Talk:Shadow Pact Warlock (3.5e Class)

Class Features Comments

• Eldrich blast: "Enhancement bonus equal to one half level" --> what? That penetrates epic DR at level 12. You would be better off giving a blurb that it counts as a magic weapon with a total modifier equal to one half your level. Only one quarter of your level can be used for enhancement bonuses to the eldrich blast. The rest must be used to upgrade it like a normal magic weapon (flaming, frost, etc). By spending 1 hour in concentration, you can change the enhancements to your eldrich blast.
• Detect magic should start out requiring concentration and upgrade to Arcane_Sight.
• Shadow Wounds is weird. DR on a striker (to use a 4e term), seems a little off to me.
• Flight at level 6 is really, really good. I can't stress enough how that ability can trivialize encounters. I consider flight a wizard-level ability until well past 10th level (others may disagree on this point).

Here is how I would lay out the class features:

• Level 1: Detect magic at will (it is the Paladin detect evil at will equivalent).
• Level 2: Warlock's Curse - move action to target, deal +1d6 damage against that target. Can only designate one creature to curse at a time, but it lasts until a new target is chosen.
• Level 5: Arcane sight
• Level 6: Hover up to 10 ft. above the ground, reduces fall damage by half.
• Level 6: Warlock's Curse +2d6
• Level 10: Warlock's Curse +3d6
• Level 12: Fly 30 ft. (perfect) -> maneuverability is annoying to figure out, I find
• Level 14: Warlock's Curse +4d6
• Level 18: Warlock's Curse +5d6

Warlock's curse is there to replace shadow wounds. It also allows that eldrich blast to scale independently of maneuvers a little so that a full-attack action is still viable at high levels. You'll still want maneuvers to add buckets of d6s, but at least the full-attack would still be an option. --Aarnott 19:32, 24 August 2011 (UTC)

Firstly, on the subject of flight - the class is rogue-level, so thus, Aarnott's criticism is valid. However, wizard-level is about spells being the level of balance. fly kicks in at 5th character level, so any flight you grant should be comparable to this. Likewise, overland flight kicks in at about 9th character level, so by that stage, all-day flying is totally fine.

As far as my opinion on the class goes - way too much combat stuff, not enough non-combat or story stuff. - MisterSinister 20:57, 24 August 2011 (UTC)