Witch

"This is the moment, when you confess your undying hatred to my kind. The moment, your Inquisition is born. Be aware, the seed has been sown. My death means nothing."

- Beatrice the Witch

Latest Update: Removed Bewitched Companion and Bewitched Affiliation from Class Features, as both can be achieved by other, already existing means. Number of uses for Witch Spittle has been adjusted, healing restriction has been removed, and sorcery point cost needed to create slots has been reduced from 2 to 1. Malefaction and Benevolence adjusted, added Reach, removed Potency. Also, clarifications in wording and typo-correction. Feel free to comment and let me know your opinion and experiences! :)

Scary Monsters

Witches, in most cases, find a way of life that lets them explore their magical capabilities away from any kind of interference. A witch might conduct experiments that would be condemned by those who don't understand her intent. Or, she might just prefer to be far away from people. This may be because she is a danger to others, or vice versa, because she is looking for safety by staying away from those who might harm her out of superstition. This leads witches to often seek remote places to live, in deep, dark forests or harsh mountainscapes, where they can enjoy the freedom to do as they please. In some rare cases, a witch may be found living in a small town or village, possibly disguised as the local physician or alchemist, where she offers her help to those, who have been forgotten by the lords and ladies of the land.

Witches are prominent subjects in stories and legends that are more often than not enriched with a collection of fantastic imaginations by whoever tells them. However, there is always a hint of truth to them. Sometimes, the isolationist nature of witches lets them come up with stories about themselves, which they seed to be told by others. A story invented like that may grant an extra layer of protection from the curiosity of the common people. Due to the way a story spreads, it may also get out of hand and attract attention from those, who would seek a reward for slaying a supposedly dangerous creature.

For your roleplaying purposes, together with your DM, you should try to come up with some kind of story, people would tell about you or the witch who trained you. This should help you come up with motivations and quirks. It can also inform the reason why you left your home, willingly or out of necessity, why you would want to return, or choose to stay away.

Unrefined Spellcasters

A witch lacks the pretentiousness to heal wounds with magical light, as most clerics do, and unlike flashy wizards, she does not gracefully fling bolts of fire and lightning at her enemies. Even compared to most sorcerers, her spellcasting would probably be considered crude. A witch sorceress is likely to say that she has a more grounded approach to her innate spellcasting abilities. She channels some of her abilities through parts of her body and its secretes, most prominently her saliva, to enrich the potions she concocts, and to distribute healing or damage to whoever faces her.

For flavor and emphasizing a strong connection of witches with nature, your DM may allow your character to learn druid class cantrips instead of, or in addition to your sorcerer class cantrips. These would count as sorcerer spells for you.

Features of the Witch

Witch Spittle

At 1st level, you know how to channel magic through your saliva to heal injuries and conditions, or to inflict pain. You have a pool of mystical power represented by a number slots equal to 1 plus your Constitution modifier, which replenishes after you take a long rest. Each slot is worth 2d4.

As an action, you can touch a creature and put your spit on its injury, while drawing power from the pool. You can expend any number of slots to heal the respective number of d4s. Instead of restoring hit points, you can choose to cure one poison or one disease for every 2 slots you sacrifice.

Alternatively, you can choose to spit at one creature within 30 feet of you. Make a ranged spell attack, with Constitution as your spellcasting modifier. You are proficient with this attack as well. You can spend 1 or a number of slots equal to your proficiency bonus to deal the respective number of d4s of acid damage. You have to decide how many slots you want to use, before you make the ranged spell attack roll. 

At 2nd level, when you gain access to your Font of Magic and sorcery points, you can use your bonus action to spend 1 sorcery point for every slot of your Witch Spittle pool that you want to restore. You cannot increase the number of maximum slots and you cannot sacrifice Witch Spittle slots to restore sorcery points.

Witchcraft

At 1st level, you gain proficiency with the herbalism kit, as well as one of the following skills.

Medicine

You gain proficiency with Wisdom (Medicine) checks.

Nature

You gain proficiency with Intelligence (Nature) checks.

Malefaction and Benevolence

At 6th level, you can use your innate aptitude for magic to augment your Witch Spittle to add one additional effect to its healing or damage. You spend your bonus action to whisper words and make use of material components; not a spell focus; that triggers one of the following effects. Only one of these effects can be active at a time. If you trigger a new effect an existing one is overwritten, even if the effect is instant. Malefaction and Benevolence can be active while another concentration spell is active as well.

Reach

Spend 1 sorcery point to increase the range of your Witch Spittle attack or healing by 30 feet. (Component: A strand of hair)

Irritation

Spend 2 sorcery points to have a single target suffer the effects of the Bane spell, as your discharge unsettles the affected creature. The creature automatically fails its saving throw, if your spit hits. (Component: A drop of blood)

Innervation

Spend 2 sorcery points to grant the effects of the Bless spell to a single target, as your slaver stimulates the affected creature. (Component: A hint of sweet smelling sweat)

Enfeeblement

Spend 3 sorcery points to have the target suffer the effects of the Ray of Enfeeblement spell, as your drool soaks into the creatures skin and weakens it. (Component: A finger nail)

Convalescence

Spend 3 sorcery points to restore a creature from one of the following conditions, as you rub your saliva together with the required component on the affected body part: blinded, deafened or paralyzed. (Component: You don't want to know!)

Witches' Brew

From 6th level, using your herbalism kit counts as light activity for you. You can spend time to work on potions, salves or other useful items, and still benefit from a rest. The material cost for the creation process remains unchanged, though.

Work with your DM on how to use this feature. Here are a few examples for your consideration: 

• During a long rest, you may be able to create a Potion of Healing, using your Witch Spittle.
• You could create eye drops that can protect someone from being blinded for 1 day or that can heal the blinded condition. You make that work by spending a slot of your Witch Spittle and 3 sorcery points to apply the Convalescence effect.
• A companion with access to a different set of spells than you may assist with your concoctions. Together, you can create something unique..

Keep the contents of your kettle cooking! But remember to get some sleep, too.

Borrow the Cliché

At 14th level, you learn how to enchant a broom, or any other suitable object; at your DM's discretion; to gain flying speed equal to your current walking speed, for as long as it is in your possession. You can mount or dismount your broom as a bonus action. The enchantment process takes 1 hour and can be done during a short rest, without losing the rests benefits. If an object has already been enchanted in that way and you attempt to enchant a new object, the old one loses its enchantment.

Matron of the Coven

At 18th level, you gain the ability to form a coven, bestowing a hallowing to its members. Any creature able to make a conscious choice can join your coven. Those who join, have to undergo a ritual that must to take no less than 24 hours. Creatures that are currently charmed by you or any other creature have to make a Wisdom saving throw against your spell save DC. If they succeed, they refuse to join and cannot be asked to join while being charmed for 1 year. If the saving throw fails, they are not aware of the charm effect and remember the joining ritual as a choice they gladly made.

Every member of your coven shares a bond with you. You can send telepathic messages to them and they can send messages in the same manner to you. They cannot communicate in that way with another member of the coven. You always know the exact location of every member of the coven, and can communicate telepathically as long as they are on the same plane of existence.

Any member, who wants to break free from this bond, has to be released by you. If you refuse, the only way to break free is by killing you. Every attack a member of your coven makes against you has disadvantage and every saving throw you make to contest a member of your coven has advantage.

A creature can only be a member of a single coven at any given time.