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.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

Well. This is somewhat disappointing, WRT the rituals and the lack of information on Extra Attack from invocations. But I guess we'll just have to wait for the full rules (or a leak) to know more.

 

[Neonchameleon]

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.

The warlock base class is pretty good at illusions with both Disguise Self and Silent Image as at will invocation options at level 2 - and the short ranged teleports are mechanical representations of the trickster's "haha! You thought I was over there?"

Seriously the Archfey Pact is a very good trickster if built that way. And Fey are more trickery than direct mind control.

 

[Neonchameleon]

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.

A background that adds to Int? Seriously that's one benefit of the three stat backgrounds; you can have feats like thatand still make them expensive for wizards and sorcs.

 

[Neonchameleon]

Are people getting new video fatigue? There seems to be a lot less interest this morning than there has been for the previous videos. (The Paladin thread is booming this morning.)

Partly "looks great" doesn't give much to discuss. Paladins have a lot to discuss because there's a genuine serious nerf in there, and rogues do because the class with no limited use resources has the lowest highs. But the rest are all good I think other than people complaining about the wizard not getting eight subclasses (oddly no one is demanding the cleric's seven that I've seen).

 

[Henadic Theologian]

Making Pact of the Chain, Pact of the Blade, and Pact of the Tome have no prequistes means that they can be taken by anyone with a feat from Tasha's (but not the rest of the invocations in that chain). That means anyone can have a magic weapon or an improved familiar or Book of Shadows.

 

[Gorck]

No caster should get 3 melee attacks. It's nonsensical.

Not to mention the Barbarian, Monk, Paladin, and Ranger only ever get 2 attacks.

 

[Parmandur]

Making Pact of the Chain, Pact of the Blade, and Pact of the Tome have no prequistes means that they can be taken by anyone with a feat from Tasha's (but not the rest of the invocations in that chain). That means anyone can have a magic weapon or an improved familiar or Book of Shadows.

It's a great decision all around.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

The video did say that each subclass would have a distinctive enhanced familiar option -- that strongly suggests that they intend to add one in future books for each new subclass (and that they have ideas for doing so already).

Yes, but your not locked to that, if you want a Celestlock with a Skeleton made from the bones of a Saint, or a fiendlock who gets the damned soul of a Sprite who sold her soul for revenge, a Feylock who wants a poisonous fey snake, or a Goolock who decides on a Sphinx of Wonders that was driven mad by the secrets of the Goolocks patron you can.

 

[jmartkdr2]

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.

Except none of the (Xanathar's) rules actually reinforce this; it's not even magical until you take Pact of the Blade and Improved Pact Blade.

If you actually got a sentient weapon that'd be awesome- but probably better as a fighter subclass than a warlock.

 

[jmartkdr2]

Yes, but your not locked to that, if you want a Celestlock with a Skeleton made from the bones of a Saint, or a fiendlock who gets the damned soul of a Sprite who sold her soul for revenge, a Feylock who wants a poisonous fey snake, or a Goolock who decides on a Sphinx of Wonders that was driven mad by the secrets of the Goolocks patron you can.

It's more likely that when, say, Genie Patron is republished it'll have a line about mephits being available via Pact of the Chain to all warlocks. Or they'll just note that in the Monster Manual.