Class Fantasy: Warlock and others involved in the thirst for ancient and forbidden knowledge.

Morek

Hey all,

I don't know if this is the right place to post this, but I thought the RPers would have a better understanding of what I am seeking.

I really enjoy the class fantasy of Warlocks, with the quest on achieving great power through knowledge that is forbidden and or unknown to others. I know WoW's example is pretty good, but I don't want to write off the idea that this class will be 90% the same. I was hoping to gain some knowledge in the DnD world or from your perceptions of what a Warlock and similar classes that deal in the same realm.

I really enjoy the EU (now considered Legends) of Star Wars and what not revolving around the Sith and the Old Republic. Drawing on hate and discovering sinister and dangerous abilities that potentially will increase your power beyond that from the more tame. Sith have always seemed to share the fantasy of a Warlock to a slight degree, but being more physical and violent. Warlocks according to the DnD website deal a lot more with the Occult and being servants to a higher being (a devil, alien god, demonic presence). Merlin was considered a Warlock according to some research I found on the internet and I would have never guessed that from my interpretation of him. I always viewed him more as a Wizard/Mage, but I actually like the idea that he dealt more in the realm of shadows and drawing on magic that could be possibly more sinister.

What I am seeking is some more knowledge around realm of the shadows and other dimensions and what other classes you believe will share parallels with the Warlock. I tend to play more melee characters in MMOs and always wished for something similar to a Sith, but share some class fantasy with a Warlock or the Arcane.

What do you guys think? Share your ideas, even if they are not 100% lined up with the class fantasy. I want to know what you all think!

Nagash

To be honest we don't know much about class, but I personally love the idea of going into the world and finding ruins and unlocking new spells or buffs. I know Steven is also a huge lore geek so we may see something in ashes of something akin to that.

Morek

This post isn't strictly limited to AoC necessarily. My goal is to achieve a better understanding of what others view a Warlock as to further my understanding/RPness of the thematic tropes of users in the shadow magics/lifestyles. I guess this could be best understood as a theroycrafting post for a class trope(s).

Aiveleen

Historical: The word "warlock" is Old English. It means "oath-breaker" and in honor-obsessed Anglo-Saxon society was just about the worst insult you could think of. After the Christianization of England, it came to specifically refer to people who were baptized but practiced pagan rituals: because baptism was seen as an "oath" to God. This is where you get the idea that warlocks deal with sinister magic, and also why Merlin is sometimes referred to as a warlock in English translations of La Morte d'Arthur. It is worth noting though, that the original Old French word used in the tale is "wizard" meaning "wise man". The Arthurian legends have many versions now, built up through the centuries, and Merlin is one of the characters whose portrayal changes most between versions. This very much reflects the history of Europeans struggling with our religious history.
Modern Fantasy: And, in terms of modern fantasy Merlin is indeed the inspiration for both our mage archetype and our warlock. Tolkien, the father of modern fantasy, was not a full-time author but actually a Professor and scholar of medieval literature. He worked extensively on the Arthurian legends at the same time that he was writing Lord of the Rings. Gandalf was very much inspired by Merlin, the two characters fill the same role for the heroes of their respective stories. But so too was Saruman, who is very much a dark mirror of Gandalf: they have the same powers, and many of the same personality traits. But, they made radically different choices. Gandalf is the template for the modern mage archetype, and Saruman is the template for the modern warlock archetype. You can read more about Saruman here.
D&D: The Dungeons and Dragons warlock is a unique beast. Warlocks technically don't cast spells. Instead, they have promised their soul to a patron. They can then invoke the power of their patron, which manifests in ways that may appear to be magic. Now, this patron doesn't have to be evil: but demons and devils are the most likely to patronize warlocks. The gods of the D&D world see mortal souls as theirs to compete over, so a warlock has done something rather subversive (and either offensive or merely embarrassing) by promising their soul to a non-divine entity. Typically warlocks are non-good (though they can be solidly neutral, particularly if their patron isn't evil), and are power-hungry pariahs.
Games: In terms of MMOs, most warlock classes are patterned after the one in World of Warcraft. The basic fantasy is of using the powers of your enemies against them. They use fel and shadow magic as well as summoning demons, always with the risk of corruption or just horrible death. You can read more about them here. This is certainly where the idea of the warlock as a summoning specialist comes from. It does seem like the Ashes of Creation warlock is going to be a bit more like Merlin or Saruman than like the WoW version as it is a Mage subclass. Although, see the entries for Medivh and Meryl Felstorm .