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Imp
Learned Scribe
231 Posts |
 Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 03:33:31
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When a Cleric travels to another plane, can he still get his spells from his deity?
The hypothetical situation is this: the players sail (unknowingly) through a portal to a mysterious plane where they find an island. Will they b able to contact their gods?
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Hoondatha
Great Reader
USA
2450 Posts |
Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 05:23:19
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Depends on the plane they're on, and the plane their god resides upon. The further you are from your god, the more levels you lose. Planescape dealt with this in detail. Basically, for each plane that separates you from your deity, you lose an effective caster level; spells known, readied, CL effects, whole nine yards.
Figuring out how many levels you lose is easy: find where you are on the Great Wheel. Find your deity's home plane. Count how many planes are in between. That's how many levels you lose. If your deity is on the Outer Planes and you're on the Inner, (or vice versa) subtract three for the Astral, Prime, Ethereal.
If you're still in the Prime, but in a different crystal sphere, the answer is maybe. It depends on whether your god is worshipped in the sphere (need at least 100 fervent worshippers). If not, sometimes your god will have made a pact with a god of a similar ethos in the sphere to supply you spells. If not, then you're stuck, and can't memorize spells over 2nd level.
Hope this helps. |
Doggedly converting 3e back to what D&D should be...
Sigh... And now 4e as well. |
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scererar
Master of Realmslore
USA
1618 Posts |
Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 05:23:49
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| I know there will be lots of what if and it all depends scenarios that would differ from my statement, but I believe generally speaking yes. |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
37016 Posts |
Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 05:29:13
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And it was more for Spelljammer, but there was a spell called Contact Home Power which was perfect for reconnecting a cleric to his/her deity. Even in spheres where their deities are totally unknown, clerics can still get 1st and 2st level spells, which included this one. With Contact Home Power, it made enough of a connection that the cleric could get his full alotment of spells -- it was the ultimate "phone home" spell. 
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Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8098 Posts |
Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 06:34:04
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There is a Manual of the Planes for every D&D edition, and at least the first three provide detailed answers to this question. 2E Planescape added much further detail and complexity, as did 2E Spelljammer and 2E Ravenloft.
The answer ye seek depends greatly on which D&D ruleset you play, where this mysterious island-plane is located, what is the nature of the place, who's in charge there, how much presence can the clerics' gods manifest within it, and how vital the clerics' mission is in serving their god's interests.
The Great Wheel alignment model of the planes (mentioned by Hoondatha) is the classic representation, but it is by no means the only one and it is no longer considered official core rules. Some campaign settings (Eberron, for example) have a unique planar cosmology already specified. Here's a decent wiki article to get started, it links to many others which can confuse new planewalkers fairly quickly.
Alternately, if the situation you're describing is a one-shot adventure or some magical/temporary/enigmatic other plane of little general consequence then simply apply whatever penalties you like to make the adventure properly balanced or challenging for your players, dress it up with the usual overconfident DM's fiat and handwavium and nobody should know you're winging it. If things get too hard you can always place a convenient artifact or servant of the deity in this weird place to assist the players, if things get too easy you can always suddenly introduce your player cleric to the fearful notion that the powers he takes for granted might work sporadically or not at all in the presence of some artifact or servant of an opposing deity. The planes are more than just different worlds, each is an essentially entirely different setting following different laws of physics and magic and faith, and inhabited by creatures with fantastic powers. |
[/Ayrik] |
Edited by - Ayrik on 10 Dec 2011 06:47:38 |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31799 Posts |
Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 07:16:17
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quote:
Originally posted by Ayrik
The answer ye seek depends greatly on which D&D ruleset you play ...
Which I addressed, somewhat partially, when I wrote the 'Section D.1' of Candlekeep's Code of Conduct, back in the middle-years of 3e. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Ayrik
Great Reader
Canada
8098 Posts |
Posted - 10 Dec 2011 : 07:51:35
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quote:
The Sagequote:
The answer ye seek depends greatly on which D&D ruleset you play ...
Which I addressed, somewhat partially, when I wrote the 'Section D.1' of Candlekeep's Code of Conduct, back in the middle-years of 3e.
What an odd place to find gems of planar lore. I confess that I, uh, never managed to get past somewhere in the middle of Section B. 
You might be pleased or displeased to note that your partial synopsis of D&D cosmology was sufficiently accurate and authoritative to be shamelessly plagiarized onto the wiki sites, where segments of your text have been clipboarded around the world to entertain and educate millions. Gratz, you're an accidental yet anonymous celebrity. |
[/Ayrik] |
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Clerics that visit other planes
