Witch Hunter

Witch Hunter
Cog Overview
Department	Lawbot
Position	Regional Manager
HP	3750
Defense	45
Level	20.mgr
Lowest Damage	16
Highest Damage	21
Trivia
Real Name	Prester Virgil
Honorifics	Mr.
Employee ID	40127
Likes	Show Trials, Angry Mobs, Rabblerousing
Dislikes	Mistrials, Common Law, Legal Merit

The Witch Hunter is a Lawbot Manager Boss who was introduced as part of the Hires & Heroes Update. He can be fought atop the tower by the Trolley in the Ye Olde Toontowne Playground after unlocking the Kudos Task Looming Lawbot. He was first revealed during the cogs.ink ARG.

Content Sync

Toons fighting against the Witch Hunter will have Content Sync applied to them. They will be synced down to the following stats:

• 75 Laff Soft Cap (82 Max)
• Up to Level 6 Gags permitted
• C&Ds and Pink Slips restricted

Attacks

Witch Hunter Attacks
	Sacked (Single)	Hot Air (Single)	Guilt Trip (All)	Throw Book (Single)
Damage	19	20	16	21
Accuracy	85	75	70	70
Frequency	25	25	20	30

Cheats

This battle has a soft cap capacity of up to four Cogs. These Cogs will spawn every two rounds from any department with a level range of 7-11. There is an increased chance of these Cogs being Lawbots (about 50%). The Executive chance is 25%.

While not visibly shown, the Witch Hunter can only be lured for 1 round.

At the beginning of the fight, the Witch Hunter will have a Damage Resistance of 40%. This percentage decreases by 5% per Cog destroyed. Mob Mentality increases this percentage by 10% per use. The Witch Hunter can have up to 100% Damage Resistance and as low as 0%. If 0% is reached, the status effect will be removed.

The more Cogs the Witch Hunter has, the stronger his cheats become. Note that Growing Mob only counts Cogs flying and surrounding the battle, and not the ones doing the battling themselves. Certain milestones are detailed as:

• 8 Cogs - Permanently increase the Cog capacity in the battle to 5. Trial by Fire and Bewitched can target two Toons with passively stronger effects.
• 13 Cogs - Mob Mentality affects 3 Cogs at once. Any incoming Cogs joining the battle receive Lure Resistance of two rounds for as long as this milestone is active.
• 16 Cogs (max) - Mob Mentality affects all Cogs in battle. They are also granted the Hivemind buff, making them target the same Toon for as long as this milestone is active. The targeting changes every round, or automatically whenever the current Toon is defeated.

Every two rounds, the Witch Hunter magically gives a Toon a witch hat. The applied debuff gives a 75% chance for Cogs to target that Toon more often. The Toon will also take between 1.05x and 1.25x more damage depending on how many Cogs are in the Mob when this cheat is used. However, this Toon will also receive a 1.3x damage buff against the Witch Hunter only. Prioritization goes for Toons with the highest Laff, or the rightmost Toons if there are multiple with the highest Laff. This debuff lasts for 2 rounds.

Every two rounds, the Witch Hunter can give up to two Cogs an additional attack. This cheat unlures them in the process, and grants them a hidden 33% damage debuff. It can also summon a group of 5-8 flying Cogs to surround the battlefield, which ties into his Growing Mob cheat. One of the summoned Cogs is guaranteed to be a Level 11.exe Advocate with a lower-than-standard Cog Defense. Mob Mentality affects more Cogs as the Mob grows. When 3 Cogs are in the Mob he will Mob 2 of the lowest levels. If there are Cogs with the same level he will Mob the one closer to him. With 4 Cogs, he will do the same but with 3 Cogs total.

Every three rounds, the Witch Hunter will ignite a random Toon. They are given the Trial by Fire debuff. This takes between 5%/10%/15% of a Toon's current health for 1 round, then takes 10%/15%/20% of their max Laff the following round, totaling 2 rounds. The percentage depends on how many Cogs are in the Mob when this cheat is used.

The AOE version of Trial by Fire. This takes 15% of all Toon's current Laff for 1 round, then 15% for the Toon's max Laff for the next round, totaling 2 rounds. This cheat is only triggered by health milestones. One at 2500 HP (66%) and another at 1250 HP (33%).

Strategy

Recommended Gags ‎
Track	"Should I bring this Gag to this fight?"	"Should I Prestige it?"	"How many Toons should bring it?"
Toon-Up	While just Prestige Throw's self-heal and Unites can suffice, Toon-Up is still very recommended for keeping you and your teammates alive. Like most other Manager battles, your team will be accumulating a lot of damage taken throughout the fight. Rating: 3/3 Stars	The extra self-heal doesn't do that much if there are multiple people with Toon-Up already, but the extra round of Cheer can help Gags like Lure, Throw, and/or Drop hit more often. Rating: 2/3 Stars	1-4 Toons
Trap	Trap can be pretty solid for keeping relatively constant damage on the Witch Hunter, most notably in conjunction with Drop. It is not recommended to use this to clear side Cogs; Zap and Sound are always if not almost always better than Trap for clearing multiple Cogs. Rating: 2/3 Stars	Not a high priority Prestige. Trap's purpose in this fight isn't for clearing side Cogs, so the extra damage dealt to them doesn't matter. It's used primarily to help Lure land when focusing attacks on the the Witch Hunter and to enable Trap + Drop combos. It can amount to some extra damage if used on the Witch Hunter repeatedly, but it won't provide more than what Prestige Drop, Lure, or Sound would throughout the fight. Rating: 1/3 Stars	1 Toon
Lure	Lure is amazing for Witch Hunter, as due to the design of the fight, there is a constant flow of Cogs that need to be Lured. It helps produce damage even on healing turns when paired with Prestige Throw, and enables Trap + Drop combos on the Witch Hunter. Rating: 3/3 Stars	Incredibly useful. Given proper play, there will almost always be either Cheer, Soaked, or Dazed active, and seeing as how Lure + 3 Throw will likely be used multiple times throughout this battle, sometimes even with Encore, it will yield a lot of bonus damage output. Rating: 3/3 Stars	1-4 Toons
Throw	Throw is a near-necessity in this fight. It is an excellent overall damage dealer that can pair very well with other tracks that will be used a lot in this battle, most notably Lure and Drop. Rating: 3/3 Stars	Due to how this fight works, Prestige Throw is amazing to help get your Toon healed while also dealing great damage to the Witch Hunter. This can potentially save a round of using Toon-Up in order to prioritize damage. Rating: 3/3 Stars	3-4 Toons
Squirt	Squirt, being the way it is, should always be brought into a fight by at least 1 Toon. It stuns for accuracy for Gags such as Lure, Throw, and Drop, and it is necessary for the usage of Zap. Keeping the Witch Hunter Soaked can be really helpful to the overall accuracy of all damaging Gags. Rating: 3/3 Stars	With the somewhat large variance of Cog health you'll have to deal with during this fight, either Prestige Zap's increased jump damage or Prestige Squirt's increased Splash damage, or both even, can occasionally be the little bit you need in order for some sets of Cogs to be fully cleared. However, it's rare that this is the case. Rating: 1/3 Stars	1-2 Toons
Zap	Zap is always useful to have. If you have the choice to take both Sound and Zap for this fight, you should. However, if you are not confident in using it, this fight does not necessarily require it. It can be extremely good for clearing sets, especially those that are out of range of Sound, and having guaranteed damage on the Witch Hunter. While better than Trap and Throw for clearing Cogs, Zap falls second best when compared to Sound during this fight, as Zap doesn't provide Encore. Rating: 2/3 Stars	With the somewhat large variance of Cog health you'll have to deal with during this fight, either Prestige Zap's increased jump damage or Prestige Squirt's increased Splash damage, or both even, can occasionally be the little bit you need in order for some sets of Cogs to be fully cleared. However, it's rare that this is the case. Even if Zap is your team's only AOE Gag Track, unprestige Zap will still be good enough at its job. Rating: 0/3 Stars	2-4 Toons
Sound	Sound is one of the best Gags to use during this fight. Not only is it consistent at wiping most if not all Cogs from a set, the big advantage it has over other Gags used to clear Cogs is that it also comes with Encore, allowing for a large burst of damage to the Witch hunter on the following turn. This can reach even greater heights when also paired with the Bewitched effect. Be careful to not overuse Sound, as sometimes the best way to use it is to just wait for the right time. If used correctly, it won't be used copiously. Rating: 3/3 Stars	Prestige Sound is great for this fight. When pairing the Encore with Bewitched/Marked/Soaked/Dazed into a full damage turn, you can really see how far it goes. Prestige Sound is highly recommended to help the flow of the fight go much quicker. Rating: 3/3 Stars	3-4 Toons
Drop	Drop is of course extremely helpful in dealing large amounts of damage in one turn. When utilizing Drop in this fight, it can reach up to 900-1000 damage at once, being a major game changer. This helps the fight go much quicker, allowing you and your team to also have a better chance at survival. Rating: 3/3 Stars	Typically a staple for most if not all fights. It adds more potential damage which can either be the last bit that you need to finish the fight quickly, or helps to do so if a few Gags miss. Rating: 3/3 Stars	3-4 Toons

The Witch Hunter battle is simultaneously a rather open-ended balancing act and a race against the clock. Your team will need to constantly balance and choose between clearing the Cogs to keep the Witch Hunter's damage reduction from Will of the People under control and attacking the Witch Hunter directly. You will also need to try to end the battle before your team is drained of its resources and overwhelmed by the Witch Hunter's cheats alongside his endless mob. Too much thoughtless commitment to repeatedly clearing the Mob or attacking the Witch Hunter could doom your chances of winning. Variables such as the incoming and currently active effects, the Cogs present in the battle, and the Witch Hunter's current damage reduction value are constantly changing, making this battle deceptively dynamic. These incentivize your team to act in accordance to the current circumstances and find the ways to best execute what they want to/should do as a response to the circumstances.

General

• This battle is a rather open-ended balancing act, as there can be more than one good way to do so. If different teammates want to do different things, cooperation and agreements need to happen in order for a run to go smoothly.
• Unless your team is confident that they have enough damage to close out the battle soon, it's generally not advised to attack the Witch Hunter directly if his damage reduction is at about 40% or more. 40% or more can cause so much damage to be reduced that your team would have been better off clearing Cogs to lower the damage reduction first, ideally enough to do more than just counter Mob Mentality's 10% increase, and then attack later.
  • Keep in mind that the Witch Hunter begins with a grand 40% damage reduction. This decreases by 5% per Cog defeated, but increases by 10% whenever he uses Mob Mentality.
  • Because the Witch Hunter starts off at such high damage reduction at 40%, it is not advisable at all to attack the Witch Hunter directly on turn 1. This is the only part of the battle that on a macro-decision level should be the same in every normal run, assuming the majority of the Gags during this period didn't miss. Clearing the Cogs to lower the Witch Hunter's damage reduction is recommended for the first 3 or 4 turns of the fight at minimum. Doing so will lower the Witch Hunter's damage reduction to a more reasonable amount, and will allow your team more freedom to choose whether to push direct damage onto the Witch Hunter or clear Cogs on future turns.
• As a generally good idea, try to weave in at least one accuracy buff throughout the battle whenever feasible so the battle doesn't risk running longer than it could have due to repeated Gag misses. Misses in this battle can be very brutal, as they can cause a slew of extra attacks to happen, likely cause Witch Hunter's damage reduction to be higher than desired, and then likely cause more Unites to be used.
• Lure and Drop are the top beneficiaries of the Bewitched buff. Drop has high base damage, and Lure's Knockback against the Witch Hunter can be affected by the Bewitched effect, then also buffing the damage of all Throw Gags that follow.
  • The damage buff from Bewitched should not be overlooked, as it is a whopping 30% increase. Proper utilization of the Bewitched damage buff can contribute to making the difference between the fight concluding before the Witch Hunter and his mob even have a chance to overpower you, and a grueling, long struggle.
• When clearing Cogs, keep the following in mind:
  • Trap and Throw can only hit one target at a time, and Trap also requires Lure to be activated. This causes the whole team's actions to be used up, with little upside if even at all over using Zap or Sound instead. This makes Trap and Throw generally unfavorable to use for clearing Cogs over Zap and Sound.
  • Squirt + Zap is often capable of clearing a set of 3 Cogs with just 3 Gags.
  • While not always possible or favorable to clear all the Cogs with, Sound is generally the most preferable for clearing Cogs. It gives Encore to be used next turn and even be combined with the Bewitched damage buff for a huge burst damage turn.
• Zapping the Witch Hunter and other Cogs at the same time can be a good call on rare occasion, but it is not good as a repeated strategy for winning the fight quickly.

Mob Mentality

• Ideally, on the turn that Mob Mentality happens, your team has the Cogs Lured while attacking the Witch Hunter directly with strong single target Gags like Throw and Drop. This makes it so only the Witch Hunter and the Cogs that gain an extra attack from Mob Mentality will attack that turn. On the turn before that, your team can clear mobs (preferably with Sound if possible) to keep the Witch Hunter's damage reduction under control, heal, and/or start a chain of direct attacks on the Witch Hunter.
  • This generally should not be done in reverse order unless it's too dangerous to let the Cogs attack even once, the Witch Hunter's damage reduction is too high for him to be worth attacking directly, and/or the battle is not close to ending anytime soon. Clearing on the Mob Mentality turn will likely waste the potential of the damage buff from the Bewitched effect. As stated before, 30% is nothing to scoff at.
  • The extra attacks from Mob Mentality do not pose as much of a threat as they may initially Sound. The lowest level Cogs in the set are given an extra attack, prioritizing the rightmost Cog as a tiebreaker for any Cogs of the same level. This means that you can predict what Cogs gain the extra attack on the turn that Mob Mentality happens. Those extra attacks also deal 33% less damage than normal. They have increased chance to target Bewitched Toons and may cause the Bewitched Toons to take a sizeable amount of damage. However, the Toons that have the Bewitched buff are always the ones that had the highest Laff at the end of the last turn. They are not very likely to be in danger unless everyone was already at low Laff to begin with.
  • The guaranteed Advocate that comes with every use of Mob Mentality is also not as much of a threat as it may seem. Despite its executive status, it still does less damage than most other Cogs, so it should be viewed more as a luxury to kill in a set than a necessity. Killing it over other Cogs may also cause a more threatening Cog to take its place. This, and the fact that Trap and Throw are not ideal for clearing Cogs in this fight makes up the reasons why it is commonly advised not to Trap this Cog.

Loot

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  Witch Hunter Sticker
  

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  Pitchfork
  

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  Caddish Chapeau
  

28 Gumballs 200 Jellybeans 1500 Toon Experience

Dialogue

Opening Cutscene

The camera pans up the tower to the Witch Hunter, talking to three Cogs at the top of the tower. Witch Hunter: "It is precisely for this reason that I have sought the exile of that ludibrious skeleton!" "That hooded muttonhead is far too flummoxed to aid in our crusades." "And what of these supposed "litigators?" That facinorous termagant traps them in her own land!" "If I had a fraction of the power those gorgers possess, I would end this conflict at once!" The Toons teleport to the top of the tower. Cog: "Excuse me, sire, but you have company." Witch Hunter: "Ah, so you are the loathly scum I have sought." "Your stultiloquence has been a great source of consternation to this organization." "And unless you intend to sophronise, then I will ensure you recompension." The Witch Hunter burns down the flagpole in the middle of the tower. Witch Hunter: "Now avaunt, fainéants! Or else face the flames." The Toons taunt the Witch Hunter. Witch Hunter: "Very well. You picaroons will meet your end NOW!"

Ending Cutscene

Witch Hunter: "I've had enough of this mullock!" "No matter, you poltroons will learn the error of your ways soon enough. Two Lawbots suddenly fly onto the tower. Witch Hunter: "I've grown tired of dealing with blackguards such as you." "And I will ensure that this company no longer suffers the indignation of your trespasses!" "Starting now!" "NOW!" Lawbot 1: "Your words have no effect on us, Prester." Lawbot 2: "Ms. Morsecode demands your presence at Lawbot Headquarters immediately." Lawbot 1: "The company has received multiple complaints about your behavior towards fellow employees." Witch Hunter: "Ah yes, the patent clerk." "It seems her scourges against me will have no end." "This brabble is not over, we will meet again." The Witch Hunter flies away along with the rest of the Cogs on the tower.

Bewitched	"A dandiprat like yourself does not deserve your degree!" "I will not let this froward embarrass me!" "Your condition begets your current contemn!"
Mob Mentality	"Fellow Suits, YOU may be next!" "These infidels must be exiled at once!" "You are not welcome in our communities."
Trial By Fire/Boilerplate	"Are you feeling the heat yet?" "If I burn you, do you not hurt?" "I've no warmth in my heart for you."

Face-Off Taunts	"Fellow Suits, YOU may be next!" "If I burn you, do you not hurt?" "I've no warmth in my heart for you." "Your stultiloquence has been a great source of consternation to this organization."
Death Taunts	"Do not show your countenance here again!" "I expect to see no more of your jiggery-pokery!" "I will magnify these events to my own kind." "Take your fiddle-faddle off my floor!"
Surrender Taunt	"This bombard concludes incontrovertibly in my superiority. Now leave me to conspire!"
Friend Request Denials	"My portion does not lie in your court." the Witch Hunter retorts. "No such baseborn will ever earn my favor," the Witch Hunter scoffs. The Witch Hunter brushes some dust off his shoulder and sneers, "I will not be susceptible to such applesauce." The Witch Hunter glares at you from beneath the brim of his hat: "As if I would ever be seen consorting with the likes of you!"
Attempt to Sue	"You attempt to sue the surest attorney on this side of Cog Nation? There's more of the lurden than the Laff in you!"
Attempt to Fire	"Mooncalves! Those contemptible playthings of yours will never be adequate in impeding my domination over you!"

Music

Theme	Audio File	Song Title
Sigil Theme		N/A
Opening Cutscene Theme		Beings in a Mob
Battle Theme (Base)		The Hunter
Battle Theme (4+ Cogs in Mob)		Crowd Control
Battle Theme (7+ Cogs in Mob)		Flash Mob
Ending Cutscene Theme		A Mob to a King
Victory Theme		Dance of Kings

Sound Effects

Statement
Question
Grunt
Murmur

Mob Mentality
Boilerplate/Trial by Fire
Boilerplate/Trial by Fire Hit

Version History

v1.8.0 BETA

• Will of the People now starts at 40% defense instead of 50%.
• Lowered the level range of Cogs to 7-11 from 8-11.
• Increased Witch Hunter's health to 3750.
  • Originally was 3450.
• Increased the damage over time of Trial by Fire and Boilerplate by 5%.
  • Trial by Fire -> 5%/10%/15% to 10%/15%/20%, depending on Mob size.
  • Boilerplate -> 10% to 15%

v1.4.4 BETA

"For Witch Hunter, we felt that Bewitched's 20% damage boost wasn't enticing enough to hit him during the Mob Mentality turn, so we increased it to 30%. To compensate for and encourage quicker strategies utilizing this boost, the starting defense value of Will of the People was slightly increased. " -Corporate Clash Crew

• The Witch Hunter stands ready to trial!
  • Changes to Witch Hunter
    • Bewitched Toon damage boost: 20% -> 30%
    • Will of the People Starting Defense: 40% -> 50%
    • Mob Mentality Cogs' extra attack damage debuff increased: 25% -> 33%

v1.4.0 BETA

• Witch Hunter has slightly re-sharpened his previously double-dulled pitchforks.
  • • Bewitchment gives Toons a 1.2x damage buff against the Witch hunter.
    • Cog levels can now reach Level 11 not including the guaranteed Executive Advocate.
    • The surrounding flying Cogs has increased by +1.
    • The Witch Hunter's damage range has increased from 14-19 to 16-21.
    • The Witch Hunter's defense has been decreased from 50 -> 45.
    • The cheats Trial by Fire and Boilerplate have had their damages reduced by 33%.
    • The Witch Hunter's starting Damage Resistance has been increased from 30% -> 40%

v1.3.1.5 BETA

• A new very rare drop has been added to the Witch Hunter's battle!
  • Added the Caddish Chapeau as a possible Loot drop.

v1.3.0.8 BETA

• Re-re-unsharpened some of his pitchforks.
  • Tweaked damage values across the fight to make unfair damage output less likely.
    • Trial by Fire/Boilerplate had their damage reduction removed.
    • Bewitched vulnerability for Mob scaling was fixed.
      • Originally was 1.15x permanently, now it is 1.05x - 1.15x depending on the current Mob the Witch Hunter possesses).
  • The Witch Hunter has been pampering his cats a little too much, and they have become complacent...
    • The guaranteed Advocates can only spawn as a Level 11, not Level 12.
  • [undocumented] Toons who had the Trial by Fire/Boilerplate damage overtime effect would no longer receive damage after the ending cutscene would finish and roll into the victory cutscene.

v1.3.0.7 BETA

• The Witch Hunter has re-unsharpened some of his pitch forks.
  • Toned down some of the buffs from the previous patch, giving Toons more opportunity to get consistent damage in.
  • Fixed an issue that would sometimes cause Lure Gags in the fight to have more rounds than intended.
  • Fixed an oversight that would cause Toon accuracy to be relatively low in the fight.
    • Turns out, some black cats do cause bad luck...
      • The guaranteed Advocates now have reduced Cog Defense.

v1.3.0.6 BETA

• The Witch Hunter has sharpened his pitchforks and is ready for battle!
  • Will of the People was added to the Witch hunter’s status effect cheats.
  • The Witch Hunter's Mob Mentality was usable after every turn starting when he reaches below a threshold of 2000 HP.
  • The Witch Hunter’s Lure Resistance was lowered from 2 to 1 round.
• He has also adopted some adorable kittens...?
  • When Mob Mentality is used, there is a guaranteed Level 12.exe Advocate amongst the group of Cogs that spawn.

v1.3.0 BETA

• Faint embers can be seen above the walls of Ye Olde Toontowne.
  • The Witch Hunter is added to the game.

Trivia

• A witch hunter is someone who identifies and punishes people for their opinions.
• On the cogs.ink website, the Witch Hunter's username is virgilprester and his password is p1t(hspork1hunter2.
  • The password was revealed by having Toons stand atop each of the towers in the Ye Olde Toontowne Playground, which would give every Toon one part of the password. The username was revealed manually by Mac Opsys in the fourth batch of usernames during the 1.3.0 ARG.
• The Witch Hunter is the only Regional Manager to not have a unique suit (instead sporting the Executive Lawbot suit).
  • Despite this, there is Content Pack support that enables the Witch Hunter's suit texture to be edited without affecting the Executive Lawbots altogether.
• The Witch Hunter previously worked with the Chief Legal Officer at S.C.R.E.W. LLC, as a Head Attorney.
  • His position was higher than the C.L.O.'s while he worked there. Since then, she was "very adamant" that he would be hired as Regional Manager.
  • He did attempt to join C.O.G.S. Inc. previously as head of the Lawbot Department (after the Chief Justice quit), but was rejected.
• The Witch Hunter is one of the few Cogs to be closest to a Playground than any other Employee.
• The Witch Hunter is the only Regional Manager who does not have any indication of Lure Resistance, despite still having it, even after the nerf from 2 to 1 rounds.
• Attempting to access this Manager's fight without the requirements will result in the following message: "'Away, rapscallions,' a mysterious voice yells from atop the tower. 'Do not harass me with your rede!'"

Gallery

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  Official art of the Witch Hunter from the Hires & Heroes key art

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  Concept art for the Witch Hunter

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  The Witch Hunter and Merle Ambrose from Wizard101 making amends

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  The Witch Hunter featured in an official Twitter comic

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  The Witch Hunter and Clash Partner EmperorAce

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  A puppet of the Witch Hunter featured in an official Twitter comic

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  Mob Master

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  The Witch Hunter's profile picture on cogs.ink

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  The in-game popup announcing the first Toons to defeat the Witch Hunter

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  A Valentoon's Day card from the Witch Hunter

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  The Witch Hunter's head model mid development

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  Rig test of the Witch Hunter

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  The Witch Hunter featured in a teaser for the 2023 Summer Update

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  The Witch Hunter's opening cutscene

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  The Witch Hunter performing Mob Mentality

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  A large amount of Cogs flying around due to Mob Mentality

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  A Toon wearing a witch hat due to Bewitched

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  Toons being burned from Trial by Fire

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  The Witch Hunter using Trial by Fire

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  The Witch Hunter's Bewitched animation

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  The Witch Hunter showing off the Caddish Chapeau

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  A render of the Witch Hunter

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  A render of the Witch Hunter

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  A render of the Witch Hunter

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  A render of the Witch Hunter