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Message: <blockquote data-quote="mkill" data-source="post: 5146490" data-attributes="member: 55985">I haven't tried it yet, but Swordmage/Warlock looks very effective on paper. Your main role is a striker / second defender: Jump around the battlefield and chase squishy high-damage dealers (artillery/skirmisher/lurker), while effectively locking them down. This works well with a dedicated frontline defender in the party (fighter/paladin/fightbrain).As for defenses, you have your Int main stat and both Swordmage and Warlock are geared at Leather Armor, so that's fine. I would even consider Shadow Walk over Swordmage Warding, as it's equal +2 to all defenses.As for Pacts, Infernal is great: free temp hp everytime a cursed enemy is killed. This counters your mediocre hp and lack of self-healing nicely. Most Swordmages are rather squishy when the monster can overcome their defenses. And yes, Hellish Rebuke is one of the highest-damage at-wills in the game with the right setup.An alternative is Vestige Pact: Eye of the Vestige gives a free curse, which frees up your minor actions to mark stuff. The downside is that the Vestige Pact is rather complicated and needs your dailies to be really good.I would avoid Dark Pact. The Darkspiral is a nice Catch-22 with Swordmage Warding, but the at-will is just awful and the powers often screw over allies, which is not what a Defender wants to do.As for at-wills, you're right that Eldritch Strike is the best way to get curse damage in melee, on charges and opportunity attacks (and Aegis of Assault attacks, if you go that route). On the Swordmage side, it's hard to ignore sword burst. Together with Hellish Rebuke, the triple allows effective melee, ranged and close burst. A great tactical toolbox.Implement issues: It's probably easiest to use a pact blade, but you could fix that with a feat later.Power choice: Since Warlock powers allow for curse damage, I would prefer these.However, you already have an excellent choice of at-will powers for your standard actions, you'll need your minor actions for curse/aegis, and your immediate interrupts will be reserved for Shielding.Your best bet is probably to take powers with stances or other encounter-long buffs and passive effects, like Armor of Agathys. Another good bet are powers that provide free curses or free aegis, like Tyrannical Threat (Warlock 5)</blockquote>

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