Author Topic: Fleshing out a Death Cleric  (Read 3640 times)

Offline Delicate Swarm

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Fleshing out a Death Cleric
« on: September 08, 2016, 07:55:44 PM »
Variant Human  Point Buy:  Str 8, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 8, Wis 16, Cha 13

Cleric Death Domain
Get Chill Touch

Feat: Magic Initiate Warlock (Hex, E.Blast, Blade Ward)

Background: Charlatan
SKills: Religion, Insight, Perception, Deception, Slight of Hand


I want to be more of a support/role filler character.  I will probably use Spiritual Weapon to trigger Touch of Death, so I can keep at a range.

After leveling Cleric 3-4 I want to go Sorcerer 3.  Pick up the Distant Spell and Twinned spell metas.  They synergize great with the Cleric list.


I'm not entirely sold on the E Blast, or even the feat in general, since I don't have that high of Charisma.  But I like having Hex as a debuff even if it is only once per day.  MI is just more interesting than the boring but practical Warcaster.

Suggestions on the cantrips?  Sorcerer spells?

Offline TenaciousJ

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Re: Fleshing out a Death Cleric
« Reply #1 on: September 09, 2016, 10:13:35 AM »
It's hard to look at what you've posted and figure out what you're trying to do.  You're giving up access to higher level spells to gain metamagic and be MAD.  What do you want the metamagic for?  Nothing is jumping out in my mind as being a great spell to use distant and twin on from the cleric list.  Bless is the best buff you have and you don't really need distant for that, and it can't be twinned.  If you're aiming to heal, you're giving up access to Mass Healing Word to gain metamagics that could be useful on Cure Wounds, so there's not really a net gain their IMO.
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Offline Delicate Swarm

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Re: Fleshing out a Death Cleric
« Reply #2 on: September 09, 2016, 05:59:40 PM »
The thing about distant is that it only costs 1 sorc point no matter what the spell level.  The cleric list is filled with touch spells, which are made more useful when they are 30 ft, not to mention, lots of useful spells with 30-60 ft range would could benefit from double range.  I don't want to be in melee, I want to keep my distance.

Distance and Twinned can be useful on all kinds on things, even cantrips (Twinned Sacred Flame, Guidance).  I never intended to use them on Cure wounds. (Inflict wounds maybe)

And Clerics have other useful things to concentrate on other than Bless.  Enhance ability, Protection from energy/Poison, Sanctuary, hold person.  Having those on two people at once is great.  Plus Twinned Hex.

Death isn't the best Domain for this.  But I already know how to make a Shillelagh/Booming Blade melee cleric.  I'd prefer to stay back and buff/debuff/heal while blasting enemies with necrotic damage when I get the chance. 


Offline TenaciousJ

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Re: Fleshing out a Death Cleric
« Reply #3 on: September 10, 2016, 08:51:44 AM »
You're aiming to optimize something that's not quite optimal.  How tied are you to the Death domain?  A lot of your choices are based around trying to change a short to medium range domain into a long ranged when, and that's easier to do with a different domain.

The Arcana domain in the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide would be a much better cleric base to work from.  You'll start off being able to take 2 wizard cantrips and make them into cleric cantrips.  Gain chill touch and whatever other wizard cantrip you want that way.  Acid Splash can hit two targets if they're close to each other without needing twin spell to do it.  Blade Ward is a bit of a trap because using the Dodge action would generally be more defensively useful unless you're fighting something that's nearly-guaranteed to hit you anyway.  If you go far enough into Arcana, it also grants Potent Spellcasting instead of Divine Strike, which seems in-line with what you are aiming to be.  This option also lessens your need for Magic Initiate, potentially opening up your feat for a stronger option.  Hex is overrated if you only hit once per turn.

A lot of the spells you're listing to twin like Enhance Ability and Hold Person affect more targets by casting at higher level, and none of those buffs that take concentration is more useful in-combat than Bless.  You won't have a lot of sorcery points to fuel your metamagics unless you sacrifice spell slots to gain more sorcery points, so it's kind of a wash.  Access to higher level spells is better than metamagic.

Guiding Bolt is also a pretty solid ranged option for a level 1 slot and it does comparable damage to Inflict Wounds with a buff rider for a party member.  No distant spell needed for that.

When you're trying to optimize a non-optimal idea, a better starting point than telling us a class combination would be tell us the concept.  If someone tells me they want to be a ranger and when I ask why they say the idea is to be a powerful sniper, I'd probably steer that person away from ranger and into a fighter/rogue hybrid to be really good at what they're aiming for.
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Offline Delicate Swarm

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Re: Fleshing out a Death Cleric
« Reply #4 on: September 10, 2016, 04:43:15 PM »
Well the concept is "Death Cleric" so yeah pretty tied to that domain.  I want to blast people with Necrotic damage and Death domain seems to be the best for that.  Gets single target Necro spells, and CD can be activated from a distance, or with Vampiric touch.

Death Cleric is weird.  It's kind of a gish, but also not really.  The spells are pretty good though and the CD scales well. 

Necrotic blasting isn't optimal but at least its hardly ever resisted.
« Last Edit: September 10, 2016, 05:06:49 PM by Delicate Swarm »

Offline Delicate Swarm

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Re: Fleshing out a Death Cleric
« Reply #5 on: November 27, 2016, 12:47:56 AM »
Revisiting this.   

Variant human

Wis 15+1, Dex 14, Con 14, Str 8, Cha 8, Int 12+1

Feat:Warcaster

Death Cleric X/Necromancer Wizard 2-3

Could also go divination on the wizard, but grim harvest is one of the only class abilities I've found that has some synergy with Death Cleric.