Circumstances leading up to a warlock pact

[Nalistri]

Hi everyone so something happened in my game. My wizard got cursed and our groups cleric who could cast remove curse just died.
We are days away from the nearest town and my wizard wont make it. I am wondering what possible ways the curse could be removed
and the main thing on my mind is a warlock pact. I dont know how im going to rp this.

[NecessaryWeevil]

Not really clear on your question. Is the curse going to kill the wizard before they can get to town to have it removed? But the wizard has a chance to make a warlock pact which will somehow save their life? Seems like the story pretty much writes itself to me.

[Nalistri]

Hi yeah thats pretty much it. He only has a few hours to live and the town is like 5 days away. I just worry about putting the dm on the spot.
What kind of patron would answer this call? im not wanting to gain an extra level ahead of the others do you think either removing a level in wizard for warlock or hold off on the level till next time

[clash]

Talk to your dm to arrange it obviously, but you don't have to gain the level when you make the pact. Think of it like you your patrons powers haven't manifested yet. Ghost rider stayed alive for years after the deal before his powers manifested. I would just have it save your life right now if possible and the powers manifest when you level up.

[Mastikator]

Hi yeah thats pretty much it. He only has a few hours to live and the town is like 5 days away. I just worry about putting the dm on the spot.
What kind of patron would answer this call? im not wanting to gain an extra level ahead of the others do you think either removing a level in wizard for warlock or hold off on the level till next time

A devil showing up out of nowhere offering the wizard a deal to save them could be the circumstances. If you prefer something other than the fiend then just work into the wizard's backstory some interaction with the patron. Talk to your DM about it. Pick a pact too, the pacts are different both in terms of mechanics and lore.
Depending on your actual location you can just have a different patron show up that is detecting the wizard's desperation and potential. (nature = archfey, the sea/shore = Fathomless, etc) In case you'd rather not add to the wizard's backstory.

[Nalistri]

Yeah we are in a forest so my best bet is probably an archfey

[Nalistri]

but he is a follower of Mystra so maybe a celestial working for her?

[Randel]

Some ideas:

Archfey - You could find a fey spirit in the woods or in the lake. I actually just finished watching Monty Python and the Holy Grail, so the idea of a powerful Lady of the Lake appearing ready to hand out swords for anyone willing to become her servant sounds funny.

Celestial - Pray to a god you worship, or perhaps to the god your cleric worshiped. Perhaps the wizard could be thinking of their fallen friend and pray to their god for help in this, or if the cleric was carrying any holy books on their religion, the wizard might study that to see if there are any clues on how the Remove Curse spell works. Because of this, a celestial visits the wizard in their dreams and makes the offer.

Alternately, after the cleric died, they appeared in the afterlife and were greeted by celestials working under their god. The cleric then informs the celestials about the wizard's curse. If the cleric had plans to cure the wizard before they died, this could easily become a case of the cleric having unfinished business which gives them some leeway on interacting with the living. The cleric and/or an angel could visit the wizard as they sleep and offer the celestial warlock deal to them.

Fathomless - A water elemental, mermaid, or sea hag might work. Or go Lady of the Lake as with the archfey.

Hexblade - A Lady of the Lake is chucking scimitars and the wizard catches one. This one happens to be sapient and becomes the wizard's patron in exchange for curing his curse.

Great Old One - Pondering his own mortality, the wizard takes a moment to stargaze when he thinks he sees the stars blink at him. At night, he has nightmares or takes some drugs and finds himself dreaming of a strange arcane landscape or a massive library. Within the dream, the wizard finds a copy of the Remove Curse spell (which is in the wizard spell list) and when he wakes up begins fervently writing the spell down in his spellbook. Assuming he has the ink to write it down (or he just uses his own blood or something) he could write down the spell in six hours or so and then cast it. However, the act of finding the spell in an otherworldly dream library took it's toll on the wizard's mind and created a link with a Great Old One. In this case, his patron doesn't necessarily know of his existence but he learned to tap into a source of forbidden knowledge.


His familiar - The Find Familiar spell mentions that the resulting familiar is infact a celestial, fey, or fiendish spirit that just looks like an animal. If you decided what type your familiar was when you summoned it, the wizard could potentially try talking to his familiar to see if they know anything that can help. The familiar then can return to the celestial planes, feywild, or abyss to contact someone higher up and offer the warlock deal. If you go this route, a Pact of the Chain warlock could make sense. Actually, if you're planning to become a celestial, fey, or fiend warlock then your familiar could make for a nice way to initiate the deal.

[Pandamonium]

Firstly, kick-ass thread, love it!

I just wanted to suggest the Undying patron as he is nearing Deaths door;
As his life is beginning to leave his body the Wizard pleads to anyone who might listen "I am not done". He appears in a dark place before a simple stone throne, atop it a shape in dark robes. In exchange for being his agent in the mortal realm he will allow the wizard to live.

[MarkVIIIMarc]

Tough one with a chance for aggravation and fun!

Obviously you'll have to talk with your DM as stated above.

[Altheus]

I expect the soul or service of a wizard is a prized currency among those who offer warlock pacts. Part of the deal should be taking a level of warlock next level up, for a particularly involved patron maybe give the next level up early.

An archfey might make a deal with a really strange end condition. You will serve me until you bring me a tail feather from the sacred eagle who lives on holy mountain.

The fiend.....worry about the price later, sign here, initial that and you're made. Just remember, you owe me and I will be collecting later.

The great old one. Strange alien dreams and drives in return for some power. You suddenly want to journey to a far away cave to retrieve some golden idol to set it loose in to the world? Ok.

[Stabbey]

Yeah, obviously talk to the DM about it, but as has been said, the story kinda writes itself.

I have a character concept where an old-west style bounty hunter is strung up by some enemies and left to die, and they plead for someone, anyone to help them, and that's when an Archfey appears (chosen for the spell list) and offers to save the bounty hunter's life if they work for them. Since the alternative is almost certainly death, the bounty hunter agrees. It's

You might need to look up suitable patrons to find one which fits. For instance, my bounty hunter's patron might be Oberon, because he is "a hunter without equal". Or it could be Titania, "a goddess of goodness and mercy", offering mercy to my good-aligned character who had been subjected to cruel punishment.

You can probably find some patron suitable and a justification, it depends on how you want to spin it to the DM.