Battle cleric

[Viren1]

I was looking for some feedback on this Build, Having never played a cleric or anything even remotely heal based I was just kind of making it up as I went along.

So the build looks like this, I am well aware that the skill points look pretty terrible, I could throw on a +2 int tome to make em look better but didn't bother on the planner

Character Plan by DDO Character Planner Version 3.8.0
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battleclr 
Level 20 Lawful Good Half-Orc Male
(2 Fighter \ 18 Cleric) 
Hit Points: 276
Spell Points: 1276 
BAB: 15\15\20\25\25
Fortitude: 16
Reflex: 5
Will: 19

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
Abilities        Base Stats          Modified Stats
(32 Point)       (Level 1)             (Level 20)
Strength             15                    21
Dexterity             9                     9
Constitution         15                    15
Intelligence          8                     8
Wisdom               17                    26
Charisma              9                     9

Tomes Used
+2 Tome of Strength used at level 7
+2 Tome of Wisdom used at level 7

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
                 Base Skills         Modified Skills
Skills           (Level 1)            (Level 20)
Balance               0                     1
Bluff                -1                    -1
Concentration         2                    16
Diplomacy            -1                    -1
Disable Device       n/a                   n/a
Haggle               -1                    -1
Heal                  3                    10
Hide                 -1                    -1
Intimidate           -1                    -1
Jump                  3                     7.5
Listen                3                     8
Move Silently        -1                    -1
Open Lock            n/a                   n/a
Perform              n/a                   n/a
Repair               -1                    -1
Search               -1                    -1
Spot                  3                     8
Swim                  3                     6
Tumble               n/a                   n/a
Use Magic Device     n/a                   n/a

{\b {\ul Notable Equipment }} \par Health Belt of Heavy Fortification \par Wise Tiara \par Ogre Power Gloves \par  \par Level 1 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Power Attack
Feat: (Selected) Toughness
Enhancement: Fighter Haste Boost I
Enhancement: Orcish Melee Damage I
Enhancement: Fighter Toughness I


Level 2 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic I
Enhancement: Cleric Energy of the Zealot I


Level 3 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Empower Healing Spell
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Weapon Focus: Slashing Weapons
Enhancement: Orcish Strength I
Enhancement: Racial Toughness I
Enhancement: Fighter Strength I


Level 4 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Improved Empower Healing I
Enhancement: Cleric Wisdom I
Enhancement: Cleric Wand and Scroll Mastery I


Level 5 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Improved Heal I
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Life I


Level 6 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Empower Spell
Enhancement: Improved Heal II
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic II


Level 7 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Fighter Critical Accuracy I
Enhancement: Racial Toughness II
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Incredible Life I
Enhancement: Cleric Improved Turning I


Level 8 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Radiant Servant I
Enhancement: Cleric Divine Healing I


Level 9 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Heighten Spell
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Life II
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic III


Level 10 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Wisdom II


Level 11 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Follower of the Sovereign Host


Level 12 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Improved Critical: Slashing Weapons
Enhancement: Unyielding Sovereignty
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Incredible Life II


Level 13 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Life III


Level 14 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Radiant Servant II
Enhancement: Cleric Energy of the Zealot II


Level 15 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Maximize Spell
Enhancement: Cleric Improved Empower Healing II


Level 16 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic IV


Level 17 (Cleric)


Level 18 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Quicken Spell
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Incredible Life III
Enhancement: Cleric Wisdom III


Level 19 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Orcish Melee Damage II


Level 20 (Cleric)
Enhancement: Orcish Strength II

So if you could be so kind as to point out where I screwed up royally, it would be appreciated

[LordKhaan]

OK heres my list, Personally I wouldnt go with horc, but thats me. I hate the uglies

1.Concentration is a little low for a battle cleric, unless your running with quicken on 24/7, you are going to get interupted.
2. 7.5 points on jump? rather throw the .5 to concentration for a full pt.
3. If u plan on being a full battle cleric, you might want to take quicken a little earlier than lvl 18.
4. PA with no feats into THF or + to hit... me thinks you not hitting much.
5. Might want to look into a few more CHA pts to get DM 1
6. 21 pts into STR? either drop to 20, or find a way to get it to 22. Unless you have a +7 STR item thats going to even that out for ya.
7. Might want to consider going helf with sorc dil which will give you almost all scroll/wand casts and make you alot more survivable

[Habreno]

Wow.


First remarks-great job on not royally failing, as most starting seem to do.

Though you will want to reconsider your race/stat points.

As I'm typing this on a smartphone I don't have a toon planner on me, but I can type ideas out.


CLERIC 18/FIGHTER 2:

Race: Human (extra feat and no state penalties, plus more skills learnable.

STR: 18 PLUS LEVELUPS.
DEX:8 (NOTE-you will be THFing, or TWFing, but even without the feats, I recommend TWFing as it's more DPS. Of course that's at cap-THFing is fine in low levels as is sword-and-board the few levels you can actually gets a usable AC. TR builds will be able to aford 8 build points for a 15 DEX, and if you really want to TWF you can drop STR down to 16 to do it)
CON: 14 OR 15_ depends on your enhancements.
INT: 8-but have your main send him a +2 tome to eat at 7.
WIS: 8 (+ 2 tome + 6 item + 2moro CLR WIS II + 1 Human Adaptability-WIS gives 19 for L9 spells-though 18 will be fine as the only good spell at L9 is True Resurrection-Implosion will have a horrible DC, and the best summon is the Air Ele at L8)
CHA: If you dumped DEX, you'll be able to makes this 15 or 16 depending one your CON stat and gets DMc III with a + 2, or at worst, +3 tome, which requires 15 levels of Cleric and a BASE 18 CHA.


The build I prefer-more splashing for a few things.

CLR 15/PAL3/MNK2 (or swap third monk and paladin level)

WHAT YOU LOSE:

Spellpoints.
L9 spells.
Fighter Haste Boost.

WHAT YOU GAIN:

Evasion.
CHA boost to saves.
LoH.

3 PAL:

2nd LoH.
Fear Immunity (if I'm remembering right)

3 MNK:

Fists of Light
Light path finishers-DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE.

It's a personal choice. Splashing a Cleric is easy to do and hard to mess up.

Good luck!

[LordKhaan]

personally i prefer the monk splash too, however this isnt really what the OP wanted.
Things to keep in mind with Habreno's build, raid healing will likely be a no no, and you'll take the spot of a dps, which will likely lead to a lot of declines. However if this is the type of build your looking at search for Impaqts build and rather go FVS
Personally on a cleric, stick to a max of 2 lvl's of splash and keep your level ups in wis as this will help your DC's on bb, implosion, destruction etc which is often far faster than melee'ing things to death and will give you the ability to scroll farm later.
Again I must stress that with no enhancement/feats into melee, from lvl 13 up, you will start to battle to hit things and will virtually run with divine favour on 100% of the time.

[protokon]

Wow.


First remarks-great job on not royally failing, as most starting seem to do.

Though you will want to reconsider your race/stat points.

As I'm typing this on a smartphone I don't have a toon planner on me, but I can type ideas out.


CLERIC 18/FIGHTER 2:

Race: Human (extra feat and no state penalties, plus more skills learnable.

STR: 18 PLUS LEVELUPS.
DEX:8 (NOTE-you will be THFing, or TWFing, but even without the feats, I recommend TWFing as it's more DPS. Of course that's at cap-THFing is fine in low levels as is sword-and-board the few levels you can actually gets a usable AC. TR builds will be able to aford 8 build points for a 15 DEX, and if you really want to TWF you can drop STR down to 16 to do it)
CON: 14 OR 15_ depends on your enhancements.
INT: 8-but have your main send him a +2 tome to eat at 7.
WIS: 8 (+ 2 tome + 6 item + 2moro CLR WIS II + 1 Human Adaptability-WIS gives 19 for L9 spells-though 18 will be fine as the only good spell at L9 is True Resurrection-Implosion will have a horrible DC, and the best summon is the Air Ele at L8)
CHA: If you dumped DEX, you'll be able to makes this 15 or 16 depending one your CON stat and gets DMc III with a + 2, or at worst, +3 tome, which requires 15 levels of Cleric and a BASE 18 CHA.


The build I prefer-more splashing for a few things.

CLR 15/PAL3/MNK2 (or swap third monk and paladin level)

WHAT YOU LOSE:

Spellpoints.
L9 spells.
Fighter Haste Boost.

WHAT YOU GAIN:

Evasion.
CHA boost to saves.
LoH.

3 PAL:

2nd LoH.
Fear Immunity (if I'm remembering right)

3 MNK:

Fists of Light
Light path finishers-DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE.

It's a personal choice. Splashing a Cleric is easy to do and hard to mess up.

Good luck!

just a few comments about your suggestions:

-the paladin levels seem like a nice splash for the boost to saves - but your fort/will save will be obscenely high with the right gear at level 20 anyways. fear immunity? useless considering GH is readily available on clickies and/or from party members. not to mention you can drink remove fear potions from the guild vendor while feared. Lay on hands? also a laughable addition to a build that has radiant servant bursts available.
-I'm a huge fan of monk splash for evasion, but the light finishers are really unnecessary - unless you plan on fighting with handwraps, your never going to be able to use them often enough.

I think there are two solid splits for the melee cleric myself: 18 cleric / 2 fighter, 17 cleric / 2 monk / 1 fighter (the fighter gives you the extra feat/proficiencies/haste boost 1)

Steering away from half-orc and going a more neutral route that opens up cha as an alternate stat really is the way to go, I think. It synergizes better with radiant servant, giving you more turn undeads as well as divine might for meleeing.

[Habreno]

just a few comments about your suggestions:

-the paladin levels seem like a nice splash for the boost to saves - but your fort/will save will be obscenely high with the right gear at level 20 anyways. fear immunity? useless considering GH is readily available on clickies and/or from party members. not to mention you can drink remove fear potions from the guild vendor while feared. Lay on hands? also a laughable addition to a build that has radiant servant bursts available.
-I'm a huge fan of monk splash for evasion, but the light finishers are really unnecessary - unless you plan on fighting with handwraps, your never going to be able to use them often enough.

I think there are two solid splits for the melee cleric myself: 18 cleric / 2 fighter, 17 cleric / 2 monk / 1 fighter (the fighter gives you the extra feat/proficiencies/haste boost 1)

Steering away from half-orc and going a more neutral route that opens up cha as an alternate stat really is the way to go, I think. It synergizes better with radiant servant, giving you more turn undeads as well as divine might for meleeing.

Paladin helps.all saves-fort, will (both strong on Clerics) and reflex (notoriously poor) and that synergy is why I recommend the Pal and Monk splashes. 16/2/2 is also good.

But indeed, HOrc is not too good for a BattleCleric. And if all you want is minor meleeing, ANY Cleric can do that.

[Viren1]

The main reason behind going Horc was to get the extra +4 str (2 base and 2 enhancement) So it had half decent dps (if i wanted excellent dps id just roll a barb and be done with it) and imo TWF requires too many feats to be trully worth it. So i figured a cleric running around with a falchion and imp crit with even the base PA (i think the extra PA enhancements would be too much of a penalty) would make for a reasonably decent solo toon.

Then if i ever improved at healing people other than me, and got the right gear together, i should still be able to heal relatively well in raids...

Looking at your suggestion for stat reallocation Habreno, Having only 19 wis seems like it would leave a rather large hole in the sp pool, though i do like the idea of being able to put more into str... And Human was something I hadn't really considered, might have to have a play with the builder and see how that pans out.

[FuzzyDuck81]

CLR 15/PAL3/MNK2 (or swap third monk and paladin level)

WHAT YOU LOSE:

Spellpoints.
L9 spells.
Fighter Haste Boost.

WHAT YOU GAIN:

Evasion.
CHA boost to saves.
LoH.

3 PAL:

2nd LoH.
Fear Immunity (if I'm remembering right)

3 MNK:

Fists of Light
Light path finishers-DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE.

It's a personal choice. Splashing a Cleric is easy to do and hard to mess up.

Good luck!

Had a halfling with this setup, trickier to level but awesome fun to play - her lowest save was reflex, which buffed with nightshield, holy aura & GH was still approx +43, pretty tasty I respecced her recently to have fighter instead of paladin levels for more combat feats & shuffled a couple of other things around, you can find her here http://my.ddo.com/character/thelanis/ossanna/, but is still perfectly decent in most stuff & I've planned out her TR here http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=329819

[Atree]

Each 2 points in wisdom translates into less than 30sp at cap (29 for a full cleric, -1 ofr each splash).
The last 2 cleric lvls give circa 100sp each. So dumping Wis on a splash build is far less of an sp issue than the splash itself.

My current battle cleric is 17/2/1 cle/rog/fig. She has 1530 max sp and that seems quite sufficient for most quests and raids. The only instances I can think of where sp becomes an issue are ToD and eChrono boss fights.

It does take a while to learn how to best use your radiant servant abilities, sp cures/heals, pre-emptive damage mitigators etc., but once you get the hang of it, solo-healing a Shroud should be a cakewalk.

If you plan to melee extensively then Torc and Con-op item are the two pieces of gear that will make the most impact on your performance. Other sp regen gear (bauble, ss ring, talisman, etc.) is also nice to have.

Regarding the to-hit issues: I started with 16 str, with all lvl-ups to it. Currently sitting at around 32str (16base+5lvls+2tome+6DP+1litany+2rage) and I can keep PA on in all but elite Amrath and epics.

[unbongwah]

Brief thoughts: I don't see why you put pts into CHA & INT at the expense of STR (esp. on a HO) and/or max WIS; WF Slash is a wasted feat; some of your enhs could use work (e.g., drop Crit Accuracy).

Here's an idea for a WIS-based HO battlecleric I've been kicking around:

Character Plan by DDO Character Planner Version 3.9.1
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Level 20 True Neutral Half-Orc Female
(2 Fighter \ 1 Barbarian \ 17 Cleric) 
Hit Points: 300
Spell Points: 1128 
BAB: 15\15\20\25\25
Fortitude: 18
Reflex: 4
Will: 18

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
Abilities        Base Stats          Modified Stats
(32 Point)       (Level 1)             (Level 20)
Strength             18                    23
Dexterity             8                     8
Constitution         14                    16
Intelligence          6                     6
Wisdom               16                    26
Charisma             12                    16

Tomes Used
+2 Tome of Strength used at level 7
+2 Tome of Constitution used at level 7
+2 Tome of Wisdom used at level 7
+2 Tome of Charisma used at level 7

Level 1 (Barbarian)
Feat: (Selected) Toughness


Level 2 (Cleric)


Level 3 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Empower Healing Spell


Level 4 (Cleric)
Ability Raise: WIS


Level 5 (Cleric)


Level 6 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Maximize Spell


Level 7 (Cleric)


Level 8 (Cleric)
Ability Raise: WIS


Level 9 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Empower Spell


Level 10 (Cleric)


Level 11 (Cleric)


Level 12 (Cleric)
Ability Raise: WIS
Feat: (Selected) Quicken Spell


Level 13 (Cleric)


Level 14 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Improved Critical: Slashing Weapons


Level 15 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Heighten Spell
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Power Attack


Level 16 (Cleric)
Ability Raise: WIS


Level 17 (Cleric)


Level 18 (Cleric)
Feat: (Selected) Extend Spell


Level 19 (Cleric)


Level 20 (Cleric)
Ability Raise: WIS
Enhancement: Fighter Haste Boost I
Enhancement: Barbarian Power Attack I
Enhancement: Cleric Radiant Servant I
Enhancement: Cleric Radiant Servant II
Enhancement: Orcish Extra Action Boost I
Enhancement: Orcish Melee Damage I
Enhancement: Orcish Melee Damage II
Enhancement: Orcish Power Attack I
Enhancement: Orcish Power Attack II
Enhancement: Orcish Power Attack III
Enhancement: Orcish Strength I
Enhancement: Orcish Strength II
Enhancement: Racial Toughness I
Enhancement: Racial Toughness II
Enhancement: Improved Heal I
Enhancement: Improved Heal II
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Smiting I
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Life I
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Incredible Smiting I
Enhancement: Cleric Prayer of Incredible Life I
Enhancement: Cleric Smiting I
Enhancement: Cleric Smiting II
Enhancement: Cleric Smiting III
Enhancement: Cleric Smiting IV
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic I
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic II
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic III
Enhancement: Cleric Life Magic IV
Enhancement: Cleric Charisma I
Enhancement: Cleric Charisma II
Enhancement: Fighter Strength I
Enhancement: Cleric Wisdom I
Enhancement: Cleric Wisdom II
Enhancement: Cleric Wisdom III
Enhancement: Barbarian Toughness I
Enhancement: Cleric Divine Might I
Enhancement: Cleric Divine Vitality I
Enhancement: Cleric Improved Turning I

Barb splash is for +10% run speed, +1 PA enh, and single use of Rage (when not casting spells); ftr splash is for 2 extra feats, Haste Boost, and +1 STR enh. Base CHA 12 is for 3 extra TUs and to get Divine Might I with +2 CHA tome; can also dump-stat CHA for max STR, max WIS, or CON 16 INT 8 (add +2 tome for extra skill pts after lvl 7). Final feat is subject to debate; could take, e.g., Mental Toughness to help make up for lost SPs from splashing.

[JohnnyDangerously]

If you want to make a true battle cleric, then you'll want to put your lvl ups into str. I would also suggest going human 18 cleric 2 fighter. Stats I suggest:
Str 18
Dex 8
Con 16
Int 8
Wis 14
Cha 12

12 cha and a +6 item will get you dm3
14 wis and a +6 item will get you enough sp. Throw in a +2 tome and you're even better off.

Take pa at lvl 3
Max ranks in concentration. Take quicken early too.
If you put your lvls into wis and dont max str, then your better off making an offensive caster. Trying to do both means you're not great at either.

[JohnnyDangerously]

Also, someone suggested a lvl of barb. Do not do that. Get rage on an item, you'll still be able to cast. The last thing you want is people dying because you decided it was a good idea to use barb rage on a cleric.

[Habreno]

If you want to make a true battle cleric, then you'll want to put your lvl ups into str. I would also suggest going human 18 cleric 2 fighter. Stats I suggest:
Str 18
Dex 8
Con 16
Int 8
Wis 14
Cha 12

12 cha and a +6 item will get you dm3
14 wis and a +6 item will get you enough sp. Throw in a +2 tome and you're even better off.

Take pa at lvl 3
Max ranks in concentration. Take quicken early too.
If you put your lvls into wis and dont max str, then your better off making an offensive caster. Trying to do both means you're not great at either.

Divine Might requires a BASE of 14 (DM I), 16 (DM II), 18 (DM III) or 20 (DM IV), as such, items do not count toward this total. With a 12 starting CHA, a +2 tome will be the only thing that nets you a 14 BASE CHA, good enough for only DM I)

[JohnnyDangerously]

Divine Might requires a BASE of 14 (DM I), 16 (DM II), 18 (DM III) or 20 (DM IV), as such, items do not count toward this total. With a 12 starting CHA, a +2 tome will be the only thing that nets you a 14 BASE CHA, good enough for only DM I)

Thanks, something I overlooked.

Str 18
Dex 8
Con 14
Int 8
Wis 12
Cha 16

2 cha tome to qualify for dm3
6 item 2 wis tome for 20. Enough sp.
Lvls into str.

Fighter lvls at 1 and 8
Toughness
Pa
Empower healing
Quicken
Maximize
Imp crit slash
Empower
Thf
Gthf

[ThePrincipal]

true battle clerics dont put lvl ups into wis. thats a casting, not battle, stat

i have 2 battle clerics, the dwarf started with 16 str, 8 dex, 16 con, 8 int, 14 wis, 12 cha all lvl ups into str. i went for survivability here with dwarf saves and useable AC (self buffed to 55).

my second one is human went 16 str, 8 dex, 14 con, 8 int, 10 wis, 16 cha. +3 lvl str, +2 cha. this guy wants 20 cha for max divine might. going the healing amp route here.

both are pure cleric. both are radiant servant. both use THF. both can heal a party. both kick arse.

[darkforest]

Isn't it true battle clerics start with 18 to 20 str and level up all to str? Though the human build can get 20 cha, the sacrifices from strength means the DM4 is really DM3 with -2 to hit.

true battle clerics dont put lvl ups into wis. thats a casting, not battle, stat

i have 2 battle clerics, the dwarf started with 16 str, 8 dex, 16 con, 8 int, 14 wis, 12 cha all lvl ups into str. i went for survivability here with dwarf saves and useable AC (self buffed to 55).

my second one is human went 16 str, 8 dex, 14 con, 8 int, 10 wis, 16 cha. +3 lvl str, +2 cha. this guy wants 20 cha for max divine might. going the healing amp route here.

both are pure cleric. both are radiant servant. both use THF. both can heal a party. both kick arse.

[Kmnh]

If you never played anything heal-related, you shouldn't go anywhere near a battle-cleric. You will spend a lot of time trying to keep people you don't know healed.

Play a "healbot" first. Get up to level 10 or something.

You need to know how to react to each type of threat, how to identify who needs healing first, how to call out players who are making mistakes (the sitting duck being surrounded by hobgoblins is the easiest one to find, there are others), and how to manage your sp pool and consumables. You dont want to learn these with a reduced SP pool and 3 trolls mad at you for swinging that greataxe around.

Oh, and if you don't have it yet, buy a mic and use voice chat. Typing "traaaap" isn't anywhere as effective as shouting it

[Ecoski]

Just asking, why do you take 2 levels of fighter? Why not go helf and take the fighter dilly? Is it just for the feats?

[unbongwah]

If you want to make a true battle cleric, then you'll want to put your lvl ups into str.

true battle clerics dont put lvl ups into wis. thats a casting, not battle, stat

Isn't it true battle clerics start with 18 to 20 str and level up all to str?

"Battle cleric" means different things to different people; there's no one way of building them. At one end you have the melee-focused BC who only uses their spells to heal & buff; at the other you have a caster-focused BC who just wants to be able to swing a 2H weapon once in a while. My build is somewhere in the middle: mostly caster-focused, but with enough STR & melee feats to be able to do some dmg that way, too.

Also have a look at sirgog's cleric build guide.

[Premier]

I'll just throw this out there...

19 Cleric / 1 Ranger, Dwarf True Neutral, Max Wisdom, 16 for con/str, S&B with Min2 Dwarven Axe (Holy, exceptional wisdom +1,2).

Maximize, Empower, Quicken, Empower Healing, Heighten, Toughness, Power Attack.

You maintain a minimal loss in spell points (only 40sp compared to 80sp for non-divine melees), top notch heal-ability and casting damage while being able to deal melee dmg. Melee dps won't be over the top but you can still be in there swinging away, casting holy aura and blinding mobs and no one will question your healing powers.

I like keeping my casters as caster-like as possible, I'm not so much into making casters into melees. I ran one for a while until FvS came out, then TR'ed that build into a FvS. Wings are great. Peace!

-Premier