Help with a cleric

[Inquisitor Tremayne]

What to do with a Cleric.

I have an 8th level Cleric of Pelor who just leveled to 9th. I've always played her as a warrior of her faith first, healer second, and spellcaster third. Mostly because the group needed a fighter AND a healer when I joined a couple of years ago.

That said, What should I level up to? I have all the requirements for the Radiant Servant of Pelor PrC and the Hunter of the Dead PrC. Thats about it. Plus there aren't anyother PrCs that really fit or that I am interested in or that I have come across, my D&D book selection is thin. I was thinking fighter to gain some feats. The party suggests getting access to 5th level spells. Even though there are some great ones at 5th level I see her more as a combat character. She doesn't support the group with her spells, I only select spells that boost her up in combat.

Anyway, I'm looking for something that will increase my BaB, give me more feats, and if possible increase spellcasting ability.

Thanks

[Skunkape]

You could take a level or two as a fighter. Remember, most if not all PrCs only have 10 levels, so if you start any PrCs at 9th, you'll be 18 or 19 and be at the end of the PrC advancement. Now that's not to say that you can't do another PrC or that you'll even have the character at that level, but if you take 2 levels of fighter, so you're 11th when you start your PrC, you'll have 2 levels to get some decent fighter feats. Just make sure you plan out what your 2 levels will be.

[Argent]

Fighter levels would definitely help you in combat, and it couldn't hurt you to take a couple. Radiant Servant gives you some nifty new ways of hurting creatures, too. Mostly slanted towards undead or creatures of the dark, but getting an extra domain is nothing to sneeze at either. And it allows continued spell progression.

So I'd suggest Fighter until Lvl. 11, then Radiant Servant 'til Pelor calls you home!

[Ed Zachary]

Beside being servants of their deity, clerics are divine spell casters first and foremost. The fifth level spells are really good, I would go to 9th level cleric at a minimum. If you were to select a prestige class (not my area of expertise), take one that still allows you to progress in cleric spells (as Argent posted above).

[starfalconkd]

If you are a combat cleric, you absolutely need those 5th level spells so you can cast righteous might. This makes you an absolute terror on the battlefield and, when combined with divine power and divine favor, makes you outstrip the party fighter. Radiant Servant is a turning/healing class, that doesn't sound like who you are so you might want to avoid it. I would suggest learning Extend Spell at this level if you do not already know it, quicken spell at 12th, and persistent spell at 15th. Your spell set up should include the following: 5th level slot(s):Righteous Might and Extend Divine Power if you have a second slot and quicken divine favor if/when you have the feat and an available slot. As the levels become available Extend Righteous Might (6th) and Persistent Divine Favor (7th). The Persistent Divine Favor is excellent, it's a 24 hour +3 to attack and damage as long as it does not get dispelled.
Other good feat suggestions are Shielded Casting from Races of Stone if you have Combat Casting (basically you cast holding your shield and do not provoke attacks of opportunity), Divine Might (Complete Warrior if you qualify), Divine Shield (same thing), Divine Vigor (same), and Divine Armor (from PHB II).
Also, if you plan on taking fighter levels, I'd take only one or two and one of your feats should definitely be Power Attack. But, if you want to take a combat class I recommend Paladin if your alignment allows, it would fit better than fighter.

[Inquisitor Tremayne]

Thanks for the suggestions.

I still don't know what to do. I'm thinking Radiant Servant 1 because I get a level of spellcasting,some nice special abilities, and my bab doesn't increase but it wouldn't anyway if I went cleric 9.

Then 2 levels of fighter for a couple of bonus feats then back into the Radiant Servant. The Paladin suggestion is a good one though but she is NG not LG.

We are in a dungeon right now and we are about to teleport to a nearby village where we will actually level up, then I am talking to my DM about ROLEplaying her so that she feels a call to make a pilgrimage to a temple of Pelor so that she may level up as a Radiant Servant and come back more devout and more of a, well, Radiant Servant of Pelor.

This will alter the course of the current quest that the party is on so she might just go away for the time being and in the meantime I could play a temporary character. hmmm...

[Karui_Kage]

I would take no more than 2 fighter levels. 3 wouldn't really gain you anything, and 4 would prevent you from getting 9th level spells.

If you are heading to 9th, take that first level in Radiant Servant. It's a great prestige, and I'd even recommend taking the full 10 in it, and then the last two with whatever you want.

[Inquisitor Tremayne]

I would take no more than 2 fighter levels. 3 wouldn't really gain you anything, and 4 would prevent you from getting 9th level spells.

If you are heading to 9th, take that first level in Radiant Servant. It's a great prestige, and I'd even recommend taking the full 10 in it, and then the last two with whatever you want.

Thanks! I think that is the best course also. I am kind feat hungry right now so the 2 levels of fighter will come after the 1st level in the PrC.

Yay for direction!

[Karui_Kage]

Hooray! And yeah, two bonus feats should help to flesh out the battle side of your cleric, while still keeping you in full spellcasting with the Radiant Servant.

[Argent]

Since we are talking about character building here, I had a question. Does anyone else sit down and map their character's progression out 1st through 20th level, including feats and PrC? Or do you just wing it?

I will admit to doing a bit of both, depending on the character and how long I'll be playing in a particular game.

[Ed Zachary]

I have an 8th level Cleric of Pelor who just leveled to 9th. I've always played her as a warrior of her faith first, healer second, and spellcaster third. Mostly because the group needed a fighter AND a healer when I joined a couple of years ago.

Just curious... if your party needed a fighter and you agreed to run a combat oriented character, why not play a paladin, or a fighter with a bunch of healing potions?

This isn't a criticism, I'm curious about your thought process.

And if you wanted to play a cleric, why not play it with a divine spellcaster focus who can use summoning spells to aid in combat?

[Ed Zachary]

Since we are talking about character building here, I had a question. Does anyone else sit down and map their character's progression out 1st through 20th level, including feats and PrC? Or do you just wing it?

I usually look three levels into the future regarding spells, feats and skills. Perhaps a bit more with PrC as you will need to meet some prerequisites.

[Inquisitor Tremayne]

When I joined the group it was clear that they needed a healer, So Cleric I chose.

As the game progressed (gaining players loosing players) we realized we needed a fighter type.

Now, we still need a fighter type, we have a paladin, so my cleric can fill both rolls, support AND combat.

I'm considering getting Skill Focus (concentration). I keep having to heal the Paladin who has managed to drop below 0 hp in EVERY combat since he has joined the game. Including the inspire greatness the bard casts on him!

[Inquisitor Tremayne]

Oh, I usually plot out my characters all the way to 20th level.

But am willing to change as things progress in the game.

That and I have always joined existing campaigns that were at least starting at level 7 on up.

[Farcaster]

Does anyone else sit down and map their character's progression out 1st through 20th level, including feats and PrC?

My players have this habit of mapping their character's out using Excel and figuring out exactly where they are going to put their points, what feats they are going to get when, and what order they are going to raise their ability scores. This drives me INSANE. It wouldn't bother me so much if they didn't then become so rigid and resistant to straying from their path. My feeling is that skills should represent what your character is actually learning. For example, one of the characters in my game did a ton of research about the Underdark in preparation for some exploration the group wanted to do. But, even after this and after the party had spent months in the Underdark, the player was still resistant to putting points in any Knowledge (Underdark) skill. Why? Because it would upset the carefully crafted progression tree the player had already built. Hogwash!

For my characters, I believe that their skill progression should be fluid. Although I do have a general plan of how I am going to qualify for a PrC or feat at a certain level, I am completely open to changing those plans if it is appropriate.

Just curious... if your party needed a fighter and you agreed to run a combat oriented character, why not play a paladin, or a fighter with a bunch of healing potions?

Paladin's only real healing is in their one shot LoH and potions get expensive and are only effective to a certain level inside of combat. I love playing clerics myself. They have decent combat abilities and at the same time have an expansive array of spell options at their disposal. And, and has been mentioned, with the right combination of spells, they become deadly melee combatants. In the aggregate, they are not as effective filling the role of the primary warrior, but they are more effective fill that role than a primary warrior (paladin or ranger) would be at filling the role of healer. So, they are an excellent choice if you need both.

I'm considering getting Skill Focus (concentration).

Do you already have the Combat Casting feat? That adds +4 instead of +3 to your concentration check. But, yeah, this is an absolute must of a battle cleric.