Clerics and Deities in DCC

[Galadrin]

I often hear that clerics are the least exciting class to play in DCC. I suspect this largely has to do with how Gamemasters are running the players' deities. Of course, the cleric class potentially has a lot of fun game opportunities if the patron deity is very involved in the adventuring group (for better or worse). These opportunities can also help define the deity and give him or her a special place among other patrons.

The only problem with this, however, is the lack of mechanical definition that deities get in the DCC core rulebook. Deities simply influence alignment, turning ability and weapon choice. The disapproval table is also consistently bland and generic, so as to accomodate different kinds of deities. Can we think of a quick and easy way to spice up clerics and deities in DCC?

For example, I was thinking of doing away with the entire disapproval table and simply rating the level of disapproval by the spell casting roll (i.e. a disapproval roll with a natural 4 is a 4th level disapproval). I would use these disapproval levels as a general guide and make up the divine wrath on the spot, according to what would interact well with the adventure. In general, I am partial to the "Clash of the Titans" deities of Olympus, who send down a minotaur, vanish a magic weapon or misdirect the party in fog whenever they want to "test" their followers. If the deity were very different, however, then I would adjust the type of wrath to reflect the specific character of the patron. Maybe Cthulhu would send a horde of deep ones to overwhelm the friendly NPC village while the players were in the dungeon. Maybe a blood sacrifice would be in order?

[finarvyn]

I don't think they are "least exciting".

I think that the problem is that there aren't many decent examples of clerics in Appendix N literature, so they don't really fit the game as well as other classes.

[gibletblizzard]

I humbly submit the first two of hopefully many Healing Tables that might spice up your Cleric. Roll on these unless the recipient of the deity's grace already pays homage to them:

Healing from the Spider God
Healing from the Squid God

[Raven_Crowking]

I humbly submit the first two of hopefully many Healing Tables that might spice up your Cleric. Roll on these unless the recipient of the deity's grace already pays homage to them:

Healing from the Spider God
Healing from the Squid God

Most impressive.

[cthulhudarren]

I humbly submit the first two of hopefully many Healing Tables that might spice up your Cleric. Roll on these unless the recipient of the deity's grace already pays homage to them:

Healing from the Spider God
Healing from the Squid God

Very good ideas, but I find many of them to be too much for my liking. I'd prefer the effects to be mostly fluff. Mostly, with perhaps a few minor numerical effects. Nothing that would create a sphere of annihilation or such.

I would make the effects mostly for opposed alignments/deities.

[Skyscraper]

Nice stuff gibbletwizard. The originality of your tables is entertaining! I also like that you've touched upon something that is usually taken for granted, to make it more personalized. Not sure I'd use these tables as a judge, but nice stuff nonetheless.

To the OP: I have little experience, having only played through a couple of funnels up to now, but as judge in my game where the cleric just levelled up to level 1, I have introduced from the start a church that is very present storywise. The clerics hold a very strong moral authority over the population, and clerics want to convert everyone to their god. So being a cleric will mean something in that respect.

I've also added a personal touch to the clerics, in that they gain a special power unique to their god. For example, the cleric of the god of Fate has the power to re-roll one roll per day to trick fate - however if he cannot reroll a disapproval roll; and a roll a natural 1 on any other re-roll means he needs to roll 1d20 on the disapproval table...

Of course, the best would be to have set of unique spells for each god, but that would just take too long. I've been developping a single patron, and it takes me forever!

[oncelor]

We play with one unique spell for each god at 1st and 3rd level of spells. I designed the spells in cooperation with the players after they chose their deities, so I didn't have to make a bunch of spells ahead of time. I also gave the clerics a minor permanent effect based on their deities -- 1 point of protection from cold damage per CL for the guy who worships the frost giants, for instance, and a minor sort of "smite evil" against unholy creatures for the cleric of St Oswald.

[cthulhudarren]

I long for a fully detailed pantheon to be written up for DCC RPG, with all the trappings including beliefs, dress, sins, practices, spell lists, friends/enemies and unholy creatures for each! Using the default DCC RPG gods would be okay.

[gibletblizzard]

I long for a fully detailed pantheon to be written up for DCC RPG, with all the trappings including beliefs, dress, sins, practices, spell lists, friends/enemies and unholy creatures for each! Using the default DCC RPG gods would be okay.

I'm mulling over doing just that, but for something a little exotic. Providing a pantheon for zeroes to make contact with, but allowing different characters to follow different gods without being at each other's throats.