I

Clerics

The gods are most active through their chosen clerics,

who carry out the gods' work on the Material Plane. A

typical cleric in Faerun serves a single divine patron,

but some individuals feel called to serve a group, such

as the elemental gods Akadi, Grumbar, Kossuth, and

Istishia, while others serve deities that a r e intertwined

gods, such as the elves' Angharradh.

Some clerics in Faerun belong to an established

religious hierarchy, but many do not. The gods choose

whomever they will, and sometimes a devoted wor-

shiper is blessed with all the abilities of a cleric, despite

not being a priest of any kind. That cleric might be a

contemplative hermit, a wandering prophet, or simply

a devout peasant. Religious orders often try to recruit

such clerics and bring them into the fold, but not all of

those clerics wish to be bound to a hierarchy.

Conversely, not everyone who pursues a religious vo-

cation is a true cleric. Some acolytes discover a different

path for their lives than the path of the cleric. They serve

their faiths in other roles, such as priests, scholars , or

artisans, while some go on to vocations that have noth-

ing to do with religion. A few souls who are denied the

path of the cleric become embittered and seek favor with

sinister or forbidden gods or forge pacts with other pow-

erful entities. Religious scholars in the Realms debate

whether divine rejection led such a person to embrace a

dark path or whether the person was rejected because

the gods foresaw the potential for darkness in the per-

son's future. The gods remain silent on the matter.

Some clerics are homebodies who serve a particular

community of the faithful, but adventuring clerics tend

to have a certain crusading zeal to do their deity's work

in the wider world. This work may include ministering

to far-flung communities, as well as seeking out and de-

feating threats to the civilized world.

Divine Domain

Clerics in the Forgotten Realms have the following

Divine Domain option, in addition to those in the Play-

er's Handbook.

ARCANA DOMAIN

Magic is an energy that s uffuses the multiverse and

that fuels both destruction and creation. Gods of the

Arcana domain know the secrets and potential of magic

intimately. For some of these gods, magical knowl-

edge is a great responsibility that comes with a special

understanding of the nature of reality. Other gods of

Arcana see magic as pure power, to be used as its

wielder sees fit.

The gods of this domain are often associated with

knowledge, as learning and arcane power tend to go

hand-in-hand. In the Realms, deities of this domain in-

clude Azuth and Mystra, as well as Corellon Larethian

of the elven pantheon. In other worlds, this domain

includes Hecate, Math Mathonwy, and Isis; the triple

moon gods of Solinari, Lunitari, and Nuitari of Krynn;

and Boccob, Vecna, and WeeJas of Greyhawk.

I

ARCANA DOMAIN SPELLS

Cleric Level

l st

3rd

5th

7th

9th

Spells

detect magic, magic missile

magic weapon, Nystul's magic aura

dispel magic, magic circle

arcane eye, Leomund's secret chest

planar binding, teleportation circle

ARCANE INITIATE

When you choose this domain at 1st level, you gain pro-

ficiency in the Arcana s kill, and you gain two cantrips

of your choice from the wizard spell list. For you, these

cantrips count as cleric cantrips.

CHANNEL DIVINITY: ARCANE ABJURATION

Starting at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity

to abjure otherworldly creatures.

As an action, you present your holy symbol, and one

celestial, e lemental, fey, or fiend of your choice that

is within 30 feet of you must make a Wisdom saving

throw, provided that the creature can see or hear you. If

the creature fails its saving throw, it is turned for 1 min-

ute or until it takes any damage.

125