D&D 5E Blade Pact and Sentient/Artifact Weapons

[TheBDU]

"You can transform one magic weapon into your pact weapon by performing a special ritual while you hold the weapon. You perform the ritual over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a short rest. You can then dismiss the weapon, shunting it into an extradimensional space, and it appears whenever you create your pact weapon thereafter. You can't affect an artifact or a sentient weapon this way."

I'm wondering if the part that I made bold refers ONLY to the dismissal/reappearance of the weapon, or to the entire paragraph. Please let me know! If it means the entire paragraph, then blade pact warlocks really get the shaft with top tier weapons.

 

[Zaukrie]

I would rule whole paragraph.

 

[Thank Dog]

RAW I'd say it applies to the whole notion of using an artefact/sentient weapon as a pact blade at all. However as a DM I would probably allow it with a sentient weapon if the sentient weapon approved of the process. That would be a negotiation between the sentient weapon and the PC and as we all know, sentient weapons are rarely of the submissive and congenial variety

 

[jadrax]

"You can transform one magic weapon into your pact weapon by performing a special ritual while you hold the weapon. You perform the ritual over the course of 1 hour, which can be done during a short rest. You can then dismiss the weapon, shunting it into an extradimensional space, and it appears whenever you create your pact weapon thereafter. You can't affect an artifact or a sentient weapon this way."

I'm wondering if the part that I made bold refers ONLY to the dismissal/reappearance of the weapon, or to the entire paragraph. Please let me know! If it means the entire paragraph, then blade pact warlocks really get the shaft with top tier weapons.

This cropped up on a recent thread, and the consensus seemed to be that the bold part only applied to the latter sentence. I.e. you can have an Artifact or Sentient Pact Weapon, but you cannot shunt it to an extradimensional space.

 

[SkidAce]

IMHO,

If sentient, then you have to deal with it, in order to make it a pact weapon.

If artifact, then you have to deal with some cosmic force, in order to make it a pact weapon.

Either way possible...but not guaranteed.

 

[Boarstorm]

I think the INTENT was for it to apply to the entire paragraph.

Personally, I'm going to be ignoring that line entirely. Let the Warlock bind an artifact. And let him pull it out of hammerspace any time he likes. I mean, how cool is that?

Spoiler alert: Very.

 

[AntiStateQuixote]

I think the INTENT was for it to apply to the entire paragraph.

Personally, I'm going to be ignoring that line entirely. Let the Warlock bind an artifact. And let him pull it out of hammerspace any time he likes. I mean, how cool is that?

Spoiler alert: Very.

Elric was a pact blade warlock and that was absolutely cool! He "argued" with Stormbringer all the time. Bring the awesome!

 

[dream66_]

[/B]I'm wondering if the part that I made bold refers ONLY to the dismissal/reappearance of the weapon, or to the entire paragraph. Please let me know! If it means the entire paragraph, then blade pact warlocks really get the shaft with top tier weapons.

I feel like you're completely misunderstanding these weapons, they aren't top teir they're bottom teir these are weapons to be feared. An artifact is something to be destroyed something you want rid of. The reason you can't dismiss it is because you can't get rid of one that easily, as for not bonding it to your soul? lets just assume that's you're patron protecting you from doing something that stupid (or doesn't want to have to compete with the artifact for your soul)

 

[jadrax]

Alexander Bateman ‏@jadraxdarkfire 47m
@JeremyECrawford @mikemearls Is it intended that Warlocks cannot have Artifact Pact Weapons at all? Or just that they may not 'shunt' them?
Mike Mearls ‏@mikemearls 3m
@jadraxdarkfire @JeremyECrawford I'd say they can't be pact weapons - too powerful to be modified

Mearls thinks Artifact Weapons are two powerful to be modified by the Pact Weapon feature, which tbh I can't actually see coming up that often anyway. It is still a bit of a shame your Bladelock can't use a Artifact Greatsword with proficiency though.

 

[ZombieRoboNinja]

I kinda want to play a blade lock who makes a pact with his weapon.