New to cleric (enhancements)

[CozyBear2007]

Here is my cleric build,

STR-10
DEX-8
CON-12
INT-8
WIS-18
CHA-14

My question is that I have 8 Action Points not sure what enhancements I should take. Your help would be greatly apreaciated.

[Zenako]

At low levels should be looking to take those that pump up the effectiveness of your healing. I also often take the ones that increase the effectiveness of Wands and Scrolls since you may end up using them a lot until you get higher level. Get more bang for your buck.

You need to keep the mindset that enhancements can be changed, and probably should be along the way. You will probably be looking to redo them 3 or 4 times I would guess, as you level up. What is most useful at endgame is not at all the same as what you want at 5th level for example.

I personally like some of the divine healing, divine vitality and divine cleansing ones as well, since they help to stretch your spell points and gives you something useful to use your turn undeads on every quest.

Stat boost might matter if you have an item with an odd number boost on it, but it is pointless to use those Action Points to increase an 18 to a 19 for example in WIS.

Some players love the increase chance of critical spell results, but I personally don't take them, since if you are healing, you cannot be casting spells and hoping to get a huge result 12% of the time, you need to do what you need to do.

[Fenrisulven6]

What he said. My 8th has taken some crit enhancements, and what ends up happening is that I waste mana on damage spells while ignoring my group's health bars. Its more effective to keep the DPS tanks alive because they kill much better than you ever will. If you're new like me, focus on healing enhancements until you get the hang of things. The only good use I've found so far is taking down spectres that my tanks have trouble hitting.

If you want to play some offense, go with Spell Pen feats and enchancements, as well as items that give a +2 DC. Use them with Command. Very cheap on mana and good for crowd control. Drops them on their face and keeps them from damaging your tanks [which is a force mutliplier, because it saves the mana you would cast on healing them later].

/noob question:

How do items/enchancements that "improve effectivenss 10%" work? Quicker casting times, longer durations, more damage, etc?

[Jarka]

How do items/enchancements that "improve effectivenss 10%" work? Quicker casting times, longer durations, more damage, etc?

Usually found in devotion or potency items. They increase the damage/cures by the stated percentage. Lesser=10%, Improved=20%, Greater=40%, Superior=50% increase. So, if your cure serious wounds normally heal for, lets say 50 points for argument's sake, and you equip a superior dev/pot item, then your csw will do 50+(50*.5=25)=75 points. With that said, it is better to equip a potency item over a devotion item because potency affects all spells, whereas devotion only affects the healing spells.

Quicken Spell feat is the only way to cast spells faster.

Extend Spell feat is the only way to make your spell's duration last longer.

It is important that you keep your party alive. But, sometimes the best way to do that can be a well placed soundburst or command. I always try to equip my young clerics with the appropriate level spell pen item and either improved or greater POTENCY item. You know those ogres who like to 1 or 2 shot your tanks? They can't do a thing when sitting there with a dazed look from your command spell .

I take the Divine Healing enhancements at the lower levels for the extra healing power it gives me without using sp or wands. I will toss it on the main tanks just after the start of a tough battle. And, it works great on warforged.

One other thing. A dead cleric is no good to the party. That means you need to learn to heal while on the move if you get agro; and sometimes even sacrifice a party member or 2 to keep yourself and a main tank up to finish the battle and visit a shrine.

GL and have fun

[EKKM]

I just wanted clarify the two previous posts. Spell penetration items, feats and enhancements only affect the chance to beat spell resistance. Not all mobs have spell resistance. Outsiders (demons, devils etc), golems and drow are the best examples of mobs with SR.

When a spell is cat on a mob two chaecks are made.

1 - If a mob has spell resistance, a caster level check is made to bypass the SR. If you don't bypass SR, than nothing happens to the mob. For example, a mob has SR 22 and a level 10 cleric is casting bestow curse on it. The cleric "rolls" a twenty sided die (D20) and adds their level and any Spell pen. feats, items enhancements to that roll. If the roll exceeds the SR of 22 (i.e. a 13, assuming no modifiers) then the spell could affect the mob.

2 - Assuming the spell has a save, the mob makes a saving throw against the spell's save DC using the D20 and its save modifier. A spell's DC is 10+ the spell level + the casters casting attribute modifier (i.e. a clerics WIS modifier)+ spell focus feats and items. As in the previous example, if the cleric casting bestow curse had a WIS of 20, they would have a WIS mod of +5 and the save DC would be 18 (10+lvl3 +5WIS).


At lower levels, very few mobs have SR, so don't take those enhancements/feats early on. I also would not always equip a spell pen item, only if I was facing mobs with SR. Around level 7 you will start seeing it more.

I personally like the healing enhancements (even the crit ones), spell point enhacements and DVs (divine vitality). At low levels the divine cleansing enhancement can really help to get rid of poison and disease. At leter levels wands are probably more effective though.

[Fenrisulven6]

I just wanted clarify the two previous posts. Spell penetration items, feats and enhancements only affect the chance to beat spell resistance.

Yah, my bad, I mispoke. Spell Pen affects spell resistance, not DC [waves to Wizzy]

[haunter]

If I'm not mistaken, the SR roll will succeed if it equals their SR as well. So a 12 would work in your example as well.

[Galapas]

You can hold off on the spell penetration feats and enhancements. It is very rare for anything to have SR at low levels. There are a few drow - in Redwillow, Bounty Hunter - but they are not that tough. When you start running into flesh renders and ice flensers is when you'll want it.