5e Earth Domain

For characters who aren't active in a campaign, but who still have plans for world domination.
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EvilGenius
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by EvilGenius »

A few notes on domain powers.

Stonecunning itself is a fairly potent ability (considered proficient, add double proficiency bonus) that gets dramatically better when your proficiency bonus increases. Giving dwarves advantage on top of that won't be too problematic at low levels but at mid levels, that difference will probably be pretty noticeable. I personally don't have a problem with Dwarves being the undisputed experts on stonecraft but it's at least worth mentioning.

Beyond theme, though, advantage serves an important function. All dwarves normally get stonecunning, which means that dwarven clerics of Ulaa wouldn't gain any 1st level domain benefit, which seems out of line with other domains. This is also a throwback to the 3e Dwarf domain, which granted stonecunning to non-dwarves and doubled the bonus for dwarves.

Using Channel Divinity against air creatures: in 3e, the Earth domain power was to turn/rebuke air elementals. It's neat, but far more limited than the other 5e channel divinity powers. By opening up the turn effect to any creature with a fly speed the power is much more useful, and at much lower levels. It's power is still limited by the number of times per day that you can channel divinity: 1/rest from 1st-5th, 2/rest from 6th-17th, 3/rest from 18-20.

Advantage on Con checks: This ability is similar to the 6th level Dampen Elements ability for the Nature domain. It's not limited to a number of times per day because it's relatively situational. I also make it apply to all Con checks, not just Con saves. There are no Skills keyed to Constitution so I think it won't be overpowered. But by making the power affect skill checks you could potentially use it for the checks listed in the PHB: hold your breath, march or labor for hours without rest, go without sleep, survive without food or water, and especially, quaff an entire stein of ale in one go! lol!

Add acid or fire damage to weapon attacks: I added an additional energy type because a) fire (lava) and acid are both thematically correct and b) a few other domains grant multiple energy types and allow you to choose between them. I think the idea is to grant some flexibility to your combat ability without needing a specific magic weapon or spell, like in 3e.

Domain spells: I think they're pretty obvious choices. And I think StoneShape is the only cleric spell out of the group, which gives some nice flexibility to the Domain. I did swap out Elemental Weapon for Conjure Elemental because Elemental Weapon will be pretty redundant starting at 8th level and because Conjure Elemental isn't a clerical spell in 5e, which is weird. So let's give Earth clerics elemental buddies. :)
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NukeHavoc
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by NukeHavoc »

FYI - the Player's Companion for Princes of the Apocalypse has a bunch of elemental-style spells we may want to look at.

https://media.wizards.com/2015/download ... panion.pdf
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EvilGenius
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by EvilGenius »

Damon, any thoughts?
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NukeHavoc
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by NukeHavoc »

I think this looks really good. I'm not 100% about the Stonecunning and Censure of the Mountain bits, but I think we should playtest it and see how it works.

Bob - regarding Censure of the Mountain, do you think we need to specify natural fly speed? I don't see a PC or NPC wizard being turned because they have F-L-Y up.

Ken
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Lars Porsenna
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by Lars Porsenna »

I think it looks good.

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EvilGenius
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by EvilGenius »

NukeHavoc wrote:I think this looks really good. I'm not 100% about the Stonecunning and Censure of the Mountain bits, but I think we should playtest it and see how it works.

Bob - regarding Censure of the Mountain, do you think we need to specify natural fly speed? I don't see a PC or NPC wizard being turned because they have F-L-Y up.

Ken
Yeah, I think it makes sense for it to be a natural fly speed, not granted by a spell or magical item. I was thinking of it in terms of instilling them with the sense that they were about to fly into the side of a mountain. :)
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setanta14
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by setanta14 »

Yeah, otherwise the list of just air elementals is pretty short: Air Elementals themselves, Invisible Stalkers, and Djinni.

They don't have specific types for the different elements as identifiers anymore, they just use the broad term "Elemental" regardless of the element they're tied to.

However, I think opening it up to all creatures with a natural fly speed is too broad... animals like bats or birds? wyverns, manticores, and dragons? fire elementals?

Is there a way to limit it to creatures with at least the Elemental type with a fly speed?
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EvilGenius
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by EvilGenius »

setanta14 wrote:Yeah, otherwise the list of just air elementals is pretty short: Air Elementals themselves, Invisible Stalkers, and Djinni.

They don't have specific types for the different elements as identifiers anymore, they just use the broad term "Elemental" regardless of the element they're tied to.

However, I think opening it up to all creatures with a natural fly speed is too broad... animals like bats or birds? wyverns, manticores, and dragons? fire elementals?

Is there a way to limit it to creatures with at least the Elemental type with a fly speed?
Well, my thinking was that just elementals was too narrow, compared to other 5e uses for channel divinity. So yeah, I think it should apply to birds, bat swarms, wyvrens, manticores and dragons (although obviously stronger dragons are going to make the save and then crunch the cleric).

For comparison, here are some other uses for Channel Divinity:
Light: Radiance of the Dawn
Starting at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity to harness sunlight, banishing darkness and dealing radiant damage to your foes.
As an action, you present your holy symbol, and any magical darkness within 30' of you is dispelled. Additionally, each hostile creature within 30 feet of you must make a Constitution saving throw. A creature takes radiant damage equal to 2d10 + your cleric level on a failed saving throw, and half as much damage on a successful one. A creature that has total cover from you is not affected.
Nature: Charm Animals and Plants
Starting at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity to charm animals and plants. As an action, you present your holy symbol and invoke the name o f your deity. Each beast or plant creature that can see you within 30 feet of you must make a Wisdom saving throw. If the creature fails its saving throw, it is charmed by you for 1 minute or until it takes damage. While it is charmed by you, it is friendly to you and other creatures you designate.
Tempest: Destructive Wrath
Starting at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity to wield the power o f the storm with unchecked ferocity. When you roll lightning or thunder damage, you can use your Channel Divinity to deal maximum damage, instead of rolling.
War: Guided Strike
Starting at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity to strike with supernatural accuracy. When you make an attack roll, you can use your Channel Divinity to gain a +10 bonus to the roll. You make this choice after you see the roll, but before the DM says whether the attack hits or misses.
These uses of Channel Divinity are pretty broad. Even with the Light domain, you deal radiant damage but it affects 'hostile creatures'. It's not limited to evil creatures, or creatures susceptible to sunlight, or undead or demons. It's pretty broad.

Under 3e design, it absolutely makes sense to restrict the ability to elemental creatures or just air elementals. But for 5e, I think it's ok to be a little more universally applicable. Dragons dont want to fly into the side of a mountain any more than air elementals, I would think. :wink:
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setanta14
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by setanta14 »

I'm more concerned about the condition of being turned for the target:
A turned creature must spend its turns trying to move as far away from you as it can, and it can’t willingly move to a space within 30 feet of you. It also can’t take reactions. For its action, it can use only the Dash action or try to escape from an effect that prevents it from moving. If there’s nowhere to move, the creature can use the Dodge action.
What if the use just does element specific damage (acid damage in this case) like the Light domain does with radiant damage?
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EvilGenius
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by EvilGenius »

setanta14 wrote:I'm more concerned about the condition of being turned for the target:
A turned creature must spend its turns trying to move as far away from you as it can, and it can’t willingly move to a space within 30 feet of you. It also can’t take reactions. For its action, it can use only the Dash action or try to escape from an effect that prevents it from moving. If there’s nowhere to move, the creature can use the Dodge action.
What if the use just does element specific damage (acid damage in this case) like the Light domain does with radiant damage?

Sure, that's one way to go. The only reason that I made it a turn effect is because that's what it was in 3e. If we want to just replace it with an altogether different effect we could do direct acid damage ala the Light domain, or use it to inflict max acid damage with an acid spell or effect, ala the Tempest domain.

I personally like the Turn effect.
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setanta14
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by setanta14 »

Yeah, but you could potentially turn a dragon just because it has wings, whether it's currently flying or not.

I also like the other alternative of dealing maximum damage, say from acid spells.
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Lars Porsenna
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by Lars Porsenna »

The only thing about dealing damage is that if it works like the Radiant ability, I think it would be unseemly if Moraim holds aloft his holy symbol...and sprays the enemy with acid...

I'm going to look at the domains tonite again. While doing extra damage is all well and good, there are already a lot of martial dwarven deities, so I'm thinking of something less martial, or protective might be in order...

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setanta14
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by setanta14 »

What if it's shards of crystal that do the damage (piercing)?
Ulaa is the goddess of Hills, Mountains, and Gemstones. Her holy symbol is a mountain with a ruby heart; she places rubies in the earth as gifts to miners, who do her husband's work. Ulaa is depicted as a dwarven woman with gnomish facial features. She wields a mighty hammer called Skullringer. Ulaa's realm in the Outlands is called the Iron Hills. She also spends time in the Seven Heavens. Her husband, Bleredd, is said to dwell with the gnomish gods in Bytopia.
Also, what about Slow as a 3rd Level domain spell instead of Melf's Acid Arrow? (which, in Greyhawk, may have just been discovered)
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Lars Porsenna
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by Lars Porsenna »

setanta14 wrote:What if it's shards of crystal that do the damage (piercing)?
Ulaa is the goddess of Hills, Mountains, and Gemstones. Her holy symbol is a mountain with a ruby heart; she places rubies in the earth as gifts to miners, who do her husband's work. Ulaa is depicted as a dwarven woman with gnomish facial features. She wields a mighty hammer called Skullringer. Ulaa's realm in the Outlands is called the Iron Hills. She also spends time in the Seven Heavens. Her husband, Bleredd, is said to dwell with the gnomish gods in Bytopia.
Also, what about Slow as a 3rd Level domain spell instead of Melf's Acid Arrow? (which, in Greyhawk, may have just been discovered)
I like this a lot better!

Damon.
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EvilGenius
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Re: 5e Earth Domain

Post by EvilGenius »

Two ideas: would the 'Turn creatures with a fly speed' be less objectionable if it only applies to creatures while they're flying? So in the case of a dragon, if it fails its save but then lands, it can act normally. If it starts flying again before the duration of the turn is expired, then the turn is still in effect and it has to act accordingly. Better?

Idea Two:
If we're just going to nix the updated Turn effect (which is a defensive/protective power), then perhaps something like use channel divinity to provide Dwarven Resistance to Poison to allies within 30'? It could either last for a minute or just that round, whichever seems appropriate to you.
For reference, this is the 5e Dwarven racial ability, Dwarven Resilience:
Dwarven Resilience - You have advantage on saving throws against poison, and you have resistance against poison damage.
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