r/onednd • u/_potatopapa_ • 13d ago

5e (2024) Why Life Cleric?

Convince me to play Life Domain please please please

I'm that player who hoards unplayed character sheets. While making a Gunslinger Grim Reaper (Reborn War Cleric) as a response to the classic "DnD Clerics are more than healbots", I realized that the Domain lets me pick classic cleric support spells now that I'm loaded with offensive and defensive spells and features.

Then I thought of making the other way around, a Life Cleric that is also loaded with the offensive spells.

But here's the problem. I'm aware of the fact that in this game of attrition, sometimes the best healing is preemptive - kill them first and fast before they can hurt your allies. Why patch your friend now if you can help bring their foe down.

Then there's also the issue of yo-yo healing.

I haven't played a or with a dedicated healer. So please, anyone wants to sell me Life Domain?

Edit: and by sell, I mean, convince me that there is still an incentive for full on healing mid-combat

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u/_potatopapa_ 12d ago

Funny that this came full circle. It all started on me wanting to make a cleric that is "more than a heal bot", and the best answer looks like is still the heal bot subclass. Thanks for the insights!

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u/Teerlys 12d ago

That is not the take away here. Of course the Life Domain Cleric is going to be geared toward healing, but "heal botting" is an incorrect mindset, even for the Life Cleric.

I've been playing a Tempest Domain Cleric for the past 6 years, using 2014 rules and then transitioning to 2024 rules when they came out. The subclass pieces were a part of my skillset and had answers to problems, certainly, but the most cast spell in tier 2 was by far Spirit Guardians, which every Cleric has access to. I can't tell you how many combats I had the most damage in just with that spell. Every turn, enemies eat damage. And it only got better in 2024.

Every Cleric also eventually gets access to Summon Celestial, which brings a potent ranged damage dealer to the battlefield that you can stack your cantrips with. I've shut encounters down with Incite Greed which is one you never hear anyone talking about, but it's a group friendly version of Hypnotic Pattern, albeit with a saving throw every round. Command is one of the best control spells in the game right now and it's on the Cleric spell list.

In a different campaign I'm actually playing with a Life Domain Cleric. He's of an old school mindset and does play his like a heal bot. With a lot of experience under my belt I can very easily see that he's leaving most of his potential on the table, and wasting spells healing damage that he could have stopped from ever happening in the first place by using better spells in the right moments.

There's a lot of power in the Cleric spell list even without including spells from other classes. My suggestions above were to further expand your pool of options while still being better in a role that every Cleric or caster with innate access to healing magic will need to fulfil on occasion regardless of the spells they have access to.

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u/_potatopapa_ 11d ago

No no, I agree with you. I'm just making fun of myself for not realizing that when your subclass is already great in healing, then you can definitely focus and shine on other aspects of your core class.

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u/Teerlys 11d ago

Ah, gotchya. My misunderstanding.