I have a level 5 paladin, and i want to begin taking levels in Cleric. mostly due to the face that I want to have some magic abilities. so, here is what i am picturing
Once I level up, I will take a level in cleric
Domains: Travel and Sun
now, when I reach level 8, assuming from level 5 to 8 I continue to level up Cleric, then if i am correct:
I will be able to "Fly" (Travel domain 3rd level spell)
I will be able to use "Searing Light" (Sun domain 3rd level spell)
Searing light uses 1d8 per 2 caster levels. a level 5 paladin would have 2 caster levels (if i'm not mistaken) And a cleric would have 3, resulting in a 2d8 roll. (correct me if i'm wrong, i could be waaay off base)
My weapons are a sword and a shield
And I am wearing heavy armor. making my flight speed 40ft. Ascending at half speed, and descending at double speed.
so example: A 6ft Knight is in combat with me.
I attack him, but his AC is too high for me to hit with my sword, due to High armor.
He takes his attack
If i am still alive, I use Fly as a standard action to ascend 20ft. lasting 8 min.
After he takes his turn, I use Searing Light for 2d8 damage.
Rinse and repeat.
I will mostly use my sword and shield for combat, due to my sword having +2d6 against evil, Divine Bond: Wep, and channel smite.
But, i am just a beginner, and most like have many flaws in the build. Any advice to help me? and what about downsides? I am looking for more experienced people to point out unseen flaws.
Also, here are my stats, if that helps any.
20 Str
11 Dex
18 Con
13 + 2 Int
14 Wis
20 Char
First off, Paladins get spells after 3rd level, so you already have some magical power coming into play where you're currently at. It's not much, but as a Paladin, full BAB, smite/detect evil and Divine Grace are huge boons, as well as lay on hands, and all of your paladin abilities get better as you level up as a paladin.
Second off, if you were a paladin 5/Cleric 3, you would only have access to the spells and domain powers from cleric levels equal to your cleric level, not your character level. A Cleric 3 with Sun and Travel has access to 2nd level cleric spells, Cleric 5 gives you 3rd level spells, cleric 7 4th level etc... Also I don't know of any good-aligned deitys that give both Sun and Travel domain, so how are you working around that?
My ultimate advice: continue your levels as a paladin, take power attack(if you haven't already) to improve your sword's damage output, and use your paladin spells for when you really need them. Also remember that if your HP is low, you can use your Lay on Hands ability on yourself as a swift action, so you can continue fighting. Hope this helps somewhat.
Your paladin caster levels are equal to your paladin level -3. So right now, if your paladin is level five, you are considered to have two casting levels. However, caster levels do not stack between different classes (unless specifically noted, usually in prestige classes.) If you take 5 levels in Cleric, you will not cast as a 7th level caster; you will still be CL 2 for Paladin and CL 5 for Cleric.
In general, unless you are planning a very specific build, perhaps for a prestige class, it's not a good idea to multi-class with a full casting class (such as Cleric.) The reduced amount of spellcasting compared to another full caster of equivalent level who has not multi-classed will put your character at a pretty big disadvantage. If you are a Paladin 5/Cleric 5, you will have 1st level Paladin spells and up to 3rd level Cleric spells, but a character who had gone full Cleric 10 would have access to 5th level spells, which are considerably more powerful.
Also, a Paladin's casting stat is CHA, which you have nice and high. A Cleric's casting stat is WIS, which you have high enough to make do with but it could be higher, so you will be spreading yourself thin when trying to keep your primary stats up. Plus, spell DCs are based on spell level + casting stat, so the DCs of any Cleric spells you cast would be a little on the low side.
I agree to stick with Paladin, or ask your GM if s/he would let you completely remake your character as a Cleric if you really want.
Edit to add: One more quick note about Clerics is that they get two domains, but only one domain spell per spell level. So, a Cleric with the Sun and Travel domains would be able to prepare either Fly OR Searing Light as their 3rd level domain spell, but not both in the same day.
1) as has been pointed out you get spells based on class level not character level.
2) If a full BAB paladin and 20 STR cannot hit something, it is unlikely that a 3/4th BAB cleric with 11 DEX is going to have much more success hitting it with a ray. 8th level as a paladin you are looking at two attacks against armor - one +13 and one +8, versus at paladin 5/ cleric 3 (although you couldn't cast it yet) one touch attack without armor at +7. If as a full pally you have difficulty hitting something, there are several pally spells which increase your chance to hit and at level 5 you are just beginning to see them - they get better.
3) The paladin could get a similar result as you intend for fly by wearing a pair of boots of levitation.
4) unlike melee attacks, spells are a limited commodity, and with only a 14 wisdom cleric spells will be very limited. rinse and repeat is not much of an option when finally at cleric level 7 and you do get 3rd level spells, you are only going to have one fly spell and one searing light - even as a Paladin 5 /cleric 15 you will only have one fly spell and 4 searing light spells.
5) if you really, really, desperately need to add magic effects to your paladin, you are much better off taking a single level of sorcerer which will grant you easy access to wands with spells like fly. Sorcs & bards are CHR based classes and having spells based on a CHR 20 is much better than spells based on a WIS 14.
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