Witches and Wizardry: The Conjurer's Spooky Encounters

Once upon a time, in a small village tucked away in the depths of a dense forest, lived a talented conjurer named Theodore. Theodore was renowned for his magical tricks and illusions, captivating audiences with his mesmerizing performances. He could make objects disappear and reappear, pull rabbits out of hats, and even saw people in half. Theodore was fearless and confident in his abilities, until one fateful night when he encountered something that would change his life forever. It was a moonlit evening, and Theodore had been invited to perform at a grand masquerade ball held in the oldest mansion in the village. As he arrived at the mansion, he was greeted with cheers and applause from the eager attendees.

OK, lets add to this list your concepts.

Mont is valued, but feared, for his powers as a witch-doctor, and the racket they have established continues for quite a while without any repercussion from the locals. I ve also met a number of interesting characters each time I ve visited the islands, including fishermen, old-time whalers, business owners, the elderly who always interest me and educated and uneducated men and women.

As he arrived at the mansion, he was greeted with cheers and applause from the eager attendees. He donned his top hat and cape, ready to astound everyone with his magic. Theodore's performance began flawlessly.

The conjurer who was spooked by witches

Post by SmootRK » Sun Sep 02, 2012 8:55 am

So, another thread spun briefly into this subject, and rather than continue to be off the topic we get this thread.

What are the features that you would want in a classic Witch?
Now, when I say Witch, I am talking of the hag with black cat and broom, Halloweeen or Wizard of Oz Wicked Witch types. and not the (real or imagined) Wicca or Earth Mother worshiper type (there is actually a pretty interesting (if not really accurate) Witch of this sort in an old dragon magazine issue). Perhaps later we can try to cover the other style.

So lets start with some ideas that make the Witch:

Generally Female
Tends to focus on Divination, Curses, Conjurations, Protections (I had the framework of a Conjurer Class that would make a good start for this).
Familiars (cats, rats, toads, crows, etc.. essentially the ad&d set, even the imps and such).
Cauldrons (what does it give such a character)
Herbalism
Lore (perhaps coming from divination, etc.), probably just give the equivalent of Bard Lore
Brooms!! (or poles, staff, carpets, vacuum cleaners)
Talismans, Protective Charms, Voodoo Dolls (sympathetic magic)
Imbued Magical charms
Walking Stick (wand)
Spell Channeling Items (per supplement, akin to all the talismans, wands, walking sticks - storing different spells to be channeled)

OK, lets add to this list your concepts.

Dimirag Posts: 3534 Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2011 1:24 pm Location: Buenos Aires (C.A.B.A.), Argentina Contact:

Re: Building a Witch

Post by Dimirag » Sun Sep 02, 2012 10:46 am

My take on the Witch is more the natural-oriented-style, but even so, this is my take for the Cauldron:

-Sympathetic Magic: If the Witch is in possession of a personal belonging of its intended victim or spell objective she can cast a spell using his cauldron and sacrificing the possession, the Witch will be treated as having x extra Levels (don't know how many yet), furthermost the spell victim will suffer from a -1 penalty per 4 Witch Levels to his Saving Throw.

-Imbue Magic: At Level 9 the Witch can use her cauldron to imbue an object With a specific spell and a trigger action, the object will contain the spell for Y time. The spell will be released whenever someone executes the trigger action.

Sorry for any misspelling or writing error, I am not a native English speaker
Drawing portfolio: https://www.instagram.com/m.serena_dimirag/

Re: Building a Witch

Post by shadowmane » Sun Sep 02, 2012 1:49 pm

LOL. brooms. Well, those and poles, which is what they accused witches of riding in Salem, MA. But I don't see this any different, mechanically, from a flying carpet. I think the Conjurer class would be a great start for a witch class. The Cauldron is great, but a witch don't JUST stand by her cauldron to cast her magic. She does have a some offensive spells, even if they are just minor cantrips like lighting her broom on fire (ala the Wicked Witch of the West), or a minor teleport spell with a smoke screen (again, ala Wizard of Oz). I think adding the bard in there, too, is appropriate, as most Witches in fiction use rhymes to activate their magic.

I don't know how you would put herbalism in terms of mechanics. It would have to be fluff. Lore, on the other hand, is a great one. The witch might know some stuff others don't typically know, but would charge a heavy price for the information.

And don't forget the stereotypical magic wand as part of her necessary equipment. A magic wand is to a witch what a staff is to a wizard. Of course, you could make the broom double as that, or just give her a staff (which she would ride like the broom).

Re: Building a Witch

Post by Joe the Rat » Sun Sep 02, 2012 6:19 pm

I suppose the question is how this works - flight with assist as a spell, an inherent power, a "standard" artifact formula (something akin to a paladin gaining a warhorse), or just a supported magic item. Wile the broom is iconic in the west, flying by cloak, or by giant mortar are fitting as well.

The wand. she seems a bit more walking stick oriented, if anything. Or a spoon. That may depend on what abilities cluster about the cauldron.

Re: Building a Witch

Post by shadowmane » Sun Sep 02, 2012 6:26 pm

I could see the cauldron used for more long term, ritualistic magic, while the wand in combination with some cantrips would do the rest for her. She's not a Mage by any stretch of the word. However, she is what I would call a "petty magic user", or perhaps even "an opportunistic magic user". Most of her power would like in the cauldron, but she does have offensive stuff that she can use. And she gets a familiar to assist her in keeping lookout and spying. Her most effective magic would be the Bardic magic.

Re: Building a Witch

Post by SmootRK » Sun Sep 02, 2012 7:12 pm

shadowmane wrote: I could see the cauldron used for more long term, ritualistic magic, while the wand in combination with some cantrips would do the rest for her. She's not a Mage by any stretch of the word. However, she is what I would call a "petty magic user", or perhaps even "an opportunistic magic user". Most of her power would like in the cauldron, but she does have offensive stuff that she can use. And she gets a familiar to assist her in keeping lookout and spying. Her most effective magic would be the Bardic magic.

While I agree that a Witch would in pseudo-real world be rather petty in their magic, I would work on a version that ultimately can stand toe to toe with the standard character choices. That means a 12th level Witch would be on-par with 12th level MU, only different abilities, spells, etc. Their spell power may be quite limited (no fireballs and such), but watch out for a Coven High Mistress, Queen of Hags' ability to throw down a curse, call up a demon, or send hordes of flying monkeys to do her bidding. She would likewise have various charms and protective talismans.

She might not stand toe to toe in a direct head to head fight, but is powerful in their own way by way of agents, knowledge, and their own assortment of spells. The same way a Necromancer is powerful by way of his squad of undead servants, but is not so tough if he was meant to fight a normal fireball using MU face to face.

Re: Building a Witch

Post by SmootRK » Sun Sep 02, 2012 8:30 pm

Bear in mind also, that while this will follow general Player Character Class as a model, it is intended as an NPC class, much like many of the classes found in the old dragon magazine articles. If they were to be made 'player-character' options, there would likely be several negative aspects applied (one being rather tied to their abode for much of their power), another being role-play oriented (being outcast from towns). Perhaps other stipulations, such as when/if they take on certain iconic powers, they lose Charisma points or even have to take on crippling physical conditions like hunch back, horrible vision/blindness, club-foot walks with cane/staff (slow), etc.

Re: Building a Witch

Post by Joe the Rat » Sun Sep 02, 2012 10:43 pm

Negative aspects could accumulate with level - each major special power accompanied by some vulnerability (fire, water), limitation (club foot, must eat babies), or tell (curdles milk, weighs as much as a duck). Since we're talking about an NPC class, this would be a list to help build your witch. "Accumulates" may not be quite right though - we're looking more at this for building individuals at a specific level of ability, not tracking actual growth.

You could really have fun with this. Cha loss (or reaction loss) might be better as an option rather than a definite. More than one "hero" has gotten into trouble dealing with an attractive, blind, albino, dog-scaring, baby-eating witch of middling level.

A few (not entirely serious) benchmarks:

1st level: Your mother-in-law*

3rd level: Witch from Hansel and Gretel; Village wise woman

7th level: Witch from Rapunzel (Curses, plant control, but still vulnerable to long falls); witches from Macbeth (solid divination and stage presence)

9th level+: Circe (minimum for "baleful polymorph")

10th level: Wicked Witch of the East (enough power to "rule" a direction; broom creation)
11th level: Wicked Witch of the West (as above, plus falling building avoidance)

20th level: Baba Yaga

* - I actually get along fine with mine, but we're talking stereotypes, so.

As we know, marriages are not always happy. Often a spouse gains weight, he or she loses their looks, and with time, a person suffers the foibles of mortality, relinquishing little things that were once cute and endearing. But truly, it’s the stink that a man cannot live with, the unceasing wounds that stain the bed sheets.

He amazed the audience with his card tricks and levitation acts, leaving them in awe of his skills. However, as the night grew darker, a strange feeling began to pervade the air. Unbeknownst to Theodore, a group of mischievous witches had gathered in the nearby woods, watching his performance keenly. As he prepared for his most spectacular trick of the evening, Theodore sensed a sudden shift in the atmosphere. An eerie silence fell upon the room, causing a shiver down his spine. He glanced nervously around, only to catch a glimpse of shadowy figures lurking in the corners of the room. His heart raced with unease. Summoning his courage, Theodore continued his trick, attempting to ignore the growing uneasiness. He invited a volunteer from the audience and locked them inside a box. With a flourish of his hand, he raised his wand and recited the incantation, intending to teleport the person to the other side of the room. But to his horror, as the smoke cleared, the box was empty. The volunteer had vanished. The audience gasped in disbelief, their excitement turning to fear. They pointed towards the windows, where they could see the witches slowly drifting towards the mansion. Theodore's face turned pale, realization dawned upon him. These witches were not ordinary; they possessed dark magic that could rival his own. As the witches entered the mansion, Theodore's fear reached its peak. He could feel their powerful energy and malevolent intentions. Determined not to be defeated, he took a deep breath and summoned all his magical strength. With a profound incantation, he created a magical barrier around himself, protecting him from the witches' dark spells. The battle between the conjurer and the witches ensued. Colors clashed in the air as spells were cast and countered. Theodore's magical prowess allowed him to hold his ground, impressing even the witches themselves. His confidence was slowly restored as he realized that he could overpower them. With a final surge of energy, Theodore conjured a blinding light that surrounded the witches. They shrieked in agony, and one by one, vanished into thin air. The room fell silent once again, this time filled with relief and awe. Theodore stood, panting and covered in sweat. He had faced his greatest fear and emerged victorious. From that day forward, he became known as the conjurer who had spooked the witches, his tale whispered in amazement by villagers for generations to come. And so, Theodore's encounter with the witches transformed him into a legend, ensuring that his name and magic tricks would be remembered forever..

Reviews for "Witchcraft and Deception: The Conjurer's Eerie Experiences"

1. John - 2 stars - I was really excited to read "The conjurer who was spooked by witches," but I found it to be quite disappointing. The plot was predictable and lacked depth. The characters were one-dimensional, and I couldn't connect with any of them. I also found the writing style to be dull and uninteresting. Overall, I didn't find any redeeming qualities in this book, and it didn't live up to my expectations at all.

2. Emily - 3 stars - "The conjurer who was spooked by witches" had an intriguing premise, but it failed to deliver on its potential. The pacing of the story was off, and it felt slow and dragged out in some parts. The dialogue between the characters felt forced and unnatural, making it difficult to fully immerse myself in the story. Additionally, I found some scenes to be cliché and unoriginal. While it wasn't the worst book I've read, it simply didn't captivate me and left me feeling underwhelmed.

3. Sarah - 2.5 stars - I was really hoping to enjoy "The conjurer who was spooked by witches," but unfortunately, it fell flat for me. The writing was juvenile and lacked sophistication. The world-building was weak and left me with more questions than answers. The characters felt underdeveloped, and their motivations were unclear. I found myself struggling to stay engaged with the story and ultimately felt let down by it. It had the potential to be a great book, but it missed the mark in my opinion.

Conjuring Fear: The Troubling Encounters of a Magician and Witches