POLL: Warrior/Cleric (multi or dual)-- looking for a power class here!

Remove all ads!

Just a friendly debate I'm having with a buddy of mine, so I wanted some outside opinions here.

What's the most powerful of these four:

1)Half-Elf Cleric/Ranger: Access to both Cleric and Druid spells, stealth (if wearing light armor), ** in Dual Weilding.

2)Dwarf Fighter/Cleric: Huge bonuses to Saves vs. Magic and Poison (based on CON).

3)Human Berserker->Cleric: Faster spellcasting advancement, Grandmastery (assume no "fixes" for purposes of this poll, please) in any melee weapon, only * in slings, Rage confers multiple attack bonuses and defensive bonuses. A huge negative in this build is the "holdover" time, after you've switched from Fighter to Cleric.

4)Half-Elf Fighter/Mage/Cleric: Adding some wizardry into the mix. This has pros and cons: You get a higher Lore, can use more items (wands, ect), but can't cast spells in most armors and will have lower Hit Points than any of the above. The F/M/C also advances slower than any of the other choices.

This thread has been influenced by this old topic.

Poll Information
This poll contains 1 question(s). 18 user(s) have voted.
You may not view the results of this poll without voting.

Poll Results: Warrior/Cleric (multi or dual)-- looking for a power class here! (18 votes.)

Warrior/Cleric (multi or dual)-- looking for a power class here! (Choose 1)
* Half-Elf Cleric/Ranger - 61% (11)
* Dwarf Fighter/Cleric - 11% (2)
* Human Berserker->Cleric - 22% (4)
* Half-Elf Fighter/Mage/Cleric - 6% (1)

 

I vote for the Cleric/Ranger...

Druid spells really make a world of difference here, way more than an extra couple of THAC0 points, or a few wizard spells...

1)Iron Skins (unbreachable by the way),

2)Natures Beauty (guaranteed permanent Blindness on all enemies around you...no one is immune, except for MR of course)

3)Greater Elemental Summoning for those times you want to hang back and watch the fun...or are low on health and need a helping hand.

4)Insect Plague...THE Anti-Mage spell.

5) Creeping Doom...I was wrong about Insect Plague, this one is even better! Twice the damage!

Need I go on? This is way better than a few third or fourth level wizard spells which would cost you high level cleric casting as well by the way.

Ranger/Cleric multiclass ALSO gets the Warrior HLAs which the Berserker/Cleric does not! (FMC is not in the fray...he's just too bad as a Warrior Cleric)

Therefore, R/C gets my vote.

 

Ranger/Cleric too, it's way better than all the other options. In fact it's so powerful that it soon becomes quite boring.
The only thing the Berserker gets is the immunity to Maze and Imprisonment which is not essential, without Baldurdash or the ease of use mod grand mastery is a waste of proficiency points.
The dwarf may look good but at higher level the saves won't make much of a difference.
3 classes is just bad, it takes ages to level up and you end up with a character that doesn't get the most of any of these classes.

 

Re: Faraaz:

Isn't Greater Elemental Summoning a Druid HLA? I don't know if Cleric/Rangers get those.

 

R/C do get the Greater Elemental Summoning.

 

Wow, that's huge.

 

@Ruin:
I don't think R/Cs get Greater Elemental Summoning. Clerics can get the regular Elemental Summoning, which can occasionally call forth one of the Elemental Princes, but Greater Elemental Summoning is a Druid HLA. Maybe you're thinking of Fighter/Druids.

 

Cleric/Ranger is an ultimate killing machine (with Runnehammer +5 and FoA+5)

 

C/R kick all ass. Just Ironskin worth it cause you don't need heavy armor and you can be stealthy everytime.

The only thing I don't like with clerics. I don't understand why they can't use blade. When it's dualed with a fighter you still don't have slashing weapons. Anybody know where this law come from?

 

I've never been able to find a defiitive answer, but I have two ideas:

1)Game balance (They're almost as good as Fighters, esp. in the early editions where there were no extra attacks or specialization).

2)At one point in the middle ages, the church put a law out saying that heretics could be tortured, but blood could not be spilt. I know blunt weapons still shed blood, but this is my wacky idea.

 

I went with the R/C as well. If you were looking to solo, I'd probably reccomend the Berserker/Cleric instead. Meet up with the wrong lich without the appropriate stuff to kill it with and the only who'll have a chance is the Berserker/Cleric due to imprisonment.

 

i don't play dnd on pnp but I read in an FR novel based on an older game (Pool of Radiance iirc) that the reason why clerics can't use bladed weapons is because when you use one, "the battle lust takes over and you follow the blade, which is unacceptable because you must puut nothing before your deity". not a direct quote but the general idea is there. sounds like crap to me though

 

Meh, no class with 1 attack/round is a good class

 

Use BG1! Dual your ranger into a cleric at level 2, then you get hi-level cleric spells faster, and more of them.

If you don't like the cleric weapon restrictions, go download the Ashes of Embers mod.

 

What? Whoa!? You still get all the druid spells if you do that?

 

dual classing a ranger to a cleric at any time really isn't that bad unless you put your ranger levels really high. If you are like me you always have two divine casters in the party at all times. Anyway Ranger/Clerics really take the cake so to speak because imprisonment dosn't happen that often and when it does send in your npcs that are invulnerable to that spell and thrash him!

 

Yep, I've tested it.

 

Yes, C/Rs are ungodly powerful. If Creeping Doom doesn't get 'em, the FoA will; the only "con" is that it makes things almost too easy! Mind you, it's still not as dull as playing a monk can be...

EDIT: There wasn't an option for Human Ranger(9)/Cleric(x), which is what I'd say was the most powerful combination. I like the more rapid gain of Cleric spells here, rather than the Multi-class, even with HLAs, it's nice to get maximised Turn Undead, so you can turn liches! Sadly, I don't think the same trick works with demi-liches, or at least you need to be really high level.

 

I would recommend dual-classing at lvl 13...because you get all the extra attacks you're going to get from being a fighter type class. After that, you're not going to get any more attacks from leveling up, just bonuses to your THAC0, which is what a cleric is for with goodies like RIghteous Magic, Holy Power, Champion's Strength etc etc.

Go 4 more levels with Ranger before you dual-class, lvl 9 is useless.

 

I agree, Faraaz. If you have ToB installed, level 13 is the level to dual class at. The only exception I can think of, IMHO, is for people who play fighter -> Druids. That's because, IIRC, it takes a really long time to get Druid level 14. If I'm wrong, and it's 15 that's really hard, then just ignore these last few sentences.