Witch Profession in The Savage Woods | World Anvil

Witch

Everybody hates witches until the day they need one.
Surssi Eikonha, Torren witch
  Witches are those who have taken the knowledge of the druids and, rather than using it to honour the gods, use it for themselves.   Chanters and druids are both highly respected roles in society. In the gap between them are the witches, who are largely mistrusted. They operate secretively to avoid the laws against chanting without a license, and provide non-magical remedies made of strong-smelling herbs or mysterious potions.   They have a deep knowledge of souls, spirits, and the magical bones of the world. Chanters' education is focused on practical applications, and druids focus on the gods, leaving witches to learn about the nature of magic itself.   Witches are also famous for having... strange magic. Stories abound of witches who performed magic without making a sound, or used magic to create some effect that shouldn't be possible. Not every witch demonstrates magic like this, but the conventional wisdom is that witches have access to a type of magic unknown to the rest of the world.   People do not trust witches. Their magic is poorly understood and thought to come from some unnatural source, heightened by the fact that most of them operate in secrecy to avoid arrest for chanting without a license.   This is different in the most remote regions of Veiama, on isolated islands far away from the nearest druid circle or properly trained medic. Here, witches fill in the gap and provide for their communities. Even in more populated areas, it's an unspoken understanding that when things go drastically wrong, when the midwife starts looking grim, when the healer can no longer help, when you're at the end of you're rope and the druids won't help, you call in a witch.
Type
Arcane
Legality
Chanting without a license is illegal and cause for arrest. Some witches avoid this by simply not using magic, or by not charging for it, but they are often harassed by law enforcement anyway who suspect them of illegal chanting.
Rarity
Witches are uncommon, especially in urban areas. It's hard to know exactly how many witches there are because many of them operate in secret, but most people will go their whole lives without meeting one and only know about them by rumours and hearsay.