Evil Cleric with Cure Light?

[hennasmith]

I feel like I'm missing something. To start from the beginning:

I'm DMing my group, which includes my regular DM and my rules-lawyer husband. We've just concluded Scourge of the Howling Horde, and have begun The Shattered Gates of Slaughtergarde. I'm doing my homework like a good little DM, and prepping/adjusting the encounters to actually be a challenge for my group. I got as far as encounter L16, Nambrakh, and got stumped.

Reading his info, he's an Evil cleric of an Evil god. And his prepped spells include Cure Light Wounds. In his tactics, he will cast it on himself if he gets down below whatever number of hitpoints.

In RAW, there are allignment restrictions on some spells, and to my knowlege, this included the cure/inflict spells. Am I missing something really obvious here? Or is this a glitch in the book?

I may switch it to a couple of cure light potions instead, but wanted the playgrounds opinion too. :smallsmile:

[AmberVael]

There is no alignment restriction on cure and inflict spells. What you're thinking of is that depending on alignment, clerics can spontaneously cast either cure or inflict.

An evil cleric cannot spontaneously cast a cure spell, but they can still prepare it.

[Psyren]

Evil clerics can prepare and cast cure spells just fine. What they can't do is spontaneously convert other spells into them. It sounds like your player is in the clear.

[supermonkeyjoe]

There are no restrictions on preparing cure/inflict spells but good clerics can spontaneously swap out a spell for the equivalent levelled cure X wounds spell and the same with the inflict X wounds spells for evil clerics.

The only other spell restrictions for good and evil clerics are if a spell has the [Good] or [Evil] descriptor which neither Cure or Inflict spells do

[Fax Celestis]

Alignment restrictions on cure/inflict are only for casting those spells spontaneously. A cleric of any alignment can still prepare curative or inflicting spells: they just can't convert a prepared spell into one unless they have a particular alignment.

This text:

Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells
A cleric can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to his own or his deity’s (if he has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaos, evil, good, and law descriptors in their spell descriptions.
...refers to spells that have a particular descriptor, like holy word (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/holyWord.htm) (note the [Good] tag). Cure light wounds (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/cureLightWounds.htm) does not have that tag.

I think you are thinking of this text:

Spontaneous Casting
A good cleric (or a neutral cleric of a good deity) can channel stored spell energy into healing spells that the cleric did not prepare ahead of time. The cleric can "lose" any prepared spell that is not a domain spell in order to cast any cure spell of the same spell level or lower (a cure spell is any spell with "cure" in its name).

An evil cleric (or a neutral cleric of an evil deity), can’t convert prepared spells to cure spells but can convert them to inflict spells (an inflict spell is one with "inflict" in its name).

A cleric who is neither good nor evil and whose deity is neither good nor evil can convert spells to either cure spells or inflict spells (player’s choice). Once the player makes this choice, it cannot be reversed. This choice also determines whether the cleric turns or commands undead.
...which explicitly applies only to spontaneous conversion of spells.

Hope this helps.

[Arc_knight25]

Evil clerics can still prepare cure spells. They just can't cast them spontaneously. Much like a Good cleric can prep inflict spells but can't spontaneously cast inflict spells.

Cure spells don't have the good descriptor, they have the healing descriptor and are Conjuration.

Inflict spells are just necromancy.

So no good or evil in either descriptor so safe for cleric use.

[Spore]

You can heal as an evil cleric. No problem. The spell hasn't even got the good descriptor. Because it matter whom you are healing it with.

Also, using CLW is basically a wasted combat turn for any cleric that isn't getting 10+ bleeding damage.

[Lord Haart]

Be warned, though: the "glitch in the book" version didn't prove to be true in this particular case, but it would be fallacious to discount it later in similar cases based on that. In fact, empirical data shows that D&D rulebooks in general but NPC stat blocks even more so contain an awful lot of glitches, so for many people it's a go-to explanation.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Yeesh! I can't believe these stereotypes people have! Just because I'm evil doesn't mean I like to spend every waking moment causing unending pain and suffering to people. I only do that about 30% of the time.

Evil clerics need to heal things too, you know!

*casts Mass Inflict Light Wounds*

*stomps off in a huff*

[Captnq]

Well, besides it being a waste of an action to use, yes, he can memorize it and cast it. Lesser Vigor is a much better choice.

HERE (http://www.minmaxboards.com/index.php?topic=4829.0) is my thread on every conjuration (Healing) spell and how to use them.

[hennasmith]

Thank you all! Now I'm wondering if my regular DM houseruled that... Hmm.

[Juhn]

Reading his info, he's an Evil cleric of an Evil god. And his prepped spells include Cure Light Wounds. In his tactics, he will cast it on himself if he gets down below whatever number of hitpoints.He has CLW prepared because he's an evil cleric. If he was a Good cleric (or Neutral cleric who channels positive energy), he wouldn't ever need to prepare Cure spells as he can simply spontaneously swap out any prepared spell for a Cure spell of the equivalent level. Since he's an Evil cleric he can only do that with Inflict spells instead, meaning he has to prepare his healing spells ahead of time.

[Jeff the Green]

It doesn't apply to your character, but a neutral cleric of an evil god, or of a neutral god but that chose to spontaneously inflict, that wants to heal with spells rather than a wand (*shudder*) can take the Spontaneous HealerCD feat.

[Xuldarinar]

Cure and inflict spells, lacking in alignment descriptors, are usable by clerics of all alignments.


I will note, however, that a cleric of Pelor can cast Symbol of Pain, an evil spell.
(Jozan, Cleric of Pelor. Player's handbook, Page 291)

Of course such things have inspired a certain view of pelor, and in me has inspired a prestige class (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=298006).

[John Longarrow]

hennasmith,

Please remember that, while good often frowns upon using evil methods, Evil LOVES to use good methods to its own benefit. Just because its a good spell doesn't mean you can't use it to make someone elses live miserable...

[KillianHawkeye]

I will note, however, that a cleric of Pelor can cast Symbol of Pain, an evil spell.
(Jozan, Cleric of Pelor. Player's handbook, Page 291)

Of course such things have inspired a certain view of pelor, and in me has inspired a prestige class (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=298006).

:smallsigh::smallsigh::smallsigh:

It wasn't Evil in 3.0, which is where the picture originates from. Blame bad editing.

[hennasmith]

hennasmith,

Please remember that, while good often frowns upon using evil methods, Evil LOVES to use good methods to its own benefit. Just because its a good spell doesn't mean you can't use it to make someone elses live miserable...

Thank you! I think this is something I needed to read. This helps me make sense of it all!

[Xuldarinar]

:smallsigh::smallsigh::smallsigh:

It wasn't Evil in 3.0, which is where the picture originates from. Blame bad editing.

Granted, but the resulting inconsistency is still both interesting and amusing.

[Psyren]

:smallsigh::smallsigh::smallsigh:

It wasn't Evil in 3.0, which is where the picture originates from. Blame bad editing.

The Evil Pelor meme is all in good fun the truth beneath all truths!!!

[Greymane]

The Evil Pelor meme is all in good fun the truth beneath all truths!!!

I'm pretty sure that Pelor is Zarus in disguise. Added a beard and everything, he's just missing the Groucho Marx glasses.

[Xuldarinar]

I'm pretty sure that Pelor is Zarus in disguise. Added a beard and everything, he's just missing the Groucho Marx glasses.

That is a relatively popular theory. Personally I prefer pelor being his own entiry, with me favoring the Demon Lord idea (which does have stats).

Edit: Though I would think it interesting if someone tried to portray Pelor as an Elder Evil..

[KillianHawkeye]

Granted, but the resulting inconsistency is still both interesting and amusing.

No it's not. :smallannoyed:

[Yuki Akuma]

No it's not. :smallannoyed:

People find different things interesting and amusing to you?!

Shock!

[CRtwenty]

That is a relatively popular theory. Personally I prefer pelor being his own entiry, with me favoring the Demon Lord idea (which does have stats).

Edit: Though I would think it interesting if someone tried to portray Pelor as an Elder Evil..

Nah, he's not an Elder Evil, he's just an Evil Deity called "The Burning Hate" in disguise. :smallcool:

[Crake]

hennasmith,

Please remember that, while good often frowns upon using evil methods, Evil LOVES to use good methods to its own benefit. Just because its a good spell doesn't mean you can't use it to make someone elses live miserable...

If it's a good spell, sure, but if it's a [Good] spell, then evil clerics, or clerics of evil deities (including neutral clerics of evil deities) are actually explicitly unable to cast those spells.

[Mr Adventurer]

Thank you! I think this is something I needed to read. This helps me make sense of it all!

The idea that curing wounds is inherently good, and inflicting them evil, is baffling.