If you are going for a Nordic-Celtic vibe, just rename the "Cleric" to Bard or Skald (which wouldn't be that accurate, but still fits)
I may just.
I'm very tired and may be incoherent.
The Turn Undead issue can be handled easily enough; the spirits feel that undead are unnatural abominations that must be destroyed, so they grant the power to turn or rebuke.
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As it was in AD&D and up until D&D 3.0, maintaining Clerics as knightly orders is very simple. Their faith and devotion has brought them to learn about defense, so that they can protect their faith from would be any assailant, be it physical or spiritual. They quickly learn that they also need to protect the community from harm, as they have made a vow to protect their souls, so to should they protect their bodies.
This is a fascinating point of view on it, and applicable to a different game I'm involved in. Worth ruminating on.
I'm inclined to disagree with that assessment of the Druid class. The Druid class has a very limited relationship to anything but itself, and while it's got amazing creativity and thought put into it, it really isn't modeled on anything. We know virtually nothing about the real Druid of history, but one thing we can be certain of is that it had nothing to do with the Druid of D&D at all. We don't know even to what extent the Druid was an animistic priest or a polytheistic one. We know nothing of their rituals or beliefs. Virtually everything that people think they know about the Druids - mistletoe, holly, sickles, long beards, astronomy, nature loving, robes, etc. - is entirely a whole cloth invention by various writers with various agendas in the 15th century and even the 19th century. The 'Druid' as a fantasy role-playing class has become its own archetype based on the Druid, in the same way that the Ranger as a fantasy role-playing class is only barely based on its inspiration in the Lord of the Rings (Aragorn for example never uses a bow at any point in the books) and is instead now mostly self-referentially based on itself.
The Druid class has class features which tie into an implied flavoring, and has a certain weight of expectation that my players can easily digest, which happens to coincide wih my immediate idea of how to use cleric. It sounds dumb, yes, but I don't want to have to educate folks before we start quite so much.
I am uncertain what exactly you are trying to model. You seem hung up on flavor requirements, yet you don't seem to be bothered by Brigid, Balder, or Wotan being worshiped by Great Druids
On the contrary, these people don't worship gods (or anything else) at all. I am also trying my best to avoid porting a religion wholesale (even if just my conception of it). If there is a Brigid or a Wotan or a Baldr, they wouldn't Be gods. That's kind of the point.
Honestly, if you are doing northwestern Europeans, you'd probably model a lot of them as Bards.... though granted, the Bard itself has taken on a life of its own and its no longer well grounded in the inspiration of the Kalevala.
This is lookin more and more likely, given circumstances.
Just as is. Undead are evil spirits and the clerics naturally have the ability to rebuke them because of the knowledge that they have of spiritual matters. Exorcism is not a uniquely Christian concept, and indeed, compared to animistic religions its not even a central rite.
I think you're on the money here. I didn't stop to consider what turning is or how it works. Pretty darned stupid of me. This revelation pretty succinctly ties up the issue, I believe.
Ignored in most cases, and expanded to include something other than the high middle ages concept of what it means to be a knight where applicable. For example, what does a 'knight' look like in 4th century Sweden, shorn of its southern European romantic high medieval notions? It's a low born warrior mercenary, akin more to the notion of bandit than the plate mail wearing crusader of Hollywood or concensus fantasy.
This would be fine, and in fact desirable. Except how would I explain them havif holy powers (as opposed to the druid's holly powers ;þ)? Although you've given me the seeds of a working idea.
By understanding that the role of an animistic cleric, even as devotee, is different than the monotheistic conception. In this case, 'devotee' can mean things like 'vassal', 'ally', 'employee', or even 'customer'. The priest performs rituals that appease or please some otherworldly power in exchange for power and favors. It's less a matter of serving as it is a matter of buying things from the diety. Thus, you might not even like the diety you are nominally associated with. It may simply be that it doesn't rain unless you give the deity his yearly human sacrifice, and the kidneys of six spring lambs, and a jug of wine every year and for the good of the community well that's what you do. Meanwhile you aren't in an exclusive relationship. Polytheism is just that, and by monotheistic conceptions, its promiscuous in its worship. You go ahead and worship the god in a particular oak tree (a dryad?) if that gets you what you want. Polytheistic gods aren't typically 'jealous' so long as they get what they want. Indeed, there may be an assumption that you worship all of the gods to prevent one from being jealous and offended by you paying special attention to another one. You end up with a long list of things you must do to keep everyone happy, petty spiteful things that gods tend to be.
Agreeable.
Both the Celtic and Norse pantheons are presented in Deities and Demigods (a.k.a. Legends and Lore) - why not just re-skin those deities as spirits and carry on from there? (and if you want to expand on what the books can give you, wikipedia is your friend...)
Mostly because the used bookstore has Legends & Lore listed at ten dollars above my budget.
In all truth though, I don't want to just port too many things over. We are using the DMG, PHB, MM 1&2, and FF and that's it. The players have been in too many games wih too many house rules, and want 'authentic' 1st edition, so I want to avoid changing any mechanics if I can help it, or introducing new books.
It is also an experiment for me. Truth is subjective; this is the gist of the cultural and religious beliefs of a people, how would their society form? I was embarrassed to find that the culture that would be easiest to start up in wouldn't actually have clerics at all! I am trying to shoehorn them in so there is a chance at players being able to heal, really. That's what makes this so hard. The answer is "they wouldn't have clerics", so I'm trying to find an alternate solution.
Thank you all for the input, it's been enlightening.
One could even argue that using anything else falls into the realm of house rules...
