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"Do you really wish to know?" — Spoilers from the books and/or adaptations to follow!
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To drink a jug of wine and laugh about it?
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- Auckes to Letho, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

Auckes (Polish: Egan) was a witcher of the School of the Viper and a member of the Kingslayers sent to the Northern Kingdoms by Imperator Emhyr var Emreis to wreak havoc.

Biography[]

Early life[]

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Well, the woman turned out to be quite a character. Throwing temper tantrums, trying to seduce Auckes, trying to drive a wedge between us.
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- Letho discussing Yennefer, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

After Geralt saved Letho's life in Angren, the witcher helped him find the Wild Hunt who had kidnapped Yennefer. Auckes, alongside Serrit and a fourth Viper witcher, joined Letho and Geralt to form a party of witchers that were tracking down the Wild Hunt.

In the winter solstice of 1270, Auckes took part in the battle of the Hanged Man's Tree, in Nilfgaard, where the witchers faced the riders of the Hunt. Although the witchers fought bravely, they could not kill them all due to being highly outnumbered. A stalemate was reached, and after an exchange of Geralt for Yennefer took place, the Wild Hunt withdrew. Out of respect for their departed comrade, the Viper witchers took Yennefer with them to care for her.

However, after being released from the Wild Hunt, Yennefer was feverish, delirious, in agony, and suffering from amnesia. She turned out to be quite a handful, trying to seduce Auckes and drive a wedge between the witchers, thereby causing the group endless trouble in the Nilfgaardian Empire, which was known to have strict rules on mages that could result in her being killed. To try and protect her, the group wandered through the provinces of the empire, pulling Yennefer out of whatever trouble she would find herself in, until all of them were eventually caught and detained by the imperial secret police.

They were questioned separately, but no violence was used. After the interrogations, Letho received an offer from Emperor Emhyr var Emreis himself: kill as many northern kings as he could, and in recompense, the emperor would rebuild the School of the Viper; Letho agreed and recruited some of his fellow Vipers into the task, thus Auckes became part of a group that would be remembered as the Kingslayers.[1]

Hiding in Aedirn[]

Sometime after Letho managed to slay Demavend III, he met with Auckes in a nearby forest and gave him the former king of Aedirn's head. Auckes initially complained about the head's smell, weight and size, before Letho instructed him to give it to Síle de Tansarville to receive payment and further orders. Due to a deal Letho subsequently made with Iorveth, the Kingslayers were temporarily given protection by the Scoia'tael; Auckes and his brother, Serrit, were stationed with the elven outlaws in Upper Aedirn.

Sometime later, when Iorveth became aware that Letho had betrayed him, the latter used Triss Merigold to teleport to Aedirn, in order to regroup with Auckes and Serrit. Auckes and his fellow Kingslayers ambushed and massacred the local Scoia'tael before news of Letho's betrayal could reach them, leaving only one survivor. From their hideout, the witchers then began plotting to assassinate Henselt, the king of Kaedwen.[1]

Preparing Henselt's assassination[]

Auckes Serrit screen1

Auckes and Serrit in Geralt's vision

If Roche's Path was chosen: On the day of the strike, Auckes and Serrit cleared some harpies outside the cave and proceeded to meet with Letho. After a short conversation about the presence of Geralt in the Kaedweni camp and their next move, Letho left for Loc Muinne while the brother witchers set out on their mission. They used the time they had in the walk towards the camp to discuss the events that were scheduled to happen at Loc Muinne.

After infiltrating the camp, Auckes secured the ground floor by disposing of the guards, then proceeded to rendezvous with Serrit and together defeated the knights that stood in their way. When they were ready to eliminate Henselt, however, Geralt showed up in defense of the king and the former companions clashed. After a hard fought battle, Auckes was cut down by Geralt.[1]

If Iorveth's Path was chosen: The hideout used by the Kingslayers was eventually discovered by Síle de Tansarville. As a result, Dethmold sent some Kaedweni soldiers down there; Auckes and Serrit covered Letho's escape but succumbed to the attack, with one of them being killed and the other being captured. Under torture, the one who was captured revealed that Letho had gone to Loc Muinne, shortly before expiring.[1]

Legacy[]

Roche's Path: After Auckes' death, the sorcerer Dethmold used Hanmarvyn's Blue Dream on Geralt - a necromantic ritual that allows one to experience the final moments of the dead through someone else's eyes. After seeing the witcher's recent past, Geralt learned of the location of the Kingslayers' hideout and Síle de Tansarville's involvement in the assassinations of the northern monarchs.[1]

Iorveth's Path: Vernon Roche informed Geralt of the two Kingslayers' deaths and, thanks to the information given by one of them under torture, where Letho had relocated to.

Journal entry[]

When he first heard Auckes' name, the witcher had no idea who this was. Hah - he did not have the slightest inkling of the role this individual would play in our story.
If Geralt chooses Roche's path during the end of chapter I:
The assassin's identity was revealed only after his death. The accomplice of Letho and Serrit fell at Geralt's hand, but his memories provided very important information. The kingslayers responsible for the deaths of Foltest and Demavend, as well as the attempt on Henselt, had played a game of their own, in which both Síle and Iorveth had been pawns. Furthermore, it seemed that they and Geralt shared a common past.
If Geralt chooses Iorveth's path during the end of chapter I:
Auckes was probably one of the witchers Roche had mentioned. He and Serrit were trying to cover Letho's escape when Síle located their hideout. Though both died in the end, they completed their task, buying the last kingslayer time to flee.

Appearance and personality[]

Gwent cardart nilfgaard auckes

Auckes in a heat of battle, using two swords

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Always the optimist, Auckes.
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- Serrit, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings

Auckes seemed to be the less serious of the brothers, being sarcastic at times while being very confident of his skills. Serrit noted that Auckes was something of an optimist, although he was not reckless; more so than Serrit, Auckes realized the potential difficulty of his task and was uncomfortable with the idea of facing Geralt. Along with his brother, Auckes was fond of using bear traps.

Auckes appeared to regard Geralt as a friend, which is reflected when he asked if Geralt wasn't hanged for Foltest murder and Letho asked him if he wanted to see him hanged, he lowered his head and just answered "no". According to a Scoia'tael prisoner in the Kaedweni camp, Auckes was very proficient in Elder Speech, to a much greater extent than Geralt.

Trivia[]

  • Auckes' original name is "Egan", and remains like that in Polish, German, Czech and Russian editions at least. The cause of this change in a few language versions is unknown.

Notes[]

Videos[]

Gallery[]

References[]

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