First-level Cleric Spells?

Diirk said:
Uh, actually I'm pretty sure that clerics can't leave slots open for utility. Given that they have to pray for their spells at a specific time of day and all. Thats wizards he's thinking of.

Yup.

"A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell."
 

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AuraSeer said:
Nail, you're probably right about dropping the cleric level. I'm reluctant to go there due to RP reasons, but it might be necessary for the good of the party. We're in the front end of a notoriously difficult module (*cough*Hommlet!*cough*), so if I want the character to survive, I may have to drop my RP snobbery and make with the powergaming.
...and I hate to ask someone to "drop their RP snobbery"....'cause RP reasons are fun!

Surely there is a good RP reason for dropping the cleric? If yer goin' into Hommlet....well, I've heard some bad things about the environs of that town.......people's faith gettin' all turned around this way an' that......mysterious cults......
 

AuraSeer said:
Nail, you're probably right about dropping the cleric level. I'm reluctant to go there due to RP reasons, but it might be necessary for the good of the party. We're in the front end of a notoriously difficult module (*cough*Hommlet!*cough*), so if I want the character to survive, I may have to drop my RP snobbery and make with the powergaming.

I think RPing reasons should often override powergaming ones.


I think Cure Light Wounds (and to a lesser extent Cure Minor Wounds) is the Warlock's best friend. I also think you should consider spells cast out of combat over ones cast during combat (in combat, you should be EBing).

The advantage of a Warlock is that he can fight all day long (and often at a higher power level from levels 3 to 11) than many other classes.

If you can constantly reheal yourself (in addition to the Warlocks other healing method), that makes you more viable for a longer period of time.

Granted, this is at most only 7 to 21 hit points per day (assuming a Wisdom of 12), but every little bit counts IMO. Plus, getting fighter types back up after they go unconscious is also a very good thing.


Deathwatch, however, is a bit of a waste. It does not really help your Death Domain ability because you would almost always EB instead of using that ability anyway (the extra effect of dying without a save is nice, but not critical). Plus, it would be rare that it would tell you that someone is either 3 or fewer hits versus 4 or more, and taking a round to cast it (as opposed to EBing) just seems like wasted time.
 

KarinsDad said:
Yup.

"A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell."


I don't think this is a correct interpretation.

For Arcane casters it is crystal clear

"When preparing spells for the day, a wizard can leave some of these spell slots open. Later during that day, she can repeat the preparation process as often as she likes, time and circumstances permitting. During these extra sessions of preparation, the wizard can fill these unused spell slots. She cannot, however, abandon a previously prepared spell to replace it with another one or fill a slot that is empty because she has cast a spell in the meantime. That sort of preparation requires a mind fresh from rest. Like the first session of the day, this preparation takes at least 15 minutes, and it takes longer if the wizard prepares more than one-quarter of her spells."

But for Divine casters, although it different, as you note.

"A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell."

The issue is that first sentence. If he doesn't have to prepare all his spells at once the implication is that he can prepare some of his spells at one time and then more of his spells at another time.

The second sentence tells you that you can't refill a slot that is empty through a spell being cast or abandoned (because "the characters mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation". My emphasis). It doesn't speak about slots which were not filled at an earlier point in the day and in fact tells you that there can be more than one spell preparation point in the day!

Personally I think it would be better if only arcane casters got to prepare empty slots during the day, to give them one mechanical advantage up against all the mechanical advantages that divine magic enjoys (no ASF, don't need 8 hours rest, select from full spell list...) but I don't think that is the way it is written.

Cheers
 

Bless and Protection from Evil never seem to wear out for me.

Comprehend Languages is useful for a city campaign or spying.

Cure Light Wounds is always useful.

I agree that Command and Cause Fear wear out pretty quickly as your levels increase.
 

Plane Sailing said:
But for Divine casters, although it different, as you note.

"A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell."

The issue is that first sentence. If he doesn't have to prepare all his spells at once the implication is that he can prepare some of his spells at one time and then more of his spells at another time.

Thanks for pointing this out.

I was positive that they could do this (in fact, I've been trying to talk the player of our PC Cleric into doing precisely that), went to check on it, and my mind zoned while I was reading that. It's amazing what tricks your mind plays on you before your first caffeine of the morning. ;)

Course, it doesn't tell you how long it takes to fill those non-used empty slots. You could use the Wizard's rules on that, but...
 

Hmmm..

Time of Day: A divine spellcaster chooses and prepares spells ahead of time, just as a wizard does. However, a divine spellcaster does not require a period of rest to prepare spells. Instead, the character chooses a particular part of the day to pray and receive spells. The time is usually associated with some daily event. If some event prevents a character from praying at the proper time, he must do so as soon as possible. If the character does not stop to pray for spells at the first opportunity, he must wait until the next day to prepare spells.

Spell Selection and Preparation: A divine spellcaster selects and prepares spells ahead of time through prayer and meditation at a particular time of day. The time required to prepare spells is the same as it is for a wizard (1 hour), as is the requirement for a relatively peaceful environment. A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell.

These are the two relevant passages. Up until it specifically states that they don't have to prepare all their spells at once, it seems to be implying that they do.. what with all the stuff about only being able to pray for spells at a particular time of day and all. Unfortunately it doesn't state how they later receive spells if they decide to leave some slots open.. another hour of praying ? Its not really very clear. Oh well.
 

Japanese translation team has asked about this when translating PHB 3.5e. According to the answer from Ed Stark, "Clerics, druids, and many prestige classes also prepare spell slots and may leave them open". So not just wizard.
 

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