Cleric



Obsidian has confirmed that the Cleric base class will be included in NWN2.

DnD 3.5 Cleric
Description: Clerics act as intermediaries between the earthly and the divine (or infernal) worlds. A good cleric helps those in need, while an evil cleric seeks to spread his patron's vision of evil across the world. All clerics can heal wounds and bring people back from the brink of death, and powerful clerics can even raise the dead. Likewise, all clerics have authority over undead creatures, and they can turn away or even destroy these creatures. Clerics are trained in the use of simple weapons, and can use all forms of armor and shields without penalty, since armor does not interfere with the casting of divine spells. In addition to his normal complement of spells, every cleric chooses to focus on two of his deity's domains. These domains grants the cleric special powers, and give him access to spells that he might otherwise never learn.

Alignment Restrictions: A cleric’s alignment must be within one step of his deity’s (that is, it may be one step away on either the lawful–chaotic axis or the good–evil axis, but not both). A cleric may not be neutral unless his deity’s alignment is also neutral.

Hit Die: d8

Proficiencies: Armor (Light, Heavy, Medium), Shields (except Tower shields), Weapons (Simple)

Skill points: (Int mod * 4 at 1st level) 2 + Int mod

Class skills: Concentration, Craft, Diplomacy, Heal, Knowledge(arcana, history, religion, the planes), Profession and Spellcraft

Base Attack Bonus progression: Medium

Primary Saving Throw(s): Fortitude, Will

Spellcasting: Divine (Wisdom-based, spell failure from armor is ignored). Must have a Wisdom score of 10 + the spell’s level to cast a spell.

Special Abilities & Feats

 * Level 1 Turn Undead or Rebuke Undead (see below)

Turn or Rebuke Undead
Any cleric, regardless of alignment, has the power to affect undead creatures by channeling the power of his faith through his holy (or unholy) symbol (see Turn or Rebuke Undead). A good cleric (or a neutral cleric who worships a good deity) can turn or destroy undead creatures. An evil cleric (or a neutral cleric who worships an evil deity) instead rebukes or commands such creatures. A neutral cleric of a neutral deity must choose whether his turning ability functions as that of a good cleric or an evil cleric. Once this choice is made, it cannot be reversed. This decision also determines whether the cleric can cast spontaneous cure or inflict spells.

A cleric may attempt to turn undead a number of times per day equal to 3 + his Charisma modifier. A cleric with 5 or more ranks in Knowledge (religion) gets a +2 bonus on turning checks against undead.

Aura
A cleric of a chaotic, evil, good, or lawful deity has a particularly powerful aura corresponding to the deity’s alignment. Clerics who don’t worship a specific deity but choose the Chaotic, Evil, Good, or Lawful domain have a similarly powerful aura of the corresponding alignment. This is used by alignment detecting spells.

Bonus Languages
A cleric’s bonus language options include Celestial, Abyssal, and Infernal (the languages of good, chaotic evil, and lawful evil outsiders, respectively). These choices are in addition to the bonus languages available to the character because of his race.

Domains
A cleric’s deity influences his alignment, what magic he can perform, his values, and how others see him. A cleric chooses two domains from among those belonging to his deity. A cleric can select an alignment domain (Chaos, Evil, Good, or Law) only if his alignment matches that domain. If a cleric is not devoted to a particular deity, he still selects two domains to represent his spiritual inclinations and abilities. The restriction on alignment domains still applies. Each domain gives the cleric access to a domain spell at each spell level he can cast, from 1st on up, as well as a granted power. The cleric gets the granted powers of both the domains selected.



Air
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Elementals - Able to turn elementals as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells


 * Level 3 Call Lightning
 * Level 6 Chain Lightning



Animal
Domain Special Abilities

Able to summon more powerful creatures using Summon Creature I through VIII.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 2 Cat's Grace
 * Level 3 True Seeing
 * Level 5 Polymorph Self



Death
Domain Special Abilities

Negative Plane Avatar - The cleric is able to summon a shadow that gains in power as the cleric advances.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 4 Phantasmal Killer
 * Level 5 Enervation



Destruction
Domain Special Abilities

Weaken Constructs - Able to damage constructs while using the turn ability.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 3 Stinking Cloud
 * Level 6 Acid Fog



Earth
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Elementals - Able to turn elementals as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 4 Stoneskin
 * Level 5 Energy Buffer



Evil
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Outsiders - Able to turn outsiders as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 1 Negative Energy Ray
 * Level 3 Negative Energy Burst
 * Level 5 Enervation



Fire
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Elementals - Able to turn elementals as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 4 Wall of Fire
 * Level 5 Energy Buffer



Good
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Outsider - Able to turn outsiders as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 4 Stoneskin
 * Level 5 Lesser Planar Binding



Healing
Domain Special Abilities

Empower Healing - The following healing spells are cast as if with the Empower Spell feat: Cure Minor Wounds, Cure Light Wounds, Cure Moderate Wounds, Cure Serious Wounds, and Cure Critical Wounds.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 2 Cure Serious Wounds
 * Level 5 Heal



Knowledge
Bonus Spells
 * Level 1 Identify
 * Level 2 Knock
 * Level 3 Clairaudience/Clairvoyance
 * Level 4 True Seeing
 * Level 6 Legend Lore



Magic
Bonus Spells
 * Level 1 Mage Armor
 * Level 2 Melf's Acid Arrow
 * Level 3 Negative Energy Burst
 * Level 4 Stoneskin
 * Level 5 Ice Storm



Plant
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Vermin - Able to turn vermin as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 2 Barkskin
 * Level 7 Creeping Doom



Protection
Domain Special Abilities

Divine Protection - The cleric is able to cast an improved form of Sanctuary that sets the save DC at 10 + Cha Modifier + Cleric Level. This has a duration of 1 round per caster level + the cleric’s Charisma modifier.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 4 Globe of Invulnerability
 * Level 5 Energy Buffer



Strength
Domain Special Abilities

Divine Strength - The cleric gains a bonus to Strength equal to 2 + 1 per 3 class levels. This has a duration of 5 rounds + the cleric’s Charisma modifier.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 3 Divine Power
 * Level 5 Stoneskin



Sun
Domain Special Abilities

Exceptional Turning - Add 1d6 to all turning checks to determine the maximum Hit Die of undead turned. Also add 1d4 to the number of undead turned.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 2 Searing Light
 * Level 7 Sunbeam



Travel
Bonus Spells
 * Level 1 Entangle
 * Level 2 Web
 * Level 3 Freedom of Movement
 * Level 4 Slow
 * Level 5 Haste



Trickery
Domain Special Abilities

Divine Trickery - Bonus to Hide, Persuade, Search, Disable Trap, Move Silently, Open Lock, and Pick Pocket checks equal to 1 per 2 levels. This effect lasts for 5 turns + the cleric’s Charisma modifier.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 2 Invisibility
 * Level 3 Invisibility Sphere
 * Level 5 Improved Invisibility



War
Domain Special Abilities

Battle Mastery - The cleric gains a bonus of 1 + 1 per 5 levels to Dexterity, Constitution, Attack Rolls and Damage. As well, the cleric gains damage reduction twice this amount. The effect will last for 5 rounds + Charisma modifier.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 2 Cat's Grace
 * Level 7 Aura of Vitality



Water
Domain Special Abilities

Turn Elementals - Able to turn elementals as if they were undead.

Bonus Spells
 * Level 3 Poison
 * Level 5 Ice Storm

Spellcasting
A cleric casts divine spells, which are drawn from the cleric spell list.

To prepare or cast a spell, a cleric must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a cleric’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the cleric’s Wisdom modifier.

A cleric can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. In addition to his base daily spell allotment, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Wisdom score.

Each cleric must choose a time at which he must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation or supplication to regain his daily allotment of spells. Time spent resting has no effect on whether a cleric can prepare spells. A cleric may prepare and cast any spell on the cleric spell list, provided that he can cast spells of that level, but he must choose which spells to prepare during his daily meditation.

Domain spells
A cleric gets one domain spell slot for each spell level he can cast, starting at 1st level. When a cleric prepares a spell in a domain spell slot, it must come from one of his two domains. If a domain spell is not on the cleric spell list, a cleric can prepare it only in his domain spell slot.

Alignment restrictions
However, his alignment may restrict him from casting certain spells opposed to his moral or ethical beliefs. A cleric can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to his own or his deity’s (if he has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaos, evil, good, and law descriptors in their spell descriptions.

Spontaneous Casting
A good cleric (or a neutral cleric of a good deity) can channel stored spell energy into healing spells that the cleric did not prepare ahead of time. The cleric can “lose” any prepared spell that is not a domain spell in order to cast any cure spell of the same spell level or lower (a cure spell is any spell with “cure” in its name).

An evil cleric (or a neutral cleric of an evil deity), can’t convert prepared spells to cure spells but can convert them to inflict spells (an inflict spell is one with “inflict” in its name).

A cleric who is neither good nor evil and whose deity is neither good nor evil can convert spells to either cure spells or inflict spells (player’s choice). Once the player makes this choice, it cannot be reversed. This choice also determines whether the cleric turns or commands undead (see below).

Spells
Level 0
 * Cure Light Wounds
 * Inflict Minor Wounds
 * Light
 * Resistance
 * Virtue

Level 1
 * Bane
 * Bless
 * Cure Light Wounds
 * Divine Favor
 * Doom
 * Endure Elements
 * Entropic Shield
 * Inflict Light Wounds
 * Magic Weapon
 * Protection from Alignment
 * Remove Fear
 * Sanctuary
 * Scare
 * Shield of Faith
 * Summon Creature I

Level 2
 * Aid
 * Bull's Strength
 * Cure Moderate Wounds
 * Darkness
 * Eagle's Splendor
 * Endurance
 * Find Traps
 * Fox's Cunning
 * Hold Person
 * Inflict Moderate Wounds
 * Lesser Dispel
 * Lesser Restoration
 * Negative Energy Ray
 * Owl's Wisdom
 * Remove Paralysis
 * Resist Elements
 * Silence
 * Sound Burst
 * Stone Bones
 * Summon Creature II
 * Ultravision

Level 3
 * Animate Dead
 * Bestow Curse
 * Blindness/Deafness
 * Clarity
 * Contagion
 * Continual Flame
 * Cure Serious Wounds
 * Darkfire
 * Dispel Magic
 * Glyph of Warding
 * Inflict Serious Wounds
 * Invisibility Purge
 * Magic Circle against Alignment
 * Magic Vestment
 * Negative Energy Protection
 * Prayer
 * Protection from Elements
 * Remove Blindness/Deafness
 * Remove Curse
 * Remove Disease
 * Searing Light
 * Summon Creature III

Level 4
 * Cure Critical Wounds
 * Death Ward
 * Dismissal
 * Divine Power
 * Freedom of Movement
 * Hammer of the Gods
 * Inflict Critical Wounds
 * Greater Magic Weapon
 * Neutralize Poison
 * Poison
 * Restoration
 * Summon Creature IV

Level 5
 * Battletide
 * Circle of Doom
 * Flame Strike
 * Healing Circle
 * Monstrous Regeneration
 * Raise Dead
 * Slay Living
 * Spell Resistance
 * Summon Creature V
 * True Seeing

Level 6
 * Banishment
 * Blade Barrier
 * Control Undead
 * Create Undead
 * Greater Dispelling
 * Greater Sanctuary
 * Harm
 * Heal
 * Planar Ally
 * Summon Creature VI
 * Undeath to Death

Level 7
 * Destruction
 * Greater Restoration
 * Regenerate
 * Resurrection
 * Summon Creature VII
 * Word of Faith

Level 8
 * Aura versus Alignment
 * Earthquake
 * Create Greater Undead
 * Fire Storm
 * Mass Heal
 * Summon Creature VIII
 * Sunbeam

Level 9
 * Energy Drain
 * Gate
 * Implosion
 * Storm of Vengeance
 * Summon Creature IX
 * Undeath's Eternal Foe

Ex-Clerics
A cleric who grossly violates the code of conduct required by his god loses all spells and class features, except for armor and shield proficiencies and proficiency with simple weapons. He cannot thereafter gain levels as a cleric of that god until he atones (see the atonement spell description).

Pre-release notes

 * Dispell, healing and summoning magics are highly likely to be in NWN2 as they are almost integral to the magic system of DnD
 * NWN did not use languages. If NWN2 repeats this then it is unlikely the Bonus Languages class features will be implemented.

NWN comparison

 * The Discipline and Parry skills were created by NWN and are not features of DnD 3.5. It is unlikely that they will re-appear in NWN2 as the were not considered particularly successful.
 * NWN did not implement deity or alignment restriction for spell and domain selection. Without dieties being used clerics had no class-alignment restrictions imposed so it was impossible to become an Ex-cleric and loose your abilities.
 * Alignment detection spells were not implemented and character alignment was directly used for the smite good/evil abilities instead of specifically aligned auras.
 * Domains in NWN only provided a handful of extra spells with no restriction on the amount which could be prepared at any time.
 * All Cleric were given Turn Undead and Spontaneous cure spells irrelevant of alignment, while Rebuke Undead and Spontaneous inflict spells were not implemented.

External resources

 * NWNWiki:Cleric