So going to be doing a drop in one shot at a game cafe (so don't know my party or what classes they'll be) where everyone is level 3 (gets one free feat which is nice) and i'm running a Hexblade.
Going Polearm Master Feat with Glaive, AC is 16 with scale mail and 2 dex. Charisma got to 18 (thanks to Levistus Tiefling) and Con is 16.
(Note Levistus Tiefling gets one free Armor of Agathy's per day and resets after long rest).
I like the idea of Armor of Agathy's, and lvl 2 gives 10 HP when I only start with 27 HP so nice top up, and was going to take it as one of my spells as well so I can cast it more than once a day, however, is it worth using a spell slot on it if instead I could use Fiendish Vigor before each fight and if I really need it just use my once per day Armor of Agathy's? Or, should I take another eldritch invocation and take Armor of Agathy's as a spell as well and expend a spell slot more often to have it applied more? My other eldritch invocation is obviously improved pact weapon.
Current spells are
Cantrips - Eldritch Blast (to give me something when i can't melee), Mage Hands (meh had to pick something thought it'd be fun)
Spells - Invisibility (more for out of combat stuff), Hex (duh), then a bunch of maybe's for my last two spells. Armor of Agathy's, Shield (i like its a reaction), Hellish Rebuke (same, cause its reaction), Wrathful Smite (meh, not bad cause its a bonus action and I can still attack). Or any other suggestions would be great. Didn't want to go Darkness since its a drop in one shot group and I don't want to cause issues with random people lol
Fiendish Vigor is a fine choice early on since it essentially costs you nothing; just recast it every hour (multiple times till you get the max of 8) and you should be set for most fights. Like you say it's a decent chunk of HP for early levels.
You'll want to switch to armor of agathys later on, especially if want to be in melee, as the fact it deals extra (and automatic, no save etc.) damage is a great consolation for when the temp HP gets stripped away, and it will give you a much better buffer going into harder fights. If your campaign tends to have a lot of smaller battles though then Fiendish Vigor can still be a good option as it does add up, but it will disappear fast if you have tougher battles.
My personal preference is to avoid reaction spells on a warlock since you have so few spell slots to work with, though it'll partly depend on how often your group takes short rests (or can be convinced to); there's nothing wrong with them, but I naturally favour spells with a decent duration. Armor of Agathys being one, hex you already have, I also usually like to have something for a bit of utility. I get a lot of mileage out of unseen servant on every character I take it on, since you can use it to retrieve items without risking traps, or just mess with people (I used mine to pants a guy I didn't like… this is questionable from a value perspective, but I enjoyed it very much 😂).
Up to you though; if you think your campaign will be heavy on combat then having the reactions just in case may be the right call; rebuke can help you to deal an obscene amount of damage in a round as a melee character, and shield is great for not getting hit. I'd maybe consider multiclassing later to get yourself more 1st-level slots for shield though if you find you need it, as unlike rebuke (or absorb elements if you pick that up) it doesn't up-scale with your pact slots so it's good to have some burner slots to spend on it.
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Fiendish Vigour is a fine choice early on since it essentially costs you nothing; just recast it every hour (multiple times till you get the max of 8) and you should be set for most fights. Like you say it's a decent chunk of HP for early levels.
You'll want to switch to armor of agathys later on, especially if want to be in melee, as the fact it deals extra (and automatic, no save etc.) damage is a great consolation for when the temp HP gets stripped away, and it will give you a much better buffer going into harder fights. If your campaign tens to have a lot of smaller battles though then Fiendish Vigor can still be a good option as it does add up, but it will disappear fast if you have tougher battles.
My personal preference is to avoid reaction spells on a warlock since you have so few spell slots to work with, though it'll partly depend on how often your group takes short rests (or can be convinced to); there's nothing wrong with them, but I naturally favour spells with a decent duration. Armor of Agathys being one, hex you already have, I also usually like to have something for a bit of utility. I get a lot of mileage out of unseen servant on every character I take it on, since you can use it to retrieve items without risking traps, or just mess with people (I used mine to pants a guy I didn't like… this is questionable from a value perspective, but I enjoyed it very much 😂).
Up to you though; if you think your campaign will be heavy on combat then having the reactions just in case may be the right call; rebuke can help you to deal an obscene amount of damage in a round as a melee character, and shield is great for not getting hit. I'd maybe consider multiclassing later to get yourself more 1st-level slots for shield though if you find you need it, as unlike rebuke (or absorb elements if you pick that up) it doesn't up-scale with your pact slots so it's good to have some burner slots to spend on it.
Thanks for the advice, a lot of good points. I think its best to go in the first time with half and half, 2 defense spells, and 2 offense spells since i'm not sure how this DM plays campaigns, then the next week I could ask if I could adjust my spells slightly now that I know a bit more about the campaign. I'm sure he'd be fine with it just once. I like the idea of going in with Fiendish Vigor applied and having Armor of Agathy's available when the temp HP goes away and I know i'm getting melee attacked. Mirror Image could be a replacement for Shield, its 1 action vs reaction but could last 3 times as long as Shield so a decent trade off.
If unseen servant was a cantrip i'd definitely take it but since I have Mage Hands and Invisibility I figure those are pretty practical as well for out of combat stuff (I could go invisible and pants someone lol)
Go Armor of Agathys. For melee warlocks they do a lot of their damage by getting hit. Its a very masochistic feel to their melee combat. Usually you do this by deliberately triggering opportunity attacks. Use armor of Agathys and attack the enemy. Retreat back to trigger an opportunity attack which you have Armor of Agathys Temp HP to absorb. Then the enemy takes the Armor of Agathys damage and use your reaction to cast Hellish Rebuke. Do this till you are out of spell slots and temp HP then stay at 10 ft away using your Glaive's reach for the rest of combat doing your best to not get hit.
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i'm undead warlock so i didn't take either because of the thp from form of dread. so i haven'y played with either.
point blank for any warlock who was going melee i'd say fiendish vigor early, then switch that out and go armor of agathys once you scale it.
now for you, hexblade for a one shot (so i'm guessing there will be combat, maybe a couple times or three? i haven't played a one shot), armor.
your AC is a little high. you need to get hit for armor of agathys to really be worth the spell slot.
but for a one shot, it's a flashy spell. if you have a full role party, you'll have other folks doing the the stuff and you should have not much to do except for fighting, and it's the most recommended spell for combat warlocks at level 2 i think.
i'm undead warlock so i didn't take either because of the thp from form of dread. so i haven'y played with either.
point blank for any warlock who was going melee i'd say fiendish vigor early, then switch that out and go armor of agathys once you scale it.
now for you, hexblade for a one shot (so i'm guessing there will be combat, maybe a couple times or three? i haven't played a one shot), armor.
your AC is a little high. you need to get hit for armor of agathys to really be worth the spell slot.
but for a one shot, it's a flashy spell. if you have a full role party, you'll have other folks doing the the stuff and you should have not much to do except for fighting, and it's the most recommended spell for combat warlocks at level 2 i think.
Ya i've never played a one shot either, its a drop in group at a cafe so i'd imagine quite a bit of combat but still i'm sure they'd include decent roleplay. And because its drop in ya no idea who my party will be, I assume they average 4 people per table (there's two tables typically from what I hear) so me and 3 others plus the DM.
I'm leaning towards Armor of Agathy's, Invisibility, Hex and now I'm thinking the Suggestion spell could be fun. I like the idea sending off BBEG to the nearest city and dictating they must confess to a horrible crime in order to ensure they are jailed for life. Though i'm not sure if the spell would end after the creature confessed or once its in jail.....if its after it confessed then the police are going to have a monster to deal with lol but I guess not my problem.
if you're gonna hex & armor, what I'd do is bump con and drop dex a little so you'll get hit just enough when you have armor on, then take eldritch mind to make it real hard to lose concentration. but also if you're going armor & hex, if you lose it during the same combat, you're out of slots.
then again, gotta run out sometime.
I've never looked much at hexblade so i don't know if they take hex or other concentration stuff a lot.
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Hey everyone
So going to be doing a drop in one shot at a game cafe (so don't know my party or what classes they'll be) where everyone is level 3 (gets one free feat which is nice) and i'm running a Hexblade.
Going Polearm Master Feat with Glaive, AC is 16 with scale mail and 2 dex. Charisma got to 18 (thanks to Levistus Tiefling) and Con is 16.
(Note Levistus Tiefling gets one free Armor of Agathy's per day and resets after long rest).
I like the idea of Armor of Agathy's, and lvl 2 gives 10 HP when I only start with 27 HP so nice top up, and was going to take it as one of my spells as well so I can cast it more than once a day, however, is it worth using a spell slot on it if instead I could use Fiendish Vigor before each fight and if I really need it just use my once per day Armor of Agathy's? Or, should I take another eldritch invocation and take Armor of Agathy's as a spell as well and expend a spell slot more often to have it applied more? My other eldritch invocation is obviously improved pact weapon.
Current spells are
Cantrips - Eldritch Blast (to give me something when i can't melee), Mage Hands (meh had to pick something thought it'd be fun)
Spells - Invisibility (more for out of combat stuff), Hex (duh), then a bunch of maybe's for my last two spells. Armor of Agathy's, Shield (i like its a reaction), Hellish Rebuke (same, cause its reaction), Wrathful Smite (meh, not bad cause its a bonus action and I can still attack). Or any other suggestions would be great. Didn't want to go Darkness since its a drop in one shot group and I don't want to cause issues with random people lol
Cheers
Fiendish Vigor is a fine choice early on since it essentially costs you nothing; just recast it every hour (multiple times till you get the max of 8) and you should be set for most fights. Like you say it's a decent chunk of HP for early levels.
You'll want to switch to armor of agathys later on, especially if want to be in melee, as the fact it deals extra (and automatic, no save etc.) damage is a great consolation for when the temp HP gets stripped away, and it will give you a much better buffer going into harder fights. If your campaign tends to have a lot of smaller battles though then Fiendish Vigor can still be a good option as it does add up, but it will disappear fast if you have tougher battles.
My personal preference is to avoid reaction spells on a warlock since you have so few spell slots to work with, though it'll partly depend on how often your group takes short rests (or can be convinced to); there's nothing wrong with them, but I naturally favour spells with a decent duration. Armor of Agathys being one, hex you already have, I also usually like to have something for a bit of utility. I get a lot of mileage out of unseen servant on every character I take it on, since you can use it to retrieve items without risking traps, or just mess with people (I used mine to pants a guy I didn't like… this is questionable from a value perspective, but I enjoyed it very much 😂).
Up to you though; if you think your campaign will be heavy on combat then having the reactions just in case may be the right call; rebuke can help you to deal an obscene amount of damage in a round as a melee character, and shield is great for not getting hit. I'd maybe consider multiclassing later to get yourself more 1st-level slots for shield though if you find you need it, as unlike rebuke (or absorb elements if you pick that up) it doesn't up-scale with your pact slots so it's good to have some burner slots to spend on it.
Former D&D Beyond Customer of six years: With the axing of piecemeal purchasing, lack of meaningful development, and toxic moderation the site isn't worth paying for anymore. I remain a free user only until my groups are done migrating from DDB, and if necessary D&D, after which I'm done. There are better systems owned by better companies out there.
I have unsubscribed from all topics and will not reply to messages. My homebrew is now 100% unsupported.
Thanks for the advice, a lot of good points. I think its best to go in the first time with half and half, 2 defense spells, and 2 offense spells since i'm not sure how this DM plays campaigns, then the next week I could ask if I could adjust my spells slightly now that I know a bit more about the campaign. I'm sure he'd be fine with it just once. I like the idea of going in with Fiendish Vigor applied and having Armor of Agathy's available when the temp HP goes away and I know i'm getting melee attacked. Mirror Image could be a replacement for Shield, its 1 action vs reaction but could last 3 times as long as Shield so a decent trade off.
If unseen servant was a cantrip i'd definitely take it but since I have Mage Hands and Invisibility I figure those are pretty practical as well for out of combat stuff (I could go invisible and pants someone lol)
Go Armor of Agathys. For melee warlocks they do a lot of their damage by getting hit. Its a very masochistic feel to their melee combat. Usually you do this by deliberately triggering opportunity attacks. Use armor of Agathys and attack the enemy. Retreat back to trigger an opportunity attack which you have Armor of Agathys Temp HP to absorb. Then the enemy takes the Armor of Agathys damage and use your reaction to cast Hellish Rebuke. Do this till you are out of spell slots and temp HP then stay at 10 ft away using your Glaive's reach for the rest of combat doing your best to not get hit.
Check out my Disabled & Dragons Youtube Channel for 5e Monster and Player Tactics. Helping the Disabled Community and Players and DM’s (both new and experienced) get into D&D. Plus there is a talking Dragon named Quill.
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i'm undead warlock so i didn't take either because of the thp from form of dread. so i haven'y played with either.
point blank for any warlock who was going melee i'd say fiendish vigor early, then switch that out and go armor of agathys once you scale it.
now for you, hexblade for a one shot (so i'm guessing there will be combat, maybe a couple times or three? i haven't played a one shot), armor.
your AC is a little high. you need to get hit for armor of agathys to really be worth the spell slot.
but for a one shot, it's a flashy spell. if you have a full role party, you'll have other folks doing the the stuff and you should have not much to do except for fighting, and it's the most recommended spell for combat warlocks at level 2 i think.
Ya i've never played a one shot either, its a drop in group at a cafe so i'd imagine quite a bit of combat but still i'm sure they'd include decent roleplay. And because its drop in ya no idea who my party will be, I assume they average 4 people per table (there's two tables typically from what I hear) so me and 3 others plus the DM.
I'm leaning towards Armor of Agathy's, Invisibility, Hex and now I'm thinking the Suggestion spell could be fun. I like the idea sending off BBEG to the nearest city and dictating they must confess to a horrible crime in order to ensure they are jailed for life. Though i'm not sure if the spell would end after the creature confessed or once its in jail.....if its after it confessed then the police are going to have a monster to deal with lol but I guess not my problem.
if you're gonna hex & armor, what I'd do is bump con and drop dex a little so you'll get hit just enough when you have armor on, then take eldritch mind to make it real hard to lose concentration. but also if you're going armor & hex, if you lose it during the same combat, you're out of slots.
then again, gotta run out sometime.
I've never looked much at hexblade so i don't know if they take hex or other concentration stuff a lot.