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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-5e-druids-as.html
Back in the days of AD&D I was really taken by the Druid. Part of it was my own self-style Anglophilia and Celtophila, but another part was that the class was not only so very, very close to the type of witch I wanted to play, it was also a good example of taking a pre-Middle Ages archetype and making it work in D&D. As a then fan of the work of Margaret Murray, this appealed to me. Yes, yes I know that her thesis and premise has been booted from academics. That is fine and the way it should be, but it also works fine in my games.
So today I thought let's have a look at Druids as Witches in D&D 5. For the first time since 1st Ed AD&D the Druid is close to the witch archetype again.
Druidic Circle: Circle of Witchcraft
This pdf is three pages and is a PWYW price, with a suggestion of $1.00.
There is a cover and a page of legal, so only one page is dedicated to the class. This witch is a Druid of the Circle of Witchcraft. The witch gains Ritual Spellcasting, a bonus cantrip, and some powers. At level 6 there is a Blood Sacrifice option, Speak with Dead at 10th, and an "Occult Power" at 14th level.
It is interesting, but there is really not a lot here.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-witch-5e-class.html
The Witch - A 5E Class
This PDF is listed as 9 pages, but the revised PDF is actually 13. There is a cover page, but the rest is content. Unlike many of the other products on DMSGuild this one has it's own style of layout. In truth, it is a nice change of pace.
We get all the expected elements for a full class for 5e; level advancement charts, quick builds, as well class and spell information. This witch is a Wisdom caster.
A couple of things stick out. One, this witch needs a special sort of spell focus known as a Staff of Hexes. Without it she can't cast spells. Also this witch has something called "Magicka" points. So a little different than other casters.
The archetypes or subclasses for this witch are called different "Wonders"; ie "Wonder of the Grimoire", "Wonder of the Cauldron", "Wonder of Voodoo", "Curse of the Hag" (not Wonder of the Hag), "Wonder of the Hedge Witch", "Wonder of the White Witch", and "Wonder of Prophecy". While I am not overly fond of the name I do like what they do. I think I would have gone with "Path of the ..." myself.
The archetypes seem well balanced and thought out.
There is a spell list, but no new spells. There is no art, save for the cover.
This is another PWYW item with a suggestion of $2.00.
The layout is crisp and very utilitarian. It doesn't scream "Witch" to me, nor does it feel "D&D." Although it is attractive and very functional.
I certainly would try a couple of these archetypes/subclasses out. Some interesting ideas.
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Originally posted here: http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-witch-from.html
The Witch, a character class of natural arcana and the old ways of magic
From the aptly named Warlock Homebrew.
This PDF was 17 pages when I first downloaded it. It grew to 29 sometime between then and now. The PDF is full color and sells for $5.00 suggested PWYW.
The cover is fantastic and the artist, Diana Nock, is credited. So far this is very good.
The table of contents is hyperlinked. It looks like some great content inside too. Witches are called the "Acolytes of the First Magic" next to the art of their iconic witch Nathilda Pickingill and her familiar Malefelies. She wears a proper witches hat, carries a proper witches broom (with a dream catcher no less), and her hooded cloak is clasped shut with a triple goddess symbol.
At this point, I feel like I am being flirted with.
There is a full 20 level Witch progression table. A note about Gender. Even the 20th level power is "Grand Old Wytch." I guess "Grand Olde Wytch" was a step too far. This witch is an "Intelligence" caster.
There are rules for Ritual Casting in line with D&D 5's ritual casting. Rules on familiars (with great art) INCLUDING backgrounds for familiars! How great is that?
If Pathfinder witches get Hexes then these witches get Jinxes. Ok, I like that. Magical powers for potions and brooms.
Sub-classes are known as Covens (perfect) and there are Covens of the Dark Moon, Full Moon, Half Moon, Crescent Moon, and. There is even a Coven of the Eclipse and a Coven of the Lost Moon. There is even a sidebar about what to do if your moons on your world are different. Ok, now I feel positively flirted with and I am beginning to blush.
There is a very extensive list of Witch Spells from various sources and 12 new spells. There is even guidance on which of these new spells can be used by other classes.
All in all, this is one of the best Witch Class books I have seen on DMSGuild so far. A significant cut above the rest. I would happily play one of these witches.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-d-witch-class.html
I am, without a doubt, a huge fan of the witches for Dragon Magazine. I have spent hours reading and rereading those articles. I have many witch characters I have made using those rules and spent many, many more hours playing them. So if you say that your class is based on those, you have my attention.
The Witch Class from David Belmonte is a 10 (1 cover, 1 title, 1-page addendum, 7 pages content) page PDF that is Free on DMSGuild. So the price point is already good. It also presents a full witch class.
The pdf is sparce really. There is no art save for the cover art and the artist is not credited.
The witch in this case is a Wisdom spellcaster. (They were Intelligence and Wisdom in Dragon #20).
The powers this witch gets are in line with the witch from Dragon #20. Though the witch in Dragon got a lot more powers, this witch is a little more inline with the D&D 5 rules. There are no subclasses listed even if the obvious choice would have been High and Low Order witches with some different powers.
There are 8 new spells. One of the Spells "Oracle" only works "in obscure woods" whatever that is supposed to mean.
So nice effort, but it falls a little short for me. Though it is tough to argue the price I guess.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-hex-witch-5e.html
This is a 9 page PDF (1 cover, 1 title page, 7 pages of content) and sells for $2.95 straight. So well above the 10 cents per page guide at 42 cents per page. This presents a full witch base class and three subclasses, known as "Wiccan Pathways." Now for myself, I try to avoid using the term "Wicca" in games since it is a recognized religion. Even in the stuff I wrote for the WitchCraft RPG we used "Wicce."
The paths are the Augury Witch (seer), the Fey Witch (combat spellcasting), and the Wyld Witch (healer). So some nice variety.
This witch also gets Hex powers that a little like the Hexes the Pathfinder witch gets or the Occult powers I give my witches.
This witch uses Charisma as their main spell-casting ability.
Some powers sound good, but are not 100% clear on what they really do or how they work. Living Objects for example is described as inanimate objects coming to life. But are they still made from the material they were or are they flesh and blood? Will Dispel Magic turn them back?
This one also properly credits the artists which is good.
I like it, but it left me wanting something more in the end.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-witch-from-greg.html
I grabbed this one a bit ago and it has been languishing on my harddrive ever since.
Again, here are my rules for these reviews of this series.
A lot of pdfs on DMSGuild are named "The Witch" and I guess I am not really any better on DriveThruRPG, so to distinguish them I am going to include the author's name in the titles.
The Witch from Greg Baxter
This is an eleven-page PDF (8 pages of content, 1 cover, 1 title, 1 legal) that sells for $1.33 on DMSGuild (PWYW, suggested). So just a little over that 10 cents per page rule of thumb.
This product covers an entire witch base class.
These witches are very tied in with Hags and have the first witches as human women that have broken free from their transformation into hags.
The main ability of these witches is Intelligence.
The subclasses for this witch are Haglore Scholar, Athame Witch, and Rune Witch. They have a lot of flavor, to be honest, and would be fun to try out.
No new spells, but the spell lists are rather extensive covering the Player's Handbook and many of the other sourcebooks.
The art is minimal, but at least there are credits to the artists.
All in all there are some fun options here and I'd give them a try.
PDF and Epub versions available.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-witches-of.html
Ah! Now here is what I have been wanting. You can't write about witches in D&D as long as I have and not come across the Wychlaran Witch, the Witches of Rashemen. It was one of the reasons I finally put down my Greyhawk books to see what this "young upstart" of the Forgotten Realms was about.
This PDF is modest, only 8 pages, written by Bryan Williams. It covers the Wychlaran Witch class as a full class. It covers the class and all the class features, but it is missing the advancement tables and spells per level. It looks and reads like it should be akin to a sub-class of the Sorcerer, and that works to a degree, still I would have liked to see the table. There is a section on new equipment, which is good, and 13 new spells. I supposed the advantage to this particular PDF is if you have a Witch class you like you can use this in conjunction with it to create a more witch-y Wychlaran. So that is a bonus in it's favor.
Also the PDF is PWYW with a listed price of $0, but I say use my guideline of ¢10 per page and give the author ¢80 (or ¢60 for the actual content). For less than...well just about everything, you can have a class and some new spells.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-witches-of.html
This one is huge and has ten authors. The pdf and hardcover book fills it's 144 pages with full-color art and details on all sorts of details on the Great Dale section of the Unapproachable East. This book actually rivals such books from WotC like The Sword Coast guide and the Icewind Dale. This book covers the people of the lands with new classes (sub-classes), new backgrounds, new feats as well as new spells and magic items. The lands are covered with geography, history, factions, friends, and foes. There are guides for playing in the lands as well. The author's introduction sets the stage for the book AND I think it also a good selling point for why people would want to use the DMSGuild rules over the OGL.
In the case of this book it works well. I also appreciate that authors not only took the time to properly credit the artists, the obtained commissions for some art as well. This more than justifies the $19.95 price tag for the PDF. It is also one of the few DMSGuild books I would want as a hardcover too. If I played in the Realms more. If I ever get a Realms 5e going then this will be on my list for getting the hardcover version.
While the Witches of Rashemen are mentioned, there is no "Witch" class. Plenty of Warlock and Wizard sub-classes though.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-witches-of.html
This is a modest PDF that punches above its weight class. It gives us 13 pages of 5e style spells that are conversions of earlier spells from the Unapproacble East area. A few I recognized from Unapproachable East (3.5) and from Spellbound (2e). No art, but 39 spells that were not part of the D&D 5 corpus at the time the PDF was made.
This collects various spells that have appeared in some Forgotten Realms books in previous editions focusing on the lands of Thay, Aglarond, Rashemen, Thesk and the Great Dale. If these names do not mean anything to you, don't worry, I only am vaguely aware of them myself. The point here is that there are a lot of "new" spells for you. The spells comprise the last 8 pages. Some are familiar enough to me just because I have been playing for 40+ years, but some are new to me. All of that for just a PWYW of $0.50. Not to bad really.
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Originially posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/10/dmsguild-witch-project-hedgewitch.html
The Hedgewitch (player class) by PCSpinner and Covens (for the Hedgewitch) by PCSpinner
Both products feature the same cover art with some color variation.
The Hedgewitch PDF is a PWYW with a suggestion of $1.00 for 9 pages.
Covens is $0.50 for 4 pages.
It looks like the math here is about ¢10 a page. Let's see if that holds up across the DMSGuild titles.
Both come in standard format and printer-friendly format.
The Hedgewitch is true to its name and presents a Hedgewitch class. She gets spell levels up to level 5 only. The class has a nice variety of features and powers and all have a really nice witchy feel to them.
The "sub-classes" or archetypes of the hedgewitch are "covens" which is exactly what I would do and would expect since "Traditions" were taken by the Wizards class. There is a nic variety here.
The layout and art look really nice. I think some of it is public domain art and photos. At least they look a little familiar.
There are no "new" spells, but it does use spells that were new at the time of publication.
Covens for the Hedgewitch is similar in terms of art, layout, and options. This pdf offers another four covens to use with the Hedgewitch.
So a couple of thoughts.
These easily could have been combined into one product, but I think I see the rationale for keeping them separate. Either way it is fine.
The layout and art is really nice, the creator spent some time on this and it shows. This was released four years ago and I thought the creator would have done more, but I only see six total titles in the DMSGuild. The inclusion of printer-friendly versions is a very nice touch.
I would try this class out. I think there are some good ideas here.
ETA: The Hedge witch class was taken down since I wrote this review.
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Originally posted here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/09/review-pages-from-mages.html
and is a followup to the post here: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/09/this-old-dragon-retrospective-pages.html
The Pages from the Mages feature of Dragon Magazine was one of my favorite features and I looked forward to seeing what new spells Ed Greenwood would relay from the great sage Elminster. I was very pleased when I saw that the entire collection was pulled together into a single tome. The original Pages from the Mages spaned roughly 10 years from 1982 to 1992 and both editions of AD&D.
For this review, I am considering both the original print version sold by TSR and the PDF version sold through DriveThruRPG. Presently there is no Print on Demand option.
Pages from the Mages
The book is 128 pages. Color covers, black & white interior art with full color, full-page art. Designed for the AD&D 2nd Edition game.
The PDF sells for $9.99 on DriveThruRPG.
The softcover book originally sold for $15.00 in 1995.
This book covers some 40 or so unique spell books from various spellcasters from the Forgotten Realms. Some of these spellcasters are well known such as Elminster and others less so or at least nearly mythic in the Realms. This is one of the book's greatest strengths. While this could have been just a collection of books with known spells, it is the stories and the myths behind the books that make this more.
While many of the spells found within these books are fairly well known, there are plenty of brand new and unique spells. This is what attracted me to the original Dragon magazine series. Within these pages, there are 180 or so "new" spells. I say new in quotes because most, if not all, these spells appeared first in the pages of Dragon magazine and then again in the pages of the hardcover Forgotten Realms Adventures for 2nd Edition.
Additionally, there are a number of new magic items and even a couple of new creatures.
The true value for me, as a DM and a player, is to provide these new spell books as potential treasure items or quest items. Even saying the name of some of these books, like Aubayreer's Workbook, is enough to get my creative juices flowing. Where is it? Where has it been? What other secrets does it contain?
I often refer to a product as punching above its weight class. This is one of those books. While overtly designed for the 2nd Edition game there is nothing here that can't be used with any version of the D&D game, from Basic all the way to 5th edition with only the slightest bit of editing needed.
While I have a print copy and the PDF, a Print on Demand version would be fantastic.
A complete list of the spells, spellbook, creatures and characters in this book can be found on the Forgotten Realms wiki, https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Pages_from_the_Mages
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Originally posted here with more details and links: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/09/shadow-week-courts-and-realms-of-shadow.html
This 19 page PDF gives us the Shadow Fey as a playable race. There is some history of the Shado Fey here and even a few more creatures. Additionally, there are some new class archetypes, racial powers, and some new feats. While it says Pathfinder on the cover there is enough here to use in any game.
This book in particular makes them more than "drow with horns" or "bad tempered elves."
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Originally posted here with more details and links: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/09/shadow-week-courts-and-realms-of-shadow.html
This 12 page PDF is part of Kobold Press' Deep Magic series. It presents a new Sorcerous Bloodline (Shadow Bloodline), a new Warlock Patron (The Light Eater), and a new Rouge Archetype (The Whisper). There are also, as expected, new Shadow themed spells. Not explicitly tied in with their Courts of the Shadow Fey, but certainly 100% compatible and thematically appropriate.
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Originally posted here with more details and links: https://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/2020/09/shadow-week-courts-and-realms-of-shadow.html
This is a short-ish adventure for 8th level characters in a fairy tale romp. Not a "Disney" fairy tale, but a Brother's Grimm one. A shadowy evil, but sad Queen, needs to reconstitute her broken magic mirror that contains her life force. Doing so will make her powerful again. The PCs have found the five magical shards.
A great little adventure full of dark fairy tale tropes. Easy to run in a session or two and makes for a nice side quest after running the Courts of the Shadow Fey. The Dusk Queen herself is an interesting character that might work well in my War of the Witch Queens Campaign. In that of course she would need to win at the end of this adventure.
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