Celestial Warlock Build and Magic Items

[Verble]

I'm looking for feedback on my Tome Celestial Warlock build.

The party is around level 5 and consists of a psi-warrior fighter, a lore bard, and an open hand monk. I was originally playing an arcana cleric who was focused around Booming Blade. I didn't get much use as we didn't have some squishy casters to protect. I was overzealous and he died, so I whipped up the Celestial Warlock.

I plan to split some time with the bard for party face, mainly in situations where my noble character will have more influence. Let him persuade the criminals and thugs. Party Lacks a wizard so I picked up several ritual spells to help the party as well as some intelligence based skills.

I'm not looking for Uber-optimization. I'm happy with some ranged damage, some control and support, emergency healing.

Variant Human(Moderately Armored Feat)
I like having the extra AC even if I don't plan to get into melee, but I had also thought about taking the healer feat to support the party some.

Str 8
Dex 14
Con 17
Int 16
Wis 10
Cha 18

Skills: Arcana, History, Investigation, Perception, Persuasion
Background: Noble

Invocations
Agonizing Blast
Repelling Blast
Book of Ancient Secrets(Contains these spells: Comprehend Languages, Find Familiar, Speak with Animals, Unseen Servant, Tiny Hut)

4th Level Feat - Inspiring Leader. Bard doesn't have it and it can work with the later celestial warlock ability to grant a goodly number of THP

Cantrips: Light, Sacred Flame, Eldritch Blast, Minor Illusion, Prestidigitation, Spare the Dying, Thorn Whip, Guidance

I could have gone with Greenflame blade for the bonus to fire damage I get, but that also means I need shilleleagh to hit decently. I know warlock can be very versatile but the party has plenty of front liners(even the lore bard gets in there) so I'm comfortable focusing on ranged attacks. I think getting Spare the Dying and Guidance is a fair trade.

Spells: Cure Wounds, Flaming Sphere, Misty Step, Hold Person, Revivify, Hypnotic Pattern

Flaming sphere is mainly for control/AOE against swarms using my bonus action. I passed on Hex to avoid concentration issues and because higher level spells seem more valuable to me. Cure wounds I like to use if I have spell slots left before a short rest to heal up the party.

Magic Items: Rod of the Pact Keeper +1, Wand of Fireball
We get a rare and an uncommon magic item. The Rod is great as I'll be focusing on EB and grants me an extra spell slot as well. The wand of Fireball gives me some damaging and AOE abilities, but I wonder if the damage/DC might be less useful in a few levels. I'd love suggestion for alternative magic items (DM already shot down flying broom and winged boots).

[Houster]

Seems legit.
I would not take flaming sphere, use your concentration on better thing then some small extra damage.
Say suggestion, fly, hunger of hadar, major image.
You have eldritch blast you are fine on the damage department.
Plus, hunger of hadar+repelling blast sounds awesome.

Think about changing moderately armored/inspiring leader with warcaster/res con.
Or getting eldritch mind invocation

[RogueJK]

4th Level Feat - Inspiring Leader. Bard doesn't have it and it can work with the later celestial warlock ability to grant a goodly number of THP


Temp HP from multiple sources don't stack. So you can't combine the benefits of both Inspiring Leader and Celestial Resistance. You'd end up having to pick one or the other at each rest, and it would thus be redundant.

Instead, I'd put the 18 in CON and 17 in CHA, and then take something like Fey Touched or Telekinetic for +1 CHA. Or leave the scores as-is and take Resilient CON, or Chef if you want something a bit more flavorful. (Pun intended.)

Chef's treats would give you a little Temp HP benefit now to carry you over to 10th Level, and would also still remain useful after Celestial Resistance comes online, since allies could eat them anytime outside of rests as needed when their Temp HP from Celestial Resistance are depleted.

[Verble]

Seems legit.
I would not take flaming sphere, use your concentration on better thing then some small extra damage.
Say suggestion, fly, hunger of hadar, major image.
You have eldritch blast you are fine on the damage department.
Plus, hunger of hadar+repelling blast sounds awesome.

Think about changing moderately armored/inspiring leader with warcaster/res con.
Or getting eldritch mind invocation

I gained Revivify at level 5 and swapped out a lower level spell for hypnotic pattern so I can't take Fly or Hunger of Hadar this level.
I'm not a fan of Illusion spells, but I do kind of like Suggestion. I'll have to think of that.

For Hunger of Hadar, I'd have to reflavor it as it doesn't seem appropriate for a Celestial Warlock. Perhaps fire and radiant damage with a blinding glow instead of cold and acid with blinding darkness?

Hunger has a larger radius than Flaming Sphere, but it can't be moved. The difficult terrain from Hunger is also nice with repelling blast as your say. Hunger doesn't get upcast while the Flaming Sphere will be doing 3d6 in 9 squares, plus an extra 3d6 with my bonus action(which I'm not otherwise using). If I want to affect large groups I do have the wand of fireballs for damage or hypnotic pattern for control. Flaming Sphere is more about controlling an area that I can move as the battlefield changes.

I do definitely want to keep Inspiring Leader, though Res Con instead of moderately armored might be nice for HP and concentration check. I know ideally I should be stay in the back row but I still like having a decent AC so I'm not too much of a target.

Since I already have such good stats I feel less pressure about maxing out charisma right away. The one invocation that I'm looking forward to is Sculptor of Flesh for the potential to revive a fallen Ally and then polymorph them into something big and scary.

Any ideas on the magic items? Wand of Fireball seems pretty sweet for this level, and gives me more options rather than a Rod of the Pact Keeper +2 vs the +1.



Temp HP from multiple sources don't stack. So you can't combine the benefits of both Inspiring Leader and Celestial Resistance. You'd end up having to pick one or the other at each rest, and it would thus be redundant.

Instead, I'd put the 18 in CON and 17 in CHA, and then take something like Fey Touched or Telekinetic for +1 CHA. Or leave the scores as-is and take Resilient CON, or Chef if you want something a bit more flavorful. (Pun intended.)

Chef's treats would give you some Temp HP benefit now to carry you over to 10th Level, and would also still remain useful after Celestial Resistance comes online, since allies could eat them anytime outside of rests as needed when their Temp HP from Celestial Resistance are depleted.

I know that the temp HP don't stack but based on the wording you can make use of both sources of THP as they happen at different times.

The THP from Celestial Warlock are gained after a short or long rest. The THP from Inspiring Leader takes 10 minutes, can be used whenever you want, and can be redone after they finish a short or long rest. So you start after a rest with the Warlock THP, then after your first or second battle take 10 minutes to use the ones from Inspiring leader. Then you can take a short rest and you start with the Warlock THP again.

So while THP don't stack, these abilities happen at different times and can both be used.

As for switching my Con and Cha, I was kind of leaning into the benefits Cha gives me like Inspiring Leader and EB to hit and damage. In theory I really like Telekinetic to make use of a Bonus Action I'm not sure if fits for this character. I could reflavor it to fit saying that it was another power granted by his Patron or an extension of his EB. I'll have a look at Fey Touched option though part of this characters history is that while he's not an Aasimar, his bloodline does have traces of Celestial Blood. I do like Resilient Con and was thinking about taking that as an option at some point for the HP boost, Con Save Prof and concentration checks. I'm hoping to stay in the back row away from melee, and even if I am targeted I have a better AC thanks to Moderately Armored with shield and scale mail.

Chef really doesn't fit this character.

[diplomancer]

Temp HP from multiple sources don't stack. So you can't combine the benefits of both Inspiring Leader and Celestial Resistance. You'd end up having to pick one or the other at each rest, and it would thus be redundant.

Instead, I'd put the 18 in CON and 17 in CHA, and then take something like Fey Touched or Telekinetic for +1 CHA. Or leave the scores as-is and take Resilient CON, or Chef if you want something a bit more flavorful. (Pun intended.)

Chef's treats would give you some Temp HP benefit now to carry you over to 10th Level, and would also still remain useful after Celestial Resistance comes online, since allies could eat them anytime outside of rests as needed when their Temp HP from Celestial Resistance are depleted.

The Inspiring Leader vs. Celestial Resilience clash depends a bit on the playstyle; Celestial Resilience is "after a short rest", Inspiring Leader is "after a 10 minutes-long speech, once per short rest", so if there are enough encounters (and time between them) you can take advantage of both, just wait to make your inspiring speech after the THP from Celestial Resilience are gone.

[cZak]

...while the Flaming Sphere will be doing 3d6 in 9 squares, plus an extra 3d6 with my bonus action(which I'm not otherwise using). If I want to affect large groups I do have the wand of fireballs for damage or hypnotic pattern for control. Flaming Sphere is more about controlling an area that I can move as the battlefield changes.

I liked having Flaming sphere on my Celestial 'lock
Battlefield control
good damage either sitting there (free) or ramming it into someone (bonus)

AoE spells were an issue with my 3 out of 4 front-liners
I itched to drop Hunger o Hadar, but placement was such a pain to avoid team

[Wraith]

I think that the Rod is fine, but as an alternative to the Wand of Fireballs I would probably go for a Pearl of Power (Uncommon).

The versatility that you get from another spell slot outweighs a few Fireballs - especially since you have Flame Sphere on your list, to say nothing of when you get Wall of Fire or Flame Strike - it will remain useful and relevant for your whole adventuring career, and it won't eventually run out of charges like the wand.

Just at random because I think it's fun: Staff of the Serpent? You're a Warlock so you don't get Find Familiar on your list, but it's often useful to have an 'expendable' minion that you can order about if you need to, some of which you can overlap with some of your Invocations. Having a giant constrictor snake is fun, and it saves you spending a slot on a summon spell, too.

[Verble]

I think that the Rod is fine, but as an alternative to the Wand of Fireballs I would probably go for a Pearl of Power (Uncommon).

The versatility that you get from another spell slot outweighs a few Fireballs - especially since you have Flame Sphere on your list, to say nothing of when you get Wall of Fire or Flame Strike - it will remain useful and relevant for your whole adventuring career, and it won't eventually run out of charges like the wand.

Just at random because I think it's fun: Staff of the Serpent? You're a Warlock so you don't get Find Familiar on your list, but it's often useful to have an 'expendable' minion that you can order about if you need to, some of which you can overlap with some of your Invocations. Having a giant constrictor snake is fun, and it saves you spending a slot on a summon spell, too.

I could take a Rod of the Pact Keeper +2 and the Pearl of Power but the pearl is stuck at a 3rd level spell. I would get mileage out of increasing my EB to hit and spell save DC. But I'd be losing out on 1d6+1 fireballs a day for one third level spell. The wand runs out but gets recharged every night. I like having access to a decent AOE blast which doesn't break my concentration.

I do have find familiar as this is a Tome lock with the ritual spells invocation.

I don't like the staff of the serpent for three reasons. The serpent is huge size(15x15) and a big target. If it dies then the staff is destroyed. I have a moon druid in another game that uses the serpent form.

[Bobthewizard]

I don't really have any suggestions. I like your choices for spells, invocations, feats, and magic items. Nice job.

[follacchioso]

I have played a few Warlocks so far, and I think it works very well to have one level of Bard or Divine Soul Sorcerer to it, if you are open to multi class.

This delays your progression, which is painful on a Celestial Warlock as all the features are good. However, it gives you an extra two 1st level slots to cast the occasional Bless or Bane when you want to save the big slots for something else. Bard gives you Bardic Inspiration, which works well with your high CHA, and it is useful to prepare for a tough fight or important skill checks. Divine Soul Sorcerer gives you a tons of cantrips (although you are a Tome Warlock already), access to Sanctuary/Shield/Absorb Element, and an extra 2d4 for the most important saves or attack rolls of the day. If you get to two levels in sorcerer, you get flexibility in creating spell slots using Flexible Casting.

For cantrips, I would consider Shocking Grasp instead of Thorn Whip, as the former is useful to get away in melee situations.

For spells, I would also prefer Flaming Sphere over fireball, as you only have two slots, and you can get more mileage out of it thanks to the BA. However, I've found the spell awkward to use. If you use the BA to slam the sphere on an enemy, you will make some damage but you may also put your melee allies on a difficult position, as they will also get extra damage if they end their turn next to it. In alternative you can use the sphere to block a passage or avoid enemies from getting in melee range to you; but then you won't be able to move the sphere. Moreover, consider that Hex will give you a similar damage, combined with two eldritch blast rays it sums up to 2d6.

[RogueJK]

For cantrips, I would consider Shocking Grasp instead of Thorn Whip, as the former is useful to get away in melee situations.

Kinda, but not really.

Consider: If you're in that sticky of a situation of having a dangerous enemy within melee range and being a squishy caster who really needs to get away, would you rather spend your Action casting Shocking Grasp to maybe be able to get away while landing a little damage if you manage to hit, or would you rather just use your Action to Disengage to make sure you're able to get away unscathed?

You're taking the pretty risky chance of missing and not being able to escape at all, and then either soaking up an OA or else taking the brunt of the enemy's attention during their next turn, in exchange for maybe getting a few additional points of damage in. It's usually not going to be worth the risk for just a small handful of extra damage. So planning to rely on Shocking Grasp as an escape option usually isn't a good strategy for most casters, especially squishier ones.

In addition, Disengage also works against all enemies, not just against the one that you (hopefully) hit with Shocking Grasp. So you can still get away when there's more than one enemy near you, or you can choose an escape path that takes you past other enemies without worrying about OAs from them either.


But taking Shocking Grasp can still be useful for some builds, such as tankier arcane casters without Warcaster who want to wield a shield on the front lines and land "melee damage" with a cantrip, while still keeping a hand free for spellcasting and not having to boost STR/DEX to stay competitive. (Something like a Hobgoblin Iron Wizard, or an Abjurer or War Wizard with a 1 level Cleric dip, can potentially make use of this.) But in that particular case, you're after the melee damage, not so much the quasi-Disengage rider, since you don't necessarily plan on going anywhere most of the time. And if you have access to it like a Tomelock does, Thorn Whip also works for landing cantrip melee damage (since even though it has a 30' range it's a melee attack and therefore doesn't trigger the disadvantage from having enemies within reach), plus it has some added pulling utility when needed as well, and it can even be used against distant enemies without penalty even when there are closer enemies nearby. This added range and utility often makes Thorn Whip a better option than Shocking Grasp for that kind of use, despite the slightly smaller damage dice.

[solidork]

Ring of Spell Storing is an all around excellent pick for a rare item, but with only one other caster in your party (and the lack of low level slots because of how Pact Magic works) it might not be the best choice here. If your fighter was an Eldritch Knight or a Paladin, I'd say this was hands down the best choice.

Rod of Rulership is powerful and potentially flavorful for a character with a noble background, but your party is already quite good at social things and it might get old after a few times of using it to solve your problems.

Belt of Dwarvenkind is a subtle but powerful choice. +2 Con and Darkvision are almost always helpful and you'd be surprised how many things poison. I can say from experience that getting to a +10 bonus on Concentration checks is extremely nice, and this will help you get there eventually. This could have a neat tie in with your backstory as well, potentially, if it was the secret behind your family securing advantageous deals with Dwarves.

You probably shouldn't pick it, but I have to put a word in for the Gem of Seeing. My Warlock found one in a random treasure pile and it proved to be surprisingly useful, though as my character was a Magical Detective it also closely fit his theme.

If you do decide to take a +2 Rod as your Rare item, here are some options for your uncommon slot...

Headband of Intellect would let you switch your Wisdom and Intelligence stat around and you'd end up even better at your intelligence skills than you are now and also good at Perception and Wisdom saving throws. If you want your character to be naturally smart, this might not be the best choice, and you stand to lose a lot of your mundane skill if you ever want to replace the item.(My Warlock did this and faced that choice, it was a little annoying)

Helm of Telepathy is another item that could make sense for your background. The low DC only applies if you try and delve deeply or use the Suggestion property - reading surface thoughts has no save. Also, unlike casting the spell there aren't any obvious components to using the item so while your Bard is negotiating you can subtly listen in. Has the negative potential to sort of warp the game around it, maybe causing things to become less fun for everyone else.

Slippers of Spider-Climbing are the next best thing to flying, since those items are out. Also great for physical comedy, though that probably isn't important to people other than me. :smallbiggrin:

Sentinel Shield is a solid choice, since you're taking Medium Armored. Advantage to perception translates to a +5 on passive checks. Good but not exciting - I personally like my magic items to be exciting.

Mithral Armor would either let you wear armor without anyone knowing (Breastplate can go under clothes) or not penalize your stealth checks (Half Plate).

If you're planning on staying at range, Gloves of Missile snaring could help protect you and provide a useful reaction. Your monk might be annoyed that you can do what they do though.

[Verble]

I don't really have any suggestions. I like your choices for spells, invocations, feats, and magic items. Nice job.

Thanks! I've got a fun backstory for this character too.



I have played a few Warlocks so far, and I think it works very well to have one level of Bard or Divine Soul Sorcerer to it, if you are open to multi class.

This delays your progression, which is painful on a Celestial Warlock as all the features are good. However, it gives you an extra two 1st level slots to cast the occasional Bless or Bane when you want to save the big slots for something else. Bard gives you Bardic Inspiration, which works well with your high CHA, and it is useful to prepare for a tough fight or important skill checks. Divine Soul Sorcerer gives you a tons of cantrips (although you are a Tome Warlock already), access to Sanctuary/Shield/Absorb Element, and an extra 2d4 for the most important saves or attack rolls of the day. If you get to two levels in sorcerer, you get flexibility in creating spell slots using Flexible Casting.

Normally I'm all about dipping classes to pair up interest abilities, but having dipped warlock on my AT rogue this time I want to stick with just the Warlock class. It makes sense for his personality and background that he is a spoiled noble who usually takes the easy way out.



For cantrips, I would consider Shocking Grasp instead of Thorn Whip, as the former is useful to get away in melee situations.

As RogueJK pointed out good reasons for avoiding shocking grasp that I largely agree with. I like the battlefield control element of thorn whip/repelling blast.



For spells, I would also prefer Flaming Sphere over fireball, as you only have two slots, and you can get more mileage out of it thanks to the BA. However, I've found the spell awkward to use. If you use the BA to slam the sphere on an enemy, you will make some damage but you may also put your melee allies on a difficult position, as they will also get extra damage if they end their turn next to it. In alternative you can use the sphere to block a passage or avoid enemies from getting in melee range to you; but then you won't be able to move the sphere. Moreover, consider that Hex will give you a similar damage, combined with two eldritch blast rays it sums up to 2d6.

Fireball is not from my spell slots but from a wand. It gives me decent AOE damage while letting me keep concentration. Long lasting hex ends up hobbling me due to not wanting to break my concentration. Plus necrotic damage doesn't really fit the celestial warlock. I do like the control/small AOE and movability of flaming sphere. Plus it gives me something to do with my bonus action aside from healing light.


Ring of Spell Storing is an all around excellent pick for a rare item, but with only one other caster in your party (and the lack of low level slots because of how Pact Magic works) it might not be the best choice here. If your fighter was an Eldritch Knight or a Paladin, I'd say this was hands down the best choice.

Rod of Rulership is powerful and potentially flavorful for a character with a noble background, but your party is already quite good at social things and it might get old after a few times of using it to solve your problems.

Belt of Dwarvenkind is a subtle but powerful choice. +2 Con and Darkvision are almost always helpful and you'd be surprised how many things poison. I can say from experience that getting to a +10 bonus on Concentration checks is extremely nice, and this will help you get there eventually. This could have a neat tie in with your backstory as well, potentially, if it was the secret behind your family securing advantageous deals with Dwarves.

You probably shouldn't pick it, but I have to put a word in for the Gem of Seeing. My Warlock found one in a random treasure pile and it proved to be surprisingly useful, though as my character was a Magical Detective it also closely fit his theme.

If you do decide to take a +2 Rod as your Rare item, here are some options for your uncommon slot...

Headband of Intellect would let you switch your Wisdom and Intelligence stat around and you'd end up even better at your intelligence skills than you are now and also good at Perception and Wisdom saving throws. If you want your character to be naturally smart, this might not be the best choice, and you stand to lose a lot of your mundane skill if you ever want to replace the item.(My Warlock did this and faced that choice, it was a little annoying)

Helm of Telepathy is another item that could make sense for your background. The low DC only applies if you try and delve deeply or use the Suggestion property - reading surface thoughts has no save. Also, unlike casting the spell there aren't any obvious components to using the item so while your Bard is negotiating you can subtly listen in. Has the negative potential to sort of warp the game around it, maybe causing things to become less fun for everyone else.

Slippers of Spider-Climbing are the next best thing to flying, since those items are out. Also great for physical comedy, though that probably isn't important to people other than me. :smallbiggrin:

Sentinel Shield is a solid choice, since you're taking Medium Armored. Advantage to perception translates to a +5 on passive checks. Good but not exciting - I personally like my magic items to be exciting.

Mithral Armor would either let you wear armor without anyone knowing (Breastplate can go under clothes) or not penalize your stealth checks (Half Plate).

If you're planning on staying at range, Gloves of Missile snaring could help protect you and provide a useful reaction. Your monk might be annoyed that you can do what they do though.

Thanks a bunch for this list, it was exactly what I was looking for. The only item that I'm tempted by is the Mithral Armor as it would fit from his noble background that he'd be well equiped, and could still present as a normal noble not some rugged adventurer. That said I'm pretty sold on the wand of fireballs. I agree about having exciting magic items and many of the items are either that, don't fit with my idea of this character, or could be stepping on other peoples toes. I definitely appreciate the suggestions though.

[solidork]

Some other tips, from playing a Celestial Warlock into Tier 4 -

As far as I'm concerned, you've got the right idea by focusing on being well rounded. I made my warlock a swiss army knife, and while I'm not as straight up powerful as some of my other party members, I can always do something useful.

If your group uses the downtime rules in Xanathar's Guide to Everything, take the opportunity to scribe at least one scroll of Revivify if you can. It only takes one week, and then you won't have to worry about saving a spell slot for a resurrection. Your rod helps with that, but its really nice to just not worry about it and always have one on hand.