The B.S. Guide to Good Clerics

[Lunicant]

By Sylvantis Good Cleric A guide to holy benevolence.

 

 

Introduction:

 

Good aligned clerics may be one of the best classes in FL for learning about the MUD. While that may lead some to believe it is a newbie class and not worthy of attention beyond the moderately experienced, the good cleric is a formidable force for an experienced FL player. In general clerics are highly sought for groups for their healing, protection and adventuring assistance. Next to healers they offer the best survivability combining escape and heavy defense. Clerics differ to a great degree from their healer kin with a much more potent offensive arsenal allowing them to combine a fantastic defense with some solid attacking abilities.

 

Creation:

 

Clerics more than most, have a literal ton of skills (20) and spells (46). That puts practices at a premium. With clerics, the racial trade offs are wide ranging.

 

Human: Perhaps the best new player choice there is of all race/class combinations. A good aligned human cleric ranks quickly, have little difficulty in finding groups, will be shielded from higher PK aggressors while having a wide range of PK targets to learn from below them. The average hp and mana won't hurt the human cleric and with the massive defensive capabilities of the class do make a race with no vulnerabilities a nice option.

 

Storm Giant: Great choice for the heavier two handed flails and maces in the realms. High strength and the ability to wield two handed weapons and a shield make Storm Giants one of the better pk races for a good cleric. Any Storm giant cleric had best gather adequate mental saves however. Halfling: Another viable choice. The increased agility and magic resistance turns a very defensive class even more so.

 

Halfling clerics can avoid the bashing vulnerabilities with protective shield but have no remedy for their low strength. As such they cannot wield many weapons that would favor the cleric and are susceptible to dropping weapons with even the slightest drop in strength.

 

Dwarf: Less agile than the Halfing but with the same magical benefits Dwarfs would seem one of the greatest of clerics with their high strength and damage potential. But Lo, for the battle of balance Dwarves suffer from their vulnerability to water. And a cleric has no means to disarm such weapons. A smart player can pull this off well but requires extra precautions and often times the extra abilities of a cabal to mitigate this weakness.

 

Elf: High intelligence defines the asset of the elven cleric. Practicing suddenly becomes a simple affair with plenty left over. Increased mental saves and higher mana are very nice additions to have. Of course with the Elven cleric perhaps the most important aspect is the ability to autosneak. Chasing and the element of surprise are a quintessential aspect of successful cleric pk. Autosneak can make the experience penalty well worth the effort.

 

 

Battle tactics:

 

Clerics can be considered relatively simplistic in their fighting approach because they can be relatively limited in their options. However, the thing to realize about the cleric is they get to blend melee, afflictive, maladictive and a bit of mental to their offensive arsenal. A cleric cannot lag, nor can they inflict a lot of damage quickly for the most part. This means for clerics to be successful in pk encounters they will need to be fleet of foot with good chasing skills. Another reason why the cleric is a good learning character in FL, they help you develop two of the most important skills in FL's pk environment, chasing and running.

 

Spells to have up during battle: Armor, bless, detect_invis, protection, protective shield, frenzy, sanctuary, detect_magic, shield, stone skin and if the situation demands, pass_door and spell turning. PLUS a non-casted flight via a scroll in most cases. With only two attacks do not be fooled into believing clerics are a pure casting class.

 

Melee damage is an essential component of the pking cleric. With enhanced damage and frenzy, a cleric can power out some very fine melee damage. A successful cleric will understand the marriage between casting damage and melee damage to get the most out of their encounters. I recommend most battles begin with liberal castings of curse until it sticks. This is important on two fronts for the good cleric. You need to keep you targets in battle so you can chase and finish; Two, the lowered saves will help the side effects of Ray of Truth stick (Blind, shrink and slow). Blindness is good against all classes but shrink and slow tend to be better aliments against sword swingers.

 

It's important to understand that Ray of Truth is unique in that it's prowess is dependent on the pk prowess of the target it's cast against. Against evil spell casters you may consider a switch to combining holy hands with dispel evil. The use of dispel magic in battle is a tricky one and requires correct timing. Dispel your targets too soon and they will flee. Clerics are built for long battles and the psychological advantages of feigned losing can lure many an aggressor to their own doom. A warrior that believes they have you on the run may battle through a dispelled sanctuary with a properly inflated bravado. That same warrior blinded by a timely ray of truth and without sanctuary is ripe for the finishing. Clerical spells differ based on their religion. Bless, holy hands and divine intervention can all have different effects. So while I cannot give specific advice for holy hands and divine intervention it's important realize that some of the effects they bestow are very, very nice. There are many other spells in the clerical arsenal that will prove to be important to you as well. You may not be able to discern the specific effects of bless arms but trust me in that it's a good thing to have. There's little reason you should not have this on all your weapons, and yes shields. Isolate will give pet owners fits. Portal is an almost guaranteed life saver for any intelligent cleric. Spell Turning will also give spell casters fits. Non-essential spells/skills: kick, haggle, cause light, cure serious, create water, continual light, know alignment, infravision, and cancellation. They all have their uses but can either be repetitive or substituted.

 

 

Inventory:

 

1 Recall potion 1 teleport pill 3-4 gyvell potions. 2 flight scrolls Sack with more flight scrolls.

 

 

Summary:

 

Great learning class that can make food, water, identify objects, locate objects, and heal. Good clerics offer a nice mix of pk ability and defensive abilities second only to healers.