So I've noticed recently that Witches are bit lacking in early defensive Magic no Vanish, no Invisibility, No Mirror Image, No Shield?
And on top of that unlike a Wizard/Sorc their hexes make them want to be within 30ft. So ... how do you keep your squishy casters not dead?
Debuffing the others; slumber, misfortune, evil eye and similar are good for that. But is true that Witch must be careful with its position because of its lack of good defensive spells like the ones you said.
Yeah I mean offense is a good defense seems like the obvious answer too me too, but if you're flanked or you Slumber happens to miss it feels like you're really screwed.
At lower levels, it's difficult for a full arcane caster to keep themselves safe. Cast Mage Armor, don't skimp on your DEX, ask any other casters for some buffs, and pray the fight doesn't last too long.
At higher levels, you could try the old Scar/Split Hex trick. Scar as many toads as you're able to, trap each one in a small box, gives each one to one of your comrades - especially the ones that are liable to get in the fray - and when the time comes, you can hex the toads from any distance, then use Split Hex to also hex anyone within 30 feet of the toads. (you'll need to either feed the toads or replace them periodically, depending on whether you're a good witch or an evil witch. : P)
Choice of patron is a pretty big deal for Witch. Grabbing one with defensive spells is a good idea. I've also used Hellcat Stealth to get mundane "invisibility".
Debuffs and positioning would be quite important, yes. Full arcane casters are generally a bit weaker at first imo. And if bad comes to worse - Evil Eye is the equivalent of +2 AC for everyone attacked, and it does not miss.
Antipodef - I mean other full Arcane casters can cast mirror image and go invisible/Vanish in oh s&&@ moments. Hence I'm asking for Witches specifically.
what is the theory behind the Old scar/split hex trick? I'm unfamiliar.
Rub-Eta - Invis/Vanish are good for getting your our of a sticky situation/not getting ranged to death
As for slumber that only applies to groups who have a problem with winning an encounter through anything other than chewing hit points, which mine doesn't.
QuidEst - I've been getting the impression if you want early defense you might need to go for an early defense spell Patron. Sadly the Witch I'm interested in making is probably going time.
The Shaman - Good point about Evil eye.
Ah, for total emergencies? At 3rd level onwards, you could try Raven's Flight. Swift action to become a tiny raven shape with a 50 foot fly speed for the rest of the round. Ask your GM if you can Run 200 feet away with your new fly speed. One of mine said you could not. But still, you can definitely double-move 100 feet. I've used it in non-combat scouting situations as well, it's such a versatile spell. Never leave home without it!
At level 5 you can take the flight hex. It may be a bit later than you are speaking about, but its good for avoiding being hit.
Isn't that basically a shaman :) ?
None of the Paizo archetypes appear to change the key ability score. (Leywalker changes you to a spontaneous caster, but doesn't appear to change from INT to CHA.) But that's a bit tangential to the topic.
play a witch that uses wisdom then play a kathatharas for +2 dex +2 wis +2 dodge
There does not appear to be a witch that uses wisdom. The 3rd party Feytouched Hexer uses Cha. And wtf is a kathatharas?
Do you mean, "Kasatha?" In which case, there's still the issue of no WIS-ches.
Depending on the interpretation of the rules on Share Spells, an improved familiar that gets spellcasting could help get some spells like shield.
You could also take the half elf variant that lets you treat yourself as a 1st level wizard for spell trigger/completion items and get wands/staves that have the defensive buffs you want.