The teaser trailer for The Witcher: Blood Origin gave you your first glimpse of the Continent, 1,200 years before Geralt (Henry Cavill) hopped on Roach. Now, the full-length trailer is here to welcome you to the Golden Age of Elves — an era filled with blood, magic, monsters and so many fight scenes.  

The video is led by the four-episode series’ protagonists, Éile (Sophia Brown) and Fjall (Laurence O’Fuarain), warriors who were previously sworn enemies (more on that in a bit). But they — along with five other heroes — are brought together when they must fight the mounting political and magical dangers sweeping through the Continent. One of those battle-hardened brawlers is Scían, a sword master played by action icon Michelle Yeoh. 

Blood Origin’s trailer promises that the series will explain long-held Witcher mysteries, like what led to the creation of witchers. Keep reading for all the best plot points hiding in the clip, with some helpful explanations from showrunner Declan de Barra. The Blood Origin portal is opening; all you have to do is step through.  

An unexpected team

Blood Origin has long been teasing just how unlikely its band of seven heroes is. The trailer reveals how true that promise was. In one scene, protagonist Éile reveals she swore to kill someone if they “ever crossed paths again.” In another, Fjall asks how he can trust Éile. Her answer? “By the blade.” 

Well, they’re going to need one — and a whole lot of other weapons — considering the dangers hiding in the trailer. Like, say… 

An “unstoppable” empire 

The trailer features a bit of narration from Minnie Driver’s mysterious “shapeshifting storyteller” character, as de Barra describes her to Tudum. “It all began 1,200 years ago in the Elven Golden Era,” Driver’s unnamed Seanchaí says to kick off the trailer, “before the arrival of humans and monsters in the world.” At this point in Witcher history, the video reveals, the entire Continent is ruled by a single elven kingdom. And it’s bloody: Soldiers bash in citizens’ heads and violence courses through the streets. 

“I’ve always been fascinated with societies at their height right before they fall,” de Barra says. “This is a world where elves are not the underclass; they’re the overclass. In many ways, this [society] is way more advanced than the world of The Witcher.” 

The beast 

Often, a monster can induce terror without ever being seen. Blood Origin’s beast follows that ethos in the trailer, as it growls and looms off-camera. It appears Chief Sage Balor (Lenny Henry) has a connection to the creature, as he says, “My beast has done well.” 

We’ll have to wait until Dec. 25 to find out if Balor’s sense of “well” and ours line up, but that seems unlikely considering de Barra’s insight into the character. Magical Balor has a “chip on his shoulder” and is motivated by his need to prove he’s “above” those who might look down on him. 

More horrifying monsters

While we’re not sure what Balor’s beast looks like, the video does reveal at least one human-hungry monster running around — and it’s disgusting. De Barra confirms Blood Origin will explain how creatures like this ended up on the Continent. 

“The [mystery of the] Conjunction of the Spheres led to this whole show because I was working on The Witcher Season 2 and we had a story point we couldn’t fix because we needed to know what happened,” he explains. “What was the world before the Conjunction?... Before there were monsters, what was this world like? What was the world of the elves?”  

A very Witcher-y plan 

With a name like Blood Origin, the series has to explain the origin of The Witcher’s central figure: a witcher. The trailer might be hiding the seeds of that saga. In one snippet, celestial twin Syndril (Zach Wyatt) says, “We need to use his beast against him. We merge the creature’s power with one of you.” A witcher like Geralt is certainly as strong as any bus-size creepy-crawly. 

While the question remains as to which of Blood Origin’s warriors will receive the terrifying honor of becoming a prototype witcher, de Barra hasn’t totally shied away from the topic. “That’s what [the show] delves into: What is the prototype of the witcher? Say Geralt is version 13.0, the upgrade. Ours is the 1.0, rough and ready — the concept of a witcher. It’s the [original] model,” he previews. “[We ask,] ‘What was the story there, and how did that get lost? And who found that critical element later?’” 

The monoliths 

Monoliths continue to be one of The Witcher universe’s most important — and confounding — objects. Blood Origin serves as their origin story on the Continent, according to de Barra. During the trailer, we hear a voice-over say, “The monoliths are causing tears between worlds.” Then we see what seems to be one of those tears in action. It’s not good. 

de Barra promises we’ll learn who first tapped into these monoliths — and why. “Then we understand how they became so important in the world of The Witcher later and the power that was bestowed upon them and how that came about,” he says.  

A coin toss–worthy appearance 

You’re going to want to sing about the last few seconds of the Blood Origin trailer. Don’t believe us? Press play to find out.