Let's Talk Warlock Pact Boons

[KILLALLROBOTS!]

Or lack thereof! I figured as EA went on, Larian would improve on the classes they've released along with implementing new ones (esp Warlock) and add some of the other features missing from the core rules. Like Warlock Pact Boons! I get that Pact of the blade might need some retooling to work in a videogame, but pact of the tome seems like a no-brainer. I'm just sick of Pact of the Chain and the fact that it *really* just doesn't gel well with Wyll conceptually.

EDIT: For clarity, I didn't mean the subclasses for patrons, like Fiend and GOO, I meant the pact boon selected at level 3. in 5E, you have three options, Pact of Chain (find familiar + which is implemented), Pact of Blade and Pact of Tome (neither implemented)

[Pan Darius Cassandra]

Larian hasn't added a single subclass beyond whatever they've released a class with, so I assume they're waiting for release so there's plenty new content for us to play.

[Mosey]

Err...they did just add some stuff to Pact of the Old One's so...

But yeah, every warlock player seems to complain endlessly that the Pact of the Blade isn't in yet.

Oh well.

[Yojo0o]

It's really misleading when people refer to these as "pacts", because it implies that you're talking about the warlock subclasses.

The choice warlocks make at level 3 is called a "pact boon", and yes, I wish the others were implemented at this stage. It's very odd, for example, that Wyll can't choose Pact of the Blade. I'm not really sure how he's supposed to be the "Blade of the Frontier" otherwise.

[Razorblade]

Originally posted by Yojo0o:

It's really misleading when people refer to these as "pacts", because it implies that you're talking about the warlock subclasses.

Warlock subclasses are officially called "Otherworldly Patrons," so it really shouldn't be confusing. You'd absolutely be more correct calling your Pact Boon a "Pact" than you would be calling your Patron a "Pact."

Official PHB "Otherworldly Patron" names:
-The Fiend
-The Great Old One
-The Archfey

Official PHB "Pact Boon" names:
-Pact of the Chain
-Pact of the Blade
-Pact of the Tome

[Pan Darius Cassandra]

Originally posted by Razorblade:

Originally posted by Yojo0o:

It's really misleading when people refer to these as "pacts", because it implies that you're talking about the warlock subclasses.

Warlock subclasses are officially called "Otherworldly Patrons," so it really shouldn't be confusing. You'd absolutely be more correct calling your Pact Boon a "Pact" than you would be calling your Patron a Pact.

Not entirely. The bargain you strike with your patron is also referred to as your 'pact'.

From D&DBeyond:

A warlock is defined by a pact with an otherworldly being.

And the pact boon feature wouldn't make sense unless there was a pact to refer to in the first place.

D&D just made the Warlock confusing, that's all. I constantly get Hexblade and Pact of the Blade confused.

[GrandMajora]

Personally, I'm surprised they didn't go with Pact of the Blade first, then added Chain and Tome later.

You'd figure that somebody calling themselves the "Blade of Frontiers" and is trying to conceal the fact that he made a bargain with a planar entity would prefer to receive a magic weapon.

Not be granted a subordinate devil / demon that follows him around everywhere.

[KILLALLROBOTS!]

Originally posted by GrandMajora:

Personally, I'm surprised they didn't go with Pact of the Blade first, then added Chain and Tome later.

You'd figure that somebody calling themselves the "Blade of Frontiers" and is trying to conceal the fact that he made a bargain with a planar entity would prefer to receive a magic weapon.

Not be granted a subordinate devil / demon that follows him around everywhere.

See, that's what I'm getting at! I understand why they did it mechanically (just an altered version of a spell they already got on the wizard spell list) but the fact they didn't even give the option for the other boons (especially Blade) just bugs me. Especially since we now have Paladin with sacred weapon, which they absolutely could code and reflavor as a pact of blade boon. And don't even get me STARTED on how Pact of Tome is basically Magic Initiate!

[Yojo0o]

Originally posted by KILLALLROBOTS!:

Originally posted by GrandMajora:

Personally, I'm surprised they didn't go with Pact of the Blade first, then added Chain and Tome later.

You'd figure that somebody calling themselves the "Blade of Frontiers" and is trying to conceal the fact that he made a bargain with a planar entity would prefer to receive a magic weapon.

Not be granted a subordinate devil / demon that follows him around everywhere.

See, that's what I'm getting at! I understand why they did it mechanically (just an altered version of a spell they already got on the wizard spell list) but the fact they didn't even give the option for the other boons (especially Blade) just bugs me. Especially since we now have Paladin with sacred weapon, which they absolutely could code and reflavor as a pact of blade boon. And don't even get me STARTED on how Pact of Tome is basically Magic Initiate!

Pact of the Tome is a lot more than Magic Initiate. The main appeal of Pact Boons isn't the direct benefits they give us, it's the Invocations they unlock.

[KILLALLROBOTS!]

Originally posted by Yojo0o:

Pact of the Tome is a lot more than Magic Initiate. The main appeal of Pact Boons isn't the direct benefits they give us, it's the Invocations they unlock.

Understandable, but considering none of those invocations are implemented even with the level 5 release afaik, the point is moot. They absolutely could have added in pact of tome back when they added magic initiate feats, and they definitely could have added a gamified pact of blade with this paladin update. I'm more irked that the choice in pact boon is out of our hands with the levels currently given, especially when we have feats implemented that are very close to the pact boons.

[WeenerTuck813]

Man you guys don’t like pact of the tome??

Raven Queen + Tome is the best

[KOHb]

Originally posted by WeenerTuck813:

Man you guys don’t like pact of the tome??

Raven Queen + Tome is the best

but it's not PHB

[Yojo0o]

Raven Queen isn't even in other sourcebooks either, it died in UA.

[Pan Darius Cassandra]

Originally posted by WeenerTuck813:

Man you guys don’t like pact of the tome??

Raven Queen + Tome is the best

That's my fave Warlock.

[xposethedarkside]

In my opinion going with pact of the chain was the best choice if they were only going to give us one boon for EA.
Pact of the blade is weak without hexblade. You either have to split your points in a way to give you some strength, normally a dump stat for warlocks, or go dex/finesse weapon(yuck), or bank on something like finding some type of strength belt, and even then, it's never going to be as powerful as eldritch blast with agonizing blast, especially after level 5 when agonizing blast tags both beams. I mean maybe depending on if you find some really great weapon, but that weapon ain't in the game yet.

Tome might have some utility in the final game, it really depends on if ritual spells have any kind of use or function, right now they don't, so it would just be a bunch of cantrips that aren't eldritch blast.

Chain gives us invisible flying imp, and I don't need to comment on all the battlefield uses the imp has, we all already know, it's pretty good.

[GrandMajora]

Originally posted by Yojo0o:

Pact of the Tome is a lot more than Magic Initiate. The main appeal of Pact Boons isn't the direct benefits they give us, it's the Invocations they unlock.

Pact of the Tome initially starts with letting you pick 3 cantrips from any class spell book, and eventually upgrades to letting you learn ritual spells from any spell book as well.

They already had a bug in the game that allowed Wizards to learn spells from any scroll, regardless of who's spell book it belonged to.

Pact of the Tome should have been in right from the get go.