As the title.
We had an encounter with enemies weak to Holy, and the Sanctification rules seem unclear as to whether it only works for Spirit damage effects, effects with the Sanctified trait, or all Strikes.
The question is in regards to a Warpriest that is only 4th level.
At the time, we ruled that because they are Sanctified Holy, their Strikes and Sanctified spells apply the weakness, but since I don't own a PC1, and Nethys won't be updated anytime soon, I have no text to properly read.
There is no general rule to make sanctification apply to Strikes. In the remaster compatibility errata, Champions have a specific ability that makes their sanctification apply to their Strikes. Clerics have no such ability.
(Applying to Spirit damage is not a general thing, either. Rather some spells have a specific trait that makes them inherit your sanctification. Your sanctification wouldn't apply to, say, spirit damage from an Astral rune on your weapon.)
Hammerjack is correct. I'll add that clerics have feats that can apply holy or unholy to specific strikes, and the Infuse Vitality feat does it as well.
This is what I am finding in PC1.
Some deities sanctify their clerics and similarly devoted
followers. This gives the follower the holy or unholy trait.
The holy trait (page 456) indicates a powerful devotion
to altruism, helping others, and battling against unholy
forces like fiends and undead. The unholy trait (page 462),
in turn, shows devotion to victimizing others, inflicting
harm, and battling celestial powers. Deities that list “must
choose” mandate gaining the trait and those that list “can
choose” give the devotee the option to choose the trait or
not. You can have the holy trait, unholy trait, or neither, but
can never have both the holy and unholy traits.
Spells and other effects can also have these traits,
making them more powerful against creatures with the
opposite trait. Some spells and abilities have the sanctified
trait. If you have the holy or unholy trait, when you use a
sanctified ability you add your holy or unholy trait to it.
Sanctified: If you are holy or unholy, your sanctified
actions and spells gain the same trait.
So "Sanctified" is a trait that spells and actions can have that is a combination trait that will be replaced with either the "Holy" or "Unholy" trait as matches the character using the spell or action.
Directly affecting the spiritual essence of a creature, spirit
damage can damage a target projecting its consciousness
or possessing another creature even if the target’s body is
elsewhere. The possessed creature isn’t harmed by the blast.
Spirit damage doesn’t harm creatures that have no spirit, such
as constructs. Many effects that deal spirit damage also have
the sanctified, holy, or unholy trait, all of which are described
in the sidebar on page 36, and on pages 456 and 462.
Spirit Damage is not automatically Sanctified. But many effects that deal spirit damage also have one of those traits. For example, the Divine Lance cantrip has the Sanctified trait - which is why it will trigger Holy or Unholy weakness. Not because it is dealing Spirit Damage.
So unless Warpriest has something saying that Strike gains the Sanctified trait, then I am thinking no - Strike by itself does not trigger Holy or Unholy weakness.
Okay thanks for the info. Will need to clarify in the next session then.