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When darkness falls, most creatures seek the comforts of rest. Sleep restores the mind and body, but it can also bring fear and terror from what lurks in the night. Clerics of the Twilight Domain inDungeons & Dragonsworship deities that command the night and guide mortals between the hours of dawn and dusk as they drift off to sleep.
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Twilight Domain Clerics are no mere guides. They’re guardians, armed with both powerful faith and deadly weapons. Their connection to their gods make Twilight Clerics the masters of darkness, soothing the fears of their party and bolstering their bravery in the face of the unknown.
Twilight Domain Cleric Features
As a Cleric of theTwilight Domain, youworship a deity that governs the night, darkness, and sleep. A few examples include Boldrei of the Eberron setting, Helm of Forgotten Realms, and Mishakala of the Dragonlance setting.
At first level, you gainproficiency in martial weaponsandheavy armor, making Twilight Domain Clerics capable of front-line combat (although you can certainly forgo weapons and focus on dealing damage through magic).Eyes of Nightprovides darkvision out to 300 feet and the ability to share that darkvision with other creatures.
Vigiliant Blessingprovides advantage on the next initiative roll for any creature you can touch (including yourself).
Channel Divinity: Twilight Sanctuaryat level two creates a 30-foot aura around you that grants temporary hitpoints to allies and ends unwanted charmed or frightened effects.
At level six,Steps of Nightallows Twilight Clerics to fly as a bonus action in dim light or darkness. At level eight,Divine Strikeadds radiant damage to weapon attacks, and at level 17,Twilight Shroudenhances Twilight Sanctuary by providing half cover to allies within the aura.
Twilight Domain Clerics also geta number of additional spellsat certain levels:
1st
faerie fire, sleep
3rd
moonbeam, see invisibility
5th
aura of vitality, Leomund’s tiny hut
7th
aura of life, greater invisibility
9th
circle of power, mislead
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Best Twilight Domain Cleric Species
Because Twilight Domain Clerics already haveextremely powerful darkvision, it’s less advantageous to select any species that can already see in the dark. Twilight Domain Clericscan also fly at level six, so flying species are also less of a benefit. Twilight Domain Cleric’s Channel Divinity featurecan defeat charmed and frightened conditions, so having resistance to these conditions is less beneficial.
What benefits Twilight Domain Clerics mostis havinghigh mobilityto get into melee combat and provide aura coverage,toughnessto survive front-line combat, and anything that benefits frombeing first in the turn order.
As such,these species are best suitedto being a Twilight Domain Cleric:
Bugbear
Havingadvantage on initiative rolls is extremely potentwhen combined withSurprise Attack. It’s enough to make up for the fact you get nothing out of having Darkvision or Fey Ancestry.
Human
Martial Clericsneed a lot of attribute points, which humans can provide. you may also goVariant Humanto take theWar Casterfeat early on.
Centaur
With40 feet of movement, you’ll be able to ensure your aura is wherever it needs to be at all times. You also get a skill proficiency thanks toNatural Affinity.
Firbolg
Being able toturn invisiblepairs well with Twilight Cleric’s propensity for darkness.Detect magicanddisguise selfare also nice spells to have.
Goliath
Stone’s Endurancekeeps you in the fight as a front-line combatant, and theAthleticsproficiency is nice to have too.
Harengon
You already have advantage on initiative rolls.Lucky Footworklets you add your proficiency bonus, which means you’re likely to be first in the turn order every combat.Rabbit Hopis also quite useful for melee-oriented characters.
Satyr
You don’t get quite as much movement as Centaurs, but35 feetis still better than average.Magic Resistanceis also nice as it goes beyond charm and fear effects.
Half-Elf
Like humans, half-elves can providemuch-needed attribute points, although Darkvision and Fey Ancestry are less useful for Twilight Clerics.
As with all D&D classes,feel free to play as any species you like. Most species work quite well as a Twilight Domain Cleric, although some will work slightly better than others.
Best Ability Scores For Twilight Domain Clerics
Wisdom is your main attributepoint for powering your spells. If you plan on being a front-line fighter,Strength and Constitution are both equally importantto deal damage and keep you standing. Heavy armor proficiency means Dexterity is less useful, and bothCharisma and Intelligence are dump stats.
PrioritizeWisdom,Strength, andConstitutionas a Twilight Domain Cleric. If using points buy to create your character, a good starting spread of ability scores would look something like this after accounting for score increases granted by your species:
16 (+3)
10 (+0)
14 (+2)
8 (-1)
It’s generallynot recommended to play as a pure spellcasting Twilight Domain Clericas you’ll miss out on Divine Strike damage starting at level eight. However, if you do prefer to play as a pure magic Twilight Cleric, put more points into Constitution and focus on boosting your Wisdom to 20 as soon as possible.
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Best Starting Equipment For Twilight Domain Cleric
With proficiency in martial weapons and heavy armor, it makes the most sense to pick awarhammeras your starting weapon andchain mailas your starting armor. With little Dexterity, ajavelinmakes more sense than a light crossbow as a ranged attack (although your magic is likely a better option here).
Anexplorer’s packis probably more appropriate than a priest’s pack for a warrior Cleric, and ashieldandholy symbolround out your starting equipment.
You’ll want toupgrade your armoras you level up, eventually arriving atplate armorfor 18 armor class.
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Best Spells For Twilight Domain Clerics
Your domain will already provide you with several spells, but all Clerics can choose from the widerCleric spell listto augment their spellcasting. Below are the most useful spells for Twilight Domain Clerics.
9th Level Spells
Toll the deadis likely to be your best ranged damage option until you getguiding bolt.Healing Wordcan help heal at a distance, althoughcure woundsoffers better healing overall.Spiritual weaponis recommended as your bonus action, althoughaura of vitalitymay prove more useful at level five.
