Warlock - Frightening or Sickening Blast?

[Thanee]

What do you think is the better choice for a low-level Warlock?

Frightening Blast or Sickening Blast?

Both do almost the same and the eglible targets (pretty much mind-affecting vs living-only) are pretty much the same, too.

Main difference is:

Frightening: Will save, shaken
Sickening: Fort save, sickened (additionally -2 to weapon damage rolls, otherwise as shaken)

Just curious, which of those two would you prefer, and why?

Bye
Thanee

 

[JimAde]

I'd probably go for Frightening, if they affect similar Hit Dice, etc. The reason is that at low level you are mostly menaced by physical attacks. Creatures that use a lot of physical attacks tend to have higher Fort saves than Will. Spell casters tend to be less dangerous at low level.

YMMV

 

[moritheil]

Spell casters tend to be less dangerous at low level.

YMMV

MMDV. My group can slay 24 1st level goblins and their 3rd level leader without breaking much of a sweat. They cannot, by any stretch, handle 24 1st level arcane spellcasters and a 3rd level leader, without most of the party dying or being mortally wounded.

 

[Thanee]

Heh. That's not really important, tho, since neither affects spellcasters much, anyways.

Bye
Thanee

 

[JimAde]

I'd have to call 24 arcane spell casters in one place a pretty unusual situation (at least in my experience). That's a lot of magic missiles.

 

[Nifft]

Frightening. Fear effects stack, so pump up your Fighter's Intimidate skill or your main caster's cause fear DC (or hit the same guy multiple times), and watch the Panic'd state set in.

At higher levels, your Wizard can throw down a cone of fear and you can stack your blast on top of that.

Note: This advice null and void if you fight a lot of Paladins or Halflings.

-- N

 

[moritheil]

I'd have to call 24 arcane spell casters in one place a pretty unusual situation (at least in my experience). That's a lot of magic missiles.

Exactly. Which is why I don't throw such groups at the party, but for the purposes of explaining that arcane spellcasters CAN be dangerous at low levels, I haul out that example.

 

[Thanee]

At higher levels, your Wizard can throw down a cone of fear and you can stack your blast on top of that.

That would only work the other way around, tho. The blast has no frightening effect against targets already shaken (or worse, obviously).

Bye
Thanee

 

[Patryn of Elvenshae]

That would only work the other way around, tho. The blast has no frightening effect against targets already shaken (or worse, obviously).

Why not?

 

[brehobit]

When I had the choice, I went with frightening. As noted, the fort saves are often better for the generic baddy. As Warlocks, IME, have a pretty low casting stat, this becomes quite important.