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What is a Witche?
This is a teaser for Hexbound, a 5th edition witchy supplement written by Antonio Demico and published
by The Deck of Many. The text, as well as the layout and art, are subject to change!
A Witch casts spells by asking Spirits to lend them physical mark on a witch’s body which appears once
their magic. They do so through Witchcraft, an an- a covenant is made. Each mentor’s covenant is differ-
cient tradition of magic passed on to them by a Men- ent and, as such, witchmarks vary wildly depending
tor. on who mentored the witch. Some witchmarks may
look like vines and leaves, others like chains that spi-
Unlike wizards, who learn their magic through the
ral around a witch’s arms, or perhaps like scripture
study of books and ancient tomes, or warlocks and
that extends along the witch’s back, among countless
clerics, who get their powers by the will of a higher
other forms. It’s not uncommon for witchmarks to
and powerful entity, witches summon spirits from
move on their own along the witch’s body as they cast
the ethereal plane to use their magic. This vast and
spells and grow more powerful.
ever-changing oral tradition is called witchcraft, and
it can only be taught by a powerful witch. Because witchcraft is an oral tradition, and be-
cause each witch trains under a unique mentor,
When an extremely accomplished witch takes an
witches are incredibly different from one another.
apprentice, that pupil is then trained in the art of
Some witches focus purely on spellcasting, while
witchcraft for years. Witches use their own bodies as
others focus on enhancing their bodies with mag-
the conduit for magic, so pupils seeking to become
ic to fight. Two witches trained under two different
witches must train their bodies to withstand the ef-
mentors will each have a witchmark, use spirits as a
fects of a spirit’s magic, as well as learn the oral tra-
source for their magic, and be tied to their masters by
dition of witchcraft through spells
a covenant, but the similarities end there. One witch
and practices.
could be a scheming spellcaster who inflicts debuffs
When they are ready, the
on the enemy, whereas another might use their mag-
apprentice forms a pact
ic to amplify their own strength and wield a battle
with their mentor, called a
axe with even more power.
Covenant. The covenant is
Losing one’s covenant is considered the highest
what allows the witch to
form of dishonor among witches. A witch without a
channel, command, and
covenant loses their witchmark, their ability to con-
give form to the magical
tact spirits, and their capability of using magic. This
energy of spirits.
effectively strips them of their title as a witch. A cov-
The covenant chang-
enant can only be broken by a witch’s mentor, not by
es the very essence of a
the witch themselves, but at the same time the only
witch, rendering their en-
way for a witch to not have a mentor and still remain
tire body magical. This pact
a witch is for their mentor to die. This has led to a
between pupil and mentor is
sort of balance among witches: if a witch is ruthless
represented by a Witchmark, a
2
and evil they might lose their covenant, but if a men- master. Witches without a coven are often called
tor is abusive and cruel they might meet their demise hedgewitches, a term that can be used in a neutral
at the hands of their own apprentice. As an oral tra- way or pejoratively, depending on the speaker’s
dition passed from one witch to another, witchcraft opinion.
needs witches to continue taking in apprentices and Though witchcraft is by its very nature unde-
forming covenants to keep the tradition, and there- finable, complex, and personal, there’s one single
fore their own magic, alive. The system therefore truth that applies to all forms of witchcraft:
remains generally in balance, although it’s not un-
“Witchcraft itself is a neutral practice, not inherently
heard of for a particularly evil and selfish witch to
evil or good. Its practitioners decide how they use
kill their master, causing chaos and destruction.
their incredible powers.”
Because witches are inherently diverse
-Calista Dalmau Salavert “An Outsider’s
as a group, there are no rules that
Look on Modern and Ancient
govern all witches, but patterns Witchcraft - Tome 1: A Short
emerge everywhere witchcraft is Introduction, page 981”
3
Witch Subclasses
Witch subclasses work exactly the same as your anything in between! This can, of course, also lead
run-of-the-mill subclasses, but give you all the witchy to an all-witch party that is balanced and very much
flavor and lore of the Hexbound witches. Whether viable.
approaching character creation as a player looking to Regardless of the witch subclass you pick when
create their newest PC or as a GM planning to create creating a character, all witches have three things in
a brand new witch NPC, witch subclasses offer in- common:
credible variety to the creation of a witch. • They gain their powers by summoning spirits
Using witch subclasses allows you to create both from the ethereal plane
the classic witches we know from history and media, • They have acquired their abilities by making a
brewing potions in bubbling cauldrons and casting covenant with a mentor
arcane spells, and also witches seen from a complete- • They have a witchmark on their body that serves
ly new lens: ones who punch spiritual energy into as proof of that covenant
their foes to weaken them, or use possession to fuel When creating a witch, talk with your GM about
their rage in battle and alter their bodies. The point these three facts to build a deeper, more interesting
of witch subclasses is to allow for the highest level of character! How did they become a witch? Who was
diversity when it comes to creating witches. their mentor? Do they have a friendly relationship or
These subclasses make a witch-themed campaign an adversarial one? What does their witchmark look
a very attainable endeavor, as players can befriend like? Why did they become a witch?
and face off against witches with incredibly differ- Just by choosing a witch subclass, you automatical-
ent skills and powers! Thanks to the variety afforded ly gain a number of threads that will help you build
through subclasses instead of a single class, witches a compelling backstory which your GM can use in
can be melee fighters, frail but powerful casters, or your campaign to make it feel much more personal.
5
Warlock: Pact of the Witch
Witches need a mentor to teach them witchcraft. of spells when you learn a warlock spell. The follow-
Warlocks need a patron to grant them their powers. ing spells are added to the warlock spell list for you.
As a Pact of the Witch warlock, your mentor and your
Spell Level Spells
patron are one and the same. An incredibly powerful
1st Faerie Fire, Shield
witch taught you witchcraft, and through your cov-
enant they also became both your mentor and your 2nd Misty Step, Moonbeam
patron. Your magic stems both from the spirits you 3rd Fireball, Fly
summon and from your mentor themselves. You
4th Polymorph, Banishment
are able to tap into your patron’s immense source of
5th Insect Plague, Cloudkill
magic for your own means -- so long as they agree
with your actions.
GreaterFamiliar:1stLevel
Under the watchful eye of your familiar, your pa-
tron sees your every move. Whether this is to protect Starting at 1st level,you acquire a special familiar
youfromharmortoensureyoufulfilltheirevilgoals that will accompany you on your journey. This fa-
depends on the mentor and patron you choose. Your miliar is intrinsically tied to your mentor and patron,
training under such an immensely powerful witch and they serve them as much as they serve you. They
has taught you the importance and strength of be- are your companion, but also the eyes and ears of the
longing to a coven, a powerful coterie of magic us- powerful witch that gives you your warlock and witch
ers who enhance each other’s magical abilities. You powers. They have their own will and their own opin-
know that there’s strength in numbers, and with both ions, and will not hesitate to make them known.
your coven and your familiar at your side, there’s lit- You
learn the findfamiliar spell and can cast it as a
tle on this plane, or any other, that can oppose you. ritual. The spell doesn’t count against your number
of spells known. When you cast the spell, the follow-
Witchmark ingm
odificationsa
remade:
• Your familiar’s Intelligence is either 10 or the
Witch warlocks have the most diversity in their
Intelligence marked in the creature’s stat block,
witchmarks, since they depend entirely on their pa-
whichever is higher.
tron and mentor. Some noble witch mentors use their
• Your familiar knows all languages you do, and
family’s coat of arms for their students’ witchmark,
can communicate telepathically with any creature
while other patron-mentors choose a witchmark in
within100f eetwithwhomt heys harealanguage.
the shape of a ring around the finger of their pupil
• When seeing through the eyes of your familiar,
to illustrate their bond. The most common motif is
you are not deaf or blind.
chains snaking around the body of the student, sym-
• Your familiar adds your charisma modifier to
bolizing the unbreakable covenant between the pa-
theirAC,andbothyourcharismaandproficiency
tron-mentor and their student.
modifiert otheirHP.
ExpandedSpellList • The
material cost to cast the spell find familiar is
ignored, and the time to cast the spell is halved.
The Witch lets you choose from an expanded list
6
CovenMagic:1stLevel FamiliarBond:6thLevel
Starting at 1st level, you gain the ability to make At 6th level, your bond between you and your fa-
your own coven in order to empower its members, miliar rises to new heights of power. You are able to
including yourself. The bond that ties the coven- call on spirits through the veil to protect your famil-
mates is arcane in nature; their magical abilities are iar and keep them from harm when in battle.
enhanced by the mere presence of another coven • The familiar can use the Help action both as a bo-
member. nus action and as an action in one turn. If using
the Help action to help you, its range is 30 feet.
Choose a willing creature with whom you share a
• Whenever the familiar is required to make a
close bond and who can cast spells. This creature is
saving throw, they can do so using your stats in-
now a member of your coven. Your magic, as well as
stead of their own.
theirs, is empowered while in proximity to one an-
other.
7
• If your familiar goes down to 0 HP, you can use an powers granted to your familiar stay for a number of
actionandaspellslotof1stlevelorhighertobring minutesequaltoyourCharismamodifier.Whilethis
them back to full HP without needing to cast find ability is active:
familiar, provided you do so within 1 minute of • Your familiar grows one size larger.
their death. Once you’ve brought back your famil- • Your familiar’s speed increases by 10 feet. If the
iar through the use of this ability, you can’t do so familiar is able to fly or possesses another type of
againuntilyoufi
nishalongrest. movement, such as swimming or burrowing, it is
alsoincreasedby10f eet.
CovenBond:10thLevel • Your familiar’s HP is equal to your HP.
• Yourfamiliar’sCharismamodifierisequaltoyour
At 10th level, your mastery over witchcraft has
Charismamodifier.
grown, and so has your coven. One additional willing
• Your familiar can attack on their initiative turn.
creature with whom you share a close bond, and who
They have one action, one bonus action, and one
is able to cast spells, can now join your coven, bring-
reaction.
ing it to a total of three members, including you. The
• On their turn, your familiar can cast any cantrip
magic of your coven is further empowered as your
you know. When casting a cantrip, it acts as if you
bonds grow stronger.
cast it when considering warlock levels. Addition-
When all members of the coven are within 50 feet ally, any eldritch invocations that empower or
of each other: otherwiseaffectthecantripforyoualsoaffectthe
• Members of the coven cannot be charmed or cantrips cast by your familiar.
frightened.
You can end this ability early by using a bonus ac-
• Members of the coven have advantage on charis-
tion. When this ability comes to an end, your famil-
ma saving throws.
iar’s HP drops to 0. Only casting the findfamiliar spell
• Members of the coven do not receive any damage
can bring it back to your side, and you cannot use
caused by a spell cast by another member of the
your Familiar Bond ability to bring it back. Once
coven, as long as that spell has an area of effect.
you’veempowered your familiar through the use of
F or example, fireball cast by one member of
this ability, you can’t do so again until you finish a
the coven does not affect the other members, but
long rest.
e ldritch blast does. Members of the coven do not
need to make saving throws when entering the
AWarlockWitchFamiliar
areaofeffectofanothermember’sspellifthesav-
ing throw is used to determine how much damage As a Pact of the Witch Warlock you and your famil-
they would take. Other effects, such as blindness iar have a bond more intense than any other master
or deafness, are not negated, and members of the does with their familiar. Your familiar is an integral
coven must make the appropriate saving throws if part of your play style, and they could very well be
inthespell’sareaofeffect. an integral part of your party. Your familiar is able to
speak, and has its own thoughts and feelings. It also
FinalFamiliar:14thLevel acts as the never-blinking eye of your patron, which
can lead to all sorts of shenanigans for the party.
You call on spirits from beyond the veil and on
Here are a couple of tables that you can roll on to
your own witch patron, to greatly empower your fa-
make your familiar more of a character and less like a
miliar in battle.
collection of stats and numbers. Work with your GM
As an action, you can empower your familiar. The
to use this as a springboard to flesh out your famil-
8
iar’s personality in order to make them a true mem-
5 I have a hard time understanding feelings,
ber of the party.
and I’m not good at communicating them
d8 Personnality Trait or dealing with those felt by others.
1 I am my warlock’s shepherd. I’m here to 6 If my warlock’s orders go against what I per-
watch over them and won’t let them stray sonally believe is the best course of action I
away from their path. will ignore them.
2 I see myself as a mentor to my warlock. I’ll 7 There’saspecificform(mammal,bird,rep-
make sure they don’t neglect their studies, tile) that I see as beneath me and will abso-
and will routinely quiz them on the basics to lutely refuse to take the shape of.
oversee their spellcasting. 8 I will defend my warlock without any regard
3 I am actively looking for new suitable stu- to my well-being.
dents for my master, and will try to bring
d8 Bond
these potential pupils to them.
1 I am deathly afraid of my master. I see my
4 I see myself as a parental figure to my war-
warlock as my only way out of this, and I’m
lock, and will act as such.
traveling with them to make them strong
5 I am deathly afraid of animals and will do
enough to take their patron down.
my best to avoid them.
2 I was once a warlock in the same contract
6 Nothing angers me more than someone
that binds my current warlock to my master.
treating me like a normal animal.
I am magically unable to tell them about it.
7 I am a big gossip, and don’t know how to
3 I love my warlock above all things and will
keep a secret to save my life.
protect them with my life.
8 I am convinced I am the leader of the ad-
4 I am using my warlock to advance my own
venturing party, and will act accordingly.
agenda.
d8 Flaw 5 I long to return to the realm of the fey, from
which I hail.
1 Once I’ve made my mind up about some-
thing, or someone, it takes a lot for me to 6 I am secretly a fiend, not a fey spirit. I out-
change my opinion. wardly appear to be helping my warlock,
but I’m actually sabotaging their plans.
2 I follow the orders of my master blindly,
without taking into account my warlock’s 7 I see my master as a parental figure, and
feelings on the matter. have great respect for them. I won’t toler-
ate anyone speaking ill of them or working
3 The only two people I trust are my master,
against them.
mywarlock, and the members of my war-
lock’s coven. I am suspicious of every other 8 I love both my warlock and my master
person, including the other members of the equally, and I’m scared of what would hap-
warlock’s party. pen if their interests started to diverge.
9
License
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property of Wizards of the Coast, LLC. and is Copyright 2000 Wiz- Identity, including as an indication as to compatibility, except as ex-
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tive Material of Open Game Content. (h) “You” or “Your” means the 14. Reformation: If any provision of this License is held to be
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2. The License: This License applies to any Open Game Content
that contains a notice indicating that the Open Game Content may 15. COPYRIGHT NOTICE Open Game License v 1.0a Copyright
only be Used under and in terms of this License. You must affix such 2000, Wizards of the Coast, LLC. System Reference Document 5.1
a notice to any Open Game Content that you Use. No terms may be Copyright 2016, Wizards of the Coast, LLC.; Authors Mike Mearls,
added to or subtracted from this License except as described by the Jeremy Crawford, Chris Perkins, Rodney Thompson, Peter Lee,
License itself. No other terms or Conditions may be applied to any James Wyatt, Robert J. Schwalb, Bruce R. Cordell, Chris Sims, and
Open Game Content distributed using this License. Steve Townshend, based on original material by E. Gary Gygax and
Dave Arneson.
3.Offer and Acceptance: By Using the Open Game Content You
indicate Your acceptance of the terms of this License. Hexbound Copyright 2020 Antonio de Miguel Conde.
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this License, the Contributors grant You a perpetual, worldwide, Identity: All registered and unregistered trademarks, service marks,
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5.Representation of Authority to Contribute: If You are contrib-
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uting original material as Open Game Content, You represent that
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any Materials may be reproduced in any form without written per-
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NOTICE portion of this License to include the exact text of the COPY-
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