Dwarven Tempest Cleric / Storm Sorcerer

[Sjappo]

So, I've been building for our upcoming campaign, which will be Storm Kings Thunder. I've come up with a cleric/sorcerer multi class.

I'm pretty much set on the concept. I like the combination Tempest / Storm thematically and the idea of a dwarf in full-plate flying across the battlefield, carried on the storm, got stuck in my head. We're starting at lvl 5 and so far I got this.

Hill Dwarf Tempest cleric 4 / Storm sorcerer 1.
First level as sorcerer for the CON-save and some utility in cantrips and lvl 1 spells.
Lvl 4 ASI goes to Warcaster.
Fighting in melee, aid precast, bless running

And here I get stuck. I may be to much of an optimiser to get through this and I need some input, preferably from experience.

I'm doubting between pumping STR and focussing on booming blade or focussing on WIS and using more offensive spells. I do plan on using BB as the go-to cantrip, with Shocking Grasp as backup. How much difference does it make?

Is melee viable with a STR of just 14? The attack bonus would possibly be augmented by Bless. But damage would be low(er). At what level does it stop being viable?
Or the other way around; a STR build would have a lower WIS of 14. How much impact would such a low WIS, and thus spell attack bonus and saving throw, have in actual play?

FYI: I like options in a character. I'm one of those players who had 2 classes and 3 prestige-classes in a lvl 8 build in 3.5E. I like bookkeeping, so I like keeping track of HP, Chanel Divinity uses, Wrath of the Storm uses, used spells etc. I like throwing dice and making my own attack roll (as opposed to forcing saving throws) and I like my character to be in the thick of things.
My last characters in 5E were a Conclave of the Beast Ranger, which I liked. A Lore Bard focussing on mental stats, which I didn't like. And a Gnome Sorcerer who set everything on fire, which I liked.

[RogueJK]

I'm doubting between pumping STR and focussing on booming blade or focussing on WIS and using more offensive spells.

Tempest Clerics are melee clerics. All their features are built around being good on the front lines, although they do get a few excellent AOE spells, which helps with mobs of weaker enemies (a situation in which pure melee characters typically are less effective). You can be a more caster-oriented Tempest Cleric, but you won't get as much use out some of the class features.

An easy way to gauge whether a Cleric Domain is designed to be a caster or a melee fighter is to look at their 8th Level ability. If it's Divine Strike, which adds damage to their melee attacks, they're designed around melee. If it's Potent Spellcasting, which adds damage to spells, they're designed to be primarily a caster.

So as a Tempest Cleric, you'll want to focus on your STR first, WIS a close second, and CON third. You can have a middling CHA (13-14) and still get use out of Sorcerer, if you stick to Booming Blade, utility spells, and defensive spells.


I do plan on using BB as the go-to cantrip, with Shocking Grasp as backup. How much difference does it make?

BB will do significantly more damage, since it not only incorporates your melee weapon damage and STR damage, but also adds the Tempest Cleric's Divine Strike damage from Level 8 on. Importantly, BB also uses your STR for the attack roll, just like a normal weapon attack, and your STR should be a lot higher than your CHA. So you'll hit with BB a lot more often than SG. So it makes a huge difference.

Besides, as a melee Cleric, you'll want to be in the thick of things on the front lines of melee. SG's Disengage rider shouldn't be needed, since scurrying away from the front lines will just leave your squishier party members exposed. And you can use your Storm Sorcerer flight ability for Opportunity Attack-free repositioning on the front lines a bit, when it's needed. Or just use the Disengage Action if it's absolutely necessary.


Is melee viable with a STR of just 14? At what level does it stop being viable?

Not really. It stops being viable past the first few levels. Bless helps, but you'll quickly move on to other things on which to use your Concentration, past Cleric4 or so.


Or the other way around; a STR build would have a lower WIS of 14. How much impact would such a low WIS, and thus spell attack bonus and saving throw, have in actual play?

Much less than a low STR, although you'll want to try to keep your WIS up too. But you can still be a viable Tempest Cleric with a 14 WIS. It's tough to be a viable STR-based melee character with a 14 STR.


Here's how I'd build it:

If you're using Point Buy, I'd go the following stats:

STR 15
DEX 10
CON 12+2
INT 8
WIS 14+1
CHA 13

At the Cleric4 ASI do +1 STR and +1 WIS, to boost both to 16. Then at Cleric8 pick up Warcaster. (Or vice-versa, although I think that would be less optimal.)

Or If you have higher stats though rolling, that's even better, as you can better afford to take Warcaster at 4th. As mentioned above, when distributing stats, you'll want to shoot for a high STR, potentially a high WIS, a moderately high CON, and only about a 13 CHA. You can dump DEX and INT.

For your four Sorcerer cantrips, take Booming Blade, at least two utilitarian spells like Mage Hand and Minor Illusion, and perhaps something Storm-related like Gust or Shape Water for flavor. For your two Sorcerer 1st Level spells, take Shield and Absorb Elements, both of which will help your survive better on the front lines. With your low CHA, don't bother with any Sorcerer spells that require an attack roll or saving throw, and don't try to boost you CHA higher to try and make Sorcerer attack spells more viable, as that will just make your melee and Cleric capabilities suffer. You'll use your WIS-based Cleric spells when you need to attack with a spell.

Wear Heavy Armor, and use a two-handed weapon until you get Warcaster, after which you can switch to using a one-handed weapon and a shield. Until you get Warcaster, you'll have to worrying about having a weapon and shield interrupting your spellcasting by not having a free hand. (Unless your DM is willing to just handwave that fiddling part of spellcasting.) Taking Warcaster at Cleric8 coincides with the increase in damage from Divine Strike, which will offset the slightly lower weapon damage output due to going from a 2H weapon like a Greatsword's 2d6 to a 1H weapon like a Longsword's 1d8. And you can use the Shield spell as a reaction, or Concentrate on the Shield of Faith spell, for times when you need a higher AC before you start using a shield.

[CTurbo]

Wouldn't this character be extremely counterproductive in that campaign? I have not played SKT but if you're going to fight a Storm Giant, they are immune to thunder and lightning damage. Or is the Storm Giant on your side?

Anyway, I'd start 14 Str, 14 Con, 16 Wis, and 13 Cha and yes if you are wanting to fight Giants with a weapon, I'd bump Str at Cleric 4, but after that focus on Wis. Warcaster is nice and may or may not be necessary.

[GlenSmash!]

Wouldn't this character be extremely counterproductive in that campaign? I have not played SKT but if you're going to fight a Storm Giant, they are immune to thunder and lightning damage. Or is the Storm Giant on your side?

Anyway, I'd start 14 Str, 14 Con, 16 Wis, and 13 Cha and yes if you are wanting to fight Giants with a weapon, I'd bump Str at Cleric 4, but after that focus on Wis. Warcaster is nice and may or may not be necessary.

I'm level 5 in SKT right now. So far we've fought Hill and Fire Giants. I Suspect we'll face one or two Storm Giants later, but it's not like they are the most common enemy in the game.

I've fought way more goblins and orcs than giants.

[Guy Lombard-O]

Seems to me that the main drawback to low Wis for your character in this (few/no undead) campaign would be that Spirit Weapon becomes sort of ineffective. Since that's where your "extra attack" comes from in melee, I think I'd want it higher than 14 (and your Str too, of course).

I'd actually focus on stat bumps at 4 & 8, instead of Warcaster. You already have Con proficiency, and most of your Cleric spells can be made to work fine without Warcaster, using holy symbols and free actions.

[RogueJK]

I'd actually focus on stat bumps at 4 & 8, instead of Warcaster. You already have Con proficiency, and most of your Cleric spells can be made to work fine without Warcaster, using holy symbols and free actions.

Using a holy symbol on his shield only helps for Cleric spells with Material components, or Material and Somatic components. Not for Cleric spells with Somatic components and no Material components. And not for Sorcerer spells with Material or Somatic components (or both).

Without Warcaster, if he's holding both a weapon and shield he'd have to continually drop his weapon to cast a Cleric Somatic spell, or a Socerer Material or Somatic spell. And then try to pick it up the next round, if another enemy doesn't swipe it or force him away in the meantime. And it means giving up Opportunity Attacks anytime he's weaponless between rounds.

So if he wants to use a weapon and shield, Warcaster is close to mandatory for the "cast while both hands are full" aspect, even if the "bonus to Concentration" benefit isn't as helpful on a character with a decent CON and CON save proficiency. And it has the added benefit of allowing him to use Booming Blade for Opportunity Attacks too, for extra damage.

The other option is to just forego the +2 AC of using a shield and simply stick to using 2H Weapons, and use that ASI to boost STR or WIS instead of spending it on the Warcaster Feat, which is a perfectly valid option. It'd cap him at 18 AC with Full Plate, which is a bit low for a front-line melee tank, but he'd do more damage with each hit, and he would have a few spell options for boosting AC, like Shield and Shield of Faith. (Although the former would burn through spells slots quickly if you're soaking up a lot of attacks, and the latter requires Concentration which is better spent on things like Spirit Guardians).

Or he can try to ask his DM if he's willing to ignore the convoluted spellcasting component dance. (Which some DMs do, just for the sake of ease of play.)

[Rukelnikov]

If you plan to go Str fighting instead of Wis fighting, mountain dwarf will probably be more useful, you would lose 1 hp/level, but will be 1 ahead in att/dam for the whole campaign.

In my book +1 att/dam >> +1 hp/lvl

Take into account that you are likely gonna have 3 ASIs during the whole campaign, so by starting with Warcaster, you probably won't play to see that Str get to 20 if you play hill dwarf.

On the other hand though... if you don't mind metagaming a bit... its an adventure revolving around giants, I'd say odds are pretty good you will get some str item, if you would be the first in line for such an item in your party, you could try those odds, second in line, bit gamey, further down than that doesn't make much sense IMO.

[Guy Lombard-O]

Using a holy symbol on his shield only helps for Cleric spells with Material components, or Material and Somatic components. Not for Cleric spells with Somatic components and no Material components. And not for Sorcerer spells with Material or Somatic components (or both).

Without Warcaster, he'd have to continually drop his weapon to cast a Cleric Somatic spell, or a Socerer Material or Somatic spell. And then try to pick it up the next round, if another enemy doesn't swipe it or force him away. And it means giving up Opportunity Attacks anytime he's weaponless between rounds.

So if he wants to use a weapon and shield, Warcaster is close to mandatory for the "cast while both hands are full" aspect, even if the "bonus to Concentration" isn't as helpful on a character with a decent CON and CON save proficiency.

The other option is to just forego the +2 AC of using a shield and simply stick to using 2H Weapons, which is a valid option.

Or he can ask his DM if he's willing to ignore the convoluted spellcasting component dance. (Which some DMs do, just for the sake of ease of play.)

All true. I'm just saying that the free-action spellcasting dance might be preferable to letting either attack stat languish in lame-land (it would for me). The round to round spellcasting might be pretty minimal for a melee-based cleric. The main thing you'd give up would be Shield and Absorb Elements on those rounds you're holding your weapon, and opp attacks on those rounds you've sheathed (not dropped!) your weapon.

Not saying Warcaster isn't great, and shouldn't be picked up at some point. Just saying that the Wis/Str bumps seem more important (clearly, this is only my opinion, not an objective truth).

[RogueJK]

If you plan to go Str fighting instead of Wis fighting, mountain dwarf will probably be more useful, you would lose 1 hp/level, but will be 1 ahead in att/dam for the whole campaign.

In my book +1 att/dam >> +1 hp/lvl


A good alternative, although he'd be giving up a little more than just +1 HP/level. He'd also have to drop DEX down to 8 to get that starting 15 WIS, which would mean -1 to DEX saves, DEX skills, and Initiative.

As a Mountain Dwarf he'd start with something like
STR 15+2
DEX 8
CON 12+2
INT 8
WIS 15
CHA 13

You'd still go +1 STR and +1 WIS at Cleric4 for 18STR/16WIS, then Warcaster or +2 WIS at Cleric8, then +2 STR or +2 WIS at Cleric 12. Ending with either 20STR/18WIS without Warcaster, or 18STR/20WIS without Warcaster, or 18STR/18WIS with Warcaster, or 20STR/16WIS with Warcaster.

You'd be more capable at melee, at the cost of having a few less HP and negatives to all your DEX stuff.

(Personally, I'd shoot for 18/18 with Warcaster. You'd want to be using a shield to raise your AC and make up for the lost HP, and you'd want to be able to cast Absorb Elements while holding that shield to help make up for the -1 DEX save.)

[RogueJK]

sheathed (not dropped!)

Rereading my post, I got my wires crossed with two different concepts.

You can sheath your weapon as your once-per-round Object Interaction, and then cast the Cleric Somatic or Sorcerer Somatic/Material spell that round, but then you'd have to wait until the next round to draw the weapon again as your Object Interaction. This has the positive of allowing you to cast the Reaction spells like Shield or Absorb Elements between your turns while your weapon is sheathed, but means no OAs during the time the weapon is sheathed.

OR

Or you can drop the weapon as no action, cast the Cleric Somatic or Sorcerer Somatic/Material spell, then pick the weapon back up as your Object Interaction, all in the same turn. This means you can get OAs between rounds, but you won't be able to cast Reaction spells like Shield or Absorb Elements, since your hands are full between your turns. (Unless your DM would allow you to drop your weapon again as part of your Reaction.) And an intelligent enemy could conceivably Ready an Action to swipe your weapon, or to use a spell or ability to force you or your weapon away, any time you drop your weapon.

OR

You can just take Warcaster, or use a 2H Weapon and no shield, and not worry about dropping/sheathing weapons and being unable to cast certain spells at certain times. :smallbiggrin:

[Citan]

So, I've been building for our upcoming campaign, which will be Storm Kings Thunder. I've come up with a cleric/sorcerer multi class.

I'm pretty much set on the concept. I like the combination Tempest / Storm thematically and the idea of a dwarf in full-plate flying across the battlefield, carried on the storm, got stuck in my head. We're starting at lvl 5 and so far I got this.

Hill Dwarf Tempest cleric 4 / Storm sorcerer 1.
First level as sorcerer for the CON-save and some utility in cantrips and lvl 1 spells.
Lvl 4 ASI goes to Warcaster.
Fighting in melee, aid precast, bless running

And here I get stuck. I may be to much of an optimiser to get through this and I need some input, preferably from experience.

I'm doubting between pumping STR and focussing on booming blade or focussing on WIS and using more offensive spells. I do plan on using BB as the go-to cantrip, with Shocking Grasp as backup. How much difference does it make?

Is melee viable with a STR of just 14? The attack bonus would possibly be augmented by Bless. But damage would be low(er). At what level does it stop being viable?
Or the other way around; a STR build would have a lower WIS of 14. How much impact would such a low WIS, and thus spell attack bonus and saving throw, have in actual play?

FYI: I like options in a character. I'm one of those players who had 2 classes and 3 prestige-classes in a lvl 8 build in 3.5E. I like bookkeeping, so I like keeping track of HP, Chanel Divinity uses, Wrath of the Storm uses, used spells etc. I like throwing dice and making my own attack roll (as opposed to forcing saving throws) and I like my character to be in the thick of things.
My last characters in 5E were a Conclave of the Beast Ranger, which I liked. A Lore Bard focussing on mental stats, which I didn't like. And a Gnome Sorcerer who set everything on fire, which I liked.


Tempest Clerics are melee clerics. All their features are built around being good on the front lines, although they do get a few excellent AOE spells, which helps with mobs of weaker enemies (a situation in which pure melee characters typically are less effective). You can be a more caster-oriented Tempest Cleric, but you won't get as much use out some of the class features.

I have to disagree with this. Very little of their features actually require close range.
Maximized damage works on whatever weapon or spell attack or effect as long as you deal the right damage, same for the push effect, and many of their bonus spells are battlefield control.
You could perfectly be a Tempest Cleric with a heavy crossbow, running chaos among enemies between Fog Cloud and maximized Shatter.

Now with OP actually wanting to be in melee, that is a different story. But imo whether to go STR or not should be simply a matter of "do you want to use GWM or not". If you don't...
It would be far better imo to go with classic 14-16 DEX 14 CON 16 WIS and bump WIS to make good use of Spirit Guardians and rely more on offensive spells.
OR, pick Magic Initiate: Druid so you can use Shillelagh with a quarterstaff (which pushes away Warcaster, but should be manageable imo).
OR, actually push the other way, towards Sorcerer, make CHA your primary stat, with 12-14 everywhere else, start using only Shocking Grasp, then dip Hexblade Warlock to get CHA on whatever weapon you want to use as your attack stat. Of course that also means you should instead start Sorcerer 4 / Cleric 2.
Depends on how you saw your split for char level 10 and char level 16. :)

[RogueJK]

I have to disagree with this. Very little of their features actually require close range.
Maximized damage works on whatever weapon or spell attack or effect as long as you deal the right damage, same for the push effect, and many of their bonus spells are battlefield control.
You could perfectly be a Tempest Cleric with a heavy crossbow, running chaos among enemies between Fog Cloud and maximized Shatter.


Tempest Clerics don't have to just be melee clerics, but their features are geared around being melee clerics, (plus a few extra tricks up their sleeve that other melee clerics don't have, like a variety of AOE spells). Choosing something other than melee is still totally viable, but means you won't be taking advantage of all their features, so it isn't optimal.

Heavy Armor is for melee. A ranged attacker doesn't get nearly as much benefit out of Heavy Armor. Wrath of the Storm requires you to be within 5 feet of the enemy who damages you. And several of their domain spells affect areas immediately adjacent to the caster, like Thunderwave and Destructive Wave.

Other features do work for a ranged build, like Martial Weapons, Destructive Wrath, the ranged AOE spells, and Divine Strike, but they also work just as well for melee.

Melee Tempest Clerics use 100% of the domain's features. Ranged Tempest Clerics use 75% of the domain's features.

[CTurbo]

I agree that Tempests are great in melee or at ranged, but I also agree that they work best in melee. They're easily among the most diverse subclasses in the game.

[Snails]

For a pureTempest, being a melee cleric does not usually mean pumping Str as a priority. The downside here is your number of melee attacks is hard limited, so Str only buys you so much. In terms of damage output you can compete with Str by pumping Wis, and relying on Spiritual Weapon -- something you would often cast even if your Str is sky high. The advantage of Wis is it buys you flexibility and spells that are more reliable. Thunderwave has fun and useful tactical value, opening up opportunities for Flanking (assuming your DM gives bonuses for that sort of thing) and means to sweep enemies together for more efficient AoEs from a party arcanist.

At low levels, Wrath of the Storm is almost OP, because it is an autohit in a flat math world, that can outright kill weaker enemies -- it can be as good or better than a free turn for the price of getting hit. At lowish levels, Wrath of the Storm, Thunderwave, and Thunderous Strike are of great value. These depend on Wis.

Admittedly, it is your 8th level Tempest ability that screams Str. Still, you are doing a bit better in levels 1-7 favoring Wis, and the Divine Strike boost does not overawe the other considerations, unless you have a clever means of getting more attacks or crit fishing. (And if you are crit fishing, maybe Str does not matter at all.)

My opinion is that you will definitely do better at low levels with Wis as the priority, on the Cleric side.

Booming Blade is a fun idea, that melds nicely with Divine Strike. If your heart is set on pursuing this combination, it sure sounds fun, then, yes, you will want to get your Str up. This does come at a significant cost in flexibility. It seems to me that you can almost play your concept going pure Tempest Cleric, even some details are less sexy.

[Sjappo]

So, consensus seems to be, go STR. Pity, I was hoping to go WIS. But Cleric seems to be missing a spell attack cantrip. The few direct damage cantrips are with a saving throw. And with only about two spells per encounter I need something to do with my actions.

I'm almost tempted to go WIS and CHA, use shocking grasp for damage, lightning lure for stickiness and wait for more spell slots. Not sure how that would turn out but it sounds like fun. I might ask my DM to allow me to cast my sorcerer spells with WIS.

FYI, I'm by far the most optimizing player of my group. So, me having more than one spell going at the same time will be borderline broken. I'm not to worried about being a +1 behind on an attack stat.

Thanks so far. I'm might not be taking your advise but now I know better what I'm getting myself in to.

[CTurbo]

So, consensus seems to be, go STR. Pity, I was hoping to go WIS. But Cleric seems to be missing a spell attack cantrip. The few direct damage cantrips are with a saving throw. And with only about two spells per encounter I need something to do with my actions.

I'm almost tempted to go WIS and CHA, use shocking grasp for damage, lightning lure for stickiness and wait for more spell slots. Not sure how that would turn out but it sounds like fun. I might ask my DM to allow me to cast my sorcerer spells with WIS.

FYI, I'm by far the most optimizing player of my group. So, me having more than one spell going at the same time will be borderline broken. I'm not to worried about being a +1 behind on an attack stat.

Thanks so far. I'm might not be taking your advise but now I know better what I'm getting myself in to.


Are you sure you can't roll for stats? I just feel like trying to go Wis AND Cha would be too much unless you could actually start with a 16 in both, which you can't. You could easily start 16 Con, 16 Wis, 14 Cha and kinda ignore Str, but you're still going to want Warcaster to help with con checks so from levels 8-11 you're still only going to have either 16 Wis and 16 Cha or 18 Wis and 14 Cha. You just don't get enough ASIs for both.

Using "Dodge" as your action is not a bad idea in combat if you're concentrating on a good spell which you should be doing all the time.

[Citan]

So, consensus seems to be, go STR. Pity, I was hoping to go WIS. But Cleric seems to be missing a spell attack cantrip. The few direct damage cantrips are with a saving throw. And with only about two spells per encounter I need something to do with my actions.

I'm almost tempted to go WIS and CHA, use shocking grasp for damage, lightning lure for stickiness and wait for more spell slots. Not sure how that would turn out but it sounds like fun. I might ask my DM to allow me to cast my sorcerer spells with WIS.

FYI, I'm by far the most optimizing player of my group. So, me having more than one spell going at the same time will be borderline broken. I'm not to worried about being a +1 behind on an attack stat.

Thanks so far. I'm might not be taking your advise but now I know better what I'm getting myself in to.
Hmm you must have missed my post or wanted to say "near consensus".
I don't see any necessity to go STR as a Tempest Cleric, melee or not (except, as said, the specific case where one wants to make a GWM or maybe a PAM Tempest Cleric). :)

However, you would indeed need to choose WIS or CHA. And if you pick WIS, you'll need to either pick Shillelagh some way, or use Bless to help yourself at lower level, or just use Spiritual Weapon and otherwise accept you'll miss a few more hits than others (which is a big deal at low levels, less so at higher since you'll rely more and more on spells anyways).

If you pick CHA, honestly it will be easier for you overall. The big "miss" is Spirit Guardians (although, as a close-range AOE, you will still affect some creatures every turn) but other than that you will be very fine with 14 WIS.

And if REALLY you want to use melee weapon cantrips simply dip Hexblade as I suggested, but you can perfectly live without it.

EDIT: in fact I don't see how without rolling you could even try to go for a STR build.
As a Dwarf, you get +2 in CON. You need 13 in both WIS and CHA to multiclass, and honestly it would be a shame not to make it 14 in both cases.
You want to be a melee guy so you want good resilience.
If you push Constitution for a starting 16, and considering 14 in WIS and CHA, you simply cannot have more than one 14 and one 8 in physical stats. 14 in STR means you would still get disadvantage and reduced speed, BUT being a dwarf negates that. But it will negate it equally well with a 8 STR (not sure you can don heavy armor with that little strength though, possibly not ^^).
And if you got Constitution at 14 only (12+2), you still don't retrieve enough points to get a 16 since neither racial bonus applies to STR or DEX.
So whether you keep the 14 for DEX (medium armor + Initiative) or STR (heavy armor), you won't be any more accurate using Booming Blade than Shocking Grasp. And Shocking Grasp has merits that don't depend on enemy decisions.



Tempest Clerics don't have to just be melee clerics, but their features are geared around being melee clerics, (plus a few extra tricks up their sleeve that other melee clerics don't have, like a variety of AOE spells). Choosing something other than melee is still totally viable, but means you won't be taking advantage of all their features, so it isn't optimal.

Heavy Armor is for melee. A ranged attacker doesn't get nearly as much benefit out of Heavy Armor. Wrath of the Storm requires you to be within 5 feet of the enemy who damages you. And several of their domain spells affect areas immediately adjacent to the caster, like Thunderwave and Destructive Wave.

Other features do work for a ranged build, like Martial Weapons, Destructive Wrath, the ranged AOE spells, and Divine Strike, but they also work just as well for melee.

Melee Tempest Clerics use 100% of the domain's features. Ranged Tempest Clerics use 75% of the domain's features.
Yeah, no, sorry still disagreeing strongly.

1. Heavy armor: first, using heavy instead of medium means sacricifing either speed or Initiative to get one extra AC, which is already a big deal: as a Cleric, there are many spells you can use to open fights in a way that gives an edge to party, so getting 16 STR means lesser chance to Bless your pals before they can act. And getting lower means you fall short 10 feet speed, which can be a big deal especially for melee characters.
So IMO heavy armor is simply a trap unless you want to make a GWM/PAM Cleric for reasons, or you are ok with speed disadvantage because, precisely, you are staying at range and making your best to avoid enemies coming close.
Second, even putting aside my view on heavy armor being a trap and agree it's a good choice for a Cleric, your argument is made invalid by simply looking at the Life and Nature Cleric: it does get heavy armor but no martial proficiency. This is an illustration that heavy armor is good even on a guy that does not want to get into melee. 5% less attacks still mean less occasions to lose concentration, less damage over a day. Which is important considering melee enemies are not the only threat, far from that: archery is a commong thing to, then you have the casters.
And a Tempest Cleric may, exactly like a Life or Nature Cleric, choose heavy armor in spite of this faults because it wants to turtle up and maximize concentration by taking Heavy Armor Master to reduce damage (helps greatly at lower levels although it does lose value at higher level during the fight itself) or Warcaster to help keep SG while using Sacred Flame, Command or Thorns Whip.

2. Maximized lightning/thunder damage: a pure Tempest Cleric never gets Booming Blade nor Shocking Grasp. You need multiclass or feat for that. And if you get that out, everything Tempest gets is about AOE or repeatable distant damage, with the exception of Thunderwave which is great when you get it but doesn't scale so well. So it actually geared more towards ranged (especially when you want to concentrate on an important Fog Cloud or get the max of a Call Lightning).

3. Push on lightning damage: doesn't work with Booming Blade so you don't care about it. Works like a charm with Call Lightning though, which is a concentration spell, which has a great range.

4. Extra lightning damage: works on any kind of weapon attack, so also on heavy crossbows. Which are a very nice weapon to use for a Cleric since he doesn't get more than one attack per round anyways. And helps him keep enemies at bay by synergizing with previous feature.

So, absolutely NOTHING for a pure Tempest Cleric gears towards melee unless you want it.

It's because players decide to gear it for melee by stacking dips/feats to get the best available tools (Booming Blade, Warcaster, Shield, or multiclass into Storm Sorcerer / Ranger / Warlock) that it can be a brute in melee.

By itself, it can be played equally efficiencly in melee or range, all depending on your choice of spell for the fight.