Warlock Update

[Grabuto138]

I never understood the gripes against eyebite. I highly enjoy having it as a power when I play a warlock. When I'm not playing a warlock, it's one of the powers I like picking up through multiclassing.

Aside from what others have already mentioned, it is also a very accurate power, and easy to hit with. There are situations in which hitting is more important than the base damage.

You are right. But as a striker, I always feel that devoting one of your two at-wills to personal defense was in bad taste. As if you are not carrying your weight. It is an okay choice for a human's third, and it can be bumped by feat combos and whatnot, but I am fundamentally uncomfortable with a striker's at-will being d6. Especially since the Warlock's "kicker damage" is inferior to most other strikers unless they punp it with a magic item. (Did they make a feat to correct this?) The original Warlock should have been a controller, maybe.

 

[Incenjucar]

Eh. I think there's an argument that a third at-will for EVERY class would be a worthwhile change to the game. The Warlock is the prime example of this, but hardly the only one.

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Invisibility at-will can be especially handy if you get not-terrible OAs.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

Yes, a third at will would go a long way to make the game more fun...

 

[Dice4Hire]

I suppose cynicism is par for the course and some people can never never be happy or find their center.
But wasn't the limited at-wills one of the primary gripes? I know, personally, I found it annoying. I think this small and simple change has a profound, positive, impact on the classs.

Thanks for the criticism. The warlock has been a bit weak and is still a bit weak. IMHO, it was the class that most needed a bit added to it to make it more on par with later strikers.

That was not done. Thus the article is essentially worthless to me.

Making one at-will con and charisma helps a bit, I admit, but not much.

 

[Neonchameleon]

It doesn't help that Eldritch Blast sucks. Or that if you are using your body to block attacks from a single artillery monster you are risking a dogpile.

My suggestion was one fixed at will - you don't need EB (and it really sucks for Inf-locks) and EB as an option. And to upgrade Eyebite make it grant concealment to your allies as well as invisibility to you (still leaves it behind Phantom Army or Vicious Mockery as close and area attacks ignore concealment).

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

My initial experience with a warlock, as my first 4e character, was that they were underpowered. I was a feylock, and I did see that the powers were more controllery and less damage-focused, but even so, the class felt underwhelming. Not enough damage to keep up with the goblin ranger (using daggers & shortbows no less), and not enough control to keep the opponents from doing whatever they wanted (the group had no actual controller - Paladin, Fighter, Cleric, Ranger, Warlock).

The easiest and most text-efficient way to boost warlock damage output would have been a tweak to make the curse do some real damage (or add better control to it). I mean, the last update, they helped by boosting the damage of dozens of individual powers, but not by enough for it to really close the gap. While the improvements to the language and wording of the powers was welcome, I still feel that they could have gone further.

And I will agree that Eldritch Blast could use some work. 1d10 damage, Ranged 10, vs Reflex, single target, one attack. It just doesn't compare to a ranger Careful Shotting with a longbow (to say nothing of Twin Strike) or even a sorcerer with Acid Orb - both of which do similar damage but at greater range and similar or better accuracy.

 

[The Human Target]

Yeah, I can't help looking at the warlock and still thinking a sorcerer is better at striking, sub controlling, and equal at "cool extras."

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

That echoes my experiences a bit. I'm loving playing my Starlock/Psion, but for a ranged striker whose powers generally top out at R10, my powers are typically half the range of other "artillery." Combined with powers that are R5 or Close Blasts, and I find myself getting extremely close to or even in melee quite often.

Note to self: consider Twofold Pact (Fey).

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

Having warlocks add their Int modifier to their curse damage would have been quick, easy, and solved most of the failing-to-meet-damage-expectations issues.

 

[Vael]

Yeah, I can't help looking at the warlock and still thinking a sorcerer is better at striking, sub controlling, and equal at "cool extras."

Which I find a little amusing, as I'm on the other side of that fence. Yeah, Sorcerers may get a free pick of at-wills, but there aren't a lot of good ones, and a Sorcerer often has to choose between being effective, or being thematically appropriate. My Cold-themed Dragon Sorcerer would like a second cold at-will, or my Storm Soul Sorcerer would love a lightning or thunder-based basic attack. Arcane Admixture feels like a required feat just so my Sorcerer feels more like himself. I often wish Sorcerers were more like Warlocks.

Also, if the Hexblade feat remains, most Warlocks can get two bonus at-wills through feats, the Hexblade feat and the Two-Pact feat at Paragon. The changes to Warlock's Curse means I tend to find Warlocks, with all their basic attack spells, more Leader-enable-friendly than a Sorcerer.