Which product has the best Witch?

[FoxWander]

Several mentions of witches in Arcady's Things that Should have been Core thread got me thinking about them. So which product has, in your opinion, gotten the witch right? For that matter, what do you consider a proper witch? Is it/should it be done as a core class or a PrC? (I'd prefer core myself)

Also, since I'm in Korea at the moment and don't have access to a FLGS, instead of just stating so-and-so book, could you give me the gist of the class along with why you think it's a good one. I'd really appreciate it.

 

[Kichwas]

My favorite is Citizen Game's Way of the Witch, followed by Green Ronin's Witches Handbook.

Both do an excellent job, and the difference in which I find better is slight. Way of the Witch just happens to present a little more information on what Witches are like and a little bit better developed ritual system. Though that system also has a few vague points here and there and if you read their answers to my questions online they failed to understand what I was asking at one point.

(I asked about casting the Witch's Ball spells if you didn't know them, and they responded that you couldn't do that. What I wanted to know was how that spell worked in conjuction with the rules in the ritual section on casting spells you don't know. Rules that contradicted their answer.)

The reason I did not list Witches in the section on what should be core is that Witches where in the core rules in the DMG... Not a well done version, but they are there as a core rules class.

Most people, including most DMs, don't realise this, just like most FR fans don't realise Orcs live almost only in human cities as a part of human culture in that setting ( ), but it is there...

 

[Tyler Do'Urden]

Arcana Unearthed, IMHO, has the best witch I've seen, but it's so deeply interwoven with the spellcasting system in the setting and it's assumptions that it wouldn't be worth it to drop it into a different game.

But it's definitely my favorite.

 

[Tsyr]

Slaine.

Of course, you probably don't want that...

After that, Green Ronin.

 

[FoxWander]

Thanks for the suggestions so far, but could you all give me a bit more info on the witches you've mentioned. Like I said, I'm stationed at a base in South Korea so I can't go to a nearby gaming store to check if these versions/books are worth getting or not. So some more details would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

The reason I did not list Witches in the section on what should be core is that Witches where in the core rules in the DMG... Not a well done version, but they are there as a core rules class.

Most people, including most DMs, don't realise this, just like most FR fans don't realise Orcs live almost only in human cities as a part of human culture in that setting ( ), but it is there...

I also don't care much for the "witch" in the dmg (which is why I made this post). And just out of curiousity, where is that bit about orcs for FR. I wonder what other odd bits are in there like that.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

I rather like the witch in Mongoose Publishing's The Quintessential Witch.

That said, you may want to mix and match after getting several.

Hedge Wizard, also by Mongoose, is another good 'witchy' choice. Their spell list includes spells to sour milk, cause the cows to dry up, and give bad luck, abilities often purported to witches in folklore.

I have not yet looked at Citizen games witch, nor at the Arcana Unearthed version.

The Auld Grump

 

[Nightfall]

Witches in AU get interesting mix of powers as well as spellcasting comparable to most other spellcasting classes (save Magister but that's why Magisters rock. )

The Quint Witch is a mix of sorcerer and cleric in terms of using spells known (sorcerer) and spells per day (cleric's wisdom bonus for extra spells)

Way of the Witch is similiar to Quint, but has more ritual casting involved (and thus makes use of the Relics and Rituals ritual casting system in a slightly altered fashion)

I have not seen the citizen's game one.

 

[Crothian]

Way of the Witch. It is a nice hardcover supplement all about the witch. It offers many new rules, but what it excels at is the writing. This is a very well written book that captures the feel and presents it in a great package.

 

[trancejeremy]

I like the Quintessential Witch the best. The Witch's Handbook isn't bad, but too Wicca-ish for my taste. The Mongoose one tends to combine most of the witch stereotypes into one class.

Basically, though, the Mongoose Witch is like a wizard (only using Charisma for bonus spells) and a fairly limited spell list. They also get a d6 for hit dice.

The Green Ronin Witch is like a Sorcerer, only with 4 skill points per level, and an even more limited spell list.

The Hamlet of Thumble also has a pretty good witch. It's like a sorcerer, but with the special abilities of a druid (kinda -they get to shape change), and a fairly unique spell list.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

In my view the best Witch book out there is the Green Ronin book. I went looking for a quality witch book several months ago.

My goal was to find something that adhered to the basic fantasy traditions about witches, without either being too wicca-inspired (too modern in style) or being too anti-witch (I didn't want to have witches be the bad guys).

Green Ronin was the best in this regard, mixing traditional views with new stuff. It was well-written, and it wasn't a massive beast of a book, like some.

A note on the Arcana Unearthed Witch: It's a cool class, no doubt, but there's nothing there that screams "Witch" to me. It's another, cool spellcaster, but if you're looking for something that approximates traditional, legendary witches, I don't think you'll really find it there.