Warlock Subclass: Pactbreaker

by Vexxington

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Pactbreaker

The Warlock's magical powers are subject to the whims and favor of a Patron, be it a lich, a fiend, or some other thing. The unfortunate reality is that a warlock will at some point come across the risk of falling out of favor with their supernatural power source. Those unfortunate fools are not without recourse, as their touch with the greater powers has left them with the lingering touch of arcane energies.

The Pathless Fool

A Pactbreaker has fallen out of grace with their patron, but has also been freed from their chains. Starting at 1st level, select two skills to become proficient with.

You can select a skill you are already proficient with. Such a selection gives you expertise in the chosen skill. You can only take one expertise this way.

Rulebreaker

The Pactbreaker does not have an expanded spell list, but instead acquires spells from other sources. At 1st level, choose another class' spell list. You can take a number of spells from this spell list equal to your proficiency bonus, these spells do count against your number of known spells.

The spells you take through this feature cannot be of a level higher than your highest level Warlock spell slot. You can change these spells whenever you finish a long rest.

Bleeding Arcana

The Pactbreaker is a path resultant from the violent excision of support from a patron that ingrained their power deep into the warlock's being. As a result, their grasp on their power is fleeting and unstable.

Starting at 6th level, If you fail a saving throw against a spell or other magical effect, roll a d20. On a result of 18, 19, or 20, you emit violent pulses of magical energy. Every creature within 10 feet must succeed a Dexterity saving throw equal to your Spell Save DC. On a failure, the effected creatures suffer (x)d4 Force damage, where (x) is equal to your Charisma bonus. You cannot take a bonus action or reaction on your next turn.

After this effect occurs, you have resistance to magical damage and advantage against saving throws imposed by spells or magical effects for a number of turns equal to your proficiency modifier.

Master Of Your Own Fate

A Pactbreaker is uniquely capable of divining their own portents; their severed connection to greater powers leaves a hole for the world to fill with futures unattained.

Beginning at 10th level, you can re-roll a failed saving throw once per long rest.

Additionally, you acquire a new resource, Portents. The number of Portents a Pactbreaker has is equal to half their Charisma bonus, rounding up. Using this resource allows you to give yourself advantage on all attack rolls until the end of your turn, or reduce the effective AC of the target of your spell attacks by 1d4 until the end of their next turn.

You regain all expended Portents when you finish a long rest.

Faterender

The irony of a Pactbreaker is that they may become more powerful than their original patron. With their completely unguided power, they are uniquely capable of inculcating their own unique gifts.

At 14th level, pick one of the following effects:

  • Wanderlust: The Pactbreaker increases the number of spells they take from their chosen other class' spell list by a number equal to their Charisma modifer. The additional spells can be of a level no higher than your Charisma modifier.

    Additionally, you can now spend a Portent to recover expended spell slots as a bonus action.

  • Power for Power's Sake: The number of portents you have is now equal to your Charisma modifier. Additionally, on a short rest, you can use Hit Dice to recover portents. You recover a number of portents equal to the Hit Dice expended, up to your maximum number of portents.

  • Vengeance, Served Cold: You now deal additional damage to any creature sharing a creature type with your former patron. Once per turn, when dealing damage to any creature sharing a creature type with your former patron, you can choose to deal additional force damage equal to your warlock level.

  • If You Can't Beat Them : You can now take warlocks of your own, in a way. By expending one use of a portent, you can give a number of creatures equal to your Charisma modifier the ability to cast two of your known cantrips. Additionally, they can cast one of your known 1st level spells once per short rest, using your spellcasting ability. This feature can only benefit a number of creatures equal to half your warlock level. You can remove this effect from any of the chosen creatures at any time as a reaction.

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New Eldritch Invocations

Arcane Mutation

Requirement(s): Pactbreaker, 8th level

The severed arcane link to your former patron let all kinds of mutagenic magicks into your body. Choose two from the following effects:

  • Burrower: You gain a burrowing speed equal to half your walking speed. Your hands are contorted, sporting long, thick fingers and an overall shovel-like shape.
  • Echolocation: You gain blindsight extending out to ten feet. Your ears are mishapen and reminescent of a bat's.
  • Contortionist: You become proficient in the Dexterity (Acrobatics) skill, and can fit comfortably in spaces one size less than your own. You can squeeze into tiny spaces, but cannot perform actions while doing so. Additionally, your AC increases by 1 so long as you are not wearing medium or heavy armor.

Sword of Fate

Requirement(s): Pactbreaker, Pact of the Blade

A Pactbreaker that chooses the sword is capable of some unique options. Your pact weapon(s) gain the Thrown property with a range of 20/60. As an action, you can throw your pact weapon as a magical ranged weapon attack using your spellcasting modifier. On a hit, the attack deals an additional 1d4 Force damage and you teleport to an unoccupied space within 5ft of the target. You can use this special attack a number of times equal to your proficiency bonus, regaining expended uses on a short or long rest.

This effect does not work with weapons that have the Ammunition property.

Tome of Fate

Requirement(s): Pactbreaker, Pact of the Tome

A Pactbreaker that chooses the tome is capable of some unique options. Select a number of cantrips from any spell list equal to your Charisma modifier. These cantrips are written in your Book of Shadows, and so long as you are in possession of it you can cast these cantrips as though they were warlock cantrips.

Chain of Fate

Requirement(s): Pactbreaker, Pact of the Chain

A Pactbreaker that chooses the chain is capable of some unique options. Any creature that shares a creature type with your former patron of CR 1/8 or lower can be taken as a familiar. As an action, you can sacrifice this familiar and gain advantage to attack rolls against creatures of that type for the next ten minutes.

Warring Minds

Requirement(s): 7th level, Pactbreaker

The discordant magicks surrounding a Pactbreaker can sometimes be used to effect other, lesser minds. Once per short rest, choose one creature you can see within 30 feet. The target must succeed a Wisdom saving throw equal to your spell save DC. On a failure, the target becomes stunned for a number of rounds equal to your Charisma bonus.

A creature can attempt this saving throw again at the beginning of their turn until they succeed or the effect ends.

Inviolable Contract

Requirement(s): Pactbreaker, If You Can't Beat Them

A creature bound to the Pactbreaker through the use of their Faterender feature can be given more power, becoming more like a proper warlock of the Pactbreaker.

Over the course of a long rest, you can perform a ritual on a willing creature effected by the If You Can't Beat Them feature. Once the ritual is finished, the chosen creature gains access to a number of spells equal to their Charisma modifier. The spells must be in your known spell list, and can be no higher than 3rd level. They have two spell slots with which to cast these spells, which are of the highest level of spell chosen. So long as you are on the same plane of existence as the creature, they can cast these spells using their Charisma as their spellcasting ability.

They regain any expended spell slots at dusk each day. If you die, they lose access to the given spells. If they die, you suffer the negative effects of a resurrection until they wear off or the creature is revived.

A similar ritual can be performed, also over the course of a long rest, to remove this gift from the chosen creature. If there is a creature already benefitting from this feature, you cannot perform the ritual on another creature, and the attempt will permanently remove the effects of If You Can't Beat Them from the creature.

Pact Maker

Requirement(s): Pact of the Talisman, If You Can't Beat Them

Sometimes, the world performs acts of immense irony. A Pactbreaker that chooses the talisman is capable of some unique options. Each creature effected by If You Can't Beat Them shares the benefits of your talisman as though they were wearing it. Each creature after the first increases the number of uses available for the effects of your talisman by two. A creature may choose to use this feature once, after which its ability to do so is at the whim of the Pactbreaker... in a mocking turn of fortunes.

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Playing a Pactbreaker

A Pactbreaker should not be taken at level one. The idea of a Pactbreaker is that an existing warlock displeased their patron and had their gifts revoked in some way. Ideally, this happens as a consequence of the story of your campaign. Perhaps the warlock had an alignment shift, or acted contrary to their patron's goals.

Playing a Pactbreaker at level one should only be done when one has a well thought out reason for it to be so. The idea that a character can have acquired a patron and fallen out of favor so quickly as to have happened in a single level worth of life experience is incredibly hard to believe.

If you absolutely must play a Pactbreaker at level one, consider writing their story as though they never had a patron at all, but that they were irrevocably effected by an encounter with such a creature resulting in the powers given by the Pactbreaker subclass, or another similar story.

Multiclassing and Pactbreaker

Multiclassing as a Pactbreaker has the same issue as playing it at level one. A character taking such a step should ideally have had some encounter to justify it within the bounds of your story prior to multiclassing.

 

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