I'm new to cleric builds and I'd like some help in creating one for a Dwarf NPC that'll be showing up in a future event soon.

Normally a DM controlled NPC is just your bog standard yardstick. But I want to make sure the DM can truly interact with other characters in as many ways possible.

I'm eager for him to be useful RP-wise and for supporting his fellow dwarves in fights, even being proficient in some job system jobs if thats possible. I wish to make sure his skills and abilities truly match what he's capable of RP-wise.

I've been told that Dwarven Clerics can work as a pure build or multi-class. But I'm not entirely sure what is preferable for this character. He is a Cleric of Moradin, a Specialist Priest known as a Sonnlinor: "Those who work stone". (Some publications say Sonnlinor are not allowed to multi-class. But does this have to be the case?)

Dwarf pros and cons:

When building a Cleric, I'm sure Dwarf isn't the ideal species that comes to mind. Yes, you get a +2 Constitution Racial Bonus. But You get a -2 Charisma Racial Penalty! Quite devastating if we were to rely on Charisma at all for this build. But it may not be too much of an issue if he's not all about turning undead.

But there are several factors later on to consider concerning Charisma which may need examining. Such as certain Cleric based feats and Domain blessings and abilities (like Craft Domain giving the feat Artisan's Mastery, a bonus to crafting equal to 1 + 1 per 5 cleric levels, and it lasting for 5 turns + Charisma modifier.)

There are also skill based benefits and penalties to keep in mind. Dwarves have darkvision, are good at searching in caves, have resistance to poisons and spells, offensive training vs Orcs and Goblinoids, defensive training vs Giants and a skill affinity in Lore. Thankfully Lore is a Class Skill. But Search is not. Things to consider for later.

Pureclass or Multi-class?

To decide this depends on the character itself and his history. This dwarf is very old, 320 years old. He spent half of those years growing up in the monastic enclave of Thuulurn. He dedicated his life and soul to the Sonnlinor Order and through the years reached the rank of Artificer of Discoveries, the third highest rank possible next to Smith of Souls and High Forgesmiths.

I imagine as a young dwarf he ventured alot more, fought melee in many great battles with his warhammer. But in these older years his duties consist of priestly chores and the mentoring of initiates into the order and smithing apprentices. His hammer is now only used for ceremonial endeavors. So should his build reflect who he is now, rather than what he used to be?

Alignment: Lawful Neutral.

This is another factor which could affect this characters various abilities and spells. I believe in his youth he was Lawful Good, reflective of the Allfathers own alignment. But during the long years, this dwarf has grown increasingly bitter, strict, pessimistic, xenophobic, and distrusting of outsiders.

No-one truly knows what forged him into the now bitter old man he has now become, but suffice to say this dwarven cleric does have some "skeletons in his closet", so to speak. These hidden experiences have moulded him to the wisened, bitter but respected priest he is now.

Various sources give examples as to the kind of summons that Sonnlinor Priests are usually able to call forth, Moradin is served by Azers, Aasimons, Archons, elementals, fire beetles, gold and silver dragons, hammer golems and living steel, etc. I am unsure if any of these come close to the ones available as summons on Amia according to a Lawful Neutral Alignment. But if there are no matches, perhaps his build is best without any summoning spells.

Ability Scores:

This is the toughest thing for me to decide at present. So many of these abilities can greatly affect many factors of this build, but I'm determined to get it right.

So far I've chosen this as a start. What are your thoughts everyone? Let me know of any changes, and which abilities should be increased as he levels up to 30.

Strength: 13, Dexterity: 12, Constitution: 11 (13 with Racial Bonus), Wisdom 17, Intelligence 9 and Charisma 12 (10 with Racial Penalty).

At least 13 Strength is required for Power Attack, a prerequisite for Divine Might or Divine Shield. But that would also require more ability points (13) pooled into the penalized Charisma. Is it worth the effort?

Class Skills:

With quite a few skills to choose from its tough to decide which ones to focus on. With just a 9 Intelligence, he won't be as skillful as I'd like. (Maybe his intelligence will have to be changed higher.)

Clerics have class skills in Concentration, Craft Armor, Craft Trap, Craft Weapon, Heal, Lore, Parry, Persuade and Spellcraft.

- So far, being a dwarf, he has a Skill affinity for Lore, and I think RP-wise, being an old priest who has seen alot, he'd know his history with items and weapons.
- Concentration sounds like it should be a given, as he should be a reliable caster now that isn't easily distracted.
- I'm tempted to at least put points in Craft Weapon, as this supports the history he has with his pupil, Greta Solveig, whom he taught too well. Plus, having a potential Craft Domain would give even greater bonuses to this class skill (If he has the Charisma for it too).

Non Class Skills:

Problem here is, I also think he'd icly be quite disciplined, he'd intimidate his pupils and any younger folk with his bitter presence and strictness. Then theres also the shame of not easily applying points to Search, a waste of his dwarven search abilities. I doubt theres anyway round these issues, may have to let them slide.

Feats:

The only Feat I'm sure about at present is Weapon Proficiency (Martial) so he can get the Warhammer he's famous for. I'm unsure whether I should also bother with Divine Might or Divine Shield. If he's no longer a warrior and just a priest who protects others with spells... Does he even need his own shield of protection?

I'd like your advice on further feats you'd recommend, including the Epic Bonus Cleric Feats.

Cleric Domains:

As a follower of Moradin on Amia. This means I have a choice of: Craft, Dwarf, Earth, Good, Law and Protection.

Trying to factor in the domain abilities and spells, theres also the domain based blessings one can receive from prayers.

- Craft is one I'm very tempted with as it parallels precisely with his history and character. He's a priest who mentors students on the art of smithing.

But the second choice isn't so easy...

- Dwarf gives a bit of a useless feat: Bullheaded, but would connect well with the whole "Sonnlinor" theme, working with stone, as it grants a few stone related spells as bonuses. Plus it gives bonuses for Con if you pray.
- Earth adds alot more stone related spells than Dwarf, including Energy Buffer, a nice defensive spells. Prayers also include immunities to Acid.
- Good is tempting to disregard merely for the fact that this cleric is Lawful Neutral now. It also consists of alot of summoning spells for Planar and if I get my references right,a Lawful Neutral Planar Binding for this dwarf would summon a Slaad. Not at all what I'd imagine him with.
- Law would allow him to Turn Outsiders, a nifty trick if I sacrifice more points to his dwarf-low Charisma. Also provides a possible additional use of spells I may already have, like Magic Circle against Alignment, Hold Monster and Word of Faith.
- Protection though is very tempting. It may provide spells he'll already know, but at least they're protection related. The more the merrier if he's all about protection spells. Prayer blessings also provide 20% Concealment + Cleric Levels (So maybe 50% altogether).

Which two domains do you recommend I try?

Job System.

Incase this is even possible with an npc, I'd still like to consider the many options Amia has to offer. It may come in handy for a rp event if he has to tutor someone or make something. What are your recommendations from the many jobs available on Amia?

Off the top of my head, I'd consider Weaponsmith, Drillmaster, Preacher, Scribe, Teacher and Theologer as all possibilities this Dwarf Cleric would be icly capable of doing. But as to which ones and how many ranks I'm clueless.

Thank you if you've made it this far. I'd love your help on this endeavor. This Dwarven Cleric character is near and dear to my heart as are many of Greta Solveig's acquaintances with tons of history and backstory to them. I've just never had an opportunity to build him into an actual playable character before.

If you're curious about him and want to learn more, this particular character featured quite heavily in my IC Story: De Garaz La Splendarr.

viewtopic.php?p=1225236

Where Greta Solveig was forced to go on a Pilgrimage to the Ancient Kingdom of Bessilmer and finish her training to be worthy of reforging her sword, Gertrude. This cleric of course, was not going to make it easy for her.

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Active Characters:

- Thimblepot (Amia's Resident Brownie)
- Greta Sólveig (Barbarian raised by Dwarves)

Subrace.

As luck would have it, a friend in-game reminded me that I forgot to consider Subrace as an option for the build. Gold Dwarf would benefit towards the charisma penalty, but does it fit his character? Surprisingly, as the subrace info says, Gold Dwarves reside in the south, close to the Great Rift. My character comes from Thuulurn, the Foundry of Stout Souls, in the heart of the Deep Realms, east of the Great Rift! An amazing coincidence. Gold Dwarves also strongly believe that the ancient traditions of the Deep Realm are best. Certainly fits his stubborn xenophobic views.

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Active Characters:

- Thimblepot (Amia's Resident Brownie)
- Greta Sólveig (Barbarian raised by Dwarves)

Honestly, your numbers could probably do with an overhaul. For one, cut down on all the odd ability scores. Unless you want to splash into rogue, 9 INT is far too low for the skills you want.

If you're not too bothered about getting tumble AC, I'd suggest something like this:

Gold Dwarf Cleric 21/Fighter 4/Knight Commander 5
STR: 14
DEX: 8 (6)
CON: 14
WIS: 15
INT: 14
CHA: 12 (14)

Proficiencies: Craft, Earth
Pre-epic: Power Attack, Weapon Focus, Toughness, SF: Discipline, Blindfight, Divine Shield, Divine Might, Extend Spell, Scribe Scroll/Craft Wand/Other
Epic: Armor Skin, Epic Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, Epic Weapon Specialization, Epic Spell: Mummy Dust (even without an epic spell focus, it'll still last you 21 minutes)

Get WIS up to 20, then maybe put the remaining two points into CHA or STR. 14 INT will give you 132 skill points to play with, minus the pre-requisites for KC (which, except for Taunt, are all class skills). My thinking is that you take 3 levels of Fighter and 5 levels of KC in pre-epic, then take the last Fighter level at 27.

Here's a suggestion for the skill spread:
Concentration: 33
Craft Weapon: 33
Discipline: 30
Lore: 4
Persuade: 4
Spellcraft: 20
Taunt: 8 (4 due to cross-class)

What do you think? I know it's a bit martial compared to what you said you wanted, but I'm not sure how I'd make a good caster cleric without just going for the cookie cutter Cl27/Ro2/Ra1. It's not exactly a powerbuild, but I think it's a decent mix of flavour and viability.

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Currently playing:
Aven Brinyflask
Safaya Dalai
Riyit
Chsera Hile

(Credits to Raua for the sprite, sauce -here-.)

Well, I'm not much of a dwarf fan. However I would go about RP event cleric build like this.

I would make following to be priority:
- high wisdom
- more of a supporting type of build
- if possible high lvl of cleric (so he can be seen as someone who is faithful servant who speaks for his god as well as better magic)

Which would mean build-wise:
- utilizing high wisdom by taking spell focuses = fighting by magic from his god
- also useful for zen archery = who is unworthy of being punished by the magic, can be just shot
(side note: not sure how throwing weapons work, but it might be worth of your time to look into that)
- his ceremonial hammer would be used in ceremonies mostly (is it a problem, that he would not make that weapon bloodied?)

So it would be probably something along the lines of 29 cleric + 1 fighter (more magic and buff oriented) or 25 cleric and 5 fighter (more fighting oriented)
I would also agree with Larsaan with using Knight Commander. It really works with cleric into more supportive role. However I think it would end up similar - high wisdom, high charisma, zen archery and lot of support for others.


Yes, it's not totally hardcore build. It would be much better to use monk for skill dump or something like that.

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Zendaer Amattis
Torgon Crimsonshade
Khalid Athanalo
CET time zone

Thank you both for your cool suggestions. The ability differences are enlightening and the priorities in for the build is logical. I'm gonna give this alot of thought. Truly never imagined I'd try a cross-class... We'll see what happens. I'm gonna experiment some more. Keep the suggestions coming everyone!

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Active Characters:

- Thimblepot (Amia's Resident Brownie)
- Greta Sólveig (Barbarian raised by Dwarves)

dimension_w I would sincerely go for pure cleric with Martial Proficiency, or a couple levels of fighter only. The suggestions are taking into consideration "hunting" in Amia, which, if I understand correctly, this character will not do. It doesnt need the traditional powerbuild package of UMD/Disc/Tumble dump, or anything.

Also, it being a purely RP character, for a specific RP event, I personally think its worth taking into consideration the character in itself. This is a 320 year-old Sonnlinor that makes the dwarves of Barak Runedar look as accepting and welcoming of anything foreign as Bendir Dale folks. He spent 160 years in Thuulurn, which is basically a temple with 5600 dwarves. The only multiclass I see making sense for this background is Cleric/Fighter/Monk, and that is if the restriction of no multiclassing for Sonnlinors is ignored.

There is also the very relevant fact that this character will be played by a DM, so its mechanic power is basically only limited by what the DM rules as being the favor Moradin gives him.

As I told you ingame, I think this was a thread that suited the Request forum much more than the Powerbuilding forums, as it is bound to confuse whoever tries to give advice on what is basically an NPC that will be played by a DM.

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I play:
Frums Deedone, the Green Child
Balrig Sootkiln, Blood and Vellum

You are absolutely right exquistelyme. A Power Build is quite non-essential. He's a support character only and will be presiding over mostly dm event stuff. But I still want something worthwhile in case events ever take us out into the wild to fight our foes.

I'm humbled by your extensive overview of the character. He has alot of history and I'm hoping for that to rub off on his performance when he finally shows up. I'm also contemplating if he could become a permanent resident of Runedar. We need more clerics there and perhaps more religious representation. All we have is the Hall of Kings. Perhaps we need a place with an actual altar for prayers, a cathedral area of some sorts?

But now I know this isn't the right topic for the builds thread, where else could it go? Its not exactly a request. Because behind the scenes with our local dwarf dm, the arrangements have already been made for this characters arrival. This thread is just a plee for advice on how best to build him in a decent rp-potential way. I wanna have a build ready so the dms can easily construct him.

Think this is better in the Spark of Life Forum? It is a concept at present, something that needs solidifying into a workable npc rp character.

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Active Characters:

- Thimblepot (Amia's Resident Brownie)
- Greta Sólveig (Barbarian raised by Dwarves)

I think Spark of Life is better, but now it sounds like this character will also be played by you, in which case you should build him to Amian standards of power if you want to save yourself frustration. Amia doesnt enforce the no multclass for Sonnlinor lore ruling, for example, and any character that doesnt take at least Disc/Tumble dump class at lvl 27 is sub-optimal to say at least IMHO.

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I play:
Frums Deedone, the Green Child
Balrig Sootkiln, Blood and Vellum

I'll see if I can get a dm to move this thread to the "Spark of Life" Forum. Thorgrim Horn will definately be rp'd only by our dwarf dm, Amarice. I've had too much heartache with lending out my characters to other players and losing ownership of them. I think a dm controlled character is for the best. (Apart from a bottled companion, but they'd be too limited.) Still making plans for what he'll actually be doing. But I'm excited by the potential he can bring to the Brog dwarves.

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Active Characters:

- Thimblepot (Amia's Resident Brownie)
- Greta Sólveig (Barbarian raised by Dwarves)