I've been making wizards for ages got a pretty good system for tricking them out. Just made my first witch, very proud. Lots of control and roleplaying spells. First fight, though, the monsters made every single one of my damn DCs. Then meat shields went in and wiped up. Felt really useless.
What kind of things can I do to increase my poor witch's DCs?!
I assume u mean ur hex dcs? Im pretty sure ability focus works with hexes, so thats a +2 right there.. Buff your int as much as possible..
Also start with evil eye and cackle as ur move action to reduce there saves vs ur other hexs and spells.. No matter if they save vs it as long as u cackle after itll always last till nxt round... then just use other hexs or spells and contimue to cackle...
For hexes you can increase the DC with the ability focus feat.
See if your DM will let you take Ability Focus (HEX NAME HERE).
You can also use the Evil Eye(saves) and Cackle to extend that to drop their saves even if they make the first roll.
I just thought of that today as I was rereading Witch class abilities.
Also don't forget you can stack the different effects of Evil Eye.
And if you can stack misfortune on top of that, also extended with Cackle, they'll probably never make a save again.
Okay. So I have a question. Text of Cackle:
Cackle (Su): A witch can cackle madly as a move action. Any creature that is within 30 feet that is under the effects of an agony hex, charm hex, evil eye hex, fortune hex, or misfortune hex caused by the witch has the duration of that hex extended by 1 round.
If a target is under multiple hexes and I cackle once, do *all* the hexes that the creature is effected by extend? Or if I double cackle, two rounds?
Yes, they are all extended
Do remember that the 1 round effect hexes expire before your next turn so you have to cackle the same round you hex them.
So you can't, for example, move into range, hex someone and cackle next round to extend it.
Mounts are really good for witches.
When do the hexes technically expire? On their turn or yours? If you act first, hex them, then they're effected on their turn, then round 2 you cackle?
Ability Focus and Accursed Hex for retries are great for hexes. Elves can use an alt. racial trait in APG to boost Slumber DC by another +1, too. Dwarves get the Honeyed Words trait for +1 DC to slumber and other stuff, but dwarves don't boost int, so that is a trap option. (It's religion, not race, trait. So Adopted won't work)
You should be starting w/ Int 20, raising it every 4th level, and pushing towards int +2/4/6 item as soon as possible. You get more mileage out of Int than a WIZARD does. That's not something to claim lightly.
the spell your after mate is Il Omen, no attack roll no save and double the chance to fail d20 rolls.
I was having the same problem with my Changeling witch in Carrion Crown.
At the time, there was no "favored class" options for the changeling, so my DM allowed me to take +1/2 to the Hex DC as a favored class option....and since then, she has been able to use her Hexes with a good degree of success (although it's by no means a given).
I was having the same problem with my Changeling witch in Carrion Crown.
At the time, there was no "favored class" options for the changeling, so my DM allowed me to take +1/2 to the Hex DC as a favored class option....and since then, she has been able to use her Hexes with a good degree of success (although it's by no means a given).
That would be +5 DC at level 10. If you are any kind of optimizer at all your witch is way OP.
I was having the same problem with my Changeling witch in Carrion Crown.
At the time, there was no "favored class" options for the changeling, so my DM allowed me to take +1/2 to the Hex DC as a favored class option....and since then, she has been able to use her Hexes with a good degree of success (although it's by no means a given).
to one Hex ? or to every Hex ?
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I've been making wizards for ages got a pretty good system for tricking them out. Just made my first witch, very proud. Lots of control and roleplaying spells. First fight, though, the monsters made every single one of my damn DCs. Then meat shields went in and wiped up. Felt really useless.
What kind of things can I do to increase my poor witch's DCs?!
The only thing I've found that can increase hex save DCs is a feat in SuperGeniusGames's Advanced Options: Witch's Hexes. The feat is called Hex Focus, and it raises a specific Hex's DC by 2. Nothing in the Paizo core or expanded rules seems to raise hex DCs that hasn't already been mentioned.
I could swear last time I looked this up I easily found a reference saying that a 1 round duration expired just before your next turn, but now I can't find anything that defines exactly when it happens.I'm still sure of it, I just can't find the reference. Anyone?
When the rules refer to a "full round", they usually mean a span of time from a particular initiative count in one round to the same initiative count in the next round. Effects that last a certain number of rounds end just before the same initiative count that they began on.
The only other method for increasing a witch's save DCs is to increase his intelligence. I assume you are doing that with every 4th level ability score increase, and that you are doing your best to get your hands on an appropriate headband and/or ioun stone to magically improve that ability score. The only other method would be to persuade the party bard, sorcerer, or wizard (if there is one) to cast Fox's Cunning on you immediately before critical battles.
Honestly the way to increase your save DC's is actually evil eye and cackle
the target of your evil eye even if they make there save is under the effect of evil eye for 1 round, cackle 2 rounds, round 2 use another Hex and they are -2 to -4 on their save which is as good as adding +2-4 to your DC ;)
so don't just look for ways to bump your DC's there are often ways to reduce saves to provide the same effect i.e. landing your hexes more consistently
And please remember, ability focus is a monster feat and is (usually) requires DM permission to take.
Nothing in the rules states that you need more permission for the monster feats than for any other feat.
You got the prerequesites you can take it. GM has final say. As always.
When do the hexes technically expire? On their turn or yours? If you act first, hex them, then they're effected on their turn, then round 2 you cackle?
As far as I know you have to cackle the same round as you use a 1turn duration hex to extend it. On your next turn it's already over.
But as cackel is just a move action you're fine.|
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And please remember, ability focus is a monster feat and is (usually) requires DM permission to take.
Nothing in the rules states that you need more permission for the monster feats than for any other feat.
You got the prerequesites you can take it. GM has final say. As always.
This is true, but be aware that you can't use monster feats for Pathfinder Society Play.
You could cast a spell or use a hex with longer duration.
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This is true, but be aware that you can't use monster feats for Pathfinder Society Play.And please remember, ability focus is a monster feat and is (usually) requires DM permission to take.
Nothing in the rules states that you need more permission for the monster feats than for any other feat.
You got the prerequesites you can take it. GM has final say. As always.
Cartmanbeck is correct that the feats are totally illegal for PFS play but incorrect in that it doesn't require permission.
If you will check your beastiary (1,2 or 3) and pull up the entry for Ability Focus you will see under Prerequisites that you must have a "Special Attack" which no PC race has. Those are entries that only show up under monster entries (if you pull up any PC race you will not find that entry) and if you look at the witch hexes you will see they are classed as supernatural abilities not special attacks.
The only way for a PC to qualify for this feat is IF your GM decides to allow them to qualify as a special attack. Ie, you need GM approval to take this feat.
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This is true, but be aware that you can't use monster feats for Pathfinder Society Play.And please remember, ability focus is a monster feat and is (usually) requires DM permission to take.
Nothing in the rules states that you need more permission for the monster feats than for any other feat.
You got the prerequesites you can take it. GM has final say. As always.Cartmanbeck is correct that the feats are totally illegal for PFS play but incorrect in that it doesn't require permission.
If you will check your beastiary (1,2 or 3) and pull up the entry for Ability Focus you will see under Prerequisites that you must have a "Special Attack" which no PC race has. Those are entries that only show up under monster entries (if you pull up any PC race you will not find that entry) and if you look at the witch hexes you will see they are classed as supernatural abilities not special attacks.
The only way for a PC to qualify for this feat is IF your GM decides to allow them to qualify as a special attack. Ie, you need GM approval to take this feat.
Fair enough, I thought the feat was for supernatural abilities, not "special attacks". Either way, I build most of my characters to PFS standards since I play in both a non-PFS and several PFS-rules games, and I like my builds to be interchangable between the two. :)
When do the hexes technically expire? On their turn or yours? If you act first, hex them, then they're effected on their turn, then round 2 you cackle?As far as I know you have to cackle the same round as you use a 1turn duration hex to extend it. On your next turn it's already over.
But as cackel is just a move action you're fine.True in the sense that you can do both. It does complicate things in a tactical sense. You can't close and hex someone if you want to use cackle. So what do you do that first round when you're out of range?
This does present a problem. I tend to fly everywhere so it's easy to move and stay, say, 30ft from the target, just directly above them or floating coolly within that 30ft r dome bubble from from the target. But an opener would be nice. I have two meat shields that I decided for my friends (they're both pretty new to PF), so they're kind of ridiculous DPS. My last character I played was my Zorro-y Urban Ranger with a lash and his DPS and flexibility was crazy. Now, for my witch, I'm doing as much control as I can and my party tends to "stunt" creatively quite a lot.
Last session --after failing twice to Reduce Person the Frost giant that was fighting the Paladin who had Enlarge Personed himself ;) -- I flew into the mouth of one the giant I had just hit with a Slumber hex and Vomited Swarm down his throat. Then the other I Slumbered then flew in his mouth whipped out the witch nails to pierce the roof of his mouth and pull out chunks of his brain, then Spat Venom in the holes and into his brain.The best part was actually clawing my way back out the mouth, one hand on each jaw, cackling the whole time, and then flying out into night.
Those nasty martial characters are going to get in too fast and steal all the fun! I think I made them a little too well...
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the spell your after mate is Il Omen, no attack roll no save and double the chance to fail d20 rolls.Ill Omen only starts out working on the enemies NEXR d20 roll, though - so it works best if quickened or when popped int he surprise round, when you beat the BBEG in init, too.
Put it in a wand and give it to your Familiar, it's job is to handle that for you.
Put it in a wand and give it to your Familiar, it's job is to handle that for you.
Familiars can use wands? Don't they need, like. Thumbs?
Witch can use her Anthropomorphic Animal spell on her familiar (despite it being a magical beast, thanks to Share Spells) to grant her familiar human arms and hands, and the ability to speak. Of course, by the time that's an option, CL 7 improved familiar options are only a few levels away.