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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Baramay" data-source="post: 3055017" data-attributes="member: 38158">I think it would be good to look at the advantages and disadvantages in full.  With so many different choices it can be very difficult to see these.  So I would like anyone who sees something I missed to please chime in.To start with the basic warlock class advantages and disadvantages.  d6 hps.  Better than a wizard or sorcerer and on compare with a warmage.  Use of light armor, an advantage over a mage and not as good as the warmage who gets light shields and med armor at 8th level.  Base attack- this is important because it give a big advantage over a mage or warmage when using ranged touch attacks.  Saves and skills are the same as mages and warmages.The sole limiting ability to do one thing has been discussed but as with the vow of poverty, I feel the ability be very good at one thing outweighs (at least slightly) the inability to be versatile.  Invocations help diversify the class.  Other characters can pick up the rest of the slack.  Comparing the class' ability to rays that can be cast by mages or warmages-scorching ray does 4d6 at 3rd thru 6th level.  An warlock does 2d6 at 3rd, 3d6 at 5th, and 4d6 at 7th.  Advantage-mage.  But when you incorporate eldritch chain(available at 6th level) it changes dramatically.  Now at 7th level you have a mage doing 8d6.  A warlock does the same.  At 9th level the warlock has the advantage 10d6 to 8d6.  The scorching ray can be used one the same opponent while the chain must affect a 2nd opponent.  At 10th the warlock can jump his 5d6 damage to affect 3 enemies.At 11th level the warlock gains access to a greater invocations and the vitriolic blast.  The vitriolic blast allows for no save or SR and does 2d6 damage in future rounds.  At 11th it is 2 more rounds.  There is not a ray that deals that much damage output.  Now you can add the chain or cone ability and affect at least 3 opponents.  The essence invocations cause another quandry.  These abilities allow casting at the highest spell level and DC.  For example the beshadowed blast save to avoid blindness is always equal to a spell of 1/2 the warlock's level rounded down as are all invocations.  In fact it could be higher than possible for any other character.  Comsider the example with the frightful blast by the 1st level warlock.  It has a DC of 10+2+ relevant ability, higher than possible for any other character.  The ability focus feat give the benefit of spell focus and greater spell focus for one feat and can be used on all blasts.  So the eldritch blast has the equivilent of a heighted spell at all times.  The utterdark blast at 16th level does 16d6 damage and has a DC of 18+abiltiy mod (an a +2 for the ability focus feat, lets be honest it will be taken by 16th level.) or gain two negative levels not good odds for enemies.In conclusion I would say the warlock is the best choice to dealing damage.  In this respect it is superior to the warmage and a mage or sorcerer who would want to specialize in rays. Therefore I would understand a DMs decision to not allow the class, just as with vow of poverty it depends on the campaign.  There are many prestige classes that have come out since 3.5 that are far superior in ability to the eldritch knight in the DMG.  Does that make them "broken"?  I would not say that, but classify them in the perhaps not appropriate for the campaign pile.</blockquote>

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