Pathfinder Witch

Witch by cromaticresponses

It looks like I am *finally* getting a chance to play Pathfinder style witch in a game.

I don't have many details yet, except I am excited about the prospect since I haven't got a chance to play one yet.  My son wants to run a game sometime with "Alternate-reality" versions of the Dragonslayers.  All the same classes and everything, just in a Pathfinder world.

I also quite pleased to see there is so much good stuff online for this witch, in addition to all the products I keep buying, but hardly ever use.

It will be interesting to see how she differs from the Liber Mysterium witch I have been playing all these years.
Hexes seem a little like my Occult Powers, save that the PF witch gets 11 of them vs the 3 (or 4 if you count the talisman feat) occult powers.  But the LM witch gets more spells; usually an additional 2 per level.  So it feels roughly similar.

But reading over all the Pathfinder material yesterday and today reinforced the idea I had a while back. There are not enough witch-like Prestige classes out there.
I am going to have to come up with some more I think.

Links
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Prestige Class: Queen of Witches
Prestige Class: Witch Priestess
Witch Books, Part 3. Pathfinder

Pathfinder SRD
Witch
Witch Spell list

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Witch Books, Part 3. Pathfinder

To many Pathfinder is the heir-apparent to the legacy of D&D, to others it's the biggest retro-clone out there.   But regardless of how you view Pathfinder, one thing is for certain, it is wildly successful.

Pathfinder also has it's own witch class from the Advanced Player's Guide.  It is nice and has a cool vibe about it, there are somethings I don't care about it.  I talked about it detail here, and offered up a couple of Prestige Classes here and here.

Other companies though have filled the gaps with their own Pathfinder-compatible witches.

A Necromancer's Grimoire: Secrets of the Witch

This book offers up the Green Hag as a playable race for the Witch class.  Sort of.  It is more of a race-as-class, but close enough to the witch to work.  Anyone that played D&D back in the late 70s will have no issues with this really.  There are also plenty of new feats and hexes that can be used by the witch or Green Hag.  There are also plenty of new spells.  This is a good book if you are a witch completest like me, or would like to use hags in your pathfinder game.

For a fuller witch I would also grab The Book of Faith (spells) and Paths of the Druid (for some Prestige Classes and ideas for familiars).

Advanced Feats: The Witch's Brew (Pathfinder RPG)
Certainly one of the more interesting books for the new Pathfinder witch class. You will need the Advanced Player's Guide to get the most of of this book obviously.
We start off with a brief overview/analysis of the witch class.  Not bad really, but nothing we can get from the APG.
On to the meat of the book, the 30 new feats.  They are a mixed bag, but for the most part they add a lot flavor to the witch.  There are some familiar affecting feats which is nice, and commentary/sidebars on a few.
There are also 3 sample witch builds that you can use to make your own.

Witch Spell Cards for the Pathfinder Role Playing Game

Exactly what is says on the tin.  Spell cards you can print out and use with your Pathfinder APG Witch.
If you like cards then these are great.  If you prefer sheets then they can still be used.

Paths of Power
Described as a source book for Base and Prestige Classes.  This book features a new Witch class. This witch has "Circle" magic and gets spells based on Wisdom as do the witches in the 3.0 book I did years ago.  This witch is a nice alternative to the Pathfinder Witch.  If you were to use both I would call this one a "Witch" and the APG one a "Warlock".   In addition to the witch we get the Anti-Paladin, elemental wizards, gladiators, samurai and the Voyager.  NPC classes include the Courtesan, Captain and Sycophant.  Truthfully I only found the Courtesan useful.  Prestige classes include the Child of Bast, Crypt Stalker and the Envenomed.  Personally I would have liked the PrCs to be a little more related to the base classes.
There is though plenty of magic items and spells. There are also plenty of new witch-related feats.
Since I bought it for the witch alone, I am actually pretty satisfied with what I got.

Book of Arcane Magic
Another great book from 4-Winds Fantasy Gaming.  This one focuses on the Arcane Spellcaster in Pathfinder.  While the book predates the APG Witch, a lot of these new spells and ideas can be used with the witch.  Of course they are all also fine to use as they are.  In particular I liked all the new Sorcerer bloodlines and colleges of Wizardry.  I like the idea of my wizard doing post-graduate work in magic.
There are new familiars, spells and magic items.  So it is worth it just for these.

The Book of Divine Magic
Likewise, the Book of Divine Magic adds more material to your cleric, druid and paladin classes (and Rangers).  There is a list of gods and their domains. Plenty of new spells.  Rules for temples and divine animal companions (like familiars) and new magic items and relics. Avery densely packed 94 pages.

Up next are a the "With a Bullet Point" series on witches from Super Genius Games.  Designed to be quick guides that can be used with a minimal of prep time and minimal cost.  I like the idea.

#1 With a Bullet Point: 5 Magic Witch's Daggers
Here we have 5 magical Athame ("ath-a-may") or daggers that can be used by witches.  These weapons work in conjunction with the witch's hexing ability, though they can be used as magical weapons as well.
Short, sweet and to the point. There is nothing to complain about here.

#1 With a Bullet Point: 13 Witch Hexes
Again one page, one buck.  This time we get 13 hexes that can be used by the witch. Some blur the line between what could be a hex and what could be a feat, but all in all they work fine.

#1 With a Bullet Point: 9 Witch Hunter Feats
Hard to mess with a good thing.  A page for the cover, a page for the OGL and then a page of nine feats for Witch hunters to either protect them from witches or to help them when battling the forces of darkness.  If you enjoyed the Genius Guide to the Witch Hunter (below), then this is a great addition.  If you don't have that you can still use this product. 

Super Genius Games also produces the "Genius Guides" which are larger and go more in-depth.  

Advanced Options: Witches' Hexes
This book surprisingly has no overlap with SGG's With A Bullet Point: 13 Witch Hexes.  The hexes listed here are all new and there also Major and Grand hexes detailed.  There are even some hex-related feats.

The Genius Guide to the Witch Hunter
Where there are witches there will be witch hunters.  This is a full 20-level class devoted to witch-hunting.  Plenty of powers, abilities and feats are detailed.  I think this would have worked as a prestige class, but this is pretty good.

Legendary Levels II
This book, like the first LL, deals with Pathfinder "Legendary" Levels, of levels 21 to 30. What 3.0/3.5 called Epic Levels. I think they picked "Legendary" as not to confuse it with D&D4. There is a Legendary Witch in this book, which is why I got it, but the rest is pretty good as well. In particular I liked the Legendary Samurai  and the Dragon Lord prestige class.  I Would have enjoyed seeing more prestige classes myself, but the book's focus was "Legendary classes" and note really prestige ones.  Plenty of new feats and I REALLY liked the art in this book.  So at the end of the day it was worth it to me.

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Prestige Class: Witch Priestess

Continuing with my new witch Prestige Classes for d20/3.x/Patherfinder.
Earlier I posted the Queen of Witches, today I want to post something I feel lacking in the Patherfinder witch; A connection to the divine.

One thing I felt the early batch of witch books for the d20 game did well was the inclusion of a good amount of Prestige Classes.  There were all sorts really, but the ones I liked the best allowed the witch to take an aspect of what made her a witch and explore it in detail.  The Witch Priestess is one such class.    I suppose to fill out the mix I would also include an Arcane Witch, an Occult Witch, maybe some sort of expert on Charms and another on Potions.  But that would be for another day.

Here is the Witch Priestess.  All content below this point is consider Open.

Section 15:  Witch Priestess, Copyright 2012, Timothy. S. Brannan.
OGC Declaration: The following text content is considered Open Content for term of the OGL.

Witch Priestess

To a witch religion and witchcraft are the same thing and worship is a fairly private affair; it is something she does with (or even without) her Patron in her own way.  To the Witch Priestess though, religion, witchcraft and worship are far more important and she is considered to be a leader in the witch’s religious community and life. Not all witches are called to become a Witch Priestess and the sacrifice is great one.  The witch becomes more like a cleric in many respects.  She gives up advancing in her arcane spellcasting and begins divine spell casting as a cleric of the same level.  The Witch Priestess does have healing powers, but she cannot convert spell energy into healing energy as a cleric can.

Hit Dice: d6

Requirements To qualify to become a Witch Priestess, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria:
Knowledge (Religion) 8 Ranks
Knowledge (Witchcraft): 10 Ranks
Feats:At least one Witch feat.
Special: A Witch Priestess must belong to a coven.
 A Witch Priestess typically has a high wisdom.


Class Skills The Witch Priestess class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Alchemy) (Int), Craft (any) (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (nature), Knowledge (religion), (Int), Knowledge (witchcraft) (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).

Skill points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier

Class Features All of the following are class features of The Witch Priestess prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The Witch Priestess gains no proficiency with weapons or armor.
  Special: The Witch Priestess gains special powers at each level of her progression.

  Spells per Day: The Witch Priestess begins gaining Divine spells as a cleric of the same level.  The Witch Priestess can though add her levels to levels of witch for determination of DCs or level based effects.  Levels of witch do not however add to her levels of Witch Priestess when casting divine Witch Priestess spells.  For example a character with 10 levels of Witch and 3 levels of Witch Priestess will cast witch spells as a 13^th level witch, but Witch Priestess spells as a 3^rd level caster. NOTE: A Witch Priestess with levels in a divine spellcasting class may opt to continue to progress with those spell levels, they will not however add to her casting of witch spells.  So a character with 10 levels of Witch, 3 levels of cleric and 3 levels of Witch Priestess can cast as a 10^thlevel witch and as a 6^th level divine spell caster.

  Divine Spells: The witch may cast spells as a cleric of the same level. She uses the same list of spells as does the cleric.  She still cannot use spells that are contrary to her alignment or beliefs; that is  no Raise Dead spells. Domain: The Witch Priestess gains access to a clerical domain of the appropriate type.  They gain the spells and associated powers as a cleric with this domain.  At 8^th level the Witch Priestess gains a 2^nd domain.
   Occult Powers (Su): At 3^rd level the Witch Priestess gains additional occult powers as if she were a witch of that Tradition.  The Witch Priestess will choose occult powers form her own Tradition first always at 3^rd level, then branching out to the other Traditions for her next Occult power. Note: Some witches call their Occult Powers “Hexes”.  These witches may choose a new Witch Hex at these levels.  The first Hex must be of the Minor sort. The second Hex may be Major or Grand as appropriate.
  Bonus Feat: The Witch Priestess gains an additional feat.  She may choose from Witch or Cleric/Divine feats if she meets the requirements.
  Form Coven: The Witch Priestess can form a new coven. If she is part of a coven now she will leave, with no ill will, to form her own coven.  The number of witches she gathers is equal to 1d6+ her Charisma modifier.  These witches will be under 6^th level for a total number of levels equal to the Witch Priestess level + her level as a Witch.  For example a witch with a 17 Charisma can have a maximum of 9 (3 + 6) witches.  If she is a 10^th level witch and a 5^th level Witch Priestess the she can have a maximum of 15 levels of witches in her coven. So possibly 8 1^st level and 1 7^th level or any combination thereof.
  Drawing Down the Moon (Su): Once per day the witch priestess can recall a number of spell levels equal to half her level (witch and witch priestess combined) rounded down.  The witch must complete a ritual to regain her spell levels that takes a full round.  Once complete the witch regains the knowledge of the spells lost.
   Charge of the Goddess (Su): The witch at this point is such a force for her Patron that she can summon the Goddess’ own power into herself.  The witch radiates an aura of Fear at 15’ to all her enemies.  She gains a bonus of +2 to all her saves and AC.  She also gains +3 to all offensive attack forms, spells (spellcasting and DCs) or weapons.  This charge lasts for a number of rounds equal to the witch’s Wisdom score. It may be performed only once per day and takes one full round to perform.

Level	BAB	Fort.	Ref.	Will	Special	Divine Spellcasting*
		Save	Save	Save		1	2	3	4	5
1st	+0	+0	+0	+2	Divine Spells, Healing	1
2nd	+1	+0	+0	+3	Domain (1st Domain)	1+1
3rd	+1	+1	+1	+3	Occult Power / Hex	1+1	1
4th	+2	+1	+1	+4	Bonus Feat	2+1	1+1
5th	+2	+1	+1	+4	Form Coven	2+1	1+1	1
6th	+3	+2	+2	+5	Drawing Down the Moon	3+1	2+1	1+1
7th	+3	+2	+2	+5	Occult Power / Hex	3+1	2+1	1+1	1
8th	+4	+2	+2	+6	Domain (2nd Domain)	4+1	3+1	2+1	1+1
9th	+4	+3	+3	+6	Bonus Feat	4+1	3+1	2+1	1+1	1
10th	+5	+3	+3	+7	Charge of the Goddess	5+1	4+1	3+1	2+1	1+1

*A Witch Priestess may choose to continue advancing as any divine spellcasting class she also has.

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Prestige Class: Queen of Witches

While I enjoy the Pathfinder Witch there is a serious lack of good witchy prestige classes.  Here is one based on my own Liber Mysterium witch and was going to appear in the 3.5 update.   Some of the powers and ideas here are actually based on my playtests of my Basic Witch class.

Section 15: Queen of Witches, Copyright 2012, Timothy. S. Brannan.
OGC Declaration: The following content is considered Open Content for term of the OGL.

Queen of Witches
There are witches so dedicated to their path and to their Patron that they become not only the de-facto leaders of many covens, but of their traditions as well. They are considered to be the chief agent of the Patron’s will. Sometimes these witches can claim divine parentage, others are chosen by her peers for her deeds. In all cases the Queen of Witches is imbued with a spark of divine power.
Generally speaking there is only one Queen of Witches per Tradition, so only 13 (or less) in the world at any given time.

Hit Dice: d4

Requirements 
 To qualify as a Queen of Witches, a character must fulfill all of the following criteria.

Knowledge (Religion) or Knowledge (Arcana): 7 Ranks
Knowledge (Witchcraft): 13 Ranks
Feats: At least one Witch feat.
Spell casting: Ability to cast 7th level spells
Special: the Queen of Witches must belong to a coven.

 The Queen of Witches typically has a high wisdom.

Alignment: Any.

Class Skills

The Queen of Witches class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Concentration (Con), Craft (Alchemy) (Int), Craft (any) (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (religion), (Int), Knowledge (witchcraft) (Int), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).

Skill points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier

Class Features

All of the following are class features of The Queen of Witches prestige class.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The Queen of Witches gains no proficiency with weapons or armor.

Special: The Queen of Witches gains special powers at each level of her progression.

Spells per Day: The Queen of Witches continues to progress in spell casting as if she had gained another level as a witch. This does not include any special powers or benefits, such as extra feats or occult powers (except as noted below), she would normally receive for progressing as a witch.

    Awesome Presence (Su): At first level, the Queen of Witches is infused with the power of her faith and by the faith her Coven has in her. This supernatural ability has two main effects. First all witches can “see” this presence as a bright aura. All witches will treat her with deference and respect. Secondly enemies can also detect this aura. Any morale checks made by enemies are at a –1 penalty.

    Occult Powers (Su): At 2nd level the Queen of Witches gains additional occult powers as if she were a witch of that Tradition. The Queen of Witches will choose occult powers form her own Tradition first always at 2nd level, then branching out to the other Traditions for her next Occult power.
Note: Some witches call their Occult Powers “Hexes”. These witches may choose a new Witch Hex at these levels. The first Hex must be of the Minor sort. The second Hex may be Major or Grand as appropriate.

     A Thousand Faces (Su): At 3rd level the witch gains the ability to change her appearance at will, as if using the disguise self spell. This affects the witch’s body but not her possessions. It is not an illusory effect, but a minor physical alteration of the witch’s appearance, within the limits described for the spell.

    Timeless Body (Su): At 5th level the witch no longer takes ability score penalties for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any penalties she may have already incurred, however, remain in place. Bonuses still accrue, and the witch still dies of old age when her time is up.

Class Level	Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Special	Spells per Day
1st	+1	+0	+0	+2	Awesome Presence	+1 level of existing class
2nd	+1	+1	+1	+3	Occult Power / Hex	+1 level of existing class
3rd	+2	+1	+1	+3	A Thousand Faces	+1 level of existing class
4th	+2	+2	+2	+4	Occult Power / Hex	+1 level of existing class
5th	+3	+2	+2	+4	Timeless Body	+1 level of existing class

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Kids Games: Biting off more than I can chew

I just got an email a bit ago saying that the Kid's Games I am running at my kids' elementary school were the most popular choices and I am at capacity.

Now I have to craft an adventure for all these kids.

This also begs the obvious questions.

1. Do I keep doing this 4e thing with 5e on the horizon?
2. If I do, am I obligated to mention 5e?  If it were a game at a con I think I might be.
3. Should I just do all Pathfinder?

Here is the plan as it is right now:
Session 1 (two weeks): Play 4e
Session 2 (two weeks): Play the same adventure in Pathfinder

Its a good plan.  It means more work for me, but that is fine.

I guess once I see the sign up tonight I'll know more.

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Skylanders Hex for Pathfinder

So we have been playing Skylanders a lot recently.  My little witch Hex is now 5th level.  Not to bad really.
To celebrate here she is in her Pathfinder Witch version.

You can read the background and see my 4e stats of her here.

I don't have my books with me, so I took some artistic license with how she is presented here.  So instead of the floating skull familiar I gave her a bat.  I am just going to say it is a skull with wings.


HEX    CR 4
Female Drow Witch 5
CN Medium Humanoid (Elf)
Init -1; Senses Darkvision (120 feet), Low-Light Vision; Perception +7

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DEFENSE

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AC 9, touch 9, flat-footed 9   (-1 Dex)
hp 23 (5d6)
Fort +1, Ref +0, Will +5
Immune sleep; Resist Elven Immunities; SR 11
Weakness Light Blindness

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OFFENSE

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Spd 30 ft.
Melee Unarmed Strike +2 (1d3/20/x2)
Special Attacks Blight (DC 16), Misfortune (DC 16)
Spell-Like Abilities Dancing Lights (1/day), Darkness (1/day), Faerie Fire (1/day)
Witch Spells Known (CL 5, 2 melee touch, 1 ranged touch):
3 (2/day) Bestow Curse (DC 17), Pain Strike (DC 17)
2 (3/day) Scare (DC 16), Death Knell (DC 16), Glide (DC 16)
1 (4/day) Chill Touch (DC 15), Cause Fear (DC 15), Mage Armor (DC 15), Ray of Enfeeblement (DC 15)
0 (at will) Touch of Fatigue (DC 14), Dancing Lights, Daze (DC 14), Bleed (DC 14)

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STATISTICS

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Str 10, Dex 9, Con 10, Int 19, Wis 13, Cha 12
Base Atk +2; CMB +2; CMD 11
Feats Alertness, Arcane Talent: Daze (3/day), Ectoplasmic Spell
Traits Focused Mind, Scholar of the Great Beyond: Knowledge (History)
Skills Bluff +2, Diplomacy +2, Fly +3, Heal +6, Intimidate +9, Knowledge (Arcana) +12, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) +9, Knowledge (History) +11, Perception +7, Sense Motive +4, Spellcraft +12, Stealth +1, Survival +2
Languages Abyssal, Common, Draconic, Drow Sign Language, Elven, Undercommon
SQ +3 to Fly checks, Deliver Touch Spells Through Familiar (Su), Empathic Link with Familiar (Su), Poison Use (Ex), Share Spells with Familiar, Speak With Familiar (Ex), Ward +2 (Su)
Other Gear Staff of Necromancy

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SPECIAL ABILITIES

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+3 to Fly checks You gain the Alertness feat while your familiar is within arm's reach.
Arcane Talent: Daze (3/day) You gain a chosen spell as a spell-like ability, 3/day.
Blight (DC 16) (Su) Curse animals, plants, or land
Dancing Lights (1/day) (Sp) Cast Dancing Lights once per day.
Darkness (1/day) (Sp) Cast Darkness once per day.
Darkvision (120 feet) You can see in the dark (black and white vision only).
Deliver Touch Spells Through Familiar (Su) Your familiar can deliver touch spells for you.
Drow Immunities - Sleep You are immune to Sleep effects.
Ectoplasmic Spell You can cast a spell that has full effect against incorporeal or ethereal creatures.
Elven Immunities +2 save bonus vs Enchantments.
Empathic Link with Familiar (Su) You have an empathic link with your Arcane Familiar.
Faerie Fire (1/day) (Sp) Cast Faerie Fire once per day.
Focused Mind +2 to Concentration checks
Light Blindness (Ex) Blinded for 1r in bright light, dazzled as long as they remain in it.
Low-Light Vision See twice as far as a human in low light, distinguishing color and detail.
Misfortune (1 round(s)) (DC 16) (Su) Target must take the lower of 2d20 for rolls.
Poison Use (Ex) You do not risk poisoning yourself accidentally while poisoning a weapon.
Share Spells with Familiar The wizard may cast a spell with a target of "You" on his familiar (as a touch spell) instead of on himself. A wizard may cast spells on his familiar even if the spells do not normally affect creatures of the familiar's type (magical beast).
Speak With Familiar (Ex) You can communicate verbally with your familiar.
Spell Resistance (11) You have Spell Resistance.
Ward +2 (Su) Target receives +2 AC and save bonus until they are hit or fail a saving throw.

Hero Lab® and the Hero Lab logo are Registered Trademarks of LWD Technology, Inc. Free download at http://www.wolflair.com Pathfinder® and associated marks and logos are trademarks of Paizo Publishing, LLC®, and are used under license.

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Kid's Games

I have signed up to run some games at my kids' elementary school.

It is part of their after-school program.  So in February I am running 2 sessions of two-weeks each of D&D.  Totally introductory, 1st level.  I am even going to buy dice for the kids.

My plan was to run D&D 4e out of the new Red Box.  But this weekend I also picked up the new Pathfinder boxed set.  It is really, really nice.

The two are comparable on every level to be honest.  Figures or tokens for characters and monsters, maps, player's books, DM's books, a starting adventure.  Nice sturdy box and dice.
But now I find myself in the situation of which one to run?

Both have their merits and I know I could both justice and my audience justice with either.

I was talking to my friend Greg who runs a Pathfinder game with my son and his own kids.  He suggested run both, D&D4 one session and Pathfinder the next.
I think that is a great idea to be honest.  Though it is twice the work for me.

I would run the same adventure for 1st levels. So I might have to make something up.
Here is what I am looking for:

• Appropriate for new players 
• Plenty of chances for everyone to be a hero
• Should include teamwork
• I'd like them fight a dragon, even a small one, at the end

I guess the Pathfinder adventure is the box is close to that, but I have not checked it out in detail yet.  If so doing a 4e conversion will be easy.

Now before anyone says "Why aren't you play XXXX game?", simple, these are the ones I have chosen.  These are the ones that have the mainstream appeal and the kids will be able to then later go to the store and get them.  I am trying to entice the next generation of players and to do that I need to be able to steer them to product they can play on their own in their own groups.

I'll keep you all posted on what is going on with this.

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The Witches Three: 4e v. Pathfinder v. OSR

We are at an an interesting time in the history of D&D.  Today we have two games, but fun and great to play, that are the heir's of the legacy that is D&D.  The first is a direct descendant of the previous version with some of that version's best and brightest minds; Pathfinder.  The other bares the name, but is very different in structure and play, but no less fun and no less of an adventure: Dungeons & Dragons 4th Ed.  BUT that is not all, like buying two and getting the third for free we also have the large and chaotic mass that is called the OSR.  In it are many games that also claim rights to the throne.

I am not going to delve into the relative merits of one game or the other. Or even talk about play style or anything else.  Play the game you enjoy, the way you enjoy it.  Personally I like to play all of the above.

No today I want to drill down my attention on one thing in particular.  How the witch class is presented in the rules in these games.  For the first time we have what can amount to an "Official D&D Witch Class".

The 4e witch was just introduced in Heroes of the Feywild and the Pathfinder witch was introduced in the Advanced Players Guide.
For the moment I want to recuse myself from commenting too much on the OSR witches.  Both "The Witch" and "Eldritch Witchery" are off to editors, but still I don't think it would be the most proper thing to do.  That all being said I don't have issues commenting on these witches since a.) they have already been written and published and b.) all my ideas are already on "paper" and sent off, so I am not likely to change anything at this point.

So what do we have here?
Both the 4e and Pathfinder witches use Intelligence as their prime ability and the one tied to their spellcasting.
Both require the use of familiars to learn their spells.
Both can form covens for an added benefit or coven related benefits.  The 4e witch handles covens a bit like builds.  The Pathfinder witch can only join a coven with a hag.  I don't like that at all really.
Neither offer much right away in terms of higher level class options; ie no Paragon Paths (outside of the Legendary Witch) and no Prestige Classes.

The 4e witch, as mentioned previously, is a "type" of Wizard. This bugged me at first, but I got over it once I saw the advantages.
The Pathfinder witch is a base or core class.

The 4e powers are very much in line with charming, controlling and turning enemies into animals.  There are some "striker" like powers, but not many really.  The authors took care to make the distinction between Witch, Wizard and Warlock a lot clearer.

The Pathfinder Spells are similar, but lot are pulled from both the Arcane and Divine lists.  The Pathfinder witch with Hexes and a familiar gets an absolute ton of spells.  I'll need to go into detail on the Pathfinder witch on a later date.

I am using my checklist from Tom Moldvay as a means to identify how witchy these classes are, at least for a start.

Ability	4e Witch	Pathfinder Witch	Basic Witch
1. Ability to use Herbs	skills	skills	ability check
2. The Power of Fascination	powers	spells	spells
3. Clerical and Magic-User magic	Yes	Yes	Yes
4. Sympathetic Magic	limited to powers	limited to spells	new spell mechanic
5. Worshipers of forbiden religions	yes	yes	yes
6. Powers based on natural cycles	"Moon" builds	no	spells
7. Covens	Yes	only with hags	Yes
8. Ritual Magic	In PHB I only	limited	Yes

Based on that, the Pathfinder witch is a little short, but nothing that can't be fixed with role-playing and some supplements.  I do notice that Moldvay's list does not include the ability to use familiars.  I think that is rather important too.

I am getting a chance here in a bit to play some more of the 4e Witch so I'll know better how she plays out.  I am still looking for a chance to play the Pathfinder witch some more.

Negatives
Here is what I don't like about the classes.

4e Witch: There is still some confusion over the roles between a Witch and a Fey Pact Warlock.  Maybe this is on purpose.  Warlocks and Witches should have animosity towards each other and this could be where it comes from.
While it is nice that the Witch has some of the same options as does the Wizard, it also means the witch can take "Fireball" or "Lighting bolt" as spells.  Two very iconic wizard powers.

Pathfinder: I hate what they have done with covens for the Pathfinder Witch. It robs the witch of one of her key elements to be honest.  The hexes are cool, but some of them are too focused on curses and less on the other aspects of witches.
Where are the Prestige classes?

Both/Either:  Intelligence as a prime stat?  I can see why, but really it should be Wisdom or maybe Charisma. They supposed to be members of the craft of the wise.

In any case it is an embarrassment of riches. I am not sure if I'll ever have enough time to play the games I have now, let alone anything released in the future.  I like both of these classes and would love to see more for both of them.

It's a good time to be me! ;)

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