[C&C] Specialty Priests: Working Concept

[serleran]

[Cross-posted from the new TLG forums]

The cleric class, as presented in the Player’s Handbook is universal, generic, and oft-times, seen as a "healing tank," having both attack abilities and restorative capacity. To many, in a world full of deities, each with divergent goals and worshippers, the fact that all clerics are equal is unfathomable. The desire to have uniqueness, a better-rounded pantheon, is necessary for a living campaign, one in which the setting itself has a sense of wonder, and realism. That is the goal of this document.

Unless specified otherwise, all clerics, regardless of faith, share the same abilities, as presented in the Player’s Handbook. They advance at the same rate, gain the same spell selection, and utilize the same armor and weapon proficiencies. However, every deity which follows alters some aspect of the cleric class, in some cases, somewhat dramatically; if this is the case, and a new progression or methodology is required, it is noted. In general, clerics of the same race will also share similarities, as do their deities.

When creating a cleric character, the player selects race as normal, and then assigns Primes, following the guidelines as given in the rules; however, all clerics must have Wisdom as a class Prime, so this is an assumed given, and is not mentioned in the detailed descriptions. A character’s race and the selection of additional Primes, affects which deity is available. Note, this is not to say that a character that does not match the required Primes cannot worship the deity, but instead, implies that the character is not granted the special privileges of having met the requirements. In most cases, more than one possibility exists, allowing the player to select a deity befitting the character concept. Additionally, all such permutations have a descriptive name, such as Hammerhand, which is meant only to serve as a means to identify each of the variations in shorter form; Castle Keepers are encouraged to alter and add to meet their needs.

All faiths are presented in the following format, arranged by race; within each race, each is listed in order of attribute combination, so that Strength precedes Charisma:

Name: This is the name of the faith.
Primes: The Primes required to be considered a devoted, and blessed, follower, gaining all relevant benefits, and hindrances.
Alignment: Represents the alignment of the deity, and the most common among followers; variation is allowed, as noted.
Weapons: Weapons allowed to the cleric, all of which are considered proficient.
Armor: Armor allowed to the cleric; this does not impact a cleric’s spellcasting abilities unless otherwise indicated.
Modifications: Any change to abilities, such as removal, or granting, as well as experience adjustment is presented.
Symbol: A description of the holy symbol, and its construction, used by the faith.
Vestment: The religious clothing worn by the clergy.
Rites: Lists and describes the rites and rituals a cleric is expected, and allowed, to perform; failure has repercussions.
Temples: Details where, and how, the religious structures are built; also, describes the general feel of such structures.
Roleplaying Notes: Ideas and guidelines for roleplaying a member of the faith.


As I get time, and inspiration, I will list the deities and faiths in the format specified. However, feel free to add your own, and assist in making this a viable method.

[Maliki]

Thnaks serleran, that makes a nice template for building specialty priests. Which is something I intend to do for my next campaign.

[Moorcrys]

Yeah Serl,

In fact, I've been flipping through the Priest Spell Compendium that was released for 2nd Edition in the '90s with the idea of reviving those spheres and speciality priest ideas for C&C. Specialty priests were about the only thing I liked about second edition frankly, and I still miss it.

[Grimaryl Atyar]

Yes, i like them too.

[Catweazle]

Specialty priests are probably best used with polytheistic religions. However, the "standard" cleric works a treat for monotheistic churches.

The concept of "healing tank" goes right back to the sequestration of healing magic from the Magic-user. That's when a cleric's faith became less important than his or her healing spells; at least in a lot of games.

[Zudrak]

...The concept of "healing tank" goes right back to the sequestration of healing magic from the Magic-user. That's when a cleric's faith became less important than his or her healing spells; at least in a lot of games.

Well put. It sounds like Serl's looking to put the faith back in the faithful. I may add to this, if I get the time. Otherwise, I'll email Serl's my attempts.

Cool idea, Serl. (Man, I said that twice today!)