Snarf Zagyg
Notorious Liquefactionist
On a semi-serious note, I really think it depends on the particular campaign.
In my games, I expect players to engage at least somewhat with the lore and the fiction of the world. As such, Clerics and Warlocks will have built-in "hooks" when it comes to engaging with the fiction of the world.
The point is ... it's supposed to be fun for the player. They are the ones choosing the deity or patron. They are the ones choosing the player. They are the ones choosing how to play their PC.
Choices that might result in angering the deity/patron are never a surprise to the player- it's always telegraphed ahead of time. This shouldn't be a game of "gotcha," but the player should feel that their choices have real impacts. The very few times this has become an issue over the decades of play I have been involved with, it's because the player chose to make it an issue for various RP reasons, and had fun doing so.
Having Warlocks and Clerics just be a grab-bag of abilities really removes a rich thematic source of tension and choice for the players, and makes the game less fun for the types of games that I am involved in. YMMV, etc.
In my games, I expect players to engage at least somewhat with the lore and the fiction of the world. As such, Clerics and Warlocks will have built-in "hooks" when it comes to engaging with the fiction of the world.
The point is ... it's supposed to be fun for the player. They are the ones choosing the deity or patron. They are the ones choosing the player. They are the ones choosing how to play their PC.
Choices that might result in angering the deity/patron are never a surprise to the player- it's always telegraphed ahead of time. This shouldn't be a game of "gotcha," but the player should feel that their choices have real impacts. The very few times this has become an issue over the decades of play I have been involved with, it's because the player chose to make it an issue for various RP reasons, and had fun doing so.
Having Warlocks and Clerics just be a grab-bag of abilities really removes a rich thematic source of tension and choice for the players, and makes the game less fun for the types of games that I am involved in. YMMV, etc.