Since the days of old, there's been a strange expectation that divine casters in D&D/Pathfinder have the role of whacking people with a mace instead of working magic like their arcane counterparts.
In other games, such as World of Warcraft, it's hardly uncommon to see classes like the Priest that fully depend on the use of magic and not martial process.
Because much of the desire to play a divine caster is in its flavor, most notably the Domains of Clerics; I have created Domain-like Dogmas for the base class below. These dogmas have much more "arcane-like" spells that focus on battle-field control, blasting foes, buffing allies, etc. instead of self-buffing, while still staying true to the divine flavor of domains. These dogmas are spontaneously cast in the same way that a cleric spontaneously casts cure spells.
And because of time that'd be spent formatting, I won't put up all of the dogmas/subdogmas nor archetypes.
I present to you: the Reverend! (I'm respectfully giving Adamant Gaming the rights to the name Priest)
Within the echoing halls of every cathedral are clergymen preaching or even orchestrating the miracles of their praised deity. While most of these holy men are content with the life behind a podium, some don their robes and holy symbols and venture into the world of adventure as a hand of their god. Whether these reverends bring peace, disorder, healing, or corruption depends on the forces that grant them their awesome power.
Role: A reverend often stays near the back in the party,taking on a role not unlike the wizard. A reverend's dogma heavily influences her spellcasting style, causing her to be a master of buffing her allies, controlling the battlefield, or blasting her foes. Like a cleric, all reverends must focus their worship upon a divine source. While the vast majority of reverends revere a specific deity, a small number dedicate themselves to an abstract concept worthy of devotion - such as battle, death, justice, or knowledge - free of deific abstraction. (Work with your GM if you prefer this path to selecting a specific deity.)
Ability Scores: A reverend’s spells rely on Wisdom. Her special abilities Channel Energy depend on Charisma. Due to her her lack of armor, a decent Dexterity score is helpful. And such is the case for every adventurer, a good constitution is important.
Alignment: A reverend’s alignment must also be within one step of her deity's, along either the law/chaos or the good/evil axis.
Hit Dice: d6
Starting Wealth: 2d6 x 10 gp (average 70gp.) In addition, each character begins play with an outfit worth 10gp or less.
Starting Age: As wizard.
Class Skills
The reverend’s class skills are Appraise (Int), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Ranks Per Level: 2 + Int modifier.
Base Attack Bonus Progression: Half (as wizard)
Fort: Poor
Ref: Poor
Will: Good
Spells Per Day: As Cleric, but +1 spell slot per level instead of domain spell slot.
Class Features
Weapon and Armor Proficiency:
Reverends are proficient with the club, dagger, light mace, quarterstaff, and wooden stake. Reverends are not proficient in any armor or shields. A reverend's spellcasting is affected by arcane spell failure if she wears armor or shields.
Aura (Ex):
A reverend of a chaotic, evil, good, or lawful deity has a particularly powerful aura corresponding to the deity's alignment (see detect evil for details).
Spells:
A reverend casts divine spells which are drawn from the cleric spell list. Her alignment, however, may restrict her from casting certain spells opposed to her moral or ethical beliefs; see Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells. A reverend must choose and prepare her spells in advance.
To prepare or cast a spell, a reverend must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a reverend’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the reverend’s Wisdom modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a reverend can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table: Reverend Spells Per Day. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells).
Reverends meditate or pray for their spells. Each reverend must choose a time at which she must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation or supplication to regain her daily allotment of spells. Time spent resting has no effect on whether a reverend can prepare spells. A reverend may prepare and cast any spell on the cleric spell list, provided that she can cast spells of that level, but she must choose which spells to prepare during her daily meditation.
Dogmas:
A reverend’s deity influences her alignment, what magic she can perform, her values, and how others see her. A deity grant dogmas of the same name as the domains they represent. A reverend chooses three dogmas from among those belonging to her deity. A reverend can select an alignment dogma (Chaos, Evil, Good, or Law) only if her alignment matches that dogma. If a reverend is not devoted to a particular deity, she still selects two dogma to represent her spiritual inclinations and abilities (subject to GM approval). The restriction on alignment dogma still applies.
Each dogma grants a number of dogma powers, dependent upon the level of the reverend, as well as a number of bonus spells that a reverend adds to their list of spells known.
In addition, a reverend gains the listed powers from both of her dogmas. Unless otherwise noted, activating a dogma power is a standard action.
Orisons:
Reverends can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells, each day, as noted on Table: Reverend Spells Per Day. These spells are treated like any other spell, but they are not expended when cast and may be used again.
Spontaneous Casting:
A reverend may “lose” any prepared spell in order to cast a dogma spell of the same spell level or lower.
Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells:
A reverend can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to her own or her deity's (if she has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaotic, evil, good, and lawful descriptors in their spell descriptions.
Bonus Languages:
A reverend’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 her race.
Channel Energy (Su):
Regardless of alignment, any reverend can release a wave of energy by channeling the power of her faith through her holy (or unholy) symbol. This energy can be used to cause or heal damage, depending on the type of energy channeled and the creatures targeted.
A good reverend (or a neutral reverend who worships a good deity) channels positive energy and can choose to deal damage to undead creatures or to heal living creatures. An evil reverend (or a neutral reverend who worships an evil deity) channels negative energy and can choose to deal damage to living creatures or to heal undead creatures. A neutral reverend of a neutral deity (or one who is not devoted to a particular deity) must choose whether she channels positive or negative energy. Once this choice is made, it cannot be reversed.
Channeling energy causes a burst that affects all creatures of one type (either undead or living) in a 30-foot radius centered on the reverend. The amount of damage dealt or healed is equal to 1d6 points of damage plus 1d6 points of damage for every two reverend levels beyond 1st (2d6 at 3rd, 3d6 at 5th, and so on). Creatures that take damage from channeled energy receive a Will save to halve the damage. The DC of this save is equal to 10 + 1/2 the reverend's level + the reverend's Charisma modifier. Creatures healed by channel energy cannot exceed their maximum hit point total—all excess healing is lost. A reverend may channel energy a number of times equal to 3 + her Charisma modifier. This is a standard action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity. A reverend can choose whether or not to include herself in this effect.
A reverend must be able to present her holy symbol to use this ability.
Religious Study:
Starting at 2nd level, a reverend gains a bonus on Knowledge (Arcana), Knowledge (Religion), and another Knowledge of her choice (reflecting the focus of her deity) and Linguistics skill checks equal to half of her deacon level (rounded down). In addition, she may make these Knowledge and Linguistics skill checks untrained.
Enlightenment:
At 20th level, a reverend discovers the ultimate truths in all of her deity's dogmas, not just the three that she has rigorously studied. At the beginning of each day, a reverend may change her selected dogmas to up to three others that she qualifies for.
Dogmas
A reverend can select any two dogmas granted by her deity. Deities grant dogmas of the same name as the domains they grant. A reverend without a deity may select any two dogmas (subject to GM approval). If a dogma’s power duplicates a spell effect, the reverend’s caster level for that power is equal to her reverend level.
Subdogmas are listed under each corresponding dogma. Subdogmas have different powers and spells than their associated dogma. A reverend may not select both a dogma and one of its subdogmas.
Air:
Dogma Power: +1 caster level when casting spells with the air descriptor
Dogma Spells: 1st—alter winds, 2nd—wind wall, 3rd—call lightning, 4th—river of wind, 5th—control winds, 6th—chain lightning, 7th—scouring winds, 8th—whirlwind, 9th—elemental swarm (air spell only).
Wind Associated Dogma: Air
Replacement Dogma Spells: 3rd—cloak of winds, 6th—path of the winds, 9th—winds of vengeance.
Animal:
Dogma Power: Allies’ animals (summoned, companion, or mount) are healed +1 damage per die from your healing spells and channel energy.
Dogma Spells: 1st—charm animal, 2nd—animal aspect, 3rd—dominate animal, 4th—greater animal aspect, 5th—animal growth, 6th—summon nature's ally VI*, 7th—animal shapes, 8th—summon nature's ally VIII*, 9th—summon elder worm
*animals only
Feather Associated Dogma: Animal
Replacement Power: Add Fly to your list of class skills. In addition, whenever you cast a spell that grants you a fly speed, your maneuverability increases by one step (up to perfect).
Replacement Dogma Spells: 2nd—animal aspect, 3rd—fly, 4th—cape of wasps (takes the form of hummingbirds), 6th—mass fly, 8th—summon nature's ally VIII*, 9th—shapechange (beast shape IV* only)
*birds only
Fur Associated Dogma: Animal
Replacement Dogma Spells: 4th—cape of wasps (takes the form of small bats), 9th—shapechange (beast shape IV* only)
*mammals only
Artifice:
Dogma Power: Your healing spells and channel energy can restore hit points to objects and constructs.
Dogma Spells: 1st—animate rope, 2nd—wood shape, 3rd—stone shape, 4th—minor creation, 5th—fabricate, 6th—major creation, 7th—transmute metal to wood, 8th—polymorph any object, 9th—gate
Toil Associated Dogma: Artifice
Replacement Power: Your harming spells and channel energy can damage objects and constructs.
Replacement Dogma Spells: 1st—command, 2nd—disfiguring touch, 3rd—ray of exhaustion, 4th—bestow curse, 5th—waves of fatigue, 6th—major curse, 7th—waves of exhaustion, 8th—binding, 9th—mass hold monster
Trap Associated Dogma: Artifice
Replacement Power: Whenever you make a trap, choose one: increase the DC of the Perception check required to locate your trap by +2, increase the DC of the Disable Device check required to disarm your trap by +2, increase your trap's attack bonus by +1, or increase your trap's saving throw by +1.
Replacement Dogma Spells: 1st—detect snares and pits, 2nd—snare, 3rd—improve trap, 4th—fire trap, 5th—spike stones, 6th—major curse, 7th—teleport trap, 8th—binding, 9th—mass hold monster
Chaos:
Dogma Power: +2 to pierce the spell resistance of Lawful outsiders
Dogma Spells: 1st—protection from law, 2nd—communal protection from law, 3rd—magic circle against law, 4th—chaos hammer, 5th—dispel law, 6th—animate objects, 7th—word of chaos, 8th—cloak of chaos, 9th—freedom
Just to be clear, I'm not looking for digital form-fillable sheets/excel files. I'm looking for a character sheet that lets me edit the text itself on the sheet. Specifically, I want to edit the skills on a character sheet (Replace X skill with Y skill).
I know that I could just create my own character sheet, but I'd love to have something like the Neceros character sheet with minor homebrewed tweaks.
Thanks
Good points above. I certainly wouldn't be as eager to release this class with the power I've given it if Divine Power was still as powerful as it once was.
I think the easiest fix to control any cheese-fest would either be get rid of Quick strike or make it allow 2 uses of Holy Strike as a full-round action (instead of simply replacing an attack roll). If I use the latter option, I'd probably end up specifying that a priest would need to be 11th level to take the Holy Power.
I'll have to wait until playtesting rolls around to see if Holy Arcana needs to be an odd or even level ability. I don't want even levels to become "more important" than odd levels.
Thanks for the kind words. I would be interested in this being published. However, I was planning on (self?)publishing a campaign setting in the next two years and having this as one of the featured classes. If there were some way I could still have the class in my book, I'd be certainly willing to take you up on your offer.
Also, if the holy strike "lasers-of-doom" ends up being too awkward of a mechanic, does anyone have a suggestion for an alternative? I still want this 1/2 BAB divine caster to be able to hold up on its own a bit if it needs to dish some non-melee damage.
For those of you that liked 4E's Warlord, I've got a friend that absolutely loved them. and he's currently making a Pathfinder version. The General currently has 4 archetypes: the Battlemage Commander, the High Seas Captain, the Scout Captain, and the Vicar.
It's still being cranked out, needs more playtesting, and I'm sure he'd appreciate comments on his blog! (he had the base-class itself on the Homebrew forums not too long ago)
I'll keep your words in mind, Mystic. I'm not trying to be accusatory or defensive, but it may be best to have future comments that are more tactful. You come off as a bit of a troll by saying statements like, "This is dumb." and "you probably ripped from them." And I apologize if your comments were sincere.
Sorry. Just speaking my mind. Figured you knew about that, with your username, I know your a skater too. I got a Brenguard board myself.
Without trying to deviate from the topic about the priest. A brenguar is a bear/cat klingon-type race from a campaign setting. I don't know anything about Brenguard boards. And, not to be rude, I don't wish to discuss them here.
Is there a way to edit my original post to show updates I've done to the class?
I'll keep your words in mind, Mystic. I'm not trying to be accusatory or defensive, but it may be best to have future comments that are more tactful. You come off as a bit of a troll by saying statements like, "This is dumb." and "you probably ripped from them." And I apologize if your comments were sincere.
Illius wrote:
...the spell list needs to be a bit more up to par with the Wizard list. Adding a limited number of arcane spells for the priest to have at his disposal is probably the best way to shore up some of the weaknesses outside of giving this class it's own list (which is a total pain for 3pp to have to update every time Paizo publishes new spells). Brenguar, I tip my hat to you for innovation.
Second is keeping the class tied to deity's portfolio. Since Domains are ,generally, better suited for characters that wade in and out of melee (something this class doesn't want to do), a new mechanic that works similar to the way domains do, but benefit the priest with powers that are better suited to the casting role, dogma's fit the bill very well, even if they are a bit weaker than what a domain does for a cleric.
The alignment restriction is a little awkward but I see where you are coming from, Lay on Hands is very much a good flavored ability and shouldn't be at the disposal of non-good characters, and it doesn't feel out of place on a good aligned priest at all. Perhaps allowing an evil priest to take Touch of Corruption (as the antipaladin ability) and giving neutral priests the choice between the two (similar to how a cleric gains all the inflict or cure spells) would help with this. I like how this ability can be used at range as well.
Thanks for the kind words. Yes, Holy Arcane (Holy Arcana in the future) is meant to help a full divine caster stay effective out of melee (without becoming a full-blown wizard).
It seems that everyone's in favor of making Priests similar to the alignment scheme of Clerics, not forced to use an archetype to play a neutral or evil Priest. Therefore, I'll be sure to make Lay on Hands/Touch of Corruption to be more flexible. I'll also make the aura function in the same way as a cleric's, instead of the always-good paladins.
I'll keep my eyes and ears open for a more suiting class name if Priest seems too easily confused with Warpriest.
I guess the first question to answer when making any new class is: what about it is most appealing? Are mystic theurges cool because they have a lot of utility because of the vast amount of spells they have? Or is it some flavor reason like "I think it'd be great to play a mage who became a preacher after he found some sort of spirituality in the wonder of magic." ?
So I think after a universally loved concept is decided on... we can decide if it's gonna be an oracle/sorcerer, wizard/cleric, etc.
But I completely agree, I'm surprised Paizo went with a sorcerer/wizard hybrid instead of two full divine/arcane caster hybrids. (a witch does this job pretty well though)
(On a semi-related note, I'm trying to craft the Priest. An armorless and weaponless divine caster. One of its key abilities grants it an arcane spell every time odd level. That might be what some people are looking for. The Priest is in the homebrew forums if you want to help make it!)
I was a bit apprehensive at first. I like it though, at first glance it looks very balanced.
I would, however, take a cue from the spells like Holy Smite on the Holy Strike class feature. Have the holy fire deal untyped damage and deal full damage against evil targets, half damage against neutral targets and be harmless to good targets. You could put in a holy power to have it deal half fire damage and half sacred damage like flame strike if you decide to go that direction.
Or include those as holy powers. Fire is the most resisted element overall.
I like the idea that they lose class features if they wear armor.
Very neat class overall.
I like the idea of a holy fire that deals full damage to evil, half to neutral, and none to good. But I think I probably should make this class not have an alignment restriction. If I do so, it'd be best if it hurt everyone equally.
Ciaran Barnes wrote:
You could simply say that Priest spells are subject to arcane spell failure from wearing armor and shields. I have never personally known someone risk that percentage for losing a spell, except one time at a single session game.
I would clarify Holy Strike. Is it a ranged touch attack? Is there a save for half damage? Is the attack simply described as fire or does it deal fire damage? I would be inclined to make it another type, or untyped.
Apologies about a copy and paste (or rather not copy and paste) error. Originally I had the original/ray form of Holy Strike treated as a ranged touch attack with no save. Every other form of Holy Strike such as Holy Explosion has no touch attack, but has a Reflex save for half.
Aye, I'll have Priest spells subject to arcane spell failure chance. If need be, I could reason that it's because they have some arcanic mixing in their divine magic. Even if someone has a spell failure chance as low as 5%, the vast majority of players still won't risk wearing light armor.
Somewhere a while ago (perhaps when I did 3.0 or 3.5) I read that divine magic did untyped damage. So I was going to have Holy Strike deal divine damage... however, I cannot find where I originally saw that. If I go with Holy Strike dealing untyped damage, do I describe it as "untyped damage" in its actual description?
The nice thing about writing your own rules is that you get to break others :)
Overall, I liked what I read. I want to read it in more detail later.
The way I've handled the "armor-less cleric in armor" thing in the past is just say that they have foresaken armor because their faith will protect them, and that if they wear armor, class features X, Y, and Z don't work.
Haha, fair enough :) I just don't want to stretch the rules in any way that makes people cringe and yell blasphemy.
I certainly like the idea of "my faith shall protect me."
Ciaran Barnes wrote:
Cheapy's suggested is already used by other classes, so it is well founded. The monk loses many features in any armor, barbarian loses fast movement in heavy, ranger loses combat styles in heavy, I'm sure there are more. Its not quite the same, but any character with a bunch of strength and dexterity based skills applies armor check penalties. I see nothing wrong with this approach. Spell failure is legitimate too, but its more annoying than anything else.
And if you could, please explain your rationale for the alignment restriction.
I'm not sure what class features could be lost by armor restrictions. At least with the monk and ranger, it's a bit reasonable to understand what they lose. Besides spell failure chance, I could only see a "connection problem" where Deity N tries channeling divine powers to Priest B but tells the priest, "Sorry, man. I can't give you those powers while you wear that thick armor. My divinity can only go through so much material!"
As for alignment rationale... I wanted the priest to be like the paladin in a sense where only genuinely good people could be the class. And they would receive their powers not because the god sees himself in the caster, but because the priest is just that swell of a guy/gal! However, I've decided that it's a bit ridiculous to restrict Priests, especially for people that see the Priest as a way to play a more castery-cleric. I may just turn Lay on Hands / Touch of Corruption into some common ability that does positive energy for good clerics and negative energy for evil clerics. This way I don't have to worry about splitting the Priest into two Priest/Antipriests type dealio.
- Dogmas overall feel weaker than domains. I don't know if you intended this for balance reasons (since the class also gets Holy Strike, "Holy Arcane" (which would be much better named as Holy Arcana btw), and spontaneous dogma casting), or just because you wanted dogma powers to be more beneficial to a full caster and just made them weaker than domains by accident. It also has the unfortunate problem that dogmas aren't compatible with subdomains: This locks out a lot of really interesting options.
Dogmas were intentionally meant to be weaker than domains. I figured a mini-avatar of their deity (clerics) should have better domains than priests who simply use their deities to casts spells. (Also, I'll definitely rename Holy Arcane -> Holy Arcana) I also imagine that I'll be making sub-dogmas in the future once I get the kinks of the class itself worked out.
Thanks all for the responses.
Craft Cheese, my original vision of the class was a good character regardless of their deity (sort of a paladin/cleric/wizard mixup). However, it is pretty restrictive and I'll probably end up using cleric alignment rules in the end.
Dogma spells will be slightly different than domains. I'll be removing any self-buffing spells and replacing them with something more 'priesty.'
I'm actually a bit relieved that Holy Strike is seen as underpowered instead of overpowered. I figured it would make other blasty class features like alchemist bombs seem weak. So perhaps I'm bump it up a bit (at the very least, it'll have unlimited uses like eldritch blast)
I didn't want priests to have a ranged lay on hands at low levels. I also have a separate column on my table to take this easier to read. But perhaps a static progression instead of an exponential growth would seem less silly.
Cheapy, I was debating if I was going to have armor get in the way of casting. I'm not sure if it's against the rules to make divine magic get hindered by armor.
I’ve always believed that a wonderful archetype of fantasy was the wise, gentle healer. An elderly fellow monk-like fellow (without the calloused knuckles!) who went out of his way to heal the weak but was fully capable of kicking some evil behind by blasting holy light. I’m afraid the cleric class tries too hard to make a character a mini-version of their god, capable of smacking foes over the head with a mace and fully decked out in shiny armor.
I present the Priest. A base class for those who want to play a clerical type that focuses more on healing and magic than self-buffs for foe-smacking.
The Priest “It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness.”
- Eleanor Roosevelt
The power of faith is not always embroidered in shiny armor and a bloodied sword. One does not need to become an avatar of a deity to do good in this world. For many, hope does not come from brave knights lathered in holy symbols, it comes from the simple and soft-spoken preacher in robes. Sometimes, healing the weak does more good than slaying evil. However, that’s not to say the priest does not excel at blasting her foes from afar with holy fire.
Role: A priest often stays near the back in the party, healing the injured from afar and blasting enemies from even farther away. A priest is often less zealous about her religion as a cleric. A cleric may do good because her deity expects it. A priest uses her religion to do good.
Ability Scores: A priest’s spells rely on Wisdom. Her special abilities like Holy Strike and Lay on Hands depend on Charisma. Due to her use of ranged strikes and her lack of armor, a decent Dexterity score is helpful. A priest of high Intelligence can best utilize her excellent knowledge skills.
Alignment: Any good. A priest’s alignment must also be within one step of her deity/religion, along either the law/chaos or the good/evil axis.
Hit Die: d6
Starting Wealth: As cleric.
Starting Age: As wizard.
Class Skills
The priest’s class skills are Appraise (Int), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (all) (Int), Linguistics (Int), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), and Spellcraft (Int).
Skill Ranks Per Level: 2 + Int modifier.
Saves: Fort-poor, Ref-poor, Will-good
Base Attack Bonus: 1/2 progression
Spells Per Day + Known: As cleric, without bonus Domain spell
Class Features by Level:
1: Aura of Good, Domains, Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 1d6, Orisons, Spontaneous Casting
2: Lay on Hands, Religion Study, Holy Power
3: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 2d6
4: Holy Power
5: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 3d6, Lay on Hands 10'
6: Holy Power
7: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 4d6
8: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 15'
9: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 5d6
10: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 20'
11: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 6d6, Lay on Hands 25'
12: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 30'
13: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 7d6, Lay on Hands 35'
14: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 40'
15: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 8d6, Lay on Hands 45'
16: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 50'
17: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 9d6, Lay on Hands 60'
18: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 70'
19: Holy Arcane, Holy Strike 10d6, Lay on Hands 80'
20: Holy Power, Lay on Hands 100'
Class Features
The following are class features of the priest.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency
Priests are proficient with the battle aspergillum, club, dagger, light mace, quarterstaff, and wooden stake. Priests are not proficient in any armor or shields.
Aura of Good
The power of a priest’s aura of a good (see the detect good spell) is equal to her priest level.
Spells
A priest casts divine spells which are drawn from the cleric spell list. Her alignment, however, may restrict her from casting certain spells opposed to her moral or ethical beliefs; see Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells. A priest must choose and prepare her spells in advance.
To prepare or cast a spell, a priest must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a priest’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the priest’s Wisdom modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a priest can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table: Priest Spells Per Day. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score (see Table: Ability Modifiers and Bonus Spells).
Priests meditate or pray for their spells. Each priest must choose a time at which she must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation or supplication to regain her daily allotment of spells. Time spent resting has no effect on whether a priest can prepare spells. A priest may prepare and cast any spell on the cleric spell list, provided that she can cast spells of that level, but she must choose which spells to prepare during her daily meditation.
Dogma
A priest’s deity influences her alignment, what magic she can perform, her values, and how others see her. A deity grant dogmas of the same name as the domains they represent. A priest chooses two dogmas from among those belonging to her deity. A priest can select an alignment dogma (Chaos, Evil, Good, or Law) only if her alignment matches that dogma. If a priest is not devoted to a particular deity, she still selects two dogma to represent her spiritual inclinations and abilities (subject to GM approval). The restriction on alignment dogma still applies.
Each dogma grants a number of dogma powers, dependent upon the level of the cleric, as well as a number of bonus spells that a priest adds to their list of spells known.
In addition, a priest gains the listed powers from both of her dogma, if she is of a high enough level. Unless otherwise noted, activating a dogma power is a standard action.
Holy Arcane
A priest’s faith grants her extraordinary magic unavailable to most divine casters. Starting at first level and every odd level after, add one spell from the sorcerer/wizard spell list to the priest’s list of spells known. Once a spell is chosen, it may not be changed.
Holy Strike
A priest may send out a surge of holy fire through her holy symbol to sear her enemies. As a standard action that provokes an attack of opportunity a priest may fire a close range ray (25 ft + 5 ft/ 2 levels) that deals 1d6 damage at first level and an additional 1d6 damage every 2 levels after. A priest may holy strike 3 + Cha times per day.
Orisons
Priests can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells, each day, as noted on Table: Priest Spells Per Day. These spells are treated like any other spell, but they are not expended when cast and may be used again.
Spontaneous Casting
A priest may “lose” any prepared spell in order to cast a “holy arcane” or domain spell of the same spell level or lower.
Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells
A priest can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to her own or her deity's (if she has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaotic, evil, good, and lawful descriptors in their spell descriptions.
Bonus Languages
A priest’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 her race.
Lay on Hands
Beginning at 2nd level, a priest can heal wounds (her own or those of others) by touch. Each day she can use this ability a number of times equal to 1/2 her priest level plus her Charisma modifier. With one use of this ability, a priest can heal 1d6 hit points of damage for every two priest levels she possesses. Using this ability is a standard action, unless the priest targets herself, in which case it is a swift action. Despite the name of this ability, a priest only needs one free hand to use this ability.
Alternatively, a priest can use this healing power to deal damage to undead creatures, dealing 1d6 points of damage for every two levels the priest possesses. Using lay on hands in this way requires a successful melee touch attack and doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity. Undead do not receive a saving throw against this damage.
At 5th level, lay on hands is a swift action even when using it on others. In addition, the priest may use this ability as a ranged touch attack with a 10 foot range. With more priest levels, this range continues to increase, as seen on Table: Priest.
Religious Study
A priest gains a bonus on all Knowledge and Linguistics skill checks equal to half of her priest level. In addition, she may make Knowledge and Linguistics skill checks untrained.
Holy Power
At 2nd level and every 2 levels after, a priest may select an altered effect for her holy strike ability. Abilities marked with an (*) asterisk may not be used in the same strike.
List of Holy Powers:
Burning Retribution: Targets that are hit by the ray form of holy strike or fail the reflex save against one of the other forms must make a Will save equal to 10 + ½ the priest’s level + the priest’s charisma modifier or take additional divine damage equal to the priest’s level for a number of rounds equal to the priest’s charisma modifier. If cast on a target that’s already taking burning divine magic, the length of the burning simply renews; no additional damage per round is dealt. A priest must be 6th level before taking this holy power.
Careful Strike: The priest may ignore one target in holy explosion, holy blast, or holy spray. She may take this multiple times. Each time she takes this holy power, she may ignore an additional target. She must have Holy Bomb before taking this holy power.
Empowered Blast: Increase the damage die from holy strike by one step to a max of 2d6. (i.e. 1d6 to 1d8 to 1d10 to 1d12 to 2d6) This may be taken multiple times, its effects stack.
Extra Strikes: The priest gains 3 additional uses of holy strike per day. This may be taken multiple times. Its effects stack.
Holy Blast*: The priest releases a holy strike as a line from her holy symbol. All creatures within a 120-foot line from the priest receive a Reflex save to halve the damage. The DC of the save is equal to 10 + ½ the priest’s level + the priest’s charisma modifier.
Holy Bomb*: The priest may direct a holy explosion, holy blast, or holy spray in a spot within close range of the priest (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels). A priest must have holy explosion before taking this ability.
Holy Chain Strike*: After a holy strike hits a target, it immediately leaps to a target within 30 feet, dealing one die less damage. If this second ray hits, it leaps to another target, dealing one die less damage than the target before it. Each consecutive target gains +2 AC versus the ray than the target before it. All targets must be within 30 feet of each other.
Holy Explosion: Holy strike causes a burst centered on the priest that affects all creatures in a 30-foot radius. Instead of a touch attack from the priest, all creatures affected receive a Reflex save to halve the damage. The DC of the save is equal to 10 + ½ the priest’s level + the priest’s charisma modifier.
Holy Shield: A priest may use a charge of holy strike to add her Charisma bonus (if any) to her deflection bonus to AC and CMD for a number of rounds equal to her priest level.
Holy Spray*: The priest’s holy symbol blasts a 60-foot cone. All creatures within a 60-foot cone from the priest receive a Reflex save to halve the damage. The DC of the save is equal to 10 + ½ the priest’s level + the priest’s charisma modifier.
Martyr Strike: The priest deals full dice damage with holy strike, but she takes half damage. If her holy strike affects multiple targets, she takes full damage as if it were a single ray. This self-inflicted damage stacks with damage a priest takes if she is hit with her own strike.
Merciful Strike: A holy strike deals nonlethal damage.
Persisting Shield: A priest’s holy shield’s duration is increased to a number of minutes equal to her priest level.
Permanent Shield: A priest’s holy shield lasts until dispelled. A priest must be level 6 before selecting this holy power.
Quick Strike: Holy strike is treated as an attack action, not as a standard action.
Safe Strike: Holy strike does not provoke an attack of opportunity.
Dogmas
A priest can select any two blessings granted by her
deity. Deities grant dogmas of the same name as the
domains they grant. A priest without a deity may
select any two dogmas (subject to GM approval). If a
dogma’s power duplicates a spell effect, the priest’s
caster level for that power is equal to her priest level.
Dogmas:
Air Dogma
Dogma Power: Holy Strike deals +1 lightning damage per die
Dogma Spells: 1st—obscuring mist, 2nd—wind wall, 3rd—gaseous form, 4th—air walk, 5th—control winds, 6th—chain lightning, 7th—elemental body IV (air only), 8th—whirlwind, 9th—elemental swarm (air spell only).
Animal Dogma
Dogma Power: Allies’ animals (summoned, companion, or mount) take no damage from Holy Strike. In addition, these animals are healed +1 damage per die from your healing spells and lay on hands.
Dogma Spells: 1st—calm animals, 2nd—hold animal, 3rd—dominate animal, 4th—summon nature's ally IV (animals only), 5th—beast shape III (animals only), 6th—antilife shell, 7th—animal shapes, 8th—summon nature's ally VIII (animals only), 9th—shapechange.
Artifice Dogma
Dogma Power: Your healing spells and lay on hands can restore hit points to objects and constructs.
Dogma Spells: 1st—animate rope, 2nd—wood shape, 3rd—stone shape, 4th—minor creation, 5th—fabricate, 6th—major creation, 7th—wall of iron, 8th—statue, 9th—prismatic sphere.
Chaos Dogma
Dogma Power: +2 to pierce the spell resistance of Lawful outsiders
Dogma Spells: 1st—protection from law, 2nd—align weapon (chaos only), 3rd—magic circle against law, 4th—chaos hammer, 5th—dispel law, 6th—animate objects, 7th—word of chaos, 8th—cloak of chaos, 9th—summon monster IX (chaos spell only).
Charm Dogma
Dogma Power: Treat caster level as 2 higher for purposes of enchantment spells
Dogma Spells: 1st—charm person, 2nd—calm emotions, 3rd—suggestion, 4th—heroism, 5th—charm monster, 6th—geas/quest, 7th—insanity, 8th—demand, 9th—dominate monster.
Community Dogma
Dogma Power: Treat caster level as 1 higher when casting a spell that benefits every ally within 60-ft.
Dogma Spells: 1st—bless, 2nd—shield other, 3rd—prayer, 4th—imbue with spell ability, 5th—telepathic bond, 6th—heroes' feast, 7th—refuge, 8th—mass cure critical wounds, 9th—miracle.
Darkness Dogma
Dogma Power: +1 caster level while in shadowy illumination or dimmer
Dogma Spells: 1st—obscuring mist, 2nd—blindness/deafness (only to cause blindness), 3rd—deeper darkness, 4th—shadow conjuration, 5th—summon monster V (summons 1d3 shadows), 6th—shadow walk, 7th—power word blind, 8th—greater shadow evocation, 9th—shades.
Death Dogma
Dogma Power: Treat caster level as 2 higher for purposes of reanimating and controlling undead.
Dogma Spells: 1st—cause fear, 2nd—death knell, 3rd—animate dead, 4th—death ward, 5th—slay living, 6th—create undead, 7th—destruction, 8th—create greater undead, 9th—wail of the banshee.
Destruction Dogma
Dogma Power: Deal +1 damage with spells that deal negative energy and with touch of corruption.
Dogma Spells: 1st—true strike, 2nd—shatter, 3rd—rage, 4th—inflict critical wounds, 5th—shout, 6th—harm, 7th—disintegrate, 8th—earthquake, 9th—implosion.
Earth Dogma
Dogma Power: Holy Strike deals +1 acid damage per die
Dogma Spells: 1st—magic stone, 2nd—soften earth and stone, 3rd—stone shape, 4th—spike stones, 5th—wall of stone, 6th—stoneskin, 7th—elemental body IV (earth only), 8th—earthquake, 9th—elemental swarm (earth spell only).
Evil Dogma
Dogma Power: +2 to pierce the spell resistance of Good outsiders.
Dogma Spells: 1st—protection from good, 2nd—align weapon (evil only), 3rd—magic circle against good, 4th—unholy blight, 5th—dispel good, 6th—create undead, 7th—blasphemy, 8th—unholy aura, 9th—summon monster IX (evil spell only).
Fire Dogma
Dogma Power: Holy Strike deals +1 fire damage per die
Dogma Spells: 1st—burning hands, 2nd—produce flame, 3rd—fireball, 4th—wall of fire, 5th—fire shield, 6th—fire seeds, 7th—elemental body IV (fire only), 8th—incendiary cloud, 9th—elemental swarm (fire spell only).
Glory Dogma
Dogma Power: Holy Strike deals +2 damage per die against undead
Dogma Spells: 1st—shield of faith, 2nd—bless weapon, 3rd—searing light, 4th—holy smite, 5th—righteous might, 6th—undeath to death, 7th—holy sword, 8th—holy aura, 9th—gate.
Good Dogma
Dogma Power: +2 to pierce the spell resistance of Evil outsiders
Dogma Spells: 1st—protection from evil, 2nd—align weapon (good only), 3rd—magic circle against evil, 4th—holy smite, 5th—dispel evil, 6th—blade barrier, 7th—holy word, 8th—holy aura, 9th—summon monster IX (good spell only).
Healing Dogma
Dogma Power: Allies heal +1 damage per die from your healing spells and lay on hands.
Dogma Spells: 1st—cure light wounds, 2nd—cure moderate wounds, 3rd—cure serious wounds, 4th—cure critical wounds, 5th—breath of life, 6th—heal, 7th—regenerate, 8th—mass cure critical wounds, 9th—mass heal.
Knowledge Dogma
Dogma Power: Use Wisdom bonus instead of intelligence on knowledge checks.
Dogma Spells: 1st—comprehend languages, 2nd—detect thoughts, 3rd—speak with dead, 4th—divination, 5th—true seeing, 6th—find the path, 7th—legend lore, 8th—discern location, 9th—foresight.
Law Dogma
Dogma Power: +2 to pierce the spell resistance of Chaotic outsiders.
Dogma Spells: 1st—protection from chaos, 2nd—align weapon (law only), 3rd—magic circle against chaos, 4th—order's wrath, 5th—dispel chaos, 6th—hold monster, 7th—dictum, 8th—shield of law, 9th—summon monster IX (law spell only).
Liberation Dogma
Dogma Power: +2 on dispel checks against effects that restrain or constrict.
Dogma Spells: 1st—remove fear, 2nd—remove paralysis, 3rd—remove curse, 4th—freedom of movement, 5th—break enchantment, 6th—greater dispel magic, 7th—refuge, 8th—mind blank, 9th—freedom.
Luck Dogma
Dogma Power: Targets of your lay on hands gain a luck bonus on attack rolls, AC, and saving throws equal to your Wisdom bonus (minimum 1) for 1 round.
Dogma Spells: 1st—true strike, 2nd—aid, 3rd—protection from energy, 4th—freedom of movement, 5th—break enchantment, 6th—mislead, 7th—spell turning, 8th—moment of prescience, 9th—miracle.
Madness Dogma
Dogma Power: Targets of your touch of corruption receives a penalty on either attack rolls, AC, or saving throws equal to your Charisma bonus (minimum 1) for 1d3 rounds.
Dogma Spells: 1st—lesser confusion, 2nd—touch of idiocy, 3rd—rage, 4th—confusion, 5th—nightmare, 6th—phantasmal killer, 7th—insanity, 8th—scintillating pattern, 9th—weird.
Magic Dogma
Dogma Power: +1 caster level when casting spells gained with holy arcane.
Dogma Spells: 1st—identify, 2nd—magic mouth, 3rd—dispel magic, 4th—imbue with spell ability, 5th—spell resistance, 6th—antimagic field, 7th—spell turning, 8th—protection from spells, 9th—mage's disjunction.
Nobility Dogma
Dogma Power: Add your Wis in addition to your Cha to determine Leadership score.
Dogma Spells: 1st—divine favor, 2nd—enthrall, 3rd—magic vestment, 4th—discern lies, 5th—greater command, 6th—geas/quest, 7th—repulsion, 8th—demand, 9th—storm of vengeance.
Plant Dogma
Dogma Power: You may select from the druid spell list with holy arcane.
Dogma Spells: 1st—entangle, 2nd—barkskin, 3rd—plant growth, 4th—command plants, 5th—wall of thorns, 6th—repel wood, 7th—animate plants, 8th—control plants, 9th—shambler.
Protection Dogma
Dogma Power: Spend a use of Holy Strike to grant an ally a deflection bonus to AC equal to your Wisdom modifier for a number of rounds equal to your level.
Dogma Spells: 1st—sanctuary, 2nd—shield other, 3rd—protection from energy, 4th—spell immunity, 5th—spell resistance, 6th—antimagic field, 7th—repulsion, 8th—mind blank, 9th—prismatic sphere.
Repose Dogma
Dogma Power: Treat your caster level as 1 higher when casting spells of the necromancy school.
Dogma Spells: 1st—deathwatch, 2nd—gentle repose, 3rd—speak with dead, 4th—death ward, 5th—slay living, 6th—undeath to death, 7th—destruction, 8th—waves of exhaustion, 9th—wail of the banshee.
Rune Dogma
Dogma Power: +1 caster level when casting a spell from a scroll.
Dogma Spells: 1st—erase, 2nd—secret page, 3rd—glyph of warding, 4th—explosive runes, 5th—lesser planar binding, 6th—greater glyph of warding, 7th—instant summons, 8th—symbol of death, 9th—teleportation circle.
Scalykind Dogma
Dogma Power: Select one- acid, cold, electricity, and fire. At the beginning of your turn, decide if holy strike deals this damage.
Dogma Spells: 1st—magic fang, 2nd—animal trance, 3rd—greater magic fang, 4th—poison, 5th—animal growth*, 6th—eyebite, 7th—creeping doom (takes the form of Diminutive-sized snakes), 8th—animal shapes*, 9th—shapechange.
* Includes only viper and constrictor snakes
Strength Dogma
Dogma Power: Use your Wisdom score to determine your carrying capacity and on Strength checks (to kick open doors, etc.)
Dogma Spells: 1st—enlarge person, 2nd—bull's strength, 3rd—magic vestment, 4th—spell immunity, 5th—righteous might, 6th—stoneskin, 7th—grasping hand, 8th—clenched fist, 9th—crushing hand.
Dogma Power: Targets of your lay on hands gain a bonus to damage equal to your Wisdom bonus (minimum +1) for a number of rounds equal to ¼ your priest level (minimum 1).
Dogma Spells: 1st—magic weapon, 2nd—spiritual weapon, 3rd—magic vestment, 4th—divine power, 5th—flame strike, 6th—blade barrier, 7th—power word blind, 8th—power word stun, 9th—power word kill.
Water Dogma
Dogma Power: Holy strike deals +1 cold damage per die
Dogma Spells: 1st—obscuring mist, 2nd—fog cloud, 3rd—water breathing, 4th—control water, 5th—ice storm, 6th—cone of cold, 7th—elemental body IV (water only), 8th—horrid wilting, 9th—elemental swarm (water spell only).
Weather Dogma
Dogma Power: Your holy strike causes gust of wind to those it affects. Holy strike that affects an area also affects the area with gust of wind.
Dogma Spells: 1st—obscuring mist, 2nd—fog cloud, 3rd—call lightning, 4th—sleet storm, 5th—ice storm, 6th—control winds, 7th—control weather, 8th—whirlwind, 9th—storm of vengeance.
Archetypes currently being made:
Dark Priest: Evil, swap touch of corruption for lay on hands, Aura of Evil swapped with Aura of Good
Necromancer: Targets killed by (weaker) holy strikes are raised as undead, lay on hands -> touch of corruption
Warlock-type: More frequent and more powerful holy strikes. Diminished spellcasting. No lay on hands and one dogma.
Grey Priest: No aura, can do both (weaker) touch of corruption and lay on hands, can have conflicting dogmas and spells (ex. evil and good dogmas), perhaps diminished spellcasting
So I might be missing something here, but it seems like the Arcanist is superior to both the Sorcerer and the Wizard.
I understand that it gains a new spell level a level behind the Wizard, but that's certainly overshadowed by the fact that it's a spontaneous-prepared caster... which is ridiculous... The only "weakness" of the all-powerful wizard is that he had to prepare exactly which spells he wanted and how many of each. With the Arcanist, one can prepare spells without worrying about many times per day he wants to use each spell AND he casts more spells per day.
My other minor gripe is the flavor of the class, "Well, I was gonna be a sorcerer. But my blood was too thin... so I became better than a sorcerer and a wizard."
I wasn't under the impression that the wizard was a weak class that needed a boost? I fully understand classes like the Investigator and Brawler that "replace" the rogue and monk... but this just seems ridiculous.
I do get that this class has subdued Bloodline powers, and it doesn't get Scribe Scroll and Arcane Bond.. but really.. the thing that makes Wizards and Sorcerers powerful are their spells. And an Arcanist is a lot better at spellcasting than either of its parents.
Well, I can definitely say that the Shaman is a class I've been looking forward to even before it was announced!
A minor gripe, I wish the Hexes had a different name to them. I understand that this is a Witch hybrid, but I think it'd help this stand out a bit more with just a small name change.
Second, I'm a little surprised to see that this seems to be having a lot of "spirits" that seem to be pretty much rehashed oracle revelations. I was expecting to see names like Wolf Spirit (and other animal names) and maybe even terrain specific spirits (Swamp Spirit, ooooh!). Instead we got Life, Lore, and just a general Nature spirit... seems a little too oracley to me. I figured a Shaman would focus mainly on naturey and undeathy themes and expand more than just "nature spirits."
And as some others have said, I wasn't expecting a standard familiar instead of a voodoo doll or the like.
Mechanically, this class looks like a lot of fun. But it seems to have too much "Oracle + Witch = Shaman" feel to it instead of its own interesting creature. Flavor-wise, I'd love to see more fluff to back up the feeling of a wise Native-Americany witchdoctor communing with the spirits of the long dead and the animals still living.
It's tough to make a comment about what change I'd make to the class because the whole class feels a bit shaky. I was totally excited about this class and it feels like a letdown.
It feels like it doesn't know which direction it wants to go... It simply feels like it's a nerfed druid with different saves and a weakened and circumstantial wild-shape.
If it's meant to be a class that works in tandem with its animal companion, it seems odd it has a 3/4 BAB and decent spell casting!
If it's meant to be the ultimate tracker, give it trapping abilities and let its pet assist in tracking down a foe!
If it's meant to be the guy with the awesome animal companion, give it some eidolon-type points to boost the animal!
At this point it feels like it's worse than a ranger at tracking, worse than a ranger at fighting, has worse spellcasting than a druid, has crummier class features than either class, and doesn't have any perks besides teamwork feats (which aren't exactly awesome..yet..)!
Don't get me wrong, I want this class to succeed! Nothing gets me giddier than a leaf and poop covered hunter stalking with his best friend, the wolf!
http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/advanced/spells/suffocation.html
^ Link to the spell in question
I was wondering what happens to a player's HP if he fails the first save but survived the next couple. Does the character stay at 0 HP until he gets healed or does a night's rest get that HP back? I understand that getting all air extracted from your lungs doesn't spell happy times, but I find it odd that a high level character would have to get bombarded with healing spells to get his breath back.
I'm glad they're doing it like this. One of my favorite things about Pathfinder vs. 3.5 is how everything is sectioned off in a sensible way. I don't have to look through a mountain of books to find the class I'm looking for. And I know I'm not the first person to say that.
Alrighty, my group's always distinguished the two groups as core and base. I stand corrected. My point is simply that adding 10 classes is a ton for a single book that isn't the core rulebook.
It's crazy that Paizo is going to be adding 10 base classes. That's going to more than double the amount we already have!
I'm hoping that they add ten classes that are unique like the Alchemist. I'm afraid they are going in with the mindset "Let's make 10 hybrids of what already exists!"
Umm Dude there were more than ten Base classes in the Core Rule Book. Add in the base classes from APG, UM, and UC and there are 19. So your first statement is explicitly false.
I'm aware there are 11 core classes like the barbarian and wizard. I was stating that we have 8 "base" classes right now, like the magus and inquisitor. By adding 10 more base classes, we'll end up with 18... which is at least twice as much as 8.
Regardless, as many have said already, I trust Paizo to crank out some awesome classes. I just hope they don't try to make 10 hybrids.
It's crazy that Paizo is going to be adding 10 base classes. That's going to more than double the amount we already have!
I'm hoping that they add ten classes that are unique like the Alchemist. I'm afraid they are going in with the mindset "Let's make 10 hybrids of what already exists!"
