Post/Author/DateTime	Post
TheDarkPrince 02-12-08, 01:23 AM	Archivist or Cleric: I like the archivist aproach to divine magic, where it is all a matter of study and research. But I also like the clerics personal, direct connection to a diety...so help me decide between the two please! Which do you all like better? Which is more fun to play? Which is more powerful? Thanks, Cheers! :D
teshen 02-12-08, 01:28 AM	Archivist has stronger spellcasting. Cleric has better base attack, hit points, and armor... If you want power and you are good at planning, go with archivist. If not so much, or if you want to go into melee a little more at lower levels, go cleric. There're both really strong.
Clutchbone 02-12-08, 01:53 AM	I'm playing an Archivist now and while I am having fun, I gotta say I preferred playing a cleric. Yes, on paper I can "cast any spell EVAR! OMG!!", but in reality it's hard to choose which spells to learn because you have to balance between situational life-savers like Break Enchantment and See Invisibility and so forth and the offensive Webs, Wracks, and Righteous Fury's. Clerics can load up on attack spells today, and if someone gets permanently blinded or paralyzed or ability drained deep in a dungeon, no problemo, just prepare the appropriate spell tomorrow. Also, Turn Undead can be used to power a bunch of feats if no undead show up to fight, but Dark Knowledge doesn't get that. The feat Knowledge Devotion will get you more bang for your skill rank buck though - it's a must for Archivists, especially with ranks in Know(Local) for fighting humanoids. Finally, talk with your DM and ask if he'll drop exotic divine scrolls in treasure hoards for you if you go with Archivist. Your spellcasting power is directly influenced by your loot. Oh, and don't forget to account for the costs of scribing scrolls into your prayerbook, they can break the bank for the unprepared. The flimsy Base Attack Bonus of the Archivist is also a downer, but hey... it's still full spellcasting. Plane Shift to the positive energy plane = win.
The_Shaman 02-12-08, 06:33 AM	The flimsy Base Attack Bonus of the Archivist is also a downer, but hey... it's still full spellcasting. Righteous might should be able to fixt it anyway ;) Still, getting a decent prayerbook can be a hassle, I give you that. You may need to spend quite a bit of gold buying scrolls from temples you come across.
rjsilverthorn 02-12-08, 06:54 AM	Yeah, the power of an Archivist is really based on their ability to cast spells not normally on the clerical list, and that is going to be largely dependent on the DM running the game.
LSMFT 02-12-08, 11:19 AM	Cleric: Effortless access to every spell on the cleric list + his domain lists. Archivist: Access to every divine spell out there, but it often takes a great deal of time and effort to actually get them. I like the archivist aproach to divine magic, where it is all a matter of study and research. But I also like the clerics personal, direct connection to a diety...so help me decide between the two please!The published flavor of the archivist is that they aren’t as ‘connected’ to their deity as the cleric is, but you don’t have to play it that way. You can have a very religious, devoted character and use the “study and research” approach that you prefer.
TheDarkPrince 02-13-08, 01:26 AM	Well, it seems that both are well liked....so I'll take the new info you all gave me and mull it over till next session... Thanks for all the help you guys. Cheers! :D