Editing Witch (section)

==Dungeons & Dragons==
===2e===
''[[Advanced Dungeons & Dragons]]'' included a witch as a kit (though more of a borderline variant class) for the [[Wizard]] in the Complete Wizard's Handbook.

The Witch is a wizard whose powerful magical abilities are extraplanar in origin. Though wizards typically learn the basics of spellcasting at magic academies or from learned mentors, Witches learn magical skills from entities and their minions from other planes of existence, or from other Witches.
Occasionally, these extraplanar entities contact youthful humans or demihumans for magical instruction; other times, humans and demihumans seek out the entities through arcane rituals and petition them for instruction. The entities agree to such instruction for a variety of reasons-- some hope to train their students to eventually become emissaries; some hope to use them as conduits for various forces; some hope to [[monstergirls| seduce them as consorts]]; and some simply share their magical secrets for their own amusement.

Whatever the motives of the extraplanar entities, they exude a powerful directing influence over their students. However, a few Witches with particularly strong wills are able to maintain their own drives while using their magical skills to further their own goals. Such Witches face a life-long struggle with the forces who relentlessly strive to direct their spirits.  They need a 13 in Int, Wis, and Con to keep their bodies and minds resistant to the influence of the beings they work with, and dropping the kit requires a ''lesser wish'' or something similarly powerful ''and'' the sacrifice of two levels' worth of experience, which must be earned back ''before'' the witch can get their spellcasting back.  ''Ouch''.

Regardless of her actual alignment, all but her closest friends are likely to presume that a Witch is in collaboration with extraplanar spirits, and will shun her accordingly. There are few places where a Witch is welcome, and for the most part, a witch will need to conceal her identity when traveling to assure her safety.  Fortunately, the book outright states the witch's party is free to consider them a "close friend."  Unfortunately, it ''still'' recommends suspicious or superstitious characters distrust them a little, with the caveat that the DM should remind them the witch isn't actually evil when it starts disrupting the campaign.  (A reminder sadly all-too lacking in many RPG sources even today!)

However, staying in one place too long creates a literal mob of torches and pitchforks citizens trying to kill a witch, and their patron starts shit with a frequency the DM determines.  Either the witch suffers a -2 to attacks and saving throws the full moon night, or seven nights a month on worlds where there are too many moons, the witch has a 25% chance of suffering the same penalty every twelve hours, or the witch suffers a -1 penalty to those rolls ''every night''.  

Although a Witch learns her magical techniques from extraplanar entities, once on her own, she learns her spells in much the same way as any other wizard. Still, her techniques for casting spells may differ significantly from the standard methods. The casting times, ranges, and effects of her spells are no different from the same spells used by other wizards, but she may use different verbal, somatic, or material components, as well as meditation. These differences should make her seem even more threatening to outsiders, as well as making her seem more remote to the other player characters.

Witches don't get or acquire weapon proficiencies, but ''do'' get a broad array of useful skills, including herbalism, fortune-telling, and other nature stuff.

In addition to a few free spells, witches get a number of special powers.  They can summon familiars for free without using spells, brew sleep potions and poisons that can coat weapons, and flying ointments to apply to people (or, spitballing an example here, brooms), save-free charm person and/or monster (under 8HD anyway), and the ability to throw out a witch's curse, for free, do not save, do not collect $200.

The curse will randomly reduce one randomly-rolled stat by 3, impose a -4 penalty on hit and damage rolls, blind them for 24 hours or until it gets dispelled, deal a point of unhealing hitpoint damage every hour for a day or until it gets dispelled, or, and this is a 1/8 chance here, impose ''temporal stasis'', which lasts for a day and instantly kills them when it ends if it's not dispelled first.

The Witch is among the most complex of all the kits, and many of the details are left up to the player's discretion. For instance, he may wish to design specific daily rituals for his Witch, or he may wish to expand on the Witch's relationship with the entities who originally trained her. What exactly are they? Where are they? Can the Witch contact them for favors? What exactly happens if the forces succeed in controlling the Witch? Does her alignment change? Her abilities? Her relationship to the party? There are many possible variations on the Witch kit, and the DM is encouraged to experiment, as long as he avoids the temptation to make her excessively powerful, and keeps in mind the potential disruptions in his campaign.

Fun to roleplay if the DM isn't a pain in the neck about it.

This Witch had enough interested fans in the 90s that they actually put together a [[netbook]] for it, which you can still find online if you know where to look... such as right [http://www.zayix.com/Media/netbooks/Netbook%20of%20Witches/Netbook%20Witches%20and%20Warlock.PDF here].

===3e===
[[File:Hallowed witch 3e.jpg|left|200px]]
A Witch-flavored prestige class, the ''Hallowed Witch'', appeared in the [[Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition]] update of the [[Ravenloft]] setting, where it was one of several prestige classes in the [[splatbook]] "[[Van Richten]]'s Arsenal, Volume 1".

In many ways a spiritual precursor to the Witch in [[Pathfinder]], the Hallowed Witch was a benevolent variant of the Mystic Theurge, combining arcane and divine magics. Associated with the church of [[Hala]], the prestige class required a Neutral Alignment, 8 ranks in Knowledge (Arcana), 4 ranks in Knowledge (Nature), 8 ranks in Spellcraft, the feat Spell Focus (Divination) or Spell Focus (Enchantment), and the ability to cast 2nd level spells from both an Arcane source and a Divine source. The prestige class stacked with base classes for spellcasting level and for advancing a [[familiar]]. Its primary focus was that it gave the Hallowed Witch a number of special spell-like abilities, which it could choose from a list as it gained levels. The Hallowed Witch could also join a coven, and work as a team with its coven members to cast more high-level spell-like abilities.

===4e===
[[File:Eva widermann nistyncia.jpg|right|200px]]
Witches were filed under a [[variant class]] for the [[Wizard]] in [[Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition]] in ''Heroes of the Feywild''. This variant class changed quite a bit about the core class, starting with Augury being a permanent Utility spell and automatically gaining Arcane Familiar as a feat alongside your cantrips. This familiar pretty much acts as your spellbook, allowing you to switch Dailies or Utility powers during an Extended Rest. Once you reach Epic levels, you can also spend an AP to regain a spent Encounter power and gain Combat Advantage on the target you spent used that spell on. What really makes it difficult is the choice in Covens, your subclass options:
* '''Dark Moon Coven''' grants training in Intimidation and a later boost to both that and Stealth. The unique power, Dread Presence, unfortunately also keys off Wis for the aftereffects of the power's blast zone. The plus is that at least this punches through resistances to necrotic damage.
* '''Full Moon Coven''' grants training in Heal and a later boost to both that and Diplomacy. The unique power is Glorious Presence, a power that shoves back enemies Wis blocks away and gives THP to anyone in the burst range.
As anyone can notice, both options aren't very clear on what secondary they want to focus on, between skills that key off Cha in both despite having a power that keys off Wis more.

Its exclusive [[Paragon Path]], the '''Legendary Witch''', fares little better, if not worse due to the inescapable trap option. Most of the features might be passable, but the capstone powers for each Coven are polymorphs that trap you between either using a single-use power or being forced to use MBAs, the thing most Wizards pretty much forget exist ([[Bladesinger]]s excepted) because what kind of retard Wizard tries punching things?

In general, it falls into the same problem as virtually every other [[D&D Essentials]] class ever in that it might be passable at Heroic tier, but swiftly becomes crap afterwards.

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