I noticed you abandoned comparisons to the other arcane casters and went direct to the fighter.
Did I? would you have preferred me saying you have the same higher slots as a sorcerer and a wizard at 15, with an 8th, 7th, 6th level slot just like them + truesight + fighter level single target at will ranged damage. You get the best aspects of all of them and STILL have invocations left over. However you frame it is the same.
1. At warlock level 5-6 you choose up to a 3rd level spell and can cast it once per long rest at 3rd level. So, if you decided to choose Burning Hands, which is a 1st level spell, you cast it at 3rd level. And same for the other MA if you choose the higher options at the appropriate levels (you could use your 17+ level MA to pick Fireball and cast it at 9th level.
This one.
Also, as you can change one invocation at each level up, notice that you can upgrade it as the changed invocation, but with the limit that can have only one MA of each level listed as mentioned in the skill.
Ok that makes more sense to me. But I do think you are correct that it needs further clarification as I read it as no matter what spell you choose it is still cast at its lowest level. The table only tells you the maximum spell level you can pick from not the maximum level you cast the chosen spell. So Burning Hands as a 5-6 level pic would still only be cast at 1st level.
I don’t think that’s how it’s written. Mystic Arcanum have always been select a spell of the level. Never has it been select a lower level spell and cast it at higher level. Let me reread the one dnd version, but I’m pretty sure you pick a spell of the level as the mystic arcanum, by RAW and RAI
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
I noticed you abandoned comparisons to the other arcane casters and went direct to the fighter.
Did I? would you have preferred me saying you have the same higher slots as a sorcerer and a wizard at 15, with an 8th, 7th, 6th level slot just like them + truesight + fighter level single target at will ranged damage. You get the best aspects of all of them and STILL have invocations left over. However you frame it is the same.
Remember that that is a very, very short ranged True Sight. The Invocation only gives a 30 ft range, not the 120 ft of the actual spell.
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
Having MA always cast at max level would be interesting. Would make lower level MA a more interesting option, though I think it would have balance issues.
1. At warlock level 5-6 you choose up to a 3rd level spell and can cast it once per long rest at 3rd level. So, if you decided to choose Burning Hands, which is a 1st level spell, you cast it at 3rd level. And same for the other MA if you choose the higher options at the appropriate levels (you could use your 17+ level MA to pick Fireball and cast it at 9th level.
This one.
Also, as you can change one invocation at each level up, notice that you can upgrade it as the changed invocation, but with the limit that can have only one MA of each level listed as mentioned in the skill.
Ok that makes more sense to me. But I do think you are correct that it needs further clarification as I read it as no matter what spell you choose it is still cast at its lowest level. The table only tells you the maximum spell level you can pick from not the maximum level you cast the chosen spell. So Burning Hands as a 5-6 level pic would still only be cast at 1st level.
I don’t think that’s how it’s written. Mystic Arcanum have always been select a spell of the level. Never has it been select a lower level spell and cast it at higher level. Let me reread the one dnd version, but I’m pretty sure you pick a spell of the level as the mystic arcanum, by RAW and RAI
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
That’s how I read it as well. You can choose up to the spell level on the chart and cast it at its lowest level. So you probably don’t want to grab a spell lower than the max available for that MA.
I noticed you abandoned comparisons to the other arcane casters and went direct to the fighter.
Did I? would you have preferred me saying you have the same higher slots as a sorcerer and a wizard at 15, with an 8th, 7th, 6th level slot just like them + truesight + fighter level single target at will ranged damage. You get the best aspects of all of them and STILL have invocations left over. However you frame it is the same.
Remember that that is a very, very short ranged True Sight. The Invocation only gives a 30 ft range, not the 120 ft of the actual spell.
Does that really make a difference? When will you actually be using True Sight anyway?
Does that really make a difference? When will you actually be using True Sight anyway?
It makes a difference if you're doing something like using it as a replacement for devil's sight to see through your own darkness, or if the DM is doing something like putting an arcanoloth in a darkness field high above the ground in a room where you can't get more than 120' away (bonus points if you can name the module that figured that was a good idea), but the primary purpose of "invalidate illusion-based plot points" works just fine with 30'.
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
Having MA always cast at max level would be interesting. Would make lower level MA a more interesting option, though I think it would have balance issues.
They really should split Mystic Arcanum into two invocations: Lesser and Greater Mystic Arcanum
Lesser Mystic Arcanum
1st-5th level spells
Spell always cast at the level of highest level Mystic Arcanum you qualify for, up to a maximum of 5th level
A spell can be taken as Lesser Mystic Arcanum multiple times
Greater Mystic Arcanum
6th-9th level spells
Spell always cast at its lowest level
A spell can be taken as Greater Mystic Arcanum only once
Each Greater Mystic Arcanum has to be of different level than the Greater Mystic Arcanums you already have
1. At warlock level 5-6 you choose up to a 3rd level spell and can cast it once per long rest at 3rd level. So, if you decided to choose Burning Hands, which is a 1st level spell, you cast it at 3rd level. And same for the other MA if you choose the higher options at the appropriate levels (you could use your 17+ level MA to pick Fireball and cast it at 9th level.
This one.
Also, as you can change one invocation at each level up, notice that you can upgrade it as the changed invocation, but with the limit that can have only one MA of each level listed as mentioned in the skill.
Ok that makes more sense to me. But I do think you are correct that it needs further clarification as I read it as no matter what spell you choose it is still cast at its lowest level. The table only tells you the maximum spell level you can pick from not the maximum level you cast the chosen spell. So Burning Hands as a 5-6 level pic would still only be cast at 1st level.
I don’t think that’s how it’s written. Mystic Arcanum have always been select a spell of the level. Never has it been select a lower level spell and cast it at higher level. Let me reread the one dnd version, but I’m pretty sure you pick a spell of the level as the mystic arcanum, by RAW and RAI
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
Please clarify. The base rule is that the level of a spell is the level you cast it. If you cast burning hands using a 4th level slot, is a 4th level spell, and you need to cast counterspell at 4th level to auto-counter it. The exception is specified, which is the case of Globe of Invulneratibility. So when it says "you choose a spell of the level", does not mean "a spell placed at level X in the domain list" (that is close to how is written in Globe of Invulnerability), but a spell of that level, that can be a level casted with a slot of that level. I.e. you could choose Haste as level 3 spell, and again Haste as level 4 (to get extra usages between long rests), even if it doesn't get anything from upcasting (more than being harder to counter), as you can cast Haste with a 4th level slot being then a 4th level spell.
In any case as we are noticing, I think is recommended that when sending survey each one should describe how interpret the rule that don't agree or would change. So the rule writers could get the idea if need then to fix something, or if was misunderstood, and in the last case, if very often, maybe could rewrite some parts to specify not only what is, but also adding what is not to clarify.
1. At warlock level 5-6 you choose up to a 3rd level spell and can cast it once per long rest at 3rd level. So, if you decided to choose Burning Hands, which is a 1st level spell, you cast it at 3rd level. And same for the other MA if you choose the higher options at the appropriate levels (you could use your 17+ level MA to pick Fireball and cast it at 9th level.
This one.
Also, as you can change one invocation at each level up, notice that you can upgrade it as the changed invocation, but with the limit that can have only one MA of each level listed as mentioned in the skill.
Ok that makes more sense to me. But I do think you are correct that it needs further clarification as I read it as no matter what spell you choose it is still cast at its lowest level. The table only tells you the maximum spell level you can pick from not the maximum level you cast the chosen spell. So Burning Hands as a 5-6 level pic would still only be cast at 1st level.
I don’t think that’s how it’s written. Mystic Arcanum have always been select a spell of the level. Never has it been select a lower level spell and cast it at higher level. Let me reread the one dnd version, but I’m pretty sure you pick a spell of the level as the mystic arcanum, by RAW and RAI
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
Please clarify. The base rule is that the level of a spell is the level you cast it. If you cast burning hands using a 4th level slot, is a 4th level spell, and you need to cast counterspell at 4th level to auto-counter it. The exception is specified, which is the case of Globe of Invulneratibility. So when it says "you choose a spell of the level", does not mean "a spell placed at level X in the domain list" (that is close to how is written in Globe of Invulnerability), but a spell of that level, that can be a level casted with a slot of that level. I.e. you could choose Haste as level 3 spell, and again Haste as level 4 (to get extra usages between long rests), even if it doesn't get anything from upcasting (more than being harder to counter), as you can cast Haste with a 4th level slot being then a 4th level spell.Well
In any case as we are noticing, I think is recommended that when sending survey each one should describe how interpret the rule that don't agree or would change. So the rule writers could get the idea if need then to fix something, or if was misunderstood, and in the last case, if very often, maybe could rewrite some parts to specify not only what is, but also adding what is not to clarify.
Well RAW, RAI, When you gain a spell that you can cast without using a spell slot it is always cast at its base level. MA, Hex Master, Invocations, Patron Spells, Wizard Signature spells all work this way and always have. The only rules we have for upcasting is specifically in the 2014 book which have not changed because they are not in the rules glossary which specifically states that to upcast a spell you must SPEND a higher level spell slot to do it. MA doesn't give you a spell slot.
1. At warlock level 5-6 you choose up to a 3rd level spell and can cast it once per long rest at 3rd level. So, if you decided to choose Burning Hands, which is a 1st level spell, you cast it at 3rd level. And same for the other MA if you choose the higher options at the appropriate levels (you could use your 17+ level MA to pick Fireball and cast it at 9th level.
This one.
Also, as you can change one invocation at each level up, notice that you can upgrade it as the changed invocation, but with the limit that can have only one MA of each level listed as mentioned in the skill.
Ok that makes more sense to me. But I do think you are correct that it needs further clarification as I read it as no matter what spell you choose it is still cast at its lowest level. The table only tells you the maximum spell level you can pick from not the maximum level you cast the chosen spell. So Burning Hands as a 5-6 level pic would still only be cast at 1st level.
I don’t think that’s how it’s written. Mystic Arcanum have always been select a spell of the level. Never has it been select a lower level spell and cast it at higher level. Let me reread the one dnd version, but I’m pretty sure you pick a spell of the level as the mystic arcanum, by RAW and RAI
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
Please clarify. The base rule is that the level of a spell is the level you cast it. If you cast burning hands using a 4th level slot, is a 4th level spell, and you need to cast counterspell at 4th level to auto-counter it. The exception is specified, which is the case of Globe of Invulneratibility. So when it says "you choose a spell of the level", does not mean "a spell placed at level X in the domain list" (that is close to how is written in Globe of Invulnerability), but a spell of that level, that can be a level casted with a slot of that level. I.e. you could choose Haste as level 3 spell, and again Haste as level 4 (to get extra usages between long rests), even if it doesn't get anything from upcasting (more than being harder to counter), as you can cast Haste with a 4th level slot being then a 4th level spell.
In any case as we are noticing, I think is recommended that when sending survey each one should describe how interpret the rule that don't agree or would change. So the rule writers could get the idea if need then to fix something, or if was misunderstood, and in the last case, if very often, maybe could rewrite some parts to specify not only what is, but also adding what is not to clarify.
The Mystic Arcanum doesn’t give you a spell slot so when you select a spell for MA you are selecting its base level. It’s even in the description of the one dnd MA if you read the whole thing. I’ve bold the parts of import for our discussion.
MYSTIC ARCANUM Prerequisite: 5th-level Warlock or Higher Your explorations of the arcane have unlocked magic within you. Choose one spell from the Arcane spell list that has a level for which you qualify, as shown on the Mystic Arcanum table. Look for your Warlock level on the table to see the maximum level that the spell can have. You can cast the chosen spell once without expending a Spell Slot, and you must finish a Long Rest before you can do so again. Repeatable. You can take this invocation more than once. Each time you do so, the spell you gain must be of a different level from any other spell you’ve chosen for this invocation.
Basically 3rd level Magic Missile isn’t a spell you can select because 3rd level magic missile doesn’t exist until you cast 1st level magic missile using a 3rd level slot. MA is not a spell slot. Nothing in MA says you can use it as a spell slot. This can be further proven in the description given by the Spellcasting feature on the number of spells known:
“…Prepared Spells of 1st+ Level. You prepare the list of spells of 1st level and higher that are available for you to cast with this feature. To start, choose two 1st-level spells from the Arcane spell list. Rather than choosing, you may start with Charm Person and Witch Bolt...”
WotC considers both Charm Person and Witch Bolt to be first level spells. A spells level is the first level it appears on a list. When cast at a higher level it is a spell of that level. Mystic Arcanum can not cast a spell at a higher level, because it is not a spell slot of any level.
So, random idea from person who hasn't actually played much D&D but is interested in the game-design side of things...
Why not have the Warlock get a free Mystic Arcanum...tied to their Patron? Each Patron has a list of spells going up to ninth level, you pick one that you qualify for with your Warlock level. You can't take a regular Mystic Arcanum of the same level. Warlocks in OneD&D already get Patron spells and one freebie cast; it can be tied into that feature, and meshes with the idea of them calling upon the power of their Patron to do Something Really Awesome.
I would personally really like that sort of system, but traditionally spells given by subclasses go only up to 5th level.
Is it just me or does pact of the blade now feels even weaker compared to EB? With the smite invocation gone it just feels weak compared to paladin. Both get two attacks but lifedrinker compared to the heavy paladin smites it feels weak.
Cant wait to see the celestial warlock subclass. Really like to play the kind of fishy paladin aka clestial warlock pact of blade.
Is it just me or does pact of the blade now feels even weaker compared to EB? With the smite invocation gone it just feels weak compared to paladin. Both get two attacks but lifedrinker compared to the heavy paladin smites it feels weak.
Cant wait to see the celestial warlock subclass. Really like to play the kind of fishy paladin aka clestial warlock pact of blade.
Pre level 11 yes vs a paladin etc, 11+ not as clear as you will start tossing some really powerful spells. VS eldritch blast, likely as it doesn't seem like they have access to much of the melee damage boosts like weapon masteries etc to make up for being a one handed no shield guy.,
Taking the previous, instead so many random changes, I'd rewrite the Warlock features to the way I though to be. So rewrite:
Choose one spell from the Arcane spell list that has a level for which you qualify, as shown on the Mystic Arcanum table.
By:
Choose one spell from the Arcane spell list with a casting level for which you qualify, as shown on the Mystic Arcanum table.
And repeat for others invocations and skills/features to avoid them to underpower in time.
Just like the Sorcerer new Twinned that establishes the previous spell level using a slot.
For those testing it, try this way. At least in my case it fits well.
For ease of use and understanding I would place a sentence that establishes the MA cast the spell at a certain level and you can pick any spell of that level or below to be cast at that level. Even with your current rewrite it technically doesn’t allow up casting.
Is it just me or does pact of the blade now feels even weaker compared to EB? With the smite invocation gone it just feels weak compared to paladin. Both get two attacks but lifedrinker compared to the heavy paladin smites it feels weak.
Cant wait to see the celestial warlock subclass. Really like to play the kind of fishy paladin aka clestial warlock pact of blade.
Pact of the Blade is stronger than it use to be. It was always weaker than EB. What you are confusing is hex warrior from the Hexblade that when combined with pact of the blade made it the go warlock subclass. Honestly people would just dip for hex warrior and not even stay long enough to get a pact. Staying for 5e Pact Blade does have its benefits. Like getting a greatsword to work with Cha. Basically what one dnd has done is take some of the benifits of hex warrior and it’s weaknesses and make them a part of pact of the blade cantrip. The 5epact of the blade allowed any magic weapon no matter the size, but didn’t make your attack stat Cha. Hex warrior made your attack stat Cha
honestly i hope Hex Warrior in the Pact Weapon cantrip moves to something like "When you reach 2nd level as a Warlock," verbiage. third level would be even better. a min-max dip should be a difficult choice, not a requirement.
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unhappy at the way in which we lost individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
tell them you don't like features disappeared quietly in the night: providefeedback!
honestly i hope Hex Warrior in the Pact Weapon cantrip moves to something like "When you reach 2nd level as a Warlock," verbiage. third level would be even better. a min-max dip should be a difficult choice, not a requirement.
Or they should redesign paladins so it's not a necessity. Really, MAD vs SAD on characters is somewhat of a problem; there are several fixes but none that are easy to implement without pretty radical changes to the core game system.
honestly i hope Hex Warrior in the Pact Weapon cantrip moves to something like "When you reach 2nd level as a Warlock," verbiage. third level would be even better. a min-max dip should be a difficult choice, not a requirement.
You can't really move the casting-stat-for-melee-attacks feature higher up.
honestly i hope Hex Warrior in the Pact Weapon cantrip moves to something like "When you reach 2nd level as a Warlock," verbiage. third level would be even better. a min-max dip should be a difficult choice, not a requirement.
You can't really move the casting-stat-for-melee-attacks feature higher up.
Honestly, Pact Warrior is mostly just Shillelagh with fewer weapon restrictions but a full action casting instead of a bonus action. For a One D&D paladin I'd probably just use Magic Initiate (Shillelagh, Another Cantrip, and something like Goodberry or Hunter's Mark) instead of a warlock dip.
However, if you want pact weapon to be less dippable, change it to a cantrip that executes an attack with a weapon (a la booming/greenflame blade) that uses your casting stat instead of the weapon's stat. I wouldn't even be scared of making that a general Arcane list spell. Maybe call it True Strike :)
True Strike (S, M)
Make a single attack with the weapon used as a material component, using your spell attack modifier to hit and your spellcasting ability score for damage bonus. Add 1d6 damage at level 5, 2d6 at level 11, 3d6 at level 17.
Did I? would you have preferred me saying you have the same higher slots as a sorcerer and a wizard at 15, with an 8th, 7th, 6th level slot just like them + truesight + fighter level single target at will ranged damage. You get the best aspects of all of them and STILL have invocations left over. However you frame it is the same.
I don’t think that’s how it’s written. Mystic Arcanum have always been select a spell of the level. Never has it been select a lower level spell and cast it at higher level. Let me reread the one dnd version, but I’m pretty sure you pick a spell of the level as the mystic arcanum, by RAW and RAI
Edit: After a quick reread you definitely cast the spell at the level of the spell not the level you at which you could acquire the Mystic Arcanum. A 5th level Warlock who chooses to use MA to get burining hands would be taking a 1st level MA. Not getting Burning hands on a 3rd Level MA. That is not possible with MA as written.
Remember that that is a very, very short ranged True Sight. The Invocation only gives a 30 ft range, not the 120 ft of the actual spell.
Having MA always cast at max level would be interesting. Would make lower level MA a more interesting option, though I think it would have balance issues.
That’s how I read it as well. You can choose up to the spell level on the chart and cast it at its lowest level. So you probably don’t want to grab a spell lower than the max available for that MA.
EZD6 by DM Scotty
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397599/EZD6-Core-Rulebook?
Does that really make a difference? When will you actually be using True Sight anyway?
It makes a difference if you're doing something like using it as a replacement for devil's sight to see through your own darkness, or if the DM is doing something like putting an arcanoloth in a darkness field high above the ground in a room where you can't get more than 120' away (bonus points if you can name the module that figured that was a good idea), but the primary purpose of "invalidate illusion-based plot points" works just fine with 30'.
They really should split Mystic Arcanum into two invocations: Lesser and Greater Mystic Arcanum
Please clarify. The base rule is that the level of a spell is the level you cast it. If you cast burning hands using a 4th level slot, is a 4th level spell, and you need to cast counterspell at 4th level to auto-counter it. The exception is specified, which is the case of Globe of Invulneratibility. So when it says "you choose a spell of the level", does not mean "a spell placed at level X in the domain list" (that is close to how is written in Globe of Invulnerability), but a spell of that level, that can be a level casted with a slot of that level. I.e. you could choose Haste as level 3 spell, and again Haste as level 4 (to get extra usages between long rests), even if it doesn't get anything from upcasting (more than being harder to counter), as you can cast Haste with a 4th level slot being then a 4th level spell.
In any case as we are noticing, I think is recommended that when sending survey each one should describe how interpret the rule that don't agree or would change. So the rule writers could get the idea if need then to fix something, or if was misunderstood, and in the last case, if very often, maybe could rewrite some parts to specify not only what is, but also adding what is not to clarify.
Well RAW, RAI, When you gain a spell that you can cast without using a spell slot it is always cast at its base level. MA, Hex Master, Invocations, Patron Spells, Wizard Signature spells all work this way and always have. The only rules we have for upcasting is specifically in the 2014 book which have not changed because they are not in the rules glossary which specifically states that to upcast a spell you must SPEND a higher level spell slot to do it. MA doesn't give you a spell slot.
The Mystic Arcanum doesn’t give you a spell slot so when you select a spell for MA you are selecting its base level. It’s even in the description of the one dnd MA if you read the whole thing. I’ve bold the parts of import for our discussion.
MYSTIC ARCANUM
Prerequisite: 5th-level Warlock or Higher
Your explorations of the arcane have unlocked magic within you. Choose one spell from the Arcane spell list that has a level for which you qualify, as shown on the Mystic Arcanum table. Look for your Warlock level on the table to see the maximum level that the spell can have.
You can cast the chosen spell once without expending a Spell Slot, and you must finish a Long Rest before you can do so again.
Repeatable. You can take this invocation more than once. Each time you do so, the spell you gain must be of a different level from any other spell you’ve chosen for this invocation.
Basically 3rd level Magic Missile isn’t a spell you can select because 3rd level magic missile doesn’t exist until you cast 1st level magic missile using a 3rd level slot. MA is not a spell slot. Nothing in MA says you can use it as a spell slot. This can be further proven in the description given by the Spellcasting feature on the number of spells known:
“…Prepared Spells of 1st+ Level. You prepare the list of spells of 1st level and higher that are available for you to cast with this feature. To start, choose two 1st-level spells from the Arcane spell list. Rather than choosing, you may start with Charm Person and Witch Bolt...”
WotC considers both Charm Person and Witch Bolt to be first level spells. A spells level is the first level it appears on a list. When cast at a higher level it is a spell of that level. Mystic Arcanum can not cast a spell at a higher level, because it is not a spell slot of any level.
Taking the previous, instead so many random changes, I'd rewrite the Warlock features to the way I though to be. So rewrite:
By:
And repeat for others invocations and skills/features to avoid them to underpower in time.
Just like the Sorcerer new Twinned that establishes the previous spell level using a slot.
For those testing it, try this way. At least in my case it fits well.
I would personally really like that sort of system, but traditionally spells given by subclasses go only up to 5th level.
Is it just me or does pact of the blade now feels even weaker compared to EB?
With the smite invocation gone it just feels weak compared to paladin. Both get two attacks but lifedrinker compared to the heavy paladin smites it feels weak.
Cant wait to see the celestial warlock subclass. Really like to play the kind of fishy paladin aka clestial warlock pact of blade.
Pre level 11 yes vs a paladin etc, 11+ not as clear as you will start tossing some really powerful spells. VS eldritch blast, likely as it doesn't seem like they have access to much of the melee damage boosts like weapon masteries etc to make up for being a one handed no shield guy.,
For ease of use and understanding I would place a sentence that establishes the MA cast the spell at a certain level and you can pick any spell of that level or below to be cast at that level. Even with your current rewrite it technically doesn’t allow up casting.
Pact of the Blade is stronger than it use to be. It was always weaker than EB. What you are confusing is hex warrior from the Hexblade that when combined with pact of the blade made it the go warlock subclass. Honestly people would just dip for hex warrior and not even stay long enough to get a pact. Staying for 5e Pact Blade does have its benefits. Like getting a greatsword to work with Cha. Basically what one dnd has done is take some of the benifits of hex warrior and it’s weaknesses and make them a part of pact of the blade cantrip. The 5epact of the blade allowed any magic weapon no matter the size, but didn’t make your attack stat Cha. Hex warrior made your attack stat Cha
honestly i hope Hex Warrior in the Pact Weapon cantrip moves to something like "When you reach 2nd level as a Warlock," verbiage. third level would be even better. a min-max dip should be a difficult choice, not a requirement.
unhappy at the way in which we lost individual purchases for one-off subclasses, magic items, and monsters?
tell them you don't like features disappeared quietly in the night: provide feedback!
Or they should redesign paladins so it's not a necessity. Really, MAD vs SAD on characters is somewhat of a problem; there are several fixes but none that are easy to implement without pretty radical changes to the core game system.
You can't really move the casting-stat-for-melee-attacks feature higher up.
Honestly, Pact Warrior is mostly just Shillelagh with fewer weapon restrictions but a full action casting instead of a bonus action. For a One D&D paladin I'd probably just use Magic Initiate (Shillelagh, Another Cantrip, and something like Goodberry or Hunter's Mark) instead of a warlock dip.
However, if you want pact weapon to be less dippable, change it to a cantrip that executes an attack with a weapon (a la booming/greenflame blade) that uses your casting stat instead of the weapon's stat. I wouldn't even be scared of making that a general Arcane list spell. Maybe call it True Strike :)