What Fiend patron will be the least evil

[Kefvin]

I will soon be dipping into Warlock and will be choosing the fiend pact.

The big problem is that in my party there is a Lawful Good Golden Dwarf Life Cleric who is good through and through.
Roleplaying wise he will have issues with me having made a pact with a fiend. My character is all about revenge and getting his revenge at any cost.

I want this to work for both of us, Ive looked at the Arch Fey and those patrons and they are more "neutral" in their manner they don't suit my character all that well :(

What I would like is input from any other player (or DM) that has been in a similar situation and how you worked around it.

Thanks!

[Mordaedil]

Go with Asmodeus. You can't get a better person than the person at the top of the pyramid chain.

[1Pirate]

Do you need to use a canon fiend? If not, just have it be some random pit fiend. Fiends make a lot of enemies, quite a few of whom are evil creatures themselves. You had a common enemy, the fiend offers you a bit of power for bumping that enemy to the top of your "to-do" list. Warlocks aren't clerics, you don't lose your powers once you've ended services.

For something canon, Zariel would probably work. More about the fighting and killing than specifically being evil.

[Millstone85]

Go yugoloth.

Devils have this vision of a perfectly ordered multiverse, mercilessly enforced by them.

Demons want to see the multiverse burn, or rot, or be awash with blood, or whatever a particular demon thinks will make the best finale.

Yugoloths? They just want to make a profit. Some might even see ridding the world of goody-goodies as being bad for business.

[Quoxis]

Go yugoloth.

Devils have this vision of a perfectly ordered multiverse, mercilessly enforced by them.

Demons want to see the multiverse burn, or rot, or be awash with blood, or whatever a particular demon thinks will make the best finale.

Yugoloths? They just want to make a profit. Some might even see ridding the world of goody-goodies as being bad for business.

This is probably the easiest solution.

RP-wise, you’re free to imagine any reason why any fiend would make a pact with you, including the terms and conditions, as long as your GM is on board - i‘ve seen warlocks with no real story implications regarding their patrons, that’s entirely possible.

Food for thought:
Demons are evil and chaotic, that’ be difficult to align with your goals. A „pact“ with the forces of chaos would be a loose term anyways, so however you could become a warlock, it’s possible that your patron wouldn’t use you to reach their goals - possibly they’d even take a one-time deed like burning a village to the ground or fighting a high-level devil (devils and demons are opposing forces after all!) as payment before even offering you powers.
Devils, being on the lawful side of evil, would probably give you exact terms you‘d have to follow to the letter in most situations - they also cannot naturally reproduce, they form new devils out of souls of the damned in the nine hells, so selling yourself to become a devil after your death* is a possibility.
(*just watch out for a „death caused by a devil voids this contract“ clause or your adventure will be over instantly)

In both cases you could make a pact by promising to fight the other fiend race (devil pact: fight demons, demon pact: fight devils) with it, by accident (reading an ancient tome that summons a fiend who gives you the choice of becoming their pawn or getting eaten on the spot - self preservation can hardly be taken as an evil action), completely without your doing (your ancestor sold his nth son/daughter/grandkid/whatever off to a fiend in return for power, and you happen to be the victim)...
A demon might gift you powers simply because it’s something the devils or the forces of good don’t expect, a devil might because they want to corrupt you so you’re bringing more souls to them in the future, maybe not even necessarily those of the standard races (goblins are humanoids for example, killing those is in general considered good), or if you wanna make it interesting for the GM just say the fiend told you you‘d have to give them control over your body for X minutes once at a time of their choice (kinda like the OOTS comic did it) to set another event in motion.

[Unoriginal]

Go with Raxivort.

He is known to offer a Warlock's Pact in exchange for an interesting magic item, and once the deal is done and you got your spark of power, he won't ask anything from you ever again.

As far as evil go, he's mostly just a thief. His followers do sacrifice people to him from time to time, but that's true of basically all Fiends who have enough power to make Pacts, so if you want a lesser evil...

[The Jack]

Yugoloths are the purist evil, being so business minded is just an aspect of that. Sadism and perversions are their nature.

Good warlock Plan 1:
Perhaps you've enslaved the demon? You've spent months looking over tomes, uncovering names, finding ways to bind it to your will. The demon serves you, not you it. You've taken control and as you level up you take more. Occasionally, you wrangle with a power struggle as it tries to wyrth it's way out from your grasp (I'd suggest you've made enemies of a cult who reveres your demon, rather than your magic )

Good warlock Plan 2:
It's not a fiend, it's like a fiend, but it isn't a fiend. You've made a pact with a fire god, a greater Efreeti (who are still generally evil, but far less), or some other divine being largely fire based. Empyreans are a celestial with a 1/4 chance of being evil, perhaps there's room for a fiend with 1/4 chance of being good. Like the Germanic Jotun, the greek titans and the Indian Asura, there is plenty of room for rival gods which aren't in conflict over good/evil.

Good warlock Plan 3:
The Devil you serve is of a philosophy that it must punish the wicked. It isn't evil, it's a punitive force for those who stray from good.

[Millstone85]

I haven't seen them mentioned in 5e, but your patron could be a gehreleth.

Gehreleths are the jailers of Carceri, sometimes encountered in pursuit of escapees. You pact might involve helping with such recaptures.

[sophontteks]

You don't have to have the same alignment or goals as your fiend. You don't have to like your fiend either. Most "deal with the devil" tropes involve a good person who was tricked in a bargain.

As a warlock you do not serve your patron like a cleric (you can if you want to though.) The deal could be as simple as you being granted powers in exchange for serving your patron in the afterlife. The fiend who bound you could care less how you use those powers, because in the end it will get what it desires.

The relationship could even be adversarial. You were tricked or forced into the pact and seek to break the deal and exact your revenge on your patron. You actively use your powers to thwart your patron's plans. The relationship goes both ways afterall. The patron can't end the pact and its influence in the material realm is limited.

[Damon_Tor]

I will soon be dipping into Warlock and will be choosing the fiend pact.

The big problem is that in my party there is a Lawful Good Golden Dwarf Life Cleric who is good through and through.
Roleplaying wise he will have issues with me having made a pact with a fiend. My character is all about revenge and getting his revenge at any cost.

I want this to work for both of us, Ive looked at the Arch Fey and those patrons and they are more "neutral" in their manner they don't suit my character all that well :(

What I would like is input from any other player (or DM) that has been in a similar situation and how you worked around it.

Thanks!

I played a lawfulish good warlock who was forced to make a deal with a devil (he doesn't know the identity of the devil) to save his mother. The devil told him he'd take his mother to hell (she had sold the devil her soul years before) if the warlock didn't take the power and use it to harvest evil souls that were "overdue".

[dejarnjc]

Fhjull Forked-Tongue is a devil whom was tricked into bring bound by contact to do good deeds in the video game Planescape Torment. You could use him or another devil inspired by him as your patron.

[PhoenixPhyre]

I had an idea for a fiend warlock:

<Name> comes from a long line of arcanists, where the way to get ahead is by gaining arcane power. <Name>'s not so concerned with this, but his younger <sibling> is. He comes home one day to find his <sibling> having summoned a fiend, and about to get eaten/dragged down to hell/corrupted in general. Being the noble type, he intercedes and convinces the fiend to accept him and his soul (after death) in exchange for letting the <sibling> go free. So yes, he's damned, but while he's here he does what he can to foil the evil plans of the fiends, using their own power.

Or maybe a fiendlock/bard--beating the fiend in a fiddling contest (down in Georgia, by preference).

[Mith]

I haven't seen them mentioned in 5e, but your patron could be a gehreleth.

Gehreleths are the jailers of Carceri, sometimes encountered in pursuit of escapees. You pact might involve helping with such recaptures.

I like this idea. If you extend it a bit with reincarnation (escaped souls in hiding), the DM could have these targets appear throughout various combats as even minor opponents that he has to personally land the killing blow on for their Patron to be able to recapture them. The DM could keep track of the success rate, and if it's high enough, the character might be able to leverage some favours.

[Naanomi]

Pazuzu traditionally loves making deals with Lawful Good types, often staying in disguise even after the deal is made so that sometimes the victims never even realize it was done at all

Lots of the demon lords hate eachother, and actively war with eachother; it is reasonable to imagine one might make a pact with someone to fight one of their own Fiendish enemies

Or just go with the original evil... Baernoloth do things for reasons no one understands, usually to further plans that won’t come to fruition for millions of years

[JackPhoenix]

Don't tell the dwarf you've made a pact with a fiend? If you avoid doing anything suspicious or evil in his presence, it's just magic, he can't tell where it came from. Buy a book with nonsensical scribles to pass for a wizard, or claim that you're a sorcerer.

[rlc]

If you're picking the fiend because you don't like any of the other ones in the phb and you can use UA, there's also the celestial patron, which would fit with that cleric better.

If you definitely want to have the fiend patron, here's a similar thread from a few years ago (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?416400-Good-Warlock-Sworn-to-a-Fiend) with some interesting ideas.

[Segev]

Don't forget that you don't have to be beholden to your patron. You could have powers because of a bargain made on your behalf by another - possibly before you were even born. Or you could have a fiend who fell in love with you and gifts you power to try to ingratiate herself (or himself) to you. (Re:Zero has an interesting twist on this.) Or you could have done a Fiend (particularly a devil) a favor and, knowing that it didn't want to owe you anything, it made a Warlock Pact with you to try to prevent you from calling in the favor at a less opportune moment in the future. Or, similarly, maybe you used a wish granted by a bound Efreeti to free it from its bindings, not trusting it not to twist any others you might make, and that favor was worth a Warlock Pact on its part. (It's not a fiend, but its fiery and evil nature are close enough for government work.)

You don't have to be evil, yourself, or even supporting your Patron's goals, to be Pacted with a Fiend. Or anything else. It's spooky and creepy and has dangerous implications, but it doesn't have to mean "loyal servant."

[Pex]

Does it have to be a fiend? Can you not refluff it for some other Patron but keep the game mechanics? A Phoenix is a good option to represent the fire theme.

[KorvinStarmast]

This is why I come to the Playground ...

I played a lawfulish good warlock who was forced to make a deal with a devil (he doesn't know the identity of the devil) to save his mother. The devil told him he'd take his mother to hell (she had sold the devil her soul years before) if the warlock didn't take the power and use it to harvest evil souls that were "overdue". Nice twist.

You don't have to have the same alignment or goals as your fiend. You don't have to like your fiend either. Most "deal with the devil" tropes involve a good person who was tricked in a bargain.
As a warlock you do not serve your patron like a cleric (you can if you want to though.) The deal could be as simple as you being granted powers in exchange for serving your patron in the afterlife. The fiend who bound you could care less how you use those powers, because in the end it will get what it desires.
The relationship could even be adversarial. You were tricked or forced into the pact and seek to break the deal and exact your revenge on your patron. You actively use your powers to thwart your patron's plans. The relationship goes both ways after all. The patron can't end the pact and its influence in the material realm is limited. I wish stuff like this was in the PHB to help flesh out the Warlock class description.

I had an idea for a fiend warlock:
<Name> comes from a long line of arcanists, where the way to get ahead is by gaining arcane power. <Name>'s not so concerned with this, but his younger <sibling> is. He comes home one day to find his <sibling> having summoned a fiend, and about to get eaten/dragged down to hell/corrupted in general. Being the noble type, he intercedes and convinces the fiend to accept him and his soul (after death) in exchange for letting the <sibling> go free. So yes, he's damned, but while he's here he does what he can to foil the evil plans of the fiends, using their own power. Or maybe a fiendlock/bard--beating the fiend in a fiddling contest (down in Georgia, by preference). If you don't name him Chardan it would be just wrong.

Pazuzu traditionally loves making deals with Lawful Good types, often staying in disguise even after the deal is made so that sometimes the victims never even realize it was done at all

Lots of the demon lords hate each other, and actively war with each other; it is reasonable to imagine one might make a pact with someone to fight one of their own Fiendish enemies Yeah, this. Fiends like to fight and mess with other fiends. Ego battles.

...celestial patron, which would fit with that cleric better.
If you definitely want to have the fiend patron, here's a similar thread from a few years ago (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?416400-Good-Warlock-Sworn-to-a-Fiend) with some interesting ideas. Another nice point.

Does it have to be a fiend? Can you not refluff it for some other Patron but keep the game mechanics? A Phoenix is a good option to represent the fire theme. Oooh, hadn't thought of that, nice one. Keeping for future reference.

[PhoenixPhyre]

If you don't name him Chardan it would be just wrong.


I guess I'm missing the reference, and Google was no help.

[Unoriginal]

I wish stuff like this was in the PHB to help flesh out the Warlock class description.

It is in the PHB, though. It's even mentioned the Patron doesn't need to be aware of the Warlock's existence for them to have a Pact.

[Kefvin]

I haven't seen them mentioned in 5e, but your patron could be a gehreleth.

Gehreleths are the jailers of Carceri, sometimes encountered in pursuit of escapees. You pact might involve helping with such recaptures.

This is a great idea, thanks!

[Kefvin]

I like this idea. If you extend it a bit with reincarnation (escaped souls in hiding), the DM could have these targets appear throughout various combats as even minor opponents that he has to personally land the killing blow on for their Patron to be able to recapture them. The DM could keep track of the success rate, and if it's high enough, the character might be able to leverage some favours.

This extension of a great idea made it even better!

[Ventruenox]

Here's another idea: the Patron itself is looking for a path for redemption.

We've all known stories where a Wish spell or some other phenomenal magical screw up leads to unintended consequences. Say a wizard gets dragged off to hell and is transformed into a devil. He wasn't evil before and just tries to keep his head down and survive. He wants out, and the PC can somehow redeem the patron through service in his name.

[MikeRoxTheBoat]

I will soon be dipping into Warlock and will be choosing the fiend pact.

The big problem is that in my party there is a Lawful Good Golden Dwarf Life Cleric who is good through and through.
Roleplaying wise he will have issues with me having made a pact with a fiend. My character is all about revenge and getting his revenge at any cost.

Easy answer? Make a pact with whoever, then lie. Or just don't tell the Cleric. He doesn't have to know you have a pact. A lot of the Warlock abilities are shared and though they're fire themed, aren't intrinsically evil. If he's not metagaming to "catch" you, there should be no reason it would cause problems.

Also, like other people have said, good people can make pacts with evil forces. I don't think I'd consider that Dwarf "good" persay if he condemned you for seeking out a source of power in a moment of desperation. Good role-playing opportunities could be had from him later trying to help you perhaps break your pact.

[Mith]

This extension of a great idea made it even better!

I was thinking of a version of Coment from the Deck of Many Things, but the idea of bonus XP would be too much favouritism.

[Millstone85]

This is a great idea, thanks!
This extension of a great idea made it even better!Glad to be of help.

[Spiritchaser]

If I were DMing this I’d give the player as much flexibility as possible. I can think of a few ways I might go about it.

The character in question finds an ancient book in an otherwise unexplored region of a ruin. The book contains something of incredible use to a fiend of the DM’s choosing, something the creature can use against one of it’s rivals.

The fiend contacts the player in a vision, with an offer of a spark of power in exchange for the book.

Then the rival shows up, with a much better offer! The knowledge of the arcane, the power of a warlock in exchange for the book.

A bidding war, the style of which is fully up to the DM can ensue... bonus points if he works in a card game, but deduct points if they wear fedoras while playing.

Either way the character ends up with the ability to take warlock levels with minimal onus on future behaviour.

Of course, his power does come at some cost.

Forevermore, the character’s dreams are haunted by the wispers and visions sent by a (Insert whatever). Oh not every night to be sure, but far too often nonetheless.

[rlc]

I guess I'm missing the reference, and Google was no help.

The song was originally by Charlie Daniels. I probably would've just gone with "Charlie," instead of a weird forced portmanteau.

[PhoenixPhyre]

The song was originally by Charlie Daniels. I probably would've just gone with "Charlie," instead of a weird forced portmanteau.

Ah. I never know the source of most songs, since I rarely pay attention to the people behind them.

[rlc]

Ah. I never know the source of most songs, since I rarely pay attention to the people behind them.
Yeah, I had to Google it to get the reference, too.

[KorvinStarmast]

I guess I'm missing the reference, and Google was no help. Charlie Daniels band did that song. the people make the music. (sorry, PP, my bias may be showing here. My daughter is in the music industry, which doesn't pay well, but the people who make the music are a core part of the whole thing ... )
Then again, Keith Richards is the guitar player for the band of the living dead ... and they are IRL ... successful. :smalleek:

[Max_Killjoy]

Some of these posts remind me a bit of the under-rated and sadly forgotten series Brimstone.

But it is interesting seeing the different opinions on whether the Warlock pact amounts to the patron giving a man a fish, or teaching a man to fish.

[Temperjoke]

Some of these posts remind me a bit of the under-rated and sadly forgotten series Brimstone.

But it is interesting seeing the different opinions on whether the Warlock pact amounts to the patron giving a man a fish, or teaching a man to fish.

That show was criminally underrated and ahead of it's time. If they relaunched it nowadays with a better budget it'd do so much better.

EDIT: on the original subject, is your character actually seeking out a fiend to make a pact with? Or is this something that you're trying to work out with the DM to facilitate your character's development? Cause that might make a difference too. On a side note: the nice thing about having a Yugoloth as your pact source is that they are just as interested in money as anything else, so if you've got adequate resources, then you may be able to cut a deal.

[Unoriginal]

Seriously, Raxivort is a canon Fiend who give Pacts in exchange for the kind of magic curios most adventurers run into.

If you want an actual Fiend and not just reflavoring the Patron, then it's hard to do a more convenient deal.