I keep coming back to the Warlock. It's ironic - I don't think I was all that into the concept prior to getting into D&D - my Warlock in World of Warcraft is maybe my sixth- or seventh- priority character, and I've historically tended to prefer heavily-armored classes (my ideal would be something like the Eldritch Knight but leaning a little more toward the magic side of things. Armorer Artificer is pretty close). But something about the way the Warlock works in D&D - its story-friendly premise and unique mechanics - really speak to me.
With the spell lists introduced in the last two Unearthed Arcanas, which have been the first playtest documents for One D&D - the codename for the successor to 5th Edition (for those who think One D&D is a dumb name and worry it will be the official one, recall that before 5th Edition came out it was being called "D&D Next") - there was one extremely notable absence: Eldritch Blast.
Eldritch Blast is the cantrip that makes Warlocks (well, most Warlocks) work. Because of the way that Pact Magic works, Warlocks can't cast leveled spells on every turn in combat. Instead, they're built to use highly efficient concentration (or at least long-duration) spells while they use cantrips or weapon attacks as their bread-and-butter actions.
Eldritch Blast, then, is the cantrip that is built to go the distance for a Warlock.
On its own, Eldritch Blast works pretty much like Fire Bolt - it's a spell attack that deals 1d10 damage. However, there are two notable differences. The first is that it deals Force damage, which almost nothing resists (there are tons of monsters that resist fire damage). The next, crucial part, is that when you hit new tiers of play (levels 5, 11, and 17) rather than simply increasing the damage of a single attack, you now just make multiple attacks with it.
On average, this change shouldn't make much of a difference, though Fire Bolt is a bit swingier because of that - a crit with a Fire Bolt at level 17 means 8d10 damage, but a miss means absolutely no damage that turn, whereas Eldritch Blast can smooth that out.
But where Eldritch Blast really shines is the way that various Warlock abilities and features interact with it. Technically, these are all optional, but most Warlocks will go with them. Agonizing Blast, for example, adds your Charisma modifier to the damage of each blast - which means that more blasts means multiplying that bonus. A spell like Hex (which is functionally very similar to Hunter's Mark) lets you add a d6 each time you hit the target with an attack - and that means each blast deals an additional d6.
In a lot of ways, Eldritch Blast functions more like a Fighter's ranged weapon attacks - and like the Figher, you eventually get to make four attacks with a single action (earlier than the Fighter, too!)
And this doesn't only apply to damage. Repelling Blast, another invocation, lets you move a target you hit with Eldritch Blast 10 feet away from you - more hits means more irresistible movement.
Eldritch Blast is iconic to the Warlock, so I think the chance that they're actually getting rid of it entirely is basically zero. However, its absence on the Arcane spell list suggests to me that they're going to make it a class feature. This was actually the case when the Warlock was introduced in 3rd edition. (At a time before cantrips existed, I believe, meaning that Warlocks were unique in having an inexhaustible supply of magical damage).
Making Eldritch Blast a class feature rather than a spell accomplishes a few things. The first is that all Warlocks will have it. It also means, though, that other classes will not be able to get it through something like Magic Initiate.
But that's pretty basic.
I think Eldritch Blast could be reimagined in certain ways that could really make it feel better.
First off, I think Agonizing Blast could be rolled into it as a base feature. This is, to be certain, a bit of power creep, unless you reduce the number of eldritch invocations you can learn (at which point it becomes a nerf, given that you don't have the option to choose anything else for your "first" invocation).
Presumably, you'll get upgrades at various levels to allow you to shoot more Eldritch Blasts.
But what if we went radical with this? What if we just gave Warlocks Extra Attack? And then let Eldritch Blast be an alternative option for your Attack action?
This would, in fact, be a big benefit for Bladelocks. Currently, to get a second (and only a second) attack as a Warlock who wants to focus on weapons, you need to take the Thirsting Blade Eldritch Invocation, which requires level 5 (make sense, given that's when other classes get Extra Attack.)
It would also make Warlocks a more agile caster-blaster by explicitly allowing them to move between blasts, while also resolving issues where some DMs think you need to declare all your Eldritch Blast attacks before you make the attack and damage rolls (meaning you sometimes send a blast at a target that's already dead) - which is not, I'm pretty sure, the design intent, but is nevertheless an ambiguity that exists in the wording. Now, this simply falls under the familiar rules of the Attack action.
The question that raises, then, is whether Warlocks would get their third and fourth attacks if it's purely under the Extra Attack umbrella. That would unquestionably step on the toes of the Fighter. Indeed, a Bladelock with Thirsting Blade is still limited to two attacks (I guess what balances this is that they could get their hands on some weapon with a bunch of extra bells and whistles). But only allowing two Eldritch Blasts ever feels like it would cut down on what makes the spell so cool when you get to higher levels (I'll never forget the time I took a Glabrezu immediately out of a fight by blasting it into the River Styx where it got Feebleminded and forgot it was fighting us).
Another consequence that I've mentioned before here is that making the extra blasts of Eldritch Blast into a class feature at certain Warlock levels further incentivizes players to commit to the Warlock. One of the consequences of the Warlock's main spell being a cantrip, along with getting their subclass at level 1 (though that might be changing - I'll be curious to see how that works given that you presumably had to find a patron to get your magic in the first place, unless they reflavor levels 1 and 2 as being where your Warlock is seeking out esoteric magic from a powerful patron and 3 is when they actually forge their pact) is that Warlocks are probably the most popular "dip" class. A Sorcerer can dip in a single level or two to get those Pact Magic spell slots and Eldritch Blast/Agonizing Blast, which can fuel the "coffee lock" that doesn't have to sleep (well, if you can find a way around exhaustion). Paladins can grab a single level with the Hexblade subclass and thus only have to worry about Charisma to attack with their weapon (or three levels if they want to be able to use a two-handed weapon with Pact of the Blade).
I think the higher levels of Warlock could use some love - obviously, there are some powerful Invocations to get, but given that Pact Magic stops upgrading spell slots past 5th level, the Mystic Arcanum feature is I think strictly worse than the higher-level spellcasting that other full casters have, and beyond that there aren't a ton of other class features that Warlocks get in those levels.
Eldritch Blast's redesign could be one way to let the Warlock stand on its own as a class rather than being typically relegated to a multiclass component. I don't think it'll be enough, but it could help.
I'm just very eager to see how this turns out. Well, 1.5 to 4.5 months, roughly, and I expect we'll see.
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