The Witcher 3 introduces us to some new characters through its DLC expansions. In Blood & Wine, we meet antagonist Syanna. She’s the sister of the duchess who’s been mixed up with a higher vampire and is not as innocent as she may initially seem.
That doesn’t mean she’s a two dimensional, cardboard cutout villain, though. With a tragic past behind her, some dark but understandable motivations, and a whole lot of emotional confusion, she makes for a very interesting character indeed — and you probably haven’t caught all of the details about her.
10 Her Real Name Is Sylvia Anna
Although she’s referred to as Syanna throughout the game, it’s a nickname for close friends (however few she has) that seems to catch on. Her birth name is Sylvia Anna — clearly, the nickname is just the two names pushed together. It’s understandable she didn’t want to go by her real name, since her family exiled her. She probably wanted to reinvent herself and distance herself from them, and a name change was an easy way to do it.
9 She’s A Cousin To Emhyr van Emreis
Not only is she Toussaint royalty, she’s related to Nilfgaardian royalty. Emyr van Emreis is actually her cousin, although the degree is never specified — could be second, third, etc. This means that by extension, she’s also related to Ciri.
It’s a connection that not a lot of players make, but it is interesting to consider both she and her sister Anna Henrietta as being related to the emperor and Ciri herself.
8 She Is Affected By The Curse Of The Black Sun
The Curse of the Black sun is said to affect royalty born under an eclipse. Those who’ve even only watched the Netflix show so far will be familiar with such a curse, but it tends to lead to princesses being treated extremely badly. Syanna was one of those, born under the Black Sun and eventually exiled by her own parents because of it.
Whether the curse is real is debatable, since Geralt never believed in it, but Syanna was afflicted by chronic nightmares as a child.
7 She & Anna Were Actually Very Close
Although she and her younger sister Anna Henrietta are painted as enemies throughout the game, they were actually very close when they were younger. Syanna even used to take the blame for her sister’s wrong doings. When Syanna was exiled, Anna was devastated and mourned for many years until they were finally reunited.
Syanna seems to quickly forget this upon their reunion and doesn’t want to believe the best in her sister, but if the player listens to Anna, they’ll realize the truth.
6 She Was The Leader Of A Bandit Group
When she was exiled, she was almost killed but she wandered and found a bandit group. The likelihood was that she would be assaulted, robbed, and killed by such a group but somehow, she rose through their ranks and became their leader.
Syanna seems to have a very charismatic way around her that makes people follow her…
5 She Was Supposed To Be Duchess
Anna is Syanna’s younger sister which means that Syanna was actually the one in line to be duchess. It’s a strange thing to imagine this antagonist ruling over Toussaint but if we listen to the stories of her childhood, it seems that Syanna wasn’t always bitter and malicious — she’s just someone who truly needed love and never got it. Therefore if she had grown up with parental support rather than being looked down on for being born under an eclipse, she actually might have grown to be a strong ruler.
4 She Just Needed Some Empathy
To achieve the happy finale at the end of the DLC, she needs to be shown empathy by Geralt. It seems that this sympathy and understanding eventually leads to her bettering herself, which makes it painfully obvious that had she been shown the same understanding by her parents, she may have not turned out all that bad.
It’s a clear sign that Syanna, tragically, is a product of her environment rather than someone who is inherently bad.
3 Her Favorite Fairytale Was Thumbelina
One of the potential side quests involves finding Syanna in the Land of Fables. Syanna doesn’t much seem like a fairytale person but here, we discover that her favorite fairytale was Thumbelina and the reason she gives for this is that it’s one of the few fairytales not about a princess.
Understandable — Syanna lived such a horrible life when she was considered royalty that she probably never wants to hear about princesses again. It’s an interesting detail that furthers the depth of her character in the story.
2 Rhenawedd Means “Queen’s Child”
When Syanna was seducing Dettlaff, she didn’t tell him who she really was and essentially tricked the vampire into falling in love with a false identity. This false identity was the name of Rhenawedd, which was not a random name plucked from the ether. Rhenawedd actually means “queen’s child”, which seems to have been specifically picked from her background.
Did she choose this because she thought it was clever and ironic, or was she quietly paying homage to her family? Knowing her disdain for them and having gotten to know Syanna in general by the time the game is done, it’s probably the former.
1 She Can Be Romanced
Depending on the choices you pick as Geralt, you may not know that Syanna can be romanced. Before you leave the Land of Fables, she will start hitting on you — subtly, at first, and then it’s not subtle at all. If you encourage her, a romance scene will occur, and it’s probably the most bizarre in the whole game — a cape, floating upside down, and some clouds all make it a pretty weird intimate scene. Still, if you’re playing a Geralt who likes to romance all of the ladies, this one is not to be missed.
NEXT: The Witcher 3: 10 Hidden Details About Anna Henrietta Everyone Completely Missed
