Whether you are a beginner or an experienced Dungeons and Dragons player, a Warlock is a fun character to create. In this guide, we will cover the basics of D&D for a new player; what Warlocks are, and how you can start your own amazing journey with one.
There is so much joy in playing this game and developing an amazing character to play with! Read on to find out more.
A Brief Guide to D&D
Dungeons and Dragons 5e (fifth edition) is a fantasy role-playing game that anyone can play. In fact, the basic rules are online for free to encourage new gamers to join in. All you really need is a good imagination, a dice, and some good friends to get started. The free rules online cover the basics of character creation as well as the maths and mechanics of the game. Though they do cover the basic types of character and abilities, if you want warlock tips in D&D 5e you won’t find them on the downloadable rules. Luckily, you’ll find them below! Let’s dig deeper into the character and abilities of a Warlock.
What Is A Warlock?
A Warlock is a user of magic, but not your most common magic-user. They are magicians who cheated their way to power by making a pact with a powerful entity. Each of these pacts brings out extra character traits and abilities (more on that later!) The Warlock is, therefore, an extremely complex and varied character that can bring much joy and variance to a long campaign.
With a Warlock, like all characters, you must develop their backstory first. This is where it gets extra interesting at the start of the game. You will have to write a backstory for this character both before and after they made their pact. Why did they make it? And what are the terms of the pact? With some experience, you can write a character with many layers leading to some very interesting developed gameplay.
This is the very basic backstory to a Warlock, but let’s now look deeper at the pacts, patrons, and more, that truly define what a Warlock is and can be when you play one!
Pacts & Patrons
As mentioned, a key part of a Warlock’s story is that they have made a pact with a higher being. There are different pacts which in turn lead to different abilities, spells, and character traits. The best part is that there is no right or wrong choice for your character, and each will influence the way you play the game differently! We have listed just a few of them below:
Patrons:
- The Genie: A genie is of course a very powerful being, and makes a very powerful patron for your Warlock! A genie offers powers of manipulation and great defense against attack. You might even be able to get your own power to hide within the genie’s lamp!
- The Celestial: This patron is a being from another plane. Imagine an angel, dragon, or a demon from another world, and this is the sort of area you are looking at for this kind of patron. These options bring magic and healing as opposed to the genie’s defence and manipulation. Certain to bring an interesting layer to your Warlock’s abilities and storyline.
- The Kraken: You’ve guessed it, a creature from the depths of the ocean – a Kraken! Giant creatures from beneath which bring the power of water and the depths to your Warlock. Releasing the Kraken, as they say, helps you travel across the ocean to discover new lands and new abilities!
Pacts:
- Pact Of The Blade: The blade is a metal, heavy-duty weapon of any type! The type, or form, can change as and when you wish, bringing you new attack abilities and new fighting styles for each type of enemy you face.
- Pact Of The Talisman: The talisman brings you a magical item to carry with you and use whenever you wish. You can use this item to upgrade any skills that you don’t currently possess.
- Pact Of The Tame: Tame may sound like a weak word, but in this case, it is anything but weak! This pact brings you a book of magical spells allowing you to take skills from other types of characters.
Stats
If you are not familiar with statistics in D&D 5e, they define how your created character interacts with the world around it, as well as what it can and cannot achieve. Some of these stats are defined by the dungeon master and a roll of the dice, but a Warlock has specific stats and skills you should be aware of.
Warlocks are magicians and use a skill called charisma to create these spells. You need your charisma to be a high stat to make sure you have the ability to cast strong powerful spells. There are other abilities such as dexterity, wisdom, strength, and intelligence. Depending on which pact and patron you have decided to possess you should have higher or lower values on these particular stats.
Mechanics
Warlocks are very flexible characters and can be built up of many skills from other types of characters. They require little rest between spells and can build up very strong blast magic very quickly. They stand out for having stronger short rest and at-will based options while other casters lean more heavily on long rest resources.
Spells
Warlocks have only a few spell slots when they start the game, less than other types of creature or character. However, as mentioned, they can recharge all their spell shots after even a short rest period, whereas other characters may only be able to recharge one slot every long rest. All Warlocks are able to possess Eldritch Blast which is one of the most powerful cantrips in the game, with a huge damage radius. Be sure to use this if you play as a Warlock!
So, this covers all the basics of playing as a Warlock in D&D 5e. We have covered all the things you need to consider when planning a warlock creature! Remember to be creative and work with your team / other players to create deep characters with lots of variety. Most of all, happy gaming!
