D&D 4E 4e clerics and deities - any more info?

[pukunui]

Heh. Sorry. Okay, I'll try to add something on-topic.

As written, all clerics get Turn Undead as one of their uses of Channel Divinity. They can choose to take a feat that gives them a new, deity-specific use of Channel Divinity.

It would be a very simple house rule to reverse those--to say that the cleric gets the god-specific power automatically, and can choose to take a feat for Turn Undead. I don't know if that's necessarily balanced, but it's easy enough, and I don't think it would be too unbalanced even if it is somewhat.

OK cool. Thank you, Ari.

I was hoping that Turn Undead would be optional this time around but I guess not. Are you saying that you're not sure the deity-specific powers are of equal power to Turn Undead? Or are some deity-specific powers better than others? I've never really understood what makes something balanced or not.

 

[Mouseferatu]

Are you saying that you're not sure the deity-specific powers are of equal power to Turn Undead? Or are some deity-specific powers better than others?

I'm saying I don't know. I haven't played a cleric or done more than skimmed the deity-specific feats. I do know that Turn Undead has saved our bacon more than once, though.

 

[pukunui]

I'm saying I don't know. I haven't played a cleric or done more than skimmed the deity-specific feats. I do know that Turn Undead has saved our bacon more than once, though.

OK. Fair enough.

I've just never liked the idea that all non-evil clerics can turn undead. It just seems to me like it should only be something that clerics of deities who really don't like undead (like Pelor) should have. Unless, of course, you operate under the assumption that all non-evil deities dislike undead on principle ... but that's not really how I see it.

 

[pukunui]

Now that people are looking at the books, is anyone willing to post some more info on clerics and deities (without infringing on copyright)? Would anyone be willing to break down the "template" for the deities' entries in the book? I'm not asking for a verbatim cut-and-paste job of a deity (I'm making my own). I just want to have an idea of what kinds of things have been included.

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

 

[mattdm]

With the reservation that I haven't actually played, I think that the cleric looks a bit dull as is (and not just next to the uber 3.5 version) and I'm seriously considering giving every cleric a free deity-specific feat at first level and maybe again later.

 

[ferratus]

I'm looking forward to playing a D&D game without a cleric, so my setting doesn't have a "true religion", with the backstory being that clerical magic hasn't existed since Asmodeus slew the avatar of the God-King of golden-age civilization.

Of course, the Alpha and Omega still exists, but they aren't getting any clerical magic unless the players take an interest in the campaign hooks involving the "old ones" and the legacy the slain god left behind. Until then... you will suffer PC's!

Unless of course it turns out that a Warlord isn't a balanced replacement for the cleric. Then I'll have to cave. I might have to offer some option for curing disease and raising the dead as well, though I'm hoping by keeping campaigns in the heroic tier I can avoid that.