Raith5 - yeah, that's a good point. As it is, I'll be expressing the aforementioned Elf's faith distinctions through roleplay - which is fine, but I wouldn't mind at all if there was a better mechanical option to back it up. I won't be taking the Channel Divinity feat.
I suppose the counter is that the 4E setup makes balancing new deities/faiths simple. The CD feats are even weaker than feats in general, which in themselves are no longer the heavy building blocks they once were. Mechanically, a new supplement just needs that one little mechanical grace note added to the rules. From a balance perspective, the 3.5 cleric domain powers were see-sawing from the
start.
The faith is an easy and fun element to roleplay, too. And the class is more versatile now, which may make up for the narrowing of faith distinctions. From example, I think all the following are interesting and quite different:
* Mobile ranged Elven Cleric/Ranger, as above
* Scale-clad Str-based Dragonborn melee Cleric
* High-Cha Half-Elven Cleric/Warlock
...and the good old Dwarf-Cleric-in-a-Tin-Can, complete with warhammer. No doubt there are other variations too.
Looking at the 3.5 domains as versatility, rather than raw power, and comparing to the 4E class, it feels to me as if the Cleric has probably gained more versatility than he has lost. Maybe?
