Signature Cleric Spell

[Ogre Mage]

So my dwarven cleric with the forge domain has been gifted a "signature spell" by her deity. It only affects spells which require a die roll. If a 1 is rolled on the spell effect die/dice, I may either change all 1s to 2s OR reroll 1s (and I have to keep the second result). Problem is, I cannot save the ability for when I am more powerful -- I must choose a spell that I am capable of casting right now at 3rd level. That means only 1st and 2nd spells are available.

What would be a good choice? Bless? Spiritual Weapon? Cure Wounds? Healing Word? Guiding Bolt? Once picked, the signature spell can never be changed.

[Addaran]

So my dwarven cleric with the forge domain has been gifted a "signature spell" by her deity. It only affects spells which require a die roll. If a 1 in rolled on the spell effect die/dice, I may either change all 1s to 2s OR reroll 1s (and I have to keep the second result). Problem is, I cannot save the ability for when I am more powerful -- I must choose a spell that I am capable of casting right now at 3rd level. That means only 1st and 2nd spells are available.

What would be a good choice? Bless? Spiritual Weapon? Cure Wounds? Healing Word? Guiding Bolt? Once picked, the signature spell can never be changed.

Bless would be pretty powerful. d4 is the most advantageous dice to reroll on 1s and for one spell slot, you'll be rolling a lot of dice. Would it also affect the dice your allies gain from that spell?

Spiritual Weapon is also a great spell, since you'll be rolling often for one spell slot. It will protect again weak damage turns and it's a pretty flavorful spell for a forge cleric.

[Ogre Mage]

Bless would be pretty powerful. d4 is the most advantageous dice to reroll on 1s and for one spell slot, you'll be rolling a lot of dice. Would it also affect the dice your allies gain from that spell?


Yes, all targets of the bless would be affected.

[BabyCthulhu]

I second Bless as the one you should choose. It remains useful at later levels too, and you could ask to add a cool "forge sparks" effect everytime someone replaces the 1s for 2s, or something like that. That way it really is YOURS.
Also, while re-rolling the d4 on a 1 would be more powerful, it will also slow the game. I would advice to just treat any 1 rolled as a 2.

Edit: If your combats last less than 10 rounds, and you are planning on using other spells for your concentration, Bless might stop being useful at higher levels. Maybe Spiritual weapon would be better then.

[Kane0]

Bless.

10char.

Alternatively, guidance perhaps.

[Saggo]

Spiritual Weapon benefits from upcasting, is always relevant, doesn't compete for Concentration, and is fun/favorful. You'll likely never regret choosing it.

[TheTeaMustFlow]

Spirit Guardians is also worth considering.

[Sir cryosin]

Spirit Guardians is also worth considering.

Spirit guardians are a lv3 spell she is a character lv3 meaning she only have lv1 & lv2 spells so no spirit guardian. I'm gonna go against the grain here and say healing word. Because it a bonuses action spell that might see more use and it's a d4 as well.

[SharkForce]

Spirit guardians are a lv3 spell she is a character lv3 meaning she only have lv1 & lv2 spells so no spirit guardian. I'm gonna go against the grain here and say healing word. Because it a bonuses action spell that might see more use and it's a d4 as well.

problem with healing word is that it isn't too likely to make much of a difference whether you get back 1 HP or 4, you're probably still getting KO'd on the next hit.

i'd agree with bless or spiritual weapon. both have their points in their favour (bless is always an inexpensive way of providing a contribution to a fight, spiritual weapon is great because it gives your bonus action value and doesn't cost concentration). either one is pretty good, imo.

[Pex]

I vote Bless. Minimum +2 to attacks and saves is a big deal, especially saves as the levels progress. Spiritual Weapon is nice, but the bad guy is supposed to be defeated anyway and as to whether rerolling a 1 would have made the bad guy go down one level sooner is too hard to judge on a regular basis. This (pseudo)Great Weapon Style is fine for fighters and paladins because they get multiple attacks and will always be using it. You're not always going to be casting Spiritual Weapon. It is true you won't always be casting Bless as well, but I surmise you would more than Spiritual Weapon. However, it's still the minimum +2 to saving throws, by treating the 1 as a 2, that will be key. Someone making the save against a bad guy's spell or power will make all the difference in the world.

Definitely not for a healing spell. Healing spells in 5E are for emergency don't drop/don't die/get up from dropping, not a cure all. That's what healing potions, Healer feat, and Heal spell are for.

[MrStabby]

I would vote bless as well.

If you need damage you will be using a higher level spell slot anyway as damage spells generally scale poorly. Bless is a superb spell that always remains relevant and, as a level 1 spell slot you can cast it a LOT of times per day.

Bane is also worthy of consideration. Usually it is less good than bless but if you have a small party it can shine.

[Lawful Good]

I would vote bless as well.

If you need damage you will be using a higher level spell slot anyway as damage spells generally scale poorly. Bless is a superb spell that always remains relevant and, as a level 1 spell slot you can cast it a LOT of times per day.

Bane is also worthy of consideration. Usually it is less good than bless but if you have a small party it can shine.

Agreed, a damage spell would be a bad choice.

Bless would be better than Bane, but I would still pick Spiritual Weapon.

[Giant2005]

Another vote for Bless here, but my second choice would be Spiritual Weapon.
Bless is the clear winner, but if you find yourself casting Spiritual Weapon a whole lot more often, then it might be useful there - the buff is stronger on Bless, but not by enough of a margin for it to be the better choice if you are casting Spiritual Weapon 10x for every Bless casting for instance.

[JobsforFun]

Bless would be nice but Spiritual Weapon is a spell I still used with my lvl 10 cleric since it was a bonus action, but guiding bolt is nice as well.

(I'd personally choose spiritual weapon but your pick)

[TheTeaMustFlow]

Spirit guardians are a lv3 spell she is a character lv3 meaning she only have lv1 & lv2 spells so no spirit guardian. I'm gonna go against the grain here and say healing word. Because it a bonuses action spell that might see more use and it's a d4 as well.

Ah, I thought she meant she had 3rd level spells, rather than those spells available at 3rd level. Oops.

Still, I wouldn't recommend healing word - it's mostly useful for popping unconscious characters back up, for which the actual healing done is irrelevant. And it competes with spiritual weapon too much.

[Dudu]

Bless is a wonderful spell, however, it competes with concentration.

Spiritual Weapon is one of the few spells that will remain relevant your whole career. As a plus, it uses merely a bonus action.

The majority of people here is voting bless, which is a solid choice. But I wouldn't dismiss Spiritual Weapon so quickly. In fact, it would be my choice.

[Ogre Mage]

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts. I decided to go with bless. Spiritual weapon is both a strong and flavorful choice, but given that bless uses a d4 on multiple targets, the potential for the signature power to come into play seems greater. This is no small thing in a system with bonded accuracy.