cleric entry in to shadowcraft mage question.

[morkendi]

So i understand most of it. If I take baravar cloakshadow as my god, I can take illusion as my alt for spontaneous casting instead of healing. Plan on asking if DM will allow shadow as my second. Thing is, you have to be able to cast a shadow spell to enter class. What cleric spells have shadow as discripter? I want to enter as strait cleric if possible.

[BowStreetRunner]

Dark Way is a 2nd level cleric spell in the Spell Compendium.

Otherwise, Lords of Darkness from the Forgotten Realms setting has Skull of Secrets and Triple Mask.

[Exirtadorri]

As i read most classes like that...being able to is not a problem for divine casters. All divine spells are on your list are able to be cast. This applies to a wizard who must have it in his spell book

[morkendi]

Yes, i just didn't see anything divine with shadow low enough. Shadow way will qualify me no issue. Looks like 7 lvls cleric will allow entry at 8. Using spontaneous casting on illusion instead of healing with full cleric progression on spell lvl. Divine metamagic should make things interesting. Doing this because my dm makes cohorts for leadership have a reason to follow you. My main character is shadowcraft mage useing wizard as base class. Party doesn't have a cleric. If I do this, I can reason that the cleric is under me for training.

[Keld Denar]

Because Earth Spell it's its own early entry technique, you can technically cast 4th level spells at level 5. Just take any 2nd level spell (like Dark Way), heighten it to 3rd, and as long as you are touching ground, Earth Spell grabs it and bumps it up to 4th. It is, for all purposes, a 4th level spell.

The only trouble there is fitting in 3 feats before 5, which is tough as a non-human without the wizard bonus feat, assuming you aren't playing with flaws.

[morkendi]

Lvl 8 is where this cleric would be. Feats are channel energy, selective channeling, spell focus illusion, highten spell, extra turning. This is with 2 flaws. 9th will be devine highten, 12 earth sense, 15 earth spell, 18 i forgot the name, but will up the reality again.

[Keld Denar]

Why are you going ScM, but waiting so long to get Earth Spell online? That seems....a waste. Sure, there are other illusions that work with it...but then you are always a level behind. Earth Spell makes Shadow Illusion function at the level the spell is cast. So a 5th level slot (containing a Heightened Silent Image) would mimic a 5th level spell using Earth Spell. Without it, the highest you could mimic is 4th level.

[Spuddles]

What's the alternate ability with illusions you speak of, and what book can I find it in?

[morkendi]

Domain spontanity from ph2 allows you to sub one of your gods domains instead of spontaneous heals. Most gnome gods have illusion. Sub that and you can spontaneous cast your silent image and such that you use for scm. Only way you can do more than 1 a day because it is domain spell.

I may move extra turning farther out and do earth sense and earth spell at 9 an 12. I wouldn't get shadow evocation till 11 anyway. Character has full viability as a cleric as he is not loosing any caster lvls. He will finish scm at 13 and go to shadow crafter or something.