Warlocks not warlockey anymore

[Li Shenron]

Mechanic-wise, everyone is a warlock now.

Fluff-wise, I've always considered the warlock totally unnecessary, because personally we already used the "touched by dark powers" image for sorcerers, if their players wanted to.

 

[hong]

"Show me on this doll where the dark power touched you"

 

[vagabundo]

"Show me on this doll where the dark power touched you"

Urgh...

Anyyyyyway, I wonder what kind of paragon paths are available to Warlocks....

 

[rootbeergnome]

As I said I understand balance but I would hate it if all classes felt the same. This is not a video game that you play with random people via the web, it does not need 100% perfect balance if it comes at the cost of every class playing the same way. (not saying that this is the case). I like classes each having their own thing and playing differently and that is what I loved about the Warlock is it did play differently then the other classes. I for one do hope that as we get to see the leveling up stuff it will add to each class and make them feel less "sameness"

I always love posts like this. I always want to reply with a smart comment like "OH MAN! EVERYONE ROLLS A D20! THEY ARE ALL THE SAME! I want a class that rolls a D30!" But thats just being mean.

Just because 4e incorporates a mechanic that works into every class, the at will/per encounter/per day mechanic in this case, does not mean that it destroys the class from which this mechanic originated. It takes what makes the warlock fun, and expands some of that fun to other classes, but in a different flavor.

Sure, the other classes can do things at will, big deal, they are DIFFERENT things, and that is the key. I personally can never go back to the old "oh man, I ran out of spells guys, guess I will stand around and do nothing now until we sleep again."

Giving every class abilities that are flavorful, that can be done all the time, is simply taking a mechanic that works, and incorporating it into the core of the game. It is the same premise behind the rule "Everyone rolls a D20" for the core mechanic. Its because its balanced, simple, and fun.

Take care, and good gaming!
-RBG

 

[Surgoshan]

The ranger stands at the back of the crowd and deals damage at will. His attack bonuses are high enough that he'll get through AC most every time.

The rogue darts in and out of combat, attacking everything but armor, finding the opponents' weak points and taking them down.

The fighter makes himself the focus of the monsters, preventing them from getting by him and forcing them to move with him away from other members of the party.

The paladin makes the enemies focus on him, while defending his allies from attacks magical and physical.

The warlock moves around the battlefield, striking enemies from a distance while moving or cursing them so his allies can strike them down.

The cleric moves into melee and calls down curses on his foes or blessings on his allies while smiting enemies himself.


Yes, they all follow the same mechanic, but they're doing fairly different things. You could argue that the paladin and cleric are fairly similar, and they are, but the paladin focuses his attacks on AC and the cleric seems to be more on reflex. Depending on the encounter, they'll be focusing on different enemies.

 

[Fallen Seraph]

Mechanic-wise, everyone is a warlock now.

Fluff-wise, I've always considered the warlock totally unnecessary, because personally we already used the "touched by dark powers" image for sorcerers, if their players wanted to.

Since mechanical differences have already been addressed won't bring that up again.

But, the sorcerer and warlock have completely different fluff.

The warlock makes pacts to gain power from otherworldly beings; be they Fey, Demon, Devil, Spirit, Fallen God, Primordial, etc.

The sorcerer is someone who is essentially born with power already within them, that ebbs and flows and can be barely controlled when it is released.

I would consider those two quite-distinct fluffs.

 

[RigaMortus2]

I get the game balance part of it, but then what makes a Warlock? Is he just a single target hitting wizard with slightly better armor? What is his "thing" that makes him stand out and make people want to play one?

Warlock is just a theme when it comes down to it. It can mean anything you want it to mean. If you play Warcraft, they are people what summon demons and use shadow magic. But they could also just be a fancy name for a Wizard (same as Sorcerer).

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

"Show me on this doll where the dark power touched you"

I'm not normally one to internet acronym, but ROTFLMAO!

 

[Doug McCrae]

I have loved the 3.5 Warlock from the moment it was released but something has been bugging me that I could not quite put my finger on. I think I have figured it out at last. In 3.5 the warlock is an endless fountain of magic, he never runs out and has full access to all of his powers. Now however he is just like wizards or everyone else in the fact that he gets the same daily/encounter/at will powers like everyone else.

Yes, but you could say the same thing about reserve feats from Complete Mage.

In 3.5 the warlock's schtick was the recharge mechanism. But his actual powers were just the same as the wizard - spider climb, shatter, invisibility, flight, evard's black tentacles and so forth. He had no distinct flavour in terms of content. 4e has changed this, the warlock's powers are now different from the wizard's.

This is part of a larger change. Classes are now distinguished by what their powers do, not the mechanism by which the powers are recovered.

 

[pawsplay]

In 3.5, the warlock's abilities were "all day, every day" blasting abilities plus a number of helpful powers. That is now the wizard's job description. Frankly, the new warlock could just be options for a wizard.