Anna Daniels
The dryads of Brokilon Forest don’t mess around. Forced into hiding by humans and monsters, they fearsomely protect their land from intruders. They shoot Ciri’s friend, Dara, before he can even reach the woods. They force all newcomers to drink the water of Brokilon, which kills anyone who harbors ill-will against the forest, and makes anyone who doesn’t slowly forget their past.
Accordingly, The Witcher‘s dryads dress in armor and heavy makeup. They’re imposing figures, as they should be, and they resolutely stand their ground. That’s a big departure from the dryads of Greek mythology, where the creatures originated. In the original myths, dryads — or nymphs who were tied to forests or trees — were actually known for being exceptionally shy. They didn’t really fight, although some of them could transform from human-like creatures into trees.
Like all nymphs, dryads were exclusively female, and are usually quite beautiful (and, according to classic Greek art, quite naked). As such, they’re often the target of sexual advances, welcome or otherwise. Eurydice, wife of the famous poet and magician Orpheus, was a dryad. Two of the ten wives of Danaus, king of Libya, were dryads, too. Still, for the most part, dryads are passive figures in the Greek myths. It was up to The Witcher to give them some grit.
Written by: Looper
