Why Is the Cleric Unfun?

[Roman]

Cleric is one of those classes apparently considered 'unfun' to play. The most cited reason for this appears to be the fact that he often spends a lot of actions on healing his companions. Why, though, is healing considered unfun?

I love playing clerics and healing in combat involves similar complexity of decisions to attacking with spells (which ostensibly is not considered unfun) or weapons, ranging from how to get to the people who need it, through whom to prioritize when, to the type of spell used. I don't find it any more boring than hacking at an opponent, the prime occupation of classes such as the barbarian - why do other people find it so boring?

 

[Aloïsius]

I love playing clerics and healing in combat involves similar complexity of decisions to attacking with spells (which ostensibly is not considered unfun) or weapons, ranging from how to get to the people who need it, through whom to prioritize when, to the type of spell used. I don't find it any more boring than hacking at an opponent, the prime occupation of classes such as the barbarian - why do other people find it so boring?

Because most people find murder and destruction more fun than healing and caring.
Another reason : healing your buddy allow your group to last longer. Maiming the enemy allow you to win.

 

[Nifft]

Cleric spells:
- Shield Other ("your mistake? here, let me pay for half of it.")
- Cure Light Wounds ("unhit! unhit! unhit!")
- Bless ("my action this round is to make your attacks very slightly better.")
- Magic Stone ("hey guys, look! now I can throw rocks!")

Wizard spells:
- Color Spray ("they were goblins, now they're bowling pins.")
- Silent Image ("ooo, he tried to use the bridge!")
- Magic Missile ("eat it, darkness!")
- Ray of Enfeeblement ("ooo, that sword looks heavy now. ha ha ha!")

Cheers, -- N

 

[Pinotage]

Probably because you're normally considered a healing machine of some sort. If you take away the need and role to supply continuous healing, clerics are a very fun classes to play. But it is unfun to not be able to cast those spells that you want to and instead offer that stream of healing.

Pinotage

 

[Mentat55]

Here is the problem, I think.

Fighters and their ilk are built to whack stuff. People play them to whack stuff, and they usually get to spend most of their actions doing that.

Wizards and sorcerers are built to cast a range of spells (wizards much more so that sorcerers), and usually they get to cast a lot of spells.

Clerics are also full spellcasters. They have a broad selection of spells (broader than any class, short of a wizard with an encyclopedia collection of spellbooks) that have many different effects. Unfortunately, often times, clerics have to spend their spells healing people. It is not that healing is necessarily unfun; the problem is that they have to spontaneously cast so many cure spells that they don't get to cast command or spiritual weapon or something else.

If you build a cleric to heal, and that is what you want to do, by all means, go for it. But if you play a cleric because you like the other 99% of spells on the cleric spell list, but then have to convert your prepared spells into cures, then you aren't getting to do the things you wanted to do.

 

[loseth]

I think it depends on the player. If you don't mind only having half the number of turns that other players get to cast offensive spells and make attacks, and like the feeling of helping others, then you probably won't mind playing a cleric.

The fun rating of a cleric is, IME, also affected by the pace of combat--if players take a really long time on their tunrs, then you want to be able to do something spectacular when your turn finally comes around, and that often won't be possible if you're the party healer+buffer.

 

[Zweischneid]

Cleric is one of those classes apparently considered 'unfun' to play. The most cited reason for this appears to be the fact that he often spends a lot of actions on healing his companions. Why, though, is healing considered unfun?

It is simply not what I envision my fantasy hero to be. When I read books by Tolkien, Moorcook or watch a Conan-rerun on Cable and consequently set out to recreate sprawling epics of heroic action, I don't find my self envisioning to be the second-line guy that puts the cut-up hero back together. That's not a protagonists role in any heroic tale I've ever come across. It is more akin to a minor role (which doesn't mean minor in power) such as Galadriel healing up the Fellowship or the old women patching up Conan.

Healers simply ain't at the core of what makes a good fantasy protagonist (and thats what players want to be).

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

Actions are precious. Clerics often have to expend actions healing other PCs rather than fighting.

I've heard cleric players complain more than once that they had to spend at least three rounds casting healing spells before they could cast something like Righteous Might or Flame Strike - and no, the players weren't poor tacticians whose characters kept getting injured.

I've heard cleric players say they will only cast healing spells out of combat... then be forced to renege once the next combat actually starts. Sometimes these cleric players say this multiple times before they learn their lesson.

First and second level clerics have such a limited selection of useful combat spells (and Cure Light Wounds is lame at that level) that in some ways a 1st-level wizard is more fun to play. They only get three or so spells but at least they can cast things like Color Spray.

 

[EricNoah]

I find clerics to be sub-par spellcasters and sub-par fighters. Which would be ok if the cleric spells were interesting. I just find them to be very dull, even without the healing issue. They might help others do more fun things, but to me that is not in itself fun -- and to have to do that for weeks or months or years in a campaign ... ick. I think this is why I do not like the bard much either.

 

[D.Shaffer]

To add on to the reasons...

When you play a cleric, you are often pressured to do nothing BUT play Bandage monkey. Heck, I've seen people on this board say they'd toss out a player playing a cleric who refused to go the bandage monkey route.