That Warlock Pact Thing...

[Ent]

I'm looking for suggestions (or sources) on Warlock fluff. How do you think a Warlock is in contact with and/or perceives whatever they're connected to?

I'm working with a player who wants to be just coming to know his Warlock powers (which are a hereditary, he did not make the pact himself). I am going to lead him to believe it is a Fey spirit for awhile, but ultimately it is an infernal entity concealing it's true nature until it has more control over the character.

The player is completely open to being f'd with and likes my style of manipulation, so no need to warn me off of tampering. Any suggestions?

[hamishspence]

I kinda liked ToM's Vestige system- draw the symbol, bargain with the entity.

Ruleswise, whatever he does to contact the entity shouldn't actually do anything, but as a fluff thing, a bit like a cleric's prayers, it could be fun to roleplay.

[Tacoma]

The pact entity gives the Warlock a communicator from Star Trek (original series).

[LibraryOgre]

The problem I see, if this is 4e, is the ancillary effects of powers (or, in 3.x, the fluff of the powers).

What you may go with is a faerie, but one that's of the Winter Court... they're beautiful and fae, but they're also cruel and uncaring towards mortals.

[hamishspence]

the warlock has a "Voice In His Head" Doesn't really affect the rules, but could be fun. Should not be overplayed though.

Baba Yaga is even darker than the Winter Court.

Or bring back an old favourite "The Queen of Air and Darkness"

[LibraryOgre]

the warlock has a "Voice In His Head" Doesn't really affect the rules, but could be fun. Should not be overplayed though.

Baba Yaga is even darker than the Winter Court.

Or bring back an old favourite "The Queen of Air and Darkness"

I'm drawing on my Ars Magica, here, I suppose.

In Ars Magica (circa 3rd/4th edition), Faerie was divided into four quadrants depending on two attributes... Light/Dark and Summer/Winter. So you had Light Summer and Dark Summer, Light Winter and Dark Winter.

Can't remember most of it, however... it's been a while.

[hamishspence]

Manual of the Planes has done very similar things. Winter, Summer, Sea fey, some Monstrous fey, Dark fey, etc.

[Blackfang108]

the warlock has a "Voice In His Head" Doesn't really affect the rules, but could be fun. Should not be overplayed though.

Baba Yaga is even darker than the Winter Court.

Or bring back an old favourite "The Queen of Air and Darkness"

Ah, yes.

HER.

She's a *****.

Just read The Dresden Files, specifically Summer Knight and Small Favor, and you'll get a good idea of how cruel the Winter Fae can actually be, in the right hands.

Mab is NOT someone you'd willingly choose to deal with.

EVER.

(I chose the Earlking, myself. Harry meets him in Dead Beat.)

[shadowfox]

Going strictly by the book, you learn the Infernal Pact through study; it was a secret that was almost completely wiped clean from memory and history, but still exists.

But that's the given fluff.

Luckily, I have taken a great interest in devils within the last year (interest in devils= campaign focusing around devils, not devil worshiping). Devils are lawful-creatures, as well as evil. They plan, they scheme... Maybe the spirit he communes with isn't a spirit at all. Maybe it's an imp, who is trying to convert yet another soul for the use of the archduke he serves, as well as work for a promotion. Or maybe a devil that's higher-up in the pecking order is trying to use the character to his advantage, using illusions and other magical/supernatural means of talking to him (or telepathy; devils have that as well, at least in 3.5).

Just a couple of ideas. Hope they help.

[Tacoma]

Going strictly by the book, you learn the Infernal Pact through study; it was a secret that was almost completely wiped clean from memory and history, but still exists.

Cthulhu Pact.

[hamishspence]

Manual of the Planes- Archdevils are now offering Infernal Pacts in 4th ed.

Star pact- isn't clear precisely what the entities are- if they are the stars themselves, or the creatures from the far realm, or what.

Cthugha, lord of the Fire Vampires, who dwells on a distant star, is closest thing in Cthulhu mythos to a Star Pact entity.

[Tacoma]

Star pact- isn't clear precisely what the entities are- if they are the stars themselves, or the creatures from the far realm, or what.

So the Sun is ... a creature?

[alchemyprime]

Cthulhu Pact.

No, that's the STAR pact. Dragon arcticle cleared that right up.

[LibraryOgre]

Manual of the Planes has done very similar things. Winter, Summer, Sea fey, some Monstrous fey, Dark fey, etc.

These were more in terms of alignments... all fae fell into one of those 4 categories.

[Inyssius Tor]

So the Sun is ... a creature?

Maybe...

[LibraryOgre]

So the Sun is ... a creature?

The sun is a mass of incandescent gas.

[zakk2to2]

if its hereditary then it could be the same devil/spirit that served the rest of his family. he might have been exposed to the devil/spirit early on and not have known it and only thought of it as someone like a wierd uncle. the devil/spirit would come to him when he is learning to be a warlock and pretend to be intsructing him while actualy teaching the rituals to call on the devil/spirit and slowly bind the caster to its will. the worlock would thus have a teacher of sorts ready for him and it could be anykind of being.

the ritual itself could and should be anything BUT evil like (atleast early on).
for example a simple no blood required or anything just some symbols drawn and a word or two spoken would be enough but then with higher level spells the ritual would get darker(though he would not notice it being slowly brainwashed and all), like maybe no long just drawing the symbols but drawing it with a little blood.

for specific rituals look into fiction movies and books. a little from hellboy some pieces from lord of the rings and a smidgon of hitch hikers guide to the galaxy can go a long way when used right.

[Tyrrell]

I'm drawing on my Ars Magica, here, I suppose.

In Ars Magica (circa 3rd/4th edition), Faerie was divided into four quadrants depending on two attributes... Light/Dark and Summer/Winter. So you had Light Summer and Dark Summer, Light Winter and Dark Winter.

Can't remember most of it, however... it's been a while.

If I recall correctly (Third and fourth edition were quite some time ago):

Light less dangerous
Dark was more

Winter was alien and inhospitable to humans
summer was alien and pleasing

(In fifth edition faeries are significantly different)

[Panda-s1]

You could read the adventurer examples in the PHB under Character Races. One of them is the halfling who is normally friendly, but one day she was visited by a devil who would give her power for her soul. Ever since then she's had nightmares whenever she goes to sleep. It's basically a "hey there, want some candy?" scenario, but it could be a scenario where some ancestor wanted power, but only got it if his progeny would be "cursed." Maybe said person made an effort to make sure s/he didn't have kids, but you know how that usually turns out :P

[TheDarkDM]

Well, if the power is mildly hereditary, you could fluff it so that it's been screwing with your PC's mind for years prior. Maybe every orning after a full moon he/she awakens to find they've written the same cryptic phrase in every concievable language on every available surface, even their own body. Maybe it could have been a riddle of some kind, one that they only recently solved. Ever since then, the dreams are different and more frequent, with your PC addressed by some marvelously alien creature, awakening with tenuous scraps of arcane power etched into his/her memory. Hell, you could even give the player's family a history of mental istability, as no all of his/her bloodline were able to deal with the inherent power of the dreams. Eventually, as the infernal root becomes clearer, the dreams could become more vivid, even resulting in minor physical alterations, and the secrets could be more unsettling and vile. Eventually, your player learns that in utilizing their powers, the fiends have finally fulfilled their end of a bargain made by the player's ancestor, and it's time to collect...

Just a thought

[Oracle_Hunter]

If it's hereditary, then make it a single demon who has been dealing with the family for generations. There should be family stories and such.

Personally, I'd go with Succubus who has taken the form of a Fae Queen and appears in dreams and occasionally in person. Like all Succubus, she's working on corrupting the PC, and gives subtle advice to make him use his powers for evil awesome.

Also: Screw the Fluff, I Have Money!

Never let the fluff in a rulebook stop you from making up your own damn fluff if you want.

[Athaniar]

So the Sun is ... a creature?

The sun is a purple (or gold)-skinned girl (with a tail) who has prophetic abilities.