So how many Cleric spells do I actually get at first level?

[Kevin Walker 792]

I'm new to pathfinder and 3.5, trying to figure out how to build my first character.

I am building a cleric with a starting wisdom of 16, giving him a +3 wis mod. this means I have a bonus 1st-level spell, a bonus 2nd-level spell, and a bonus 3rd-level spell, according to table 1-3 on page 17.

On page 40, under "Domains", it states: "A cleric gains one domain spell slot for each level of cleric spell she can cast, from 1st on up."

so: 1. do I get 2nd and 3rd level spells at first level due to my stat bonus?

2. if so, that means that I "can cast" 2nd and 3rd level spells. does this mean that I get 3 domain spell slots at first level? (one for 1st level, one for 2nd level, and one for 3rd level)

I've already been searching around the boards and the interwebs for while, and no answer I've found has been particularly explicit about bonus spells and domain spell slots.

thanks in advance for any help you can give to me!

[MisterSlanky]

1. You only get bonus spells for spell levels you can cast. You will get one bonus spell at level 1 (for the level 1 slot), one at level 3 (for the level 2 slot), and one at level 5 (for the level 3 slot).

2. You get ONE domain slot at each spell level (at level 20 you have one bonus spell each of level 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, assuming you can cast spells of those levels).

[Shuriken Nekogami]

you get a bonus 2nd and 3rd level spell, but you don't get to use them yet. you actually have to have spell provided by cleric level first.

at level 1, no matter what your wisdom is, you only get the bonus first level spells.

if you reach high enough level to cast spell of that level and have a sufficicnet wisdom to get bonus spell of that level, then you get them.

no, a first level cleric cannot cast 2nd or 3rd level spells, not until 3rd and 5th level respectively.

when they are high enough level to cast the spells, then they get the bonus slots.

or else, certain PRC's are met earlier than intended.

[Kevin Walker 792]

Shuriken Nekogami wrote:

you get a bonus 2nd and 3rd level spell, but you don't get to use them yet. you actually have to have spell provided by cleric level first.

at level 1, no matter what your wisdom is, you only get the bonus first level spells.

if you reach high enough level to cast spell of that level and have a sufficicnet wisdom to get bonus spell of that level, then you get them.

no, a first level cleric cannot cast 2nd or 3rd level spells, not until 3rd and 5th level respectively.

when they are high enough level to cast the spells, then they get the bonus slots.

or else, certain PRC's are met earlier than intended.

thank you both! one problem I've found in general with the Pathfinder book is that there are a million tiny things like this that are not EXPLICITLY stated in the book, and some rules are not under a heading that makes sense or is easy to find, even with the index. things like "can cast" don't have a technical definition, and the "-" symbol on the spell tables doesn't have an official definition of "you can't cast at this level yet" stated in the text. it's rather frustrating in this regard.

[Studpuffin]

We recently went through a thread similar to this a while ago. It ended when Sean came in and gave us the official position. It is as above.