Roach

Roach (Polish: Płotka) is the name that Geralt of Rivia, the witcher, gives to all of his horses. His preference is for

mares.

Name
The name refers to the roach (Rutilus rutilus), a common European fresh water fish. It has nothing directly to do with the either the French given name "Roche" or the character Vernon Roche (or, especially, the insect). Though the English term for the fish ("roach") does in fact share its origin with "Roche": both terms come from the French word for "rock".

It's worth noting that the original name for the horse in Polish is "Płotka", a diminutive form of the word "Płoć" (meaning "roach"). Diminutives are endearing in Polish, so a more direct translation would have been something along the lines of "Roachy" or "Roachie" (English, however, doesn't commonly use diminutives in that manner).

Moreover, the Polish word is female gendered which corresponds with Geralt's preference for mares - a stallion couldn't be called "Płotka". The tender tone as well as the gender of the name is lost in the translation.

Appearances

 * A Grain of Truth
 * Something More

In an illustration after the Prologue and before Chapter 1, Geralt is pictured riding his horse toward Vizima.

In an epilogue illustration, Geralt is pictured leading his horse away from smoking, war-torn Vizima. There is no explanation given for the whereabouts of his horse during the course of the game.

At the very beginning of "The Price of Neutrality", Geralt's last horse was killed by wolves just before the adventure begins. It was a gray mare called Roach.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The horse Geralt owns throughout the game is named Roach.

There is a number of equipment available for Roach: saddles, saddlebags, and horse blinders. Saddles let Roach gallop full speed longer, saddlebags increase Geralt's inventory limit, and the blinders decrease the rate that Roach's fear level rises. In a contrast to the previous games, trophies gained from contracted monsters appear tied to Roach's saddle instead of on Geralt's person.

If Geralt visits Emhyr after he finds Ciri, when he leaves he is granted a black Pure Bred Nilfgaardian Thoroughbred stallion. After this event, whenever Roach is called, a black horse appears instead of the original chestnut mare.

Trivia

 * Roach (Rutilus rutilus) is a species of small, fresh water fish, common in many of Poland's lakes and rivers. It's perfectly edible but many people dislike is due to its relatively small size and quite a lot of fish bones. In taste its meat is average, not particularity tasty nor bad.

Klepna Plötze Ablette Płotka Rutilia