Why Is Jaskier Called Sandpiper in The Witcher: Blood Origin?
Early in the first episode of The Witcher: Blood Origin, we met Jaskier as he was in the middle of a battle involving elves. However, he was rescued by an elf named Seanchaí, who took him out of that battle to tell him the story of the Seven because he was the man they called the Sandpiper. Of course, the story that she wanted to tell was the entire story of Blood Origin. But before we get to the details of the series, why is Jaskier called Sandpiper?
Jaskier is called Sandpiper because that was the name he used as an alias during the events of season 2 of The Witcher. As the Sandpiper, he was the one who used his job as a bard as a way for him to tell stories of hope to the elves while also smuggling them out in secret so that they could get to Cintra safely.
The fact that Jaskier is called Sandpiper is something that’s quite interesting due to the fact that his exploits as someone who is friendly to the elves are due to his history. That’s something that was told in The Witcher: Blood Origin, as he can trace his history back to the events that happened in that series. So, with that said, let’s look at why Jaskier is called Sandpiper in Blood Origin.
Why Is Jaskier Called Sandpiper?
One of the many different characters that have played important roles in The Witcher is Jaskier, who we all know is the bard traveling companion of Geralt of Rivia. Of course, while Jaskier played big roles in the first two seasons of The Witcher, he appeared as one of the first characters that we saw in the first scenes of The Witcher: Blood Origin, which is a prequel story to the main timeline of The Witcher.
When we saw Jaskier, he was in the middle of a tough battle as he struggled to survive. Luckily for him, he was saved by a being that looked like him as he thought that this was a Doppler. This version of him took him to a safe place as what he thought was a Doppler turned into an elven woman named Seanchaí, who wanted to tell him a story about the elves. That’s because she wanted Jaskier to sing a song about the elves as he was someone that the elves saw as a hero.
The story that Seanchaí wanted to tell Jaskier was about the Seven and the creation of the first Witcher, and that allowed the elf to catch the interest of the bard. Of course, while the story of the Seven is another tale to tell, what’s interesting is that Seanchaí called Jaskier the Sandpiper. So, why is Jaskier named the Sandpiper in The Witcher: Blood Origin?
While a lot of people may think that this Sandpiper name of Jaskier is unique to Blood Origin, that’s not the case. That’s because he adopted the Sandpiper named during the events of The Witcher season 2. And the first time we heard this name was when Yennefer was looking for a way into Cintra and was told that a person called the Sandpiper could help him.
Yen was happy enough to see that this Sandpiper person was someone familiar to her because it was actually Jaskier. Of course, Jaskier wasn’t too happy about seeing Yen because how he thought that she was a person that only brought misfortune to him. But they eventually made up as the bard told her of her exploits.
Jaskier used the Sandpiper name as an alias that he used during the time that he was smuggling elves out of certain kingdoms and into Cintra. During that time, he was known as a traveling bard that could hide in plain sight due to his profession. But what he was doing was he actually had a generous benefactor that allowed him to help oppressed elves get into Cintra during the time that the elves were beginning to gather together in that former elven kingdom.
As such, due to his exploits, he became a hero among the elves as he was able to help a lot of them during the events of season 2 of The Witcher. That is why Jaskier is now called the Sandpiper among the elven people. And it is his reputation among the elves that convinced Seanchaí that he was the right person to tell the story of the Seven to.
What Is Jaskier’s Role In The Witcher: Blood Origin?
As mentioned, Seanchaí chose Jaskier, who is now called the Sandpiper, as the person to tell the story of the Seven. Of course, as confident as this bard may be, he was insecure about the fact that he was chosen because he didn’t feel important in any way due to how he isn’t a great warrior or a powerful mage. In fact, he simply sees himself as nothing more than just a simple bard.
However, Seanchaí reminded him that he is a hero among the elves due to his exploits as the Sandpiper. And he often dives into danger to help Geralt of Rivia during their adventures, even though he knows that he isn’t a great fighter.
In that regard, Jaskier was chosen as the one to tell the tale of the Seven because Seanchaí knows that the elves are willing enough to listen to his songs and stories. And if they were to hear the story of the Seven, which are names that have been lost in time, the elves would have more reasons to fight for their freedom.
But the events of The Witcher: Blood Origin also allowed us to see that Jaskier isn’t just some common bard that became a hero to the elves because he helped them. In fact, the story of the series will allow us to see how he connects the past and the present.
Joey Batey once said that “the power of music and stories is at the heart of The Witcher: Blood Origin, so it makes sense for Jaskier to be some kind of connective tissue between Blood Origin and the main show” when he was asked about his role in Blood Origin.
That means that his role is focused on the fact that he has a story to learn so that he can sing tales of the people behind this story. And the most surprising part about it was the fact that he is actually part of this story, one way or another.
At the end of the series, we saw Éile and Meldof trying to find a more peaceful life away from the different things that are happening in the elven capital. Ithlinne, who is a powerful seer, touched Éile’s belly so that she could predict the future of the child. After that, she prophesized that the bloodline of the child would be able to endure for centuries to come and that a distant relative of the baby would sing the story of the Seven.
Of course, this suggests that the distant relative is actually Jaskier, who we know is a famous bard in the current timeline of The Witcher and is the only one capable of singing the story of the Seven. This is probably the reason why Seanchaí told him the story of the Seven, as she knew that it was his destiny to sing the story of two of his distant ancestors. This also implies that Jaskier could be part-elf due to his connection to Éile’s child.
