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Let's say your PCs have gotten themselves into a situation where they really need a 9th level cleric spell, say Miracle or True Resurrection. What's the next step? Just how hard is it to find a cleric with 9th level spells in Golarion?
Inner Sea Magic gives us Kaltessa Iyis, cleric 10 diabolist 10, who worships Mammon.
Rival Guide gives us Inaris Jerveel, Cleric 20, who worships Gorum and "often starts fights with others out of no other provocation than boredom."
Other than those two, who has 9th level cleric spells? I'd like to keep the feeling that 9th level spellcasting is special and difficult to attain; on the other hand, I would also like to introduce a few more options, preferably from casters of good or neutral alignment. What do you do in your Golarion to make high level divine magic attainable but special, and not just a commodity?
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I have always preferred to keep the top level spells rare rare rare. Which means a true resurrection or miracle means a trip to see the pope or a known saint. Or in this case, whatever high priest might favor the deceased or the cause of the adventurers. In terms of density of such casters, it depends on the faith and the region. Three approaches to this sort of thing come to mind.
1. Visit the Grand Temple: I imagine a number of such high level clerics have places they haunt, homes to inhabit, governments to run and so forth. So one option is visiting the most holy sites of that faith. Going there would at least give you some information as to the current whereabouts of the high cleric at the present time. Lawful and highly organized faiths -- Torag, Asmodeus, Iomedae, Abadar -- would probably be easiest to reach in this way. And this is, by far, the easiest way of seeking out 9th level spells, but probably involves petitions and a little competition against others seeking their own miracles. It may be best to bring the rare exotic components with you when you make your appeal for a miracle.
2. Seek Out the Elusive Master: A high priest on tour, a heroic adventuring type, a priest of a chaotic or wayward deity ... for any of these you will have to go seeking. A good idea would be to pray for guidance, to see if the god or goddess in question would be willing to help guide you to their powerful servant. Desna might guide you to the caravan of a legendary priest, Calistria might demand favors for favors, and Norgorber probably has a network of contacts that would-be purchasers of miracles must navigate before finding a cleric of sufficient power to provide aid. What matters is that you will eventually have to persuade a very holy or unholy person to call on the power of their god to do something extraordinary for you ... and once you put a face on whoever needs persuading the miracle is more personal.
3. Get Some Action Going: The highest probability for a casual encounter with a legendary hero or villain is to go to places they would be interested in and get their attention. But when that fails, draw them to you. A message pleading for aid against a dread threat might be sufficient to draw in a Good Cleric if the message is heard. The Cults of forbidden faiths, such as Lamashtu or Rovagug, almost certainly would have to be lured out with offerings or challenges. And for gods that keep neither temples nor hidden cults with regularity in your region -- say, the faith of Irori in the Land of the Linnorm Kings or Zon-Kuthon's worship nearly anywhere but Nidal -- a desperate act of faith could push the deity into sending a cleric directly to you. If your players look to the east and see a mysterious figure appearing with the rising sun, strange followers uttering prayers or chants in that person's wake, and the mysterious cleric then tells the PCs he was sent by his deity, the 9th level spell then may come with an implicit or explicit price and again feels somewhat special. Bonus points if they did not attract the deity that they thought they would: the first time a cleric of Asmodeus appears out of the blue to offer true resurrection to a paladin the players may get chills down their spine and begin to wonder what angle they aren't seeing.
I guess I don't see the non-lawful or at least non-organized faiths performing miracles for cash. Really, the most reliable services in all Golarion are probably from the Church of Abadar, who feel somewhat compelled to exchange services for coin and keep very obvious houses. You might have to travel to the big cities of Andoran or Taldor or Cheliax to find a good Holy Bank, but if you have cash in hand and aren't a screaming demon there is a good chance they'll heed your request. It may be good practice to locate a single cleric of Abadar of at least 17th level somewhere in each region if you want players to have regular access to Miracles for Cash. Just don't show up and tell the Clerics that you plan to tear down civilization.
Golarion divine types don't get all the spells automatically, like in other settings?
For a low magic campaign I considered ritual magic to grant access to high level spells, this would involve a gathering of lower level priests and special components equal to half the npc spellcasting cost. Priests involved would use their highest level slot available in this ritual to pool their faith magic together.
Creative Director
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Let's say your PCs have gotten themselves into a situation where they really need a 9th level cleric spell, say Miracle or True Resurrection. What's the next step? Just how hard is it to find a cleric with 9th level spells in Golarion?
Inner Sea Magic gives us Kaltessa Iyis, cleric 10 diabolist 10, who worships Mammon.
Rival Guide gives us Inaris Jerveel, Cleric 20, who worships Gorum and "often starts fights with others out of no other provocation than boredom."
Other than those two, who has 9th level cleric spells? I'd like to keep the feeling that 9th level spellcasting is special and difficult to attain; on the other hand, I would also like to introduce a few more options, preferably from casters of good or neutral alignment. What do you do in your Golarion to make high level divine magic attainable but special, and not just a commodity?
Inner Sea Magic's list of high level spellcasters is FAR from complete; it only lists 50 famous ones... many of whom are dead or missing.
There's plenty of spellcasters on Golarion capable of casting 9th level cleric spells, but as a general rule, we don't nail them down in print so that each GM can adjust that to his or her personal taste. And even if there's not a 17th level cleric in town... all large cities will have some high-level scrolls on hand to sell to needy PCs.
3. Get Some Action Going: The highest probability for a casual...
Hmm, this makes me think it would make for an interesting adventure to get into some mischief to "lure out" a hiding legendary figure in order to solicit their help. Like stealing a prized possession of theirs or something else that can easily be rectified. Would certainly make for a tactic of the desperate as you'd be playing with fire at its most extreme point.
Any spell above fourth level has always made me pretty much create a roleplaying session to get the spell cast. Not only is it hard to find or access the individual, but higher level characters usually have better things to do than sell their services (especially if they have actual character classes, not NPC classes).
I never worry too much about what's in the books as a DM - if I need something and can't find it, I just make it up ~
