Favorte Level 6 Cleric Domain Feature?

[Yakmala]

Of the various 6th level Cleric domain features, which is your favorite? Which do you feel brings the most to the adventuring party? Which do you think gets the most use in a typical adventure vs those that are situational?

Knowledge: Read Thoughts.

Life: Blessed Healer

Light: Improved Flare

Nature: Dampen Elements

Tempest: Thunderbolt Strike

Trickery: Cloak of Shadows

War: War God's Blessing

Forge: Soul of the Forge

Grave: Sentinel at Death's Door

Arcana: Spell Breaker

[ImproperJustice]

I can say that as a Forge Cleric:

+1 AC comes up in every combat more or less.

And Fire Resistance is always handy when Dragon Breath and Fireballs get tossed around.

[Atalas]

I'm partial to Spell Breaker.Enemy caster Sleeps the party, Cleric is still awake, then everyone's awake. Save the Fighter from a Hold Person, etc

[stoutstien]

No love for order domain? Bonus action casting of enchantment spells up to five times a day is a great way to start most fights. Works well with voice of authority.

[MrStabby]

Spell breaker is a great ability. It is fun and powerful and because it helps others at the table they have fun as well.

[Man_Over_Game]

Improved Flare is just a nice support ability that your team will thank you for.

I also really like Dampen Elements, especially once it gets leveled up further.

[jaappleton]

No love for order domain? Bonus action casting of enchantment spells up to five times a day is a great way to start most fights. Works well with voice of authority.

Order, absolutely.

[Yakmala]

No love for order domain? Bonus action casting of enchantment spells up to five times a day is a great way to start most fights. Works well with voice of authority.

Sorry about that. I didn't include UA only domains. Order's abilities are definitely cool. Order's Domain gives you one of the best features of the Divination Wizard, only for Enchantment spells.

[jaappleton]

Sorry about that. I didn't include UA only domains. Order's abilities are definitely cool. Order's Domain gives you one of the best features of the Divination Wizard, only for Enchantment spells.

Order isn’t UA.

Order was released officially, along with the Spores Druid, in Guildmaster’s Guide to Ravnica.

[LudicSavant]

Fun things to do with Spell Breaker

The fact that the wording is "when you restore hit points to an ally" is really helpful.

Got Regenerate? Now you can make people benefit from Dispel Magic (and a +1 hp that'll pop them up off the death gate) at the start of every turn for an hour, no Concentration or action economy. Also restores people to full hit points between combats (heals >600 hp over its full duration).
Got Heal? Now it not only burst heals you, but removes those pesky magic status effects in the same action.
Got Mass Healing Word? Now you've got an AoE bonus action Dispel Magic.
Got a 1 level dip in Druid? Now you can make 10 Dispel Magic potions per spell slot spent yesterday that anyone can distribute.

And just in general: healing in combat becomes worth it when you're also dispelling a nasty magic effect.

[Yakmala]

Fun things to do with Spell Breaker
And just in general: healing in combat becomes worth it when you're also dispelling a nasty magic effect.

I'm a big fan of Arcana as well and have a low level Arcana Cleric. Spell Breaker is useful, but often not as useful as I might hope, as it only works on actual spells, not on supernatural abilities of creatures that imitate spell effects (at least that is how the DM in my Cleric's campaign is interpreting Spell Breaker).

[KorvinStarmast]

Read Thoughts.
The read thoughts ability has so many uses, and it works against any creature.
Any creature. No restriction on humanoid, fey, fiend, beast ... any creature. (Granted, it can fail)
Suggestion is a tricksy spell, but there are a lot of situations where (particularly before combat, using suggestion can really put the party in an advantageous position ..)


Channel Divinity: Read Thoughts
At 6th level, you can use your Channel Divinity to read a creature’s thoughts. You can then use your access to the creature’s mind to command⁠ it.
As an action, choose one creature that you can see within 60 feet of you. That creature must make a Wisdom saving throw. If the creature succeeds on the saving throw, you can’t use this feature on it again until you finish a Long Rest.
If the creature fails its save, you can read its surface thoughts (those foremost in its mind, reflecting its current emotions and what it is actively thinking about) when it is within 60 feet of you. This effect lasts for 1 minute. During that time, you can use your action to end this effect and cast the Suggestion spell on the creature without expending a spell slot. The target automatically fails its saving throw against the spell.

A clever player can IMO get a lot of mileage out of this ability.

[jaappleton]

That read thoughts ability has so many uses, and it works against any creature.
Any creature. No restriction on humanoid, fey, fiend ... any creature.
Suggestion is a tricksy spell, but there are a lot of situations where (particularly before combat, using suggestion can really put the party in an advnatageou position ..)

I actually have a question on that.

Read Thoughts works on anything. You're right.

Suggestion, on the other hand, has limitations as to what kind of creatures it can impact.

Is the version of Suggestion that you can cast via the Knowledge Cleric ability also limited to what it can impact?

[KorvinStarmast]

I actually have a question on that.

Read Thoughts works on anything. You're right.

Suggestion, on the other hand, has limitations as to what kind of creatures it can impact.

Is the version of Suggestion that you can cast via the Knowledge Cleric ability also limited to what it can impact?
As I read it, the Suggestion applies to any creature who has failed the save versus Read Thoughts - order of operations - so this "specific" overwrites that "general."
I can see a (censored) DM ruling otherwise.
Specific Beats General
This book contains rules, especially in parts 2 and 3, that govern how the game plays. That said, many racial traits, class features, spells, magic items, monster abilities, and other game elements break the general rules in some way, creating an exception to how the rest of the game works. Remember this: If a specific rule contradicts a general rule, the specific rule wins. Exceptions to the rules are often minor. For instance, many adventurers don’t have proficiency with longbows, but every wood elf does because of a racial trait. That trait creates a minor exception in the game. Other examples of rule-breaking are more conspicuous. For instance, an adventurer can’t normally pass through walls, but some spells make that possible. Magic accounts for most of the major exceptions to the rules.
I'll check Sage Advice, not sure if it's covered there.
Hmm, it's not in the 2019 SA Compendium, so this one is going to need a ruling.

[Man_Over_Game]

As I read it, the Suggestion applies to any creature who has failed the save versus Read Thoughts - order of operations - so this "specific" overwrites that "general."
I can see a (censored) DM ruling otherwise. I'll check Sage Advice, not sure if it's covered there.
Hmm, it's not in the 2019 SA Compendium, so this one is going to need a ruling.

That's an interesting conundrum you guys found. Here's a RPG.SE question on a similar topic: https://rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/140414/if-a-knowledge-cleric-uses-an-action-to-end-read-thoughts-effect-early-and-cast

Survey Says: Read Thoughts simply allows you to cause the target to automatically fail the Saving Throw. It does not allow you to cast Suggestion on an invalid target (like if one is more than Suggestion's casting range of 30 feet).

[MrStabby]

Depending on the campaign,nature clerics level 6 can be really powerful. Just a great reaction ability if you have a DM/campaign that fields a lot of elemental damage.

[Agent-KI7KO]

Having played a joke War Cleric from level 1, War God’s Blessing is frequently forgotten.

...sometimes you remember it when your Barbarian wiffs his rage GWM and it’s a gamechanger.

[Shuruke]

Spell breaker is a great ability. It is fun and powerful and because it helps others at the table they have fun as well.

I am on my 3rd arcana cleric and I absolutely love spell breaker

However it relies on campaigns where magic is used rather often against pcs

Currently im working on a burst heal /dispeller
So gonna have life transference , dispel magic, and counter spell

[TheUser]

Life Cleric really ramps up at level 6.

Not for the level 6 Feature (which, hey, makes life transference pretty decent) but for the ability to Channel Divinity twice per short rest instead of once. It really just boosts the life Clerics healing right out of the park.

[jaappleton]

Life Cleric really ramps up at level 6.

Not for the level 6 Feature (which, hey, makes life transference pretty decent) but for the ability to Channel Divinity twice per short rest instead of once. It really just boosts the life Clerics healing right out of the park.

Life Transference can cause you to lose Concentration.

Do you think this is intended? How do you rule it?

[TheUser]

Life Transference can cause you to lose Concentration.

Do you think this is intended? How do you rule it?

Kind of off topic but I'll answer nonetheless.

To be honest, I am unsure. I do not think it is intended because the Cleric is fully aware and anticipating the damage. You could surmise that because of they know it's coming it would confer at the very least, advantage on the concentration save. Moreover, if the Life Cleric is healing off of this, you could also only calculate the save based on the net difference in life (necrotic damage - healing received from the level 6 feature)

If I was DM-ing, I would at the very least give them advantage. If they have been using the spell for a while, have proficiency in constitutions saves or another feature granting advantage on the concentration check then I'd probably just hand wave it.

(If the player had mage slayer they'd have to make their own concentration save at disadvantage lol)

[Chronos]

Huh, in my group, giving others +10 is the only subclass feature that the war cleric ever uses. He actually has to be reminded occasionally that he can give it to himself, too.

And yes, my sharpshooter ranger wholeheartedly approves of getting it.