I love DMing for Warlocks. It is such a rich and interesting experience. It is, however, not without its challenges. Specifically how the patron acts/communicates and what the deal/pact is to them.
In the interest of helping other DMs as well as myself; I would like to open the discussion on: Patrons, Contracts and Warlocks... Oh My!
I have used this only once but I would love to build it up and share the idea. Essentially, I ask three questions. The player answers for the Warlock and I, secretly, answer for the Patron. Here are the questions:
Who initiated the deal?
did the character hunger for power? did the patron see promise in a lowly mortal?
Why did they make the deal, what is the goal?
does the deal promise to right a wrong, revenge? is this the only way to discover the truth about...?
To what end? what are the terms?
does the deal go until Tiamat is risen/stopped? does the deal forfeit the warlock's soul for all eternity?
I am curious. does this work for you folks? is there more needed? what do you think?
I suppose another set of questions you could consider is how they communicate, how often, and how present the patron is. Is the patron a voice in the warlock's head? A psychic presence tied to a particular object? Do they commune in dreams? Perhaps the patron takes the form of animals that visit the warlock? Or maybe the patron communicates more cryptically with signs or omens?
I had no idea how to go about creating the patron for my homebrew, it wasn't something I was ready for but I was put in a place where I had to.
My player was randomly looking for help, direction and guidance. Her past a mystery, her future uncertain, and nothing to work off of. She then told me that she wanted to go Warlock multi-class. So I had to think about what she was doing in game and what I could give her for a patron, and this is what I ended up with:
I needed a Great Old One patron for one of my players, I really didn't want to go with the Cuthulu or "crazy psychic mind bender" patron.
I created "The Grey", he's the original Gith, his home is the center of the Plane of Limbo, the Layer of Lost Gods. His power is so strong that he is, to Limbo, the core, holding the plane together so that it can exist without cascading outward in a wave of Entropy and Chaos. I created him due to the fact that my player was a Monk, so the idea of a patron who was about the Yin/Yang of the cosmos was exciting. His ultimate purpose was to create a balance in all of the realms, where neither "good" nor "evil", "lawful" nor "chaotic, "life" nor "death" would become more present in existence. It was his obsession, his mantra, and it was impossible, Limbo distorting around him constantly he could never bring that balance, it drove him into a deep meditation that was almost like living death.
In that meditation I had my player "accidentally" start siphoning power from him to create the Warlock abilities. At first it caused psychic backlash on the player, until it finally caught the attention of The Grey, where he then approached her in a vision. He explained that, due to her naivete, she had gained his ire and interest and expressed his ability to help her but at a cost. She became his avatar in the world and, if she continued his works on this plane of existence, he would help her find the answers she was seeking.
He began to search for her in the Eternal Tapestry, tracing her Thread of Life, and found that she, and her companions, were oddities capable of changing the course of worlds. Unlike many powerful figures, who simply changed history, they had the ability to shape the world. He expressed his inability to extend his power directly into this world, however he continues to communicate to her, when she's brazen and stubborn enough to get his attention.
He's given her Warlock powers, which turned her hair grey, at one time he gave her the ability to travel so fast that she covered a 9 day journey in 3 days, and he tries to be nothing more than a watcher. However, unknown to his avatar, he has actually grown fond of her and his influence may become more commonplace as she continues to seek out her heritage and change the world with her actions.
-------
Almost all of my Patron decisions and actions are based on the actions of my player(s), I am of a mind to make it organic and initiated by my player(s). In the case of one other Warlock I had, the decision to make the pact was his, however it was a Fiendish pact, so there was some heavy influence by the Fiend.
Hey all,
I love DMing for Warlocks. It is such a rich and interesting experience. It is, however, not without its challenges. Specifically how the patron acts/communicates and what the deal/pact is to them.
In the interest of helping other DMs as well as myself; I would like to open the discussion on: Patrons, Contracts and Warlocks... Oh My!
I have used this only once but I would love to build it up and share the idea. Essentially, I ask three questions. The player answers for the Warlock and I, secretly, answer for the Patron. Here are the questions:
I am curious. does this work for you folks? is there more needed? what do you think?
Cheers
Jesus Saves!... Everyone else takes damage.
I suppose another set of questions you could consider is how they communicate, how often, and how present the patron is. Is the patron a voice in the warlock's head? A psychic presence tied to a particular object? Do they commune in dreams? Perhaps the patron takes the form of animals that visit the warlock? Or maybe the patron communicates more cryptically with signs or omens?
I had no idea how to go about creating the patron for my homebrew, it wasn't something I was ready for but I was put in a place where I had to.
My player was randomly looking for help, direction and guidance. Her past a mystery, her future uncertain, and nothing to work off of. She then told me that she wanted to go Warlock multi-class. So I had to think about what she was doing in game and what I could give her for a patron, and this is what I ended up with:
I needed a Great Old One patron for one of my players, I really didn't want to go with the Cuthulu or "crazy psychic mind bender" patron.
I created "The Grey", he's the original Gith, his home is the center of the Plane of Limbo, the Layer of Lost Gods. His power is so strong that he is, to Limbo, the core, holding the plane together so that it can exist without cascading outward in a wave of Entropy and Chaos. I created him due to the fact that my player was a Monk, so the idea of a patron who was about the Yin/Yang of the cosmos was exciting. His ultimate purpose was to create a balance in all of the realms, where neither "good" nor "evil", "lawful" nor "chaotic, "life" nor "death" would become more present in existence. It was his obsession, his mantra, and it was impossible, Limbo distorting around him constantly he could never bring that balance, it drove him into a deep meditation that was almost like living death.
In that meditation I had my player "accidentally" start siphoning power from him to create the Warlock abilities. At first it caused psychic backlash on the player, until it finally caught the attention of The Grey, where he then approached her in a vision. He explained that, due to her naivete, she had gained his ire and interest and expressed his ability to help her but at a cost. She became his avatar in the world and, if she continued his works on this plane of existence, he would help her find the answers she was seeking.
He began to search for her in the Eternal Tapestry, tracing her Thread of Life, and found that she, and her companions, were oddities capable of changing the course of worlds. Unlike many powerful figures, who simply changed history, they had the ability to shape the world. He expressed his inability to extend his power directly into this world, however he continues to communicate to her, when she's brazen and stubborn enough to get his attention.
He's given her Warlock powers, which turned her hair grey, at one time he gave her the ability to travel so fast that she covered a 9 day journey in 3 days, and he tries to be nothing more than a watcher. However, unknown to his avatar, he has actually grown fond of her and his influence may become more commonplace as she continues to seek out her heritage and change the world with her actions.
-------
Almost all of my Patron decisions and actions are based on the actions of my player(s), I am of a mind to make it organic and initiated by my player(s). In the case of one other Warlock I had, the decision to make the pact was his, however it was a Fiendish pact, so there was some heavy influence by the Fiend.
Thanks guys, I will incorporate your ideas into my patron question bank.
Cheers
Jesus Saves!... Everyone else takes damage.