I'm currently playing a level 7 fathomless warlock, building around speed reduction and forced movement, and this is honestly one of the most fun characters I've played in combat. So, I figured I'd share my build to help spark some inspiration for anyone wanting to play a warlock as more of a battlefield controller. Let me know what you guys think!
Pact boon:Pact of the talisman. The initial benefit of this is nice to have, but not very important. Taking this pact boon is mainly to gain access to a specific invocation.
Invocations:
Level 2: Agonizing Blast. Of course, lol.
Level 2: Repelling Blast. Perfect for pushing people into AoE effects that trigger "when a creature starts its turn in the area or enters the area for the first time on a turn." We have a cleric in the party with Spirit Guardians, so this is perfect to get a double-proc with that.
Level 5: Rebuke of the Talisman. I'm normally in the back line, but if someone gets close enough to hit me I can push them away and deal a small amount of guaranteed damage. This has saved me from a particularly nasty crit before (the DM rolled all three attacks at once and I used the reaction on the first hit) because the monster ended up being out of range for follow-up attacks. I can also give the talisman to a party member if needed, allowing me to push enemies away from them instead.
Level 7: Lance of Lethargy. Helps to keep enemies inside AoEs that you push them into so that they trigger the effect again at the start of their turn.
Main spell choices:
1st level: Thunderwave. I don't use this one super often, partly because I'm a back line caster most of the time, but it's great for when I can push multiple enemies into an AoE. It's also a good non-concentration option.
3rd level: Summon Shadowspawn. Despair form is my go-to option for this. Place it near a bunch of enemies to slow them down significantly, especially when they're inside of an AoE. Our cleric's Spirit guardians is great for this once again, because the shadow spirit will be unaffected by it if I have it summoned before Spirit Guardians goes up so that the cleric can see it.
3rd level: Hunger of Hadar. For the times when I don't have my shadow spirit summoned, it's nice to have a solid AoE on the field to push people into. While I can't double-proc it, I can make sure that enemies start their turn inside of it and take that guaranteed damage, and all my speed reduction options keep them inside the area so they take the end of turn damage as well.
Feat: Telekinetic (Charisma). This one isn't super necessary, but it's nice to have as an option. It's most effective for moving allies out of harm's way, but it can still be used to move enemies as well. Good for getting a double-proc on enemies that are already inside of an AoE, by pushing them out with repelling blast and pulling them back in with Telekinetic.
Usual strategy:
I summon my Tentacle of the Deeps and cast Summon Shadowspawn in the first round, positioning them so that as many allies as possible can be within 10 ft. of the tentacle while staying more than 5 ft. away from the shadow spirit. This allows me to protect my party members without being a detriment to their movement.
On subsequent rounds I reposition my tentacle and shadow spirit if needed, attacking with Eldritch Blast and my tentacle in order to push enemies around and cut their movement significantly. Between the shadow spirit, the tentacle, and Lance of Lethargy, it's likely that an enemy will have its speed reduced by a total of 40 ft., which is plenty to completely eliminate the movement of many creatures in the game.
If needed, I can support my teammates by moving them out of harm's way with Telekinetic and reducing damage to them with Guardian Coil.
Moving forward: Once I reach level 8, I'll probably take the Eldritch Adept feat to pick up Grasp of Hadar a level early and still have room for another invocation at level 9. Grasp of Hadar will allow me to both push and pull an enemy with a single Eldritch Blast beam, conserving action economy so I can attack with my tentacle.
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I'm currently playing a level 7 fathomless warlock, building around speed reduction and forced movement, and this is honestly one of the most fun characters I've played in combat. So, I figured I'd share my build to help spark some inspiration for anyone wanting to play a warlock as more of a battlefield controller. Let me know what you guys think!
Pact boon: Pact of the talisman. The initial benefit of this is nice to have, but not very important. Taking this pact boon is mainly to gain access to a specific invocation.
Invocations:
Main spell choices:
Feat: Telekinetic (Charisma). This one isn't super necessary, but it's nice to have as an option. It's most effective for moving allies out of harm's way, but it can still be used to move enemies as well. Good for getting a double-proc on enemies that are already inside of an AoE, by pushing them out with repelling blast and pulling them back in with Telekinetic.
Usual strategy:
Moving forward: Once I reach level 8, I'll probably take the Eldritch Adept feat to pick up Grasp of Hadar a level early and still have room for another invocation at level 9. Grasp of Hadar will allow me to both push and pull an enemy with a single Eldritch Blast beam, conserving action economy so I can attack with my tentacle.