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I have a character concept for a Gnome spellcaster that does things that make him look evil all the time... but he ain't evil! He's probably not good, but he's not evil.
I'm having a hard time deciding whether to go Wizard or Witch. Taking the fell magic alternate racial ability for certain. I would probably like to have a little rat familiar that is "possessing" me and tricking me into making my magic look evil. I might like to animate dead at some point.
Mostly I'm aimed at the spell Blood Money. It doesn't actually have the Evil descriptor, although it looks REALLY, REALLY EVIL when you actually go to use it. I would like to use it to cast spells with even negligible material components, just for the sheer shock value. When I finally use it for it's broken purpose, it will be a little more worn in.
If anyone ever points out that I could just use a spell component pouch in character, I'll blame the misinformation on my pet rat.
Before casting a spell, I'd say stuff like, "Just a reminder, I'm not evil!... *cuts hand and stares off into the distance chanting in a different voice* BY THE POWER OF THE UNKNOWN MASTERS, I TAKE YOUR SIGHT!" *Glitterdust*
I'm probably leaning towards witch as most of it's flavor stuff is TOTALLY evil sounding. (Cackling madly whilst someone suffocates? That looks SO evil.) It won't benefit as much from blood money, but that doesn't really matter.
If I go Wizard, it would probably be Necromancy subschool. I'd get more spells per day that way and all the better necromancy debuffs.
Either way, I'm taking a familiar. A little albino rat that I greatly resemble. (White hair, red eyes.)
TL;DR 5/- So, which spells sound or appear to be the most evil, vile things ever, especially the lower leveled ones? Any that have interesting material components I could bleed out with blood money? Which class looks the more evil, witch or necromancy wizard? Also, which would be the more fun to roleplay in your honest opinion?
PFS play intended. :)
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Undead are evil, so raising undead is an evil act. If you play a necromancer wizard, you're casting evil things so keep that in mind.
You are better off, especially with the idea of the rat, of going Witch especially the way they get their magic. Every morning you spend about an hour holding a staring contest with the rat (you never win but mutter about how next time you'll finally succeed and be free).
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Sounds like a fun character for a non-serious game. I'd get really flavorful with spell descriptions - check with your GM. Magic missiles become screaming skulls, etc.
If you go witch, I was reading something about them that states they lose the ability to speak common during a certain time, and can only speak in a different language (don't recall exactly). Pick Abyssal if possible.
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I wouldn't have my character go around saying "I'm not evil!" Show, don't tell. And like MurthysParadox says, be wary that actually raising dead is truly evil.
I definitely second the witch. The entire flavor of the witch is a spellcaster that does things that could be perceived as shadey and evil. They get their spellcasting from mysterious otherworldly powers. They jinx people into having bad luck. They curse people with the evil eye. They laugh maniacally to make their curses linger. There's even hexes for hunting and eating babies.
It's also hilarious with my witch. My witch is a cutesy type of girl, so all of the witchcraft stuff gives her an interesting edge. For example, when the rogue tried to carve out the hide of a dead naga to use for armor, he botched the roll and ended up brutally mutilating the corpse. The party members said "Oh man, someone cover our witch's eyes. This will be hard for her to watch."
I respond, "Actually, she's just shaking her head and sighing in a 'man, what an amateur' sort of way."
Ooh! Staring contest with a rat!
And any game I play it almost automatically takes a nonserious tone. I just don't have much fun with nonserious types. Gnomes all the way.
Show don't tell might be hard for me as I tend to beat a concept to death pretty quickly. I also like the name Scotoboros the Totally Not Evil. I think I'll just leave it at that, and then do all this evil sounding stuff. I just like the idea of getting indignant at people calling me evil, to the point where I made it a part of my name. (Which actually has the opposite of the desired effect. Perhaps I aught to dump wisdom...)
In terms of animating and controlling undead, I was thinking... "Oh, Mr. Fluffypants here told me about how cast raise dead! Does anyone have any onyx? No. That's okay, I'll just bleed some out." *hastur hastur hastur* "A SKELETON?!~ Mr. Fluffypants, what have you done!"
I'm pretty sold on Witch. I lose out on a lot of the poweful debuffs... but I can cackle, which makes me look so evil. And I can use the Totally Not Evil Eye. I can also get an extra hex for 6th and 12th.
Most of the really evil looking spells hit at the higher levels. Swarm Skin for example. Skinsend is really, really gross too, and thankfully only 2nd level though I'm not sure if I should actually use it. Bein' so dangerous and all.
Vomit Swarm: Now THERE's an evil looking spell. Oh I am so using that.
Sleep and Ill Omen: Dandy first level spells that require some form of material component I can waste some blood to cast, should I desire. Sleep would look particularly menacing. That effectively means I'd get only one spell per day, so I don't think I'll do it often. Perhaps I can just go through the motions of casting Blood Money and "just" deal 1d6 nonlethal to myself somehow. GM approval required I suppose.
I'll probably take the Plague patron, unless there's a more evil one.
Pick the patron that has the evil-sounding spells you normally cannot get as a witch.
The Slumber hex is better than sleep because it continues to be useful, even at higher levels. The scar hex might also be thematic.
Sounds like a fun character for a non-serious game. I'd get really flavorful with spell descriptions - check with your GM. Magic missiles become screaming skulls, etc.
If you go witch, I was reading something about them that states they lose the ability to speak common during a certain time, and can only speak in a different language (don't recall exactly). Pick Abyssal if possible.
That's an Oracle, and only with the Tongues curse.
I'm not particularly interested in the Slumber hex as it's too good. Spammable. Broken even. I think Evil Eye/Misfortune looks like more fun.
Scar hex: Absolutely! Merciful heavens!
The hexes I need: Evil Eye, Cackle, Misfortune, and at some point Flight.
The hexes I want: Scar! Unnerve Beasts! (on self or familiar) Smell Children! I mean really... SMELL CHILDREN?
Blood Transcription. Feast on dead casters in the name of knowledge.
He wants stuff that is NOT EVIL that looks like it is.
That's an Oracle, and only with the Tongues curse.
Goes to show you how much I know about this non-core stuff, lol.
Well, aside from the fact I probably will be animating the dead at some point, yes I'd prefer not to use the evil descriptor. (I wonder what *good* purposes you could set the dead to. Farming skeletons? Zombeasts of burden? Evil in nature but not in use.)
There's also the Occult patron, which ignores Animate Dead, but does get Black Tentacles. I get to keep detect and command undead. Unfortunately Twilight Knife is probably useless, but so is Contagion for most purposes.
Edit: I guess Black Tentacles is already a witch spell, so Plague patron still reigns supreme.