skin changer witches

by Me with Hero Forge

-Valdix, elderly gnome farmer

"We don't tell stories about witches eating naughty children simply for the entertainment value, nor simply to frighten our children and grandchildren into being slightly less naughty. Scarterra actually does has foul creatures lurking in the dark that wish to devour children."

Technically females are skin changer witches and males are skin changer warlocks, but in the common vernacular, "skin changer witch" or just "skin changer" is the generic unisex term.
A skin changer is a mortal arcane spell caster that acquires Cannibal Sickness or a person with Cannibal Sickness who later acquires spell casting ability.
A skin changer witch will seek to increase her mystic power and physical might by eating specific types of mortal flesh.

"There is strength in numbers and we are happy to increase the size of our family with fresh blood. But never accept a skin changer witch into your family. No matter how humble they initially appear, whether it's an ogre an ogress, the witch will always try to take the family over and then lead it to ruin."
-Ragnut, ogre mercenary

"If a skin changer wants something, best give them what they want, so they move on quickly. They have great power and are not to be tested. If they cannot get the power they want from other prey, they will seek to eat the icy hearts of other wendigo."
-Murbol wendigo wise woman

Skin changer witches can and do cast magic from any school of magic they train in but the majority of them specialize in Transmutation magic hence why they are called Skin Changers.
Along those lines, while most of those with Cannibal Sickness develop useful mutations slowly and seemingly at random, skin changers develop useful physical mutations relatively quickly and with some deliberation.
Skin Changers with Divination magic might cast a spell to determine their targets, but most use non-arcane methods of divination such as dream interpretation, astrology, or mediation, among other methods. Haruspication is very common, but they usually use mortals and not beasts.
Sometimes the divined target makes sense. A skin changer might seek to eat the flesh of several kalazotz to grow wings, but often the divine meal has no obvious bearing on what the skin changer is trying to do such as seeking the flesh of an unmarried male high born dwarf to gain increased power with Conjuration magic.
Two practices make skin changers especially reviled. The first is that when a skin changer is not pursuing the target of a particular divination, the skin changer is probably seeking the flesh of children to eat. This is generally believed to increase a skin changer's overall vitality and to stave off aging.

"As delicious as it may be to eat the flesh of the young and tender, it is a practice best avoided. You might be able to get away abducting an runaway orphan that will never be missed, but most of the time, a missing child is big news. Nothing brings out temple inquisitors, royal soldiers, and free lance adventurers champing at the bit faster than missing children.
This is why for all their vaunted power, skin changer witches bring ruin on every ogre clan they join."
-Ragnut, ogre mercenary

The second practice that makes skin changer witches especially hated above and beyond other cannibals is that they play with their food. A lot of them practice torture on their victims and unlike most regular ogres and their ilk, skin changers will often start eating their prey while they are alive rather than killing their meals first (because their divinations told them this was necessary).
Many skin changers will choose to let their victims walk away as living amputees providing grisly mouthpieces to a skin changers were it not that eating tongues was so popular (because their divinations told them this was necessary).

by Eron12 with Hero Forge

-Daana of Meraland, Defender of the Hearth

"There are not many magic healers in Scarterra who can regrow amputated body parts but there are some.
If our order is lucky enough to have a such healers we will send them out far and wide to heal those in need, and we pay special heed to the still living victims of skin changers.

Righteous anger is a powerful weapon. We require nothing from those we heal, but we always ask if they wish to join our order for training and many accept our offer. Many of the most enthusiastic and effective warriors for justice were former amputees."

"Damn the witches! You always destroy your enemies and leave no sign behind of your meals. Do not leave your enemies alive to seek revenge and do not leave evidence or witnesses to let your enemies find you."
-Ragnut, ogre mercenary

Skin Changers Relationship with the Nine

"In rare cases, legendarily rare cases, ogres have been led to redemption. I'm all about showing mercy to lowly, but Skin changer witches are beyond the remotest possibility of redemption. The only mercy they are worthy of is a quick death.
-Zajac, Fumayan Lantern

by Eron12 with Hero Forge

-Green Reverend Brynn,Steward of the Gift

"Eating mortal flesh is akin to what Turoch did so cannibalism is a sin against all of the Nine, wise Korus included. We Stewards know that cannibals are unnatural and must always be expunged like the weeds they are.
Skin changers are no more or less repugnant than other ogres, they are simply more powerful."

by Eron12 with Hero Forge

-Carcelli Arcane Priestess of Greymoria

"I am not the biggest fan of feudal lords and ladies telling others what to do but I am very much in favor of anti-cannibalism laws.
Our Dark Mother may encourage her followers to do harsh but necessary things, but She does not approve Skin changer witches. This is a foul and unnatural short cut to gaining mystical power which is not only distasteful, but it is anathema to our ideals of spreading magic through dedicaton and hard work."

by Eron12 on Hero's Forge

-Ujarek, Herder of Men

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, girl. I'm not even sure you believe what you just said.
If you ever stepped outside the Nonagon Plaza and experienced the real world, you would quickly learn that a lot that there are a lot of children eaters among the Children.

Sure, most skin changers do not worship any of the Nine at all, but of those that do, most bow to Greymoria. Unfortunately, the second most commonly worshiped deity by skin changers is Maylar.
I am not going to lie and say that the Testers are free of cannibals, witches, or cannibal witches. I will simply say that if any of these heretics trespass on my territory, I will kill them.

Sorcerers, Wizards, and Warlocks

by Eron12 with Hero Forge

-Daana of Meraland, Defender of the Hearth

"Sometimes by luck or ambition, a young man or woman born into an ogre family will become a sorcerer, wizard, or warlock, thus becoming a skin changer witch by defintion. This is rare.
In the vast majority of cases with skin changers we encounter were ordinary mages who sought to become cannibals rather than ordinary cannibals who sought to become mages. Whatever their origins, skin changers desire personal power above all else."

Kormatin Portrait2 by Eron12 on Hero

"Skin changers are the fowlest misuser of the arcane arts. Spare no effort to bring the Lady of Light's Justice upon them, even if that requires a regular cannibal to breathe another day."
-Kormatin of the Order of the Lantern

If you need evidence that sorcerers and sorceresses are superior to all other mages, you needn't look further than the skin changer witches.
It is all but unheard of for sorcerers to engage in such depravity. Not having a proper birthright for magic, it is the wizards and warlocks that seek to engage in cannibalism in order to increase their ill-gotten stolen power.
-Gwendolyn ap Numaness, Queen of Swynfaredia.

"Witches and warlocks already struggle to maintain their pacts. This is responsibility enough. Only a fool of the highest caliber would seek to be tied in servitude to both a mystic pact and be shackled to a perverse hunger.
Regardless of what our detractors say, most warlocks are not fools. Sorcerers who take their power for granted or wizards motivated by their bottomless ambition, these are the ones who seek to become skin changers most often.
-Casmir, Fae Warlock

by Eron12 with Hero Forge

Marek the wizard, advisor to the court of Duchy of Wiern

"Most skin changer witches are sorcerers or warlocks. Becoming a skin changer is a short cut to power. To become a wizard, one must work and study hard to gain power so we are not likely to seek short cuts, at least not despicably amoral shortcuts. That is why you see very few skin changer wizards.

Type

Magical

Parent

Cannibal Sickness

Origin

Magical

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired

Rarity

Extremely Rare

Affected Species

• orcs
• elves
• gnomes
• humans