First Look at the Complete Divine

[Kae'Yoss]

Anything an Arcanist can take?

 

[Chupacabra]

Ugh, looks like I may just have to add this book to the ever-growing "Want to Buy" list.

 

[Drezden327]

Just a couple of questions from me:

Do Sacred Excorcist and Divine Oracle still allow arcane casters into them and do they still advance arcane caster level for all 10 levels?

Do Pious Templar and Holy Liberator still both have full 10 level BAB progression and do they still both have good Will and Fort. saves?

Thanks,

Daren

 

[Apok]

Quick question; does Sacred Fist still get the No Shadow Blows ability (the only ability that makes this class worthwhile, IMO) and, if so, does it work the same as in 3.0?

 

[Knightfall]

I just got a copy of the Complete Divine today and I'm skimming through it for the first time right now. Here are a few tidbits, I'll try to post more later on tonight but I might not be around.

Thanks for the info, Westwind.

Chaper 1: The Devoted
This chapter covers new 20-level clesses (Spirit Shaman, Shugenja, and Favored Soul). Spirit Shaman is the only new one and it looks pretty cool. Access to a set number of spells/day and some nifty anti-spirit (fey, elemental, incorporeal undead, astral forms) powers. No unarmed martial powers.

Sigh. Rehash City!

The Miniature's Handbook is a 3.5 book. Why in the hell are they redoing the Favored Soul? It doesn't make sense. I would have much preferred if they had only done two classes and added one or two additional PrCs.

Chapter 2: Prestige Classes
I think they've all been covered elsewhere. The only one that struck me as being a possible problem is the Radiant Servant of Pelor, which looks unchanged from its Dragon version.

Hmm, can we get a rundown of all the converted/new prestige classes?

Chapter 3: Supplemental Rules
Feat, feats, and more feats. Two "new" types of feats: divine and wild. Divine feats let you spend a turn attempt to do something else (there are 10 of them plus True Believer), wild feats are the same except you spend a wild shape use for a physical improvement for a short period of time. In general, some of the feats look very nice (Augment Healing: +2 to healing spells/level, Spontaneous Healer: allows non-clerics to swap out spells for healing spells--this could break the Druid). There are also variant rules for faith points and feats you can use faith points (sort of like action points from UA). Epic rules are included as well at the end.

Hmm, new feats for my druid PC. Cool.

Chaper 4: Magic Items
Somewhere between artifacts and magic items there are relics. They seem pretty cool actually. They have "prices" but it's not like you'll find them for sale. You need either True Believer+ X number of HD or the sacrifice of a given level spell slot to use them. Also included are some new non-relic staves.

The relics sound interesting. Does the book give rules for creating new custom relics for a DMs homebrewed world?

Chapter 5: Deities
Each core deity is described in terms of portfolio, domains, cleric training (who they take in), quests, prayers (role-playing device), temples, rites, herald, and relics. The herald is just a very brief description ("almost always a 20th level Wizard," not a stat block). Brief write-ups are also given for Beltar, Bralm, Celestian, Cyndor, Delleb, Geshtai, Incabulos, Istus, Iuz, Joramy, Lirr, Llerg, Mouqol, Osprem, Pholtus, Procan, Pyremius, Rao, Telchur, Tharizdun, Trithereon, Wastri, Xan Yae, and Zuoken. Monster deities are also here.

This is the main reason I think I'll be buying this book. Anything with more details about the Deities of Greyhawk. Woohoo!

What, exactly, do you mean by brief writeups, BTW? Like the entries listed in the Player's Handbook or the entries listed in Deities and Demigods (i.e. dogma, clerics and temples).

Chapter 6: The Divine World
Things to do in Denver (or another plane) when you're dead. This chapter details what dying entails, where you might go, and things you can do once you're there. It also talks about church organizations, sects, schisms, and cults.

Denver?

How long are the sections on church organizations, sects, schisms, and cults?

Chapter 7: Domains and Spells
New domains include Celerity, Cold, Community, Competition, Creation, Domination, Dream, Force, Glory, Inquisition, Liberation, MadnessMind, Mysticism, Oracle, Pact, Pestilence, Purification, Summoner, and Weather. Some were new to me, but the majority were revisions or reprints. Also some new spells that I haven't looked over yet.

Same old, same old. More domains. Some I'll use, others I'll ignore in favor off my own 'homebrewed' domains.

There are a few editing errors and the infamous page XX shows up, but it looks like a pretty crunchy book all-in-all. If you already have the 3.0 versions you can do most of the conversions on your own, but it's worth buying if you are running 3.5 and play divine-based characters. Maybe I missed it, but I would've liked to have seen more "everyday life and the divine" material.

Of course. How many times have you seen 'XX', so far?

Sounds like their is enough new stuff to buy this book and 'retire' Defenders of the Faith.

Cheers!

KF72

 

[Fingers Boggis]

I can imagin far too many possible ways of breaking a druid now based on some of these, might have to order the book tomorrow and roll up a new druid in preparation

ill have to second/third the request for arcanist friendly information seen as im going to be DMiing an arcane only campaign over summer an want to start planning now

Fingers

 

[Speaks]

Exorcist question: what changes did they do to this prestige class and does it still get full spell progression and all the extra turning feats.

thanks in advance

 

[MerricB]

The Miniature's Handbook is a 3.5 book. Why in the hell are they redoing the Favored Soul? It doesn't make sense. I would have much preferred if they had only done two classes and added one or two additional PrCs.

Because the Miniatures Handbook only appealed to a small audience. They're not "redoing" it, they're reprinting it. It's in the same way that feats appeared in both the FRCS and Tome and Blood.

Cheers!

 

[Saeviomagy]

Hi.

I'm a 3.5 druid. I have Natural Spell, Spontaneous Healing & Augment Healing, which means I'm about as good a healer as a cleric. I can spontaneously summon up nature's allies; I can also wildshape into a dire bear or a huge fire elemental, I'm immune to poisons, I leave no tracks, and I can alter self at will. Additionally, I'm a full-fledged spellcaster, the 2nd- or 3rd-best nuker in the game depending on where you rank me in relation to sorcerers & wizards, and I have several vital & unique buffs that no other full-fledged spellcaster gets. And I have 2 great saves and a d8 hit die.

No - you're the healing bitch. The ability to heal just means that you have to spend all your spells healing people, which is often a thankless job. Additionally, your healing spells are typically higher level than those of a cleric.

And your spell list is nowhere near as good nor as flexible as that of a cleric. And you're down a spell per level on a cleric.

Getting access to the healing spells is not a good thing - it just means the party will expect you to heal.

I'm a little worried about some of the feats when added to a cleric - specifically that one which lets you empower spells for turn undead attempts - this one is better by far than the sudden metamagics that everyone was up in arms against. Spontaenous domains plus the fire or sun domain means that the blaster mage is out of business.

Complete warrior included stuff for anyone who fought - there were cleric, druid and wizard friendly classes in there, along with feats that could benefit most classes.

Please, please tell me that complete divine isn't just for druids, clerics and paladins? 'cause it's sounding like that's the case.

 

[dargoth3]

Hello,

Just to verify, you have listed all of the domains given in the book, yes?

Thanks for taking the time to do so. The list looks interesting, but I was hoping for a revision of the Artifice & Repose domains. I suppose they might make it in another book though (Artifice in the Complete Expert or whatever it ends up being?).

Thanks again.

Cheers

The Repose Domain was updated in the Players guide to Faerun