Divine Spells Known

[Tequila Sunrise]

This idea is not 100% original on my part though I can't remember where the idea sparked. Anyway, it has been said that clerics arguably have 19 'dead levels'; it has also been said that druids and clerics are the most potent classes in the game in part due to their spellcasting versatility; it has also been said that Nerull and Pelor must be in kahoots with each other if they both grant their clerics the same basic spells on demand.

So what would you say to limiting druid and cleric Spells Known to this: all orisons known plus 12 1st level spells at first class level. Every level thereafter the character chooses an additional 4 spells known. (alternatively, each caster could have a 'prayer book' akin to a wizard's spell book, rather than a set-in-stone Spells Known list) This erases those supposed 19 dead levels by giving clerics something new at every level, takes away a little of the cleric/druid's versatility and creates differentiation in each divine caster.

I am particularly interested to know what you as a player would think of this rule--"yay, no more dead levels!" or "what?! I have to limit myself to a spells known list like a sorcerer?"

P.S. Oh yeah, paladins and rangers would obviously also follow this rule, though with fewer spells known per level.

 

[Spatzimaus]

It's not a bad setup. I've used something similar in my homebrew; the prepared-slot caster class (called "Wizard", but it's closer to 3E Cleric in practice) had a limited number of known spells. But the way we did it went more like this:

> Take the Sorcerer "known spell" table, and shift it up one level so that the spell levels match up with the Wizard/Cleric/Druid daily spell table. (At most levels you'll gain 1-3 new known spells)
> In addition, you automatically know any spells from your "domains" as soon as you reach the level where you can cast them. (Our domains aren't quite so diverse as the D&D type; they're more like the Healing domain, where all the spells are variations of the same basic spell at varying power levels.)
In our system, you got two domains at the start, plus one at level 7 and one at 13. So, you'd end up learning 3-5 spells per level at the low end, and 5-7 at the high, and some of the new spells would be several levels below your best.

It's not exactly the system you're talking about, but it's close enough that I can say that this sort of system works well. I've never liked the Cleric/Druid "know all spells" system OR the Wizard's "pay to learn" system, and this falls somewhere in between.