It would appear that the death domain was designed for the cleric of an evil god of death and undeath. They went so far as to hide it in the DMG as a villainous option, alongside the antipaladin, which is quite the strange decision considering the PHB's school of necromancy for wizards and the SCAG's undying patron for warlocks (or any warlock patron for that matter).
Kelemvor, I hear, is a different sort of reaper. He does not consider himself an enemy of the living or the dead, while he will not tolerate the mess that is the living dead. Anyway, the (only) suggested domain for the god and his clerics is death.
How well does it refluff? Can you efficiently fight the undead as a death cleric?
I have a friend who played a cleric of Kelemvor in 4e. His character spent much of the campaign trying to lift a curse that kept a soul bound to a weapon. The cleric also made clear that he would never try to resurrect anyone, not even with a ritual that brings you back completely alive. There is a possibility my friend might want to adapt that character for 5e, but I fear it wouldn't work so well.
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For that reason, I basically used the DMG's Death Domain, but swapped out the undead summoning spells for things more appropriate, like Speak with Dead, which you mentioned. While it is true that doomguides do not herald death, I feel that, if people are seen as unworthy, the clerics will force them upon their journey to the Fugue Plane. Cleric: Death Domain The Death domain is concerned with the forces that cause death, as well as the negative energy that gives rise to undead creatures. Deities such as Chemosh, Myrkul, and Wee Jas are patrons of necromancers, death knights, liches, mummy lords, and vampires. Nov 25, 2016 Death By Review New cleric domains from Unearthed Arcana Date: November 25, 2016 Author: Jacky Leung 0 Comments So another update from Wizards of the Coast for their Unearthed Arcana column has revealed that between Jeremy Crawford and Mike Mearls, there was a great need for playtest material to be churned and processed by the community. Unlike other domains, clerics of life and death are not bound to their god. Rather, clerics draw from forces that give gods their power, bypassing the gods completely. If a typical cleric is a scientist, then a cleric of life and death would be a philosopher; studying abstract, immaterial concepts and applying it. Overall, the Grave domain doesn’t feel convincingly death-priest-y to me, until you pick up Keeper of Souls at 17 th level. The domain’s playstyle is a Life cleric who would rather let you fall than heal you first. I would like to see a lot more thematic clarity in this domain’s features, if and when there’s a revision posted or published.
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The domain of life and death taps it's worshipers into fundamental, cosmic forces. Unlike other domains, clerics of life and death are not bound to their god. Rather, clerics draw from forces that give gods their power, bypassing the gods completely. If a typical cleric is a scientist, then a cleric of life and death would be a philosopher; studying abstract, immaterial concepts and applying it to the world around them. The domain focuses not only on manipulating life and death, but of understanding why life and death exist. By following this domain, clerics seek to correct flaws in natural law, either for the good of the realm, or for personal gain.
Clerics of this domain may still take of the cause of a god, though their god will not be the source of their power. If you do not choose a god, your divine focus is of a holy rune of your creation.
You seek to understand the natural cycle of life and death, and manipulate it to your beliefs. |
Cleric Level | Spells |
---|---|
1st | cure wounds, inflict wounds |
3rd | spiritual weapon, prayer of healing |
5th | animate dead, vampiric touch |
7th | guardian of faith, death ward |
9th | contagion, Raise dead |
Not Yet Your Time[edit]
At 1st level, you gain proficiency with Constitution saving throws. You and all allies within 10 feet of you add your proficiency bonus to death saving throws. This increases to 30ft at level 17
When you choose this domain at 1st level, you gain proficiency with Heavy Armor.
Channel Divinity: Your Time Has Come[edit]
At 2nd level, you can manipulate divine energy to mark the last days of your enemy. When a creature within 30 feet of you is hit by a weapon attack, you can use your channel divinity as a reaction to deal extra radiant or necrotic damage equal to your Wisdom modifier + twice your cleric level. You may use this power after you hear if the creature survived the attack.
Death Domain Cleric 5e Dmg 2
Token of Life[edit]
At 6th level, you can create a token tied to the healing energies of the universe. At the end of a long rest, you can craft a token of life. It appears as a coin bearing the shape of your holy rune. Whoever carries this coin gains temporary hit points equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of 1) + twice your cleric level. The hit points do not regenerate, even if the coin is passed to a new bearer.
Divine Strike[edit]
At 8th level, you gain the ability to infuse your weapon strikes with divine energy. Once on each of your turns when you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can cause the attack to deal an extra 1d8 radiant or necrotic damage to the target. When you reach 14th level, the extra damage increases to 2d8.
Master of the Cycle[edit]
At 17th level, once on each of your turns whenever you deal radiant or necrotic damage, you can restore half that many hit points to yourself or an ally within 30 feet of you. Or deal half that damage to another enemy within 30 feet of you.
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D&d 5e Death Domain Cleric
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