Roleplaying a Warlock with Great Old One Patron

[Grimmnist]

Being a fan of H.P. Lovecraft I have often wanted to play a Warlock with a GOO(Great Old One) patron, however since a GOO is almost by definition beyond mortal comprehension I have understandably struggled with the concept. Below I have listed several specific areas in which I have struggled, I would love some help brainstorming ideas.

Alignment - I could certainly make some kind of lunatic or cultist trying to awaken the GOO or siphon power off of it, but ideally I would like to play a good aligned character. Someone who is as appalled by the very existence of the GOO as any of the narrators/protagonists in the classic Lovecraft works. The question then is why this character would even draw power from something he found so horrifying.

Relationship with the Patron - Since I wish to play a good aligned character working directly with the GOO seems unlikely. The PHB suggests that "The Great Old One might be unaware of your existence or entirely indifferent to you," I like that idea pretty well, but please let me know if anyone has better ideas.

Madness - I am not playing a Lovecraftian warlock without some form of madness. However, I feel it would be easy for the roleplay to come off as annoying or silly for other players rather than portray a mysterious character driven mad by things beyond comprehension. Please suggest any specific madness or quirk that would be relevant to the game without derailing it.

These are the main areas in which I have struggled, but info beyond these topics is also welcome.

- Edit:: Should have titled this "They're Taking the Hobbit's to Insmouth"-

[Nhorianscum]

Keep in mind, our lovecraftian protagonists are all about that stiff upper lip and the window into their internal madness that his first person perspective offers is not what is seen at large.

Play it straight with a gentalmanly demeanor until the moment that maw of madness cracks open. Then go ham, but with gobs and gobs of style.

[TheYell]

I suggest the character has encountered a Horror Out Of Space that he believes is transforming him subtly.

Alignment -- Whatever you please, as the encounter doesn't dictate the player's actions. Yet.

Relationship with the Patron -- No conscious relationship. The additional powers are part of an unconscious transformation of the character into Something Extra.

Madness -- I like Nhorianscum's idea. Your character feels changes coming on, but he will keep a stiff upper lip until others notice it too from his enhanced abilities.


I played a CN Goolock, Cloistered Scholar, who did a forbidden horoscope and met his patron. He wasn't NE because the party wouldn't have Evil characters, but he did go along with his patron's plan to transform the planet. You could have a character who is Good who opposes everything he's seen and is still being changed.

[Grimmnist]

Thanks guys, this is already helping a ton!

I really like TheYell's idea of the Patron wanting to transform the planet. Made me realize I hadn't thought about the motivations of the patron.

I'm thinking Halfling, since I'm also a sucker for LotR and what to do a whole Frodo and the Ring type relationship (They're Taking the Hobbits to Insmouth!). LG farmer who one day starts seeing hallucinations of horrifying growths bubbling forth from his fresh tilled soil.

[Nhorianscum]

Thanks guys, this is already helping a ton!

I really like TheYell's idea of the Patron wanting to transform the planet. Made me realize I hadn't thought about the motivations of the patron.

I'm thinking Halfling, since I'm also a sucker for LotR and what to do a whole Frodo and the Ring type relationship. LG farmer who one day starts seeing hallucinations for horrifying growths bubbling forth from his fresh tilled soil.

Is this Frodo and the ring or... "Gandalf chose wisely. Samwise mothergaffin dunks the ring into Mt. Doom to slay Cthulu"

Cause I am totally down with one of these.

[Grimmnist]

"Gandalf chose wisely. Samwise mothergaffin dunks the ring into Mt. Doom to slay Cthulu"

Alley-Oop that Ring to me Mr. Frodo!

[Nhorianscum]

Alley-Oop that Ring to me Mr. Frodo!

"I cannot go on this journey with you sam... I have been blocked by shaq."

[JellyPooga]

One GOO Tomelock character I played thought he was a Wizard...

His relationship with his Patron (a very undefined Patron) was entirely through this mysterious ancient book he found (I had a real-world prop for it and everything!) that to all intents and purposes gave him magical powers and though he was a Good person at first, the more he read the book (i.e. gained levels), the more his corruption showed. At first, it was just obsession, then it manifested with odd deeds, then a peculiar maliciousness as he came to believe his "spellbook" spoke to him and that it would unlock further secrets if he did certain...unsavoury...things. Then as his power grew, he began displaying physical deformities; his skin became drawn and sallow, then pock-marked as if diseased; his eyes changed from clear blue to a murky white, with no pupil; his finger-nails grew long and his hands became claw-like...as his descent continued, he began dispaying outright treacherous behaviour as he pursued his (GM approved) Dark Masters agenda at the cost of the needs of his closest companions...

It was a lot of fun roleplaying the descent into madness and corruption. Sure, he didn't stay Good aligned very long, but hey, characters change, right?

[Unoriginal]

Most of Lovecraft's protagonists didn't actually go crazy. They were terrified by what the nerve-wracking things they learned and saw, but only a few didn't recover (among those who survived the events, that is).

[Grimmnist]

His relationship with his Patron (a very undefined Patron) was entirely through this mysterious ancient book he found (I had a real-world prop for it and everything!)

Bonus points for the real world prop!

I was leaning towards Pact of the Chain, my DM roleplays custom familiars and I have always felt Pact of the Tome was a little bland mechanically (though rituals are nice). However, you may have just swayed me as the Tome fits perfectly within Lovecraft lore and sounds really engaging narratively.

[dragoeniex]

Don't stop at just describing mental or emotional effects. Those are key, but you can really crank up the "touched by something Other" feel by adding in physical changes.

Maybe things that aren't immediately obvious. You look normal, and you hang onto that normalcy for all it's worth, until you slip and your party discovers:



You cry a black, oily substance instead of tears.

You have a second row of teeth visible only when grinning wide or shouting.

You don't do hugs or tight clothes because there are small, non-functioning eyes that have started spreading up your arms.

You sometimes leave your glasses off because your eyesight swings drastically worse or better when your patron touches your mind. This also explains your occasional clumsiness/proclivity for stumbling into things.

You sweat a thick, viscous substance when having a nervous breakdown.



With any of these or similar ideas, you gain something for yourself and the other players to play off of. You introduce a new stressor your character presumably wants to keep hidden. This adds anxiety or odd character tics or even just unnerving stoicism as you try to avoid situations where it will start showing. And once it does, now the other characters have visible evidence of your changes. You're not so grounded after all.

You could play with this from anything like lashing out and denying to a scared little "help me." And if it's something that progresses as the game goes, you've got a lovely bit of body horror constantly reminding you of the stakes.

[Sahe]

I once played a Tiefling GOOLock who got to her patron through a book as well.

She wanted to become a Wizard and happened upon the Black Library, a demi-plane library curated by a Lich where she found the Tome. Upon opening it, the Tome would appear blank, but if she wrote in it the ink would disappear and words would appear answering questions. The character was naive, curious and good-hearted, fangirled over an adult red dragon and poked everything with sticks and magic until something happened. The best way to describe her patron was probably that it was amused by her antics and she had to report what she did. We never clearly defined her patron, but she called it "the Dreaming God" or "the Dreaming One".

[Droodicus]

I like the idea of pact of the chain with goo locks. Something has been whispering to them, giving them hints on how to use magic and skills. At first it's a harmless voice, very helpful and friendly, then when you hit third level this ....thing... turns up and you start to realize you've gotten in deep with something. The thing still helps but takes on an increasingly sinister aspect.

[Quietus]

Thanks guys, this is already helping a ton!

I really like TheYell's idea of the Patron wanting to transform the planet. Made me realize I hadn't thought about the motivations of the patron.

I'm thinking Halfling, since I'm also a sucker for LotR and what to do a whole Frodo and the Ring type relationship (They're Taking the Hobbits to Insmouth!). LG farmer who one day starts seeing hallucinations of horrifying growths bubbling forth from his fresh tilled soil.

I like the idea of the LG farmer - I would probably take that and run with it. They start seeing these hallucinations, and think that they're messages from some greater existence - a deity giving them flashes of a possible future. If the character doesn't do anything, this future will come to pass! Driven by that knowledge, they take up a mantle not unlike a Paladin or Cleric, pursuing this cause, and no one around them will ever believe the things they've seen. But they stoically continue to pursue that goal.

Unbeknownst to them, the powers they're pulling from are being drawn from the very thing they're trying to stop. They *have* been shown a possible future, and potential actions they can take. But those actions... they aren't designed to *stop* the hallucinations from coming true. They are how these horrifying growths will happen. As your character adventures, they may eventually begin to realize that the powers they're being given seem remarkably similar to what they originally saw in their hallucination, but by now they're too deep. Something is already threatening the town/region/world (the plot), and your character has to make a choice. Do they embrace these strange powers, knowing there is a chance that their visions will come true, in an effort to stop the Big Bad from their Awful Plot of Doom? Or do they stop what they're doing immediately, in the hopes that they can still prevent the visions that they've been inadvertently working toward all this time?

[Grimmnist]

With any of these or similar ideas, you gain something for yourself and the other players to play off of. You introduce a new stressor your character presumably wants to keep hidden. This adds anxiety or odd character tics or even just unnerving stoicism as you try to avoid situations where it will start showing. And once it does, now the other characters have visible evidence of your changes. You're not so grounded after all.

You could play with this from anything like lashing out and denying to a scared little "help me." And if it's something that progresses as the game goes, you've got a lovely bit of body horror constantly reminding you of the stakes.

Great suggestions! I hadn't been considering physical changes, but as you said they are better for the party to play off. I had struggled with madnesses partially because the party can't see the lead-up to an "episode", making it seem like it is from out of nowhere. The physical changes are great for showing a build up.


I like the idea of the LG farmer - I would probably take that and run with it. They start seeing these hallucinations, and think that they're messages from some greater existence - a deity giving them flashes of a possible future. If the character doesn't do anything, this future will come to pass! Driven by that knowledge, they take up a mantle not unlike a Paladin or Cleric, pursuing this cause, and no one around them will ever believe the things they've seen. But they stoically continue to pursue that goal.

I like that twist of the character thinking the visions come from a benevolent deity at first. I'll need to coordinate with the DM before locking anything in, but I think I am set on this as my next character.



Does anyone have good ideas for using the telepathy you get at lvl 1? I think a LG character might be hesitant to use this alien power they received.

[SpanielBear]

The telepathy is only one way, and doesn’t involve mind reading so it’s pretty neutral in affect. I initially roleplayed it as my character forgetting to actually say the words in a conversation, and just thinking them instead. Fear and confusion was the usual result, until he got more in control of them.

[Unoriginal]

Does anyone have good ideas for using the telepathy you get at lvl 1? I think a LG character might be hesitant to use this alien power they received.

Why would they? Lawful good doesn't have anything to do with distrusting alien power.

I mean, look at Martian Manhunter in Justice League.

[iTreeby]

There is no reason you can't play a character that figured out a way to rip off the GOO with no consequences and drains as much power from it as possible in order to persue his own goals. GOO doesn't even realize what you are doing, rationally, you know that. As a character, you feel that you are getting a free lunch.

Just remind the DM that every hostile aberration should prioritize you and that friendly aberrations will always taunt you with comments about your fate. Let them handle the horror or ignore it as befits their story.

[Unoriginal]

Just remind the DM that every hostile aberration should prioritize you and that friendly aberrations will always taunt you with comments about your fate. Let them handle the horror or ignore it as befits their story.

Why? Aberrations aren't an homogenous group, and they all have their own agenda. Quite a few of them would agree that leeching from a GOO without price to pay is awesome, and there is no set "fate" for GOO Warlock.

[iTreeby]

I'm just saying that reminding the gm that the hook exists is enough.

[Dr.Samurai]

Alignment - I could certainly make some kind of lunatic or cultist trying to awaken the GOO or siphon power off of it, but ideally I would like to play a good aligned character. Someone who is as appalled by the very existence of the GOO as any of the narrators/protagonists in the classic Lovecraft works. The question then is why this character would even draw power from something he found so horrifying.
I played a GOOlock in a Greyhawk game, and basically he was a tutor and philosopher that went in search of a lost colleague. He was captured by cultists and in order to save himself, entered a pact he barely understood in his colleague's journal.

I'm about to play another GOOlock in a Forgotten Realms game, and this one was captured by the illithid and basically invested with power by the Elder Brain to act as a sleeper agent/spy on the surface world.


Relationship with the Patron - Since I wish to play a good aligned character working directly with the GOO seems unlikely. The PHB suggests that "The Great Old One might be unaware of your existence or entirely indifferent to you," I like that idea pretty well, but please let me know if anyone has better ideas.
For the Greyhawk game, the entity was Tharizdun and we played it more like Tharizdun was mostly unaware. But the warlock studied Tharizdun and then made it a priority to oppose his agents in the world.

For the Forgotten Realms game that hasn't started yet, the warlock will have escaped the illithids and believe himself to be free. The DM has hinted that it might not be so easy.

But in both cases, the idea is that he is studying his abilities and powers and learning to unlock greater abilities. This helps explains level ups without the patron being directly involved.

Madness - I am not playing a Lovecraftian warlock without some form of madness. However, I feel it would be easy for the roleplay to come off as annoying or silly for other players rather than portray a mysterious character driven mad by things beyond comprehension. Please suggest any specific madness or quirk that would be relevant to the game without derailing it.
For the Greyhawk game, he wasn't mad or really going to be driven mad. However, the character isolated himself by choice, never really having a clear notion of what Tharizdun could see or sense through him. Because he dealt with the occult and a dangerous entity that he had a link to, he kept others at a distance. While not "crazy", it's not ideal for the character either.

For the Forgotten Realms game, I'm planning on adding an element of paranoia. Not enough, I think, to be considered "going mad", but more like... he knows that the illithid have voidmind agents and other operatives like him, and he escaped with some of the Elder Brain's power. He won't be paranoid all the time, but perhaps sometimes, depending on certain triggers, he may be irrationally suspicious that someone is a mind flayer operative here to bring him back or report his whereabouts to someone else.

[Vorok]

I've read over on reddit an idea of 'Horton hears a hoo' type of relationship.
GOO is making their way across space, without care for anything, just his mere presence obliterating worlds.

The warlock finds out they're headed for the planet (with a ritual or something, start of the pact), and tries to alter the path of the GOO so the planet/corner of space they inhabit won't be affected by the GOO (too much).

[Unoriginal]

I've read over on reddit an idea of 'Horton hears a hoo' type of relationship.
GOO is making their way across space, without care for anything, just his mere presence obliterating worlds.

The warlock finds out they're headed for the planet (with a ritual or something, start of the pact), and tries to alter the path of the GOO so the planet/corner of space they inhabit won't be affected by the GOO (too much).

"We need to go back in time and get a couple of whales"

[Particle_Man]

Isn't it canon that the Mind Flayers are from a future where they have enslaved many worlds, including this one? What if the character saw that future? Or a future where the aboleths succeed in killing the gods? If the character thought that was inevitable, that could be unnerving, even if that future is far off.

[Nhorianscum]

I like the idea of the LG farmer - I would probably take that and run with it. They start seeing these hallucinations, and think that they're messages from some greater existence - a deity giving them flashes of a possible future. If the character doesn't do anything, this future will come to pass! Driven by that knowledge, they take up a mantle not unlike a Paladin or Cleric, pursuing this cause, and no one around them will ever believe the things they've seen. But they stoically continue to pursue that goal.

Unbeknownst to them, the powers they're pulling from are being drawn from the very thing they're trying to stop. They *have* been shown a possible future, and potential actions they can take. But those actions... they aren't designed to *stop* the hallucinations from coming true. They are how these horrifying growths will happen. As your character adventures, they may eventually begin to realize that the powers they're being given seem remarkably similar to what they originally saw in their hallucination, but by now they're too deep. Something is already threatening the town/region/world (the plot), and your character has to make a choice. Do they embrace these strange powers, knowing there is a chance that their visions will come true, in an effort to stop the Big Bad from their Awful Plot of Doom? Or do they stop what they're doing immediately, in the hopes that they can still prevent the visions that they've been inadvertently working toward all this time?

This is very "in the maw of madness" so I insist on an in character whilhelm scream.

[TheYell]

Does anyone have good ideas for using the telepathy you get at lvl 1? I think a LG character might be hesitant to use this alien power they received.


If he's a farmer this might be his "plant voice". When he realizes that other sentient creatures can actually hear him, he might try to use it to augment Diplomacy ("you must believe us!") Where you take it from there is up to you. I'm sorry they limited it to one way telepathy.

I don't see the alignment being an issue until you get Create Thrall. You'd have to solicit somebody's active cooperation with that one, being LG. Maybe your character decides his mission needs a sidekick with a telepathic link somehow?

[Temperjoke]

http://www.wizards.com/files/366_Warlocks.pdf

This has some interesting character ideas from the old Star Pact warlocks which were drawn on for the GOO warlocks in 5e. I like the idea of a person knowing the risks of madness and corruption by taking this path, and choosing to still accept that danger in exchange for the power to make a difference. Also, let's say that the patron you're drawing power from is aware of your presence, that doesn't mean it would ask you to do anything overtly insane or evil. It could easily ask you to do tasks that make no sense to your mortal mind, because we can't comprehend on the scale of the patron. It asks you to carve a symbol on a rock, which is part of a ritual circle that extends across the entire planet or plane, or maybe even time, as other followers add to the symbol over the decades.

[dragoeniex]

Regarding the one-way telepathy: using it to telepathically give a Suggestion feels all kinds of creepy cool. Up to you if your character would do that, but it doesn't have to be malicious. And if it is, it could be an interesting character progression down the line.

That and the one-way, free "don't look now, but..." asides to teammates were what I mainly used it for.

Even more benign? It lets you be understood by any creature that understands at least one language. So you may be able to use it as a means of communication with unusual NPCs. Pick up comprehend languages, and boom! Two-way communication. Or don't pick it up and try to work with a series of yes/no questions or other suggested "blink twice for AnswerHere" things.

[greenfunkman]

Do you have a particular Great Old One in mind? Yog-Sothoth, the Lurker at the Threshold, might be a good fit for the 'visions of eldritch growth' idea. The being called Yog-Sothoth is a multi dimensional being that exists outside of the normal spheres of space and time. It reaches into our universe, extruding tendrils into various times and places.

[CIDE]

Alignment - I could certainly make some kind of lunatic or cultist trying to awaken the GOO or siphon power off of it, but ideally I would like to play a good aligned character. Someone who is as appalled by the very existence of the GOO as any of the narrators/protagonists in the classic Lovecraft works. The question then is why this character would even draw power from something he found so horrifying.



It could be explained fairly simply. Even in Lovecraftian lore simply knowing about the existence of such things altered people's brains. Researching them, viewing them, and everything else along those lines only took that further and further. We even have a human that could (for lack of a better term) ascend from willpower and knowledge alone. The good aligned warlock is simply a mechanical representation of one of these concepts if you want to keep them good aligned.



Relationship with the Patron - Since I wish to play a good aligned character working directly with the GOO seems unlikely. The PHB suggests that "The Great Old One might be unaware of your existence or entirely indifferent to you," I like that idea pretty well, but please let me know if anyone has better ideas.




Indifference or ignorance seems like the best bet. That said (and tying into the next question you have) the GOO could instead simply be doing this to mortals to try to increase their influence (directly and indirectly) in the material plane. They may be sleeping, sealed away, somewhere else, or just otherwise unable to physically interact but can attempt to make contact or sway things in this way If that's the case then the reason WHY they may bestow a specific person power may still be quite unknowable.





Madness - I am not playing a Lovecraftian warlock without some form of madness. However, I feel it would be easy for the roleplay to come off as annoying or silly for other players rather than portray a mysterious character driven mad by things beyond comprehension. Please suggest any specific madness or quirk that would be relevant to the game without derailing it.



Minor confusion or dementia could be easy enough to pass off. They can even be physical tells such as the way the character sways or has to constantly touch or handle things. Potentially very minor hallucinations (that may or may not be real) that don't have any real big impact but could occasionally distract the character. Speaking to themselves is another big one. You could make any number of these quirky and entertaining instead of annoying and no less distracting than simply having a bard around.

Or, play it more straight and narrow with just weird dreams they get nightly taking their toll.


Most of Lovecraft's protagonists didn't actually go crazy. They were terrified by what the nerve-wracking things they learned and saw, but only a few didn't recover (among those who survived the events, that is).

"Crazy" was dealt with in a very fast and loose way (and definition) back in those days.

[Anublet90]

There's actually a Madness section in the Dungeon Master's Guide that you might find helpful, it has tables for random effects for short-term, long-term and indefinite-length madness and a paragraph on how they can be used. For example, you could roll on these tables when casting certain spells, or encountering some spooky creature (presumably something with ties to you).