i have the most opportunity to be *the healer* or on aggregate keep the party alive when they get in trouble. i also want the other players to get to dive into the stuff they chose their classes for. we just started witchlight and the dm isn't focusing on combat, and when she does there's no grid.
- seen the discussions that SPARE THE DYING isn't very useful as opposed to healing kits.
- was looking at TOLL THE DEAD to maybe help just get rid of guys who are in fights.
- just recently saw an argument that VICIOUS MOCKERY is akin to or better than some other magical ranged healing.
thoughts? not necessarily too specific about my build (undead tomelock), just looking for general advice on playing a warlock who has to protect the other guys. what early cantrips, spells or tactics might take care of things for a while? cheers, thanks for help :)
I've edited the og post, i guess it is important to specify i chose undead tomelock. but I'm kinda looking for a single good early game choice or tactic to take care of the other guys just in case. I'm mostly building for flavor, i'm not going to plan out a healer, but I want to have something up my sleeve for if someone gets in trouble.
the VM idea was that using it for disadvantage on a baddie who has your ally in trouble = (or almost =) a healing cantrip for your ally. and the appeal of TtD is the WIS save and no range penalty.
For first level spells you really only have Cause Fear as a way to get an opponent away from your friends.
There’s the obvious combination of Eldritch Blast and the Repelling Blast Eldritch Invocation that you can get at 3rd level to push opponents back from your friends to give them some space.
For second level spells you have Blindness/Deafness and blinding an opponent gives them disadvantage on everything and gives you advantage on everything against them. There’s also Ray of Enfeeblement and Hold Person. Ray of Enfeeblement doesn’t scale and Hold Person does, which is sad because Ray of Enfeeblement is so thematic for your warlock.
With the third level spells Thunder Step let’s you pull someone out of melee and leave behind some damage at the same time. And, of course, Hypnotic Pattern is an incredible battlefield control spell!
I've edited the og post, i guess it is important to specify i chose undead tomelock. but I'm kinda looking for a single good early game choice or tactic to take care of the other guys just in case. I'm mostly building for flavor, i'm not going to plan out a healer, but I want to have something up my sleeve for if someone gets in trouble.
the VM idea was that using it for disadvantage on a baddie who has your ally in trouble = (or almost =) a healing cantrip for your ally. and the appeal of TtD is the WIS save and no range penalty.
thanks a lot :)
If this is just for insurance healing rather than a heavy-duty Healer role in the party, I'd just take the Healer feat via custom lineage or variant human (or even Magic Initiate if you really want a single-use Healing Word or Cure Wounds instead) and keep your warlock resources focused elsewhere
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Active characters:
Carric Aquissar, elven wannabe artist in his deconstructionist period (Archfey warlock) Lan Kidogo, mapach archaeologist and treasure hunter (Knowledge cleric) Mardan Ferres, elven private investigator obsessed with that one unsolved murder (Assassin rogue) Xhekhetiel, halfling survivor of a Betrayer Gods cult (Runechild sorcerer/fighter)
so what i'm gathering is you have to choose class/race for healing or take the healer feat to have any special back pocket healing option as a warlock?
anybody have any creative post-creation workarounds they stumbled upon in gameplay to be, if not a good healer, then a *better* healer? any spells they've jiggered to save a dying mate, apart from killing the attacker?
we built our pc's devoid of metagaming, and brought them to session 0 fully formed, and i guess I'm just finding that warlocks are just the least heal-y magic class?
Warlocks, wizards, and sorcerers (the main arcane casters) are all relatively devoid of healing. Outside of some temp hp options like false life and armor of agathys which affect self there really isn't much there to work with.
I am currently playing celestial warlock and there is plenty of healing for me from my subclass. As an undead lock you have your own temp hp but that is generally where it ends.
On the other hand you could multi into cleric if you have the wisdom. That gets you the suite of 1st level cleric spells. Grave is probably the best choice for that. Then as you progress you will be able upcast cure wounds with your Warlock slots.
That said barb, monk, rogue, undead warlock is a pretty poor party composition for healing long term. None get cure spells, lesser/greater restoration, or the bring back to life spells. Given this composition someone needs to take the healer feat. With just one real caster you can't be saving slots to heal people, you only get 2 for most of your career. My recommendation would be the rogue and have them go thief so they can use quick hands to use a healer's kit as a bonus action. That would still allow them to do something else with their action.
if i don't take healer at 4, do you think it would lose value to take it at 8? like do you think by then the benefits have diminishing returns as other pc's features get stronger?
i also plan to take the gift of the protectors invocation at 9 as a tomelock. thanks again.
At 4th, 1d6+4+(Hd or level of thing healed) it is in between a 1st level cure wounds and a 2nd level cure wounds. At 8th its better than a 2nd level cure wounds. You have a party of 4 so assuming no NPC's to heal that is up to 4 uses per short rest. Or like 4 casts of a 2nd level cure wounds (1 per person) per short rest.
If you really want to be a healer, I would take it at 4. I took it as a rogue at level 1 and its been great. Even at 10th level who doesn't want to be able to reliably heal 15+ hit points. Even with short rests its great since you no longer have to spend as many hit dice.
Long term your party has a problem without the two restorations and revivify. Unless someone goes Cleric/Druid (maybe bard) you are kind of stuck there.
The one other thing I would mention that seems to have been neglected is the gift of the metallic dragon feat:
Draconic Healing. You learn the cure wounds spell. You can cast this spell without expending a spell slot. Once you cast this spell in this way, you can't do so again until you finish a long rest. You can also cast this spell using spell slots you have. The spell's spellcasting ability is Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma when you cast it with this feat (choose when you gain the feat).
Protective Wings. You can manifest protective wings that can shield you or others. When you or another creature you can see within 5 feet of you is hit by an attack roll, you can use your reaction to manifest spectral wings from your back for a moment. You grant a bonus to the target's AC equal to your proficiency bonus against that attack roll, potentially causing it to miss. You can use this reaction a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest."
it would be far off but I'm looking over multiclassing into bard to upcast healing word and cure wounds rather than taking healer. do you have any experience with dipping just for some early spells? it feels like a feat choice is a big deal. is it a bigger deal to spend pact slots on healing? cheers
I play a Celestial warlock with a level of cleric, so I strongly recommend a level of something if you want to add something like healing to a warlock.
The best level to do a one level dip is level 5. You already get a substantial boost in power with a second beam of EB and you should already have agonizing blast. With my current character the nice part on using pact slots for healing is you have that option. You can also cast a spell like hex as a first level spell which is great, because its just a first level spell.
oh wow i hadn't seen divine soul before. that seems pretty seamless to more than solve the healer problem not too long after level 4 without giving up Fey Touched (which I plan to take for Bless) or giving up the ASI at 8. thanks for pointing me toward that :)
I've edited the og post, i guess it is important to specify i chose undead tomelock. but I'm kinda looking for a single good early game choice or tactic to take care of the other guys just in case. I'm mostly building for flavor, i'm not going to plan out a healer, but I want to have something up my sleeve for if someone gets in trouble.
the VM idea was that using it for disadvantage on a baddie who has your ally in trouble = (or almost =) a healing cantrip for your ally. and the appeal of TtD is the WIS save and no range penalty.
thanks a lot :)
Warlocks generally don't get a lot of options for healing (unless you're a celestial warlock), so you do rely on spending a feat on Healer or Magic Initiate (bard). The reason why I would choose bard over cleric is because bards and clerics both gain healing spells, but bards rely on Charisma for spellcasting, which is the same spellcasting ability as a warlock. Unfortunately, warlocks aren't the best options for healing, but the Healer feat and a single-use healing spell from Magic Initiate would serve you or your party well in a pinch. It's always troubling when you are playing the only spellcaster, because then you feel compelled to play a healer, or play a spellcaster that has access to some healing spells. As a DM, I would create an NPC to play the role of a healer if nobody wants to do the much-appreciated courtesy of playing a healer. I don't want to force the party to not play the character they want to play just to fill out every important role of the party, but I do want the party to have a healer, or at least a spellcaster with some healing abilities. The best way to deal with the burden of healing is to split the role between multiple spellcasters. Fortunately, many spellcasters can heal, even half-caster martial classes like the Paladin or Ranger.
hi, thanks for reading :)
party = barb, monk, rogue, me
i have the most opportunity to be *the healer* or on aggregate keep the party alive when they get in trouble. i also want the other players to get to dive into the stuff they chose their classes for. we just started witchlight and the dm isn't focusing on combat, and when she does there's no grid.
- seen the discussions that SPARE THE DYING isn't very useful as opposed to healing kits.
- was looking at TOLL THE DEAD to maybe help just get rid of guys who are in fights.
- just recently saw an argument that VICIOUS MOCKERY is akin to or better than some other magical ranged healing.
thoughts? not necessarily too specific about my build (undead tomelock), just looking for general advice on playing a warlock who has to protect the other guys. what early cantrips, spells or tactics might take care of things for a while? cheers, thanks for help :)
I assume you’re going to be a celestial warlock, no?
Spare the dying is not an option for warlocks, so there’s that.
I’m not sure why somebody would say vicious mockery has anything to do with ranged healing.
Toll the dead is a good damage cantrip, but as a warlock, you have access to eldritch blast, which can be and often is better.
Healer kits are good. Also the healer feat. Chef can also help with healing. But what kind of warlock are you? The advice will change based on that.
I've edited the og post, i guess it is important to specify i chose undead tomelock. but I'm kinda looking for a single good early game choice or tactic to take care of the other guys just in case. I'm mostly building for flavor, i'm not going to plan out a healer, but I want to have something up my sleeve for if someone gets in trouble.
the VM idea was that using it for disadvantage on a baddie who has your ally in trouble = (or almost =) a healing cantrip for your ally. and the appeal of TtD is the WIS save and no range penalty.
thanks a lot :)
For first level spells you really only have Cause Fear as a way to get an opponent away from your friends.
There’s the obvious combination of Eldritch Blast and the Repelling Blast Eldritch Invocation that you can get at 3rd level to push opponents back from your friends to give them some space.
For second level spells you have Blindness/Deafness and blinding an opponent gives them disadvantage on everything and gives you advantage on everything against them. There’s also Ray of Enfeeblement and Hold Person. Ray of Enfeeblement doesn’t scale and Hold Person does, which is sad because Ray of Enfeeblement is so thematic for your warlock.
With the third level spells Thunder Step let’s you pull someone out of melee and leave behind some damage at the same time. And, of course, Hypnotic Pattern is an incredible battlefield control spell!
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If this is just for insurance healing rather than a heavy-duty Healer role in the party, I'd just take the Healer feat via custom lineage or variant human (or even Magic Initiate if you really want a single-use Healing Word or Cure Wounds instead) and keep your warlock resources focused elsewhere
Active characters:
Carric Aquissar, elven wannabe artist in his deconstructionist period (Archfey warlock)
Lan Kidogo, mapach archaeologist and treasure hunter (Knowledge cleric)
Mardan Ferres, elven private investigator obsessed with that one unsolved murder (Assassin rogue)
Xhekhetiel, halfling survivor of a Betrayer Gods cult (Runechild sorcerer/fighter)
Currently using healer feat on a rogue. Its a ton of healing and doesn't eat spell slots. Took it at first level.
so what i'm gathering is you have to choose class/race for healing or take the healer feat to have any special back pocket healing option as a warlock?
anybody have any creative post-creation workarounds they stumbled upon in gameplay to be, if not a good healer, then a *better* healer? any spells they've jiggered to save a dying mate, apart from killing the attacker?
we built our pc's devoid of metagaming, and brought them to session 0 fully formed, and i guess I'm just finding that warlocks are just the least heal-y magic class?
Warlocks, wizards, and sorcerers (the main arcane casters) are all relatively devoid of healing. Outside of some temp hp options like false life and armor of agathys which affect self there really isn't much there to work with.
I am currently playing celestial warlock and there is plenty of healing for me from my subclass. As an undead lock you have your own temp hp but that is generally where it ends.
On the other hand you could multi into cleric if you have the wisdom. That gets you the suite of 1st level cleric spells. Grave is probably the best choice for that. Then as you progress you will be able upcast cure wounds with your Warlock slots.
That said barb, monk, rogue, undead warlock is a pretty poor party composition for healing long term. None get cure spells, lesser/greater restoration, or the bring back to life spells. Given this composition someone needs to take the healer feat. With just one real caster you can't be saving slots to heal people, you only get 2 for most of your career. My recommendation would be the rogue and have them go thief so they can use quick hands to use a healer's kit as a bonus action. That would still allow them to do something else with their action.
cool thanks for the thorough reply :) helps a lot
if i don't take healer at 4, do you think it would lose value to take it at 8? like do you think by then the benefits have diminishing returns as other pc's features get stronger?
i also plan to take the gift of the protectors invocation at 9 as a tomelock. thanks again.
At 4th, 1d6+4+(Hd or level of thing healed) it is in between a 1st level cure wounds and a 2nd level cure wounds. At 8th its better than a 2nd level cure wounds. You have a party of 4 so assuming no NPC's to heal that is up to 4 uses per short rest. Or like 4 casts of a 2nd level cure wounds (1 per person) per short rest.
If you really want to be a healer, I would take it at 4. I took it as a rogue at level 1 and its been great. Even at 10th level who doesn't want to be able to reliably heal 15+ hit points. Even with short rests its great since you no longer have to spend as many hit dice.
Long term your party has a problem without the two restorations and revivify. Unless someone goes Cleric/Druid (maybe bard) you are kind of stuck there.
The one other thing I would mention that seems to have been neglected is the gift of the metallic dragon feat:
Draconic Healing. You learn the cure wounds spell. You can cast this spell without expending a spell slot. Once you cast this spell in this way, you can't do so again until you finish a long rest. You can also cast this spell using spell slots you have. The spell's spellcasting ability is Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma when you cast it with this feat (choose when you gain the feat).
Protective Wings. You can manifest protective wings that can shield you or others. When you or another creature you can see within 5 feet of you is hit by an attack roll, you can use your reaction to manifest spectral wings from your back for a moment. You grant a bonus to the target's AC equal to your proficiency bonus against that attack roll, potentially causing it to miss. You can use this reaction a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, and you regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest."
oh awesome that's a illustrative explanation. about how many sessions in your experience usually do you play per level after 4?
Really varies game to game and level to level. I have seen levels go anywhere from every 2 sessions to 5 or 6 or more.
it would be far off but I'm looking over multiclassing into bard to upcast healing word and cure wounds rather than taking healer. do you have any experience with dipping just for some early spells? it feels like a feat choice is a big deal. is it a bigger deal to spend pact slots on healing? cheers
I play a Celestial warlock with a level of cleric, so I strongly recommend a level of something if you want to add something like healing to a warlock.
The best level to do a one level dip is level 5. You already get a substantial boost in power with a second beam of EB and you should already have agonizing blast. With my current character the nice part on using pact slots for healing is you have that option. You can also cast a spell like hex as a first level spell which is great, because its just a first level spell.
do you mean level 6, or does the scaling of EB go by character level instead of class level?
oh wow i hadn't seen divine soul before. that seems pretty seamless to more than solve the healer problem not too long after level 4 without giving up Fey Touched (which I plan to take for Bless) or giving up the ASI at 8. thanks for pointing me toward that :)
EB scaling goes by character not class level.
ah ok, that makes sense how they do for cantrips, cheers.
Warlocks generally don't get a lot of options for healing (unless you're a celestial warlock), so you do rely on spending a feat on Healer or Magic Initiate (bard). The reason why I would choose bard over cleric is because bards and clerics both gain healing spells, but bards rely on Charisma for spellcasting, which is the same spellcasting ability as a warlock. Unfortunately, warlocks aren't the best options for healing, but the Healer feat and a single-use healing spell from Magic Initiate would serve you or your party well in a pinch. It's always troubling when you are playing the only spellcaster, because then you feel compelled to play a healer, or play a spellcaster that has access to some healing spells. As a DM, I would create an NPC to play the role of a healer if nobody wants to do the much-appreciated courtesy of playing a healer. I don't want to force the party to not play the character they want to play just to fill out every important role of the party, but I do want the party to have a healer, or at least a spellcaster with some healing abilities. The best way to deal with the burden of healing is to split the role between multiple spellcasters. Fortunately, many spellcasters can heal, even half-caster martial classes like the Paladin or Ranger.
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