Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Tacomannerism 03-03-06, 11:42 AM	It seems to me that concentration might be the most important cleric skill, especially if the cleric enjoys melee combat. Is this true? Cleric players - do you find yourself making concentration rolls often? What about spellcraft? It seems like the only useful aspect of is it counterspelling. Cleric players - do you ever counterspell or do you just use dispel magic? The problem I'm running into is that I am playing a Half-Orc cleric (don't ask) and have very few skills to throw around. What's the most important and why?
Vedic Cold 03-03-06, 12:22 PM	It seems to me that concentration might be the most important cleric skill, especially if the cleric enjoys melee combat. Is this true? That statement is absolutely true. If you like wading your cleric into battle, then concentration is a must. Spellcraft... well, that depends on your flavor and the cleric's religion. Gods of magic would certainly encourage their faithful to learn a thing or two about magical theory and the arcane in general. Gods of light and healing would emphasize Heal and Knowledge (Religion) to help people in need and to aid in combating the undead. What god/religion does your cleric worship? Let that be the big motivating factor behind your skill selection. (And no need to feel odd about a half-orc cleric. Divine casting is the only spellcating that race can really do well.)
Tony Vargas 03-03-06, 12:24 PM	Clerics are often called upon to step into danger and cast a healing, protective, buff, restorative or other spell on an ally, or even a touch attack spell vs an enemy - the concentration check to do so isn't that hard, but blowing it loses you the /spell/, which is often really bad. So, yes, Concentration should be one skill Clerics should strongly consider maxxing out. Who takes responsibility for casting spells on both the Divine & Arcane lists is largely a matter of party dynamics. A Cleric might never prep dispel magic, or he might be the party's primary or only source of the effect. Counterspelling is also more popular with some groups than others - in some campaigns, it's never even used. So, on that count, it's hard to say whether a given cleric needs spellcraft. Spellcraft is also useful for identifying the effects of spells, which can tell you what you may need (Dispel Magic vs Break Enchantment vs Remove Curse for instance) to get rid of it, so it can be worthwhile even is Counterspelling isn't the objective.
Tacomannerism 03-03-06, 12:35 PM	here's some additional information. The only arcane caster in our group is a bard, and the only other divine caster in our group is a Druid. In light of that does spellcraft become more important? if i had to choose one to max, which should it be? concentration or spellcraft?
Sidartha 03-03-06, 03:01 PM	Max out concentration and pray that the gods of bardic knowledge will save you in case of a spellcraft check. Besides, Bards get knowledge(all).
Chimaera2000 03-03-06, 04:24 PM	It depends, I suppose. Clerics do get some neat class skills, so the choice of which to use could be difficult. I might suggest doing a mix of skills, actually. Try to get a heal modifier of at least +5 so you can boost natural healing and cure minor poisons and diseases by taking ten. A healing kit can help with this if you have the money. You gain a synergy bonus to Spellcraft from Knowledge (Arcana), which you may want to take. Even putting one point in Spellcraft can be useful, as it allows you to make a roll at all. Of course, that's all mechanical advice. With my group, I always advocate doing what seems right for your character. If you want to be a half-orc diplomat or clerical know-it-all, go for it! Do what's most enjoyable for you.
Gnarl 03-03-06, 07:51 PM	In the game I'm running, the party cleric took the steady concentration feat and he is very happy with it. And on top of that, he maxed out concentration. He never messes up a spell in melee and he loves it.