D&D (2024) 2024 Player's Handbook reveal: "New Warlock"

"The character builder's paradise".

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We last saw the Warlock in Playtest 7, with a lot of features from 2014 restored from the previous version. Still, a lot of questions (for me) remain: here's my list from before the video ran:

Spoiler

• Will the three pacts still be invocations, and will it be possible to get all of them by level 2? (I hope not). Yes.
• If they are invocations, will people still believe they are getting more invocations than thry had in 2014? Yes.
• What will the Pact of the Chain special creature options be? (We've seen the Sphinx of Wonder previewed already.) Is there still going to be a (M-sized) skeleton option? YES!
• Will Pact of the Tome still have the lame rewritten Ritual Caster rules, of only two 1st level rituals, and never any more? (I hope not). No answer, but I doubt it's been changed.
• Is it conceivable that anyone would not take Pact of the Blade as one of their Invocations? (Doubt it.) No answer. They did not talk about whether later invocations will give Extra attack, or other concerns here.
• Will anyone be able to take Eldritch Blast? "Warlock Specific"

(Happily, many of these questions were indeed answered in the video!).
I think warlock really benefits from having the subclasses come at level 3: you can "dabble" in the occult without selling your soul until level 3 (though admittedly, the wording of the fluff text does not require you to sell your soul).

OVERVIEW

• Invocations at 1, Magical Cunning at 2 (as in PT7)
• Crawford claims we will get more eldritch invocations. Assuming the table's as in PT7, this is a bit of a fudge: there's one for a pact at level 5 (no gain) and one extra, at level 5, and for most it will go, I feel, to another pact). Yes there's more flexibility.
• Main choices are Pact Boons. "This is a big deal" -- "it is a juicy choice" they say, and Crawford makes it clear you can get them all "over time". "Over time", though, is by level 2. To me this is too much too early.
• NEW: all pact boons at level 1 now.
• NEW: "More Spooky critter options" for Pact of the Chain, speaking to Patron types. Complete list: Slaad tadpole. Skeleton, Imp, Pseudodragon, Quasit, Sprite (Fey), Sphinx of Wonder (Celestial), Venomous Snake. All will be in the PHB.
• Spellcasting has been enhanced: more invocations work with warlock spells. Now they don't just affect Eldritch Blast (which is warlock-specific -- not clear how that's mechanized, though). You can have Ray of Frost with Repelling Blast.
• NEW: Lessons of the First Ones only lets you take an Origin Feat.
• Contact Patron at 9, Mystic Arcanum at 11+, expanded spell list (though not as big as sorcerer).
• All subclasses get an expanded spell list.

SUBCLASSES

ARCHFEY - "a teleportation fantasia"

• Gameplay was not living up to the flavour. Going "all-in" on Teleportation.
• Additional effects occur whenever you cast the spell, not just the free casting from Steps of the Fey. (Refreshing step and Taunting Step confirmed, as in PT7 apparently).
• Beguiling Defenses, causing psychic damage
• Bewitching magic at 14 as in PT7 -- "ridiculous in all the best ways".

CELESTIAL

• NEW: from expanded class spell list. Summon Celestial on spell list.
• NEW: Guiding Bolt, Cure wounds and Aid (Aid was not on PT7 list) on subclass list
• You can be "a hired hitman from the gods"
• NEW: Searing Radiance at 14 now can apply to an ally.

FIEND

• Magical weapons no longer pass your damage resitance (in reference to Fiendish Resilience at 10?)
• "tankiness" seen in BG3 is also here: Dark One's Blessing seems completely rewritten, as it was described in the Design Note of the PT7.

GREAT OLD ONE

• NEW: Summon Aberration might be a version of the Mind Flayer (an option in the Summon Abberation spell)
• when you do damage, you can do psychic.
• Psychic Spells for enchantment/illusion without Verbal/Somatic (but you still need Material); damage may be Psychic. Clairvoyant Combatant can be a battle of wills (focusing damage to one target -- a nod to AD&D psionic battles). Eldritch Hex also as in PT7.

 

[Neonchameleon]

Certainly solid choices. Would you forego any of the pacts to get this at level 2?

Absolutely. Pact of the Tome gives me a familiar. Pact of the Chain's is better. But an entire invocation better? That's a definite maybe. And I'd forgotten the other reason to not bother with Blade if you have tome: Shileleagh. I think if I'm a casty tomelock I probably pass on Blade and Chain most of the time in favour of budget versions.

Meanwhile if I'm a melee Bladelock and Jump remains the way it was in the UA I want that at will for combat and exploration mobility. And if either Armour of Shadows or False Life becomes good I want the survivability.

Finally if I'm a Chain lock I'm clearly interested in scouting or shenanigans. I might take Tome but there are some great illusion and divination invocations plus Agonizing Blast and buffing my familiar.

 

[Kurotowa]

Absolutely. Pact of the Tome gives me a familiar. Pact of the Chain's is better. But an entire invocation better? That's a definite maybe. And I'd forgotten the other reason to not bother with Blade if you have tome: Shileleagh. I think if I'm a casty tomelock I probably pass on Blade and Chain most of the time in favour of budget versions.

I think the choice between a Tome familiar and a Chain familiar is how deep you want to go. If you just want scouting and minor utility, a Tome familiar is probably sufficient. Chain Pact is for when you want a familiar that's stronger and smarter, and you plan to follow up with Investment of the Chain Master to give it some real combat applications.

As you say, a familiar and Shillelagh from Tome Pact are the budget versions, good for when it's not a major focus you want to really invest in. I think those other options are just getting more attention because everyone's seen or played the standard EB package for 10 years, and Blade Pact and Chain Pact are shiny and new.

 

[mellored]

But Eldritch Blast is okay, right?

Yes. No changes.

Except you can get the all it's add-ons earlier.

 

[mellored]

Hopefully eldritch smite returns to go with the teleports, but with not a single mention of it + a big effort to make smites paladin exclusive, I suspect that's gone for good from warlock.

It was still in the playtest, limited to 1/turn.

But I would not be surprised if it ends up taking a bonus action, which might kill the teleport smite.

 

[Charlaquin]

I think the choice between a Tome familiar and a Chain familiar is how deep you want to go. If you just want scouting and minor utility, a Tome familiar is probably sufficient. Chain Pact is for when you want a familiar that's stronger and smarter, and you plan to follow up with Investment of the Chain Master to give it some real combat applications.

As you say, a familiar and Shillelagh from Tome Pact are the budget versions, good for when it's not a major focus you want to really invest in. I think those other options are just getting more attention because everyone's seen or played the standard EB package for 10 years, and Blade Pact and Chain Pact are shiny and new.

Personally, I want a familiar at all, I’m picking up pact of the chain, just having a little fairy or devil or whatever following me around instead of a normal animal with a swapped subtype. That alone is worth an Invocation in my book!

 

[Veltharis ap Rylix]

Technically you are correct, but everyone just kind of acts like it refers to the Warlock and not the Patron.

Always assumed the "Hexblade" referred to the warlock's sentient weapon, myself, since that's essentially supposed to be the patron (or the vehicle through which the patron operates).

At least within the context of 5e.

 

[Neonchameleon]

my question is why do they want to relegate character build choice to a single, highly thematically specific class? seems like a weird goal to me.

They don't. But someone has to be best, and warlocks, thanks to invocations, are the most build-your-own class.

 

[Staffan]

Just out of curiosity, when did teleportation become a Fey thing? The designers keep pushing teleportation as something with Fey flavor, and I'm not getting why. Blink dog, I guess? That feels a bit tenuous to me. Historically, Fiends have had a lot more teleportation magic than Fey. I've always thought of Enchantment and Illusion as the signature magic of the Fey.

As others have mentioned, mainly 4e by way of Eladrin. But I think there's another aspect of it. The way I see it, there are two things I come to think of when I think of fey magic. One, albeit the lesser one, is the short-range teleports of 4e. The other is mind-effery. Illusions, mind control, that sort of stuff. Problem is that they already have the Great Old One warlock, which they are trying to turn into "We have psionics at home". So they get all the mind-effery stuff, and archfey get saddled with the teleports.

I think perhaps the solution would be giving Archfey warlocks some more nature/elemental-themed magic, but that might bump into the fire-and-brimstone stuff going on with Fiend warlocks.

 

[Neonchameleon]

In what way is the swashbuckler part of the core rogue?

In the sense that the core rogue can duel 1vs1 and get Sneak Attack easily from Vex or Steady Aim, and can disengage from foes they hit (at a 1d6SA cost). That's most of the stuff people use (and Advantage on skills ain't all that with Reliable Talent)

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

Shield the piece of equipment, not the shield spell. Not sure if that's in moderately armored or whatever the cruddy medium armor proficiency is. Plus that's using your feat though, for something that at least in 5.0 was Eldritch blast but worse with extra steps.

In the playtest, the insanity of Lightly Armored was that it gave you light armor prof, medium armor prof and shield proficiency. Because Wizard needed that. It's a starting feat, what else are they going to pick.