Designing a Warlock without spellcasting

[PanosIs]

Greetings travellers,

I've been DMing 5e for some 2 years now, and I am in the proccess of heavily homebrewing altering the system. Yes I will start posting stuff here for you enjoyment when I feel its in a good enough state. In any case. I've been running a campaign for some months using my alterations to the system, and I've been reworking some of the classes that I feel are not distinctive enough from other ones.

I've done Monk and Sorcerer so far, who were the biggest offenders in my eyes, and now its time for the Warlock. Who, altho quite unique, does not really fill the role of a Warlock in my mind. The powers a Warlock uses are beyond his grasp, understanding or even perception. I've been reading around on the new Warlock UA posts over in the 5e subforum and someone had the idea of a Warlock not having spells, but being designed in some other fashion.

I liked that idea so I've been brainstorming on it. But I wanted to ask how would you go about this? One idea I had was to go all in on invocations, as per the 3.5 Warlock. One thing I certainly want to do is leave some levels open for patron specific features, meaning your patron may be a fiend, but Baalzebul would grant different abilities than Mammon, or Dagon.

In either case, what would your take be on such an attempt? Do you like the concept? And how would you go around designing it.

[clash]

I would play up the pact aspect of the warlock as a means of replacing spells. Maybe have pact of the tome have spellcasting as is built in. Have the chainlock pet evolve into a more fully formed battle companion. Ie warlock riding a dragon. And have the blade pact automatically get some of the invocations it already gets as well as adding some synergy between casting invocations and blade pact. Maybe take a page from EK warcaster. Then add in some utility invocations to fill the gaps.

[PanosIs]

This was what I was thinking, along with more features depending on patron and specific features for different patrons. I like the idea of a Warlock riding a black, drake-like creature ala Nazgul :P

[Ninjadeadbeard]

Building a little on what Clash said, I'd like to see a couple of Invocations that grant 1-2 spells and/or cantrips at-will or once per short rest. Each Invocation will "package" the spells together in a thematic way, like a Fey Invocation granting illusion or enchantment magic, or a fiend invocation adding fiery evocation spells.

[Steampunkette]

Give them Spell-Like abilities that focus on lore-specific elements of the Warlock of myth. Curses, Flight, and the like.

[PanosIs]

I appreciate all the suggestions, what would you think about having you get features at different levels for BOTH your patron AND your pact? Like getting Patron features at 1-6-14 and pact features at 3-5-11-17? This could allow for implementation of spikes like double attack into the core pacts and leave more design space for invocations, however it would limit on-the-go customization of the character.