Wizards of the Coast revealed the survey results for the latest One DnD playtest on August 10, and it turns out fans were not happy with changes to the DnD Warlock. So, designer Jeremy Crawford has explained, Wizards is scrapping many of the alterations made to this DnD class. The new version of the 5e Warlock, in the next Unearthed Arcana playtest it appears in, will have plenty of the old class features that have remained since 2014.
“The Warlock feedback definitely reflected the mixed feelings in the community about the Warlock in the playtest going from Pact magic to spell casting,” Crawford explains in the video. “We knew this was going to generate a lot of conversation and bring on some passionate feedback”
The new spellcasting approach gave the Warlock more spell slots and made them a more reliable caster. The aim was to make the Warlock follow the same cadence as other classes and ensure they have actual, not just potential power.
But, as it turns out, “People are really attached to the distinctiveness of pact magic, and it not being like how other classes cast their spells.”
We don’t know exactly how unpopular the Warlock was – as this was one of the few points in the Survey Feedback video where an exact percentage wasn’t given (which could be telling). However, we can assume it was below a 70% positive rating, because that’s what the DnD designers say they view as a baseline, that they want to get every class and class feature above.
While, Crawford seems to imply that WOTC is laying to rest this experiment with the Warlock, and the next iteration of the class will revert to Pact Magic and have Mystic Arcanum as a key feature, the designers aren’t done twiddling just yes.
“We are still committed to… allowing Warlock’s to have access to their spellcasting more often,” he explains. Nonetheless, whatever form the next version of the Warlock takes, we can expect it to be far more recognisable.
Check out the best DnD 5e spells in our dedicated guide – or you could use this homebrew, which fixes all the worst ones. Finally, don’t miss our comprehensive deepdive into all the different DnD races.