Cleric guide for the 2024 rules

Class basics

Features by level

Divine Order: Protector or Thaumaturge

At level 1 you choose one of two orders. It's the biggest build decision the class asks of you, and it pairs naturally with the Blessed Strikes choice you make at level 7.

Heavy armor is a big deal early. Once you own chain mail, it and a shield give AC 18 without needing any Dexterity, which frees up points for Constitution. Chain mail asks for Strength 13, so plan for that score.

The features that matter

Spellcasting (level 1)

You prepare spells from the full cleric list after each long rest, and you can swap them as needs change. Bless, Healing Word and Guiding Bolt cover the first few levels. At character level 5, Spirit Guardians becomes the spell you cast in almost every hard fight.

Channel Divinity (level 2)

Two uses at first, three at level 6 and four at level 18. You get one back on a short rest and all on a long rest. Every cleric gets two options. Divine Spark heals an ally or deals radiant or necrotic damage to an enemy, starting at 1d8 plus your Wisdom modifier and growing to 4d8 by level 18. Turn Undead leaves undead that fail a Wisdom save frightened and unable to act for a minute. Your domain adds more options.

Sear Undead (level 5)

When you Turn Undead, the ones that fail also take radiant damage, a number of d8s equal to your Wisdom modifier. In an undead-heavy campaign this clears whole rooms.

Blessed Strikes (level 7)

Choose Divine Strike, an extra 1d8 radiant or necrotic damage once per turn on a weapon hit, or Potent Spellcasting, which adds your Wisdom modifier to cleric cantrip damage. At level 14 Divine Strike rises to 2d8, and Potent Spellcasting also grants temporary hit points when your cantrip deals damage.

Divine Intervention (level 10)

Once per long rest you can cast any cleric spell of level 5 or lower without a slot or material components, as long as it doesn't use a reaction. At level 20 you can choose Wish instead, though then you have to wait 2d4 long rests to use it again.

What changed from 2014

• Your domain arrives at level 3, not level 1. Divine Order fills the gap at level 1 and decides your armor.
• Divine Spark is new. Every cleric now has a Channel Divinity option that heals or hurts, not just domains that happened to have one.
• Blessed Strikes is a class feature. The weapon damage and cantrip boosts that used to depend on your domain are now a choice every cleric makes.
• Sear Undead replaces Destroy Undead. Turned undead take damage instead of being destroyed outright below a challenge rating.
• Divine Intervention always works. The old version was a percentage roll. Now it's a guaranteed free spell once per long rest.

For players coming from 2014, the domain timing is the change to plan around. Your first two levels play the same no matter which domain you'll take.

Subclasses

You pick a Domain at level 3. Only the Life Domain is in the free SRD; the others are in the 2024 Player's Handbook.

Life is the easy recommendation for a first cleric. Light is the one to pick if your party is short on area damage.

Building one

• Ability scores: Wisdom first, Constitution second. Protectors want Strength third for weapons; Thaumaturges want Dexterity for AC.
• Divine Order: Protector unless you're sure someone else will hold the front line.
• Spells: keep Healing Word prepared for picking people up, and save your slots for Bless and later Spirit Guardians rather than healing every scratch.
• Feats: raise Wisdom first. War Caster helps hold concentration while you take hits in melee.

The biggest habit to break is healing in combat before anyone drops. A turn spent on Bless or damage usually saves more hit points than a turn spent topping someone up.