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Sometimes, desperate people will go to dark places, standing at the edge of the proverbial abyss. In the world ofDungeons & Dragons, sometimes the abyss answers. The Fiend Warlock has made a pact with one of the many devils and demons in the lower planes like the Nine Hells or the Abyss.
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Possessing an arsenal of fire-based magic, a Fiend Warlock may join a party or an adventuring band in a desperate bid to rid themselves of their devilish patron. Whatever the reason, this is a class that relies on charismatic will and combines it with both offensive and defensive abilities.
Patrons
A warlock pactis made betweenyour character and an otherworldly being.Typically, a warlock will find themselves carrying out their patron’s will on the plane in which they reside.
This list is by no means exhaustive, and you may have to work with your Dungeon Master tocome up with a patron that suits your needsand aligns with the fiendish traits you want your character to engage with. Here are a few higher-powered patrons to help you build your warlock:
Asmodeus
The King of the Nine Hells. Known to be soft-spoken and a gifted orator,Asmodeus uses his charisma for his evil ends, intent on conquering as much of the multiverse as he can.
Zariel
Obsessed withfuryandmartial prowess, Zariel is the Lord of the First Circle. She believes in her righteous anger and despises the order of governance.
Glasya
Lord of the Sixth Circle and Princess of Hell, Glasya isbeautifulandmanipulative. She thrives off of her hate for her father andenjoys political machination.
Graz’zt
Known as the Demon Prince ofPleasureandDecadence, he believes himself to be the most clever and cunning creature in the Abyss,even going as far as infiltrating clergy with his followers.
Fraz Urb’luu
This demon lord is known as thePrince of Deceptionand delights in driving his subjects to madness. He is the center ofone of the most ancient cults of demonic worship in the realms.
Lorcan
Lorcan is acambionwho enjoyscollecting warlocksas he sees fit. One of his more famous warlocks isFarideh, a tiefling warlock.
Fiend Warlock Features Overview
The Fiend Warlock gains several features as they level. Atthe first level, you gainDark One’s Blessing, a relatively strong ability for a first-level character:
Dark One’s Blessing
This feature relies on you killing hostile foes,gaining temporary hit pointsas you take enemies off the field. This bolsters your health,which many spellcasters desperately need, as their hit dice are not nearly as large as more martial classes.
Atthe sixth level, your character receives a feature calledDark One’s Own Luck, a feature that entails calling on your patron to alter the outcome of your situation. You know the outcome of the roll you’re altering, but the effects of the rollcannot have gone into effect before using this feature.
Dark One’s Own Luck
The Fiend Warlock puts a lot of stock into the durability of the character, and nothing exemplifies this better thanFiendish Resilienceat thetenth level.
Fiendish Resilience
Determined to keep you up,this feature allows you to choose one damage type to be resistant to, barring silvered or magical weapons. You can choose a different damage type with this feature as well, which lets yourotate resistance every couple of hours.
Somecommon damage typeswithin the Dungeons and Dragons settings arefire, poison, cold,andnecrotic. Choosing resistance topiercing, slashing,andbludgeoningis also useful if you know you’re going to be facing off against a martial enemy.
Atthe fourteenth level, you get an ability calledHurl Through Hell, in which your warlock… hurls someone through hell. The creature disappears and shoots through the hellish landscape of the lower planes, returning to the battlefieldharrowed and much more haunted before you collect on your Dark One’s Blessing.
Hurl Through Hell
You hit a target with an attackand invoke this feature. Itinstantly sends the creature to hell, no save required, and by the end of your next turn, the target has returned to the battlefield. As long as your target isn’t a fiend or originally from the Nine Hells, it’ll take10d10 psychic damage. One long rest, and you can do this again.
There is some debate aboutwhether your enemy can takeactionswhile their turn is spent in the lower plane. Because the book doesn’t specify, you may have to consult with your Dungeon Masterto figure out how to make this feature work best.Does it function as a Banishment spell, in which the target is incapacitated? Can the creature Planeshift back? Does the very act of ‘hurtling through hell’ mean that the character is too busy being propelled to do anything? This feature, while powerful, may need those answers when you gain itto avoid player disappointment or frustration.
Best Species For Fiend Warlocks
While you may choose whatever species you like for your Fiend Warlock,some species lend particularly well to the subclass.Because Fiend Warlock doesn’t rely on any invocation to make it effective the way aHexblade buildmight, the species of your character in conjunction with an invocation could make all the difference.
Species likedrowandtieflingswork thematically, what with demons being tied to both through ancestry or official module. It also works mechanically, as drow and tieflingscan cast Darkness inherently.Paired withDevil’s Sight, you may find yourself comfortably casting your spells from fifteen feet awaywhile your foe flounders in the dark enveloping you both.
Other species that may pair well would beGoliathorYuan-Ti,whose resistances pair well withFiendish Resilience, allowing you to beresistant to multiple forms of damage at once.
Best Ability Scores For Fiend Warlocks
Charisma
Charisma is going to be yourmost important ability scorewhen building your warlock. Not only will it help you in social situations and let you act as your party’s negotiator,but it helps your spellcasting, as Charisma is your spellcasting modifier.The higher your Charisma, the more powerful a warlock is.
Constitution
Constitution helpsimprove yourhit point maximum, and for a warlock, this is one of the most important scores you can improve due to theirsmaller hit dice.
As a Fiend Warlock, your subclass isdesigned to increase your offensive capabilities, so making sure you canstay up long enough to utilize your Eldritch Blastis essential.
Wisdom
As a warlock, you’reproficient in Wisdom saving throws, many of which may take you out of the fight temporarily if you fail them. Because warlocks are so versatile, you may very well be the target over the wizard, whomost will expect to succeed on a Wisdom saving throwanyway. Keeping your Wisdom moderately high will decrease the chances of that happening.
Dexterity
Yourproficiency with light armormakes Dexterity an appealing option to improve, and your armor class is going to become incredibly important if you choose thePact of the Blade, one of the warlock’sPact Boons.
Armor classis generally a good thing to keep in mind, and Dexterity will also allow you to perform acts of stealth and subterfuge, which could be crucial in maintaining a relationship with your fiendish patron
you’re able to more or less parse out the rest of your ability scores as you please among Intelligence and Strength. High scores in these aren’t necessary to make an optimized build, and due to the warlock’s vast customization,you have more flexibility in terms of where you put your leftover ability scores.
While this is a general suggestion for Fiend Warlocks,make sure you go over pact boons with your Dungeon Masterto effectively decide on a build. Should you decide to not play a Pact of the Blade Fiend Warlock, for instance, you may prioritizeWisdomforPact of the TomeorPact of the Talisman.
You may choose Intelligence for investigatingwhile playing Pact of the Chain,rather than supporting yourDexterity. It’s all highly varied and highly changeable.
Recommended Spells For Fiend Warlocks
As a Fiend Warlock, you’ll get several spells by choosing the class.You can cast these as you level, and they provide some variation and unique features to the warlock subclass.
Flame Strike
Hallow
Burning Handsis a great spell for a warlock to have in their expanded spell listdue to the large amount of space the spell can cover, potentially taking out many enemies, and the same sentiment goes forStinking CloudandFireball. Without access to manyarea-of-effect spells, most warlocks have torely on picking off enemies one by one, but the Fiend Warlocknegates this by giving youthreeby the time you’re casting third-level spells.
Recommended Cantrips
Due to the warlock’ssmall amount of spell slots, choosing spells to take becomes a bit of a challenge. Warlocks don’t get the ability to switch out spells every long rest like druids and clerics, insteadonly gaining the capability to swap a spell every time they level.
This makescantripseven more important than they are in other classes,as your few spell slots burn up fast.
Because your Fiend Warlock is concentrated on damage, you may want to continue having damage output or to round out your warlock with some utility cantrip likeMinor IllusionorPrestidigitation, which the Fiend Warlock heavily lacks. However, and because you only gettwo cantrips at the first level, there’s only onemust-have cantrip, regardless of build:
Eldritch Blast
A warlock’s bread and butter. Eldritch Blast can beamplifiedthroughEldritch Invocationsand is one of the best damage-based cantrips in the game. It levels well, providing you with plenty more damage. The Warlock is one of the few classes that have access to Eldritch Blast without feats, so taking Eldritch Blast is an absolute must.
Protection from Evil and Good
Charm Person
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