Hello and welcome to my Never Summer Warlock review.
In this review, I will take a look at the Warlock as a Freestyle snowboard.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Warlock a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how it compares with other Freestyle snowboards.
NOTE: The 2019 model was the last model of the Warlock. The Never Summer Dipstick is a close though not exact replacement.
Overall Rating
Board: Never Summer Warlock 2019
Price: $519 (USD recommended retail)
Style: Park/Freestyle
Flex Rating: Soft (12% on Never Summer’s scale)
Flex Feel on Snow: Medium-Soft (3/10)
Rating Score: 81.9/100
Compared to other Men’s Freestyle Boards
Out of the 36 Men’s Park/Freestyle snowboards that I rated:
- The average price was $435 (USD)
- The average score was 80.6/100
- The highest score was 90.7/100
- The lowest score was 68.1/100
- The Warlock ranked 14th out of 36*
Overview of the Warlock’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Warlock’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
| Style | Freestyle | Flex | Medium-Soft (3/10) |
| Ability Level | Beginner to Advanced | Feel | Semi-Loose |
| Weight | Normal | Turn Initiation | Fast |
| Camber Profile | Hybrid Rocker (Never Summer’s Original Rocker Camber) | Shape | True Twin |
| Stance Setback | Centered | Edge-hold | Good in hard conditions and ok icy snow conditions (4/5) |
| Price | $519 (USD) | Base | Sintered |
Sizing
| Size (Length) | 148 | 150 | 152 | 154 | 157 | 150X | 153X | 156X | 159X |
| Waist Width (mm) | 243 | 245 | 247 | 250 | 252 | 256 | 257 | 260 | 262 |
| Weight Range (lbs) | 110-160 | 115-165 | 120-170 | 125-175 | 130-180 | 110-160 | 115-165 | 125-175 | 135-185 |
| Weight Range (kgs) | 50-73 | 52-75 | 54-77 | 57-79 | 59-82 | 50-73 | 52-75 | 57-79 | 61-84 |
Who is the Warlock Most Suited to?
The Warlock is best suited to anyone who likes to ride in the park a lot or likes to play around and do tricks on and around the groomers or for someone who wants a very easy-going board for casually riding the groomers.
It’s very playful and on the looser side and really fun to play around with.
It would also be very easy to learn on for a beginner and would be good for someone who wanted a softer, more playful board for learning to ride in the park.
Not for those who want to bomb hard or really rail their carves and not something for the backcountry – but great as a fun playful resort/park board.
The Warlock in More Detail
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Warlock is capable of.
Demo Info
Board: Never Summer Warlock 2019, 157 (252mm waist)
Date: March 3, 2018
Conditions: The snow had a great medium feel to it. Relatively firm but certainly not hard and not overly soft. Off groomer was nice too and there were a few pockets of untracked powder from snow from a couple of days previous. Sunny and perfect visibility. Temperature was -7 with wind.
Bindings angles: +15/-15
Width at Inserts: 258mm (10.16“)
Powder
Felt a little better in powder than the Ripsaw and the Proto Type Two which I also rode that day but still not something that’s amazing in powder but does the job if it’s not too deep and you’re not in it all day.
There’s a bit more rocker in there compared to the Ripsaw and PT2 – which is likely one of the reasons for feeling better in powder – a little surfier feeling.
Carving & Turning
Some nice quick, tight turns can be made on this board – but it’s not one for long arcing wide carves – it gets squirrelly when really trying to rail it. Not much of a carver from my experience but a fun board to turn tightly.
Easy to skid turns – very forgiving.
Speed
Got quite squirrely at speed, quite shaky when you really got up to good speeds. It’s soft and it’s not that damp, so no surprises there.
Let’s Break up this text with a Video
Uneven Terrain
This board was very forgiving on uneven terrain. You certainly felt it, but it went with it and contoured to it nicely.
Jumps
A fun board to jump with – and a fun board to spin with. It feels very light and snappy. Great for those smaller jumps in the park and for side hits. Not as good pop as the Ripsaw rocker models in the Never Summer lineup (e.g. the Ripsaw and PT2) but the pop was ok none-the-less and was also very easy to access that pop – didn’t have to put too much effort in to get that pop.
Not as good on larger jumps – just not that same stability on landings or for speed on approach as something like the Proto Type Two.
Switch
An easy board for riding switch and would be a great board to learn to ride switch on, given how easy it is to ride. Basically as good as it gets for switch unless it was asym.
Jibbing
A really easy board to jib with, that was also very confidence inspiring on jibs. It’s agile and soft and yeah, I felt more confident on jibs than I would be on most boards.
Butters
I found this board was super easy to butter.
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
| FACTOR | RATING (OUT OF 5) | CONTRIBUTION TO FINAL SCORE |
| Switch: | 4.5 | 22.5/25 |
| Jumps: | 3.5 | 17.5/25 |
| Jibbing: | 4.0 | 16/20 |
| Uneven Terrain: | 4.0 | 8/10 |
| Powder: | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
| Carving/Turns: | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
| Speed: | 2.5 | 2.5/5 |
| Pipe: | 3.0 | 3/5 |
| TOTAL after normalizing | 81.9/100 |
The Warlock is a very playful board that’s great for tricks in the park or riding casually on the groomers – finding natural hits and a great option for someone starting out in the park.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you want to learn more about the Warlock, are ready to buy or want to research prices and availability, check out the links below.
If you want to see how the Warlock compares to other Men’s Freestyle boards or want to check out some other options in that category, check out the next link.
>>My Top 10 Men’s Freestyle Snowboards
Genesis or malavitas with a 152 warlock?
Would this be suited for freestyle/park/groomers
Hi Slum
Thanks for your message.
For the Warlock, which is quite soft flexing, you could go for a slightly softer binding if you wanted to (which are usually cheaper too), but between those 2, I think the Genesis would be the best match. It’s a very good all-round binding. The Malavitas certainly work too (that’s what I rode it with) – they’re just that touch bit stiffer, so not quite as good a flex match, but definitely a combo that works. So there’s not really a bad choice between them, but I would be leaning Genesis.
Hope this helps
Hi !
Union Force binding good for that board ?
Hi Pal
Thanks for your message.
Personally I would go for a softer flexing binding than the Force (I would rate the Force 6/10 flex). Not that it wouldn’t work, but I think going for something softer would work better. For me, the Warlock is a very playful, freestyle oriented board and having playful bindings would work best. I would check out some options here:
>>Top 5 All Freestyle Bindings
Hope this helps