First time cleric

[Quiver]

So, I'm trying to enter a Pathfinder PbP game on this site, and I decided "Hey, I've never tried a spellcaster."

That isn't saying much; I'm only in one other game right now, whee I chose paladin for simplicity sake. I digress.

As the title indicates, I've decided to give cleric a try, specifically a cleric of Abadar.
As the title also indicates, I've never played a cleric before. In fact, I've never played WITH a cleric either...though again. Experience. Of one in that regard.

Snark aside, any advice on how to build a decent cleric? Between rolls and race bonuses, I've got 20 for wisdom, which...should open options. I'm leaning towards using Defence and either Leadership, Inevitable or Earth as domains...

[erikun]

You might have better luck in the 3.5e/Pathfinder subforum. A moderator will likely move the thread there if you request - reporting your own thread is perfectly fine for this - although I could try helping. Although most of my knowledge is with 3.5e.

The first step is likely to pick your domains. These can change the options available to you quite a bit. The Trickery Domain (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/core-classes/cleric/domains/paizo---domains/trickery-domain), for example, gives you additional class skills. Leadership domain looks fairly powerful (with Leadership itself probably the best ability). Earth domain has some very fun and tricky domain spells if you are creative with them. Inevitable domain doesn't look at good as the base Law domain, unless you are planning on putting the Planar Binding spell to serious use. Defense domain seems okay, although you will find it difficult to determine when you need those defensive buffs from those auras.

As for equipment, you get simple weapons, deity's weapon, and most armor. I generally find a morning star, light crossbow, dagger, heavy wooden shield, and whatever decent medium armor you can afford - scale mail, most likely. If your deity has a decent weapon, though, consider that instead (or even in addition to). You'll probably want to work up to breastplate on the armor, but most of the rest of the equipment will likey stay the same. That does depend on your role, of course.

The nice thing about a cleric is that you can convert any memorized spell, besides domain spells and orisons, into a healing spell. That means you can goof around with your spell list as much as you want and not be stuck with a useless spell. You can also prepare any spell off the cleric spell list, and may change those every day, so feel free to play around a bit with which ones you want to use. I've only played 3.5e and so my preferred spells might've changes, but here are the ones which look nice to me:

- Orisons: Light means you don't need to carry torches, Detect Magic means always knowing where magic is around if you have time to cast it and focus.

- 1st Level: Bless is nice for the party. Divine Favor is a nice combat buff for yourself. Protection from Evil is handy if you know you will be fighting evil (not just neutral) enemies. Shield of Faith is probably a better option many times. You will probably find that, at this level, defensive spells are better than attacking spells, since a 1d4 damage attack isn't going to mean much. But feel free to include a spell which sounds interesting, one a day or so, and hang onto the ones which work for you.

- 2nd Level: Aid is quite nice, assuming you don't have something else granting morale bonuses or temporary HP (since they don't stack). Admonishing Ray looks quite useful - Scorching Ray is very impressive for a Wizard spell at a similar level - but you'll need the DEX modifier to make a ranged touch attack for it to matter. Bull Strength is a very nice combat buff. Bear Endurance grants +6 HP at that level and just goes up from there. Ironskin is a nice tanky option, although only for yourself. Lesser Restoration is rarely useful but immensely useful when it is. Silence is great for sneaking around, if somewhat awkward. Summon Monster II includes small elements, and some (like Earth and Air) have some great movement and scouting potential if you can speak with them.

Past that, you should have an idea of what you want to do with new spell levels. I will note that you probably should be wary of any "combo" spells, especially at your highest spellcasting capability. I've found myself burning around one spell per encounter as a buff, which is quite a bit but can help immensely. Don't be shy about tossing these buffs onto another character, espeically something like Bull Strength of Shield of Faith on the character up in front of most combats. +2 AC or ending fights a few rounds sooner can save a ton on burning through spell slots in healing.