Voodu Warlock: A Pure Warlock Enlightened Spirit Tank Project companion thread

[Vooduspyce]

I just wanted to thank you again for posting this build. This build is what got me really active in DDO for the first time since 2011, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it! Voodu Warlock brought me back!

Haha, woot! Awesome to hear and ty for saying!

[Vooduspyce]

Be aware, you do not have a Medium armor option and no body feat just does not cut it as you just do not get enough PRR. I have taken Mithril Body at lvl 1 and moved Force of Personality to replace Greater Constitution. You are basically capped though at 7 Dodge without some major investment in the Racial tree or some other way to get more dex.
.

I'll add this to the list of reasons why I don't like wf, lol. Thank you for the heads up, I would've overlooked this. Maybe I'll do cleric for my next wf life then

[Tlorrd]

WHAT TO DO BETWEEN BURSTS

People who are newer to warlock often ask what to do between bursts while they are on cooldown. Here's what I am typically doing on Voodu between bursts...

1. Heal myself and others with Rejuvenation Cocoon and Renewal.
2. Consecration (with Sacred Ground)
3. Evard's Black Tentacles
4. Otto's Irresistible Dance a reaper, champion, caster or orange named
5. Darkfire
6. Swing my weapon
7. Intimidate
8. Primal Scream
9. Refresh Displacement or Tensor's Transformation
10. Sleet Storm
11. Shining Through
12. Tainted Spellcasting
13. Dark Delirium
14. Wail of the Banshee
15. Drink a Potion of Greater Brilliance
16. Symbol of Death
17. Stanch as an emergency heal
18. Waves of Exhaustion
19. sip my coffee


EPISODES

I quite enjoy your videos.

Here is my list of what to do between bursts ...

1. Recast displacement
2. Recast stoneskin
3. check to see if my tainted aura is off timer
4. check my hp
5. if 4 is low or near normal click shining through
6. Use a weapon with an effect like Freeze or other stun to help make mobs more helpless, Vulnerability for bosses.
7. Check to see if my Evards is off timer.

a tip for your user's with regards to gaining most benefit from Evards ...

Use Wave of Exhaustion prior to casting Evards
- wave of exhaustion gives -6 str/dex and movement slowdown
- to maximize the damage of Evards mobs take 1d4 bludgeon per caster level and if entangled will take an additional 1d4 per caster level. Thus to double your damage of Evards, you want mobs to fail their str save. Additionally it'll keep them entangled after the spell fades away.
- one other bonus is that it'll also help your web spell which you'll probably cast after Evards has faded if mobs are still alive.

[AreagonTF]

What gear should i use for lvling?
I have plenty of items lying around from past lives , was just wondering if there are specific items i should farm for.

[Tlorrd]

What gear should i use for lvling?
I have plenty of items lying around from past lives , was just wondering if there are specific items i should farm for.

Here is what I use ... I play solo and reaper and on my build, thus I go Cha based, enchantment/conjuration/evocation focused. I'm GOO.

Head: Pansophic Circlet
Googles: Summoner's spectacles (Conjuration/Ins conj)
Armor: scales of malice
Neck: Torc of prince de ryem (spelling? Transform kinetic energy)
Cloak: Shimmer (+8 cha, ins/quality enchantment)
Bracers: mysterious bracers (heal amp)
Belt: Burnscar sash (enhanced corrosion/acid lore
Ring: some sort of radiance lore)
Ring: brazenband (enchantment/ins evocation, speed)
Boots: kundarek delving (FOM) (until I get my eternal flask)
Weapon: kinetic/kinetic lore (rod of mythant is nice)
Shield: shield of tireless aid (heal proc)

[Vooduspyce]

What gear should i use for lvling?
I have plenty of items lying around from past lives , was just wondering if there are specific items i should farm for.

Some gear that I really like for leveling is pansophic circlet, dashing gloves, flightfoot greaves, fanion, for armor coat of the traveler or scales of malice, a mithral small shield to use as a crafting blank until I use fanion at level 12/14, ghost waking cloak, hardened hide armor. Don't stress about trying to get every last piece, but those are some named items I like to use while heroic leveling. Hope that helps

[Sydril]

For generic autopilot epic 20-30 leveling gear on a Fey PDK I went with:


Head: Sages Skullcap (Breaking the ranks end reward)
Goggles: Lenses of the woodsman (Eveningstar Coms)
Neck: Lions Mane (Subversion)
Trinket: Planar Compass (Curse the Sky)
Armor: Hardened Hide (Good Intentions)
Cloak: Nightsinger's Mantle (Shadow of a doubt)
Wrist: Barbette's bracers (Tavern)
Belt: Animated rope (Good Intentions)
Boots: Flightfoot greaves (Death House)
Gloves: Dashing Gloves (Good Intentions)
Rings: combination of:
Brazenband (Curse the Sky)
Ring of Prowess (Good Intentions)
Charisma item

Weapon: Oathblade (Eveningstar coms - sentient with grandfather's shield filigrees)
Shield: Light and Darkness (Mindsunder)

Lots of slots between these items to fill gaps, provides very high ac and a good spread of perks.

[Rydlic]

So after Dragonborn and Warforged starting on Dwarf lives.

I have to say, warforged was tough, but dwarf has been just amazing. The ease of how this build works even as early as level 6 is amazing. Level 10 power jump from Ravenloft, and then at lvl 12 I have a 5% Arcane Dex augment and wow. I was floored when I was able to solo R2 without a hireling and it not take HOURS to complete a simple quest.

This build is not an easy mode, and you have to work on gear and past lives to make it really shine, but this build is a great mix of versatility with the only thing missing is trap skills. Dwarf has some of the highest dodge potential for the lowest racial cost so I may come back to this race in the end.

What makes this easier, reaper exp. Really it comes down to having enough reaper points to build a buffer so you don't just DIE when you jump into the pool. All that said, I have to give a hats off again to this build as it is exactly like I love to play.

[stinger31216]

Hi folks!

Ginger, I’m wondering if you’ve tried this build while also fitting heavy armor prof in. Since we can stack racial, augment, and filigree ASF reduction, that brings us to the point where, after hitting 20, there are no real repercussions (besides armor check for skills, I guess) for using heavy armor. This would require either 1) squeezing the feat in somewhere, or 2) splashing (yuck)

[Vooduspyce]

Hi folks!

Ginger, I’m wondering if you’ve tried this build while also fitting heavy armor prof in. Since we can stack racial, augment, and filigree ASF reduction, that brings us to the point where, after hitting 20, there are no real repercussions (besides armor check for skills, I guess) for using heavy armor. This would require either 1) squeezing the feat in somewhere, or 2) splashing (yuck)

Enlightened Spirit gets bonuses for wearing medium armor, which are not gained if wearing heavy armor. On top of that, heavy armor proficiency on pure warlock ES requires 2 feats since the medium armor proficiency granted from the ES tree doesn't fulfill the requirement of medium armor proficiency for purposes of the heavy armor proficiency feat.

[rufos666]

I'm Brazilian and I went back to playing the DDO now, I had stopped in 2010.
I've been following your build and I ended up stopping at the part of choosing the epic destinies.
I have no option to choose the destination divine karma only the destiny arcane karma.
How will I achieve this destiny?
I selected human as race and I followed all the steps of your project.
You can help me with this question and you can tell me what I should do, I am level 21 at the moment.
sorry for my english (google translater here

[Vooduspyce]

I'm Brazilian and I went back to playing the DDO now, I had stopped in 2010.
I've been following your build and I ended up stopping at the part of choosing the epic destinies.
I have no option to choose the destination divine karma only the destiny arcane karma.
How will I achieve this destiny?
I selected human as race and I followed all the steps of your project.
You can help me with this question and you can tell me what I should do, I am level 21 at the moment.
sorry for my english (google translater here

Hi Rufos, I wish my Portuguese was as good as your English

If you've been gone since 2010 then I'm guessing you're new to epic destinies, so you may not realize that when you first get into epics, you must choose a destiny that is related to the class you are playing. Arcane classes like warlock, wizard, sorc, etc. much start in the arcane sphere, so can choose either the Draconic Incarnation, Magister or Fatesinger destinies to begin with. From that point, you can level up your destiny and when you've obtained 3 levels you can switch to an adjacent destiny in the same sphere or you can jump to an adjacent sphere by acquiring 4 levels in the destiny that is adjacent to the sphere you want to move to. For example you must gain at least 4 levels in Fatesinger to move to Shadowdancer in the adjacent martial sphere. It can be a bit confusing when you're new to the epic destiny system, so if you're interested I have a Beginner's Guide to Epic Destinies and Twists of Fate video that explains how it all works.

Hope that helps!

[rufos666]

Hi Rufos, I wish my Portuguese was as good as your English

If you've been gone since 2010 then I'm guessing you're new to epic destinies, so you may not realize that when you first get into epics, you must choose a destiny that is related to the class you are playing. Arcane classes like warlock, wizard, sorc, etc. much start in the arcane sphere, so can choose either the Draconic Incarnation, Magister or Fatesinger destinies to begin with. From that point, you can level up your destiny and when you've obtained 3 levels you can switch to an adjacent destiny in the same sphere or you can jump to an adjacent sphere by acquiring 4 levels in the destiny that is adjacent to the sphere you want to move to. For example you must gain at least 4 levels in Fatesinger to move to Shadowdancer in the adjacent martial sphere. It can be a bit confusing when you're new to the epic destiny system, so if you're interested I have a Beginner's Guide to Epic Destinies and Twists of Fate video that explains how it all works.

Hope that helps!

Thanks for the answers, I'm going to take time to get there.
I have to get enough xp to get it independent of getting level 30 in the game.
thanks for suport.

[pyrus566]

Hey e1! This is the companion thread to my video series: Voodu Warlock: A Pure Warlock Enlightened Spirit Tank Project

In this series, I took what I learned from the Gingerlocks series and applied it to my permanent warlock. In Episode 1, I introduce Voodu, a long time drow sorc, now reincarnated as a warlock. I discuss my plans for the toon and my goals. In each solo video I go over the progress I've made, my gear, enhancement and feat choices and I also discuss what is learned along the way and offer tips and advice. This series was not intended to be a guide, however I made it as informative as possible so it will be helpful for those who are learning warlock.

I called this a "project" because I was still learning warlock and I was trying things along the way that were new for me. In Gingerlocks, I took each of the 3 warlock lives only to level 20, so the Voodu Warlock series includes my first experiences of warlock in epic levels!

My goals with this toon are:
1. To provide good casting dps
2. To self-sufficiently tank all raid bosses, with the specific goal of being able to stay toe-to-toe with the dragons in EE Fire on Thunder Peak, even through artifact rage and overdraw.

The constraints of the project are: Pure warlock and Drow race (both of these choices are more or less for flavor, but Enlightened Spirit capstone is very valuable and should be considered before making a choice to multiclass)

The video series is complete but I am continuing to work on Voodu's past lives and evolving the build. All episodes are below and I will monitor and update this thread as I make changes. Note that stats, feats and enhancements change throughout the series, as I experiment with a variety of things along the way, but my current setup is below:

CLASS: pure warlock (the capstone is very nice!)
PACT: Fey (any pact choice is fine, more notes below)
RACE: Drow (this was a flavor choice only and just about any race is fine)
ALIGNMENT: Any

ABILITY SCORES

Starting: Str 8 ~ Dex 11 ~ Con 16 ~ Int 15 ~ Wis 8 ~ Cha 18. Increase constitution when leveling.

This is a constitution build, not a charisma build. As an Enlightened Spirit, constitution is extra valuable, not only because the added hit points increase surviveability, which compliments the close-quarters playstyle of a bursting warlock, but because high constitution improves the effectiveness of Shining Through and Brilliance, both of which are highly prized Enlightened Spirit enhancements. It also benefits from Stanch in the Tainted Scholar tree, which this build also makes use of. Charisma shouldn't be forgotten, but is not as important on an Enlightened Spirit burster, especially this build, compared to other types of warlocks which are more DC-based. This build, as many ES builds, is not a spell DC-dependent build. Most of an an Enlightened Spirit's burst damage is not save-based. The only portion of the burst damage that is DC-based is the pact damage, which is not the primary damage and is save for half.

IMPORTANT: I do not recommend playing as an Enlightened Spirit prior to getting Eldritch Burst at level 3. Up to that point you can play as a blaster, getting chain shape from the Tainted Scholar tree as soon as possible. For reaper play I prefer to wait until I get 34 action points at level 9 to respec to Enlightened Spirit, which is when I can get spend 23 points in ES to get important tier 4 abilities medium armor proficiency and Brilliance and also have 11 points in Tainted Scholar to get Utterdark Blast and Stanch. Many prefer to wait until level 12 when you can get tier 5 Spirit Blast (the second burst). Up to this point you can play either as a Soul Eater cone shape blaster or Tainted Scholar chain shape blaster, whichever you prefer. While I believe that cone shape is superior, I personally prefer chain shape in for low levels, which allows me to pick up some very useful Tainted Scholar enhancements like Stanch and Wand and Scroll Mastery.


SKILLS

Max Intimidate, Spellcraft, Balance, Concentration. 1 rank in Tumble and UMD. Remaining points in Perform (if Fey Pact) and Heal.
For reaper 1-20: Max UMD for heroics in order to use healing wands and scrolls as soon and as effective as possible, which are very important in reaper questing. UMD will be plenty high enough once you reach epic levels, so when epic reincarnating you can change out the UMD skill points to perform or other more relevant skills for epic levels.

FEATS

Level 1: Maximize Spell
Level 3: Empower Spell
Level 6: Force of Personality
Level 9: Quicken Spell
Level 12: Shield proficiency (general)
Level 15: Shield Mastery
Level 18: Improved Shield Mastery
Level 21: Epic Eldritch Blast
Level 24: Intensify Spell
Level 26: (Epic Destiny Feat): Epic Arcane Eldritch Blast*
Level 27: Epic Damage Reduction
Level 28: (Epic Destiny Feat): Elusive Target
Level 29: (Epic Destiny Feat): Deific Warding*
Level 30: Completionist or Great Constitution
Level 30: Scion of Celestia

I recently changed my level 28 and 30 feats from Toughness and Epic Toughness to Elusive Target and Great Constitution.
*Epic destiny feat Epic Arcane Eldritch Blast requires 1 capped destiny in the arcane sphere. Deific Warding requires 3 capped destinies in the divine sphere. Capped means a fully maxed xp bar, not just level 5.



Unless otherwise noted, the following numbers are unbuffed, no metas, boosts, pots, etc. at level 30 (outside of reaper).

HP: 3520 (unbuffed permanent HP in Vigor of Battle stance. This is outside of reaper, but includes innate tier 2-4 Grim Barricade, which are always on)
Max Temp HP: 6513 (fully buffed with Shining Through, Stanch, Tenser's, Primal Scream, Yugo pot, remnant pot)
SP: 1710
AC: 201
PRR: 245
MRR: 159
Intimidate: 116 (with Greater Heroism and Spider Cult Mask)
Light spell power: 534
Heal amp.: 215
Fortification: 200%


ENHANCEMENTS


I have recently started using the perma-shield enhancement for tanking the brides in the Strahd raid, otherwise I would have tier 3 Power of Enlightenment maxed.

For Reaper 1-20 I highly recommend Wand and Scroll Mastery enhancement in Tainted Scholar, which is very nice to boost healing from wands and scrolls on self and others, which helps to mitigate some of the self-healing penalties in reaper mode.


HEROIC PAST LIVES

Sorc past lives are nice for bonuses to evocation DC (blast and burst saves are affected by evocation bonuses for the pact damage only). Cleric Past lives are nice for bonuses to conjuration DC (Evard's Black Tentacles and Web are Conjuration). Wizard and Favored Soul past lives are nice for up to a +9 bonus to spell penetration (Evard's has a spell pen. check). My current heroic past lives are 3 sorc, 3 wiz, 3 fvs, 3 wlk, 3 pal, 3 cleric, 3 barbarian and 2 bard.


EPIC PAST LIVES

4 stances: Colors of the Queen, Energy Criticals, Brace and Skill Mastery. Focus on getting 3 each of these EPL's first, which will grant Epic Completionist and open your 4th twist of fate! After you get these, focus on additional Divine, Primal and Martial EPL's for bonuses to PRR, HPs and AC. My current epic past lives are 8 divine, 9 martial, 6 primal and 6 arcane.


ICONIC PAST LIVES

Stance: Morninglord. Morninglord past life stance gives +10 light and alignment spell power per stack up to +30. PDK past lives give PRR, so great for adding to defensiveness for any toon. Shardar-Kai past lives give added dodge, however I do not plan on getting these past lives because I am dodge capped. My current iconic past lives are 3 Deep Gnome, 3 Morninglord and 3 PDK.


RACIAL PAST LIVES

I am currently working through my racials and will likely be doing so through most of 2019. As a constitution build I have prioritized 3 each of Warforged and Dwarf, followed by charisma races Half-elf and Dragonborn. After that I will continue to work through all the remaining races toward the goal of Racial Completionist. My current racial past lives are 3 Dwarf, 3 Warforged and 1 Drow. Stats in this post do not reflect racial past lives.


EPIC DESTINY



Unyielding Sentinel. The high defenses of this epic destiny work well with the close-quarters bursting playstyle of an Enlightened Spirit. There are higher dps destinies for an Enlightened Spirit warlock, such as Exalted Angel, Divine Crusader and Shiradi Champion. I prefer the added surviveability of Sentinel over the added dps of the others.

After amassing a large number of the defensive epic past lives, I found the added defenses of Sentinel were not necessary for regular questing, even legendary elites. While I was preferring Divine Crusader for regular questing, reaper mode has taken me back to Sentinel full time. I highly recommend Sentinel for regular questing for newer players using my build and for those without a bunch of past lives, especially if doing epic and legendary elites and epic reaper questing.


TWISTS OF FATE

1. Divine Crusader Empyrian Magic
2. Divine Crusader Sacred Ground
3. Divine Crusader Consecration
4. Primal Avatar Rejuvenation Cocoon
5. Fury of the Wild Primal Scream

I recently made some changes due to reaper mode, to include Consecration and Sacred Ground, which not only add AOE dps, but more importantly add to self healing and party healing, which is critical in reaper questing. Empyrian Magic is a must twist for any Enlightened Spirit. The aura and bursts make it run at an always on +20 spell power and +10% crit chance. Rejuvenation Cocoon is great to add to the self healing ability. Others to consider, especially while working through epic destinies for the first time include Fey Form, Serenity, Interrogation, Rough Hide, Ephemeral Evolution, Radiant Power and Unearthly Reactions. Primal Scream is nice not only for the con boost, but the sonic damage is boosted by spell power so it does about 5k sonic damage to surrounding mobs.


PACT

This build is workable with any pact. I Chose Fey pact originally because I really like abundant step-like abilities, so Misty Escape was perfect for me. With my tanky playstyle, Misty Escape allows me to move through and directly into the middle of a group of mobs and start bursting from within. Misty Escape is also a nice way to escape when you're trapped, as it allows you to move through mobs. I also really like that Fey pact has Otto's Irresistible Dance, which is great to use on champions and reapers. Fey pact also includes Dark Delirium, which is a nice no-save stun to use on a mob that you don't want to deal with for a bit.


GEAR (end game)

Goggles: Legendary Green Steel** 3x material-opposition (triple negative: t1 blindness immunity, t2 fear immunity, t3 deathblock and 25 negative resistance)
Head: Legendary Green Steel** 3x material-opposition (triple fire resistance)
Neck: Legendary Chains* (reaper +3 MRR, mythic +1, Fortification +185, Radiance +185, Spellsight +22, Quality Intimidate +5, slotted with strength +8)
Trinket: Legendary Planar Compass (mythic +1 slotted with protection +8). I switch to Bell of Warding in content where high defenses aren't needed.
Cloak: Legendary Green Steel** 3x material-opposition* (triple positive: +224 unconscious range)
Belt: Legendary Green Steel** 3x material-opposition* (triple electric resistance)
Quiver: Quiver of Alacrity
Ring1: Legendary Five Rings* (mythic +1, Charisma +17, Resistance +14, Intimidate +22, Quality PRR +11, slotted with Deathblock)
Ring2: Legendary Five Rings* (mythic +1, Sheltering +45, Radiance Lore +27, Spell Focus Mastery +6, Quality Constitution +4, slotted with Crushing Wave Guard)
Hands: Legendary Green Steel** 3x material-opposition (triple acid resistance)
Bracers: Arm of the Aggressor (mythic +1 slotted with Good Luck +2 and False Life +40)
Boots: Boots of Blessed Travels (slotted with Golem's Heart and Dexterity +8)
Armor: Legendary Scales of Malice (slotted with Globe of True Imperial Blood)
Shield: Epic Shield of Tireless Aid (mythic +4 slotted with Spell Agility +15)
Weapon: Legendary Green Steel Radiance (t1 +30 heal amp, t2 +7 insightful dex, t3 +70 heal amp) I discuss and demonstrate this weapon in a video here.
Weapon 2: I switch to Dusk in content where high defenses aren't needed. I show and discuss how Dusk compares to LGS Radiance a video here.
*Legendary Slave Lords Endurance 3-piece set
**This 5 piece LGS set gives the following bonuses: +36% stacking hp, +35% spell critical damage and Ender set bonus


GEAR (end game non-raid suggestions for those who don't like to raid)

Goggles: Legendary Symphonic Lenses, Legendary Summoner's Spectacles, Legendary Lenses of the Orator
Head: Legendary Pansophic Circlet, Legendary Boundless, Legendary Hardened Hide, Epic Eloquence, Epic Minos Legens, Epic Sage's Skullcap**, Epic Mushroom Cap, Plundered Pirate Hat
Neck: Legendary Chains, Legendary Ward-Inscribed Pendant, Epic Lion's Mane*, Epic Vim and Vigor, Necklace of Mystic Eidolons, Epic Sage's Locket**
Trinket: Legendary Five Rings, Legendary Empowered Dragonscale, Legendary Symbol of the Slave Lords, Legendary Planar Compass, EE Shamanic Fetish, Broken Music Box, Magestar, Epic Token of the Proven
Cloak: Legendary Mantle of Fury, Legendary Phasecloak, Legendary Scarlet Scale Cloak, Epic Guardian's Cloak**, Mysterious Cloak, EE Ghost-Waking Cloak, Legendary Slave Master's Cloak, Elite Nightsinger's Mantle*
Belt: Legendary Chains, Epic Belt of Thoughtful Remembrance*, Epic Chord of Reprisals*
Rings: Legendary Band of Insightful Commands, Legendary Five Rings, Lantern Ring, Legendary Brazenband*, Epic Ivy Helix*, Epic Laurel Helix*, Epic Guardian's Ring**, Epic Eye of the Beholder*, EE Ring of the Djinn
Hands: Legendary Dashing Gloves, Legendary Gauntlets of Innate Arcanum, Iron Mitts*
Bracers: Legendary Mystic Wrappings, Legendary Shackles, Epic Ethereal Bracers*, Epic Inferno Bracers* (Fiend Pact), Epic Barbette's Bracers*, Guardian's Bracers**, Mysterious Bracers, Legendary Bracers of the Fallen Hero
Boots: Orcish Privateer's Boots*, Legendary Flightfoot Greaves, Legendary Softsole Slippers
Armor: Legendary Scales of Malice, Legendary Coat of the Traveler, Epic Scales of Surety*, Legendary Hardened Hide Armor
Shield: Epic Shield of Tireless Aid*, EE Skyvault Shield, Legendary Breaker of Bodies, EE Bulwark of the Storm's Fist
Weapon: Legendary Morninglord's Sceptre, Legendary Nightmother's Sceptre, Thunderforged, EE Hammer of the Leaden Clouds

Note for newer players: *items are a relatively easy farm. **items are guaranteed in end rewards. Random loot and Cannith crafted items also provide a lot of great gearing options.


SHIELDS AND ARCANE SPELL FAILURE

I'm adding a special section for shields because one of the most frequent questions I get is about which shields to use and how to overcome arcane spell failure while using a shield on a warlock. At low levels, I personally like to use a small mithral shield blank to craft on. Mithral shields are no longer on the main loot tables, but can still drop as end rewards from some older quests and chains like waterworks, Red Fens, Sharn Syndicate and I believe some others. A small mithral shield will have no ASF. You can also use a large mithral shield, which will have 5% ASF that can be overcome crafting a Lesser Arcane Spell Dexterity item using Cannith Crafting. Lesser Arcane Spell Dexterity affects ASF from any source, regardless of the item that its crafted onto.

By the time you reach mid to upper heroic levels, you can use shields like Fanion and Skyvault Shield, which have zero ASF. You can also use a Sapphire of Spell Agility augment at levels 12/16/20 to overcome 5%/10%/15% ASF. A typical large shield has 15% ASF so by the time you reach level 20 you can use a Sapphire of Spell Agility +15 to overcome the ASF of any large shield, as I do with an Epic Shield of Tireless Aid at level 28. You can purchase a Sapphire of Spell Agility +15 from Lahar, the epic vendor in The Twelve for 20 Tokens of the Twelve. Epic Skyvault Shield is also a nice choice for mid epic levels. Some people like to use Skyvault at endgame, however be aware that it has a max dex/dodge bonus of 4. For more about arcane spell failure, see the DDO wiki article here.


SPELLS




REAPER

I have worked through a few reaper lives so far. Typically 3-4 skulls if soloing or, 5 skulls if with 1 or more other people and 6-7 skulls in full groups. Charm Person is really helpful in early levels, so can swap out the Shield spell and use wands or take the Shield Enhancement instead and swap back once you get out of single digit levels or whenever Charm Person becomes ineffective. I also found the Fey Pact spell Blindness to be very useful in low levels. Wand and Scroll Mastery from Tainted Scholar is nice to boost healing from wands and scrolls for self and others during heroic reaper questing and can swap out in epics.

Temporary hit points from effects like Shining Through, Brilliance and Stanch are not affected by the self healing debuff and are therefor huge in reaper questing. Things turn a corner once you get Brilliance, which should be top priority once you get to level 6. Things turn another major corner again at level 12 once you get Spirit Blast and Shining Through.

I have been investing my reaper points in the Grim Barricade tree for added survivability in reaper quests, with emphasis on PRR and con, with a couple points in dodge to max out my cap. I also spent points in UMD for heroics in order to use healing wands and scrolls, which are very important in reaper questing. UMD will be plenty high enough once you reach epic levels, so when epic reincarnating you can change out the UMD skill points to perform or other more relevant skills for epic levels.

I really like the Legendary Green Steel Radiance weapon in reaper mode for the blinding effect and healing amplification, both are very valuable in reaper. I can feel a serious difference in self healing when I'm accidentally using a different weapon in reapers. Rejuvenation Cocoon, Renewal and Sacred Ground keep me self healed quite well with 205 heal amp.

When I was last at level cap, with 30 reaper points all spent in the Grim Barricade tree my self-sufficient tanking ability held up well up to about 5-6 skulls, depending on the content. Beyond that I need healing support for sustained tanking. This is with a wealth of past lives and so without the past lives, tanking ability would be reduced. In reaper mode my standing hp is 4153 and max temp hp is 7321. I did a solo R8 Amber Temple video where I discuss my 5-piece Legendary Green Steel Ender set and show how I've spent my reaper points. Later with 49 reaper points, here is an R10 Crucible video in a full group.

I am currently working on my racial past lives and don't plan to be back at level cap until late 2019.


WHAT TO DO BETWEEN BURSTS

People who are newer to warlock often ask what to do between bursts while they are on cooldown. Here's what I am typically doing on Voodu between bursts...

1. Heal myself and others with Rejuvenation Cocoon and Renewal.
2. Consecration (with Sacred Ground)
3. Evard's Black Tentacles
4. Otto's Irresistible Dance a reaper, champion, caster or orange named
5. Darkfire
6. Swing my weapon
7. Intimidate
8. Primal Scream
9. Refresh Displacement or Tensor's Transformation
10. Sleet Storm
11. Shining Through
12. Tainted Spellcasting
13. Dark Delirium
14. Wail of the Banshee
15. Drink a Potion of Greater Brilliance
16. Symbol of Death
17. Stanch as an emergency heal
18. Waves of Exhaustion
19. sip my coffee


EPISODES

Note that in the first life of the series I do a heavy armor charisma build, after the 10/21/15 balance pass I changed to a medium armor constitution build.

Trailer
Episode 1: Level 2 Stopping the Sahuagin
Episode 2: Level 5 Cloven-jaw Scourge: Blockade (STK 1)
Episode 3: Level 7 The Stones Run Red
Episode 4: Level 9 Storm the Beaches
Episode 5: Level 11 Claw of Vulkoor
Episode 6: Level 13 Spawn of Whisperdoom
Episode 7: Level 14 Solo Elite DQ Raid (Zawabi's Revenge)
Episode 8: Level 15 Solo Elite Reaver's Fate
Episode 9: Level 18 How to Solo Elite In the Demon's Den
Episode 10: Level 21 Solo Elite Bastion of Power
Episode 11: Level 23 Solo EE VON 2 (The Prisoner)
Episode 12: Level 24 Solo EE Lords of Dust part 1 of 2 (in Shiradi)
Episode 13: Level 24 Solo EE Lords of Dust part 2 of 2 (in Sentinel)
Episode 14: Level 25 Solo EE Rusted Blades with Optional
Episode 15: Level 28 Tanking EE Lord of Blades with Marking
Episode 16: Level 28 Solo EE Demon Assault

After Episode 16, the 10/21/15 balance pass happened and the build changes from a Charisma heavy armor build to a Constitution medium armor build.
Starting with episode 17, I epic reincarnate and begin my race to epic completionist.

Episode 17: Level 20 Solo Elite Breaking the Ranks
Episode 18: Level 25 Solo EE DQ Raid (Zawabi's Revenge)
Episode 19: Level 28 Solo EE Gianthold Tor (with dragons)
Episode 20: Level 28 Solo EE Devil's Details
Episode 21: Level 22 Solo EE Deal and the Demon
Episode 22: Level 25 Solo EE Trial by Fire
Episode 23: Level 28 Tanking Truthful One in EE Fall of Truth
Episode 24: Level 28 Tanking EE Temple of the Deathwyrm
Episode 25: Level 26 How to solo EE Crucible
Episode 26: Level 22 Solo EE into the Deep
Episode 27: Level 29 Solo LE To Curse the Sky
Episode 28: Level 28 Solo EE Subversion
Episode 29: Level 20 Solo Elite Shroud
Episode 30: Level 29 duo EE Fall of Truth
Episode 31: Level 30 Tanking EE Fire on Thunder Peak



Some of my other videos and series:
Gingerspyce Deep Gnome Druid Project
Northwynd: The Druid True First Life Series
How to Choose your Warlock for Beginners
How to Craft a Heroic Green Steel Item and Use the Crafting Planner
How to Craft a Legendary Green Steel Item and Use the LGS Crafting Planner
Beginner's Guide to Cannith Crafting
The Basics of Reincarnating in DDO
Beginner's Guide to Epic Destinies and Twists of Fate

over 750 quest videos, raid guides, crafting tutorials and much more for newbies and experienced players alike at my DDO Youtube channel and now live streaming on Twitch

I can see you took significant (12) points in Drow for Darkfire. Is there any reason you chose this over more Tainted Scholar (and I ask for two reasons, (1) Darkfire save is Charisma based which is not what you are chasing (2) Tainted Scholar Tier 4 would add to your Eldritch Bursts)

[Vooduspyce]

I can see you took significant (12) points in Drow for Darkfire. Is there any reason you chose this over more Tainted Scholar (and I ask for two reasons, (1) Darkfire save is Charisma based which is not what you are chasing (2) Tainted Scholar Tier 4 would add to your Eldritch Bursts)

My choice of Drow was purely flavor. I like Darkfire because it's a nice cheap auto-hit ranged attack with a very long range that I can throw on the fly without changing stances. It hits pretty well for me and can easily do a couple thousand damage or more and the damage type (evil) synergizes with the Enlightened Spirit's radiance spell power. I also like the charisma and enchantment saves I get on the way to Darkfire. That said, it's just a preference and I encourage others to invest those points in other trees if they prefer

[pyrus566]

My choice of Drow was purely flavor. I like Darkfire because it's a nice cheap auto-hit ranged attack with a very long range that I can throw on the fly without changing stances. It hits pretty well for me and can easily do a couple thousand damage or more and the damage type (evil) synergizes with the Enlightened Spirit's radiance spell power. I also like the charisma and enchantment saves I get on the way to Darkfire. That said, it's just a preference and I encourage others to invest those points in other trees if they prefer

Thank you for getting back to me. I had a similiar train of thought but considered the 12 points expensive. Not withstanding that your reasoning is sound. I intend a very similiar build but forsake the 12 Drow points to chase some extra in Tainted Scholar for additional blast effect.

As many before me have said, thank you for the benefit of your experience.

[LargoKeyWest]

Just as a reminder, and by no means needed... but if you complete racials, that 12 points is a 'gimme' anyways

Thank you for getting back to me. I had a similiar train of thought but considered the 12 points expensive. Not withstanding that your reasoning is sound. I intend a very similiar build but forsake the 12 Drow points to chase some extra in Tainted Scholar for additional blast effect.

As many before me have said, thank you for the benefit of your experience.

[Vooduspyce]

Just as a reminder, and by no means needed... but if you complete racials, that 12 points is a 'gimme' anyways

Working on it. ETA: 1 year XD

[RTN]

I was talking with Nacho/Gingerspyce via pm about epic TR gear and was recommended to post my questions and thoughts here. The biggest question to me is the weapon. Shields can come and go as necessary (and as my ASF allows), but with filigrees, you likely want to minimize your weapon changing and focus on one from L20 or maybe L21. The problem is there aren't many good caster weapons at L20 that accept Sentience. I think Epic Bejeweled Letter Opener might be the best, but went with Epic Flameward because I had all the ingredients for it (and the fire resists are nice given how many epic mobs nuke you with fire damage). I thought the problem is that it doesn't give an implement bonus, but I learned elsewhere (only today) that slotting a spellpower augment will trigger that effect (why doesn't spell lore also do so? no clue). I tested and it does, so I slotted a Devotion 90 augment, which helps with healing and gives me the implement bonus. Epic versions of Pale Rod should also work, but I think provides you get even less benefit for other attributes on it.

Some other options I considered:
1) An Epic Brigand's Cutlass (L20) from the Cove, but I don't have an updated version that accepts Sentience. The intim removes the need for an item, plus it has improved vorpal for when you don't need to be turtled up and are between bursts, especially in Reaper where vorpal is nice.

2) Wait until L21 and use the Blade of the High Priestess since that gives the implement bonus, has potency for off damage types, plus it gives some nice CC options with improved paralyzing.

There are other options, but these were the main ones I considered. Once learning that I could get the implement bonus on the Flameward by slotting a spellpower augment, I went with that and think it is the right choice. If doing the same to a Brigand's Cutlass would give the same result, I'd likely go that path (can't test since I won't have an updated one until the Cove reopens). Another intriguing option I hadn't originally considered was suggested by Nacho/Gingerspyce as a possibility: the Timeblade, which has some nice effects, plus you could slot both devotion and perform (or another skill). Unfortunately, I think I fed my Timeblade to my sentient gem a while back.

Nacho/Gingerspice pointed out some House C crafting options and those, plus Pale Rod, Brigand's Cutlass (when Cove is open), and the Blade of the High Priestess are probably the fastest to farm since the others are the old item, scroll, seal, and shard crafting system.

For filigrees, I have 5 slots open on my sentient gem, so I went 3 Embracing the Light (Healing Amp (r), Light Power (r), and Positive (r), which gives me the set bonus of +5 healing amp and +10 universal spell power. Then I added 2 Otto's (Spell Failure -10 and Spellpower) for the set bonus of +5 MRR.

Some perhaps unusual gearing choices I made at L20 when I started swapping gear around are heroic greensteel sp goggles (CHA skills/intim boost, extra spellpoints, and spell regen from getting hit) and an Epic Brawn's Spirit for intim and to slot my Master's Gift. (This is an old old intimitank, so I have that kind of old gear sitting around.) That freed up intim elsewhere and is a permaslot for the xp boost and there's not much that I'd want for trinket until L28 or L29. If I used the Brigand's Cutlass for intim, I'd do something else here, probably crafting something, maybe spellsight and insightful spellsight.

I'm running in US, twisting in two tiers of Consecration for self and party healing, plus Primal Scream and Radiant Power. Fully buffed at L20 (but no Amrath pots, etc.), my intim was in the mid 80s and I had around 2400hp. Worked very well for tanking and doing damage in the group in mostly R3 (so some of the hp are coming from my 30 reaper pts, mostly put into the defensive tree).

So my question is what epic sentient weapon are you using from L20 or L21 and what filigrees are you slotting and why?

[GramercyRiff]

I don't even bother with sentience on a Warlock until I can get a good weapon at 29. I don't find the benefit of filigree matters that much on a Warlock through epics until cap. I simply use CC spellpower in the weapon slot from 20 to 29. I also don't play Warlock in epic anymore as other classes are simply better and more fun. I did ride Warlock a lot though so I appreciate the class.

Buff Warlock.