Witch Doctor (Aptah)

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Unofficial rules compendium

A witch doctor is a mix between shaman and sorcerer. Though he is an arcane spellcaster, the witch doctor receives his powers from spirits. Unlike a normal sorcerer, these powers are not static, but changes from day to day depending on what spirits the witch doctor deals with.

Bonus feats:

  • Level 1:
    • Eschew material components
  • Level 7, 13, 19: select from this list:
    • Any metamagic feat
    • Any item creation feat

Spells

A witch doctor casts arcane spells from the sorcerer spell list. She can cast any spell she has retrieved, much like a bard or sorcerer can cast any spell she knows without preparing it ahead of time.

To retrieve or cast a spell, a witch doctor must have a Charisma score of at least 10 + the spell level (Charisma 10 for 0-level spells, Charisma 11 for 1st-level spells, and so on). The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a witch doctor's spell is 10 + the spell level + the witch doctor's Charisma modifier.

Like other spellcasters, a witch doctor can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table: Sorcerer. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Charisma score.

Like a sorcerer, a witch doctor knows only a small number of spells. However, each day a witch doctor may change the spells she knows. A witch doctor must retrieve her spells ahead of time by getting 8 hours of sleep and spending 1 hour bargaining with the spirits. When a witch doctor meditates to regain her daily allotment of spells (see below), she bargains with the spirits and retrieve knowledge of the specific sorcerer spells she will be able to use that day. Once this is done she can cast any spell she has retrieved at any time, assuming she has not yet used up her spells per day for that spell level. For example, a 3rd-level witch doctor can retrieve three 0-level, two 1st-level, and one 2nd-level sorcerer spells. She can cast 0-level spells five limes, 1st-level spells four times, and her 2nd-level spell two times in the course of the day. She might end up using the same 0-level spell five times, or one 0-level spell two times and another 0-level spell three times, or any combination that adds up to five uses of any of her 0-level spells.

Cantrips

Witch doctors learn a number of cantips, or 0-level spells, as noted on Table: Sorcerer under “Spells Known.” These spells are cast like any other spell, but they do not consume any slots and may be used again.

Metamagic

If a witch doctor knows any metamagic feats, she applies them to her spells when she retrieves them for the day. For example, a witch doctor might choose to retrieve an empowered fireball by using a 5th-level spell retrieved slot. Any time she uses fireball during the ensuing day, she must use a 5th-level spell slot to cast it, and it is always empowered. A witch doctor could use a 3rd-level spell slot and a 5th-level spell slot to retrieve fireball and empowered fireball if she wanted to have both spells available to her in a day. A witch doctor cannot choose to alter her spells with metamagic feats on the fly, as other spontaneous casters do. Witch doctors using metamagic feats do not have an increased casting time as sorcerers do.

Bloodline

A spellbook sorcerer does not have a bloodline.

Summary of Changed Class Abilities

These abilities of the original class are lost or modified in this archetype:

  • Spell Preparation
  • Bloodline