How does a cleric gain spells?

[SlashRunner]

As a person who is new to D&D and is getting all his information from the SRD, I could not find a reference anywhere to how clerics gains spells. I know that they know all 0th and 1st level spells by default, but how do they gain spells of different levels?

[Lateral]

They know all spells on their class list, and can prepare any spell they can cast. Domain spells can only be prepared in domain slots.

[erikun]

Preparing Divine Spells (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicOverview/divineSpells.htm)

Time of Day
A divine spellcaster chooses and prepares spells ahead of time, just as a wizard does. However, a divine spellcaster does not require a period of rest to prepare spells. Instead, the character chooses a particular part of the day to pray and receive spells. The time is usually associated with some daily event. If some event prevents a character from praying at the proper time, he must do so as soon as possible. If the character does not stop to pray for spells at the first opportunity, he must wait until the next day to prepare spells.

Spell Selection and Preparation
A divine spellcaster selects and prepares spells ahead of time through prayer and meditation at a particular time of day. The time required to prepare spells is the same as it is for a wizard (1 hour), as is the requirement for a relatively peaceful environment. A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell.

Divine spellcasters do not require spellbooks. However, such a character’s spell selection is limited to the spells on the list for his or her class. Clerics, druids, paladins, and rangers have separate spell lists. A cleric also has access to two domains determined during his character creation. Each domain gives him access to a domain spell at each spell level from 1st to 9th, as well as a special granted power. With access to two domain spells at each spell level—one from each of his two domains—a cleric must prepare, as an extra domain spell, one or the other each day for each level of spell he can cast. If a domain spell is not on the cleric spell list, it can be prepared only in a domain spell slot.
Sorry, but I don't have my PHB handy so I'm not sure which page it is on. It is in the general Magic chapter though, before the list of spells chapter.

[Shpadoinkle]

By leveling up.

[AslanCross]

They already know all the spells they can cast. As they level up, they gain access to higher levels. They typically gain a higher level of spells every odd level.

[slaydemons]

+ 1 to everything unless your using that variant rule in the phb where they learn it from scrolls like wizards

[SlashRunner]

Ok, I just wanted to know whether they gained ALL of every level of spells by default (SRD wording wasn't very clear to me).

[erikun]

They simply have access to all spells of the appropriate level, yes. If you are including spells from a splatbook, for example, those spells would be freely available as long as the cleric can cast them. They don't need to find a scroll and "transcribe" it into the equilivant of a spellbook.

It is entirely possible for a DM to use a quest for the cleric character to "re-discover" these "lost" spells of a splatbook, but in general the cleric can prepare any spell from any book of the appropriate level.

[holywhippet]

Ok, I just wanted to know whether they gained ALL of every level of spells by default (SRD wording wasn't very clear to me).

There's only one real exception of the top of my head - certain spells have keywords like Good or Evil. In order to cast them you can't be of an opposing alignment - so a good cleric can't cast evil aligned spells and vice versa. I think neutral clerics can cast both.

[Curmudgeon]

I know that they know all 0th and 1st level spells by default, but how do they gain spells of different levels?

They know all spells on their class list, and can prepare any spell they can cast.

They already know all the spells they can cast.
I'm afraid all of you have this wrong.
Clerics meditate or pray for their spells. Each cleric must choose a time at which he must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation or supplication to regain his daily allotment of spells. Time spent resting has no effect on whether a cleric can prepare spells. A cleric may prepare and cast any spell on the cleric spell list, provided that he can cast spells of that level, but he must choose which spells to prepare during his daily meditation. Clerics don't know any spells on a permanent basis. Rather, they may cast spells which they have prepared after praying for them. Other than that they have no spell knowledge.

This distinction doesn't matter to a pure Cleric character, but does have significant implications for various multiclass combinations.

The devil's in the RAW details. :smallwink:

[Morph Bark]

There's only one real exception of the top of my head - certain spells have keywords like Good or Evil. In order to cast them you can't be of an opposing alignment - so a good cleric can't cast evil aligned spells and vice versa. I think neutral clerics can cast both.

True Neutral - they go all four ways.

(Pompey: "Fourways? That is so hot.")

[HalfDragonCube]

The Archivist (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ex/20051007a&page=3) class is available if you really want to learn divine spells from scrolls and stuff. It is quite good.

[house.au]

Preparing Divine Spells (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicOverview/divineSpells.htm)

Time of Day
A divine spellcaster chooses and prepares spells ahead of time, just as a wizard does. However, a divine spellcaster does not require a period of rest to prepare spells. Instead, the character chooses a particular part of the day to pray and receive spells. The time is usually associated with some daily event. If some event prevents a character from praying at the proper time, he must do so as soon as possible. If the character does not stop to pray for spells at the first opportunity, he must wait until the next day to prepare spells.

Spell Selection and Preparation
A divine spellcaster selects and prepares spells ahead of time through prayer and meditation at a particular time of day. The time required to prepare spells is the same as it is for a wizard (1 hour), as is the requirement for a relatively peaceful environment. A divine spellcaster does not have to prepare all his spells at once. However, the character’s mind is considered fresh only during his or her first daily spell preparation, so a divine spellcaster cannot fill a slot that is empty because he or she has cast a spell or abandoned a previously prepared spell.

Divine spellcasters do not require spellbooks. However, such a character’s spell selection is limited to the spells on the list for his or her class. Clerics, druids, paladins, and rangers have separate spell lists. A cleric also has access to two domains determined during his character creation. Each domain gives him access to a domain spell at each spell level from 1st to 9th, as well as a special granted power. With access to two domain spells at each spell level—one from each of his two domains—a cleric must prepare, as an extra domain spell, one or the other each day for each level of spell he can cast. If a domain spell is not on the cleric spell list, it can be prepared only in a domain spell slot.
Sorry, but I don't have my PHB handy so I'm not sure which page it is on. It is in the general Magic chapter though, before the list of spells chapter.


I'm afraid all of you have this wrong. Clerics don't know any spells on a permanent basis. Rather, they may cast spells which they have prepared after praying for them. Other than that they have no spell knowledge.

This distinction doesn't matter to a pure Cleric character, but does have significant implications for various multiclass combinations.

The devil's in the RAW details. :smallwink:

So a Cleric doesn't need to rest to gain more spells... but for some arbitrary reason they can only receive spells from their deity once per day?

Consider the imagined case of Dr Cleric.

The temple he resides in is the equivalent of a hospital, all about healing the sick. He wakes up, thanks Dr God or whoever for his spells, then gets stuck in casting them to heal all of his "patients". He could probably get that out of the way within an hour right? However he can't petition his god for more spells right away. Even if he went for an 8 hour kip he still wakes up within the same 24-hour cycle, and thus can't receive any more spells, is that right?

I know it states that this is usually based around a certain time of day, but what if this deity is unusual in that regard, and happy to be prayed to at any old time? He still can't pray more than once in that period? It kind of brings to mind the Gremlins 2 quote "It's always midnight somewhere."

Maybe this is just one of those "because I said so" things for game balance, but I'm curious as to if anyone has a clever explanation :)

[lightningcat]

So a Cleric doesn't need to rest to gain more spells... but for some arbitrary reason they can only receive spells from their deity once per day?

Consider the imagined case of Dr Cleric.

The temple he resides in is the equivalent of a hospital, all about healing the sick. He wakes up, thanks Dr God or whoever for his spells, then gets stuck in casting them to heal all of his "patients". He could probably get that out of the way within an hour right? However he can't petition his god for more spells right away. Even if he went for an 8 hour kip he still wakes up within the same 24-hour cycle, and thus can't receive any more spells, is that right?

I know it states that this is usually based around a certain time of day, but what if this deity is unusual in that regard, and happy to be prayed to at any old time? He still can't pray more than once in that period? It kind of brings to mind the Gremlins 2 quote "It's always midnight somewhere."

Maybe this is just one of those "because I said so" things for game balance, but I'm curious as to if anyone has a clever explanation :)

It falls into the ritual component of prayer. It has less to do on the deity's side than it does on the character's side. Yes, I know its not logical. But we are talking about the Faithful.

[evillemming]

My understanding is that he/she needs 8 hours of uninterrupted rest before he can refresh his spells again, even if he uses them all up within an hour of getting that morning, he would have to rest 8 hours before getting them again.

I am at work right now and don't have time to confirm this, but I would assume that there is *not* a 24hr timer in place here -- meaning if you can convince the DM that your character is tried enough from casting all those spells that morning you could just go right back to bed and have your full complement of spells again by mid-afternoon.

Also, I believe that after the 8 hours rest you need one more hour of meditation to actually acquire all the spell triggers.

[house.au]

My understanding is that he/she needs 8 hours of uninterrupted rest before he can refresh his spells again, even if he uses them all up within an hour of getting that morning, he would have to rest 8 hours before getting them again.

I am at work right now and don't have time to confirm this, but I would assume that there is *not* a 24hr timer in place here -- meaning if you can convince the DM that your character is tried enough from casting all those spells that morning you could just go right back to bed and have your full complement of spells again by mid-afternoon.

Also, I believe that after the 8 hours rest you need one more hour of meditation to actually acquire all the spell triggers.

Hmmm see I'm honing in on this section quoted above (and re-quoted below with my emphasis).


However, a divine spellcaster does not require a period of rest to prepare spells.

I'd be pretty happy with the idea of being able to cast fresh spells every eight (or nine) hours, but it specifically mentions that rest is not a pre-requisite, so I'm wondering what constraint there is. If as lightningcat says it's about the ritual of the Cleric rather than the diety being unwilling, then a chaotic cleric who don't need no rules about when to pray has a huge advantage :smallcool:

[dextercorvia]

Clerics can only prepare spells once per 24 hours at a predetermined time of day. They require no rest.

Plane shift and time travel could be useful here. A good cleric finding a plane of perpetual sunrise.... Bliss.

[sreservoir]

you still have the clause which says you can't use slots used in the past eight hours.

[ThiefInTheNight]

From a game mechanics perspective, a Cleric can only pray for spells at a certain time of day, and therefore only may gain new spells once every 24 hours.

The fluff for why this is so is left ambiguous by WotC, intentionally I imagine, and is entirely setting-dependent. I.e. ask your DM why things work that way. Might be a limitation on the gods, or on your character, or maybe the gods are just jerks like that. Depends on the setting.

[house.au]

you still have the clause which says you can't use slots used in the past eight hours.


Depends on the setting.


Clerics can only prepare spells once per 24 hours at a predetermined time of day. They require no rest.


All good points. Sorry for the thread necromancy!

[turkishproverb]

How does a cleric gain spells?

Quite well, thank you for asking.

[2xMachina]

Go to a planet with an 8 hour day. Proceed to get your spells 3x faster than anyone.