The Witch Hunter: What We Know So Far

[Vikingkingq]

TTH: Let's start with Empire. One of the classes we really wanted to see more of was the witch hunter. Other than Paul Barnett going a little crazy about the pointy hats, could you talk a little bit about their role and what kind of tools they'll have at hand?

Josh Drescher: The witch hunter is actually the next class on the menu for really detailed treatment in an upcoming newsletter. I can't get into absolute, total detail... I can give you a slightly more involved explanation of his general strategic role. I had lunch yesterday with Eric Mogensen of Games Workshop and he gave us his very definitive opinion on what a witch hunter should be and how he should interact with the world. If you remember the concept art, he's got a big blunderbuss / pistol thing and a rapier. His boring sort-of MMORPG role is the melee / DPS class. Strategically his role is debuffing / damage-over-time stuff. He's going to do things that make it hard to stay close to him and then he'll finish you off with a pistol in the side of the head. Beyond that, we're tripping on ground that we'll be covering in the newsletter.

Just a little tid-bit to chew over until the end of this most glorious of months.

All glory to the Hat!

[Zombies_R_Us]

plus.... they are really cool

[Rudger]

There is no need to know of his skills or his abilities. The Hat stands above all. The Hat shall lead us to a most glorious victory! There are none who can stand before It.

[spirit]

There is no need to know of his skills or his abilities. The Hat stands above all. The Hat shall lead us to a most glorious victory! There are none who can stand before It.

The Spartans needed the arrows of the persian army to let them fight in the shade. The Witch hunter can do it all the time thanks to the power of the Hat!

[Oasis]

once a witch hunter puts on the hat he's a pro at everything already;) when it's off..thats another story

[Krulltak]

The Spartans needed the arrows of the persian army to let them fight in the shade. The Witch hunter can do it all the time thanks to the power of the Hat!


Spirit.....you dissapoint me. I would have expected better from you.

Alas poor Yorrick, Tzeentch deliver us from the fury of the 300 fanboys.......and the capotain.

[Vikingkingq]

Spirit.....you dissapoint me. I would have expected better from you.

Alas poor Yorrick, Tzeentch deliver us from the fury of the 300 fanboys.......and the capotain.

Why resist, Krulltak? Why not join us? Succumb to the call of the Hat!

[kratth]

There is no need to know of his skills or his abilities. The Hat stands above all. The Hat shall lead us to a most glorious victory! There are none who can stand before It.

your avatar has a silly hat.:p

[heavyhebrew]

Bless the Hat! May the Lord Sigmar deliver us unto it's head cooling grace.

Besides, 'pistol to the head' sounds like a great ability.

[Bleak]

I cannot wait to hear more about the witch hunter. it sounds like a cool class. The debuff/dps sounds great as it sounds like you need to know what you are doing in order to be great at playing the class. I like classes where you have to think and not just charge in head first! :D

Hmm i wonder if one of the powers will involve a red hot poker! :D Or even a small pyre!

BURN! HERETIC! BURN!

Im might be creating a Empire style warband (Mordheim style guild) with my friends.. but not sure... but i have to say NOTBS, Witch hunters and warrior priests FTW!

:inq:

[Vikingkingq]

I cannot wait to hear more about the witch hunter. it sounds like a cool class. The debuff/dps sounds great as it sounds like you need to know what you are doing in order to be great at playing the class. I like classes where you have to think and not just charge in head first! :D

Hmm i wonder if one of the powers will involve a red hot poker! :D Or even a small pyre!

BURN! HERETIC! BURN!

Im might be creating a Empire style warband (Mordheim style guild) with my friends.. but not sure... but i have to say NOTBS, Witch hunters and warrior priests FTW!

:inq:

I believe that pokers have been mentioned by Paul Barnett. Pyres, not so much.

[miber]

Some new thoughts on the Witch Hunter, from Paul Barnett's Myspace Blog (http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=78047629&blogID=264635979&MyToken=81d80b23-4bae-48b9-b24f-48f2a6204d69). It explains some of the thought process behind their design.Witch Hunters

Cool dudes, difficult to capture in our game. I mean how cool can you make that hat? Our news letter will be stuffed with details but I thought I would ramble on about them for a moment.

We have to go through the three types of witch hunter, the insane dedicated mad man who has a mission to complete, hunts around the same area. He is out, I mean he is too focused on one mission. The second type is the lunatic empowered official, going around destroying entire villages (think the crucible), fun but hardly useful for a game about war. Which leaves us the wandering cowboy like wheel lock wielding force of righteousness. He is our boy. Like Eastwood in a good spaghetti western (though with more morals) he wanders the land bringing his pistol of truth and rapier of justice. The witch hunter is iconic; he needs to be in the game. And that brings troubles of it's own, I mean in essence the witch hunter is all about the internal cleansing of the empire. You know, rooting out heretics and finding out who has been corrupted. While it plays well as an idea it is harder to use in a game that has distinct sides, I mean you can't be corrupted if you on the side of order. I know people would like to make it so, I mean who wouldn't, there was talk of making it a possible end game concept, but that's still in the air and really would require Mark to muse on it a little more. So for now we focus on what we know, what we can do. Create a cool, iconic witch hunter (with a hat obviously) and make him an outward facing example to all empire heads.

[Insurgent1]

I wish Empire got a different melee DPS class. I hate all things Witch Hunter, especially the hat.

[Vikingkingq]

Some new thoughts on the Witch Hunter, from Paul Barnett's Myspace Blog (http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=78047629&blogID=264635979&MyToken=81d80b23-4bae-48b9-b24f-48f2a6204d69). It explains some of the thought process behind their design.

Damn. I was about to post it. Yah, it's a very interesting post.

[Vikingkingq]

I wish Empire got a different melee DPS class. I hate all things Witch Hunter, especially the hat.

Good for you. Maybe you can take your negativity elsewhere.

[Illya]

Good for you. Maybe you can take your negativity elsewhere.

Seems he has. What with the ban and all. Sometimes, the mods do a good job.:)

[Vikingkingq]

Seems he has. What with the ban and all. Sometimes, the mods do a good job.:)

Yeah. I noticed that. Doesn't seem like the first time either, given his join date.

[Shacklock01]

The WItch Hunter now has a theme tune mwahahah! *Converts Bullet in the Head to Pistol in the Head with a Pointy Hat*

[Arijharn]

I think the witch hunter will be most likely the first of all my alts. You know he really makes me think of the (insane) priest fellow from the Hellsing anime/manga for some reason.

Just of course, the witch-hunter has a hat.

I didn't think he did have a blunderbuss in the concept art, but maybe I just refused to see it (taking in his pistol, rapier, hat and boots).

His 'confession' meter sounds very interesting, perhaps it works like a rogue combo system in WoW? (Mr. Barnett would probably hate for that analogy with WoW, but I have played other MMO's! Just nothing else I played had a combination type system).

I'm hoping that the Witch hunter will be somewhat of a pet class too (but that is likely unrealistic I suppose), but perhaps only at the final tiers/rank.

[Kuari]

I like the sound of witchhunters.. I'm just worried about some of the cosmetic issues... those damn side burns... and I don't like how tall the hat is... hoping I can take it off or that there is something more cowboyish..

Cosmetics might get me to choose Chosen or Dark Elf *shrugs* that's just me though.

[Shacklock01]

The whole Witch Hunter look and feel reminds me of the main character from the kickass movie Vampires. I forgot his name though :(

[spirit]

I like the sound of witchhunters.. I'm just worried about some of the cosmetic issues... those damn side burns... and I don't like how tall the hat is... hoping I can take it off or that there is something more cowboyish..

Cosmetics might get me to choose Chosen or Dark Elf *shrugs* that's just me though.

You'll have different choices of facial hair, that I can almost guarantee. As for the hat, there will be a variety of hats, as we have already seen in all the concept arts. Hopefully one will suit your style.

[Arijharn]

You'll have different choices of facial hair, that I can almost guarantee. As for the hat, there will be a variety of hats, as we have already seen in all the concept arts. Hopefully one will suit your style.

Sweet, I want a sombreo!:D

[Krulltak]

Sweet, I want a sombreo!:D

As in.......hats that actually make sense for the lore of Warhammer.

I want a tricorn!:D

[Illya]

I want a tricorn!:D

So. You've left your orcs for Witch Hunters, then? I'm mildly surprised.

[Vikingkingq]

As in.......hats that actually make sense for the lore of Warhammer.

I want a tricorn!:D

Hey, look at that. I happen to have a nice tricorn right here, and all you have to do to get it is change your class to a Witch Hunter. I'll just leave it here and hope no one will take it.

/whistles

[Walter Black]

The whole Witch Hunter look and feel reminds me of the main character from the kickass movie Vampires. I forgot his name though :(

Do you mean JOHN CARPENTER'S VAMPIRES, with James Woods? It's all right, but for a really kick vampire hunter story, track down the original book it was based on, VAMPIRE$ by John Steakley. Blows the movie out of the water.

[Krulltak]

Hey, look at that. I happen to have a nice tricorn right here, and all you have to do to get it is change your class to a Witch Hunter. I'll just leave it here and hope no one will take it.

/whistles


No! I am a Greenskin, like my father before me. Obi Wan told me enough, he told me you killed my father! I will not fall to the Hat side!

[Sune]

Same John Steakley that wrote "Armour"? Oooh I'll have to read it. "Armour" was pretty amazing - can't remember if it inspired starship troopers or was inspired by it. But anway, back to the topic.

I'm looking forward to seeing how the witch-hunter will turn out. I very much like the imagery of the western drifter combined with the gothic-germanic fanaticism of the Empire in warhammer. It'll be interesting to see how they design the class re: DoTs. I would have thought they'd primarily be direct damage - i.e. no fluffing around, straight to the point of cleansing the unclean, executing the heretic, and exorcising the daemonic. (I realise I've let some warhammer 40k connotations creep in there - for some reason, the cover of the Eisenhorn novel seems to resonate with the witch-hunter to me). Which to me means brutally efficient yet devious swordplay, the black-powder flintlock to the side of the head, with the only DoT being the red-hot iron or a flaming brand (thinking of the mordheim miniature there). I'm picturing them as the "rogue" class of the empire, just pretty unsubtle.
So imo, in theme with Eastwood in the spaghetti westerns, they'll be brutal, worldly, jaded brawlers, who utilise every dirty trick in the book in the name of Sigmar. After all, its the Warrior-Priests who're probably gonna be the honour-conscious ones :)

Anyway, just a few thoughts.

[Vikingkingq]

No! I am a Greenskin, like my father before me. Obi Wan told me enough, he told me you killed my father! I will not fall to the Hat side!

Obi Wan was a chaos heretic. Search your feelings, in your heart you know it's true.

[Kuari]

*looks at Krull, then at Viking*

*shoots them both*

GRAY FTW!!!!!

*ahem*

Seriously though, only complaints are the sideburns which I'm sure will be avoidable and my hope that I can have a different style hat... or remove its graphic... too damn tall.

[Smachaz]

As in.......hats that actually make sense for the lore of Warhammer.

I want a tricorn!:D

Yes, it makes me think of the awesome French film ''Le Pacte des Loups'' (Brotherhood of the Wolves)

http://www.lauffray.com/images/upload/affiche_pacte_pt.jpg

I mean, they hunt a supernatural being, which is practically a Werewolf, so they could be considered by some means ''Witch Hunters'' right?

[Vikingkingq]

Yes, it makes me think of the awesome French film ''Le Pacte des Loups'' (Brotherhood of the Wolves)

http://www.lauffray.com/images/upload/affiche_pacte_pt.jpg

I mean, they hunt a supernatural being, which is practically a Werewolf, so they could be considered by some means ''Witch Hunters'' right?

Yes, they would work quite well.

[Krulltak]

Yes, it makes me think of the awesome French film ''Le Pacte des Loups'' (Brotherhood of the Wolves)

http://www.lauffray.com/images/upload/affiche_pacte_pt.jpg

I mean, they hunt a supernatural being, which is practically a Werewolf, so they could be considered by some means ''Witch Hunters'' right?


The kick-assery of a tricorn knows no bounds.

So where do I find an English or a least an English subtitled version of this film?

Although, at first thought of a tricorn I think of the Highwayman. (http://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~trent/ochs/lyrics/highwayman-orig.html)

[Smachaz]

The kick-assery of a tricorn knows no bounds.

So where do I find an English or a least an English subtitled version of this film?

Although, at first thought of a tricorn I think of the Highwayman. (http://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~trent/ochs/lyrics/highwayman-orig.html)
Is that just a story, or is it a song?

An other Highwaymen song Whisky in the Jar (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZjSZuzA__c&mode=related&search=).

EDIT: Better version of the song: Whisky in the Jar (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sO36TRhzOJU).
____


The movie has been dubbed, not sure where though, probably USA, but possibly UK also. I don't know where you could find it in USA, since its a French movie. But I'm sure it shouldn't be that hard to find.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0237534/

''In 1765 something was stalking the mountains of central France. A 'beast' that pounced on humans and animals with terrible ferocity. Indeed they beast became so notorious that the King of France dispatched envoys to find out what was happening and to kill the creature. By the end, the Beast of Gevaudan had killed over 100 people, to this day, no one is entirely sure what it was, wolf? hyena? or something supernatural? Whatever it was, shepherds had the same life-expectancy as the red-suited guys in 'Star Trek'.


The Beast is a popular myth in France, albeit one rooted firmly in reality; somewhat surprisingly it is little known to the outside world, and perhaps incredibly it has never been made into a movie. Until now...

Based on the true story of the Beast of the Gevaudan that terrorized France in the mid-XVIIIth century, the movie aims to tell first and explain afterwards. In the first part, a special envoy of the King of France, altogether biologist, explorer and philosopher, arrives in the Gevaudan region, in the mountainous central part of France. The Beast has been attacking women and children for months and nobody has quite been able to harm it or even take a good look at it. In the second part, our hero Chevalier de Fronsac will not only have to fight the Beast, but also ignorance, bigotry and conspiracy and will rely on two women, one an aristocrat, the other a prostitute, as well as the enigmatic Mani, an Iroquois he met in New-France (Canada).''

[Krulltak]

Awesome.

'The Highwayman' is a poem from the 1600s I think, but they made it into a song. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsKc7zQtfRU)

[Vikingkingq]

The kick-assery of a tricorn knows no bounds.

So where do I find an English or a least an English subtitled version of this film?

Although, at first thought of a tricorn I think of the Highwayman. (http://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~trent/ochs/lyrics/highwayman-orig.html)

Shouldn't be too hard Krulltak. The movie was released as Brotherhood of Wolves in the US, with English subtitles, and it was a wide cinematic release, not your usual arthouse flick.

[Arijharn]

Shouldn't be too hard Krulltak. The movie was released as Brotherhood of Wolves in the US, with English subtitles, and it was a wide cinematic release, not your usual arthouse flick.

I know I'm thread rezzing (shush you!) but I have to say the 'good guy' frenchie is perhaps the only awesome frenchman I've ever not met! He doesn't seem stereotypically french if you know what I mean, and if you don't I'm most likely not going to explain it either!

His line of saying he's interested in some chick, and the chick responds with "That's ridiculous, we've only just met!" and him responding with a sly: "I'm sorry, you think I was talking about you?" was just A-game male-female attraction 'hunting'. Yes, it does work in real life, which makes it even more amusing.

The fact it has Monica Bellucci as well is also a plus.

[Fandros]

So would the Witch Hunter be similar to a ranger :D (as i'm quite partial to those) or will i have to wait for more information on the Dark Elves?

[Vikingkingq]

So would the Witch Hunter be similar to a ranger :D (as i'm quite partial to those) or will i have to wait for more information on the Dark Elves?

Not so much. I would suggest looking for Shadow Warriors or Shades.

[Fandros]

Not so much. I would suggest looking for Shadow Warriors or Shades.

Thanks much. Was quite looking forward to the hat ;)

[Arijharn]

Thanks much. Was quite looking forward to the hat ;)

Don't be too discouraged yet, for one we don't even know if Shadow Warriors or Shades will be playable, nor do we exactly know what the differing talent trees look like for the Witch-Hunter.

[Pieter Klass]

going backto the tricorn hat and the before mentioned french "they seek him here they seek him there those frenchies seek him everey where is he inheaven or is he in hell that damned elusive Pimpenel

[Vikingkingq]

Ok, back on topic:

NEW INFO:

The Witch Hunter's Interrogation/Judgment system might work as a combo system.

Watch this video, and pay attention to 0:28. where Barnett says "And all this nonsense about balanced numbers and special (something) spreadsheets, and combinational attacks is just nothing compared to that Hat, that cloak, that boots, that flintlock. Witch Hunters rock!"

http://youtube.com/watch?v=zfalewZVz1A

[Rawlin Averson]

Yes, it makes me think of the awesome French film ''Le Pacte des Loups'' (Brotherhood of the Wolves)

http://www.lauffray.com/images/upload/affiche_pacte_pt.jpg

I mean, they hunt a supernatural being, which is practically a Werewolf, so they could be considered by some means ''Witch Hunters'' right?


Looks like my avatar.. I'd say it works fine ;)

[Mortissia]

I can't believe you guys are all agog over wearing a Hogwarts Sorting Hat ... hehe.

[Vikingkingq]

I can't believe you guys are all agog over wearing a Hogwarts Sorting Hat ... hehe.

The Hats in question have flat, even crowns, not pointy, tapering crowns. The only thing they have in common is a brim, but even then the WH Hat has a much stiffer, straight brim, not a loose and floppy brim.