into the ears of nearby people and brainwash them into doing whatever their master wants. It's hard to tell how these things work, but they force children to blow things up and turn mages against one another. You probably shouldn't use these as fishing bait.
Strength Rating: Will do bad things to your brain, but a good stomping should take them out.
Ghouls
Ghouls are very much like classic zombies. They’re lured by dead bodies, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by a large group of them and if you get bitten then you’re pretty much instantly dead. One bite is enough to put Geralt in a hallucinatory coma that very nearly kills him. So even though they look a bit goofy and weak, they’re no joke. That being said, Geralt does manage to kill the entire pack of ghouls on his own before passing out from the bite, so they’re not exactly an insurmountable foe.
Strength Rating: Easy to handle if you're a leveled up witcher. Just avoid any dental work.
Doppler
The doppler is a special kind of monster. It has the ability to take the form of any human being, making themselves almost indistinguishable from the real thing. Even worse, they also gain the memories and personalities of anyone they transform into, which could make them one of the most dangerous creatures of all.
Thankfully, dopplers aren’t incredibly strong or otherwise special in terms of their deadliness. Plus, most dopplers are quite gentle and don’t mean any harm. Unfortunately, the Doppler in this series is a borderline serial killer and doesn’t have any qualms about murdering someone and stealing their identity. While they might not be able to poison, burn or eviscerate you, their power to steal people’s lives is scarier than anything else.
Strength Rating: Not that strong, but probably really good at credit card fraud.
Krallach
This cuddly little buddy accompanies a traveling assassin sent to kill a queen alongside Yennefer. A krallach is also known as a roach-hound, meaning it's essentially a dog-sized cockroach with knives for hands. It's not especially strong as its easily dispatched by Yen, but now we have the idea of St. Bernard-sized roaches in our heads and we need to curl up into a ball and cry for a bit.
Strength Rating: Strong against babies and queens. Even stronger in our nightmares.
Kikimora
In any other franchise, fighting a kikimora would probably be a true test of a hero’s mettle. For Geralt, it’s just another Tuesday. Not that they’re to be taken lightly. They are pretty scary with their insectoid appearance, multiple legs, and human-like face. However, they are the first example of Geralt’s monster-fighting prowess that we get in the Netflix series. If they were truly that dangerous, they wouldn't be the first monster we see get slaughtered.
Strength Rating: Somewhat strong, more so for those with arachnophobia.
Selkiemore
We don't actually get to see the selkiemore, just its guts splattered all over Geralt. It's supposed to be a gigantic sea-creature with razor-sharp teeth that’s so massive that it can swallow ships whole. It rises up from beneath a frozen lake and swallows Geralt in one gulp.
That sounds like a particularly deadly beast, except, Geralt soon non-chalantly appears in the tavern covered in selkiemore guts looking no worse for wear. Since we don’t have any reference on this monster from the games or books we have to go strictly from the TV series, and if that’s the case, it seems like it was pretty easy to take care of. However, it’s likely that something that big could be a nuisance to any non-witchers out on the open water.
Strength Rating: Strong enough to eat a boat. Not strong enough to eat a witcher.
Striga
Oddly enough, the striga seems to be the monster that almost gets the best of Geralt. Strigas are cursed women who become feral predators armed with brute strength, incredible speed, and sharp teeth and claws. They hunt during a full moon and pretty much hate any living creature that they aren't currently eating.
Geralt manages to break the striga's curse, but only after a long, knock-down, drag-out fight that he barely survives. Ironically, it's not the striga itself that almost kills him, but the cured little girl who bites a significant chunk out of his neck. Because when you truly think about it, isn't man the greatest monster of all?
No, strigas are much worse.
Strength Rating: Able to hit you harder than puberty ever could.
Dragon
Dragons are fairly strong and fairly rare. Much like hirikkas, there are very few dragons left in the world. They may not be plentiful, but that doesn’t mean they’re not extremely dangerous. Not only are they strong, they can fly, breathe fire or acid, and absorb magic. They can also take on the form of a human, much like a doppler. Yet, for all their power, dragons often don’t attack humans unless they’re provoked. They’re seen as extremely intelligent, so most witchers would rather protect a dragon than destroy it. Basically, as long you don’t poke the dragon, you shouldn’t get burned to a crisp.
Strength Rating: Incredibly strong, and if they're Borch Three Jackdaws, incredibly cool.
Djinn
While the allure of getting three magical wishes is understandable, it might be better to leave The Witcher’s version of genies alone. These wind elemental spirits can be sealed away within a bottle or container with a magic seal, which is a nice solution for dealing with them. But once they escape whatever prison they’ve been confined to, they ‘re usually not in a good mood.
The djinn in the show magically poisons Jaskier, nearly takes over Yennefer’s body, and tears apart the second floor of a mansion. That’s just a small portion of their destructive abilities. In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt during a mission called “The Last Wish”, the djinn is so strong that it can kill Geralt in one shot. If we're measuring strength through sheer destructive force, it's likely that the djinn is the strongest monster we've seen yet.
Strength Rating: If it doesn't sound like Robin Williams, stay the hell away.