Why do clerics charge for spells?

[DreadPirateMurphy]

There is a game balance reason that clerics charge adventurers for spell-casting, but is there a rational justification?

Clerics are presumably paid a stipend or salary by the church, which is supported from tithes, grants by the government, sale of crafts (e.g., by monastic orders), and possibly fines and confiscations in some settings.

The cost of casting a spell in most cases is precisely zero. Divine power is provided in return for worship and promotion of a deities cause. Obviously, it makes sense to charge for expensive material components or XP costs. Other than that, why wouldn't a priest expend healing for followers at will? The source of that power is effectively infinite.

 

[Insight]

Rationalize it as a donation to the church. Case closed.

 

[LostSoul]

Because D&D is about PCs going into "dungeons", killing things, and taking their stuff.

It's not about trying to model a fictional fantasy world.

Clerics charging for spells means that PCs have to pay for any sort of advantage they get. It works with the "core story" design in D&D. If you just let Clerics cast spells on them freely, they'll be too powerful, throwing the CR thing out of whack.

edit: I really need to read over the threads I post to.

 

[MatthewJHanson]

In my worlds good clerics have have a sliding scale where they charge what people can afford. Since most PCs are relatively rich, they get chared the full PHB price, wheras a peasant who's farm is failing and just lost his leg will probably get healed for free.

By making a few rich PCs pay more, they can decrease the tithe burden of the average worshippers who have much less.

 

[kenobi65]

I'd suggest that, if a particular PC has proven, over time, to be an active member of the church in question (attends services, tithes, undertakes missions for the church, etc.), then it'd be perfectly acceptable for the church to give that PC (but likely only that PC, not his buddies) spellcasting services for free, or at a serious discount...because that PC has supported the church, and should be able to expect the church to support him in a time of need.

OTOH, the "stock" spellcasting fees work well for a church / cleric that sees a group of adventurers stroll into the chapel, with no connection to the church at all. (That said, many good-aligned churches might reduce or waive the fees in the case of destitute PCs, or if the needed spells truly serve the greater good.)

It's not that dissimilar from real-world churches. There are many churches (particularly those with beautiful buildings, or notable locations) that charge non-members to have their weddings at the church. Just like in the D&D example, these people have little interest in the long-term welfare of the church; it just serves their convenience at the moment.

 

[Mercule]

It makes sense if put into a real world context. The purpose of the church is to increase membership of the religion (and spread doctrine, etc., but the assumption is that members == believers). Members are expected to tithe, etc. to further the mission of the church, this helps to pay for all the costs incurred by the church's operations. This also means believers are free to partake of the services offered by the church.

If a non-member (thus, non-believer) needs service from the church, and approaches them in a manner that does not indicate any willingness or interest in joining the church, then it really does become a business arrangement. Anything else is a throwback to the days when membership in the Church was assumed and tithes were paid in the same manner as taxes.

Example: My church conducts weddings (as do most churches -- duh). Use of the facilities is free to any member of the church (although there are fees for the janitor and other secular needs). Non-members, on the other hand, are charged $300 (soon to be $500) for the use of the building, etc. In my understanding, this is not unusual at all (in fact, I'm pretty sure my church is on the cheap side, despite having a beautiful building).

IMC, I handle things pretty similarly. If a PC walks into a church they don't frequent and requests healing, they are shown the "recommended donation rates" for the service. On the other hand, if they are allied with or members of a church and do things like tithe and quest for the church, most services are free. Services that use expensive material components usually still involve the PCs paying for those. Anything that costs the priest XP will involve a quest, rather than gold, and is (typically) only available from churches where the PC is a member.

 

[Jdvn1]

Clerics are presumably paid a stipend or salary by the church, which is supported from tithes, grants by the government, sale of crafts (e.g., by monastic orders), and possibly fines and confiscations in some settings.

... Says who? Running a church is costly, and whatever tithes they get don't necessarily come close to covering costs. And why would the government give churches grants? Maybe this is how things work in your setting, so you can justify not charging for spells.

Either way, Clerics only have so many spells per day, and regardless they're busy people. You want to take up my spells and time because you don't want to wait a few days to heal? And how do I know you're a follower? Let's see you "tithe" for the casting.

 

[Warbringer]

Clerics are presumably paid a stipend or salary by the church, which is supported from tithes, grants by the government, sale of crafts (e.g., by monastic orders), and possibly fines and confiscations in some settings.

Revisit the assumptions above:

Tithes - Most likely. But charging itinerant adventurers means less burden on the communities around the church.

Grants - Not likely. In fact, the local church is more likely to forward a hefty portion of any tithes to church superiors...where do you think cathedrals came from? In polythestic communities, churches may even have to pay for the privilage of having a church in the state or city, just like any other business.

Sales of crafts - Depending on the wealth of a community there may be indufficient demand for goods. Again, adventurers are the best bet (assuming magical). Afterall, portions and scrolls (even wands) are all just deferred spells.

Fines and Confisications - More likeley to be the domain of the judicial sytem, unless the two are closely tied, ala the catholic church circa 11th-15th.

 

[diaglo]

farmer comes to church with broken arm and asks for healing.
adventure comes with long slash wound..


who should the cleric heal since he has limited spells per day and a whole flock of parishioners to tend?

 

[Ghoti]

There is a game balance reason that clerics charge adventurers for spell-casting, but is there a rational justification?

Clerics are presumably paid a stipend or salary by the church, which is supported from tithes, grants by the government, sale of crafts (e.g., by monastic orders), and possibly fines and confiscations in some settings.

Definition of stipend is, a fixed sum of money paid periodically for services or to defray expenses.

For example. I am a Catholic. I as the priest to say a Mass for something. Even though he is going to say a Mass anyways, I give him a stipend for doing this for me.

So even thought he cleric is usually covered, he is doing something out of the ordinary. Especially if the person requesting it is either not a member of the faith or, while being a member of the faith, is not an actual member of the temple in question.