Introduction
The Witch is not a Wizard in a dramatic hat. Witch spell choices are judged through patron tradition, familiar pressure, hex rhythm, lessons, and the fact that the class can make one enemy's day steadily worse while the party piles on.
Use this with the Witch class guide, cantrip guide, focus spell guide, combat spell guide, utility spell guide, and the relevant tradition guide: arcane, divine, occult, or primal.
Rating Key
| Marker | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ● | Avoid. |
| ● | Situational. |
| ● | Good. |
| ● | Fantastic. |
Witch Spell Priorities
| Priority | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Hex routine ● | Your hex cantrip and focus magic define the turn pattern. If the spell plan ignores hexes, it is fighting the class. |
| Patron tradition staples ● | The patron decides your list. Occult Witches pressure minds, arcane Witches solve problems, divine Witches support, and primal Witches bring nature, healing, and terrain. |
| Familiar-enabled preparation ● | The familiar is a spell repository and tactical piece. Protect it, use its abilities, and do not treat it like a mascot with homework. |
| Debuffs and condition pressure ● | Witch excels when a spell makes a dangerous creature easier for the party to bully responsibly. |
| Raw damage as the main identity ● | Damage is useful, but Witch is rarely happiest pretending to be a blaster first. If you want maximum blasting, compare Sorcerer spells. |
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Patron Tradition Plans
| Patron plan | Best spell behavior |
|---|---|
| The Resentment ● | Occult debuffs, conditions, mental pressure, and boss control. Evil Eye and familiar condition extension reward spells that make one enemy worse and keep them worse. |
| Spinner of Threads ● | Occult support, accuracy smoothing, clutch protection, and fate-flavored control. Nudge Fate makes the Witch feel useful even when top slots stay in reserve. |
| Faith's Flamekeeper ● | Divine healing, protection, spirit pressure, and party damage support. Strong when the group lacks a Cleric or Oracle, but narrower than occult control. |
| The Inscribed One ● | Arcane utility, knowledge, wards, battlefield control, and problem solving. It plays best when the campaign rewards Arcana and magical investigation. |
| Silence in Snow ● | Primal control, cold themes, difficult terrain, healing access, and movement pressure. The familiar and terrain pieces reward positioning. |
| Starless Shadow ● | Occult darkness, fear, stealth, and frightened pressure. It can be nasty, but it needs lighting, positioning, and party buy-in. |
| Wilding Steward ● | Primal animal, plant, fungus, wilderness, and natural-creature pressure. Stronger in nature-heavy campaigns than in city politics. |
| Unseen Broker ● | Optional Dark Archive Remastered patron for occult bargains and off-guard support. Use it when the table likes deals, obligations, and consequences. |
Hex and Familiar Spell Rhythm
| Tool | Rating and use |
|---|---|
| Patron hex cantrip ● | Your default repeatable magic. Build a turn that can hex, Sustain when needed, move, Recall Knowledge, or cast a ranked spell without wasting actions. |
| Phase Familiar ● | Familiar protection matters because your familiar is not decorative. Losing it at the wrong time can disrupt spell preparation and patron play. |
| Cackle and sustained effects ● | Sustaining powerful effects while still casting or moving is one of the cleanest ways to make Witch turns feel unfair in a good way. |
| Familiar scouting and senses ● | Great with detection and senses, Recall Knowledge, and prepared utility. Scouts make prepared casters smarter. |
| Throwing the familiar into danger ● | A familiar can help create angles, but treating it like disposable bait is how Witch players learn expensive lessons. |
Lesson Spell Planning
| Lesson direction | Best fit |
|---|---|
| Lesson of Life ● | Life Boost gives efficient recovery and emergency support. Excellent if the party lacks reliable healing or wants more stamina between fights. |
| Lesson of Elements ● | Elemental Betrayal rewards party coordination. If allies can deal the right energy damage, this turns a spell choice into team damage. |
| Lesson of Dreams ● | Veil of Dreams pressures Perception, attacks, Will saves, and concentrate actions. Very Witch, very mean, very table-dependent. |
| Lesson of Shadow ● | Malicious Shadow gives sustained offense and eerie pressure. It asks for action discipline and positioning. |
| Lesson of Bargains ● | Strong flavor and some useful bargain play, but it needs table tone and GM support more than the baseline lessons. |
Spell Categories by Tradition
| Tradition | Witch spell priorities |
|---|---|
| Occult ● | Fear, mental pressure, illusions, emotion, debuffs, knowledge, social magic, and condition stacking. Best fit for Resentment, Spinner, Starless Shadow, and Unseen Broker. |
| Arcane ● | Utility, control, elemental damage, mobility, dispelling, and magical problem solving. Best fit for The Inscribed One. |
| Divine ● | Healing, protection, spirit damage, sanctification pressure, condition help, and defensive support. Best fit for Faith's Flamekeeper. |
| Primal ● | Healing, elemental damage, terrain, movement, plants, weather, animals, and natural threats. Best fit for Silence in Snow and Wilding Steward. |
Daily Witch Loadout
| Level band | Prepare this way |
|---|---|
| Levels 1-4 ● | Reliable cantrips, one defense, one emergency button, one debuff that targets a common weak save, and one utility answer tied to the adventure. |
| Levels 5-10 ● | Add stronger control, better anti-magic, recovery, movement, and scroll backup. Your familiar and hexes should now carry routine turns. |
| Levels 11-16 ● | Prepare spells that still matter on successful saves, affect terrain, protect allies, reveal hidden threats, or reshape encounter objectives. |
| Levels 17-20 ● | Top-rank slots should solve severe encounters or campaign-scale problems. Do not spend them proving you remembered a damage spell exists. |
Items for Witches
| Item | Witch value |
|---|---|
| Staves and wands ● | Reinforce your patron tradition and carry common utility or defense. Witches love flexible tools because prepared slots are finite. |
| Scrolls and consumables ● | Keep rare utility, removal, travel, and emergency answers here. This is especially important for narrow patron lists. |
| Worn and invested items ● | Defensive items matter because Witch durability is not the reason anyone invited you to the dungeon. |
| Adventuring gear and tools ● | Familiar handling, scouting, light, and skill support are part of the class's actual table footprint. |
Monster and GM Matchups
Witch spell choices get better when the party uses creature traits, conditions, checks and DCs, and magical Recall Knowledge. Mental effects are outstanding until the target has the wrong trait or immunity. Elemental pressure shines when the party can exploit weaknesses. Divine support matters more when the campaign throws undead, spirits, afflictions, and attrition at the group.
GM Core also matters because Witch rewards clue-based play. If the GM telegraphs hazards, enemy themes, and environment, the Witch can prepare like a menace. If every session is a blind door-kick, the class still functions, but some of its best texture gets sanded flat.
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| Picking spells before patron plan ● | Patron first, tradition second, party gaps third, favorite spooky nonsense fourth. |
| Forgetting the one-hex-per-turn pressure ● | Build turns that account for hex timing, Sustaining, movement, and ranked spells. |
| Using top slots for routine rounds ● | Let cantrips, hexes, focus spells, and items handle routine turns. Save ranked spells for leverage. |
| Treating the familiar as flavor text ● | The familiar is part of the spell engine. Protect it, use it, and coordinate its role with the GM. |
Hot Takes
- The Resentment is not subtle. It is what happens when a debuff caster gets tired of enemies recovering emotionally.
- The Witch is harder to play well than the Wizard for many tables because the class asks you to juggle hexes, familiar positioning, patron tradition, and preparation.
- Cauldron-style item support is not cute. It is how a prepared caster admits that adventuring days are messy.
- A Witch who never uses the familiar is leaving class power on the floor and then wondering why the floor looks smug.
Related Guides
Read next: Witch class guide, occult spells, arcane spells, divine spells, primal spells, focus spells, familiars and companions, and the main PF2e guide hub.
