Clerics share a lot of their spells with other classes inDungeons & Dragons, regardless of if they’re divine or necromantic in origin, but there are a handful that is unique to their own skillset. Fortunately, you don’t have to pick and choose and keep them forever because Clerics, unlike other magic-based classes, can take any spell they want from the Cleric spell list after every long rest.
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As a Cleric, however, your spell slots are limited, so carefully picking and choosing what you take is important. Working with the other casters in your party is a good way to ensure a decent range of spells available.
9Thaumaturgy
Thaumaturgy isone of the best Cleric Cantripsbecause it can have so many uses that are incredibly situation specific. The effects are best used as brief distractions, like causing your voice to become three times as loud, causing flames to act abnormally, or even causing a noise to appear somewhat close by.
The effects are harmless, and once someone knows that you’re casting Thaumaturgy, it can become fairly easy to write off, but that doesn’t make it any less useful when the time for it finally arrives.
8Blade Barrier
Blade Barrier can be a bit of a ridiculous spell, especially for sixth-level. When cast, your Cleric can make a straight wall up to 100 feet long, 20 feet high, and five feet thick. Alternatively, you can opt for a ring, which is 60 feet in diameter, but the same height and thickness.
Anyone hidden by the wall has three-quarters cover, so ranged attacks will have disadvantageon their attacks without the right feats. Any creature that walks through the barrier, regardless of if they’re friend or foe, will have to make a Dexterity save or take 6d10 damage or half as much on a successful save.
7Harm
A lot of Cleric spells are aimed at support roles and at healing, which is why it’s nice when you can finally get access to spells that can genuinely deal a serious amount of Damage. Harm requires your target to make a Constitution save, and if they fail, they will take 14d6 damage, cut in half if they succeed on their save.
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Although it can’t technically kill your target, it can drop them down to one. Assuming that your target failed their save, their maximum HP is reduced by the amount of damage that they took until a spell like Lesser Restoration or Lay on Hands is cast on them.
6Word Of Recall
Word of Recall is a sixth-level spell that provides Clerics with their own teleportation option. You need to cast the spell in an area you’ve designated as a sanctuary, specifically one where you have a strong connection to your deity (so most likely a temple of sorts).
It only takes a single action to cast and doesn’t require any components, so if you and your party get caught in a bad situation or are up against an enemy who is threatening a TPK, this spell provides a quick way out.
5Conjure Celestial
Conjure Celestial essentially lets you summon a friend to the battlefield. This seventh-level spell takes a minute to cast and summons a Celestial with a CR of 4 or less; It’s friends to you and to others, and while you can issue commands to it, the GM will take control of all its stats.
If you cast the spell at ninth level you can summon a Celestial with a CR of 5 or lower (although it’s a bit of a waste to use Conjure Celestial for your cleric’s ninth-level spot).
4Divine Word
Divine Word can be an absurdly powerful spell, especially for a seventh-level Bonus Action. Requiring only the ability to speak, Divine Word deafens your target for one minute if they’re 50 hit points or less.
If they have 40 hp or less, they’ll be deafened and blinded for 10 minutes. 30 hp or less will blind, deafen, and stun your target for an hour.
If your target has 20 hp, they will be instantly killed. If you’re targeting a Celestial, Elemental, Fey, or Fiend, and they fail their Charisma save, they’re shunted back to their original plane of existence immediately for 24 hours.
3Temple Of The Gods
If you’re familiar with the spell Forbiddance, Temple of the Gods is pretty much the same, except it doesn’t require expensive materials, and it doesn’t deal any damage to creatures that enter the holy area. Temple of the Gods is a seventh-level spell that takes an hour to cast and lasts 24 hours, throwing up a holy temple that you and your party can go into (it’s 120 feet big, which makes it pretty comfortable).
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The temple is designed as you see fit and can be to any deity or figure, allowing you to pick and choose what type of creature it opposes who will either not be allowed to enter or have all of their abilities nullified if they do enter. As a big bonus, if you cast Temple of the Gods in the same spot every day for a year, it becomes permanent.
2Holy Aura
Holy Aura is an eighth-level spell that requires a few material components to cast, specifically a tiny reliquary worth at least 1000 gold that contains a sacred relic. However, this expensive component isn’t consumed upon casting, so you theoretically only need one.
This spell lets you give every enemy in a 30-foot radius disadvantage on their attacks and can blind undead and fiends if they fail a Constitution save. Holy Aura is a great support spell for Clerics once you reach level 15 and will generally be useful throughout the rest of your campaign.
1Mass Heal
Generally, a lot of people consider the main utility of Clerics to be healing and to focus on healing, yet when you have access to so many great spells, that can bereally frustrating and a serious mistake. Mass Heal can help to counteract this issue, but only in the late game.
As a ninth-level spell, it can restore up to 700 hp between targets of your choice and cures any disease or status effect like blinded and deafened. Although you won’t be able to use it until you reach level 17, it’s still a great option to try and subvert the heal-bot expectations.
