The Witcher 4's Currency Reference Explained

During The Game Awards, the highly anticipated The Witcher 4Its trailer has hit the big screens, revealing Ciri as the new protagonist. It seems that this is only the first step in the execution of the next stage of the series, as there are rumors of the developer's plans to create a trilogy around the news of Ciri.

Among the teasers that CD Projekt Red has been feeding its fanbase, a number of coin images have surfaced and sparked intense speculation. Sebastian Kalemba, Game Director The Witcher 4 project, has released the first image of the coin after announcing that the game has now entered full-scale production. Since then, several developers from the project have been teasing the community with these coin images. It is still unclear what this coin means, as well as its implications for the future game, as most of the related posts have been without context.

The coins are likely a nod to elements synonymous with The Witcher franchise

Much of the discourse on the coin's common imagery emanates from the detailed runes engraved on it. There is a crescent shape running along the borders of the coin, and its center is adorned by what appears to be a mountain with an entrance just below it. Directly above him sits the sun, partially eclipsed by the moon, releasing rays of dying light across the sky.

While these elements are intriguing, this isn't the first time they've appeared in the the sorcerer the franchise. When the official Gwent artwork came out for the standalone game in 2020, it featured many similar elements (the mountains, the moon, and the cave entrance), with the eclipse as the only exception.

It's also worth noting that Sebastian Kalemba is the head of art for the game Gwent, which might explain some of the similarities. On his X account (formerly known as Twitter), Sebastian revealed the other side of the coin, which reads “Days and nights pass and the blood remains the same” in Tolkien runes.

While it's debatable what that line refers to, the monster shown in the trailer reaffirms to Ciri that destiny cannot be changed, no matter how hard one tries.

Coins can represent key storylines in The Witcher Lore

Of all the speculations, the most widespread one links the solar eclipse on the coin to the Curse of the Black Sun, otherwise known as the Black Sun. The prophecy of the magician Eltibald describes an eclipse that signals the beginning of the end of humanity. According to him, sixty girls would be born under this Black Sun, and the curse would turn them into treacherous monsters that would facilitate the return of Lilith, the goddess of the night, and end the world.

Doubt surrounded the prophecy's authenticity, with many suggesting the words were the idle ramblings of a madman. Thus the prophecy eventually came to be referred to as the Mad Eltibald's Mania. However, the writings on the Dauk menhirs, the tombstones in the Wozgor necropolises, and the legends with them all gave credence to Eltibald's prophecy.

Each of these pieces of science spoke of Lilith and the end of the world orchestrated by the sixty golden-crowned women born under the Black Sun. Since the words of the prophecy and the representations of the coin have a significant overlap, it stands to reason that The Witcher 4His reference to currency could suggest the apocalypse.

Another speculation gaining traction among fans is that the coins are a reference to the upcoming Conjunction of the Spheres. The coin, which features celestial bodies and stones, could be interpreted as representing an arrangement of closely stacked monoliths, as opposed to the depiction of mountains in the earlier theory. This cataclysmic event took place 1,500 years before the events of the story, when the realms of the multiverse collided. It will be interesting to see what direction CDPR ultimately takes, as there are several narrative devices upon which a potential Ciri trilogy can be built.