Pathfinder - Help with White-Haired Witch

[Callos_DeTerran]

Starting in a new Pathfidner game (IRL) tomorrow, and I have to admit that the White-haired Witch archtype appeals to me to play. The problem is...It doesn't seem to be very good. It replaces all hexes with what seems to be a lack-luster natural attack that has very little ways to improve it. Are there?

If White-Haired Witch is as poor as it looks (despite awesome idea!) my back-up character is a pyro...how to get the most fire for my buck? I was going to try an Oracle of Flames, just for novelty, but what else could work?

[Psyren]

The key appears to be to grapple with it/deliver touch spells, not do damage per se. And being able to grapple, from range, without gaining the grapple condition yourself seems pretty useful to me; it doesn't seem to stop maintaining the grapple from being a standard action each round though.

[Mystify]

Even if the hair is worse than hexes, you are still a tier 1 caster, so its not that bad. And the hair seems like it could be useful, if you use it right. Even using it as free reach for touch spells can be quite potent; its twice as good as the abberant bloodline for sorcerer, and its not constrained to touch spells.
And unless I'm missing something, that means you will have a 30ft zone of threatening reach around you, with free trip attempts on a hit. Without requiring str. You could also strike, grapple, constrict, all on your AoO. Don't maintain the grapple, and cast a spell the next round. It makes it difficult for creatures to get near you. It has interesting implications for using witch as a gish class.

Besides. you get to strangle people to death with your hair.
It might not be the most powerful archetype around, but it seems perfectly functional to me.

[Laniius]

I'd say, if you want the same feel, go for the prehensile hair hex. You get reach out to 10 feet for your touch spells, and in my opinion what you gain from the White Haired witch isn't enough to justify losing hexes.

[Prime32]

Take Spell Perfection (confusion).
http://media.animevice.com/uploads/0/746/25188-bobobo_bobo_bobo11.jpg
That is all.

[grarrrg]

If White-Haired Witch is as poor as it looks (despite awesome idea!) my back-up character is a pyro...how to get the most fire for my buck? I was going to try an Oracle of Flames, just for novelty, but what else could work?

Gnome Grenadier Alchemist with the Pyromaniac Trait

OR

Half-Orc Crossblooded Sorcerer taking Draconic/Orc Bloodlines


Pyromaniac treats the Gnome as +1 Caster level for damage (faster Bomb damage advancement), and Gnomes can get more Bombs/day with Favored Class bonus. Grenadier is the most Bomb focused archetype.

Orc Bloodline increases your damage spells by +1 per die.
Draconic does the same thing, but only works with ONE energy type (hmmm, Fire maybe?).
And Orc/Sorcerer Favored Class bonus is an extra 1/2 damage on Fire spells (not much, but hey)

[Bhaakon]

Touch attacks at 30 feet w/o metamagic is pretty nice. So is (if I'm reading it correctly) a free trip attempt on anything you hit with a touch spell. It's not as good as the hexes, but it's pretty nice, and (as Mystify said) you're still a full caster with a solid spell list.

[Blyte]

wouldn't it be a free trip AND a free grapple, since they are both free actions?

only problem I see is the witch's CMB won't make them terribly effective :smallfrown:

I think this archetype could be very powerful in a gestalt game, in conjunction with a grapple monk.. or anything with a full BAB actually. Having feats like greater grapple, rapid grapple, and body shield would be very nice... as well as the trip line.

[Bhaakon]

The grapple's not really worth it, though, since you'd be burning your standard action to maintain it.

And while the trip CMB isn't very good, its still free, and should hit with some regularity against classes w/o full BAB.

[Blyte]

The grapple's not really worth it, though, since you'd be burning your standard action to maintain it.

And while the trip CMB isn't very good, its still free, and should hit with some regularity against classes w/o full BAB.

you simply opt not to maintain the grapple on your turn. on the enemy's turn they are grappled and have to try to break free.

if you can give the enemy both the prone and grappled conditions on their turn then it's extra bonus.