Forced into wizardry, a desperate student makes a deal with the disembodied voices of the library to pass her exams, getting more than she bargained for.
Deep into his castle’s dungeon, one heartbroken noble sacrifices the populace in exchange for the power to bring his loved one back from the dead.
Scarred and forlorn, an exiled elf calls out to the courts of winter and summer, surrendering themselves to their whims to ensure vengeance is had.
While some put in countless hours of study to master magic and others are born with so much raw power it leaks out, Warlocks form pacts with otherworldly entities, gaining powerful magic in exchange for participation in their patron’s designs.
Friends in High Places.
In Dungeons & Dragons, players can take the role of powerful spell-casters to delve into ages-old dungeons, debate with dragons, and reduce their mighty hoards into a pocket change after carousing.
Warlocks are one of the fan-favorite spell-casting classes thanks to their ripe role-playing potential, outlandish spells, and the boundless customization each pact-bound eldritch slinger can enjoy.
Besides their devilish looks, spell-based allowance, and complementary pyromania, Warlocks get access to unique boons that increase their tool kit as their level known as “Eldritch Invocations”.
Since there are so many and you can only pick up a handful of them as you grow in power, it can be daunting to weigh which one to take over another, but worry not, for we have finished talking with the disembodied whispers in the room to help you find those best suited for an up and coming adventurer such as you!
You can reference all of the following invocations here: http://dnd5e.wikidot.com/warlock:eldritch-invocations#toc2
1) Agonizing Blast.
While by no means the only spell you’ll be using, it is hands down the best cantrip available to any class, and this just makes your bread and butter even tastier.
Why Agonizing Blast Is a Great Choice:
- Extra Damage: Spells usually don’t let you add any modifier to their damage and as a Spell-caster with few spell slots you’ll be relying on cantrips a lot during combat.
2) Armor of Shadows.
Once chosen you can cast the Mage Armor spell at will. This means that, as a class commonly restricted to light armor, you’ll get a nice defensive buff if chosen early on!
Why Armor of Shadows Is a Great Choice:
- Higher Armor Class: The best non-magical light armor you can find has a base AC of 12 whereas Mage Armor weights nothing, requires no maintenance, and has a base AC of 13.
- Subtle: Since it’s not a physical armor that you have to carry, you can keep it on for as long as you need it and don’t have to worry about it being displaced.
3) Mask of Many Faces.
With this, you can cast the Disguise Self spell on yourself at will. This means that you can now impersonate almost anyone or no one of your choosing to more easily beguile someone or escape hairy situations.
Why Mask of Many Faces Is a Great Choice:
- A matter of Performance: From dodging the law to confounding enemies, the possibilities are endless when you mix an on-demand professional makeup with creativity.
- Spy work: Getting information out of the bandit leader can become a trivial task when they think you’re their mom. By assuming any appearance, you can think of, you can easily adapt to butter up, or intimidate anyone!
4) Devil’s Sight.
This is particularly good when traversing unknown regions or, even better, paired up with a darkness spell to make everyone but yourself go blind.
Why Devil’s Sight Is a Great Choice:
- A Common Threat: Even with darkvision, darkness is an often-underestimated foe. With 120 feet of darkvision, you can see further than most creatures can, making them suffer if they think they can use the cover of night as an advantage against you.
5) Eldritch Mind.
With Eldritch Mind you now make them with advantage, making your limited cast of leveled spells last longer.
Why Eldritch Mind Is a Great Choice:
- Durable Magic: Since warlocks get fairly few spell casts per day, making sure your concentration isn’t broken can make the difference between wasting a spell slot and making the most out of it.
- A viable Alternative: Since feats are an optional rule in the 5th edition, Eldritch Mind can replace the all-famous War Caster in case your game doesn’t allow it.
6) Eldritch Smite.
While only available to Pact of the Blade Warlocks, this invocation lets you add an almost excessive amount of damage when hitting a creature with your pact weapon by expending a spell slot.
This extra damage is force, meaning that few creatures will be able of reducing it.
Why Eldritch Smite Is a Great Choice:
- Explosive Burst of Damage: You get to add 1d8 points of force damage plus an extra d8 per spell level. This means that as you gain in levels you can make your blows increasingly deadlier.
7) Eldritch Spear.
Now your Eldritch Blast can hit foes up to 300 feet away, letting you stay outside the range of most spells and weapons while delivering arcane punishment.
Why Eldritch Spear Is a Great Choice:
- Superior Positioning: Very few spells and abilities can affect a foe 300 feet away. This means that thanks to this invocation, you can stay a safe distance away from battle and kit your foes around.
- Cut off their escape: Some creatures can run away fairly fast; however, you could now snipe them before they get out of sight thanks to your superior range.
8) Eyes of the Rune Keeper.
When exploring ancient ruins, you’ll inevitably come upon forgotten texts or even enemy correspondence. In such scenarios information is tantamount to power and no single individual can know all languages.
That’s when this invocation comes into play; With the eyes of the rune keeper, you can read all writing, breaking through the language barrier as long as it’s written.
Why Eyes of the Rune Keeper Is a Great Choice:
- Solving Mysteries: Demonic scribbles, Dwarven runes, and Draconic sigils can hide many secrets, by reading them all you could stumble upon important clues regarding your mission that would otherwise be missed.
- Circumventing the language Barrier: When dealing with unknown creatures, communication is key, and while not all languages have a written form, most do.
9) Investment of the Chain Master.
With the Investment of the Chain Master invocation, your familiar gains a new type of movement speed, the ability to attack, and more ways to stay alive so they can serve you longer.
Why the Investment of the Chain Master Is a Great Choice:
- Pet Play: Before taking this invocation your familiar was more than likely limited to scouting if you wished to keep it for long. Now, however, they can contribute in combat fully.
10) Shroud of Shadow.
Now, my occult friend, it can be yours: Now you can cast the invisibility spell at will.
Invisibility is so useful that this ability has a high-level prerequisite, but once you attain it, a whole new world of possibilities opens up.
Why Shroud of Shadow Is a Great Choice:
- Peeping Tom: Since you can turn invisible, you can easily overhear classified information, witness the villain’s plans and so much more.
- Ambusher: Afraid of being pursued through the darkness by a hunter? Now you can play the old switcheroo by becoming invisible and turning the tables.
11) Thirsting Blade.
It’s fairly obvious why this is a great choice: An extra attack means more damage and critical opportunities as well.
Why Thirsting Blade Is a Great Choice:
- Martial viability: Most martial classes get an extra attack, so by picking up this invocation you can stay competitive with other weapon users without giving up your Warlock class!
12) Undying Servitude.
With this invocation, you can hop in the power wagon and cast the Animate Dead spell once per day without expending a spell slot, letting you raise a veritable meat shield.
Why Undying Servitude Is a Great Choice:
- Puppet Master: By raising an undead servant you now have a new set of Hit Points to hide behind. Not only that, you can use it in all kinds of clever strategies like setting off traps or drawing enemy fire.
- Action Economy: Another pair of hands means another set of actions in your favor, even if they are rotting. Thanks to the 5th edition’s bound accuracy, even low CR minions can truly contribute to play.
13) Sculptor of Flesh.
With this invocation, you’ll get the ability to cast the Polymorph spell once per day without using a spell slot. Now you can take an enemy out of the fight or turn you, or an ally, into a massive threat!
Why Sculptor of Flesh Is a Great Choice:
- Extra Versatility: Polymorph is a spell usually unattainable by Warlocks. Now you can sprinkle the battlefield with the smell of beasts by turning someone into a creature, either disabling them, making them fiercer, or turning your friend into a steed to ride into battle.
14) Repelling Blast.
This Invocation lets us push creatures hit by our Eldritch Blast 10 feet away from us, possibly dropping them off of buildings or into environmental threats.
Why Repelling Blast Is a Great Choice:
- Battlefield Control: The ability to move foes 10 feet is no small feat. Cliff sides, burning wreckage, and just making them further away can truly change the flow of battle as you dictate where your foes are.
- Reliable: Unlike the shove action and most forced-movement skills, this requires no save and has no size requirements, thus can our Gnome Warlock push back a mountain size threat with a cantrip!
15) Beast Speech.
With this Invocation, you can cast the Beast Speech spell at will. Now you can befriend, interrogate and even debate with the denizens of the forests and caves, possibly making alliances, finding guides and so much more.
Why Beast Speech Is a Great Choice:
- Information gathering: Since beasts and critters tend to be everywhere, most people ignore them when going about their business. By communicating with them you could easily learn an enemy’s lair location or avoid treacherous terrain.
- Real talk: Animals are powerful and useful, by conversing with them you could strike up deals or defuse perilous encounters, and, as a Charisma-based class, you can certainly get on their good side.
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