Although witches have been a constant ‘monster of the week’ in Supernatural it wasn’t until season ten and the introduction of the witch Rowena MacLeod that they took their place in the season’s main conflict.

In later seasons the show reveals just how little hunters, including the Winchesters, knew about the supernatural world in their early years. There are more monsters, things thought myth are real and beings can be more powerful than originally thought. Witches are one such being, revealed to more powerful than previously thought in earlier seasons. This is proven with Rowena managing to control angels, demons, both heal and harm The Darkness and fight off the archangel Lucifer. Other powerful witches include the Celtic practitioners raising Samhain, the nine-hundred-year-old Irish gambler, the couple in need of counseling and the Loughlins.

“According to the Grand Coven, there are three recognized kinds of witches in the world. Most common are the Borrowers, those who harness the power of a demon to practice the art… Second, and rarest of all, are the Naturals, those who are born with the gift.” The third are “the Students, those with no natural ability, who, with enough practice and training and a Grand Coven approved mentor to show them the path, can eke out a modicum of witchy power.”

There is a rich and complicated history of witchcraft in the show, and they are one of the beings in which the lines between good and evil are blurred.

Let’s take a look at Supernatural: 25 Rules The Witches Need To Follow.

SELL YOUR SOUL

The most common witches in Supernatural are the “Borrowers” who sell their souls to demons for their power, although they sometimes seem to be unaware of the deal, making it different than the standard crossroads deal. This was revealed in season three when the boys challenged a coven that had accidentally sold themselves to a demon, the same one the demon Ruby signed herself to during the Black Plague. We see a few examples of this over the course of the series, but none are as powerful as those born to the craft.

ALWAYS DO YOUR HOMEWORK

Other witches, through study and practice, can “eke out a modicum of witchy power,” like the witch/detective James in season eight. These witches are generally apprentices of Grand Coven witches, since their decline when they were hunted down by the Men of Letters, it has been increasingly common that the “Student” type witches often find their way to the craft on their own through intense self-study or other witches. Non-practicing witches or Wiccans are not considered witches (although hunters consider them the same) but are part of the witch community, revealed in season eight.

BORN THIS WAY

“Rarest of all are the naturals.” The third kind of witch is natural born with abilities of magic. These are usually the most powerful, but must still be trained in the craft. The few witches we have seen display this level of power have gone up against extremely powerful forces, like arch-angels, and won. These witches are usually part of the Grand Coven where they go to learn their magic and develop their abilities. Over the course of Supernatural one of these witches has stood out from the rest: Rowena MacLeod.

LEARN FROM THE BEST

Despite calling themselves Men of Letters, supposedly fighting the supernatural like hunters, they are basically the second kind of witches, putting themselves under a different umbrella and calling themselves otherwise. Through this they were able to persecute in the name of power, stealing most of the books they own from the Grand Coven. This organization is painted as the good guys and it isn’t until the boys meet the British charter of the Men of Letters that they realize this isn’t true. This allows all Men of Letters to magically combat multiple enemies, making them witches in their own right.

KNOW THE BOSS

All witches are supposed to answer to the Grand Coven, the authority on global witchcraft, based in Europe. Their headquarters is where witches usually go to study magic. They have since lost most of their power and have been almost completely decimated by the Men of Letters. All witches need permission from the Grand Coven to form their own coven or take an apprentice. They also produce the High Priestesses who are generally considered the supreme on magic. Not all these witches are good or bad, but none are to be crossed.

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR INGREDIENTS

As Rowena said, “handling the ingredients, getting the measurements just right. Unless, of course, either of you have spent years of your life studying with the greats, learning the intricacies of High Witchcraft.” Getting something wrong can be bad in witchcraft, completely changing the outcome of a spell. Furthermore, an ingredient can cause a spell to simply fail. One example of this is when Gabriel’s severely depleted grace causes the portal to fail, despite his attempt to defend himself Rowena explains the situation, “an impaired six-year-old could execute that magic, it wasn’t the spell-caster or the spell it was the ingredient.”

WE BE HUMAN

An outlier in the types of witches as defined by the Grand Coven is the Shtriga. These creatures were introduced in season one, feeding on the life force of children. Supposedly it is a type of witch from Albanian folklore, legends dating back as far as Ancient Rome and said to take on a human guise (usually an older woman), but are not human themselves even though witches are considered to be human. They are said to be the origin of the assumption that “witches look like old crones.” They are likely not witches, but entirely separate entities similar to the Soul Eater from 11x16.

DON’T TAKE POWER FOR GRANTED

Rowena confirms that the magic she uses is the forces of nature made manifest, it is to be respected and worshiped. Witches are usually Pagan or Wiccan, serving magic and therefore able to harness its power. But like nature, if disrespected, it will turn on you. Years of study is necessary to harness such power, otherwise, the wannabe witch often ends up deceased.

The “Borrowers” operate much in the same way with their worship of demons. Should they start causing trouble then the demon they are siphoning their magic from could turn on them, ending their lives.

WANT EXTRA JUICE?

Witches can channel other forces for power. For “Borrowers” that’s a demon. Other witches can also channel magic beings. There are multiple examples of this throughout the series, calling on Pagan gods. Another example is Rowena calling on “the wings of Tatiana” in her attempt to spy on the Winchesters and Crowley. Tatiana is a fae queen, suggesting that witches can also channel other species with magic. However, upon meeting Castiel she was rather surprised and awed, suggesting, much like most of humanity, angels were considered myth before the Apocalypse and not something a witch would usually channel.

PREP YOUR HEXES

Most spells and rituals usually require a physical source to channel the power: a charm, talisman, coin, hex-bag, potion or grimoire. Although there are exceptions in the series, most high-level magic requires more ingredients. For example, the witch in season five who was attempting to summon Samhain left a hex bag in the boy's room to eliminate them from afar. And the witch Maggie Stark used enchanted coins in her attempted murder of her husband’s assistant, causing tiny beating hearts to appear inside her freshly baked pink cupcakes.