Fax Celestis
2014-11-14, 05:11 PM
Customize Domain is an oft-overlooked feat from Dragon Magazine that allows you to switch around the spells granted to you by your domains. This is an incredible feat for any class that gets a domain, especially those that have spellcasting dictated by a domain (such as the Divine Crusader) or who obtain domains (such as via the Seeker of the Misty Isle or the Sovereign Speaker (more on that one later)).
The feat requires two things to function: first, you must have access to the domain you’re swapping spells out on. Second, the spells you’re swapping in must be on a spellcasting list you have access to. A one-level dip in a class gives you access to that class’s spellcasting list, which provides you a good means to gain otherwise-unavailable spells at the cost of one caster level.
Customize Domain
You open up one of your domains to new sources of magical power.
Prerequisite: At least one domain, ability to cast 3rd-level divine spells.
Benefit: Choose one of your cleric domains. You permanently exchange spells on your domain spell list for similar spells on any spell list you have access to. You customize your domain when you choose this feat; you cannot later change your domain spells or return to your original domain spell list. You can only choose to substitute spells that are of equal or lower level and that adhere to the following restrictions by domain. Note that certain spells gain descriptors depending on how they're cast; you can choose such a spell as a spell with the descriptor you require so long as you only cast the spell in such a manner as to give it that descriptor.
Air: Spells with the air or electricity descriptors.
Animal: Spells that specifically affect animals, spells that summon animals, spells that have animals in their name (such as bull's strength and owl's wisdom).
Chaos: Spells with the chaotic descriptor.
Death: Spells that create death effects or that deal with the undead.
Destruction: Evocation spells that deal damage.
Earth: Spells with the earth descriptor.
Evil: Spells with the evil descriptor.
Fire: Spells with the fire descriptor.
Good: Spells with the good descriptor.
Healing: Spells of the healing subschool.
Knowledge: Divination spells.
Law: Spells with the lawful descriptor.
Luck: Abjuration spells or spells that allow a bonus on a d20 roll
Magic: Any kind of spell, but you must select a spell one level lower than normal.
Plant: Spells that specifically affect plants, spells that summon plant creatures, spells that have plants in their names (such as treestride)
Protection: Abjuration spells.
Strength: Spells that grant a bonus to Strength or cause a penalty to Strength.
Sun: Spells with the light descriptor.
Travel: Spells that alter speed or provide movement.
Trickery: Illusion or transmutation spells that alter appearance.
War: Spells that begin with "mass."
Water: Spells with the water descriptor and spells that create or modify water.
Special: You can gain this feat multiple times. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new domain.
While the feat itself indicates only those specific domains as available for customization, we’re going to cover in this guide some other domains with suggested replacement requirements.
Abbreviations
Each replacement option has a few annotations, as follows:
Ad – available with an adept dip.
Ap – available with an apostle of peace dip.
As – available with an assassin dip.
Bd – available with a bard dip.
Be – available with a beguiler dip.
Bl – available with a blackguard dip.
DN – available with a dread necromancer dip.
Do – available with access to a particular domain. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which domain or domains.
Dr – available with a druid dip.
Du – available with a duskblade dip.
Ex – available with an exalted arcanist dip.
Fe – available with a feat, generally an Initiate feat. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which feat.
He – available with a hexblade dip.
Hl – available with a healer dip.
KC – available with a knight of the chalice dip.
NDR – no dip required: already on the cleric list. This is only relevant if you’re using domain spontaneity or a similar effect.
Pa – available with a paladin dip or a level in prestige paladin.
Ra – available with a ranger dip or a level in prestige ranger.
Sa – sanctified spell.
Sh – available with a shugenja dip. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which version, if any, is necessary.
So – available with a sorcerer-only dip.
Tr – available with a trapsmith dip.
TS – available with a telflammar shadowlord dip.
Wa – available with a warmage dip.
Wi – available with a sorcerer or wizard dip. Also possibly available with a spellthief dip if it’s in the right school. I’m not tracking those here.
Wu – available with a wu jen dip. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which version, if any, is necessary.
Annotation such as “2Wi” indicates it is available as a 2nd level sorcerer/wizard spell, which is relevant because you can only transpose spells of equal or lesser level.
Core Domains
Air Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: gaseous form (3), control winds (5), chain lightning (6), whirlwind (8), elemental swarm (air only) (9)
There’s a couple non-standard spells on this list, and for the most part they’re actually pretty good. Unfortunately, the real stinker off this list (elemental swarm) doesn’t have an eligible replacement.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the air or electricity descriptors.”
Decent options for replacement:
Arc of lightning – 4Do (windstorm), 4Dr, 5Wi – basically lightning bolt, except it doesn’t start in your square. Can be pretty effective, but it’s direct damage so YMMV. (SC)
Belker claws – 2Wi – gives you a 2d12 touch attack, plus another one per 3 CL. (SC)
Binding winds – 2Do (Windstorm), 2Dr – holds a creature in its current space. Not a standardized status effect, so nothing is immune to it. (SC)
Defenestrating sphere – 4Wi – lets you throw people out windows. Not the most powerful 4th level spell out there, but it’s certainly hilarious and better than air walk. (SC)
Electric loop – 2Wi – baby chain lightning. Decent for a few levels, but not so hot later on. (SC)
Gust of wind – 2Do (storm, weather), 2Dr, 2Sh (air), 2Wa, 2Wi – useful for any number of things, most notably dissipating obnoxious cloud effects.
Heart of air – 2Dr, 2Wi, 2Wu – really only useful for meshing with the other heart of spells, which necessitates having access to four domains, one for each element. Completely doable, but it also costs four feats. Probably a skipper, all things considered. (CM)
Lightning bolt – 3Ad, 3Wa, 3Wi, 4Sh (fire) – archetypal, ancient, and iconic.
Lightning leap – 5Wi – combined dimension door and lightning bolt. Cool, but probably too high level to really make worthwhile. (CM)
Lightning ring – 8Wi – resist electrical 20, two free 5d6 lightning bolts per round, and anyone adjacent to you takes 10d6 electrical damage. Not the best 8th level spell, but in the right thematically inclined build a pretty fun tool.
Lord of the sky – 5Fe (Initiate of Bahamut), 5Sh (air), 5Wi – grants you a 40’ fly speed (60’ if you’re dragonblooded), or improves your fly speed by 10’. Also gives you a swift-action ranged touch that halves fly speeds of struck creatures (which may make them fall below their minimum forward velocity, depending on their maneuverability, sending them into a stall and crashing). Can also be discharged to cast lightning bolt. Very cool spell. (DrM)
Passage of the shifting sands – 4Dr, 4Wi – basically gaseous form with a better move speed, and if you end your turn in the same square as someone else they’re blinded for one round. You can trade out air walk for this (as it’s a cleric spell anyway) and then pick a new spell for your 3rd level slot. (DrM)
Smoke stairs – 2As, 2Dr – Kind of a neat spell: lets you walk on smoke and gas. Couple with wall of smoke for interesting dynamics. (CScn)
Stolen breath – 2Wi – living, breathing creature must save or be sickened for 1 minute unless it expends a full-round action to cancel the effect. Fairly powerful low-level debuff. (SC)
Storm wall – 4Wi – wall of fire, except electrical. Probably better battlefield control than wall of fire due to fewer natural resistances to electrical damage. (DCS)
Stun ray – 7Wi – ranged touch, Fort or be stunned for 1d4+1 rounds (or just 1 round on a successful save). Generally that’s enough time for someone else to take care of the target. Kind of high level for the effect. (SC)
Animal Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: calm animals (1), hold animal (2), dominate animal (3), summon nature’s ally IV (4), commune with nature (5), animal shapes (7), summon nature’s ally VIII (8), shapechange (9)
Let’s be honest: you’re only here for the shapechange. The rest of this spell list, while unique, is pretty garbage. Thankfully, there’s a good number of available interchangeables.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that specifically affect animals, spells that summon animals, spells that have animals in their name (such as bull's strength and owl's wisdom).”
Animalistic power – NDR – +2 Str/Dex/Con for minutes/level. Pretty good general purpose buff. Won’t stack with bear’s strength and similar, but still can be pretty good with the right application. (PHB2)
Aspect of the werebeast – 4Dr, 4Rg – self-buff that gives you some extra special abilities (improved grab, pounce, or wolf trip). Shifters get extra mileage out of this one. (RoE)
Aspect of the wolf – 1Dr, 1Rg – enabler of much cheese, as it actually changes your type to Animal, which makes you applicable for any number of nonstandard effects (such as awaken or animal growth). Worth it if you plan to enact said cheese, but not very great after the first few levels otherwise. (SC)
Awaken – 5Dr – not terribly relevant in most games, but can be effective in the right circumstances. Also see the mass version (8Dr) in SC.
Bite of the X – 2/3/4/5/6Dr, 3/4/5/6/7Wi – incredible series of self-buffs that give you natural attacks, stat buffs, natural armor, and a bonus feat. Also mesh very well with leaving shapechange as the capstone. Good for a smashy cleric. (SC)
Baleful polymorph – 5Ad, 5Do (Limbo, Gluttony), 5Dr, 4He, 4Wi, 5Wu – turning someone into an animal counts as “specifically affecting animals”, right?
Curse of lycanthropy – 5Do (Pestilence) – Very limited access to begin with, but can be acquired with a domain draught used at the right time. (SC)
Dragonblood beast – 6Dr – gives the touched creature the dragonblood subtype and either 1/2CL natural armor, increased damage for a bite attack, or a fly speed of 90’ (poor). Limited to those with a dragonmark: those with Mark of Handling cast at increased CL. (Drmk)
Lion’s charge – 3Dr, 2Rg – gives you pounce for one round. I don’t need to explain this one. (SC)
Summon nature’s ally – various Dr – summoning is always a cool option, and with one quick Customize Domain application, your cleric with the Animal and Summoner domains is doubling the duration of all their summon spells, and has full access to the entire chain of summon monster and summon nature’s ally.
Embrace the wild – 2Dr, 1Rg - +2 Listen and Spot, low-light vision, and either scent (meh) or blindsense 30’ (!!!). An applicable option here specifically because of the flavor text. (SC)
Megalodon empowerment – 7Do (Seafolk), 8Dr – turns you into a megalodon. Really only relevant in seafaring campaigns, but there are not many seaborne challenges that being a megalodon would make more difficult. (St)
Owl’s insight – 5Dr – touched creature gains an insight bonus to their Wisdom score equal to ½ your caster level for 1 hour, uncapped. This is amaaaaazing, as it basically bumps your save DCs by at least 4 points. It is almost worthwhile to take the druid dip and Customize Domain just for this one spell.
Unicorn blood, unicorn heart, unicorn horn – 3/5/7Dr, 3/5/7Wi – really only effective when used together. Gives you some unicorn-like abilities, and using them together gives you synergy bonuses. (CM)
Wall of vermin – 3Dr – basically creates an immobile swarm of insects in four 5’ squares. Interesting, nonstandard battlefield control. (CScn)
Chaos Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: chaos hammer (4).
This domain is ripe for replacement! Problem is, there really aren’t that many spells with the chaotic descriptor.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the chaotic descriptor.”
Abyssal army – NDR – summons an army of demons to do your bidding. 9th level, but better than summon monster ix (chaotic only).
Anarchic storm – NDR – pours down anarchic rain in the area, killing visibility and harming lawful creatures. 3rd level. Nothing really to write home about.
Embrace the dark chaos – NDR – Well, now here’s one worth mentioning, except (like pretty much anything else that you can sub for this domain) it’s already available to clerics on their regular list, and this one isn’t really a good option for domain spontaneity.
Maw of chaos – 9Wi – Finally a spell that you don’t have access to naturally! And it’s a doozy. Maw of chaos creates a 15’ radius field of pain and dazing for rounds/level. Worlds better than what’s already there.
Soul of anarchy – 2Bd, 2Fe (Initiate of Aasterinian), 2Wi – +5 to escape grapple and Escape Artist checks, plus you and your natural attacks are treated as chaotic-aligned.
Death Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: wail of the banshee (9).
Like the Chaos domain, this domain is ripe for replacement. However, this one has a far broader replacement criterion, so it’s got some better options available to it.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that create death effects or that deal with the undead.”
Animate legion – NDR – for a fourth level slot, animate up to 2 HD/CL creatures in the area as skeletons and zombies. They’re not under your command initially, but in the right circumstances you can fire and forget this as they attack the closest living creatures, or just rebuke them after creating them. (HoB)
Avasculate – 7Do (Deathbound), 7Wi – ranged touch to halve target’s HP, plus stun it. Also see its big brother avascular mass, which does the same thing but hits a bunch of people (8Do (Deathbound), 8Wi). (SC)
Consumptive field – NDR – Empowerer of broken cheese (as is its big brother greater consumptive field). Probably more useful than the standard domain spells, but you still get it natively, so why bother? (SC)
Death hail – 6Do (Winter), 6Dr – AoE ongoing Str and Con damage? Yes please. (Fr)
Detonate – 9Wi – save-or-die-and-explode. Better range than wail of the banshee and can target non-living creatures. (PHB2)
Field of ghouls – 7Do (Hunger) – hard to get access to, but pretty awesome: dying creatures in the AoE die instantly and rise as ghouls under your command. (SC)
Heart ripper – 4As – This is a weird one to get access to, but completely worth it. For a 4th level slot, your target must save or die. On a successful save, they are still stunned for 1d4 rounds. Target must have a heart, so it has to be a living, non-amorphous creature, but it’s still worlds better than the other 4th level save-or-die options: phantasmal killer offers two saves and is illusion, for example. (SC)
Undead lieutenant – 3Wi – If you’re a minion-mancer, this is pretty cool. Plop this on one of your intelligent undead minions (or on another party member, if you happen to have a necropolitan in the party) and let them share the reins for your other minions. (SC)
Destruction Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: disintegrate (7).
Another one rife with spells for replacement. Terrific for a blaster cleric due to the replacement criterion.
Replacement criteria: “Evocation spells that deal damage.” So…basically all the bad ones. I’m not even going to list all of the options. Just pick ones you like. A wizard dip gets you the orbs and manyjaws, druid gets you splinterbolt and vortex of teeth…
Earth Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: soften earth and stone (2), spike stones (4), stoneskin (6), iron body (8), elemental swarm (earth only) (9).
Lots of off-list options here, and all of them are actually pretty good except for elemental swarm and soften earth and stone.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the Earth descriptor.”
Bones of the earth – 6Dr – You can pull pillars of stone from the ground, with which you can crush people or throw them into the sky. Cool by itself, but not worth a 6th level slot…until you notice that the pillars are permanent. Terrific for making permanent fortifications over an extended period of time. Superior to wall of stone for these purposes because wall of stone is 1 inch thick, while pillars made from bones of the earth are five feet thick. (PHB2)
Clearstone – 3Wi – make stone transparent. Can be worthwhile if you mix it with other stone-creation and stone-shaping spells to make a permanent fortification. (LEoF)
Fist of stone – 1Wi – gives you a huge bonus to STR and a natural slam attack. Great for low-level gishing, and remains relevant even in higher levels. (SC)
Giant’s wrath – 3Dr, 3Wi – Pebbles you throw turn into boulders. Meshes very well with magic stone, which you can also get with a druid dip. (SC)
Great worm of the earth – 7Dr, 7Wu (earth) – swallow one creature with a stone worm, effectively removing them from combat and dealing them continuous acid damage until the spell expires or they make a Reflex save as a full-round action. (CM)
Hail of stone – 1Wi – No save, no SR, AoE damage. Who cares if it’s 1d4/level, it’s free. (SC)
Halo of sand – 2Dr, 2Rg – +1/3CL deflection bonus to AC, caps at +4. Not a bad option, especially if you’re already taking the druid dip for some other options on this list. (Sand)
Heart of earth – 4Dr, 4Wi, 4Wu (earth) – double-strength stability, plus temp HP up to twice your CL. Decent on its own, but then you can burn the buff to cast stoneskin on yourself with no material component. (CM)
Mineralize warrior – 6Wi – give a creature the mineral warrior template permanently. Can’t use it on yourself, but you can make the party fighter into a mineral warrior. (Und)
Rain of spines – 4Wu (metal) – 6d6 AoE, knocks prone, and immobilizes. (CM)
Scimitar of sand – 2Dr, 2Wi – basically flame blade, except it doesn’t deal elemental damage and also dehydrates your struck targets. (Sand)
Undermaster – 9Dr, 9Wi – during the spell’s duration, you can use as a standard action any of the following spells as a spell-like ability: earth lock, earthquake, excavate, flesh to stone, meld into stone, move earth, reverse gravity, soften earth and stone, statue, stone shape, stone tell, stone to flesh, transmute mud to rock, transmute rock to mud, tunnel swallow, wall of stone, and xorn movement. The best (and only) replacement option for elemental swarm that doesn’t involve grabbing a lower level spell instead, but man is it a doozy. Expands your spell access amazingly, even if its duration is only 5 rounds. But wait, you’re a cleric! Divine Metamagic and Persistent Spell means you can have this going all day long. (SC)
Evil Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: unholy blight (4).
Like the other alignment domains, this one is pretty ripe for replacement, but unlike the others this one actually has a bunch of options.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the evil descriptor.”
Abyssal army – NDR – See Chaos Domain.
Abyssal rift – 9Do (Entropy), 9Wi – Opens a giant rift in the ground, filled with black fire. Evil conjuration spells get +2 CL, objects and creatures fall in and are blazed with divine fire. Giant flaming tentacles spew from the ground, smacking people nearby. The rift closes in 3 rounds: anyone or anything still inside is flung into a random layer of the abyss. This spell is absolutely ridonkeyculous, and I love it. (FC1)
Aspect of the chromatic dragon – 8Fe (Initiate of Tiamat), 8So – grow four dragon heads and become an aspect of Tiamat. The big winner here is that it’s a swift action cast. (DM)
Avasculate – 7Do (Deathbound), 7Wi – See Death Domain.
Blackfire – 8Wi – ray attack that deals 1d4 Con and nauseates. Anyone killed by the Con damage is disintegrated, and any creature adjacent to the struck creature has to make a Reflex or similarly take damage. In a tight knit bunch, this can be a pretty massive debuff. (SC)
Cheat – 1Bd, 1Do (Greed), 1Wi – More of a fluff thing than anything, but lets you cheat your way through games of chance. Protection from evil is on your regular list, so you might as well replace it with something that isn’t. (Drac)
Consumptive field – NDR – see Death Domain.
Demoncall – 2Bl, 2Do (Demonic) – swift action, gain a +10 profane bonus to a Knowledge (Arcana, Planes, Religion) check. Big bonus of a non-typical bonus type. (FC1)
Demonflesh – 1Bl, 1Do (Demonic) – +1/5CL enhancement bonus to natural armor. Sort of a weaker barkskin at a lower level, but you can get it on your list (while you can’t with barkskin). (FC1)
Demonhide – 2Bl – touched evil creature gains DR 5/cold iron or good. Cold iron and good-aligned weapons are uncommon, especially in the hands of NPCs. (SC)
Devil’s ego – 2Do (Diabolic) - +4 profane to Charisma and changes your type to Outsider, enabling shenanigans with alter self. (FC2)
Fangs of the vampire king – 3As, 3Bl, 3Do (Deathbound) – You gain a bite attack that deals 1 Con damage in addition to its normal damage. Con damage, as usual, is quick and painful. (SC)
Flensing – 8Wi – 8d6 damage and 4d6 Cha damage over four rounds (or double that over eight rounds if you extend it). 4d6 Cha damage is on average enough to put anyone who isn’t a paladin or sorcerer into a coma. (SC)
Hellish horde – NDR – See abyssal army. (SC)
Soul of shadow – 2Bl, NDR – Whenever you cast or are targeted by an inflict spell, you can add extra damage equal to twice the spell’s level. If you also have soul of anarchy or soul of order active, you also get other benefits. (DM)
Touch of Vecna – 5Wi – touched creature takes piddling damage and is permanently paralyzed on a failed Fortitude save. (CM)
Fire Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: burning hands (1), produce flame (2), fire shield (5), fire seeds (6), incendiary cloud (8), elemental swarm (fire only) (9).
Some good nonstandard spells available here, but there’s also a couple other options to trade in for.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the fire descriptor.”
Animate fire – 1Dr – you turn a fire into a Small fire elemental. You have to concentrate, but it can have its uses. (SC)
Combust – 2Wi – Touched creature or object takes 1d8/CL, no save, and has to make a Reflex save or catch on fire. Probably a better option than produce flame. (SC)
Darkfire – NDR – basically produce flame, except its invisible to anything except darkvision and with better damage. If you’re replacing produce flame, you might as well replace resist energy with this. (SC)
Detonate – 9Wi – see Death Domain, except here it’s a much better option than elemental swarm. (SC)
Fatal flame – 2Wi – Basically baby detonate. If the creature dies during the spell’s duration, they explode. (CScn)
Fire shuriken – 2As – automatic proficiency with flaming shuriken that deal 3d6 fire damage and crit on 19-20. There are a number of neat things you can do with this spell. (SC)
Firestride exhalation – 4Wi, 4Wu (fire) – beefed up burning hands coupled with dimension door. Pretty solid, and a whole level lower than lightning leap. (DM)
Flame blade – 2Dr, 2Fe (Initiate of Tzchazzar), 2Sh (fire) – a very solid gish spell: minutes/level duration of touch attacks with a scimitar-like weapon, which you can use with combat feats and similar. Also sets things on fire.
Flame dagger – 2Wi – Basically flame blade except on the sor/wiz list. Useful if you’re doing an arcane dip instead of a druid one.
Haze of smoldering stone – 7Dr, 7Fe (Initiate of Garyx), 6Wi, 6Wu (fire) – bust of fire and bludgeoning damage. If you cast it twice in succession, the second one is stronger. Just knowing the spell gives you universally stacking fire resist 3, and since you’re a whole-list caster, you know the spell regardless of your level. (DM)
Heart of fire – 5Dr, 5Wi, 5Wu (fire) – fire resist 20, +10’ enhancement to speed, and you can burn the enchantment for a fire shield spell. Nowhere near as good as heart of earth even though it’s a higher level. (CM)
Kelgore’s fire bolt – 1Du, 1Wi – decent low-level direct damage that partially bypasses SR. (PH2)
Palarandusk’s fire breath – 2Fe (Initiate of Tchazzar), 2Wi – Allows you to breathe a cone of breath once as a standard action within the next hour. Not really notable aside from the fact that it explicitly counts as a breath weapon, which means it can interact with feats and spells that specifically interact with breath weapons. (CoS:W)
Parboil – 4Wi, NDR – 20’ radius burst 6d6 fire damage, 2d4 Int damage. Fort halves the damage and negates the Int damage. 5th level when cast natively, but 4th on the sor/wiz list. A good candidate for Maximize spell. (Sand)
Scorch – 2Wi – 30’ line of 1d8/2CL fire damage. Atypical shape for fire damage, low enough level it’s relevant damage. Pretty okay for a blasty spell.
Scorching ray – 2Ad, 2Du, 2Fe (Radiant Fire), 2Wa, 2Wi – Available from a variety of sources. Archetypal, and for good reason.
Good Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: holy smite (4).
Like the other alignment domains, this one is pretty ripe for replacement, but unlike the others this one actually has a bunch of options. Of note, most Sanctified spells can get put into this domain.
Replacement critera: “Spells with the good descriptor.”
Angelskin – 2Pa – the lawful good creature touched gains DR 5/evil. Circumstantially worthwhile. (SC)
Aspect of the deity – 6Ap, 7Do (Herald), 6Ex – pretty solid self-buff, gives you a bunch of angelic resistances. (BoED)
Aspect of the deity, greater – 9Ap, 9Do (Herald), 9Ex – Gives you the half-celestial template for a little while and makes you an outsider. Not as awesome as the standard version, but honestly the 9th level spell from this domain is kind of lame anyway, so you might as well replace it with this. (BoED)
Aspect of the deity, lesser – 4Ap, 4Ex, 4KC, 4Pa - +4 CHA and some elemental resists. Not as good as the standard and greater versions. (BoED)
Aspect of the platinum dragon – 7Fe (Initiate of Bahamut), 7So – turns you into an aspect of Bahamut. Swift-action polymorph with a bunch of nice buffs attached. Unfortunately replaces holy word, but you could probably replace holy aura with this instead and still be good with it. (DM)
Faerinaal’s hymn – 2Bd – targeted evil creatures can’t make attacks of opportunity for as long as you concentrate. Can be good if you have a way to pass off concentration. (BoED)
Grave strike – NDR – no idea why this has the good descriptor, but it’s an option. If you’re multiclassing into rogue or something, it could be a good pick. (SC)
Mark of the enlightened soul – NDR – three round duration, any spell you cast of third level or lower deals 50% more damage to evil creatures. All your spells gain the good descriptor. There are shenanigans you can do with that. (DM)
Righteous aura – 4Pa – You shed light like daylight, and you get a +4 sacred bonus to Charisma. Just don’t die, because you’ll explode. (SC)
Soul of light – 2Pa, NDR - Whenever you cast or are targeted by a cure spell, you can add extra damage equal to twice the spell’s level. If you also have soul of anarchy or soul of order active, you also get other benefits. Paladin dip gets you this a level earlier, but this is on your regular list anyway. (DM)
Unicorn blood/heart/horn – see Animal Domain.
Healing Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: nothing. Seriously.
This domain is possibly the best candidate for substitutions, considering only three spells granted by the domain are ones that cleric can’t spontaneously convert to.
Replacement criteria: “Spells of the healing subschool.”
Close wounds – NDR – 2nd level spell, heals 1d4+1/CL as an immediate action within close range. Probably the best combat-healing option available. (SC)
Faith healing – NDR – 1st level spell, basically auto-maximized CLW, but they have to share your deity of choice. (SC)
Hoard life – 4So – lets you store some of your hit points into a gem, which you can destroy later to heal. (RotD)
Invest light/medium/heavy protection – NDR – heals less than an equally leveled cure spell, but also grants DR/evil for one minute. Situationally useful. (PH2)
Magic convalescence – NDR – whenever a healing spell is cast within 20’ of you, you regain 1 HP per level of the spell cast. If you’re going to be doing a lot of healing, definitely worth it. (PH2)
Panacea – NDR – removes any or all of the following conditions: blinded, confused, dazed, dazzled, deafened, diseased, exhausted, fatigued, frightened, nauseated, panicked, paralyzed, shaken, sickened, stunned, sleep, feeblemind, and poison. Also has a little healing. A great Swiss army knife spell, and probably the best option you can use for your 4th level domain option. (SC)
Revivify – NDR – raise dead with no level or Con loss, but can only be cast within 1 round of the target’s death. (SC)
Seed of life – NDR – touched creature gains fast healing 2 for the duration of the spell, or can burn the rest of the duration as a standard action to heal 1d4 for each round burnt. Not as good as panacea. (CCham)
Vigor – NDR – this whole chain of spells is pretty solid for out of combat healing, though the lower levels are more effective than the uppers. Still, if you’re using spontaneous domain casting, then the higher levels could probably be a good substitution for end-of-day top-offs. (SC)
Knowledge Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: detect secret doors (1), detect thoughts (2), clairaudience/clairvoyance (3), legend lore (7), foresight (9).
This domain’s got a lot of non-cleric spells on it to begin with, and most of them are fairly useful, so there’s not much room for replacement here. Plus, a lot of times people drop this domain for Knowledge Devotion instead, so this is probably the least likely candidate for Customize Domain. Still, the option is there. That said, it does have a gigantic spectrum of options for replacements.
Replacement criteria: “Divination spells”.
Alter fortune – NDR – 3rd level spell, targeted creature has to reroll any die roll it just made. Costs 200 xp, but the open-endedness of this spell makes it relatively potent. Attack rolls, saving throws, randomized spell effects, skill checks, critical confirmations… “any” roll” is a very large spectrum of effects. (PH2)
Analyze dweomer – 6Bd, 8Do (Commerce), 6Fe (Whispered Secrets), 6Wi – like identify, but faster and for multiple objects.
Arcane sight – 3Be, 3Fe (Arcane Insight), 1He, 1Tr, 3Wi – superpowered detect magic.
Arcane sight, greater – 7Be, 7Fe (Arcane Insight), 7Wi – superpowered arcane sight. Probably more useful than legend lore.
Arrow mind – 1Rg, 1Wi – Amazing for a zen archer cleric. (SC)
Assay spell resistance – NDR – 4th level spell, gives you a +10 to bypass SR. Good with domain spontaneity. (SC)
Balancing lorecall – 2Dr, 2Rg, 2Wi – If you crossclass Balance, lets you balance on walls and liquids. Kind of cool, but not the best option here. (SC)
Battlemagic perception – NDR – If you’re playing a divine counterspeller, this is a good choice to take with domain spontaneity. Otherwise, pass it by. (HoB)
Choose destiny – 9Do (Destiny) – rounds/level, swift action cast, any time you roll a d20, roll twice and choose which result you want. Very powerful, but the replacement option is foresight. YMMV. (RoD)
Combat readiness – 1As, 1Bd, 1Wi – touched creature gains a +1/3 insight bonus to Initiative checks. Stacks with nerveskitter and an eager weapon. (DotU)
Guided shot – 1Rg, 1Wi – another good one for zen archer clerics. (SC)
Healer’s vision – NDR – +5 insight to Heal checks, cure spells heal +1 HP per spell level. You also gain a +2 bonus on attack and damage when making a precision damage attack. Relatively minor bonus, but could be useful for a little extra oomph for a cleric with hunter’s eye. (CScn)
Healing lorecall – 1Rg, NDR – Natively a 2nd level cleric spell. If you have 5 ranks in heal, your healing subschool spells remove dazing, dazzling, or fatigue. If you have 10, they also remove exhaustion, nausea, and sickening. And you can substitute your Heal ranks for your caster level for healing subschool spells. Relatively minor secondary boost, but it could situationally be useful.
Hunter’s eye – 2Rg – gives you 1d6 sneak attack per 3 CL. Swift action cast, lasts 1 round. Very incredible buff, and persistable. (PH2)
Listening lorecall – 2Dr, 2Rg – you gain a +4 insight to Listen, and if you have 5 ranks you gain blindsense 30’. If you have 12, you gain blindsight 15’. Rather easy to obtain, low-level access to some powerful senses. (SC)
Lore of the gods – NDR – 2nd level spell, gives you +5 insight to Knowledge checks, and you can discharge the spell to make an untrained check or to recheck a Knowledge check. Since you have the Knowledge domain, the spell automatically updates the bonus to +10. (CCham)
Magic savant – 2Bd – You get a +4 insight bonus to UMD. If you’ve got 10 ranks in UMD, you can take 10 on UMD. (CMage)
Moment of prescience – 8Be, 8Do (Competition, Destiny, Elysium, Luck), 8Fe (Arcane Insight), 8Wi – archetypal and awesome. Worlds better than discern location.
See invisibility – 2Ad, 3Bd, 2Be, 3Do (Truth), 2Du, 2He, 2Wu – solid toolbox spell that you can use for pretty much your entire career.
Sniper’s shot – 1As, 1Rg, 1Wi – Like a lot of spells on this list, this spell is good for zen archers. Removes the range limitation on sneak attack, if you have it, which you can acquire from hunter’s eye, also available from a ranger dip. (SC)
True seeing, mass – 9Do (Truth) – Situationally useful. Gives true seeing to 1 creature/2 levels. Probably not the best choice for your 9th level slot, but it’s there. (RoE)
Vital strike – 3As – Your next attack is a sneak attack, regardless of circumstances, unless your target is immune. Very powerful for a hunter’s eye cleric build, but otherwise not worthwhile. Also requires a second dip to acquire if you’re going for hunter’s eye, so it may not be worth the entry cost. (CMage)
Law Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: order’s wrath (4), hold monster (6)
Just like the other alignment domains, ripe for replacement. Even the unique spells are pretty forgettable.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the lawful descriptor.”
Guess what? There’s absolutely nothing notable to put into this domain.
Luck Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: mislead (6), spell turning (7), moment of prescience (8)
Replacement criteria: “Abjuration spells or spells that allow a bonus on a d20 roll.” So…practically any buff ever. I’m not even going to list these. Haste, guidance of the avatar, footsteps of the divine, alter fortune, foresight, nerveskitter, break enchantment, freedom of movement, spell immunity, disjunction, dispel magic… Basically, if it doesn’t deal damage and it’s an abjuration or a buff, you can put it here. This is probably the easiest domain to substitute spells into, aside from the Magic domain.
Magic Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: magic aura (1), identify (2), spell turning (7), protection from spells (8), disjunction (9)
Replacement criteria: “Any kind of spell, but you must select a spell of one level lower than normal.” So basically, you can use Customize Domain as sort of superpowered Eclectic Learning. With a wizard dip, you can grab any wizard spell of 8th level or lower and toss it onto your list. Or the same with druid. Or any bard or duskblade spell. Or whatever. This domain is ridiculously powerful when you customize it. Just go look at a wizard guide or druid guide and pick the greatest hits off their spell suggestions.
Plant Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: entangle (1), barkskin (2), plant growth (3), command plants (4), wall of thorns (5), repel wood (6), animate plants (7), control plants (8), shambler (9)
Surprisingly this entire domain gives you stuff you can’t normally get. Kind of nice, except for the fact that half of them are practically useless. Key replacement options are plant growth, command plants, repel wood, animate plants, and control plants.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that specifically affect plants, spells that summon plant creatures, spells that have plants in their names (such as treestride)”
Changestaff – 7Dr – turn a quarterstaff into a treant. Long duration minion creation spell (hours/level), and treants are great for breaking stuff.
Jungle’s rapture – 5Dr – turn a creature into a tree over a long time via dealing them 1d6 Dexterity drain a day. Once they hit 0, they turn into a tree, permanently. Can’t be dispelled as it’s a curse. I’d take this in the place of repel wood. (SC)
Nature’s purity – 3Dr – force damage that amplifies against undead and constructs, and double amplifies against aberrations. If it kills an aberration, they turn into vegetation. Gives you extra rays like scorching ray, so it can actually throw out some significant damage at higher levels. (LoM)
Plant body – 5Dr – basically makes you a Plant creature for the duration of the spell, including most type-based immunities. Persistable. (SC)
Rot of ages – 1Dr, 1Fe (Initiate of Falazure), 1Wi – target is sickened for 2 rounds. If they’re hit with two in that time, upgrades to nausea. Regardless of their save, considers all creatures as having concealment. Very strong low-level debuff. (DM)
Thorn spray – 4Fe (Initiate of Nature) – split up 1d6 damage/CL among up to 1 creature/level. Creatures you damage must make a Fort save or be sickened for 2d4 rounds. Wow. (PGtF)
Protection Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: mind blank (8), prismatic sphere (9)
See Luck Domain. Basically the same broad-spectrum crazy option frenzy here.
Strength Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: enlarge person (1), stoneskin (6), grasping hand (7), clenched fist (8), crushing hand (9)
If you’re looking to do melee buffs, this is a good domain for you. Comes with a couple non-standard cleric spells, and a lot of potential for substitutions.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that grant a bonus to Strength or give a penalty to Strength.”
Animalistic power – see Animal Domain.
Aspect of the werebeast – see Animal Domain.
Aura of vitality – 7Dr – provides a +4 morale bonus to all physical ability scores to 1 creature/3 levels. Atypical bonus type and gives bonuses to multiple creatures. Kind of high level though. (SC)
Beastland ferocity – 1Bd, 1Dr – basically the Die Hard feat plus a +4 enhancement to Strength. Lower level than bull’s strength, but has the mind-affecting descriptor. (SC)
Bite of the were-x – see Animal Domain.
City’s might – 8Do (City) – You gain an enhancement bonus to Str and Con, and DR, based upon the size of the community you’re in, scales between a +2 to +10 bonus and 2-10/adamantine. If you’re going to spend a lot of time in a big city, this one might be worthwhile, but it’s still exceedingly high level. Still, it’s probably better than clenched fist. (RoD)
Crown of might – NDR – gives touched creature a +2 enhancement bonus to Str for hours/level. They can discharge the spell to get a +8 enhancement bonus to Str for one round. Occupies the head slot. (PH2)
Draconic might – 4Pa, 5Wi – touched creature gains a +4 enhancement to Str, Con, and Cha, and a +4 enhancement bonus to natural armor. Also gains immunity to sleep and paralysis. Amazingly good touch buff, especially since it just requires a prestige paladin dip to acquire. (SC)
Fist of stone – See Earth Domain.
Righteous fury – 3Pa - +4 sacred bonus to Str (so stacks with a lot of traditional options), and 5 temporary HP/CL (max 50. Another good option from a prestige paladin dip. (SC)
Strength of stone – 2Pa – Surprisingly, another prestige paladin dip option. +8 enhancement to Strength, but you can’t leave contact with the ground. Still, for such a low level slot, very big bonus. (SC)
The feat requires two things to function: first, you must have access to the domain you’re swapping spells out on. Second, the spells you’re swapping in must be on a spellcasting list you have access to. A one-level dip in a class gives you access to that class’s spellcasting list, which provides you a good means to gain otherwise-unavailable spells at the cost of one caster level.
Customize Domain
You open up one of your domains to new sources of magical power.
Prerequisite: At least one domain, ability to cast 3rd-level divine spells.
Benefit: Choose one of your cleric domains. You permanently exchange spells on your domain spell list for similar spells on any spell list you have access to. You customize your domain when you choose this feat; you cannot later change your domain spells or return to your original domain spell list. You can only choose to substitute spells that are of equal or lower level and that adhere to the following restrictions by domain. Note that certain spells gain descriptors depending on how they're cast; you can choose such a spell as a spell with the descriptor you require so long as you only cast the spell in such a manner as to give it that descriptor.
Air: Spells with the air or electricity descriptors.
Animal: Spells that specifically affect animals, spells that summon animals, spells that have animals in their name (such as bull's strength and owl's wisdom).
Chaos: Spells with the chaotic descriptor.
Death: Spells that create death effects or that deal with the undead.
Destruction: Evocation spells that deal damage.
Earth: Spells with the earth descriptor.
Evil: Spells with the evil descriptor.
Fire: Spells with the fire descriptor.
Good: Spells with the good descriptor.
Healing: Spells of the healing subschool.
Knowledge: Divination spells.
Law: Spells with the lawful descriptor.
Luck: Abjuration spells or spells that allow a bonus on a d20 roll
Magic: Any kind of spell, but you must select a spell one level lower than normal.
Plant: Spells that specifically affect plants, spells that summon plant creatures, spells that have plants in their names (such as treestride)
Protection: Abjuration spells.
Strength: Spells that grant a bonus to Strength or cause a penalty to Strength.
Sun: Spells with the light descriptor.
Travel: Spells that alter speed or provide movement.
Trickery: Illusion or transmutation spells that alter appearance.
War: Spells that begin with "mass."
Water: Spells with the water descriptor and spells that create or modify water.
Special: You can gain this feat multiple times. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new domain.
While the feat itself indicates only those specific domains as available for customization, we’re going to cover in this guide some other domains with suggested replacement requirements.
Abbreviations
Each replacement option has a few annotations, as follows:
Ad – available with an adept dip.
Ap – available with an apostle of peace dip.
As – available with an assassin dip.
Bd – available with a bard dip.
Be – available with a beguiler dip.
Bl – available with a blackguard dip.
DN – available with a dread necromancer dip.
Do – available with access to a particular domain. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which domain or domains.
Dr – available with a druid dip.
Du – available with a duskblade dip.
Ex – available with an exalted arcanist dip.
Fe – available with a feat, generally an Initiate feat. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which feat.
He – available with a hexblade dip.
Hl – available with a healer dip.
KC – available with a knight of the chalice dip.
NDR – no dip required: already on the cleric list. This is only relevant if you’re using domain spontaneity or a similar effect.
Pa – available with a paladin dip or a level in prestige paladin.
Ra – available with a ranger dip or a level in prestige ranger.
Sa – sanctified spell.
Sh – available with a shugenja dip. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which version, if any, is necessary.
So – available with a sorcerer-only dip.
Tr – available with a trapsmith dip.
TS – available with a telflammar shadowlord dip.
Wa – available with a warmage dip.
Wi – available with a sorcerer or wizard dip. Also possibly available with a spellthief dip if it’s in the right school. I’m not tracking those here.
Wu – available with a wu jen dip. Parenthetical annotation will indicate which version, if any, is necessary.
Annotation such as “2Wi” indicates it is available as a 2nd level sorcerer/wizard spell, which is relevant because you can only transpose spells of equal or lesser level.
Core Domains
Air Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: gaseous form (3), control winds (5), chain lightning (6), whirlwind (8), elemental swarm (air only) (9)
There’s a couple non-standard spells on this list, and for the most part they’re actually pretty good. Unfortunately, the real stinker off this list (elemental swarm) doesn’t have an eligible replacement.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the air or electricity descriptors.”
Decent options for replacement:
Arc of lightning – 4Do (windstorm), 4Dr, 5Wi – basically lightning bolt, except it doesn’t start in your square. Can be pretty effective, but it’s direct damage so YMMV. (SC)
Belker claws – 2Wi – gives you a 2d12 touch attack, plus another one per 3 CL. (SC)
Binding winds – 2Do (Windstorm), 2Dr – holds a creature in its current space. Not a standardized status effect, so nothing is immune to it. (SC)
Defenestrating sphere – 4Wi – lets you throw people out windows. Not the most powerful 4th level spell out there, but it’s certainly hilarious and better than air walk. (SC)
Electric loop – 2Wi – baby chain lightning. Decent for a few levels, but not so hot later on. (SC)
Gust of wind – 2Do (storm, weather), 2Dr, 2Sh (air), 2Wa, 2Wi – useful for any number of things, most notably dissipating obnoxious cloud effects.
Heart of air – 2Dr, 2Wi, 2Wu – really only useful for meshing with the other heart of spells, which necessitates having access to four domains, one for each element. Completely doable, but it also costs four feats. Probably a skipper, all things considered. (CM)
Lightning bolt – 3Ad, 3Wa, 3Wi, 4Sh (fire) – archetypal, ancient, and iconic.
Lightning leap – 5Wi – combined dimension door and lightning bolt. Cool, but probably too high level to really make worthwhile. (CM)
Lightning ring – 8Wi – resist electrical 20, two free 5d6 lightning bolts per round, and anyone adjacent to you takes 10d6 electrical damage. Not the best 8th level spell, but in the right thematically inclined build a pretty fun tool.
Lord of the sky – 5Fe (Initiate of Bahamut), 5Sh (air), 5Wi – grants you a 40’ fly speed (60’ if you’re dragonblooded), or improves your fly speed by 10’. Also gives you a swift-action ranged touch that halves fly speeds of struck creatures (which may make them fall below their minimum forward velocity, depending on their maneuverability, sending them into a stall and crashing). Can also be discharged to cast lightning bolt. Very cool spell. (DrM)
Passage of the shifting sands – 4Dr, 4Wi – basically gaseous form with a better move speed, and if you end your turn in the same square as someone else they’re blinded for one round. You can trade out air walk for this (as it’s a cleric spell anyway) and then pick a new spell for your 3rd level slot. (DrM)
Smoke stairs – 2As, 2Dr – Kind of a neat spell: lets you walk on smoke and gas. Couple with wall of smoke for interesting dynamics. (CScn)
Stolen breath – 2Wi – living, breathing creature must save or be sickened for 1 minute unless it expends a full-round action to cancel the effect. Fairly powerful low-level debuff. (SC)
Storm wall – 4Wi – wall of fire, except electrical. Probably better battlefield control than wall of fire due to fewer natural resistances to electrical damage. (DCS)
Stun ray – 7Wi – ranged touch, Fort or be stunned for 1d4+1 rounds (or just 1 round on a successful save). Generally that’s enough time for someone else to take care of the target. Kind of high level for the effect. (SC)
Animal Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: calm animals (1), hold animal (2), dominate animal (3), summon nature’s ally IV (4), commune with nature (5), animal shapes (7), summon nature’s ally VIII (8), shapechange (9)
Let’s be honest: you’re only here for the shapechange. The rest of this spell list, while unique, is pretty garbage. Thankfully, there’s a good number of available interchangeables.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that specifically affect animals, spells that summon animals, spells that have animals in their name (such as bull's strength and owl's wisdom).”
Animalistic power – NDR – +2 Str/Dex/Con for minutes/level. Pretty good general purpose buff. Won’t stack with bear’s strength and similar, but still can be pretty good with the right application. (PHB2)
Aspect of the werebeast – 4Dr, 4Rg – self-buff that gives you some extra special abilities (improved grab, pounce, or wolf trip). Shifters get extra mileage out of this one. (RoE)
Aspect of the wolf – 1Dr, 1Rg – enabler of much cheese, as it actually changes your type to Animal, which makes you applicable for any number of nonstandard effects (such as awaken or animal growth). Worth it if you plan to enact said cheese, but not very great after the first few levels otherwise. (SC)
Awaken – 5Dr – not terribly relevant in most games, but can be effective in the right circumstances. Also see the mass version (8Dr) in SC.
Bite of the X – 2/3/4/5/6Dr, 3/4/5/6/7Wi – incredible series of self-buffs that give you natural attacks, stat buffs, natural armor, and a bonus feat. Also mesh very well with leaving shapechange as the capstone. Good for a smashy cleric. (SC)
Baleful polymorph – 5Ad, 5Do (Limbo, Gluttony), 5Dr, 4He, 4Wi, 5Wu – turning someone into an animal counts as “specifically affecting animals”, right?
Curse of lycanthropy – 5Do (Pestilence) – Very limited access to begin with, but can be acquired with a domain draught used at the right time. (SC)
Dragonblood beast – 6Dr – gives the touched creature the dragonblood subtype and either 1/2CL natural armor, increased damage for a bite attack, or a fly speed of 90’ (poor). Limited to those with a dragonmark: those with Mark of Handling cast at increased CL. (Drmk)
Lion’s charge – 3Dr, 2Rg – gives you pounce for one round. I don’t need to explain this one. (SC)
Summon nature’s ally – various Dr – summoning is always a cool option, and with one quick Customize Domain application, your cleric with the Animal and Summoner domains is doubling the duration of all their summon spells, and has full access to the entire chain of summon monster and summon nature’s ally.
Embrace the wild – 2Dr, 1Rg - +2 Listen and Spot, low-light vision, and either scent (meh) or blindsense 30’ (!!!). An applicable option here specifically because of the flavor text. (SC)
Megalodon empowerment – 7Do (Seafolk), 8Dr – turns you into a megalodon. Really only relevant in seafaring campaigns, but there are not many seaborne challenges that being a megalodon would make more difficult. (St)
Owl’s insight – 5Dr – touched creature gains an insight bonus to their Wisdom score equal to ½ your caster level for 1 hour, uncapped. This is amaaaaazing, as it basically bumps your save DCs by at least 4 points. It is almost worthwhile to take the druid dip and Customize Domain just for this one spell.
Unicorn blood, unicorn heart, unicorn horn – 3/5/7Dr, 3/5/7Wi – really only effective when used together. Gives you some unicorn-like abilities, and using them together gives you synergy bonuses. (CM)
Wall of vermin – 3Dr – basically creates an immobile swarm of insects in four 5’ squares. Interesting, nonstandard battlefield control. (CScn)
Chaos Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: chaos hammer (4).
This domain is ripe for replacement! Problem is, there really aren’t that many spells with the chaotic descriptor.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the chaotic descriptor.”
Abyssal army – NDR – summons an army of demons to do your bidding. 9th level, but better than summon monster ix (chaotic only).
Anarchic storm – NDR – pours down anarchic rain in the area, killing visibility and harming lawful creatures. 3rd level. Nothing really to write home about.
Embrace the dark chaos – NDR – Well, now here’s one worth mentioning, except (like pretty much anything else that you can sub for this domain) it’s already available to clerics on their regular list, and this one isn’t really a good option for domain spontaneity.
Maw of chaos – 9Wi – Finally a spell that you don’t have access to naturally! And it’s a doozy. Maw of chaos creates a 15’ radius field of pain and dazing for rounds/level. Worlds better than what’s already there.
Soul of anarchy – 2Bd, 2Fe (Initiate of Aasterinian), 2Wi – +5 to escape grapple and Escape Artist checks, plus you and your natural attacks are treated as chaotic-aligned.
Death Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: wail of the banshee (9).
Like the Chaos domain, this domain is ripe for replacement. However, this one has a far broader replacement criterion, so it’s got some better options available to it.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that create death effects or that deal with the undead.”
Animate legion – NDR – for a fourth level slot, animate up to 2 HD/CL creatures in the area as skeletons and zombies. They’re not under your command initially, but in the right circumstances you can fire and forget this as they attack the closest living creatures, or just rebuke them after creating them. (HoB)
Avasculate – 7Do (Deathbound), 7Wi – ranged touch to halve target’s HP, plus stun it. Also see its big brother avascular mass, which does the same thing but hits a bunch of people (8Do (Deathbound), 8Wi). (SC)
Consumptive field – NDR – Empowerer of broken cheese (as is its big brother greater consumptive field). Probably more useful than the standard domain spells, but you still get it natively, so why bother? (SC)
Death hail – 6Do (Winter), 6Dr – AoE ongoing Str and Con damage? Yes please. (Fr)
Detonate – 9Wi – save-or-die-and-explode. Better range than wail of the banshee and can target non-living creatures. (PHB2)
Field of ghouls – 7Do (Hunger) – hard to get access to, but pretty awesome: dying creatures in the AoE die instantly and rise as ghouls under your command. (SC)
Heart ripper – 4As – This is a weird one to get access to, but completely worth it. For a 4th level slot, your target must save or die. On a successful save, they are still stunned for 1d4 rounds. Target must have a heart, so it has to be a living, non-amorphous creature, but it’s still worlds better than the other 4th level save-or-die options: phantasmal killer offers two saves and is illusion, for example. (SC)
Undead lieutenant – 3Wi – If you’re a minion-mancer, this is pretty cool. Plop this on one of your intelligent undead minions (or on another party member, if you happen to have a necropolitan in the party) and let them share the reins for your other minions. (SC)
Destruction Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: disintegrate (7).
Another one rife with spells for replacement. Terrific for a blaster cleric due to the replacement criterion.
Replacement criteria: “Evocation spells that deal damage.” So…basically all the bad ones. I’m not even going to list all of the options. Just pick ones you like. A wizard dip gets you the orbs and manyjaws, druid gets you splinterbolt and vortex of teeth…
Earth Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: soften earth and stone (2), spike stones (4), stoneskin (6), iron body (8), elemental swarm (earth only) (9).
Lots of off-list options here, and all of them are actually pretty good except for elemental swarm and soften earth and stone.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the Earth descriptor.”
Bones of the earth – 6Dr – You can pull pillars of stone from the ground, with which you can crush people or throw them into the sky. Cool by itself, but not worth a 6th level slot…until you notice that the pillars are permanent. Terrific for making permanent fortifications over an extended period of time. Superior to wall of stone for these purposes because wall of stone is 1 inch thick, while pillars made from bones of the earth are five feet thick. (PHB2)
Clearstone – 3Wi – make stone transparent. Can be worthwhile if you mix it with other stone-creation and stone-shaping spells to make a permanent fortification. (LEoF)
Fist of stone – 1Wi – gives you a huge bonus to STR and a natural slam attack. Great for low-level gishing, and remains relevant even in higher levels. (SC)
Giant’s wrath – 3Dr, 3Wi – Pebbles you throw turn into boulders. Meshes very well with magic stone, which you can also get with a druid dip. (SC)
Great worm of the earth – 7Dr, 7Wu (earth) – swallow one creature with a stone worm, effectively removing them from combat and dealing them continuous acid damage until the spell expires or they make a Reflex save as a full-round action. (CM)
Hail of stone – 1Wi – No save, no SR, AoE damage. Who cares if it’s 1d4/level, it’s free. (SC)
Halo of sand – 2Dr, 2Rg – +1/3CL deflection bonus to AC, caps at +4. Not a bad option, especially if you’re already taking the druid dip for some other options on this list. (Sand)
Heart of earth – 4Dr, 4Wi, 4Wu (earth) – double-strength stability, plus temp HP up to twice your CL. Decent on its own, but then you can burn the buff to cast stoneskin on yourself with no material component. (CM)
Mineralize warrior – 6Wi – give a creature the mineral warrior template permanently. Can’t use it on yourself, but you can make the party fighter into a mineral warrior. (Und)
Rain of spines – 4Wu (metal) – 6d6 AoE, knocks prone, and immobilizes. (CM)
Scimitar of sand – 2Dr, 2Wi – basically flame blade, except it doesn’t deal elemental damage and also dehydrates your struck targets. (Sand)
Undermaster – 9Dr, 9Wi – during the spell’s duration, you can use as a standard action any of the following spells as a spell-like ability: earth lock, earthquake, excavate, flesh to stone, meld into stone, move earth, reverse gravity, soften earth and stone, statue, stone shape, stone tell, stone to flesh, transmute mud to rock, transmute rock to mud, tunnel swallow, wall of stone, and xorn movement. The best (and only) replacement option for elemental swarm that doesn’t involve grabbing a lower level spell instead, but man is it a doozy. Expands your spell access amazingly, even if its duration is only 5 rounds. But wait, you’re a cleric! Divine Metamagic and Persistent Spell means you can have this going all day long. (SC)
Evil Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: unholy blight (4).
Like the other alignment domains, this one is pretty ripe for replacement, but unlike the others this one actually has a bunch of options.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the evil descriptor.”
Abyssal army – NDR – See Chaos Domain.
Abyssal rift – 9Do (Entropy), 9Wi – Opens a giant rift in the ground, filled with black fire. Evil conjuration spells get +2 CL, objects and creatures fall in and are blazed with divine fire. Giant flaming tentacles spew from the ground, smacking people nearby. The rift closes in 3 rounds: anyone or anything still inside is flung into a random layer of the abyss. This spell is absolutely ridonkeyculous, and I love it. (FC1)
Aspect of the chromatic dragon – 8Fe (Initiate of Tiamat), 8So – grow four dragon heads and become an aspect of Tiamat. The big winner here is that it’s a swift action cast. (DM)
Avasculate – 7Do (Deathbound), 7Wi – See Death Domain.
Blackfire – 8Wi – ray attack that deals 1d4 Con and nauseates. Anyone killed by the Con damage is disintegrated, and any creature adjacent to the struck creature has to make a Reflex or similarly take damage. In a tight knit bunch, this can be a pretty massive debuff. (SC)
Cheat – 1Bd, 1Do (Greed), 1Wi – More of a fluff thing than anything, but lets you cheat your way through games of chance. Protection from evil is on your regular list, so you might as well replace it with something that isn’t. (Drac)
Consumptive field – NDR – see Death Domain.
Demoncall – 2Bl, 2Do (Demonic) – swift action, gain a +10 profane bonus to a Knowledge (Arcana, Planes, Religion) check. Big bonus of a non-typical bonus type. (FC1)
Demonflesh – 1Bl, 1Do (Demonic) – +1/5CL enhancement bonus to natural armor. Sort of a weaker barkskin at a lower level, but you can get it on your list (while you can’t with barkskin). (FC1)
Demonhide – 2Bl – touched evil creature gains DR 5/cold iron or good. Cold iron and good-aligned weapons are uncommon, especially in the hands of NPCs. (SC)
Devil’s ego – 2Do (Diabolic) - +4 profane to Charisma and changes your type to Outsider, enabling shenanigans with alter self. (FC2)
Fangs of the vampire king – 3As, 3Bl, 3Do (Deathbound) – You gain a bite attack that deals 1 Con damage in addition to its normal damage. Con damage, as usual, is quick and painful. (SC)
Flensing – 8Wi – 8d6 damage and 4d6 Cha damage over four rounds (or double that over eight rounds if you extend it). 4d6 Cha damage is on average enough to put anyone who isn’t a paladin or sorcerer into a coma. (SC)
Hellish horde – NDR – See abyssal army. (SC)
Soul of shadow – 2Bl, NDR – Whenever you cast or are targeted by an inflict spell, you can add extra damage equal to twice the spell’s level. If you also have soul of anarchy or soul of order active, you also get other benefits. (DM)
Touch of Vecna – 5Wi – touched creature takes piddling damage and is permanently paralyzed on a failed Fortitude save. (CM)
Fire Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: burning hands (1), produce flame (2), fire shield (5), fire seeds (6), incendiary cloud (8), elemental swarm (fire only) (9).
Some good nonstandard spells available here, but there’s also a couple other options to trade in for.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the fire descriptor.”
Animate fire – 1Dr – you turn a fire into a Small fire elemental. You have to concentrate, but it can have its uses. (SC)
Combust – 2Wi – Touched creature or object takes 1d8/CL, no save, and has to make a Reflex save or catch on fire. Probably a better option than produce flame. (SC)
Darkfire – NDR – basically produce flame, except its invisible to anything except darkvision and with better damage. If you’re replacing produce flame, you might as well replace resist energy with this. (SC)
Detonate – 9Wi – see Death Domain, except here it’s a much better option than elemental swarm. (SC)
Fatal flame – 2Wi – Basically baby detonate. If the creature dies during the spell’s duration, they explode. (CScn)
Fire shuriken – 2As – automatic proficiency with flaming shuriken that deal 3d6 fire damage and crit on 19-20. There are a number of neat things you can do with this spell. (SC)
Firestride exhalation – 4Wi, 4Wu (fire) – beefed up burning hands coupled with dimension door. Pretty solid, and a whole level lower than lightning leap. (DM)
Flame blade – 2Dr, 2Fe (Initiate of Tzchazzar), 2Sh (fire) – a very solid gish spell: minutes/level duration of touch attacks with a scimitar-like weapon, which you can use with combat feats and similar. Also sets things on fire.
Flame dagger – 2Wi – Basically flame blade except on the sor/wiz list. Useful if you’re doing an arcane dip instead of a druid one.
Haze of smoldering stone – 7Dr, 7Fe (Initiate of Garyx), 6Wi, 6Wu (fire) – bust of fire and bludgeoning damage. If you cast it twice in succession, the second one is stronger. Just knowing the spell gives you universally stacking fire resist 3, and since you’re a whole-list caster, you know the spell regardless of your level. (DM)
Heart of fire – 5Dr, 5Wi, 5Wu (fire) – fire resist 20, +10’ enhancement to speed, and you can burn the enchantment for a fire shield spell. Nowhere near as good as heart of earth even though it’s a higher level. (CM)
Kelgore’s fire bolt – 1Du, 1Wi – decent low-level direct damage that partially bypasses SR. (PH2)
Palarandusk’s fire breath – 2Fe (Initiate of Tchazzar), 2Wi – Allows you to breathe a cone of breath once as a standard action within the next hour. Not really notable aside from the fact that it explicitly counts as a breath weapon, which means it can interact with feats and spells that specifically interact with breath weapons. (CoS:W)
Parboil – 4Wi, NDR – 20’ radius burst 6d6 fire damage, 2d4 Int damage. Fort halves the damage and negates the Int damage. 5th level when cast natively, but 4th on the sor/wiz list. A good candidate for Maximize spell. (Sand)
Scorch – 2Wi – 30’ line of 1d8/2CL fire damage. Atypical shape for fire damage, low enough level it’s relevant damage. Pretty okay for a blasty spell.
Scorching ray – 2Ad, 2Du, 2Fe (Radiant Fire), 2Wa, 2Wi – Available from a variety of sources. Archetypal, and for good reason.
Good Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: holy smite (4).
Like the other alignment domains, this one is pretty ripe for replacement, but unlike the others this one actually has a bunch of options. Of note, most Sanctified spells can get put into this domain.
Replacement critera: “Spells with the good descriptor.”
Angelskin – 2Pa – the lawful good creature touched gains DR 5/evil. Circumstantially worthwhile. (SC)
Aspect of the deity – 6Ap, 7Do (Herald), 6Ex – pretty solid self-buff, gives you a bunch of angelic resistances. (BoED)
Aspect of the deity, greater – 9Ap, 9Do (Herald), 9Ex – Gives you the half-celestial template for a little while and makes you an outsider. Not as awesome as the standard version, but honestly the 9th level spell from this domain is kind of lame anyway, so you might as well replace it with this. (BoED)
Aspect of the deity, lesser – 4Ap, 4Ex, 4KC, 4Pa - +4 CHA and some elemental resists. Not as good as the standard and greater versions. (BoED)
Aspect of the platinum dragon – 7Fe (Initiate of Bahamut), 7So – turns you into an aspect of Bahamut. Swift-action polymorph with a bunch of nice buffs attached. Unfortunately replaces holy word, but you could probably replace holy aura with this instead and still be good with it. (DM)
Faerinaal’s hymn – 2Bd – targeted evil creatures can’t make attacks of opportunity for as long as you concentrate. Can be good if you have a way to pass off concentration. (BoED)
Grave strike – NDR – no idea why this has the good descriptor, but it’s an option. If you’re multiclassing into rogue or something, it could be a good pick. (SC)
Mark of the enlightened soul – NDR – three round duration, any spell you cast of third level or lower deals 50% more damage to evil creatures. All your spells gain the good descriptor. There are shenanigans you can do with that. (DM)
Righteous aura – 4Pa – You shed light like daylight, and you get a +4 sacred bonus to Charisma. Just don’t die, because you’ll explode. (SC)
Soul of light – 2Pa, NDR - Whenever you cast or are targeted by a cure spell, you can add extra damage equal to twice the spell’s level. If you also have soul of anarchy or soul of order active, you also get other benefits. Paladin dip gets you this a level earlier, but this is on your regular list anyway. (DM)
Unicorn blood/heart/horn – see Animal Domain.
Healing Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: nothing. Seriously.
This domain is possibly the best candidate for substitutions, considering only three spells granted by the domain are ones that cleric can’t spontaneously convert to.
Replacement criteria: “Spells of the healing subschool.”
Close wounds – NDR – 2nd level spell, heals 1d4+1/CL as an immediate action within close range. Probably the best combat-healing option available. (SC)
Faith healing – NDR – 1st level spell, basically auto-maximized CLW, but they have to share your deity of choice. (SC)
Hoard life – 4So – lets you store some of your hit points into a gem, which you can destroy later to heal. (RotD)
Invest light/medium/heavy protection – NDR – heals less than an equally leveled cure spell, but also grants DR/evil for one minute. Situationally useful. (PH2)
Magic convalescence – NDR – whenever a healing spell is cast within 20’ of you, you regain 1 HP per level of the spell cast. If you’re going to be doing a lot of healing, definitely worth it. (PH2)
Panacea – NDR – removes any or all of the following conditions: blinded, confused, dazed, dazzled, deafened, diseased, exhausted, fatigued, frightened, nauseated, panicked, paralyzed, shaken, sickened, stunned, sleep, feeblemind, and poison. Also has a little healing. A great Swiss army knife spell, and probably the best option you can use for your 4th level domain option. (SC)
Revivify – NDR – raise dead with no level or Con loss, but can only be cast within 1 round of the target’s death. (SC)
Seed of life – NDR – touched creature gains fast healing 2 for the duration of the spell, or can burn the rest of the duration as a standard action to heal 1d4 for each round burnt. Not as good as panacea. (CCham)
Vigor – NDR – this whole chain of spells is pretty solid for out of combat healing, though the lower levels are more effective than the uppers. Still, if you’re using spontaneous domain casting, then the higher levels could probably be a good substitution for end-of-day top-offs. (SC)
Knowledge Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: detect secret doors (1), detect thoughts (2), clairaudience/clairvoyance (3), legend lore (7), foresight (9).
This domain’s got a lot of non-cleric spells on it to begin with, and most of them are fairly useful, so there’s not much room for replacement here. Plus, a lot of times people drop this domain for Knowledge Devotion instead, so this is probably the least likely candidate for Customize Domain. Still, the option is there. That said, it does have a gigantic spectrum of options for replacements.
Replacement criteria: “Divination spells”.
Alter fortune – NDR – 3rd level spell, targeted creature has to reroll any die roll it just made. Costs 200 xp, but the open-endedness of this spell makes it relatively potent. Attack rolls, saving throws, randomized spell effects, skill checks, critical confirmations… “any” roll” is a very large spectrum of effects. (PH2)
Analyze dweomer – 6Bd, 8Do (Commerce), 6Fe (Whispered Secrets), 6Wi – like identify, but faster and for multiple objects.
Arcane sight – 3Be, 3Fe (Arcane Insight), 1He, 1Tr, 3Wi – superpowered detect magic.
Arcane sight, greater – 7Be, 7Fe (Arcane Insight), 7Wi – superpowered arcane sight. Probably more useful than legend lore.
Arrow mind – 1Rg, 1Wi – Amazing for a zen archer cleric. (SC)
Assay spell resistance – NDR – 4th level spell, gives you a +10 to bypass SR. Good with domain spontaneity. (SC)
Balancing lorecall – 2Dr, 2Rg, 2Wi – If you crossclass Balance, lets you balance on walls and liquids. Kind of cool, but not the best option here. (SC)
Battlemagic perception – NDR – If you’re playing a divine counterspeller, this is a good choice to take with domain spontaneity. Otherwise, pass it by. (HoB)
Choose destiny – 9Do (Destiny) – rounds/level, swift action cast, any time you roll a d20, roll twice and choose which result you want. Very powerful, but the replacement option is foresight. YMMV. (RoD)
Combat readiness – 1As, 1Bd, 1Wi – touched creature gains a +1/3 insight bonus to Initiative checks. Stacks with nerveskitter and an eager weapon. (DotU)
Guided shot – 1Rg, 1Wi – another good one for zen archer clerics. (SC)
Healer’s vision – NDR – +5 insight to Heal checks, cure spells heal +1 HP per spell level. You also gain a +2 bonus on attack and damage when making a precision damage attack. Relatively minor bonus, but could be useful for a little extra oomph for a cleric with hunter’s eye. (CScn)
Healing lorecall – 1Rg, NDR – Natively a 2nd level cleric spell. If you have 5 ranks in heal, your healing subschool spells remove dazing, dazzling, or fatigue. If you have 10, they also remove exhaustion, nausea, and sickening. And you can substitute your Heal ranks for your caster level for healing subschool spells. Relatively minor secondary boost, but it could situationally be useful.
Hunter’s eye – 2Rg – gives you 1d6 sneak attack per 3 CL. Swift action cast, lasts 1 round. Very incredible buff, and persistable. (PH2)
Listening lorecall – 2Dr, 2Rg – you gain a +4 insight to Listen, and if you have 5 ranks you gain blindsense 30’. If you have 12, you gain blindsight 15’. Rather easy to obtain, low-level access to some powerful senses. (SC)
Lore of the gods – NDR – 2nd level spell, gives you +5 insight to Knowledge checks, and you can discharge the spell to make an untrained check or to recheck a Knowledge check. Since you have the Knowledge domain, the spell automatically updates the bonus to +10. (CCham)
Magic savant – 2Bd – You get a +4 insight bonus to UMD. If you’ve got 10 ranks in UMD, you can take 10 on UMD. (CMage)
Moment of prescience – 8Be, 8Do (Competition, Destiny, Elysium, Luck), 8Fe (Arcane Insight), 8Wi – archetypal and awesome. Worlds better than discern location.
See invisibility – 2Ad, 3Bd, 2Be, 3Do (Truth), 2Du, 2He, 2Wu – solid toolbox spell that you can use for pretty much your entire career.
Sniper’s shot – 1As, 1Rg, 1Wi – Like a lot of spells on this list, this spell is good for zen archers. Removes the range limitation on sneak attack, if you have it, which you can acquire from hunter’s eye, also available from a ranger dip. (SC)
True seeing, mass – 9Do (Truth) – Situationally useful. Gives true seeing to 1 creature/2 levels. Probably not the best choice for your 9th level slot, but it’s there. (RoE)
Vital strike – 3As – Your next attack is a sneak attack, regardless of circumstances, unless your target is immune. Very powerful for a hunter’s eye cleric build, but otherwise not worthwhile. Also requires a second dip to acquire if you’re going for hunter’s eye, so it may not be worth the entry cost. (CMage)
Law Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: order’s wrath (4), hold monster (6)
Just like the other alignment domains, ripe for replacement. Even the unique spells are pretty forgettable.
Replacement criteria: “Spells with the lawful descriptor.”
Guess what? There’s absolutely nothing notable to put into this domain.
Luck Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: mislead (6), spell turning (7), moment of prescience (8)
Replacement criteria: “Abjuration spells or spells that allow a bonus on a d20 roll.” So…practically any buff ever. I’m not even going to list these. Haste, guidance of the avatar, footsteps of the divine, alter fortune, foresight, nerveskitter, break enchantment, freedom of movement, spell immunity, disjunction, dispel magic… Basically, if it doesn’t deal damage and it’s an abjuration or a buff, you can put it here. This is probably the easiest domain to substitute spells into, aside from the Magic domain.
Magic Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: magic aura (1), identify (2), spell turning (7), protection from spells (8), disjunction (9)
Replacement criteria: “Any kind of spell, but you must select a spell of one level lower than normal.” So basically, you can use Customize Domain as sort of superpowered Eclectic Learning. With a wizard dip, you can grab any wizard spell of 8th level or lower and toss it onto your list. Or the same with druid. Or any bard or duskblade spell. Or whatever. This domain is ridiculously powerful when you customize it. Just go look at a wizard guide or druid guide and pick the greatest hits off their spell suggestions.
Plant Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: entangle (1), barkskin (2), plant growth (3), command plants (4), wall of thorns (5), repel wood (6), animate plants (7), control plants (8), shambler (9)
Surprisingly this entire domain gives you stuff you can’t normally get. Kind of nice, except for the fact that half of them are practically useless. Key replacement options are plant growth, command plants, repel wood, animate plants, and control plants.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that specifically affect plants, spells that summon plant creatures, spells that have plants in their names (such as treestride)”
Changestaff – 7Dr – turn a quarterstaff into a treant. Long duration minion creation spell (hours/level), and treants are great for breaking stuff.
Jungle’s rapture – 5Dr – turn a creature into a tree over a long time via dealing them 1d6 Dexterity drain a day. Once they hit 0, they turn into a tree, permanently. Can’t be dispelled as it’s a curse. I’d take this in the place of repel wood. (SC)
Nature’s purity – 3Dr – force damage that amplifies against undead and constructs, and double amplifies against aberrations. If it kills an aberration, they turn into vegetation. Gives you extra rays like scorching ray, so it can actually throw out some significant damage at higher levels. (LoM)
Plant body – 5Dr – basically makes you a Plant creature for the duration of the spell, including most type-based immunities. Persistable. (SC)
Rot of ages – 1Dr, 1Fe (Initiate of Falazure), 1Wi – target is sickened for 2 rounds. If they’re hit with two in that time, upgrades to nausea. Regardless of their save, considers all creatures as having concealment. Very strong low-level debuff. (DM)
Thorn spray – 4Fe (Initiate of Nature) – split up 1d6 damage/CL among up to 1 creature/level. Creatures you damage must make a Fort save or be sickened for 2d4 rounds. Wow. (PGtF)
Protection Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: mind blank (8), prismatic sphere (9)
See Luck Domain. Basically the same broad-spectrum crazy option frenzy here.
Strength Domain
Spells not on the cleric list offered by this domain: enlarge person (1), stoneskin (6), grasping hand (7), clenched fist (8), crushing hand (9)
If you’re looking to do melee buffs, this is a good domain for you. Comes with a couple non-standard cleric spells, and a lot of potential for substitutions.
Replacement criteria: “Spells that grant a bonus to Strength or give a penalty to Strength.”
Animalistic power – see Animal Domain.
Aspect of the werebeast – see Animal Domain.
Aura of vitality – 7Dr – provides a +4 morale bonus to all physical ability scores to 1 creature/3 levels. Atypical bonus type and gives bonuses to multiple creatures. Kind of high level though. (SC)
Beastland ferocity – 1Bd, 1Dr – basically the Die Hard feat plus a +4 enhancement to Strength. Lower level than bull’s strength, but has the mind-affecting descriptor. (SC)
Bite of the were-x – see Animal Domain.
City’s might – 8Do (City) – You gain an enhancement bonus to Str and Con, and DR, based upon the size of the community you’re in, scales between a +2 to +10 bonus and 2-10/adamantine. If you’re going to spend a lot of time in a big city, this one might be worthwhile, but it’s still exceedingly high level. Still, it’s probably better than clenched fist. (RoD)
Crown of might – NDR – gives touched creature a +2 enhancement bonus to Str for hours/level. They can discharge the spell to get a +8 enhancement bonus to Str for one round. Occupies the head slot. (PH2)
Draconic might – 4Pa, 5Wi – touched creature gains a +4 enhancement to Str, Con, and Cha, and a +4 enhancement bonus to natural armor. Also gains immunity to sleep and paralysis. Amazingly good touch buff, especially since it just requires a prestige paladin dip to acquire. (SC)
Fist of stone – See Earth Domain.
Righteous fury – 3Pa - +4 sacred bonus to Str (so stacks with a lot of traditional options), and 5 temporary HP/CL (max 50. Another good option from a prestige paladin dip. (SC)
Strength of stone – 2Pa – Surprisingly, another prestige paladin dip option. +8 enhancement to Strength, but you can’t leave contact with the ground. Still, for such a low level slot, very big bonus. (SC)