doctorbadwolf
Heretic of The Seventh Circle
So, the warlock is fine, thematically, but I do feel that the flavour is a bit...flat in places.
So here's some stuff I came up with for my games.
All warlocks: The Warlock is essentially a hacker of magic. Pact rituals exploit the eccentricities in the nature of magic, creating direct access points that normally require careful study and verbal, somatic and material precision. Though much of your magic comes, in some way, from your patron, the core of your magic is gained through your own wits and understanding of the underlying formula's of magic. ie, your ability to program exploits to interact with the fundamental cosmic "code language" of magic. Another way to imagine it, is that different magical classes use different published software that adheres to certain accepted norms and paradigms, to run their magic, and the warlock instead accesses it via hacked freeware.
Infernal Warlock: Your pact is basically a pyramid scheme with catastrophic personal consequences. You sold your soul for power, and thus your spells mostly come directly from a devil. You probably made your pact in a time of desperation, seeking survival, revenge, to save a loved one, etc. You may have studied the ritual magic of making pacts, or you may have simply fashioned a container, filled it with a vial of your own blood, a trinket related to your need, and a blank scroll or a few blank sheets of parchment, and buried at at a crossroads and stood, waiting, hoping for a sign while also hoping that nothing would happen.
Then, it appeared. A man or woman in refined clothing of black and red, with eldritch eyes and a molodious voice. Did they appear in a form matching your own race and culture, or something foriegn to you? Did they look like a tiefling, perhaps? They were almost certainly uncomfortably attractive, making you feel both repulsed and enticed, in spite of yourself.
You remember little of the exchange that followed, but what you do remember chills you to this day.
You were told that your soul was worth more than the average human or orc or monster, but that you could still use such creatures to pay off your debt. And one way or another, the devil assured you, your debt will be paid. And so you fight. If you are inclined toward good, you seek out the wicked, sending them to their deserved fate, and bringing yourself one soul further from perdition. If not, you used your new power and knowledge to make lesser pacts, trading access to your power for whatever souls the fools you empower collect, and sending those souls on to your "patron".
Trouble is, the more power you gain, the more your soul is worth, and the greater grows your debt. And like the devil said, the debt will be paid.
Old Ones/Star pact: You were a scholar, once. Your greatest joy in life was old books and dusty secrets, until you found it. An ancient book or artifact unlike anything you'd ever seen, or a star in the sky which your telescope had never before found. The small whisper of caution gave you momentary pause, but you could not resist the pull of discovery, and so you delved deep into the mystery you had uncovered. Days passed, and then weeks, in voracious study. Sleepless, you stared and took notes and muttered and grew more and more detached and irritable.
And then the voice came. It whispered to you of ancient rituals. Of lost magic which could open up to you the gift of ultimate knowledge. With knowledge, too late, came understanding. Your pact was made, without ever realizing what you were doing. You mind had formed a link to an existentially irrational being of unimaginable power.
Your pact does not feature an obligation, as with most others. Instead, you struggle daily to maintain your mental health, only suffering nightmares on your good days. For good and ill, you are not alone. Out in the world, spread accross the border of all nations, are cultists dedicated the terrible thing you've let into your mind. Some of them despise you, jealous of your direct connection to their "god". Others view you as a prophet, and insist that you will bring about the entry of The Voice in it's full form upon the world.
Pact of the Mentor: You are the ultimate student of Ritual magic, especially Pact Magic. You have studied many magical traditions, learning (often stealing) their secrets and recording them in your Grimoire. Normally, the discovery of your Grimoire was the beginning of your journey to becoming a Warlock, and it contains not only the knowledge you've gain, but also that of several long dead Warlocks who came before you.
But rare is the Warlock who has no use for a teacher, or a patron, and in one you found both. When you first approached your mentor, you were probably turned away, or asked to prove your worth. Through persistance and obvious talent, you were accepted a pupil. Your mentor could be nearly anyone, including the sorts of patrons gained by other pacts. Archfey, devils, ancient wyrms, archmages/archliches, and even gods of knowledge or secrets and their most powerful agents are possible Mentors. In very rare cases, a Grimoire contains the memories and personalities of previous owners, and can become the Mentor for younger warlocks.
Whoever your patron, your pact comes with an obligations, and rewards for fulfilling them. Whenever you come across a very rare book, spellbook, or otherwise learn an obscure secret or mystery or lost bit of history, you write it into your Grimoire, which seems to have unlimited space, and has been ritually bonded to your Mentor's Grimoire. Anything that is written in one, appears in the other. Your Mentor is not ungrateful, and rewards you knowledge for knowledge, showing you new magic, and perhaps even feeding you useful information pertaining to your current quest or situation.
in progress:
Fey Pact: You chanced upon a powerful fey being, and one way or another gained their favor, while they gained your trust, admiration and loyalty. You are now a loyal vassal to your Fey patron, much like a Knight to their Lord or Lady. As such, your Patron is more involved in your life than is the case with other pacts, in a few ways.
Shadow Pact: Similar to Fey. In my games, the two are very closely linked.
I kinda think there's room for a pact that doesn't have a patron at all, instead being a true prodigy of the ritual magic used in pacts, and maybe looking a bit more like a rogue or fighter with the feature slots normally granted by a pact.
So here's some stuff I came up with for my games.
All warlocks: The Warlock is essentially a hacker of magic. Pact rituals exploit the eccentricities in the nature of magic, creating direct access points that normally require careful study and verbal, somatic and material precision. Though much of your magic comes, in some way, from your patron, the core of your magic is gained through your own wits and understanding of the underlying formula's of magic. ie, your ability to program exploits to interact with the fundamental cosmic "code language" of magic. Another way to imagine it, is that different magical classes use different published software that adheres to certain accepted norms and paradigms, to run their magic, and the warlock instead accesses it via hacked freeware.
Infernal Warlock: Your pact is basically a pyramid scheme with catastrophic personal consequences. You sold your soul for power, and thus your spells mostly come directly from a devil. You probably made your pact in a time of desperation, seeking survival, revenge, to save a loved one, etc. You may have studied the ritual magic of making pacts, or you may have simply fashioned a container, filled it with a vial of your own blood, a trinket related to your need, and a blank scroll or a few blank sheets of parchment, and buried at at a crossroads and stood, waiting, hoping for a sign while also hoping that nothing would happen.
Then, it appeared. A man or woman in refined clothing of black and red, with eldritch eyes and a molodious voice. Did they appear in a form matching your own race and culture, or something foriegn to you? Did they look like a tiefling, perhaps? They were almost certainly uncomfortably attractive, making you feel both repulsed and enticed, in spite of yourself.
You remember little of the exchange that followed, but what you do remember chills you to this day.
You were told that your soul was worth more than the average human or orc or monster, but that you could still use such creatures to pay off your debt. And one way or another, the devil assured you, your debt will be paid. And so you fight. If you are inclined toward good, you seek out the wicked, sending them to their deserved fate, and bringing yourself one soul further from perdition. If not, you used your new power and knowledge to make lesser pacts, trading access to your power for whatever souls the fools you empower collect, and sending those souls on to your "patron".
Trouble is, the more power you gain, the more your soul is worth, and the greater grows your debt. And like the devil said, the debt will be paid.
Old Ones/Star pact: You were a scholar, once. Your greatest joy in life was old books and dusty secrets, until you found it. An ancient book or artifact unlike anything you'd ever seen, or a star in the sky which your telescope had never before found. The small whisper of caution gave you momentary pause, but you could not resist the pull of discovery, and so you delved deep into the mystery you had uncovered. Days passed, and then weeks, in voracious study. Sleepless, you stared and took notes and muttered and grew more and more detached and irritable.
And then the voice came. It whispered to you of ancient rituals. Of lost magic which could open up to you the gift of ultimate knowledge. With knowledge, too late, came understanding. Your pact was made, without ever realizing what you were doing. You mind had formed a link to an existentially irrational being of unimaginable power.
Your pact does not feature an obligation, as with most others. Instead, you struggle daily to maintain your mental health, only suffering nightmares on your good days. For good and ill, you are not alone. Out in the world, spread accross the border of all nations, are cultists dedicated the terrible thing you've let into your mind. Some of them despise you, jealous of your direct connection to their "god". Others view you as a prophet, and insist that you will bring about the entry of The Voice in it's full form upon the world.
Pact of the Mentor: You are the ultimate student of Ritual magic, especially Pact Magic. You have studied many magical traditions, learning (often stealing) their secrets and recording them in your Grimoire. Normally, the discovery of your Grimoire was the beginning of your journey to becoming a Warlock, and it contains not only the knowledge you've gain, but also that of several long dead Warlocks who came before you.
But rare is the Warlock who has no use for a teacher, or a patron, and in one you found both. When you first approached your mentor, you were probably turned away, or asked to prove your worth. Through persistance and obvious talent, you were accepted a pupil. Your mentor could be nearly anyone, including the sorts of patrons gained by other pacts. Archfey, devils, ancient wyrms, archmages/archliches, and even gods of knowledge or secrets and their most powerful agents are possible Mentors. In very rare cases, a Grimoire contains the memories and personalities of previous owners, and can become the Mentor for younger warlocks.
Whoever your patron, your pact comes with an obligations, and rewards for fulfilling them. Whenever you come across a very rare book, spellbook, or otherwise learn an obscure secret or mystery or lost bit of history, you write it into your Grimoire, which seems to have unlimited space, and has been ritually bonded to your Mentor's Grimoire. Anything that is written in one, appears in the other. Your Mentor is not ungrateful, and rewards you knowledge for knowledge, showing you new magic, and perhaps even feeding you useful information pertaining to your current quest or situation.
in progress:
Fey Pact: You chanced upon a powerful fey being, and one way or another gained their favor, while they gained your trust, admiration and loyalty. You are now a loyal vassal to your Fey patron, much like a Knight to their Lord or Lady. As such, your Patron is more involved in your life than is the case with other pacts, in a few ways.
- You gain one retainer or companion, as per the alternate Noble feature in the PHB. This retainer is fey, and can take nearly any form, from talking animal, pixie, satyr or even a unicorn. If you can ride it, it let's you, but flying mounts are not allowed. Regardless, it usually won't follow you into combat. (if I were using this flavor to rebuild the warlock, the retainer would be combat ready, but of small benefit, but here I'm just working with edition neutral-ish, so any mechanical thing has to be a "ribbon") Your retainer or companion is generally a close friend, or perhaps even more, and has some magical means of communicating with your mutual Patron.
- Your Patron expects you to act in it's interests, and may impose a code of conduct similar to a Paladin's Oath, though generally less restrictive.
- Your Patron sends you on quests. These generally don't interfere with your other goals or those of your companions, or require you to ditch an ongoing quest.
Shadow Pact: Similar to Fey. In my games, the two are very closely linked.
I kinda think there's room for a pact that doesn't have a patron at all, instead being a true prodigy of the ritual magic used in pacts, and maybe looking a bit more like a rogue or fighter with the feature slots normally granted by a pact.
