Level 2 Agonizing blast Armor of Shadows Beast Speech Devil's Sight Eldritch Sight Eldritch Spear Eyes of the Rune Keeper Fiendish Vigor Hexer Lessons of the First One Mask of Many Faces Misty Visions Repelling Blast
Of these we see things that modify Eldritch blast to compete with ranged weapon wielders like Agonizing blast, Eldritch Spear and with the new mastery system Repelling blast effectively giving Eldritch blast Push (which it has done for a while, just martials have been given something to compete with it.). Another powerful effects like Devil sight and Lessons of the first one. We have an ability that makes melee a little less punishing early on with fiendish vigor. And we see some flavor at will spells with misty visions, mask of many faces and beast speech. We also have the ineffectual Hexer invocation that doesn't do much to actually help Hex users. Finally, we have the wildly out of date invocations with Eyes of the Rune keeper, armor of shadows and eldritch sight. Before they could add a lot of utility to the Warlock class, now that warlock can just have ritual casting and a first level slot to use on Mage armor these invocations are traps and don't feel good even for flavor. Of these only Agonizing blast is seen as a "must have" the others are just nice little cherries.
Level 5 Gaze of Two Minds Mystic Arcanum One With Shadows
As the warlock levels it takes more invocations, but unless it unlocks a new higher level invocation than each subsequent invocation is worse and worse as the warlock takes its most important invocations first. Gaze of Two Minds is broken beyond belief at all levels. Being able to just sit at the tavern while your friends go on adventures and still be very effective from safety can not be allowed to make it through playtest. Mystic Arcanum is the big one here unlocking a 3rd level spell at the same time as other full casters. One with Shadows is invisibility as long as you are in a very specific scenario, I have rarely seen this work, but if others could tell me how they used it I would love to hear it because I know I am missing something, especially when we could have always cast invisibility at this level.
The warlock gains another invocation at 7, but no new invocations show up besides a new level spell from Mystic arcanum. So either you are taking that one, or you are taking the "4th best" invocation, a diminishing returns on these invocations as someone levels.
Level 9 Ascendant Step Favor of the Chain Master Gift of Protectors Life Drinker Otherworldly Leap Whispers of the Grave Mystic arcanum 5.
At this level you gain another invocation and as always can trade an invocation. 3 of the invocations are pact specific. Ascendant step and Otherworldly leap give access to unlimited cast spells the Warlock has had for 4 to 8 levels now and weren't very good for a single cast than. These have been bad invocations and they still are. Whispers of the grave gives a 3rd level utility spell at will at the same level this lock is getting more than 1 3rd level slot. And now the Warlock is picking their top 5 invocations and this is a stacked level where older invocations may be traded for something at this level.
11 Just mystic Arcanum, either the person is taking 6th level arcanum or they are taking their 6th favorite invocation
13 Just Mystic Arcanum, either someone is taking 7th level arcanum or they are taking their 7th favorite invocation.
15 Master of Myriad Forms Vision of distant Realms Witch Sight Mystic arcanum (8th)
Another big level for warlocks where trades will likely happen. Alter Self at will is very late, but it is only one level later than they gave the moon druid access to it. Still mostly a flavor use. Vision of distant realms is a powerful information gatherer, Witch sight is game changing utility, and of course 8th level spells are powerful.
17 Either you are getting 9th level Mystic arcanum, or your 9th favorite invocation.
in the end the warlock is likely to have 4 to 5 Mystic arcanum largely keeping up with Full casters because most of the remaining invocations don't compete with 6th-9th spells while still maintaining 4 to 5 other invocations some of which are powerful enough to compete with other classes features, while others are barely ribbon features.
Agonizing blast should just have been rolled into Eldritch Blast at this point, it's a false choice, you can do without it with Pact of the Blade, but it's necessary for for Pact of the Tome and Pact of the Chain, also still good for Pact of the Blade. That is a thing about Invocations, is they should be choices and to be choices you shouldn't have so many false choices, ones you either need to take or ones you should never touch with a barge pool.
Armor of Shadow should mirror Sorcerer's Dragonic Sorcery subclass feature, Draconic Resilience. This feature now has an AC of 10+Dexterity Modifier + Charisma Modifier, Armor of Shadows should do the same but switching Charisma for your primary spellcasting ability. Mage armor in general should be left as 13+DEX however, Warlock now has medium armor which makes Mage Armor pointless but 13+DEX is quiet balanced for (non-dragonic) sorcerers and wizards.
Eldritch Sight should just be permanently active for free, and add +30 foot of darkvision or grant 60 foot if you do not already have it. Hexer should literally remove the concentration, it's all it needs to do and all it should do. If that is a bit OPed then just give disadvantage on concentration checks of other spells while Hex is active and on a target. Don't think anything can save Eyes of the Rune Keeper in it's current form, it's basically comprehend languages.
Fiendish Vigor is good early on but useless later on and inferior to just using Armor of Agathys as you get higher levelled slots, Fiendish Vigor should cast False Life at your warlock level/4 (round down) + 1.
== 5th level
I think you oversell Gaze of Two Minds, yes it's powerful but the moment you need to sleep, it'll end and additionally, you're losing out on bonus action since you're using bonus action to maintain it, which means no hex. It should be limited to a duration of 15 minutes for every level of warlock and require a concentration check after casting a spell via it to maintain the connection and then it would be more balanced. That way, if your rogue is scouting and gets detected but not seen, you can cast invisibility to assist but if you're going to nuke with evocation spells or eldritch blast, you could lose the connection every cast.
One With Shadows just seems pointless too me, if it didn't prevent moving then it'd at least have some use, even if that movement had to be in the shadows but as it is, you basically stand still which makes you easy to find if any creature knew where you were. The only use I can see for it is preparing for an ambush but it's a very VERY niche usage.
Mystic Arcanum should just be a feature, not an Invocation, it has warlocks true spell progression behind it, unless you want to wait to level 9 to get the same fireball spell sorcerer got at level 5, you need it, so it's a false choice. The repeatable aspect is also a false choice, you're still going to need to take it 2-4 times by the end game.
== 9th level
If Otherworldly Leap was instead Misty Step but needed a recharge action to reset it's usage, it'd be some what useful and balanced, as it is, useless. Ascendant Step has some limited usage but not worth a whole invocation, if Ascendant Step gave you Levitate, Leap and Feather Fall, it'd be great, since while not spells commonly used, you'd still get a justifiable amount of usage out of it. Whispers of the Grave is okay, it can be quiet useful in certain RP scenarios, if it additionally worked with animate dead to allow you to hear what any of your animated undead hear within a mile of you and allow you to talk via those same undead, it would have some very interesting Necromancer play.
I completely agree that I Agonizing blast should just be rolled into Eldritch blast at this point. Blades can somewhat ignore it, Tome's get it automatically at 5, Chain is the only one forced to use an invocation to keep up. Further if they are going to lock Eldritch blast behind Warlock levels anyway there is no problem with it being at level 1.
Gaze of Two Minds: As long as everyone returns to the same tavern for a long rest your fine when you go to sleep. And Sure you can't hex but you can cast any other concentration spell. I do like your solution to nix concentration spells, or give it a time limit, just something small to reign in the power a little.
If Mystic Arcanum is a feature than the power of some of the other Invocations is less of a problem. The main issue with Mystic arcanum is having a couple of the highest level Arcanums at all times is much more powerful than any other option the invocations provide. It is why I am finding that idea that "mystic arcanum" costs an invocation hasn't been a great argument because most of the invocations are ribbon flavor features rather than raw power. With a few Clear exceptions like EB modifications, devil sight, witch sight, but even with those you can usually get the majority a person wants and still get Mystic Arcanum.
I feel you could role Eyes of the Runekeeper into your Eldritch sight changes and it would be cool
If they were to make mystic arcanum a class feature rather than an invocation AND put Agonizing blast into Eldritch blast by core. I think what we would and SHOULD see would be 2 invocations at 2, Mystic Arcanum at 3 (they would still have wording where you can change them, just like now). Invocation at 5, Mystic arcanum at 7, Invocation at 9, Arcanum at 11, Invocation at 13 (bumping the level 15 ones down here, maybe that is too much and the Arcanum should go here?), Arcanum at 15, and finally an invocation at or maybe something else at level 17.
At level 5 people would have effectively way more invocations getting their pact one for free, Agonizing blast for free, and still having 3 left to choose. They would also have mystic arcanum. At 7 they would still only have 3 to choose from but again have the 2 free ones, and they would have 2 mystic arcanums. 9 they would have 4 to choose and still have the mystic arcanums. It would top out at 6 or 7 depending on the level 17. Yes I am sure people would complain about this because they would feel they are being given "less choice" than before.
So it is a big trade off question. Do they bump the other invocations to compete with the strongest Mystic arcanum at each level? Do they provide an extra invocation at 3 for mystic arcanum? Or do they just remove the "non-options" and then leave invocations to be about getting a couple good things for combat but mostly ribbon stuff?
At that point do they just roll the level 9 pact specific invocations into the pact themselves?
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Level 2
Agonizing blast
Armor of Shadows
Beast Speech
Devil's Sight
Eldritch Sight
Eldritch Spear
Eyes of the Rune Keeper
Fiendish Vigor
Hexer
Lessons of the First One
Mask of Many Faces
Misty Visions
Repelling Blast
Of these we see things that modify Eldritch blast to compete with ranged weapon wielders like Agonizing blast, Eldritch Spear and with the new mastery system Repelling blast effectively giving Eldritch blast Push (which it has done for a while, just martials have been given something to compete with it.). Another powerful effects like Devil sight and Lessons of the first one. We have an ability that makes melee a little less punishing early on with fiendish vigor. And we see some flavor at will spells with misty visions, mask of many faces and beast speech. We also have the ineffectual Hexer invocation that doesn't do much to actually help Hex users. Finally, we have the wildly out of date invocations with Eyes of the Rune keeper, armor of shadows and eldritch sight. Before they could add a lot of utility to the Warlock class, now that warlock can just have ritual casting and a first level slot to use on Mage armor these invocations are traps and don't feel good even for flavor. Of these only Agonizing blast is seen as a "must have" the others are just nice little cherries.
Level 5
Gaze of Two Minds
Mystic Arcanum
One With Shadows
As the warlock levels it takes more invocations, but unless it unlocks a new higher level invocation than each subsequent invocation is worse and worse as the warlock takes its most important invocations first. Gaze of Two Minds is broken beyond belief at all levels. Being able to just sit at the tavern while your friends go on adventures and still be very effective from safety can not be allowed to make it through playtest. Mystic Arcanum is the big one here unlocking a 3rd level spell at the same time as other full casters. One with Shadows is invisibility as long as you are in a very specific scenario, I have rarely seen this work, but if others could tell me how they used it I would love to hear it because I know I am missing something, especially when we could have always cast invisibility at this level.
The warlock gains another invocation at 7, but no new invocations show up besides a new level spell from Mystic arcanum. So either you are taking that one, or you are taking the "4th best" invocation, a diminishing returns on these invocations as someone levels.
Level 9
Ascendant Step
Favor of the Chain Master
Gift of Protectors
Life Drinker
Otherworldly Leap
Whispers of the Grave
Mystic arcanum 5.
At this level you gain another invocation and as always can trade an invocation. 3 of the invocations are pact specific. Ascendant step and Otherworldly leap give access to unlimited cast spells the Warlock has had for 4 to 8 levels now and weren't very good for a single cast than. These have been bad invocations and they still are. Whispers of the grave gives a 3rd level utility spell at will at the same level this lock is getting more than 1 3rd level slot. And now the Warlock is picking their top 5 invocations and this is a stacked level where older invocations may be traded for something at this level.
11
Just mystic Arcanum, either the person is taking 6th level arcanum or they are taking their 6th favorite invocation
13
Just Mystic Arcanum, either someone is taking 7th level arcanum or they are taking their 7th favorite invocation.
15
Master of Myriad Forms
Vision of distant Realms
Witch Sight
Mystic arcanum (8th)
Another big level for warlocks where trades will likely happen. Alter Self at will is very late, but it is only one level later than they gave the moon druid access to it. Still mostly a flavor use.
Vision of distant realms is a powerful information gatherer, Witch sight is game changing utility, and of course 8th level spells are powerful.
17
Either you are getting 9th level Mystic arcanum, or your 9th favorite invocation.
in the end the warlock is likely to have 4 to 5 Mystic arcanum largely keeping up with Full casters because most of the remaining invocations don't compete with 6th-9th spells while still maintaining 4 to 5 other invocations some of which are powerful enough to compete with other classes features, while others are barely ribbon features.
== 1st level
Agonizing blast should just have been rolled into Eldritch Blast at this point, it's a false choice, you can do without it with Pact of the Blade, but it's necessary for for Pact of the Tome and Pact of the Chain, also still good for Pact of the Blade. That is a thing about Invocations, is they should be choices and to be choices you shouldn't have so many false choices, ones you either need to take or ones you should never touch with a barge pool.
Armor of Shadow should mirror Sorcerer's Dragonic Sorcery subclass feature, Draconic Resilience. This feature now has an AC of 10+Dexterity Modifier + Charisma Modifier, Armor of Shadows should do the same but switching Charisma for your primary spellcasting ability. Mage armor in general should be left as 13+DEX however, Warlock now has medium armor which makes Mage Armor pointless but 13+DEX is quiet balanced for (non-dragonic) sorcerers and wizards.
Eldritch Sight should just be permanently active for free, and add +30 foot of darkvision or grant 60 foot if you do not already have it. Hexer should literally remove the concentration, it's all it needs to do and all it should do. If that is a bit OPed then just give disadvantage on concentration checks of other spells while Hex is active and on a target. Don't think anything can save Eyes of the Rune Keeper in it's current form, it's basically comprehend languages.
Fiendish Vigor is good early on but useless later on and inferior to just using Armor of Agathys as you get higher levelled slots, Fiendish Vigor should cast False Life at your warlock level/4 (round down) + 1.
== 5th level
I think you oversell Gaze of Two Minds, yes it's powerful but the moment you need to sleep, it'll end and additionally, you're losing out on bonus action since you're using bonus action to maintain it, which means no hex. It should be limited to a duration of 15 minutes for every level of warlock and require a concentration check after casting a spell via it to maintain the connection and then it would be more balanced. That way, if your rogue is scouting and gets detected but not seen, you can cast invisibility to assist but if you're going to nuke with evocation spells or eldritch blast, you could lose the connection every cast.
One With Shadows just seems pointless too me, if it didn't prevent moving then it'd at least have some use, even if that movement had to be in the shadows but as it is, you basically stand still which makes you easy to find if any creature knew where you were. The only use I can see for it is preparing for an ambush but it's a very VERY niche usage.
Mystic Arcanum should just be a feature, not an Invocation, it has warlocks true spell progression behind it, unless you want to wait to level 9 to get the same fireball spell sorcerer got at level 5, you need it, so it's a false choice. The repeatable aspect is also a false choice, you're still going to need to take it 2-4 times by the end game.
== 9th level
If Otherworldly Leap was instead Misty Step but needed a recharge action to reset it's usage, it'd be some what useful and balanced, as it is, useless. Ascendant Step has some limited usage but not worth a whole invocation, if Ascendant Step gave you Levitate, Leap and Feather Fall, it'd be great, since while not spells commonly used, you'd still get a justifiable amount of usage out of it. Whispers of the Grave is okay, it can be quiet useful in certain RP scenarios, if it additionally worked with animate dead to allow you to hear what any of your animated undead hear within a mile of you and allow you to talk via those same undead, it would have some very interesting Necromancer play.
I completely agree that I Agonizing blast should just be rolled into Eldritch blast at this point. Blades can somewhat ignore it, Tome's get it automatically at 5, Chain is the only one forced to use an invocation to keep up. Further if they are going to lock Eldritch blast behind Warlock levels anyway there is no problem with it being at level 1.
Gaze of Two Minds: As long as everyone returns to the same tavern for a long rest your fine when you go to sleep. And Sure you can't hex but you can cast any other concentration spell. I do like your solution to nix concentration spells, or give it a time limit, just something small to reign in the power a little.
If Mystic Arcanum is a feature than the power of some of the other Invocations is less of a problem. The main issue with Mystic arcanum is having a couple of the highest level Arcanums at all times is much more powerful than any other option the invocations provide. It is why I am finding that idea that "mystic arcanum" costs an invocation hasn't been a great argument because most of the invocations are ribbon flavor features rather than raw power. With a few Clear exceptions like EB modifications, devil sight, witch sight, but even with those you can usually get the majority a person wants and still get Mystic Arcanum.
I feel you could role Eyes of the Runekeeper into your Eldritch sight changes and it would be cool
If they were to make mystic arcanum a class feature rather than an invocation AND put Agonizing blast into Eldritch blast by core. I think what we would and SHOULD see would be 2 invocations at 2, Mystic Arcanum at 3 (they would still have wording where you can change them, just like now). Invocation at 5, Mystic arcanum at 7, Invocation at 9, Arcanum at 11, Invocation at 13 (bumping the level 15 ones down here, maybe that is too much and the Arcanum should go here?), Arcanum at 15, and finally an invocation at or maybe something else at level 17.
At level 5 people would have effectively way more invocations getting their pact one for free, Agonizing blast for free, and still having 3 left to choose. They would also have mystic arcanum. At 7 they would still only have 3 to choose from but again have the 2 free ones, and they would have 2 mystic arcanums. 9 they would have 4 to choose and still have the mystic arcanums. It would top out at 6 or 7 depending on the level 17.
Yes I am sure people would complain about this because they would feel they are being given "less choice" than before.
So it is a big trade off question. Do they bump the other invocations to compete with the strongest Mystic arcanum at each level? Do they provide an extra invocation at 3 for mystic arcanum? Or do they just remove the "non-options" and then leave invocations to be about getting a couple good things for combat but mostly ribbon stuff?
At that point do they just roll the level 9 pact specific invocations into the pact themselves?