Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Mages of Strixhaven

An Unearthed Arcana playtest document for the upcoming Strixhaven: Curriculum of Chaos hardcover has been released by WotC!

"Become a student of magic in this installment of Unearthed Arcana! This playtest document presents five subclasses for Dungeons & Dragons. Each of these subclasses allows you to play a mage associated with one of the five colleges of Strixhaven, a university of magic. These subclasses are special, with each one being available to more than one class."

News Archive | Dungeons and Dragons

Read the full archives of Dungeons & Dragons news, Sage Advice, Unearthed Arcana, and D&D Studio Blogs.

dnd.wizards.com

It's 9 pages, and contains five subclasses, one for each the Strixhaven colleges:

• Lorehold College, dedicated to the pursuit of history by conversing with ancient spirits and understanding the whims of time itself
• Prismari College, dedicated to the visual and performing arts and bolstered with the power of the elements
• Quandrix College, dedicated to the study and manipulation of nature’s core mathematic principles
• Silverquill College, dedicated to the magic of words, whether encouraging speeches that uplift allies or piercing wit that derides foes
• Witherbloom College, dedicated to the alchemy of life and death and harnessing the devastating energies of both

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Just so everybody knows, there are Warlocks both attending Strixhaven and as part of their faculty. Albeit from a reading of the wiki, I don't see an explanation of what makes them Warlocks in MtG terms as opposed to other types of spellcasters, or where they got their powers from. Just that they typically work with Black Mana.

Silverquill Warlocks: Breena, Embrose, Fain, Killian
Witherbloom Warlocks: Gyome, Tivash, Valentin

Yeah, in my own game the term just refers to someone who uses “forbidden” ie dangerous power, often taking huge risks to themselves to “punch above their weight class, and are thus considered dangerous even by people close to them.

 

[Vael]

I'd definitely allow a Strixhaven Warlock to use Intelligence in place of Charisma. It's a substitution that works pretty well.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Storywise,

I view the Wizard as directing the magical properties inherent in spell components. (They are sorta the chemists of the Wizard World.)

I view the Sorcerer as directing the magic infused within ones own body. (They are sorta the athletes of the Wizard World.)

I am less sure about what a Warlock is. I am unconvinced that the Patron concept even makes sense in the first place. Ok, the pact initiates some kind of transformation, but what is being transformed exactly? Is the Warlock now able to learn from a book and study? Is the sword an Elric-style demon that is doing all the magic? Does the Patron follow the Warlock around doing all the work? Is the body of the Warlock transformed to now do magic, like the Sorcerer? What exactly changed?

Now, if the Warlock can benefit from all of the ambient magic from students studying magic at a university, that actually makes sense to me.

By default the warlock gets access to their patrons power. How I run them is they learn how to do magic in a way that mortals normally cannot do.

 

[grimslade]

Woohoo! I have been waiting for WotC design to stretch a bit. This is good. The Colleges are a mix but most are pretty flavorful, the Prismari just fail to live up to the flavor.
Also, the necrotic Witherbloom subclass powers read a lot like Defiler magic for Dark Sun. Obviously with some changes.
Warlocks studying their art at a University feels good to me. Not all warlocks want to study, but I assume some cursed to a Pact by bloodline or experiencing the favor of an Archfey might want to seek some control over their fate rather than be a puppet for their patron.

 

[Faolyn]

I have no problems with Warlocks being enrolled in a school.
I just don't like a warlock's patron being the school or college within the school.

What if the patron is a faculty member?

 

[Faolyn]

They totally should redo PH and call it 5.5! That's what I'm asking for!

Yeah, but that's not going to happen before Strixhaven is put out.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

I have no problems with Warlocks being enrolled in a school.
I just don't like a warlock's patron being the school or college within the school.

Each school is founded by a still living Elder Dragon, that works well as a patron.

 

[Tonguez]

Yeah, in my own game the term just refers to someone who uses “forbidden” ie dangerous power, often taking huge risks to themselves to “punch above their weight class, and are thus considered dangerous even by people close to them.

MTG Warlocks usually get powers from Demonic pacts. It looks like for Strixhaven Warlock aligns to the Witherbloom And Silverquill schools

 

[Cadence]

Each school is founded by a still living Elder Dragon, that works well as a patron.

Does that fit either MtG or D&D lore well, or the line near the beginning of the document that suggests they'd alr day have a patron before enrolling?

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Storywise,

I view the Wizard as directing the magical properties inherent in spell components. (They are sorta the chemists of the Wizard World.)

I view the Sorcerer as directing the magic infused within ones own body. (They are sorta the athletes of the Wizard World.)

I am less sure about what a Warlock is. I am unconvinced that the Patron concept even makes sense in the first place. Ok, the pact initiates some kind of transformation, but what is being transformed exactly? Is the Warlock now able to learn from a book and study? Is the sword an Elric-style demon that is doing all the magic? Does the Patron follow the Warlock around doing all the work? Is the body of the Warlock transformed to now do magic, like the Sorcerer? What exactly changed?

Now, if the Warlock can benefit from all of the ambient magic from students studying magic at a university, that actually makes sense to me.

I always assumed warlocks are a channel through which the patron's power flows. There could be value in studying how to manipulate and direct that power, but they are ultimately a conduit, rather than the source of it (like a sorcerer) or manipulating forces outside themselves (wizard).