Witch Knight

Summary
Witch Knights are fearsome and unpredictable creatures. To many, calling a Witch Knight a member of their race may be an inappropriate assumption, for each is... changed by the energy that courses through every aspect of their being. All Witch Knights are creatures possessed of strange magic and powers, and they often inspire fear even when not actively trying to do so. Wherever a Witch Knight travels, they leave their mark behind, for better or worse.

Game Rule Information
Abilities: The single most important ability score for a Witch Knight is Charisma, as it affects all of their abilities in some fashion or another. Dexterity and Constitution are also vitally important, as they make a Witch Knight more difficult to hit, more accurate with their spells, and live longer in direct battle. Like other arcane spellcasters, a Witch Knight's powers are hampered by armor, and they must be very careful to avoid direct confrontations.

Alignment: Any, but predominantly chaotic.

Hit Die: d8

Class Skills
Witch Knight class skills (and key abilities for each) are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Diplomacy (Cha), Fly (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcana)(Int), Perform (Cha), Spellcraft (Int), and Use Magic Device (Cha).

Skill Points per Level: 4+Int Modifier

Witch Knight Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Witch Knights gain proficiency with all simple and martial weapons. The Witch Knight also gains proficiency with light armors. Witch Knights are not proficient with any shield.

Weirding Pool (Su): Witch Knights constantly draw an unusual magical energy into their forms. This energy, known to Witch Knights as Weirding energy, allows a Witch Knight to use their powers. Witch Knights can focus this Weirding energy into a variety of magical effects, assigning a portion of their Weirding pool to gain or improve their otherworldly powers. Binding energy from the Witch Knight's Weirding pool requires 8 hours of rest and otherwise is treated identically to a spontaneous spellcaster recovering their spell slots.

Unlike traditional spell slots, Weirding energy is not expended or lost through use of abilities. In essence, Weirding energy allows the Witch Knight to redefine how some of their class features work and choose which bonuses they would like to have. If the Witch Knight has access to Evil Eye, for example, using Evil Eye or one of its enhancements does not consume Weirding energy each time it is used, the Weirding energy is assigned to it as noted above and it can be used once in the day or a hundred times in the day without "running out." Casting a spell with Weirding energy does not stop the Witch Knight from reusing that spell later, with the exceptions and mechanics noted in Weird Sorcery.

A Witch Knight has a maximum amount of Weirding energy based upon their class level (see the table above). The Witch Knight also gains an additional amount of Weirding energy in their Weirding pool equal to their Charisma modifier.

A number of times per day equal to the Witch Knight's Charisma modifier, the Witch Knight can focus and meditate over the course of 10 minutes to unbind and rearrange their Weirding energy. This meditation allows the Witch Knight to reassign their Weirding pool to any new, valid configuration. If the Witch Knight is interrupted and fails a Concentration check (treat this as a spell of the highest level permitted under the Maximum Spell Level column), the effort is wasted.

Witch Blast (Sp): One of the first tricks that a Witch Knight masters with their Weirding energy is the ability to produce small bursts of magical energy at will as a standard action. This ability, commonly known as Witch Blast, initially has a range of 60 feet and deals damage equal to 1d6 plus your Charisma modifier, and requires a ranged touch attack to strike its mark. Upon taking their first level in Witch Knight, the Witch Knight must select one damage type from the list below as their default damage type when using Witch Blast; once made, this choice cannot be changed.

The Witch Knight can augment their Witch Blast with their Weirding pool. For an additional point of energy from their Weirding pool, the Witch Knight can add an additional 2 damage to their Witch Blast on a successful hit. The Witch Knight can also spend a point on their Witch Blast to change the damage type from their normal default damage type to a different damage type; this change counts against the maximum amount of Weirding energy the Witch Knight can spend on Witch Blast. The Witch Knight cannot spend more points from their Weirding pool to augment Witch Blast than the value listed under Maximum Spell Level for their level.

Witch Blast only benefits from feats that can apply to ranged touch attacks, but the Witch Knight can select their Witch Blast as a weapon for the purposes of Weapon Focus.

The damage types permitted with Witch Blast are:


 * Acid
 * Cold
 * Electricity
 * Fire
 * Force - All damage dice are reduced to 1d4 instead of 1d6, and additional damage is 1 per Weirding instead of 2 when using Witch Blast to inflict Force damage
 * Sonic - All damage dice are reduced to 1d4 instead of 1d6, and additional damage is 1 per Weirding instead of 2 when using Witch Blast to inflict Sonic damage

Weird Sorcery: Although every Witch Knight masters the ability to produce some form of elemental energy, by harnessing larger quantities of their inherent Weirding energy, a Witch Knight - through some experimentation and intuition - learns how to effectively duplicate one or more arcane spells. Witch Knights have an extremely small spell selection, even when compared to a Sorcerer, but Witch Knights enjoy the unique ability to use these spells almost without limit and are not confined to that selection for their entire lives.

Each day, the Witch Knight can assign energy from their Weirding pool to enable the casting of one or more spells from the Sorcerer/Wizard spell list as a spell-like ability. The Witch Knight must expend a number of points from their Weirding pool equal to the spell's level (two 0-level spells cost 1 point), and cannot acquire spells of a level higher than the value listed under Maximum Spell Level on the table above. The Witch Knight treats their class level as their caster level for all spells, and the Witch Knight can learn and apply metamagic feats as normal; when using metamagic feats with Weird Sorcery, the Witch Knight must add the feat's spell level adjustment to the spell to determine its effective spell level for the purposes of Weirding pool requirements and maximum spell level permitted. For example, a magic missile spell (1st level) augmented with Maximize Spell (+3 spell levels) requires 4 Weirding energy, is treated as a 4th level spell for determining recharge (see below), and cannot be prepared until the Witch Knight reaches 7th level, when the Witch Knight's Maximum Spell Level reaches 4.

Acquired spells can be used repeatedly throughout the day, but the Witch Knight's reservoir of eldritch energy requires time to recharge between castings. When using the spell, the Witch Knight cannot use the spell again for a period of time equal to the spell's level, measured in the same time units as the spell's duration. For example, an invisibility spell requires 2 minutes to recharge because it is a 2nd level spell for Sorcerers and Wizards and its duration is measured in minutes per caster level. Spells with an instantaneous duration that cause hit point damage or other numerical effects upon statistics are treated as having a duration of rounds for determining recharge time. Spells with a permanent duration or an instantaneous duration that do not cause hit point damage or other numerical effects upon statistics are treated as having a duration of hours for determining recharge time.

The Witch Knight cannot cast any spells with Weird Sorcery for 1d3 rounds after using Weird Sorcery, regardless of the recharge time of the most recent spell.

While regenerating energy from a spell cast, the Witch Knight cannot reassign energy from that spell when rearranging their Weirding pool until the spell has finished recharging.

The Witch Knight must provide spell material components and focus components for any spells cast with Weird Sorcery.

Weird Sorcery spells are subject to arcane spell failure.

Evil Eye (Su): At 2nd level, the Witch Knight gains the ability to invoke fear in a visible creature within 30 feet by merely looking at them as a standard action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. Victims must make a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 Witch Knight level + Charisma modifier) or become shaken for 1d4 minutes. A shaken creature that fails the Will save instead becomes frightened for 1d4 minutes. A frightened creature that fails the Will save instead becomes panicked for 1d4 minutes.

The Witch Knight can augment their Evil Eye with Weirding energy. For each point assigned to Evil Eye from the Witch Knight's Weirding Pool, the Witch Knight increases the save DC of Evil Eye by 1 and increases the range by the ability by 10 feet. The Witch Knight cannot spend more points from their Weirding pool to augment Evil Eye than the value listed under Maximum Spell Level for their level.

Evil Eye is a mind-affecting fear effect. The Witch Knight must be able to see the target to affect them with Evil Eye.

As a supernatural ability, Evil Eye is not subject to arcane spell failure chance due to armor.

Arcane Armor Training: At 2nd level, the Witch Knight gains Arcane Armor Training as a bonus feat, even though they do not meet the prerequisites.

Imbue Armaments (Su): At 3rd level, the Witch Knight learns to shape their Weirding energy into temporary weapon and armor enchantments. The Witch Knight can affect one or more carried weapons, a suit of armor, and/or a shield simultaneously with Imbue Armaments, and the Witch Knight cannot affect the equipment worn or carried by others with this ability - if the Witch Knight loses contact with the affected object, it immediately loses its bonuses, though the Witch Knight can spend a full-round action to restore bonuses to items once returned to the Witch Knight's possession. The exception to this rule is weapons or shields possessing an ability that allows them to act autonomously or return to the user’s possession magically, and these items retain imbued abilities unless prevented from returning to the Witch Knight’s possession at the conclusion of these effects.

The Witch Knight can augment an object to behave as though it has an enhancement bonus and/or special weapon or armor properties, with higher effective enhancements costing more Weirding energy. These bonuses behave as normal weapon or armor enhancements; enhancements that allow the Witch Knight to throw and/or return the imbued object or use it at range function normally and return as normal without losing their bonuses unless the object is somehow prevented from returning to the Witch Knight's possession at the end of the attack.

A Witch Knight wielding a weapon or wearing armor with an existing enhancement bonus can increase that bonus up to this maximum limit by paying the difference in Weirding energy between existing and desired enhancement bonus, but cannot alter existing properties unless the Witch Knight pays the full energy cost to enhance the object from +0, which also temporarily suppresses the item's normal properties.

Imbuing a weapon requires 4 points from the Witch Knight's Weirding pool per point of enhancement bonus granted to the weapon. The Witch Knight cannot spend more than twice their class level on any one weapon when imbuing equipment.

Imbuing a suit of armor or a shield requires 2 points from the Witch Knight's Weirding pool per point of enhancement bonus. The Witch Knight cannot spend more than their class level on any one suit of armor or shield when imbuing equipment.

Weirded Sight (Su): At 4th level, a Witch Knight's constant exposure to ever-greater amounts of Weirding energy has altered their eyesight to render magical currents visible. The Witch Knight is treated as being under a continuous detect magic effect. This ability is continuously active as long as the Witch Knight is conscious and can see.

The Witch Knight can augment their Weirded Sight with energy from their Weirding pool. The Witch Knight can choose to add the following effects to their Weirded Sight by assigning points from their Weirding pool to the specific effects, provided they meet the minimum required level indicated.

The Witch Knight cannot spend more points from their Weirding pool to augment Weirded Sight than twice their class level. Witch Blade (Su): At 5th level, the Witch Knight can augment their melee attacks with their Witch Blast once per round. The Witch Knight must declare they are attempting to use this ability before making the attack roll. If the melee attack hits, the Witch Knight can add their Witch Blast damage to the weapon's damage roll. If the attack misses, the attempt is wasted.

Resilient Will (Su): At 6th level, the Witch Knight can delay the onset of any effect requiring a Will save by a number of rounds equal to the Witch Knight's Charisma modifier (minimum one round if applicable). The Witch Knight can use this ability a number of times per day equal to their Charisma modifier.

Arcane Armor Mastery: At 7th level, the Witch Knight gains Arcane Armor Mastery as a bonus feat, even if they do not meet the prerequisites.

Relentless Flames: At 8th level, the Witch Knight masters the ability to attack with a volley of Witch Blasts. When using Witch Blast, the Witch Knight can choose to increase the time required to a full-round action in order to make a second attack at a -5 penalty. Additionally, the Witch Knight can augment their Witch Blast further with the following options; all of these augmentations allow a save (DC 10 + 1/2 Witch Knight level + Charisma modifier). These new augmentations have a separate maximum cost than the Witch Knight's normal Witch Blast equal to your class level - for example, at 9th level you could spend 4 Weirding on Witch Blast's basic augmentations and also spend up to 9 Weirding on the augmentations under Relentless Flames. Blastback: The Witch Knight's attack potentially knocks back victims. The Witch Knight rolls 1d20 + BAB + Charisma modifier against the target's CMD; if the Witch Knight succeeds on the roll, the target is moved up to 5 feet for each point spent on this augmentation directly away from the Witch Knight. If the Witch Knight fails the check, nothing happens.

Burn: The Witch Knight's attack deals an additional 1d6 damage of the same type as the Witch Blast each turn for an additional 1d4 turns. This damage is increased by 1d6 for every 4 additional Weirding spent on this augmentation.

Entrap: The Witch Knight's attack inflicts the entangled status effect for 1 round for every 2 Weirding spent on this augmentation. If the Witch Knight strikes the target again, the target is instead helpless for the remaining duration.

Ghost Blast: The Witch Knight's attack deals full damage to incorporeal targets.

Penetrating: The Witch Knight's Witch Blast ignores any resistances possessed by the target and inflicts half damage to creatures normally immune to the Witch Blast’s damage type.

Fearful Gaze (Su): At 10th level, the Witch Knight masters the ability to project fear into multiple creatures at once with a Weirding-enhanced stare. Using Fearful Gaze is a standard action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity and affects all creatures in a cone 30 feet long. Victims must make a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 Witch Knight level + Charisma modifier) or become shaken. A shaken creature that fails the Will save instead becomes frightened. A frightened creature that fails the Will save instead becomes panicked. The Witch Knight cannot use Fearful Gaze for 2d4+2 rounds after its previous use (but see below).

The Witch Knight can augment their Fearful Gaze with Weirding energy. The Witch Knight can assign a maximum amount of Weirding energy to augment Fearful Gaze equal to their class level, with bonuses listed on the table below.

Fearful Gaze is a mind-affecting fear effect that requires line of sight to the Witch Knight; creatures that cannot see the Witch Knight are not affected by Fearful Gaze.

As a supernatural ability, Fearful Gaze is not subject to arcane spell failure chance due to armor. Distant Glare: The Witch Knight increases the range of Fearful Gaze by 5 feet per 2 points of Weirding energy assigned to the augmentation.

Dreadful Gaze: The Witch Knight's Fearful Gaze instead functions as a gaze attack. Each opponent within range of a gaze attack must attempt a saving throw each round at the beginning of his or her turn in the initiative order. Only looking directly at a creature with a gaze attack leaves an opponent vulnerable. Opponents can avoid the need to make the saving throw by not looking at the creature, in one of two ways.


 * Averting Eyes: The opponent avoids looking at the creature's face, instead looking at its body, watching its shadow, tracking it in a reflective surface, etc. Each round, the opponent has a 50% chance to avoid having to make a saving throw against the gaze attack. The creature with the gaze attack, however, gains concealment against that opponent.
 * Wearing a Blindfold: The foe cannot see the creature at all (also possible to achieve by turning one's back on the creature or shutting one's eyes). The creature with the gaze attack gains total concealment against the opponent.

A creature with a gaze attack can actively gaze as a standard action by choosing a target within range. That opponent must attempt a saving throw but can try to avoid this as described above. Thus, it is possible for an opponent to save against a creature's gaze twice during the same round, once before the opponent's action and once during the creature's turn.

Rapid Recharge: The Witch Knight reduces the time they must wait before using Fearful Gaze again to 1d4+1 rounds.

Terror: The Witch Knight increases the save DC of Fearful Gaze by 1 per point of Weirding energy assigned to the augmentation.

Unseen Horror: The Witch Knight's Fearful Gaze no longer requires line of sight or for the Witch Knight to be visible, but the Witch Knight must still have line of effect to affect creatures. The Fearful Gaze can penetrate any opaque material thinner than one inch, and transparent material does not impede it at all.

Widened Gaze: The Witch Knight's Fearful Gaze affects every creature in a semi-circle with a radius equal to the Fearful Gaze's conic length.

Imperious Mettle (Su): At 11th level, the Witch Knight is a creature of pure magic and willpower. When exposed to an effect that allows a Fortitude or Will save for half damage or effect, the Witch Knight instead ignores the effect entirely if they successfully save.

Witch Fury (Su): At 13th level, the Witch Knight passively adds one point of damage of the same type as their Witch Blast per damage dice of their Witch Blast to all weapon attacks. This damage stacks with Witch Blade if used on the same attack.

Rain of Destruction: At 15th level, the Witch Knight masters the ability to rain Witch Blasts upon their foes. By spending a full-round action to use Witch Blast, the Witch Knight can make a second attack at a -5 penalty and a third attack at a -10 penalty, or they can attempt to affect an area with their Witch Blast's damage. The Witch Knight must spend points from their Weirding pool to make area options available and to augment them. The Witch Knight can spend as many points on accessing and improving area options available for use with Rain of Destruction as desired, and these options do not count against the maximum for Witch Blast augmentations; however, the Witch Knight can only use one form of area attack at a time. Creatures within the affected area can attempt a Reflex save for half damage with a DC equal to 10 + 1/2 Witch Knight level + Cha modifier. Burst: The Witch Blast affects an area at least 10 feet in radius, centered upon a point within the Witch Blast's maximum range.

Cone: The Witch Blast affects a cone at least 30 feet long, whose point of origin is a corner of the Witch Knight's space.

Emanation: The Witch Blast affects every creature and object within a radius of at least 15 feet centered on the Witch Knight; the Witch Knight is not affected by the Witch Blast.

Line: The Witch Blast affects every creature and object in a straight line at least 60 feet in length. One end of the line must be the Witch Knight's space, although the Witch Knight is unaffected by the attack.

Blast Aura (Su): At 17th level, the Witch Knight gains a destructive aura that injures those that dare strike or touch the Witch Knight. The Witch Knight's Blast Aura deals one point of damage to an attacker each time they are struck in melee; attackers using a reach or ranged weapon are safe from the Blast Aura's effect.

The Witch Knight can augment their Blast Aura with their Weirding pool. For an additional point of energy from their Weirding pool, the Witch Knight can add an additional point of damage to their Blast Aura on a successful hit. The Witch Knight can also spend a point on their Blast Aura to change the damage type from their normal default damage type to a different damage type; this change counts against the maximum amount of Weirding energy the Witch Knight can spend on Blast Aura. The Witch Knight cannot spend more points from their Weirding pool to augment Blast Aura than the value listed under Maximum Spell Level for their level.

Terrifying Presence (Su): At 19th level, the Witch Knight masters the ability to project fear into everything with their very presence. The Witch Knight's Fearful Gaze affects all creatures within 30 feet, regardless of the Witch Knight's facing, in addition to its normal effects and augmentations. The Witch Knight must still be visible to those affected, but if the Witch Knight applies the Widened Gaze augmentation to their Fearful Gaze, the attack instead ignores line of effect, line of sight, and can affect creatures that cannot perceive the Witch Knight.

Weirding Apotheosis (Su): At 20th level, the Witch Knight is completely consumed by the Weirding energy coursing through them, transcending their mortal origins, for better or worse. The Witch Knight gains one of the following benefits:


 * Beyond Mortality - The Witch Knight gains the Outsider creature type and one of the following sub-types: Chaotic, Elemental, Evil, Good, Incorporeal, or Lawful.  Witch Knights must have the matching alignment component to choose an alignment sub-type, and if chosen the Witch Knight treats all of their weapons as anarchic if chaotic, unholy if evil, holy if good, and axiomatic if lawful.  Witch Knights that gain the Incorporeal sub-type in this manner treat all of their equipment as though it has the ghost touch property.
 * Blink Step - The Witch Knight can teleport and move up to double their maximum land speed as a move action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity.
 * Carnage of the First - The Witch Knight treats their base attack bonus as being equal to their class level for the purposes of determining attack bonuses, iterative attacks, and bonuses from feats such as Power Attack or Combat Expertise, and the Witch Knight halves the Weirding cost for augmenting weapons with Imbue Armaments
 * Drunk With Power - The Witch Knight gains spell resistance equal to 11 plus their class level (typically 31).  Spells that fail to overcome the Witch Knight's spell resistance reduce the recharge time of one or more of the Witch Knight's spells by a number of time units equal to the spell level of the absorbed spell.  The Witch Knight can divide this absorption across multiple spells as they see fit.
 * King's Will - The Witch Knight can acquire Cleric spells for use with Weird Sorcery.  Spells that appear on both the Cleric and Sorcerer/Wizard spell list use the lower spell level for determining its effective spell level and Weirding cost.
 * Skin of Mu - The Witch Knight gains DR 5/- and can increase this damage reduction as though it were armor (see Imbue Armaments), adding one point of damage reduction per point of enhancement bonus spent on their skin.