Would a female warlock character be called a witch?
"Warlock" and "witch" are not technically opposites. Warlock means "oath-breaker" while "witch" comes from Old English and Germanic words for sorcerer, will-worker, waker of the dead, etc.
That said, you could easily make the warlock class the witch class, going with the folklore of a witch having charms and the ability to invoke curses. I just wouldn't use them at the same time; pick one or the other.
Cheers,
Cam
Would a female warlock character be called a witch?
I doubt it- Warlock means deceiver or traitor (which makes me wonder why they picked this title for the class), whereas witch's etymology is more obscure, but already has a male form.
Strictly speaking, they've just been lumped together.EDIT: Oh, jinx!
I thank the both of you for your insightful responses... I have read in my many different "New Age" (I prefer to lump it together in a nice, friendly term) books that warlock (and various spellings) was sometimes the referring term for a male witch.... but as I can see there are certain constrasting meanings.
I thank the both of you for your insightful responses... I have read in my many different "New Age" (I prefer to lump it together in a nice, friendly term) books that warlock (and various spellings) was sometimes the referring term for a male witch.... but as I can see there are certain constrasting meanings.
My understanding is that Witch in Middle English could have been used for a male or female but that over time it became pretty much exclusivly used for females with Warlock being the preferred term for a male witch.
There are a number of adherents to Neo-Paganism on the boards that surely know better then I but I do know a number of Neo-Pagan Wiccans and I have never heard them use the term warlock, nor witch for that matter. Usually the term used is Wiccan for both males and females.
Apparently some people disagree with the dictionary's assessment. Link
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in the circles i travel witch is male or female rarely have i heared neo-pagns use warlock . a few may trying to recalm the name and all but most find it just wrong to call themelves warlocks. all the male witches i know call themselves witches.
Err, why don't you just call a female warlock a warlock? You don't call a female wizard or sorcerer a witch. Real-world naming is boring anyway. Call her a hexmistress or something funky like that.
oh i like hexmisstress humm have to steal that for something very nice.
You don't call a female wizard or sorcerer a witch.
I definitely have seen female sorcerers (intentionally or not) referred to as sorceress.
Apparently "Witch" ORIGINALLY meant "Poisoner of Wells" (either that or an error in translation in the Bible rendered that phrase AS "witch" in the "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live..." line).
For what it's worth, I recall (dimly) a PBS documentary about the King James version of the bible, and it was believed by the scholars being interviewed that he substituted the word "witch" for the poisoner of water wells phrase because he lived in fear of conspiracies to overthrow him, particularly led by witches.
It's been awhile, so my memories a little foggy, but the jist of it was that witch =/ poisoner, so much as a slightly paranoid, superstitious king put it in there while creating his own version of the bible, i.e. a deliberate mistranslation in order to prop up his own bigotries.
Of course, that could all be bunkum as well ;-)
Cheers,
Colin
Apparently "Witch" ORIGINALLY meant "Poisoner of Wells" (either that or an error in translation in the Bible rendered that phrase AS "witch" in the "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live..." line).
For what it's worth, I recall (dimly) a PBS documentary about the King James version of the bible, and it was believed by the scholars being interviewed that he substituted the word "witch" for the poisoner of water wells phrase because he lived in fear of conspiracies to overthrow him, particularly led by witches.
It's been awhile, so my memories a little foggy, but the jist of it was that witch =/ poisoner, so much as a slightly paranoid, superstitious king put it in there while creating his own version of the bible, i.e. a deliberate mistranslation in order to prop up his own bigotries.
Of course, that could all be bunkum as well ;-)
Cheers,
Colin
yeah king james was nuts pretty much. witch only became a thing of evile after the raise of christanity really so take it for what its worth. i belive the word witch has its roots weik which has a general connection with religion and magic. and witan meaning to know and wikk, meaning magic and sorcery Old English wicca, a male witch, wicce, a female witch, and the verb wiccian, to bewitch or work witchcraft.
so yes male witches used the name witch pretty much as i said i know at lest 6 male witches and none that call themselves warlock
oh i like hexmisstress humm have to steal that for something very nice.
Note that the German word for witch is Hexe. Made me wonder when I first read about "putting a hex on someone".
Male wiches are Hexer or Hexenmeister ("witch-master"), and Hexenmeister is the German translation for the sorcerer class (and hexer for the warlock)
(It's still a weird choice for a core class: In 3e, the whole at will thing was new, but since in 4e, every class is like that, the warlock doesn't seem to have any mechanical argument going for him. And as for the whole evil pact and oathbreaker thing, I consider it too narrow for a core base class.
A good way for 4e to evolve would have been more open and general, not do more specific stuff.)
Hexabraumeister... Aka, enhance the drinking of beer with magic... snicker...
I would call a female 'warlock' a 'witch'.
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yeah king james was nuts pretty much. witch only became a thing of evile after the raise of christanity really so take it for what its worth. i belive the word witch has its roots weik which has a general connection with religion and magic.Apparently "Witch" ORIGINALLY meant "Poisoner of Wells" (either that or an error in translation in the Bible rendered that phrase AS "witch" in the "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live..." line).
For what it's worth, I recall (dimly) a PBS documentary about the King James version of the bible, and it was believed by the scholars being interviewed that he substituted the word "witch" for the poisoner of water wells phrase because he lived in fear of conspiracies to overthrow him, particularly led by witches.
It's been awhile, so my memories a little foggy, but the jist of it was that witch =/ poisoner, so much as a slightly paranoid, superstitious king put it in there while creating his own version of the bible, i.e. a deliberate mistranslation in order to prop up his own bigotries.
Of course, that could all be bunkum as well ;-)
Cheers,
Colin
Huh.
Looking up the verse and word in question (Exodus 22:18) - the Hebrew word is Kashaph which indicates one who practices sorcery. It is the same word used in Exodus 7:11 for the wise men or sorcerors of Pharaoh. I really doubt that Pharaoh called his chief poisoners to confront Moses. :)
And for what it is worth - the King James Bible was not actually translated by King James. It was named after him because he commissioned it.
Well, in my game Warlocks are Battle Casters; so any caster that specialized in warfare; combat; seiges and the like. I put the War in Warlock :) so I suppose it is a more a profession or title than a class; many cultures in my game use the word Warlock to imply a person who uses magic to battle outsiders; usually from the lower planes and who sometimes uses such foes in combat or even general warfare. This differs from Wizard which means Wise One; who tend to be more scholarly and not so active in disputes.
Witches in my game are part druid and part something else; the something else is based on their oath/pact; all Witches have a oath or pact with an outsider of some sort from which they derive power. They have familiars or companions with they must feed of themselves; hence they get a third nipple to suckle them. They are not inherently good or evil; that depends upon their oath/pact and what is exchanged.
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Apparently some people disagree with the dictionary's assessment. Link
Sweet this means I'm a Warlock!
DB3 I have known one man who called himself a warlock, Most male witches however call themselves witches.
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Coming up with a story reason why a Warlock might actually be an 'oathbreaker' might actually be a fun thing to do. Perhaps, to make their pacts with the fey, infernal, far realmsian entities that they gain their powers from they have to foreswear their humanity (or ties to whatever mortal race they originally derive from, in the case of gnomes, hobgoblins, etc.) and can be said to have 'broken faith' with their own kind, to serve otherworldly powers...
Would a female warlock character be called a witch?
Ask your DM - this is something that would be campaign specific.
IMC - yes, absolutely.
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A female character with the warlock class is by game mechanics still a warlock. With that said, in your campaign setting a female warlock may be referred to by any number of titles, with witch being one of the most obvious ones.
If we go by folklore and myths, I can see a lot of things in the warlock class that would support calling a female warlock a witch. Witches are known for cursing people, which is right up the warlock's alley, and if we go by Christian folklore witches would be extremely willing to take part in pacts with ungodly forces, such as devils. That's where the infernal pact comes in.
If we go by the star pact, which is obviously modelled after H.P. Lovecraft's mythos, there are cases in the mythos of women who dealt with the eldritch forces of the mythos being called witches. So, yeah.
Warlock
War"lock\, n. [OE. warloghe a deceiver, a name or the Devil, AS. w?rloga a belier or breaker of his agreement, word, or pledge; w?r covenant, troth (aki? to L. verus true; see Very) + loga a liar (in comp.), le['o]gan to lie. See 3d Lie.] A male witch; a wizard; a sprite; an imp. [Written also warluck.] --Dryden.
It was Eyvind Kallda's crew Of warlocks blue, With their caps of darkness hooded! --Longfellow.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Apparently some people disagree with the dictionary's assessment. Link
The research in that piece is really poor. There are numerous flaws (the most glaring being the statement that a Chieftan's position is hereditary)...
I thank the both of you for your insightful responses... I have read in my many different "New Age" (I prefer to lump it together in a nice, friendly term) books that warlock (and various spellings) was sometimes the referring term for a male witch.... but as I can see there are certain constrasting meanings.
My understanding is that Witch in Middle English could have been used for a male or female but that over time it became pretty much exclusivly used for females with Warlock being the preferred term for a male witch.
There are a number of adherents to Neo-Paganism on the boards that surely know better then I but I do know a number of Neo-Pagan Wiccans and I have never heard them use the term warlock, nor witch for that matter. Usually the term used is Wiccan for both males and females.
Being a witch myself (not a wiccan I might mention, and I'm a very inept witch) I can confirm that you are correct, a witch is both male and female. The word Warlock started appearing and being applied to male witches by the church sometime in the 1500's and has since been applied in many films. The film 'Warlock' being the memorable one(if you've not seen it then do so, it's a hoot)with Julian Sands and Richard E Grant.
Generally most D&D references of Warlock have really been taken from this film (Julian Sands was the offspring of the devil himself and after some powerful dark bible, like I said- A HOOT).I'd say as stated above by numerous others take a Warlock in the style of the campaign, he's a Sorcerer(as per Pathfinder old 3.5)who's touched by some supernatural force whether its fey,devil,demon or another. It's just a class title.
steve is right a witch is a male/female term. Warlock was pushed in with witch by the church. And yeah the warlock film is a hoot, I kinda like it but it is amusing
steve is right a witch is a male/female term. Warlock was pushed in with witch by the church. And yeah the warlock film is a hoot, I kinda like it but it is amusing
It is an excellent film with a lot of very competant style for the devil touched Warlock character and at least two of my PC's have been shaped on him( and at least a few of my fello players likewise)
But the film has got some very funny bits in it as well as being a reasonable storyline.
Main Entry: war·lock
Pronunciation: \ˈwȯr-ˌläk\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English warloghe, from Old English wǣrloga one that breaks faith, the Devil, from wǣr faith, troth + -loga (from lēogan to lie); akin to Old English wǣr true — more at very, lie
Date: 14th century
1 : a man practicing the black arts : sorcerer — compare witch
2 : conjurer
By dictionary devinition of the modern word you be mostly accurate to do so.
However, some branches of neo-paganism has been making a conserted effort to change the meaning, shifting the meaning of the middle english warloghe onto it. If you are going to use the term for the warlock class, you might offend people.ofcause a fae-wylds warlock might make an excilent witchly character.