OSR: Cleric

For a long time I wanted a Cleric/Priest class that functioned more like a traditional D&D Cleric, but wasn't just a Wizard in a Holy Hat. This is my attempt at that.

by cagdasdemiralp

To generate a Character backstory, consult the tables found here.

Cleric

Starting HP: 1/3 Con

Fighting Spirit: +1 per Cleric Level

Atk Modifier: +1 per Cleric Level (max +5)

Starting Equipment: Holy Symbol, Club or Sword, Book of Scripture, Donated Food, Light Armor

1: Domain Magic, Devotion Dice, Zeal, Oaths and Edicts

2: Dreams and Omens, Domain Skill, Sacrificial Offering

3: Armor of Faith, Increased Devotion

4: Foes of the Faith, Mortify the Flesh

5: Not by our own Strength, Prayer of the Warrior

6: Righteous Rage, Oath to Heaven

7: Blood of Martyrs, the Greatest Gift

8: The Way of Suffering

9: Wrath of God

1:

Domain Magic: You have been gifted magical abilities by your Deity. As an action, you can attempt to cast a spell relating to the Domains of your Deity. For example, if your God has a Fire Domain, you can attempt to cast a Fire spell. To do this, inform the Referee what you wish to do and he will tell you if it is possible. If it is, he will call for a roll. Roll your Devotion Dice (DD). If you equal or exceed the DC the Referee has set for the attempt, your spell succeeds. On a failure, your spell fails to accomplish what you wish.

Devotion Dice: You start with 2 Devotion Dice (DD). These are d6s. You use these to cast your spells. When you roll a "5" on a DD, that triggers Strain- roll on the corresponding table. If you roll a "6" on a DD, then that triggers Overflow- roll on the Overflow table. Your DD never burn out, even when you roll Strain or Overflow. Note that even if you trigger Strain or Overflow, you can only fail the Domain Magic roll if you fail to meet the DC.

Zeal: Whenever you successfully use your Domain Magic, go to a Church Service, Participate in a Sacrament, defeat an enemy or roll a natural "20" on a d20 roll, you gain +1 point of Zeal. When you roll DD, you can choose to spend Zeal to increase the roll. For each point of Zeal you spend, you add +1 to your DD rolls, starting with the highest result, increasing that DD until it hits "6" or all the Zeal you spent is used up. If you still have more points of Zeal left to spend, move on to the next DD. Any remaining points of Zeal are added up after all DD have reached "6" as if they were their own DD.

For example, Harigor the Sunspeaker rolls 2 DD and spends 3 points of Zeal. He rolls "3" and "2" on his DD. So he adds his Zeal to the higher DD of "3", increasing it by +3 till it equals "6". Thus is his total Domain Magic roll is "8". It also triggers Overflow (see below).

Oaths and Edicts: When making a Domain Cleric, you may select how many Domains your God has, from 1-6. However, for each Domain your God has, you also receive an Edict that you must obey. Edicts are religious laws that bind your behavior. A God will have as many Edicts as Domains, with one applying to each Domain. For example, a God of War and Honor might demand you offer any enemy you face a chance to surrender. If you fail to abide by your God's Edicts you will face punishment, though this will depend on the God's personality and the nature of your transgression. Lesser breaches could result in restrictions to your powers, more strain, or being forced to undergo penance. More severe breaches could have you stricken with a disease, cursed, forcing you to go on a quest or taking away your powers until you atone.

2:

Dreams and Omens: Your God will tell you where to go and what to say in signs and visions. He may also grant you visions of the future and hints about where you should go and what you should do in dreams.

Domain Skill: Select one of your Deity's Domains. You gain 1 skill that applies to that Domain. For example, if you worship a Hearth God, you could gain the Cooking skill. Your skill bonus to this skill equals 1/2 your Domain Cleric level (min +1).

Sacrificial Offering: By making a sacrifice to your God, you can gain additional Zeal. The amount of Zeal you gain equals the value of the sacrifice as determined by the Referee. A lesser sacrifice (such as a small animal, a pouch of silver) would grant 1d4 Zeal, while an larger sacrifice (a large animal, a chest of silver, a valuable jewel) would grant 1d6 Zeal and a massive sacrifice (a magic item, a huge sum of money) could grant up to 1d8 Zeal.

3:

Armor of Faith: 1/Day, as an action, you +1 FS for each point of Zeal you have, up to your Maximum FS.

Increased Devotion: You gain another Devotion Die (DD). When you roll Domain Magic, you may choose to add this third die or not.

4:

Foes of the Faith: If you strike down a creature that is specifically opposed either to your God or to what your God stands for, you gain 2 Zeal, instead of 1.

Mortify the Flesh: When you take damage, you may spend Zeal to reduce the damage. For each point of Zeal you spend, you reduce the damage by 1.

5:

Not by our own Strength: Increase your Atk bonus by +1 for every 2 points of Zeal you have.

Prayer of the Warrior: Before you enter a battle, you may spend at least 1 minute praying, asking for victory over your enemies. During the next battle (encounter where there is violence) for each enemy you fell, you gain 2 points of Zeal, instead of 1.

6:

Righteous Rage: 1/Day, When confronted by something that would offend your God or what your God stands for, including something that would fall under 'Foes of the Faith', you automatically gain 1d4 Zeal.

Oath to Heaven: By making an oath to God, you can transform 6 points of Zeal into another Devotion Die. This DD lasts for 1 hour, after which it transforms back into Zeal. While it is a DD, you may choose to roll it or not. The oath you make is binding and you must fulfill it- if you do not fulfill it or take actions to start fulfilling it, your God may punish you, curse you or even restrict your powers should you fail to uphold your oath.

7:

Blood of Martyrs: Whenever you drop to 0 FS or take damage to your HP, make a COG save. On a successful save, you gain +1 Zeal. If you roll on the Death and Dismemberment table, you may also save. On a successful save, you gain +1d4 Zeal.

The Greatest Gift: If a creature allied with you should suffer a Horrible Wound that will kill them or dies, you gain +1d4 Zeal.

8:

The Way of Suffering: The first time per day a source damages you, you gain X Zeal, where X is the amount of damage that was dealt to you.

9:

Wrath of God: 1/Day, when you trigger Overflow, you may protect up to 1d6+9 other creatures from the effect, not counting yourself.

by Diego Lafuente

Strain Table:

Whenever you roll a "5" on your Devotion Dice (DD) this triggers a Strain Roll. Depending on the number of times you roll Strain, roll 1d6 on the table below, to a maximum of 3d6. For each instance of Strain beyond 3, increase the sum of the dice by +1.

Xd6 + y

1- You lose 1d4 Zeal.

2- You are stunned. You can move, but otherwise cannot take actions until your next turn.

3- You gain a mutation that lasts for 3d6 minutes. After that, save. On a failed save, the mutation is permanent. The mutation should always be associated with your God, either aesthetically or related to one of their Domain. For example, a Goddess of Hunting might give you claws, while a God of Snakes might give you slit-pupil eyes.

4- You take 1d4 damage. This cannot reduce you below 0 HP.

5- For the next 2d6 minutes, you can only speak the language that the holy scriptures/oral tradition your Faith was first recorded in. This may be a language other members of the party can speak, but it also may not.

6- You lose 1 DD. You regain use of that DD when you take long rest.

7- You gain a -1d4 penalty to your Atk and all STR checks or saves for 3d6 minutes. This penalty goes away in half the time if you rest for the duration.

8- You cannot access the Domain you attempted to use until you take a long rest.

9- You must Save vs Disease. On a failed save, you catch a random disease as determined by the Referee.

10- You receive a vision of your God. This does make you catatonic for 1d4 rounds, during which time you can take no actions. Your vision relates 1d4 [1= A divine mission, fail to carry it out at your peril; 2= A warning of future danger; 3= A piece of cryptic advice; 4= A bunch of nonsense (20% it actually carries secret meaning your God cannot reveal to you).]

11- For 2d6 days, you attract your God's sacred animal. These animals do not obey you, but generally will avoid harming you unless you harm them. If you harm any of these animals, your God may retaliate (10%).

12- You are compelled for 1d4 [1= 1d6 hours; 2= 1d4 days; 3= 1d3 weeks; 4= 1 month] to carry out actions that perpetuate the Domain you just attempted to call upon. Each round (if in combat) and hour (if not), you must save to carry out an action that would advance the Domain you tried to channel. For example, if you channeled a Fire Domain, you would temporarily become a pyromaniac.

13- You take 1d6 damage.

14- You are struck by your own inadequacy. Make a save- on a successful save, you begin self-flagellating and practicing mortification. On a failed save, you give into despair and start indulging in all vices forbidden to you by your Faith. This mood lasts for 1d8 hours or until you take a long rest.

15- You suffer a major mutation. The mutation should always be associated with your God, either aesthetically or related to one of their Domain. This mutation is dramatic and permanent, however. For example, if you serve a Snake God you might have your lower body turn into a massive serpent's tail.

16- You lose all your FS. You also cannot gain any from your Zeal for the rest of the day.

17- You are possessed by an Outsider who serves your Deity for 1d8 hours (or however long you can host the Outsider without dying). The Outsider has a vital mission and is perfectly comfortable with suppressing you, stealing your body and using it to carry out it's holy mission. The Outsider will not kill you, but otherwise is permitted to do whatever it wishes. If you die during the process of it carrying out it's mission, that is regrettable, but it is a sacrifice the Outsider is willing to make.

18+- You must Save vs Death. On a failed save, you die. On a successful save, you have a heart attack but survive at 1d4 HP.

Overflow:

Overflow occurs whenever you roll a "6" on your Devotion Dice (DD). This is when you draw in too much divine power and it explodes out of you, affecting everything around you. What the effect of this power depends on who your God is and what Domain you are invoking- Invoking a God's Domain of Healing has a very different Overflow result than his Domain of War.

Note that some Overflow results may not affect certain objects or creatures- an Overflow from the Domain of Love won't affect buildings, but an Overflow from a Domain of Storms will.

The number of "6"s affects the "Strength" of the Overflow. The more sixes, the more powerful the Overflow.

What does the Overflow affect?

1 Six- Everything directly adjacent to you (15-30') or everyone in the room, if the room is small.

2 Sixes- Everything near you (50-100') or everyone in the room, unless the room is massive.

3 Sixes- Everything around you (100-500') or everyone in the building. If in a huge building, everyone on the floor.

4 Sixes- Everything around you (501-1000') or everyone in the building. If the building is less than 1d4+1 stories, everyone in a block's range.

5 Sixes- Everything within a mile or everyone in town.

6 Sixes or more- Everything within ten miles or everyone in the City.

Example:

Overflow 1 with a Fire Domain- You catch fire, try not to burn to death.

Overflow 3 (Fire Domain)- You and everyone within (1d6-1)*100' catches fire. If you're in a building, it is suddenly engulfed in flames.

by artAlais

Domain Magic DCs:

As Domain Clerics do not add a d20 to their Domain Magic rules, they should have correspondingly lower DCs than the Free-Form Wizards.

Easy DC: 3-6

Medium DC: 7-12

Hard DC: 13-14

(Nearly) Impossible DC: 15-18

As Domain Clerics should have an easier time casting spells than their Arcane Cousins, the consequences of them bungling a Domain Magic roll should be much worse. When a Wizard screws up a spell, he turns green or his spell explodes into a shower of harmless sparks. When a Domain Cleric screws up when channeling magic, he sets himself on fire and burns down the building he's in.

Domain Magic Damage:

If a Domain Magic spell would do damage, it does damage equal to the [sum] of the DD + Zeal.

For example, a Eva the Penitent rolls 2d6 and adds +3 Zeal. Her DD equal 9 + 3 Zeal = 12 damage.

Domains:

To determine what Domains are available, consult this post here.

by Javier Charro