Very nice work! I'm not a Witcher expert by a long stretch (having only played the second game), but I think this would definitely be fun to see in play, and really captures the feel (as far as my limited frame of reference) of Witchers.
Thanks! The second game make a few mistakes but overall does a fantastic job of capturing the setting.
Impressive work! I liked the witcher game but I am no expert in the lore, but it captures the essence of what I remember.
I really like the way signs/spells have at at will effect that can be ramped up by powering it up with HDs. I would like to see this kind of idea in DDN - but maybe some other resource rather than HDs.
Thanks! I also am not convinced that costing HD is the best idea, I just felt there should be some way to make the Witchers spellcasting equate to other casters. Maybe I could tone down the combat effects (which are modeled on 1st level spells) and remove any cost (HD or otherwise) altogether.
As for the cantrip effects - in the books those are mostly how Geralt uses the Signs. I think there's even a section where he uses Igni to boil a tea kettle.
Why are there racial requirements? Wasnt there a dwarf Witcher in the second game?
There was a dwarf NPC but he was no Witcher. It has to do with the setting lore. Humans arrived along with most monsters from another dimension after their world was destroyed, and they developed Witchers to defend themselves. The Elder Races are natives to this world and are long-lived with entirely different physiologies. While Sapkowski never says its not possible, all Witchers are human (or human with a hint of elven blood) in the book.
I am not knowledgeable in DDN, but are the level 1 powers too powerful?
The only feature that might be too powerful is immunity to disease. To compare, a paladin gets that at 7th level, not 1st! However this costs the witcher all their racial ability bonuses - a hefty price to pay.
The Signs (which begin at 2nd level) may be a bit overpowered, however. Each is based on a cantrip (Druidcraft/Read Magic) plus a 1st level spell (thunderwave/color spray, charm person, burning hands, mage armor, and entangle). At 2nd level a Witcher gets a cantrip and a 1st level spell which can be used 1/encounter. Compare that to a martial feat like Cleave and it is probably a bit more powerful.
Anyhow I do a quick balancing act at the end of the PDF, comparing my homebrew class to the D&D fighter.