Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="TwinBahamut" data-source="post: 3989197" data-attributes="member: 32536">Etymology of the name is meaningless in this context. The idea of a "person who makes a deal in exchange for power, but at a terrible cost" is unarguably a long-standing archetype, completely separate from whatever use the word Warlock has had in the past. However, because of recent usage, the warlock is decent name for a magic-user based on that archetype.As a whole, I don't think the old meaning of 'Oathbreaker" has any meaning in the modern usage at all.Besides, the idea of the classic archetype behind the warlock is the battle of wits between the warlock and the being he has made a pact with. Essentially, it is built on the struggle between the warlock and the pact he has made, and the desire to subvert it and get power with no strings attached. In a sense, it is both making a pact and trying to avoid the terms of the pact. "Oathbreaker" works just fine in that context.Because Warlocks are not lock-stepped to evil. However, they are bound to things that are dangerous and power that comes at a cost. As a whole, it is a completely opposing archetype to the idea of a servant of a benevolent deity, or a champion of justice, or a fanatical servant of a god, who don't pay the cost because they are loyal to the cause of their patron.In D&D, if you want to be evil and have the power of evil gods and demons, you just need to be an evil Cleric. It really makes more sense for the user of a fiendish pact to be a non-evil character, if you ask me, because that implies the essential struggle. Similarly, if you want to be good through the service of a good god, a Cleric makes a lot of sense. But a warlock who has made a pact with a good god could only be a "oathbreaker" if he is in conflict with his patron. In other words, he has to be a person who wants the power of a saint, without being saint-like. In many ways, you would have to be an evil character to use a celestial warlock pact.Well, I don't think you need to have anything but fiendish pacts to justify a good-aligned warlock. He becomes a complex figure, but I think it works fine.</blockquote>

Verification