Warlock's Eldritch Smite: Is it viable with only 2 spell slots?

[JakOfAllTirades]

I'm playing a level 8 BladeLock, and on the fence about taking the Eldritch Smite Invocation. It's powerful, but I don't know if it's workable with only 2 spell slots. How does this work?

I've looked at the numbers: +5d8 averages 22.5 hp damage, but I can that much out of Hex if I land 6 or 7 hits with it, which is likely if I can maintain concentration on it four or five rounds. Some combats last that long, some don't. I also get a good debuff from Hex, and a teleportation rider from Relentless Hex.

On the other hand, Eldritch Smite gets doubled on a crit: +10d8 at my current level, +12d8 when I reach 9th level. Assuming I have a spell slot available, and that's the sticking point: It doesn't seem feasible to keep a slot "in reserve" just in case I get a critical hit.

So... has anyone used Eldritch Smite prior to getting a 3rd spell slot at level 11? And how did it work out for you?

[Daghoulish]

It also knocks the enemy prone if it's huge or smaller. That could be nice as a supportive tool if you have a melee heavy team.

[sophontteks]

The duration of hex increases as you level. You can just put it on a new target next combat and even short rest to get your slots back. It's not competing with eldritch smite. But hex is competing with your concentration spells.

[LudicSavant]

I'm playing a level 8 BladeLock, and on the fence about taking the Eldritch Smite Invocation. It's powerful, but I don't know if it's workable with only 2 spell slots. How does this work?

I've looked at the numbers: +5d8 averages 22.5 hp damage, but I can that much out of Hex if I land 6 or 7 hits with it, which is likely if I can maintain concentration on it four or five rounds. Some combats last that long, some don't. I also get a good debuff from Hex, and a teleportation rider from Relentless Hex.

On the other hand, Eldritch Smite gets doubled on a crit: +10d8 at my current level, +12d8 when I reach 9th level. Assuming I have a spell slot available, and that's the sticking point: It doesn't seem feasible to keep a slot "in reserve" just in case I get a critical hit.

So... has anyone used Eldritch Smite prior to getting a 3rd spell slot at level 11? And how did it work out for you?

Don't forget that it can knock a Huge flying dragon prone on a ranged attack or an OA, no save. That's half the point of Eldritch Smite, IMHO. Who needs Sentinel?

Also Hex should not be taking up one of your slots; it lasts 8-24 hours so you cast it in the morning then short rest to regenerate the slot, before you get on with the adventuring day. Think of it as a 1-hour casting time ritual that lasts all day.

[JakOfAllTirades]

The duration of hex increases as you level. You can just put it on a new target next combat and even short rest to get your slots back. It's not competing with eldritch smite. But hex is competing with your concentration spells.

If I'm down to my last spell slot, everything's competing for it, concentration or otherwise.

[JakOfAllTirades]

Don't forget that it can knock a Huge flying dragon prone on a ranged attack or an OA, no save. That's half the point of Eldritch Smite, IMHO. Who needs Sentinel?

Also Hex should not be taking up one of your slots; it lasts 8-24 hours so you cast it in the morning then short rest to regenerate the slot, before you get on with the adventuring day. Think of it as a 1-hour casting time ritual that lasts all day.

Those are good points.

What exactly happens to flying creature that's subject to the prone condition?

[Blood of Gaea]

Those are good points.

What exactly happens to flying creature that's subject to the prone condition?
If they can't hover, they fall.

[LudicSavant]

Those are good points.

What exactly happens to flying creature that's subject to the prone condition?

Fall, land prone, get beaten to death by the team getting Advantage against them.

[BarneyBent]

If I'm down to my last spell slot, everything's competing for it, concentration or otherwise.

The whole point is you cast it then short rest immediately, regaining all your spell slots. Do that at the start of the day and it will never compete for anything. If you lose concentration, sure. Take Warcaster and/or Res CON and stay ranged and that will rarely be a problem.

[Skylivedk]

I've neither Hex nor Eldritch Smite on my own Hexblade yet, but having just turned lvl 7, I'm considering it. We're playing Tomb of Annihilation so I might also just wait until we go dragon hunting.

With Warding Bond Armour of Agathys seems too good to ignore and Hex hasn't been worth it for a while. My bonus actions are stacked regardless (Baleful Curse, Misty Step/Dimension Door and GWM proc) and I have too many concentration spells vying for the same spot (racial Faerie Fire and Darkness, Enemies Abound, Hypnotic Pattern, Summon Greater Demon, Shadows of Moil). I guess I could have Hex instead of Enemies Abound, but I don't think it'll see much use, and I've a feeling it might be the same with the Smite.

[Spore]

I treat stuff like that like options in a (trading) card game. If I cannot reap ALL benefits, I am not using that option. And technically from a building standpoint, it does compete with the pool of other evocations (because that is basically your pool of 'additional' cards or options).

And basically the prone condition is the deciding factor here, not the damage (the not so obvious advantage is that it is a shove that does not warrant a strength save, just a hit so you CAN suddenly trip up that giant)

[sophontteks]

If I'm down to my last spell slot, everything's competing for it, concentration or otherwise.
I'm not sure if you are getting what I said. Hex lasts 8-24 hours. You can cast hex, short rest to get the slot back, and switch the hex to a new target without using one of your spell slots.

[Benny89]

It's good and bad. It's good because it's nice Crit boost or "auto-prone" button vs some bosses (especially flying ones).

But since warlock have only 2 slots till level 11- it competes heavly with a lot of other "generally useful" things.

And saving that one slot all the time for that Smite can turn against party very quick.

I like it on multiclass where you have other slots for more utility stuff and you can really keep that Smite.

But for pure warlock I don't really think it's that much worth. A Barbarian with Advantage on Strength Saves and 20 STR is a huge "prone-machine" already.

That is just my opinion of course.

[Daghoulish]

I like it on multiclass where you have other slots for more utility stuff and you can really keep that Smite.

Ignore this, misread your post.

[Keravath]

Overall, I think Eldritch Smite has little utility when you only have two spell slots.

I have a PAM/GWM hexblade with 3 attacks/turn. In my case, I usually try to cast shadows of Moil or (below 7) darkness to get advantage on attacks on folks who couldn't see me. This allows relatively reliable use of GWM subject to the whims of the dice.

Anyway, consider that you are likely to want to use at least one spell/encounter for something useful. This leaves one spell for smiting. However, if you have a second encounter without a short rest you will have zero or one spells left depending on how many you used in the first fight. Use of Eldritch Smite effectively depends on critting. You can't predict those. What happens when you crit on something that is not the boss? Do you use the eldritch smite likely burning your only remaining spell slot or do you try to save it an hope to crit on a more challenging opponent?

Basically, my assessment is that for a warlock with only two spell slots it isn't worth an invocation of you have a better choice available.

[sophontteks]

While I can't say if its worth an invocation, it is a nice ability.

Its not something that competes with your limited spell slots, because you'd only be using it when its clutch anyway. You crit a big baddy, you dump your slot into the attack and deal up to 12d8 additional force damage, plus prone. Sometimes something just needs to die.

Sure, maybe you won't have a spell for the next encounter, but how many resources did the party save because you just turned the boss into paste? They probably would have needed a short rest anyway and they still would have been worse off.

Warlocks aren't for the conservative-minded folk IMO. If I have a warlock spell that can shift an encounter, I use it. Holding that extra spell slot in the back pocket could be clutch, but it can also be a waste of 50% of your spellcasting potential. Again, personal resources don't matter much,. It's about the party's resource pool. Let your friends cover you when you're dry.

What smite does compete with are the other invocations, and there lies the problem. There are many good invocations. I like to specialize and whether I take it would depend on what I am trying to accomplish. Warlocks can crit-fish really well with their many sources of advantage.

[Citan]

I'm playing a level 8 BladeLock, and on the fence about taking the Eldritch Smite Invocation. It's powerful, but I don't know if it's workable with only 2 spell slots. How does this work?

I've looked at the numbers: +5d8 averages 22.5 hp damage, but I can that much out of Hex if I land 6 or 7 hits with it, which is likely if I can maintain concentration on it four or five rounds. Some combats last that long, some don't. I also get a good debuff from Hex, and a teleportation rider from Relentless Hex.

On the other hand, Eldritch Smite gets doubled on a crit: +10d8 at my current level, +12d8 when I reach 9th level. Assuming I have a spell slot available, and that's the sticking point: It doesn't seem feasible to keep a slot "in reserve" just in case I get a critical hit.

So... has anyone used Eldritch Smite prior to getting a 3rd spell slot at level 11? And how did it work out for you?
Hi!

Overall, I think Eldritch Smite has little utility when you only have two spell slots.

I have a PAM/GWM hexblade with 3 attacks/turn. In my case, I usually try to cast shadows of Moil or (below 7) darkness to get advantage on attacks on folks who couldn't see me. This allows relatively reliable use of GWM subject to the whims of the dice.

Anyway, consider that you are likely to want to use at least one spell/encounter for something useful. This leaves one spell for smiting. However, if you have a second encounter without a short rest you will have zero or one spells left depending on how many you used in the first fight. Use of Eldritch Smite effectively depends on critting. You can't predict those. What happens when you crit on something that is not the boss? Do you use the eldritch smite likely burning your only remaining spell slot or do you try to save it an hope to crit on a more challenging opponent?

Basically, my assessment is that for a warlock with only two spell slots it isn't worth an invocation of you have a better choice available.
Keravath's posts is summarizing the thing well imo.

For me, that Invocation is situational in itself: not far from being as situational as the Grappler feat.
In my view, it is worth mainly (only?) in the following situations.
1. You expect *occasional* flyers and absolutely nobody else can land them prone for you (which is to me a sign your party will be in big trouble one day or another in the first place).
2. You are already a level 12+ Blade Warlock that dedicated himself to be a "Paladin-like" gish (Armor of Agathys + day-long Hex going for nova, possibly being Fiend for other source of THP).
3. You are multiclassed in another class (possibly main) so you use all your spell known (Warlock included) on long-rest slots as needed so you can afford to "waste" (or invest, depending view) slots on Smite from time to time.
4. You are the luckiest guy that happens to be in a party that a) respects the interest of taking regular short rest and b) knows and has all the tricks to enable it (meaning it's actually a good thing for you to smite, otherwise you could overshine other players because you'd had so many actual slot in a given day).
5. You are, as strange and improbable as may be, the only one in whole party that could dish a big amount of damage in single turn and do it reliably because weapon attack + advantage.
6. You simply already got whatever else Invocation you were interested in, so might as well pick that one.
(7. You RP a guy that always wants to get the finishing blow on bad guys)

Barring those case, it's simply a trap imo. When you have spells that can competely turn tide either single-target (Hold Person/Monster which impozes paralized, so auto-crit for everyone in melee, Banishment), mass (Hypnotic Pattern, Synaptic Static) or by preventing (Counterspell!) I'd much rather spend my action trying to make one stick because, even if it's more of a gamble, the benefits simply can't compare to "just dealing extra damage" except when all stars align (you are fighting a big and dangerous guy, he still has a good chunk of HP, and you land a crit on him, and you roll welll. o/).

[JakOfAllTirades]

Hi!

Keravath's posts is summarizing the thing well imo.

For me, that Invocation is situational in itself: not far from being as situational as the Grappler feat.
In my view, it is worth mainly (only?) in the following situations.
1. You expect *occasional* flyers and absolutely nobody else can land them prone for you (which is to me a sign your party will be in big trouble one day or another in the first place).
2. You are already a level 12+ Blade Warlock that dedicated himself to be a "Paladin-like" gish (Armor of Agathys + day-long Hex going for nova, possibly being Fiend for other source of THP).
3. You are multiclassed in another class (possibly main) so you use all your spell known (Warlock included) on long-rest slots as needed so you can afford to "waste" (or invest, depending view) slots on Smite from time to time.
4. You are the luckiest guy that happens to be in a party that a) respects the interest of taking regular short rest and b) knows and has all the tricks to enable it (meaning it's actually a good thing for you to smite, otherwise you could overshine other players because you'd had so many actual slot in a given day).
5. You are, as strange and improbable as may be, the only one in whole party that could dish a big amount of damage in single turn and do it reliably because weapon attack + advantage.
6. You simply already got whatever else Invocation you were interested in, so might as well pick that one.
(7. You RP a guy that always wants to get the finishing blow on bad guys)

Barring those case, it's simply a trap imo. When you have spells that can competely turn tide either single-target (Hold Person/Monster which impozes paralized, so auto-crit for everyone in melee, Banishment), mass (Hypnotic Pattern, Synaptic Static) or by preventing (Counterspell!) I'd much rather spend my action trying to make one stick because, even if it's more of a gamble, the benefits simply can't compare to "just dealing extra damage" except when all stars align (you are fighting a big and dangerous guy, he still has a good chunk of HP, and you land a crit on him, and you roll welll. o/).


I agree, Kervath has the right of it. Also, I should point out that a few of the situations Citan mentioned above are applicable for me and/or my group.

1. We're going up against some large, dangerous flyers soon. (A couple of dragons, actually.)

4. I seldom have difficulty getting a short rest when I need one.

5. I'm the only one in the party with access to a "smiting" ability; we have no paladin or anyone else with a similar nova capability, and I've got multiple sources of advantage + the elven accuracy feat.

8. (bonus!) Our Wizard has a wand of paralysis, which provides opportunities for automatic criticals, so Eldritch Smite = 12d8 with my pact blade.

We're in a sandbox-style campaign, and my group has gone slightly bonkers, having made plans to take out two different dragons and a beholder. So I've decided to go ahead and add Eldritch Smite to my Invocations. It might make sense, in some cases, to stand off at longbow range (150 feet), forgo spell casting, and just burn my slots on Smites. I've also got a Rod of the Pact Keeper so I can come up with an extra spell slot/smite if needed.

[Citan]

I agree, Kervath has the right of it. Also, I should point out that a few of the situations Citan mentioned above are applicable for me and/or my group.

1. We're going up against some large, dangerous flyers soon. (A couple of dragons, actually.)

4. I seldom have difficulty getting a short rest when I need one.

5. I'm the only one in the party with access to a "smiting" ability; we have no paladin or anyone else with a similar nova capability, and I've got multiple sources of advantage + the elven accuracy feat.

8. (bonus!) Our Wizard has a wand of paralysis, which provides opportunities for automatic criticals, so Eldritch Smite = 12d8 with my pact blade.

We're in a sandbox-style campaign, and my group has gone slightly bonkers, having made plans to take out two different dragons and a beholder. So I've decided to go ahead and add Eldritch Smite to my Invocations. It might make sense, in some cases, to stand off at longbow range (150 feet), forgo spell casting, and just burn my slots on Smites. I've also got a Rod of the Pact Keeper so I can come up with an extra spell slot/smite if needed.
Hmm.
Indeed, your bits of context tend to validate Eldricht Smite as a good choice. :)
Regarding short rests, I'd suggest you kindly ask your Wizard to learn Catnap. At level 5 it is kinda a big deal, but he can see it as trading one slot for two. ^^ And after a few more levels it will just be a slight but very affordable punction in its resources.
There is also Rope Trick: does he have it but your party has trouble setting it up in a safe way? If he doesn't learn it, imo he should: great for all party and while not always usable, can still come in handy at least half of days imx.

[Trampaige]

I'm not sure if you are getting what I said. Hex lasts 8-24 hours. You can cast hex, short rest to get the slot back, and switch the hex to a new target without using one of your spell slots.

What are you casting it on and killing?

I am sure most dms frown on "I keep a cage of rats in my backpack"

[Mortis_Elrod]

E-Smite is great. Auto prone is incredible. And so are ranged smites.

It’s a great alternative to spells. Especially if you have a long adventuring day and have multiple short rests. Even if you don’t it’s a back pocket option for that extra umph you might need in a desperate situation or for making sure the villain doesn’t escape by shooting out a prone arrow.

The only issue I see is the perceived notion that you should be smiting as often as possible, which is just silly.

Even Paladins have decent spells they don’t want to waste on smites. You don’t have to smite every fight. Don’t have to be sit for crits either tho.

[sophontteks]

What are you casting it on and killing?

I am sure most dms frown on "I keep a cage of rats in my backpack"
- My familiar spends 8 hours hunting rats while I sleep.
- One can use survival to track small animals while traveling.
- Animals can be purchased.
- Using Warlock talk to animals invocation for nefarious reasons.
- Killing local livestock at dawn and blaming it on the "goat sucker"
- leaving out food and letting it spoil to attract pests.
- Setting hunting traps at night.
- obtaining a magic rat-summoning pipe.
- Or It could just be cast on the first encounter and it'd still be up every encounter thereafter.

I can't think of anything more typical of a warlock then constantly hunting for small animals to sacrifice. How they are sacrificed could even be its own ritual. I'd say the classic is burning them up in a cauldron for that real dark magic/ witchcraft feel.

[JakOfAllTirades]

What are you casting it on and killing?

I am sure most dms frown on "I keep a cage of rats in my backpack"

I haven't asked my DM, but I'm pretty sure he won't like the idea.

I personally think it's ridiculous, and my character absolutely wouldn't do such things, anyway.

[LudicSavant]

What are you casting it on and killing?

I am sure most dms frown on "I keep a cage of rats in my backpack"

Your Warlock is a passionate hobbyist entomologist, and must sacrifice something they love daily to their patron. Such is the price of power.

Normally I mislike any sort of design that encourages sacrificing small animals, but for a Warlock I find it quite easy to justify crushing a spider as the component of a dark ritual.

[Helldin87]

Another point is that it is a cast-on-hit. It does not rely on you "gambling" with an attack roll since you choose to use it after you determine your hit.

It's a great tool. It is not AS GOOD as divine smite in terms of flexibility (must come from a pact magic slot so no multiclass shenanigans) and you of course only get 2-3 of them.

I think it depends on what you want it for. If you consider it for just the prone effect then it is above average. If you save it for a crit it is now even better.

[LudicSavant]

Another point is that it is a cast-on-hit. It does not rely on you "gambling" with an attack roll since you choose to use it after you determine your hit.

Yeah. At the time you cast it, it's guaranteed damage. Having a Paladin smite is essentially asking you, upon hitting, "would you like to add a high damage Magic Missile without an action?" Eldritch smite is like that, except with a guaranteed prone on top of that (which affects up to Huge creatures, whereas many abilities that knock prone are limited to Large. Which means that you can mess up dragons with Legendary saves with it).

[sithlordnergal]

Also Hex should not be taking up one of your slots; it lasts 8-24 hours so you cast it in the morning then short rest to regenerate the slot, before you get on with the adventuring day. Think of it as a 1-hour casting time ritual that lasts all day.

I've really never seen any DM willing to allow a warlock to do that, myself included. First you'd need to cast it on some creature you can find as soon as you wake up, and second I don't know of any DM who would give you a short rest as soon as you finish a long rest. So it will be taking up one of your spell slots until you take the first short rest of the day, likely after 2 or 3 encounters. Its one of the short comings of the Warlock class. Their spells scale wonderfully, but they have too few slots to do anything with them outside of one or two small tricks.

For OP...its a nice flavor skill that works wonders if you're a Sorcerer/Warlock. But outside of that, you don't have the slots to use it consistently, and will be better off with something else. The prone thing is awesome, but again, you need more slots to make it really work.

[LudicSavant]

I've really never seen any DM willing to allow a warlock to do that

My experience is different.

Anyways, you will find that it works at any RAW, RAI (e.g. RAW + Sage Advice), or Adventurer's League game. Obviously, if your game houserules it, that would change my recommendations for tactics accordingly.

[JakOfAllTirades]

Yeah. At the time you cast it, it's guaranteed damage. Having a Paladin smite is essentially asking you, upon hitting, "would you like to add a high damage Magic Missile without an action?" Eldritch smite is like that, except with a guaranteed prone on top of that (which affects up to Huge creatures, whereas many abilities that knock prone are limited to Large. Which means that you can mess up dragons with Legendary saves with it).

Yeah, our last game session clinched it for me, with our group making plans for hunting down all these high-CR monsters and I'm like "Say WHAT now?"

Our group consists of a Barbarian (Path of the Juggernaut from Tal'Dorei), a Divine Soul Sorceress, an Evocation Wizard, a Dwarven Fighter, and a Valor Bard/Assassin.

The Barbarian and the Fighter are both sword and board types so no great weapon fighting.

The Divine Soul is an awesome healer but very flaky due to RP reasons. My Warlock is in charge of keeping her out of trouble, and it's a full-time job.

The Wizard is extremely powerful but sometimes unreliable due to RP reasons of the "chaotic neutral" variety.

The Bard/Assassin is a noob who dumped Con and has an expensive serial resurrection habit. I traded off a Wand of Fireballs for an Amulet Health and threw it at him last session.

Technically, we've got all our bases covered, and in spite of their quirks, this group (usually) works together quite well. My character is the contingency planner who grabs whatever abilities no one else thought of.

[sithlordnergal]

My experience is different.

Anyways, you will find that it works at any RAW, RAI (e.g. RAW + Sage Advice), or Adventurer's League game. Obviously, if your game houserules it, that would change my recommendations for tactics accordingly.

By RAW it works, sure. But most DMs I talk to balk at the idea of giving the Warlock an instant short rest as soon as the day starts...which is funny cause none of them care if a Druid wears metal armor. Myself included actually, though I tend to be stingy when it comes to resting in general...Go figure.:smallconfused:

[sophontteks]

I've really never seen any DM willing to allow a warlock to do that, myself included. First you'd need to cast it on some creature you can find as soon as you wake up, and second I don't know of any DM who would give you a short rest as soon as you finish a long rest. So it will be taking up one of your spell slots until you take the first short rest of the day, likely after 2 or 3 encounters. Its one of the short comings of the Warlock class. Their spells scale wonderfully, but they have too few slots to do anything with them outside of one or two small tricks.

For OP...its a nice flavor skill that works wonders if you're a Sorcerer/Warlock. But outside of that, you don't have the slots to use it consistently, and will be better off with something else. The prone thing is awesome, but again, you need more slots to make it really work.
How can a DM stop you from short resting? Is he creating some sort of sinister NPC alarm clock?

Everyone's morning routine qualifies under a short rest including eating breakfast. There is every opportunity to do this without slowing the party down at all. Its one of the upsides to being a warlock. That they gain their slots on short rests, which lack the limitations of long rests.


By RAW it works, sure. But most DMs I talk to balk at the idea of giving the Warlock an instant short rest as soon as the day starts...which is funny cause none of them care if a Druid wears metal armor. Myself included actually, though I tend to be stingy when it comes to resting in general...Go figure.:smallconfused:

As a DM you don't get to tell the players what to do, including when they rest. They make the choices and all you can do is advise for/against it. They could decide to take a nap in the middle of an enemy fort, its a terrible idea, but they are the masters of their destiny.

[sithlordnergal]

How can a DM stop you from short resting? Is he creating some sort of sinister NPC alarm clock?

Everyone's morning routine qualifies under a short rest including eating breakfast. There is every opportunity to do this without slowing the party down at all. Its one of the upsides to being a warlock. That they gain their slots on short rests, which lack the limitations of long rests.


By doing what I do, I tell my players if they have gotten a short rest or not. Doesn't matter if their routine would have all the "qualifications" of a short rest, the player can ask for one and the DM can say "You do not gain any benefits of a short rest". I actually find it really helps smooth out the issues between long rest and short rest characters when the only way a player gets the benefits of a short/long rest is if the DM says so.

EDIT: I do the same with long rests.If the party is in a dungeon, finishes a long rest, has one encounter, and wants to long rest immediately afterward I warn them that they will not gain any benefits from a long rest since they have just finished a long rest.

[sophontteks]

By doing what I do, I tell my players if they have gotten a short rest or not. Doesn't matter if their routine would have all the "qualifications" of a short rest, the player can ask for one and the DM can say "You do not gain any benefits of a short rest". I actually find it really helps smooth out the issues between long rest and short rest characters when the only way a player gets the benefits of a short/long rest is if the DM says so.

EDIT: I do the same with long rests.If the party is in a dungeon, finishes a long rest, has one encounter, and wants to long rest immediately afterward I warn them that they will not gain any benefits from a long rest since they have just finished a long rest.

If a long rest is interrupted, they don't gain the benefits. If a short rest isn't interrupted and you arbitrarily say they don't benefit from it anyway, well, that's different.

Make sure you are clear to your players about your house rules before you start. There are no limitations on short rests (unlike long rests) so short rest characters would be pretty justifiably upset when you arbitrarily nerf short resting like this.

I would make sure you are laying out some actual rules on this rather then allowing/not allowing it on a whim. Short rest characters have enough problems without their DM singling them out like this.

[Spiritchaser]

Are you playing a GWM bladelock or not?

Eldritch smite is generally less useful for GWM builds with the notable exception that it still rocks in a flight heavy campaign against most (though not all) fliers, where you can just switch out for a bow.

How often do you get to use a single arrow to hit a dragon with a mountain?

[Benny89]

I would take Eldritch Smite only if I am making a 11/9 Padlock or 13/7 Padlock. This way you have much more slots for some utility/buff spells and more Smites and if you score crit you can burn both E-Smite and D-Smite + IDS and make nuclear attack with whopping +22k8 damage attached to it. Which is good tactic with Vengeance Paladin VoE + Curse due to Advantage on Demand or with Devil Sight combos, though those ones take longer to setup.

But Padlock is the only scenario where I would bother with E-Smite myself.

[sithlordnergal]

If a long rest is interrupted, they don't gain the benefits. If a short rest isn't interrupted and you arbitrarily say they don't benefit from it anyway, well, that's different.

Make sure you are clear to your players about your house rules before you start. There are no limitations on short rests (unlike long rests) so short rest characters would be pretty justifiably upset when you arbitrarily nerf short resting like this.

I would make sure you are laying out some actual rules on this rather then allowing/not allowing it on a whim. Short rest characters have enough problems without their DM singling them out like this.

Oh, I make sure the players know that I will inform them if they can gain the benefits of resting. I find that it helps to balance Long and Short Rest classes better. It prevents the 5-Minute Adventuring Day where the Long Rest classes try to get a Long Rest after every other encounter. But it also prevents Short Rest abuse.

I actually came up with the idea when a fellow DM told me about an issue he had. He had run Tomb of Ahnniliation, and apparently the party had a Moon Druid, Battlemaster Fighter, Warlock, Monk, and Wizard. They went through the entire final dungeon with a single Long Rest, but they would take a short rest after every single encounter. As a result, the Wizard had trouble because they couldn't really restore their spell slots for most of the dungeon while the rest of the party never had to deal with the consequences of wasting their resources.

[JakOfAllTirades]

Are you playing a GWM bladelock or not?

Eldritch smite is generally less useful for GWM builds with the notable exception that it still rocks in a flight heavy campaign against most (though not all) fliers, where you can just switch out for a bow.

How often do you get to use a single arrow to hit a dragon with a mountain?

Dex based FeyLock who often uses a +1 longbow. (Improved Pact Weapon). I'll have the equivalent of GWM, at range, when I take the Sharpshooter Feat. That'll be at 12th level when I get the Lifedrinker Invocation, so the Longbow is gonna be doing two attacks at 1d8+1d6+20 damage, with Hex active.

[Zalabim]

EDIT: I do the same with long rests.If the party is in a dungeon, finishes a long rest, has one encounter, and wants to long rest immediately afterward I warn them that they will not gain any benefits from a long rest since they have just finished a long rest.
I just wanted to explain that this part isn't fiat. It's actually the rule that you cannot benefit from more than one Long Rest within 24 hours.

[sophontteks]

Oh, I make sure the players know that I will inform them if they can gain the benefits of resting. I find that it helps to balance Long and Short Rest classes better. It prevents the 5-Minute Adventuring Day where the Long Rest classes try to get a Long Rest after every other encounter. But it also prevents Short Rest abuse.

I actually came up with the idea when a fellow DM told me about an issue he had. He had run Tomb of Ahnniliation, and apparently the party had a Moon Druid, Battlemaster Fighter, Warlock, Monk, and Wizard. They went through the entire final dungeon with a single Long Rest, but they would take a short rest after every single encounter. As a result, the Wizard had trouble because they couldn't really restore their spell slots for most of the dungeon while the rest of the party never had to deal with the consequences of wasting their resources.

The big difference here is that with long rests you are enforcing a rule, and with short rest you are not. You should at least lay out what the house rule is, so players can know how short rests are going to work with you. It would be frusterating to deal with a DM seemingly disallowing short rests at random and players may feel discouraged from using the mechanic at all.

Short rest classes are designed to be able to regain their resources more easily, its balanced by the fact that they have fewer resources available for any encounter. By limiting short rests you are favoring long rest classes. In your example there is no problem. Time constrictions already limit how often one can short rest just fine, and doing so after every fight in a dungeon already has consequences with the enemy having time to prepare, or even lay an ambush.

Generally the community considers warlocks to be a weak class and much of this comes from misconceptions about short rests. Warlock players struggle with their extremely limited spell slots, and often its because they aren't taking advantage of the short rest mechanics. That short resting specifically lacks the limitations and risks of a long rest.

In this case you are reinforcing this balance concern, preventing your short rest classes from regaining their limited resources as easily as they are supposed to. Long rest classes can still nova several times the resources available to a short rest character on a single encounter, but short rest classes lose their ability to consistently have resources available throughout the adventuring day.

[Nerdicus]

I think it's viable with only 2 slots, but to maximize it you should build out your ability to hit crits more regularly, with something like Elven Accuracy. That combined with your hexblade curse allows you to over 20% of the time. Also investing in a Rod of the Pact Keeper, gets you 1 more spell slot per long rest. Ultimately though, multi-classing with another caster to get a couple level 1 slots, for shield or hex, or a ring of spell storing, would really improve things.

[JakOfAllTirades]

I think it's viable with only 2 slots, but to maximize it you should build out your ability to hit crits more regularly, with something like Elven Accuracy. That combined with your hexblade curse allows you to over 20% of the time. Also investing in a Rod of the Pact Keeper, gets you 1 more spell slot per long rest. Ultimately though, multi-classing with another caster to get a couple level 1 slots, for shield or hex, or a ring of spell storing, would really improve things.

I've got Elven Accuracy, but not Hexblade's Curse; I'm playing a FeyLock with Pact of the Blade.