"It is not the weapon that is evil, but the wielder."

-Galena Todrick, hellfire warlock

The hellfire warlocks are a secretive group of specialist warlocks who have mastered hellfire, a dangerous energy found only in the Nine Hells. By tapping into this infernal power, these characters learn to infuse their eldritch blasts and magic items that they wield with the dark power of hellfire.

BECOMING A HELLFIRE WARLOCK

Prospective hellfire warlocks must fulfill strict requirements to gain entry to the class, making this prestige class exclusive to warlocks. While most characters who pursue the hell fire warlock class are otherwise single-class warlocks, multiclass warlocks with wizard levels are also common. Multiclass warlock/rogues, warlock/clerics, or even warlock/fighters are also possible, but entry into the prestige class is restricted until higher levels.

PLAYING A HELLFIRE WARLOCK

You walk a dangerous path. Each use of hellfire brings you ever closer to death. You must be vigilant in your resolve and resist using this terrible magic recklessly. Since you wield the power of Hell itself, others are suspicious at best and downright hostile at worst. They fail to understand why you would use such power willingly and how you can resist its allure.

Combat

Using the abilities granted by this prestige class carries dangerous consequences. The Consitution damage that results from the use of your powers can be healed, and many hellfire warlocks carry wands of lesser restoration to compensate for the draining nature of their power. However, the hit point loss that results from Constitution damage can be the difference between living and dying in a close-fought combat, so restrict use of these abilities to when you are confident doing so will have a meaningful effect on a battle's outcome.

Advancement

Hellfire warlocks enter this class after being exposed to some infernal agency. Witnessing the power inherent in hellfire creates a strong attraction many find too strong to resist. It's possible you were one of these types, or maybe you stumbled across hellfire while experimenting with eldritch blast.

Once you take your first level in this class, it's best to invest in the Use Magic Device skill so you can easily use items that heal the Constitution damage that you take.

Resources

Hellfire warlocks lack any formal community, since they are often loners by nature, sequestering themselves away to further study and refine their techniques. Baatezu target you and your colleaques with promises of assistance, magic, and even combat support. Their motives are clear, but they offer great power and often compelling reasons to join them.

HELLFIRE WARLOCKS IN THE WORLD

"The offering of hellfire is yet one more way the fiends have worked their claws into our world. Each mortal who thinks to master this fell power is yet one more fool offering his soul to the Lord of the Eighth."

-Alód the Traveler, planeshifter

Most hellfire warlocks whom the PCs encounter have likely already succumbed to the temptations of evil. Usually minions in the service of an infernal cult, they lead groups of thugs or devils against good organizations or to hunt down and destroy adventurers. Only in the rarest circumstances does a hellfire warlock resist these temptations and use her power to advance the cause of good.

Organization

Since hellfire warlocks are nearly universally reviled, these characters keep to themselves. Their isolation pushes them to test the limits of their morality, and in time, most succumb to the darkness blooming within them. Hellfire warlocks are jealous and petty. They see others who practice their dark art as threats to their prominence and power, so these characters are swift to destroy their rivals.

Some hellfire warlocks attach themselves to infernal cults, believing that through service to an archfiend, they can increase their knowledge and skill. Hellfire warlocks act as guardians and enforcers in such organizations, valued for their combat capabilities.

NPC Reactions

Even those hellfire warlocks who shy away from evil in the face of such wickedness meet scorn and derision in the world. Warlocks are generally not trusted, and those who willingly use the tools of evil for any reason are tantamount to the fiends themselves in the minds of most folk. Hence, most hellfire warlocks conceal their natures, using their infernal powers only when forced.

So long as a hellfire warlock maintains her anonymity, she finds others are indifferent. Those who become aware of her capabilities immediately become unfriendly, seeing her as a menace. This animosity extends even to evil creatures, which are often unsure what to make of such a curious character - or see her as a rival to be destroyed.

HELLFIRE WARLOCK LORE

Characters with ranks in Knowledge (the planes) can research hellfire warlocks to learn more about them. When a character succeeds on a skill check, the following lore is revealed, including the information from lower DCs.

DC 10: Hellfire warlocks use the flames of Hell to power their abilities.

DC 15: Hellfire is a cruel mistress, weakening those who court her.

DC 20: Though hellfire itself is anathema to good, not all who wield it are evil. Some manage to temper the corrupting effects with a strong will and steadfast resolve. The mightiest among them even bend hellfire to serve the forces of good.

Hellfire warlocks are reclusive. They refrain from revealing themselves to the public, lurking at the fringes of society and only emerging when circumstances demand it. Player characters trying to locate a hellfire warlock need to succeed on a DC 25 Gather Information check. If a PC looks for a hellfire warlock in a community whose alignment is predominantly evil, he gains a +2 circumstance bonus on the check.

HELLFIRE WARLOCKS IN THE GAME

A hellfire warlock is a natural extension of the warlock class. One can be a new agent in the armies of the Nine Hells or an established occultists who dabbles in the forbidden.

Hellfire warlocks are particularly attractive to players who enjoy playing antiheroes. This prestige class grants access to otherwise forbidden abilities. This class is also specifically intended for the warlock class, enabling you to expand this potent class in new directions.

Adaptation

As written, a hellfire warlock serves as an extension of the warlock class from Complete Arcane. If you don't use this class, you can adapt this prestige class for use with other characters. Exchange the invocations requirement with the ability to cast fireball. Instead of improving invocations known, the hellfire warlock improves the character's arcane spell casting ability by one level per class level. Instead of gaining hellfire blast, the character can deal an extra 1d6 points of damage per class level with evocation spells that deal damage. This ability costs the character 1 point of Constitution just like the hellfire blast class feature. The character gains the fire resistance, hellfire infusion, and hellfire shield abilities as normal.

Sample Encounter

Since hellfire warlocks often give in to evil temptations, player characters are most likely to encounter these characters as adversaries. A hellfire warlock might be part of a powerful strike force employed by a fiendish enemy of the PCs to eliminate the threat they pose.

EL 13: Galena Todrick (NE female hellbred warlock 9/hellfire warlock 3) leads a pair of bone devils to destroy the PCs in revenge for some past deed that thwarted her master's plan. She originally became a hellbred to atone for a misspent life, but between her newfound abilities and the magic she employed as a warlock, she succumbed to the lure of infernal power and turned to evil once more.