Hello all, I am in need of ideas and/or assistance. I am starting up a Theros campaign(based on my love of Magic and Greco-Roman myths) and one of my players asked if they could be a warlock. In my exuberance I said "absolutely yes" and went about my business continuing to thumb through the material when it hit me.
I have NO idea what to use for Patrons on Theros.
I don't want to make a player sad by turning down their class request, and i'm a bit shocked the Odysseys book doesn't offer suggestions, so I turn to you, do you have suggestions for Therian Warlock Patrons and their Pact?
If you're interested, you might have a look at this. I actually just released it today at the DMsGuild. An entire new warlock patron subclass, with suggestions inside for specific patrons of this type...
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Author of Fellozial's Ultimate Guide to Poison, The Primal Gith, and other forthcoming titles at DMs Guild
Just let them pick the normal ones with a re-skined name.
That's the problem, they're asking what type of beings would exemplify "Celestial, Archfey, Hexblade, Undying" I'm not even sure a Great Old One pact even makes sense in the world. I can reskin the name but it doesn't help if I'm plum out of ideas for the Patrons themselves.
If you're interested, you might have a look at this. I actually just released it today at the DMsGuild. An entire new warlock patron subclass, with suggestions inside for specific patrons of this type...
Great Old Ones = Tromokratis, and the world's vanquished titans
Archfey = covens of Sea Hags from the islands, nymphs of particularly powerful old trees, lakes, volcanos, etc
Fiends = demon lords or archdevils of the Underworld, covens of night hags, etc
Celestials = archons, elder unicorns
Undying = eidolons of powerful dead mages
Hexblades = mighty weapons forged by Purphoros
Thank you, this actually helps a ton! I may add Powerful Nyxborn to some of these(a legendary Nyxborn Satyr/Centaur as Archfey etc) a Powerful Returned as an Undying Patron
Oh, boy, I like where this is going. I'd think of something like this:
Great Old One: the Titans who came before the Olympians (Uranus, Gaia, Oceanus, Tethys, Hyperion, Theia, Coeus, Phoebe, Cronus, Rhea, Mnemosyne, Themis, Crius, Iapetus, etc.).
Archfey: Nymphs and Satyrs, both spirits of nature, or maybe Oceanids (sea Nymphs), or even Physis herself, the primeval goddess of Nature. If you want to go with the dream theme, I'd suggest the three Oneiroi brothers (Morpheus, Phobetor / Icelus, and Phantasos).
Fiend: Kakodaimones (evil spirits), Chtonian gods (from the Underworld), and the gods Hades and Persephone. "My patron is Kerberos, the Hound of Hades" sounds extremely badass.
Celestial: the Olympians, like Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollon, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, Hestia, Dyonisus / Bacchus.
Undying: Nyx's heirs, the twins Thanatos and Hypnos.
Hexblade: Erebos, the Darkness itself, father of many lesser deities like Death, Sleep, Dream, Blame, Revenge, Fate, Old age, Deceit, Discord, Violent death, Misery, Friendship, and then the Hesperides, the Moirai and even Charon. Or you could use Hephaestus here.
Oh, boy, I like where this is going. I'd think of something like this:
Great Old One: the Titans who came before the Olympians (Uranus, Gaia, Oceanus, Tethys, Hyperion, Theia, Coeus, Phoebe, Cronus, Rhea, Mnemosyne, Themis, Crius, Iapetus, etc.).
Archfey: Nymphs and Satyrs, both spirits of nature, or maybe Oceanids (sea Nymphs), or even Physis herself, the primeval goddess of Nature. If you want to go with the dream theme, I'd suggest the three Oneiroi brothers (Morpheus, Phobetor / Icelus, and Phantasos).
Fiend: Kakodaimones (evil spirits), Chtonian gods (from the Underworld), and the gods Hades and Persephone. "My patron is Kerberos, the Hound of Hades" sounds extremely badass.
Celestial: the Olympians, like Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollon, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, Hestia, Dyonisus / Bacchus.
Undying: Nyx's heirs, the twins Thanatos and Hypnos.
Hexblade: Erebos, the Darkness itself, father of many lesser deities like Death, Sleep, Dream, Blame, Revenge, Fate, Old age, Deceit, Discord, Violent death, Misery, Friendship, and then the Hesperides, the Moirai and even Charon. Or you could use Hephaestus here.
None of those are really endemic to Theros. Greek yes. Theros no.
Using the search engine Scryfall I searched for all legendary cards of Theros that are not gods. I found 48 using this configuration. It should be enough to give you a first idea over important characters in Theros. Then there are also all Mythic Rare cards that are not legendary, a total of 10, to be found here.
You usually don't want gods, as powerful entities either take worshipers or warlocks in DnD.
If you don't want patrons to be gods, then Greek areas offer a ton of potential. Greece, in Alexander's time, conquered most of Persia and the Near East. So, Greek concepts of spirits were enriched and multicultural, and not merely limited to the classic Athenian deities we learn in school.
Celestials: The 9 Muses, for example. Can also be used for Archfey, depending on the structure (will explain below). Also, fallen gods like Uranus. Yazatas, which are Persian / Zorastrian in origin, night also fill the bill.
Archfey: Satyrs, Centaurs, and the like. Also, depending on how your DM allows, muses might work here as they are patrons of arts, music and knowledge. My Warlock's is Ourania, muse of Astronomy, who is an aspect/analogue of one of Selune's assistants.
Fiend: Any of the fallen Titans. But also, the Greek liberation of the Levant added several Jewish and Canaanite myths. Gog and Magog along with most of our current devils in D&D lore are Levantine in origin, etc.
GOO: this is where ancient Anatolia (Turkey) becomes really useful: Hedammu is an ancient sea dragon that was said to be the child of gods.
Undying: in many near Eastern cultures, the failure to properly bury the dead leads them to wander. This the importance of burial rituals and the like. A powerful king or wizard simply left unburied could be cool. Gelim are vengeance spirits, similar to Banshees. They are often the classic "jilted lover dies tragically" story, but there's no reason they can't be modified for other stories.
Best of luck!
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May the gentle moonlinght guide you to greater wisdom
None of those are really endemic to Theros. Greek yes. Theros no.
At least Erebos and Nyx should be in it, as far as I know. Magic has even an expansion called "Journey into Nyx". From their union most of the other spirits are spawned, in the Greek mythology, so it should be fine, DM (you) willing.
I'm a bit late to the party but DUDE. This is incredible and so simple, I've really been struggling with how to incorporate a warlock NPC into my game! Even better that the Hexblade warlock I want to incorporate is a Warforged, or "Anvilwrought." Purphoros just fits right in.
Hello all, I am in need of ideas and/or assistance. I am starting up a Theros campaign(based on my love of Magic and Greco-Roman myths) and one of my players asked if they could be a warlock. In my exuberance I said "absolutely yes" and went about my business continuing to thumb through the material when it hit me.
I have NO idea what to use for Patrons on Theros.
I don't want to make a player sad by turning down their class request, and i'm a bit shocked the Odysseys book doesn't offer suggestions, so I turn to you, do you have suggestions for Therian Warlock Patrons and their Pact?
Just let them pick the normal ones with a re-skined name.
If you're interested, you might have a look at this. I actually just released it today at the DMsGuild. An entire new warlock patron subclass, with suggestions inside for specific patrons of this type...
That's the problem, they're asking what type of beings would exemplify "Celestial, Archfey, Hexblade, Undying" I'm not even sure a Great Old One pact even makes sense in the world. I can reskin the name but it doesn't help if I'm plum out of ideas for the Patrons themselves.
Thank you, but not what I'm looking for
Definitely take a look at Magic: The Gathering cards and lore, since Theros is coming from there originally.
In that case, I'd say for Theros...
Great Old Ones = Tromokratis, and the world's vanquished titans
Archfey = covens of Sea Hags from the islands, nymphs of particularly powerful old trees, lakes, volcanos, etc
Fiends = demon lords or archdevils of the Underworld, covens of night hags, etc
Celestials = archons, elder unicorns
Undying = eidolons of powerful dead mages
Hexblades = mighty weapons forged by Purphoros
Thank you, this actually helps a ton! I may add Powerful Nyxborn to some of these(a legendary Nyxborn Satyr/Centaur as Archfey etc) a Powerful Returned as an Undying Patron
Oh, boy, I like where this is going. I'd think of something like this:
Great Old One: the Titans who came before the Olympians (Uranus, Gaia, Oceanus, Tethys, Hyperion, Theia, Coeus, Phoebe, Cronus, Rhea, Mnemosyne, Themis, Crius, Iapetus, etc.).
Archfey: Nymphs and Satyrs, both spirits of nature, or maybe Oceanids (sea Nymphs), or even Physis herself, the primeval goddess of Nature. If you want to go with the dream theme, I'd suggest the three Oneiroi brothers (Morpheus, Phobetor / Icelus, and Phantasos).
Fiend: Kakodaimones (evil spirits), Chtonian gods (from the Underworld), and the gods Hades and Persephone. "My patron is Kerberos, the Hound of Hades" sounds extremely badass.
Celestial: the Olympians, like Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollon, Artemis, Ares, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, Hermes, Hestia, Dyonisus / Bacchus.
Undying: Nyx's heirs, the twins Thanatos and Hypnos.
Hexblade: Erebos, the Darkness itself, father of many lesser deities like Death, Sleep, Dream, Blame, Revenge, Fate, Old age, Deceit, Discord, Violent death, Misery, Friendship, and then the Hesperides, the Moirai and even Charon. Or you could use Hephaestus here.
None of those are really endemic to Theros. Greek yes. Theros no.
Using the search engine Scryfall I searched for all legendary cards of Theros that are not gods. I found 48 using this configuration.
It should be enough to give you a first idea over important characters in Theros.
Then there are also all Mythic Rare cards that are not legendary, a total of 10, to be found here.
You usually don't want gods, as powerful entities either take worshipers or warlocks in DnD.
If you don't want patrons to be gods, then Greek areas offer a ton of potential. Greece, in Alexander's time, conquered most of Persia and the Near East. So, Greek concepts of spirits were enriched and multicultural, and not merely limited to the classic Athenian deities we learn in school.
Celestials: The 9 Muses, for example. Can also be used for Archfey, depending on the structure (will explain below). Also, fallen gods like Uranus. Yazatas, which are Persian / Zorastrian in origin, night also fill the bill.
Archfey: Satyrs, Centaurs, and the like. Also, depending on how your DM allows, muses might work here as they are patrons of arts, music and knowledge. My Warlock's is Ourania, muse of Astronomy, who is an aspect/analogue of one of Selune's assistants.
Fiend: Any of the fallen Titans. But also, the Greek liberation of the Levant added several Jewish and Canaanite myths. Gog and Magog along with most of our current devils in D&D lore are Levantine in origin, etc.
GOO: this is where ancient Anatolia (Turkey) becomes really useful: Hedammu is an ancient sea dragon that was said to be the child of gods.
Undying: in many near Eastern cultures, the failure to properly bury the dead leads them to wander. This the importance of burial rituals and the like. A powerful king or wizard simply left unburied could be cool. Gelim are vengeance spirits, similar to Banshees. They are often the classic "jilted lover dies tragically" story, but there's no reason they can't be modified for other stories.
Best of luck!
May the gentle moonlinght guide you to greater wisdom
At least Erebos and Nyx should be in it, as far as I know. Magic has even an expansion called "Journey into Nyx". From their union most of the other spirits are spawned, in the Greek mythology, so it should be fine, DM (you) willing.
Shameless self promotion but I have a warlock class based on Ashiok from MTG if you want to base it on a planeswalker
https://www.dndbeyond.com/subclasses/185051-thrall-of-ashiok
You could always just use GOO for ashiok though.
Otherwise:
Shadowspear would be a powerful artifact level weapon for a Hexblade Patron
Heliod or Daxos for Clestial Patrons
As previously mentioned Erebos or Tymaret for Undying
Kroxa could be good in the Fiend patron role.
Other Legendary, God or Demi God cards could work but need a little homebrewing for spells/abilities
I'm a bit late to the party but DUDE. This is incredible and so simple, I've really been struggling with how to incorporate a warlock NPC into my game! Even better that the Hexblade warlock I want to incorporate is a Warforged, or "Anvilwrought." Purphoros just fits right in.
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