I would note that it's entirely possible to create a warlock (hexblade or otherwise) that isn't Cha primary, there are plenty of spells that don't use your ability modifier. I would generally avoid using two weapons, however, because you have a bunch of bonus actions that you might want to use.
Unfortunately you'd have to cast Shadow Blade after you finish the long rest first, meaning hex warrior would not work. Even if it did, you would only have the hex warrior effect on it for the Shadow Blade's duration of 1 minute.
the hex warrior feature states that “Whenever you finish a long rest, you can touch one weapon that you are proficient with and that lacks the two-handed property. When you attack with that weapon, you can use your Charisma modifier, instead of Strength and Dexterity, for attack and damage rolls. This benefit lasts until you finish a long rest.”
there is no stipulation saying that the touch has to happen over a duration, just that the weapon has to be touched after a successfully finishing a long rest.
the benefit also doesn’t go away until you successfully finish another long rest.
why wouldn’t the benefit translate over to you summoning your shadow blade again? The duration of shadow blade is indeed 1 minute, but why would your class feature not continue to work When you use your shadow blade again?
just seemed like the feature interaction was dismissed rather quickly without any explanation.
"After you finish a long rest", while unclear, could also mean before you do anything else, you must touch the weapon (keep the weapon with you, walk to the table next to you, etc). There is no duration stipulated, but it would be equally assuming to mean you could wait half a day before you touch a weapon.
But either way, let's assume you can use the ability on the Shadow Blade. The Shadow Blade ceases to exist after 1 minute. If you cast Shadow Blade again, it is a brand new weapon you have created and must be attuned the same way as the first one (i.e. after a long rest).
"After you finish a long rest", while unclear, could also mean before you do anything else, you must touch the weapon (keep the weapon with you, walk to the table next to you, etc). There is no duration stipulated, but it would be equally assuming to mean you could wait half a day before you touch a weapon.
But either way, let's assume you can use the ability on the Shadow Blade. The Shadow Blade ceases to exist after 1 minute. If you cast Shadow Blade again, it is a brand new weapon you have created and must be attuned the same way as the first one (i.e. after a long rest).
It doesn't say "after you finish a long rest," it says "whenever you finish a long rest," which absolutely does mean "before you do anything else." "When" means "at this specific point in time," not five minutes later. That clarification aside, I agree with everything else you've said.
Fair enough, that was sloppiness on my part. I was giving it as broad an interpretation for the sake of the argument but maybe ended up with to too much of an inaccuracy.
I would note that it's entirely possible to create a warlock (hexblade or otherwise) that isn't Cha primary, there are plenty of spells that don't use your ability modifier. I would generally avoid using two weapons, however, because you have a bunch of bonus actions that you might want to use.
A 12th level pact of the blade warlock with tthe lifedrinker invocation can gain a substantial increase in expected damage per round if utilizing their pact weapon with their action AND bonus action.
polearm master and crossbow expert are excellent ways to do this, though polearm master is much easier. Polearm master lets you use glaives, Spears, or quarterstaves for your action and bonus action and all are able to be summoned via the pact of the blade base feature. Crossbow expert is harder since it relies on you finding a magic hand crossbow.
hexblade makes this much easier as you basically get to apply your charisma modifier a second time. This allows for a potential static +10 just from the probable +5 from 20 charisma at this point.
thirsting blade for extra attack, feat for bonus action attack, +1 to attack and damage rolls from improved Pact weapon. 1d6+11, 1d6+11, 1d4+11 is pretty good for not utilizing any spells or other resources and probably having a decent defense while wearing a shield. Also polearm master gives that reaction to hit decently often to from Attacks of opportunity.
"After you finish a long rest", while unclear, could also mean before you do anything else, you must touch the weapon (keep the weapon with you, walk to the table next to you, etc). There is no duration stipulated, but it would be equally assuming to mean you could wait half a day before you touch a weapon.
But either way, let's assume you can use the ability on the Shadow Blade. The Shadow Blade ceases to exist after 1 minute. If you cast Shadow Blade again, it is a brand new weapon you have created and must be attuned the same way as the first one (i.e. after a long rest).
is the blade conjured a brand new blade? The spell description states that the magic sword lasts until the spell ends. But lasts doesn’t necessarily mean the weapon is destroyed.
Perhaps it’s may mean the weapon is unusable until the spell is cast again.
The spell does set up a weird scenario where the weapon “dissipates” at the end of a turn used to throw it, but the spell still says the magic sword is “lasting” while “dissipated” since this is during its duration, and can reappear in your hand by spending a bonus action.
It’s hard for me to conceptualize something dissipating and also still being something it’s not. Magic sword is somehow still lasting while dissipated.
"After you finish a long rest", while unclear, could also mean before you do anything else, you must touch the weapon (keep the weapon with you, walk to the table next to you, etc). There is no duration stipulated, but it would be equally assuming to mean you could wait half a day before you touch a weapon.
But either way, let's assume you can use the ability on the Shadow Blade. The Shadow Blade ceases to exist after 1 minute. If you cast Shadow Blade again, it is a brand new weapon you have created and must be attuned the same way as the first one (i.e. after a long rest).
It doesn't say "after you finish a long rest," it says "whenever you finish a long rest," which absolutely does mean "before you do anything else." "When" means "at this specific point in time," not five minutes later. That clarification aside, I agree with everything else you've said.
Disagree that "whenever you finish a long rest" means "the moment you finish a long rest, and not a second later." "Whenever I eat cheese, I get gassy" does not mean that I get gassy the second that cheese passes my lips, it means that eating cheese is a sufficient prerequisite to guarantee gas.
And is a new magic weapon formed with each casting, or is the same blade recreated each time? Up for interpretation there as well, there's room for reasonable DMs to disagree or give different amounts of latitude.
I don't see where you're going with this. How does magic weapon fit into this topic?
SB's duration is definitely the nail in the coffin for making it work with hexblade's main gimmick. Even if you were able to use the two together, you'd then lose the weapon once the spell ends. Unless a fight breaks out right after the spell is cast and Hex Warrior is applied, it's not going to work out.
"You weave together threads of shadow to create a sword of solidified gloom in your hand."
The spell doesn't summon a pre-existing weapon when cast; it creates one.
I don't see where you're going with this. How does magic weapon fit into this topic?
SB's duration is definitely the nail in the coffin for making it work with hexblade's main gimmick. Even if you were able to use the two together, you'd then lose the weapon once the spell ends. Unless a fight breaks out right after the spell is cast and Hex Warrior is applied, it's not going to work out.
"You weave together threads of shadow to create a sword of solidified gloom in your hand."
The spell doesn't summon a pre-existing weapon when cast; it creates one.
It does have the ability to summon a pre-existing weapon. That’s what the bonus action does if the blade has dissipated.
I’m not trying to squeeze anything really, just pointing out various word interpretations. have never used the spell, never made a warlock, and don’t plan to play with any of these features.
the spell creates a weapon, allows for the weapon to “dissipate”, then allows for the weapon to “reappear” meaning it’s the same weapon.
If the spell allows the weapon to change its form to basically nonexistence, then reform and still be the same weapon, why is it that far if a stretch that it’s the same weapon on previous or future castings? My point is the spells own description allows for the idea to have some validity.
On an unrelated note, apparently shadowblade is a valid option for a kensei monk’s Kensei weapon feature.
Shadow Blade is a magical weapon and gains all the benefits as such, so it does get ability damage where applicable.
Meta-Magic can use 6 sorcery points to make it exist for 64 minutes, so a Sorlock of 6th level (3 Warlock, 3 Sorcerer) can perform the Hex Warrior ritual on it. So, now the Shadow Blade can use Cha in place of Str or Dex. Once it becomes your Pact weapon, it gains these abilities automatically and you no longer have to do this.
By RAW, the Shadow Blade completely qualifies as a candidate to be both a Hex Warrior and Blade Pact weapon (the previous point shows, by RAW, it can be around for the 1 hour needed for the ritual). Since Planar Binding supersedes the duration of a summoning spell, this is a direct comparative of the Pact binding superseding the duration of the Shadow Blade spell, keeping it in existence, to be re-summoned later as a pact weapon.
Hex Warrior says it "can use" Cha in place, but not say "does use", so the Two Weapon rules apply. If the character is human variant, your first feat can be either the Dual Wielder, getting rid of the light weapon requirement in this example, or take the new Tasha's feat to get the Two Weapon Fighting Style. I would find the Tasha's Feat to be more valuable to always get the Cha bonus on every attack of the off-hand. By 7th level, the Sorlock previously mentioned could then take the second feat. Before taking both feats, as a human, you can either use the longsword, or get the ability bonus. Neither if a non-human variant, if below 4th level in a single class, but a 7th level human Sorlock can have both.
If not a Pact Weapon, the Shadow Blade can be summoned the first time after a long rest and be designated as a Hex Warrior weapon. Hex Warrior weapons are designated after a long rest, but nowhere does it say immediately after a long rest, so the first time you cast the spell and summon it, you can designate it as a Hex Warrior weapon. Once designated, the Shadow Blade will function as a Hex Warrior weapon using Cha, for every casting, as it is the same blade and the Hex Warrior ability works as a direct correlation on Pact blades that wink out of existence and back again, so the same applies for the Shadow Blade disappearing and reappearing when re-cast. As a Pact Weapon, the Shadow blade clearly does all those things as stated in the ability under Hexblade.
So for this example, Finesse is irrelevant, as you are trying to use Charisma for your melee weapon replacing strength. If you do not have dual wielder feat, use a shortsword with the Shadow Blade, one is going to lose it's ability damage bonus, so best to use the Shadow Blade in main hand, as some DMs have ruled the off-hand can only attack once per round, so this way the better damage blade will be available for Opportunity Attacks. Once you have the dual wielder feat, the Shadow Blade Pact weapon should be in your main hand and the Hex Warrior designated longsword should be in your off-hand, again so that the higher damage weapon is available for the extra Opportunity Attack, and definitely should be this way if you ever gain an extra attack from either a class or an invocation.
Well the spell says you weave together threads of shadow that solidify into the weapon. And it is an illusion spell not conjuration so you are not summoning a real weapon so I would say it cannot be a pact weapon.
And it isn’t the same weapon each time you cast it as it’s an illusion and not a real object. Yea you can hit things with it but you can do the same with phantasmal killer but it’s not real.
Shadow Blade is a magical weapon and gains all the benefits as such, so it does get ability damage where applicable.
Meta-Magic can use 6 sorcery points to make it exist for 64 minutes, so a Sorlock of 6th level (3 Warlock, 3 Sorcerer) can perform the Hex Warrior ritual on it. So, now the Shadow Blade can use Cha in place of Str or Dex. Once it becomes your Pact weapon, it gains these abilities automatically and you no longer have to do this.
By RAW, the Shadow Blade completely qualifies as a candidate to be both a Hex Warrior and Blade Pact weapon (the previous point shows, by RAW, it can be around for the 1 hour needed for the ritual). Since Planar Binding supersedes the duration of a summoning spell, this is a direct comparative of the Pact binding superseding the duration of the Shadow Blade spell, keeping it in existence, to be re-summoned later as a pact weapon.
Hex Warrior says it "can use" Cha in place, but not say "does use", so the Two Weapon rules apply. If the character is human variant, your first feat can be either the Dual Wielder, getting rid of the light weapon requirement in this example, or take the new Tasha's feat to get the Two Weapon Fighting Style. I would find the Tasha's Feat to be more valuable to always get the Cha bonus on every attack of the off-hand. By 7th level, the Sorlock previously mentioned could then take the second feat. Before taking both feats, as a human, you can either use the longsword, or get the ability bonus. Neither if a non-human variant, if below 4th level in a single class, but a 7th level human Sorlock can have both.
If not a Pact Weapon, the Shadow Blade can be summoned the first time after a long rest and be designated as a Hex Warrior weapon. Hex Warrior weapons are designated after a long rest, but nowhere does it say immediately after a long rest, so the first time you cast the spell and summon it, you can designate it as a Hex Warrior weapon. Once designated, the Shadow Blade will function as a Hex Warrior weapon using Cha, for every casting, as it is the same blade and the Hex Warrior ability works as a direct correlation on Pact blades that wink out of existence and back again, so the same applies for the Shadow Blade disappearing and reappearing when re-cast. As a Pact Weapon, the Shadow blade clearly does all those things as stated in the ability under Hexblade.
So for this example, Finesse is irrelevant, as you are trying to use Charisma for your melee weapon replacing strength. If you do not have dual wielder feat, use a shortsword with the Shadow Blade, one is going to lose it's ability damage bonus, so best to use the Shadow Blade in main hand, as some DMs have ruled the off-hand can only attack once per round, so this way the better damage blade will be available for Opportunity Attacks. Once you have the dual wielder feat, the Shadow Blade Pact weapon should be in your main hand and the Hex Warrior designated longsword should be in your off-hand, again so that the higher damage weapon is available for the extra Opportunity Attack, and definitely should be this way if you ever gain an extra attack from either a class or an invocation.
1) no it doesn't. the spell only does what it says it does. The only descriptor of the sword is that it is "a sword" (so it is definitively not any of the swords described in the PHB and those rules don't apply to it), and the damage is listed as 2d8 (it omits adding any modifier). for comparison, spiritual weapon, explicitly does add the modifier.
2) a Sorc 3/ Warlock 3 would have 3 sorcery points, not 6...the number of points equals the number of sorcerer levels, not character levels. you would need a character of total level 9 to have six points to spend (Sorc 6 / Warlock 3)
3) you can only use the extended spell metamagic once per spell cast, so that's 2 minutes on the shadow blade,
Shadow Blade is a magical weapon and gains all the benefits as such, so it does get ability damage where applicable.
Meta-Magic can use 6 sorcery points to make it exist for 64 minutes, so a Sorlock of 6th level (3 Warlock, 3 Sorcerer) can perform the Hex Warrior ritual on it. So, now the Shadow Blade can use Cha in place of Str or Dex. Once it becomes your Pact weapon, it gains these abilities automatically and you no longer have to do this.
By RAW, the Shadow Blade completely qualifies as a candidate to be both a Hex Warrior and Blade Pact weapon (the previous point shows, by RAW, it can be around for the 1 hour needed for the ritual). Since Planar Binding supersedes the duration of a summoning spell, this is a direct comparative of the Pact binding superseding the duration of the Shadow Blade spell, keeping it in existence, to be re-summoned later as a pact weapon.
Hex Warrior says it "can use" Cha in place, but not say "does use", so the Two Weapon rules apply. If the character is human variant, your first feat can be either the Dual Wielder, getting rid of the light weapon requirement in this example, or take the new Tasha's feat to get the Two Weapon Fighting Style. I would find the Tasha's Feat to be more valuable to always get the Cha bonus on every attack of the off-hand. By 7th level, the Sorlock previously mentioned could then take the second feat. Before taking both feats, as a human, you can either use the longsword, or get the ability bonus. Neither if a non-human variant, if below 4th level in a single class, but a 7th level human Sorlock can have both.
If not a Pact Weapon, the Shadow Blade can be summoned the first time after a long rest and be designated as a Hex Warrior weapon. Hex Warrior weapons are designated after a long rest, but nowhere does it say immediately after a long rest, so the first time you cast the spell and summon it, you can designate it as a Hex Warrior weapon. Once designated, the Shadow Blade will function as a Hex Warrior weapon using Cha, for every casting, as it is the same blade and the Hex Warrior ability works as a direct correlation on Pact blades that wink out of existence and back again, so the same applies for the Shadow Blade disappearing and reappearing when re-cast. As a Pact Weapon, the Shadow blade clearly does all those things as stated in the ability under Hexblade.
So for this example, Finesse is irrelevant, as you are trying to use Charisma for your melee weapon replacing strength. If you do not have dual wielder feat, use a shortsword with the Shadow Blade, one is going to lose it's ability damage bonus, so best to use the Shadow Blade in main hand, as some DMs have ruled the off-hand can only attack once per round, so this way the better damage blade will be available for Opportunity Attacks. Once you have the dual wielder feat, the Shadow Blade Pact weapon should be in your main hand and the Hex Warrior designated longsword should be in your off-hand, again so that the higher damage weapon is available for the extra Opportunity Attack, and definitely should be this way if you ever gain an extra attack from either a class or an invocation.
1) no it doesn't. the spell only does what it says it does. The only descriptor of the sword is that it is "a sword" (so it is definitively not any of the swords described in the PHB and those rules don't apply to it), and the damage is listed as 2d8 (it omits adding any modifier). for comparison, spiritual weapon, explicitly does add the modifier.
The shadow blade absolutely does add your ability modifier to damage, either strength or dexterity, because it has the finesse property. The spell doesn't grant any special kind of attack; you make a normal weapon attack with, for example, the Attack action, using the shadow blade as the weapon. Weapon attacks ALWAYS add an ability modifier to damage, unless something specifically says otherwise (like the Two Weapon Fighting rules). You'll notice that nothing in the PHB's weapon table's damage column lists any ability modifiers either. The rules on adding ability modifiers to damage are in the Combat chapter and apply universally to all weapon attacks. Spiritual weapon needs to specify that it adds the damage modifier because it's a spell attack, not a weapon attack.
Shadow Blade is a magical weapon and gains all the benefits as such, so it does get ability damage where applicable.
Meta-Magic can use 6 sorcery points to make it exist for 64 minutes, so a Sorlock of 6th level (3 Warlock, 3 Sorcerer) can perform the Hex Warrior ritual on it. So, now the Shadow Blade can use Cha in place of Str or Dex. Once it becomes your Pact weapon, it gains these abilities automatically and you no longer have to do this.
By RAW, the Shadow Blade completely qualifies as a candidate to be both a Hex Warrior and Blade Pact weapon (the previous point shows, by RAW, it can be around for the 1 hour needed for the ritual). Since Planar Binding supersedes the duration of a summoning spell, this is a direct comparative of the Pact binding superseding the duration of the Shadow Blade spell, keeping it in existence, to be re-summoned later as a pact weapon.
Hex Warrior says it "can use" Cha in place, but not say "does use", so the Two Weapon rules apply. If the character is human variant, your first feat can be either the Dual Wielder, getting rid of the light weapon requirement in this example, or take the new Tasha's feat to get the Two Weapon Fighting Style. I would find the Tasha's Feat to be more valuable to always get the Cha bonus on every attack of the off-hand. By 7th level, the Sorlock previously mentioned could then take the second feat. Before taking both feats, as a human, you can either use the longsword, or get the ability bonus. Neither if a non-human variant, if below 4th level in a single class, but a 7th level human Sorlock can have both.
If not a Pact Weapon, the Shadow Blade can be summoned the first time after a long rest and be designated as a Hex Warrior weapon. Hex Warrior weapons are designated after a long rest, but nowhere does it say immediately after a long rest, so the first time you cast the spell and summon it, you can designate it as a Hex Warrior weapon. Once designated, the Shadow Blade will function as a Hex Warrior weapon using Cha, for every casting, as it is the same blade and the Hex Warrior ability works as a direct correlation on Pact blades that wink out of existence and back again, so the same applies for the Shadow Blade disappearing and reappearing when re-cast. As a Pact Weapon, the Shadow blade clearly does all those things as stated in the ability under Hexblade.
So for this example, Finesse is irrelevant, as you are trying to use Charisma for your melee weapon replacing strength. If you do not have dual wielder feat, use a shortsword with the Shadow Blade, one is going to lose it's ability damage bonus, so best to use the Shadow Blade in main hand, as some DMs have ruled the off-hand can only attack once per round, so this way the better damage blade will be available for Opportunity Attacks. Once you have the dual wielder feat, the Shadow Blade Pact weapon should be in your main hand and the Hex Warrior designated longsword should be in your off-hand, again so that the higher damage weapon is available for the extra Opportunity Attack, and definitely should be this way if you ever gain an extra attack from either a class or an invocation.
1) no it doesn't. the spell only does what it says it does. The only descriptor of the sword is that it is "a sword" (so it is definitively not any of the swords described in the PHB and those rules don't apply to it), and the damage is listed as 2d8 (it omits adding any modifier). for comparison, spiritual weapon, explicitly does add the modifier.
The shadow blade absolutely does add your ability modifier to damage, either strength or dexterity, because it has the finesse property. The spell doesn't grant any special kind of attack; you make a normal weapon attack with, for example, the Attack action, using the shadow blade as the weapon. Weapon attacks ALWAYS add an ability modifier to damage, unless something specifically says otherwise (like the Two Weapon Fighting rules). You'll notice that nothing in the PHB's weapon table's damage column lists any ability modifiers either. The rules on adding ability modifiers to damage are in the Combat chapter and apply universally to all weapon attacks. Spiritual weapon needs to specify that it adds the damage modifier because it's a spell attack, not a weapon attack.
I have no issue with the rest of your points.
Someone should tell D&DBeyond that...on the character sheet the spell does not add the modifier, where on other attacks (and spells that tell you to add the modifier) it does (I checked to make sure that the character in question had positive modifiers in STR and DEX). I'd argue that they are right at current, as again, spells only do what they say they do, and this spell deliberately omits the ability modifier from damage.
I would note that it's entirely possible to create a warlock (hexblade or otherwise) that isn't Cha primary, there are plenty of spells that don't use your ability modifier. I would generally avoid using two weapons, however, because you have a bunch of bonus actions that you might want to use.
the hex warrior feature states that “Whenever you finish a long rest, you can touch one weapon that you are proficient with and that lacks the two-handed property. When you attack with that weapon, you can use your Charisma modifier, instead of Strength and Dexterity, for attack and damage rolls. This benefit lasts until you finish a long rest.”
there is no stipulation saying that the touch has to happen over a duration, just that the weapon has to be touched after a successfully finishing a long rest.
the benefit also doesn’t go away until you successfully finish another long rest.
why wouldn’t the benefit translate over to you summoning your shadow blade again? The duration of shadow blade is indeed 1 minute, but why would your class feature not continue to work When you use your shadow blade again?
just seemed like the feature interaction was dismissed rather quickly without any explanation.
"After you finish a long rest", while unclear, could also mean before you do anything else, you must touch the weapon (keep the weapon with you, walk to the table next to you, etc). There is no duration stipulated, but it would be equally assuming to mean you could wait half a day before you touch a weapon.
But either way, let's assume you can use the ability on the Shadow Blade. The Shadow Blade ceases to exist after 1 minute. If you cast Shadow Blade again, it is a brand new weapon you have created and must be attuned the same way as the first one (i.e. after a long rest).
It doesn't say "after you finish a long rest," it says "whenever you finish a long rest," which absolutely does mean "before you do anything else." "When" means "at this specific point in time," not five minutes later. That clarification aside, I agree with everything else you've said.
Fair enough, that was sloppiness on my part. I was giving it as broad an interpretation for the sake of the argument but maybe ended up with to too much of an inaccuracy.
A 12th level pact of the blade warlock with tthe lifedrinker invocation can gain a substantial increase in expected damage per round if utilizing their pact weapon with their action AND bonus action.
polearm master and crossbow expert are excellent ways to do this, though polearm master is much easier. Polearm master lets you use glaives, Spears, or quarterstaves for your action and bonus action and all are able to be summoned via the pact of the blade base feature. Crossbow expert is harder since it relies on you finding a magic hand crossbow.
hexblade makes this much easier as you basically get to apply your charisma modifier a second time. This allows for a potential static +10 just from the probable +5 from 20 charisma at this point.
thirsting blade for extra attack, feat for bonus action attack, +1 to attack and damage rolls from improved Pact weapon. 1d6+11, 1d6+11, 1d4+11 is pretty good for not utilizing any spells or other resources and probably having a decent defense while wearing a shield. Also polearm master gives that reaction to hit decently often to from Attacks of opportunity.
is the blade conjured a brand new blade? The spell description states that the magic sword lasts until the spell ends. But lasts doesn’t necessarily mean the weapon is destroyed.
Perhaps it’s may mean the weapon is unusable until the spell is cast again.
The spell does set up a weird scenario where the weapon “dissipates” at the end of a turn used to throw it, but the spell still says the magic sword is “lasting” while “dissipated” since this is during its duration, and can reappear in your hand by spending a bonus action.
It’s hard for me to conceptualize something dissipating and also still being something it’s not. Magic sword is somehow still lasting while dissipated.
Disagree that "whenever you finish a long rest" means "the moment you finish a long rest, and not a second later." "Whenever I eat cheese, I get gassy" does not mean that I get gassy the second that cheese passes my lips, it means that eating cheese is a sufficient prerequisite to guarantee gas.
And is a new magic weapon formed with each casting, or is the same blade recreated each time? Up for interpretation there as well, there's room for reasonable DMs to disagree or give different amounts of latitude.
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I'm going to make this way harder than it needs to be.
Magic Weapon has 1 hr duration.
I don't see where you're going with this. How does magic weapon fit into this topic?
SB's duration is definitely the nail in the coffin for making it work with hexblade's main gimmick. Even if you were able to use the two together, you'd then lose the weapon once the spell ends. Unless a fight breaks out right after the spell is cast and Hex Warrior is applied, it's not going to work out.
"You weave together threads of shadow to create a sword of solidified gloom in your hand."
The spell doesn't summon a pre-existing weapon when cast; it creates one.
It does have the ability to summon a pre-existing weapon. That’s what the bonus action does if the blade has dissipated.
You're trying REALLY hard to squeeze any sort of technicality you can to get this to work for you...
It "summons a pre-existing weapon" because the spell is still active.... the weapon still exists.
I’m not trying to squeeze anything really, just pointing out various word interpretations. have never used the spell, never made a warlock, and don’t plan to play with any of these features.
the spell creates a weapon, allows for the weapon to “dissipate”, then allows for the weapon to “reappear” meaning it’s the same weapon.
If the spell allows the weapon to change its form to basically nonexistence, then reform and still be the same weapon, why is it that far if a stretch that it’s the same weapon on previous or future castings? My point is the spells own description allows for the idea to have some validity.
On an unrelated note, apparently shadowblade is a valid option for a kensei monk’s Kensei weapon feature.
Well the spell says you weave together threads of shadow that solidify into the weapon. And it is an illusion spell not conjuration so you are not summoning a real weapon so I would say it cannot be a pact weapon.
And it isn’t the same weapon each time you cast it as it’s an illusion and not a real object. Yea you can hit things with it but you can do the same with phantasmal killer but it’s not real.
EZD6 by DM Scotty
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397599/EZD6-Core-Rulebook?
You also can't apply a metamagic multiple times unless it says you can.
1) no it doesn't. the spell only does what it says it does. The only descriptor of the sword is that it is "a sword" (so it is definitively not any of the swords described in the PHB and those rules don't apply to it), and the damage is listed as 2d8 (it omits adding any modifier). for comparison, spiritual weapon, explicitly does add the modifier.
2) a Sorc 3/ Warlock 3 would have 3 sorcery points, not 6...the number of points equals the number of sorcerer levels, not character levels. you would need a character of total level 9 to have six points to spend (Sorc 6 / Warlock 3)
3) you can only use the extended spell metamagic once per spell cast, so that's 2 minutes on the shadow blade,
The rest becomes irrelevant due to these issues
The shadow blade absolutely does add your ability modifier to damage, either strength or dexterity, because it has the finesse property. The spell doesn't grant any special kind of attack; you make a normal weapon attack with, for example, the Attack action, using the shadow blade as the weapon. Weapon attacks ALWAYS add an ability modifier to damage, unless something specifically says otherwise (like the Two Weapon Fighting rules). You'll notice that nothing in the PHB's weapon table's damage column lists any ability modifiers either. The rules on adding ability modifiers to damage are in the Combat chapter and apply universally to all weapon attacks. Spiritual weapon needs to specify that it adds the damage modifier because it's a spell attack, not a weapon attack.
I have no issue with the rest of your points.
Someone should tell D&DBeyond that...on the character sheet the spell does not add the modifier, where on other attacks (and spells that tell you to add the modifier) it does (I checked to make sure that the character in question had positive modifiers in STR and DEX). I'd argue that they are right at current, as again, spells only do what they say they do, and this spell deliberately omits the ability modifier from damage.
just to clarify about the ability bonus - https://twitter.com/JeremyECrawford/status/948700385752969216