*Neverwinter Nights 2: Warlock Guide* by PrettyLumiere

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Neverwinter Nights 2 - Warlock Guide
v1.1
PrettyLumiere
Lumiere-chan@hotmail.com
All rights reserved. The contents of this guide may be
reproduced on other works, provided proper acknowledgement
is given.
You may contact me on the e-mail account given above.
Please keep your e-mails civil and clean. I do have a
pretty high tolerance for abuse, but please don't test
it....
Table of Contents
----------------I.
Introduction
II.
Caveats
III.
Which race?
IV.
Stats
V.
Feats to get
VI.
How do invocations work?
VII.
Invocations (blast shapes and essences)
VIII. Invocations (non-blast shape modifier)
IX.
Skills to get
X.
Thoughts on multiclassing
XI.
Equipment
XII.
Final words
I. Introduction
---------------I'm going to start this by a big bashing of the warlock
class, and it's not going to be pretty.
The warlock class in Neverwinter Nights 2 is, in my
opinion, a class they made for storyline purposes. It's
not a particularly effective class in any way, shape, or
form.
If you want a good analogy with other classes, take the
sorcerer, give him/her half the spells, but allow them to
cast the spells as many times as they want. However, now
make their spells deal less than half damage, and you have
a warlock. A warlock is in no way more resilient than the
sorcerer or the wizard, despite what the manual says (and

let's not forget the rampant errors in the manual). In

fact, in my experience, I've found that sorcerers and
wizards are a lot more resilient, at least in the beginning
of the game.
Basically, don't use your warlock to fight Lorne in the OC.
It simply does not work.
Now, for the good news. If you're patient enough to get
your warlock powerful enough to use the dark invocations,
you now have a character that will literally stay alive a
lot longer than any wizard or sorcerer out there, and allow
you to do a lot more damage than most fighters out there.
If you couple a warlock with a party full of melee units,
you will literally sail through battles with taking very
minimal damage.
II. Caveats
-----------This guide assumes you are using version 1.04 or greater of
the game. I also don't talk about multiplayer because I
don't play this multiplayer.
III. Which race?
----------------Since the invocations are Charisma-based, you will need to
have that as your primary stat. Basically, any race that
is good as a sorcerer is good for a warlock. Also, like a
monk, the true potential of a warlock is only realized when
you get close to all 20 levels, so a race that has a hefty
level adjustment is also not a good idea. Finally, any
race that has serious hits in Intelligence, Dexterity, or
Constitution is also not a good choice.
a. Humans: They are a good choice as a warlock, and the
extra feat, although not absolutely necessary, can be used
for a crafting feat if you want.
b. Planetouched: Both the aasimar and the tieflings make
good warlocks. An aasimar warlock seems a bit out of
character, but tiefling warlocks are quite in vogue (and in
character). The +1 level adjustment is not exactly a showstopper as you don't really need the last dark invocation.
If you do play as a tiefling warlock, watch out for the -2
Charisma modifier, although the +2 Dexterity helps.
c. Elves: These are kind of a mixed bag. Almost every
elf sub-race is playing with fire (if you'll pardon the
pun) with making a warlock, because you have to work around
a -2 Constitution modifier. Remember that having more hit
points is more important than how much dexterity you have
The drow also has the +2 Charisma modifier, but the +2
level adjustment offsets any advantage.
d. Dwarves: Shield dwarves have -2 Charisma, so they're
out. Gold dwarves have a -2 Dexterity, but the +2
Constitution makes up for it, so it's a passable. As for
the duergar, the -4 Charisma and the +2 level adjustment

don't make for a good warlock (or at the least, a warlock

that is unable to cast the needed dark invocations).
e. Half-elves: Treat as a human without the extra feat,
which makes them acceptable.
f. Gnomes: Rock gnomes have +2 Constitution, but -2
Strength, plus the fact that they can't carry as much
weight. If you do choose this subrace, buy lots of magic
bags to hold stuff. Svirfneblins are not acceptable for
the same reason as duergars are (-4 Charisma, +3 level
adjustment).
g. Halflings: Both halfling subclasses make acceptable
warlocks like rock gnomes, but they do suffer from the same
problem of not being able to carry lots of stuff. Again,
buy lots of magic bags.
h. Half-orcs: The 2 Charisma AND Intelligence hurts a
lot. You need a lot of the skills that are available to a
warlock, or else it's not going to be very fun.
IV. Stats
---------As I mentioned previously, Charisma is your main stat and
most of your points should be there.
Strength: This stat is not really important because you do
not need a high attack bonus to hit an enemy with the
eldritch blasts that are ranged touch attacks. However, it
does get annoying when you pick up some nice armor and all
of a sudden you can't run. I suggest keeping this stat at
10 or 11, and just leave it there.
Dexterity: This is the second most important stat. Since
you will be wearing light armor (NOT medium armor unless if
you're multiclassing, which I will explain later why),
having a high Dexterity score will boost your AC even
higher. Having a high AC is good for a warlock as you will
often be casting your invocations at pretty close range. I
suggest keeping this stat at around 13-14. You should
probably not add to this stat when you get the chance to
during level up; you should instead find items that boost
this.
Constitution: Yes, you have a d6 hit point die. No, it
does not make a whit of difference compared to a sorcerer
or a wizard. This score, however, does make a difference.
I suggest leaving this at 12 at character creation. If you
leave it lower, be prepared to die a lot. (This also makes
elves very unattractive warlocks.)
Intelligence: Set this score to about 12 as well.
Warlocks have a lot of nice skills that will need plenty of
points.
Wisdom: Set this stat to anywhere from 8-10. You don't
need this stat for anything useful.

Charisma: Get this as high as you can. I prefer starting

out with about 18 Charisma base, and just keep adding to it
during levelups when I can add them.
V. Feats to get
---------------As a warlock, there are not a lot of feats that you don't
get by default that you can really use. The ones that are
the most important that you must get are:
a. Combat Casting Remember that it is not practical to
expect a warlock to always cast invocations far away from
enemies. This helps considerably in not having your
invocations being interrupted.
b. Spell Penetration Invocations are subject to spell
resistance checks. You don't want your Wall of Perilous
Flame to not work when you really need it, right?
c. Greater Spell Penetration I rather not gamble with my
chances of invocations being resisted.
d. Toughness Extra hit points makes for a happy warlock.
e. Skill Focus (Concentration) Again, we are talking
about practical issues here. Never expect to be
uninterrupted while casting. This will help considerably.
The ones you should NEVER get:
a. Any spell focus feat. My main problem is that you
cannot counterspell with warlocks, so those are only good
if you want to see what spells other spell casters are
casting.
b. Battle Caster. Since you don't get Medium Armor
Proficiency for free as a warlock, this feat is kind of
useless. I rather spend my feats on things that help me in
other ways or on crafting feats. There is one exception to
this that will be mentioned later (in the multiclassing
section).
c. Medium Armor Proficiency. Don't get this unless if
fall under the one exception for Battle Caster.
d. Any weapon feat. You're not going to be using your
weapons to kill things. You're going to be using your
invocations to kill things.
Besides from these, the remaining feat slots can be filled
with what suits you the best. You could probably use one
of the feat slots for the crafting feat of your choice.
VI. How do invocations work?
----------------------------Let's set aside the "lore" of how a warlock gets
invocations and go down to the nitty-gritty on how an
invocation works.

An invocation has the following properties:

1. You may use them as many times as you want.
2. Invocations have either a somatic or verbal component,
or both. Therefore, if you are silenced, certain
invocations cannot be cast.
3. Invocations cannot be used with metamagic.
4. Certain invocations can be used alone, but others must
be used in conjunction with an eldritch blast. The blast
shape invocations and eldritch essence invocations must be
used with an eldritch blast.
The invocations that can be used alone are the low-damage,
status-affecting buffs and dispels that you will typically
use. For example, Retributive Invisibility, Beguiling
Influence, and Wall of Perilous Flame are examples of this
type of invocation.
However, your main source of damage comes from eldritch
blasts. By default, if you cast an eldritch essence
invocation, you would cast an eldritch blast that is
modified by the eldritch essence. The default eldritch
blast hits one enemy only.
You can modify the blast by adding a blast shape. A blast
shape invocation is an eldritch blast that has a different
shape/characteristic to it, which may allow you to hit more
targets. Since the blast shape is an eldritch blast, you
can modify blast shapes with eldritch essences.
VII. Invocations (blast shapes and essences)
--------------------------------------------For discussion of invocations, I'm going to split them up
between blast shape/eldritch essences (since they
intrinsically go together), and invocations not involving
blash shapes/essences.
Least Invocations (Blast Shapes): One of them is
worthless, and one of them is useful.
Hideous Blow this blast shape is worthless. If you
didn't have to recast it every time you hit a melee attack,
this one might actually be useful. The trouble you incur
with this shape makes it not worth it for actual use.
Eldritch Spear I recommend getting this as one of the
first invocations that you get. This extends the range of
an eldritch blast (to 250 feet according to the
description). It's not that impressive considering you
really can't tell how far is 250 feet in game, but if you
can nail someone from really far away several times before
they get into range of the other blast shapes, you make
your job a lot easier in the earlier stages of the OC.
However, later on, this loses effectiveness as you get
eldritch chain later on.
Least Invocations (Essences): Another worthless one and
another good one.

Draining Blast this is a good essence to use in the

beginning and it's probably the second invocation that I
get. What this does is if you hit, the monster must pass a
Fortitude check. If the check fails, the monster is
slowed. The slower the monster, the more blasts you can
throw out and the faster you can get to a more defensible
position.
Frightful Blast I don't like this essence because it
isn't as useful. I rather not have to chase after monsters
because they're afraid (and risk running into a trap).
Lesser Invocations (Blast Shapes): The only new blast
shape you get with this level of invocation is probably the
one you'll use the most through the game.
Eldritch Chain This blast shape starts out rather
modestly. It has the range of a regular eldritch blast,
but after it hits your intended target, it will randomly
blast a random being that is within 30 feet from you. It
means that you have the potential of hitting two enemies.
At warlock level 10, this is extended to three enemies,
four enemies at level 15, and five enemies at level 20. If
you miss any of the enemies, the chain stops. This isn't
as much of a trouble as you may think because by the time
you get to a higher level, you should rarely be missing
with your ranged touch attacks. Get this as soon as you
have access to the lesser invocations.
Lesser Invocations (Essences): These aren't
disappointments, but you won't be using one of them very
long.
Hellrime Blast(a.k.a. the ice blast) This essence does
two things. One, it modifies your eldritch blast to do
cold damage. Two, it makes everyone you hit do a Fortitude
check or take a -4 penalty to Dexterity. It's
indispensable when you have to fight against a lot of
rogues (basically when you get into Neverwinter in the OC),
but after that, you'll rarely use it.
Brimstone Blast(a.k.a. the fire blast) Take your eldritch
blast, make it do fire damage, AND make them burn with fire
afterwards. This will be the primary essence you'll use
until you get access to the greater invocations.
Beshadowed Blast This is a nice blast to have under
certain circumstances. I don't use this blast because
putting opponents in darkness is not the way I play, but
there are potential uses for it.
Greater Invocations (Blast Shapes): The only new blast
shape you get with this level of invocation is useful...
until you get access to the dark invocations.
Eldritch Cone This blast shape says what you think it
says. Your blast is now in the shape of a cone. It's okay
in certain situations, but it has been my experience that
enemies don't like attacking you in a way that you will be
using this very often. I would recommend getting this as

soon as you have access to it, but dropping it once you get
Eldritch Doom.
Greater Invocations (Essences): Again, we have a nice set
of essences; choose one depending on how you play.
Vitrolic Blast(a.k.a. the acid blast) Take the Brimstone
Blast, but make it acid damage. In addition, make it
impossible to counter with spell resistance. Once you get
this, you will end up using this over the Brimstone Blast
in most cases.
Noxious Blast Take your eldritch blast, make it daze
people. I typically don't use this, but if you like being
support, this is a great one to use.
Dark Invocations (Blast Shapes): This is one good reason
why you want to be a pure warlock (or as close to it as you
can).
Eldritch Doom This blast
you want the blast to hit.
radius is hit. The radius
Chain Lightning spell, but
needs.

shape is simple. Target where

Everything within a certain
isn't as big as a Fireball or a
it's more than adequate for your

Dark Invocations (Essences): This is a disappointment in

the OC, maybe not for multiplayer purposes.
Utterdark Blast If you hit with this one, the target
takes negative energy damage and drains levels. It sounds
nice, but by the time you can get this in the OC, just
about every enemy uses this to heal. It probably works a
lot better in a multiplayer situation.
VII. Invocations (non-blast shapes or essences)
-----------------------------------------------These function like your typical spell. As invocations,
you may cast these as many times as you wish. Most of
these are supporting spells that make your work a lot
easier.
Least Invocations: A really nice array of things to choose
from. Some of them aren't very useful; others make your
life so much easier.
Beguiling Influence Get this one if you have points in
Intimidate (which is what I usually do). I like talking my
way out of situations, so this is a nice thing to get.
Even if you don't, this is useful for boosting Diplomacy
(good) and Bluff (kind of worthless).
Dark One's Own Luck Useful in the beginning, not so
useful in the end. I usually either get this or Beguiling
Influence.
Darkness Uhh, no thanks. This tends to be a frame-rate
killer.
Devil's Sight This has limited usefulness, but if you

really wanted what this invocation gives you, play as an

Elf, but that's really not a good idea, eh?
Entropic Warding I like this one. I usually replace
Draining Blast with this invocation later in the game, and
watch as the archers have trouble with you as you kill them
with an eldritch chain. It doesn't last that long, but
remember that you can recast it and it does last long
enough for you to do your business.
Leaps and Bounds Don't get this even if you have put
points in Tumble. It's not a high enough boost that would
make it useful.
Seen the Unseen I don't recommend this as you'll get
things in the OC that give True Seeing.
Lesser Invocations: Not as good of a selection, but a
couple of them are useful.
Charm No thanks, I'm not out to convert people. I rather
summon my own skeletons.
Curse of Despair Hmm... do those score reductions really
do THAT much over a battle? Skip this one.
The Dead Walk In the OC, just let Ammon Jerro use it. If
you're not in the OC, this is an okay one to get; just drop
Brimstone Blast or Voracious Dispelling for this.
Voracious Dispelling Get this one later on in the game.
It's a good dispelling invocation; the times which you need
to dispel things aren't that frequent, though. The damage
you do on the dispelled creatures doesn't hurt, anyway.
Walk Unseen You're not a rogue. No thanks.
Greater Invocations: Now we're coming to the really
offensive invocations. You only need one of the offensive
ones, though.
Chilling Tentacles: Get either this one or Wall of
Perilous Flame. I prefer Wall of Perilous Flame myself,
but this is a good choice too.
Devour Magic: This is an upgraded version of Voracious
Dispelling. You can get this; just drop Eldritch Cone. I
personally find Voracious Dispelling enough for my
purposes, though.
Tenacious Plague: This one tends to be a wildcard. Get it
if you want; you'll probably find uses for it that I
couldn't find.
Wall of Perilous Flame: One of my very favorites; this is
the 3rd greater invocation that I get. You can pretty much
single-handedly do the last part of the Crossroad Keep
siege with this and Eldritch Doom. What's even better, the
magical damage this does (not the fire damage portion)
cannot be resisted without spell resistance.

Dark Invocations: When they said warlocks were more

resilient than sorcerers or wizards, they must have been
talking about one of the invocations here.
Dark Foresight Once you get access to dark invocations,
GET THIS FIRST. NO EXCEPTIONS. Have this hotkeyed at all
times. This gives 10/adamantine damage reduction (not
30/adamantine as in the manual) with a pool of 10 points
per warlock level. This is basically the Stoneskin spell,
but you can cast this as many times as you want, unlike
sorcerers or wizards. This is what will allow you to cast
your eldritch blasts with impunity.
Retributive Invisibility Don't get this for the
retributive part. Get it for the invisibility (which isn't
broken by invocations or attacking). It only lasts 3
rounds, which is a handicap, but you just need to recast
this, anyway.
Word of Changing I got this, and it's almost totally
worthless. Avoid this at all costs.
IX. Skills to get
-----------------If you went with my suggestion of 12 INT, you should have 3
points to use per level. I used it on Concentration,
Intimidate, and Lore, plus one point in Use Magic Device.
Consider getting the following:
Concentration This is a no-brainer. Don't blame me if
you fail to put points in it and have your invocations
interrupted.
Intimidate I like talking my way out of battles.
Diplomacy would have worked better for my style of playing,
but it's a cross-class skill for warlocks, and this isn't.
Lore I don't like having to go to shop to identify stuff,
and I rather not shuffle things around to someone who can
identify stuff.
Use Magic Device Just get
Deceive Item will allow you
for wizards and sorcerers.
this, take them out of Lore

one point in this. This with

to use most things out there
If you need more points in
or Intimidate.

Tumble If you don't get Intimidate, consider putting it

into this cross-class skill. In that case, you'll end up
getting the Leaps and Bounds invocation as well.
Spellcraft - If you're taking the character to the
expansion pack, Spellcraft is required. If not, you can
leave this alone. If you do take this skill, raise your
starting INT to 14 so you can take this.
X. Thoughts on multiclassing
------------------------------

Let's talk about minor multiclassing. The warlock is

almost worthless as a minor multiclass character because
warlock levels don't count as arcane caster levels, and
simply said, warlocks aren't very powerful in the
beginning.
Minor multiclasses that might work is Rogue 19/Warlock 1 or
Ranger 19/Warlock 1 or Monk 19/Warlock 1 to get Leaps and
Bounds (for the +4 DEX and +4 Tumble).
As for major multiclasses with warlock as the dominant
class, remember that the warlock's power and resilience
comes by having access to the dark invocations. It's
usually best to go pure warlock, but if you're willing to
drop one dark invocation and the additional energy
resistance, you can go Warlock 19/Fighter 1 or Warlock
19/Barbarian 1 to get medium armor proficiency and martial
weapon proficiency for free. If you do this, be sure to
get the Battle Caster feat.
XI. Equipment
-------------There's a dearth of good warlock-only equipment in the OC.
As NWN2 relies on crafting skills for good armor and
equipment, I suggest focusing on your armor class when
choosing equipment. What I did was take the leather armor
that I got at the very beginning, and upgrading it to +5
enhancement, 30/- cold resistance, and 30/- fire
resistance.
As for weapons, use whatever weapon you feel is good for
you. I ended up using one of those nice crossbows that
gave +DEX (to boost my armor class).
If you did the Warlock 19/Fighter 1 or Warlock 19/Barbarian
1 multiclass, your choice of armor and weapons becomes a
lot better. However, warlocks aren't really designed for
melee combat.
XII. Final Words
----------------The warlock class is a disappointment until you get to the
later levels, when it becomes almost unstoppable. Despite
all the flaws, it's become one of my favorite classes to
play, and I hope it becomes one of your favorite classes
too.
~ The End ~
PrettyLumiere
March 7th, 2007
*Neverwinter Nights 2: Warlock Guide* by PrettyLumiere
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