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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Sword of Spirit" data-source="post: 6341675" data-attributes="member: 6677017">Here's the most relevant text from the 3e Complete Arcane:"Warlocks are born, not made. Some are the descendants of people who trafficked with demons and devils long ago. Some seek out the dark powers as youths, driven by ambition or the desire for power, but a few blameless individuals are simply marked out by the supernatural forces as conduits or tools. The exact nature of a warlock's origin is up to the player to decide; just as a sorcerer is not beholden to the magic-wielding ancestor that bequeathed his bloodline with arcane power, a warlock is not bound to follow the source that gifted him with magic."The 4e PHB assumes you personally formed the pact, but it is all over the place on what that meant and whether your patron was an individual, a collection, a body of secret knowledge, etc. And it makes no requirement that you stay in their good graces or have any ongoing commitment (just like it makes no such requirement for clerics or paladins).So the only real problem I'm having with the 5e fluff, and it is a big one, is that they are formalizing that you must serve your patron in some way. (I'm pretty sure there will be no mechanics backing it up though.) That feels contrary to inclusivity to me, since I was fine with the fluff in either 3e or 4e, and now they specifically make it less inclusive! "Loved the 3e warlock? Thought the 4e warlock was fine? Well have we got a surprise for you--we've changed the fluff to invalidate the previous warlocks you've liked!" That's a completely counterproductive move. The only reason I can think of is that they are trying to keep it simple and clear for new players.</blockquote>

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