Game News Solasta: Crown of the Magister Dev Diary - Character Creation

[Rinslin Merwind]

The cleric class has its origins in horror movies of the 50s/60s featuring a vampire/monster-hunter type character and in the representation of medieval clergymen in Arthurian/Carolingian legends and similar fantasy literature.

So if in some movies half century ago a cleric (of religion that forbids violence in general and not "just shed blood" ffs ) was retarded enough not to use EVERY POSSIBLE WEAPON to fight supernatural evil that would be killing other people if he failed (and refusal to using ranged weapons is guaranteed failure, because at some point an supernatural enemy might abuse such disadvantage in it's favor). Maybe it's just me, but I don't think God will forgive someone who let other people die from hands of vampire, just because that "someone" was an idiot blinded by prejudice against edged weapons "cuz they shed blood" while swinging around with a mace - weapon that similar to club, which killed people way before people started forge swords.

If some movies did something in 50s/60s it does not meant that this should be rehashed and repeated to nausea and if Gary Gygax was indeed "stickler" - it does not mean that others should threat his rules as "holy book" and bitch every time someone decides to change rules. Time moves on, everything is changes and I doubt crossbows for clerics is bad thing.

Edit: "substituted fantasy pantheons of deities in place of an implicit Christianity" is weird decision as hell and I don't think it should stay this way.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

The ranged weapon available to clerics shouldn't be the crossbow but rather the sling.

In original D&D, clerics are permitted to use "non-edged weapons (no arrows!)" but slings aren't mentioned until Supplement I: Greyhawk, leaving it uncertain as to whether clerics are allowed to use them, an ambiguity that continued in the Holmes version of D&D from 1977.

When Gygax created AD&D 1st edition, he included a table specifying available weapons by character class, making it clear that clerics can only select their weapons from "club, flail, hammer, mace, staff" --- and therefore no ranged weapons, even a sling.

However, clerics are permitted to use slings in B/X D&D from 1981 and BECMI D&D from 1983! Moldvay wrote in the 1981 Basic Rules that "Clerics are forbidden by their religious codes from using edged weapons, such as swords and arrows. A cleric may only use a weapon without an edge, such as a mace or sling." and Mentzer followed this decision in the 1983 Basic Rules, stating "A cleric cannot use any weapon with a sharp edge; this is forbidden by the cleric's beliefs. A cleric may only use a mace, club, war hammer, or sling."

According to AD&D 2nd edition, generic clerics "are allowed to use only blunt, bludgeoning weapons", but no specific list for them is included. Druids are allowed to use slings (included in a convenient list of weapons available to them), and the staff of slinging is a magical item that can only be employed by druids, which implies that slings are not permitted to clerics. However, the weapons table lists both arrows and quarrels as type "P" for piercing but lists sling bullets/stones as type "B" for bludgeoning, suggesting that slings actually are part of the category available to clerics!

Slings are the only ranged weapon consistent with the inspiration for clerics, while crossbows are quite the opposite, being associated with thieves and assassins.

 

[Rinslin Merwind]

The ranged weapon available to clerics shouldn't be the crossbow but rather the sling.

In original D&D, clerics are permitted to use "non-edged weapons (no arrows!)" but slings aren't mentioned until Supplement I: Greyhawk, leaving it uncertain as to whether clerics are allowed to use them, an ambiguity that continued in the Holmes version of D&D from 1977.

When Gygax created AD&D 1st edition, he included a table specifying available weapons by character class, making it clear that clerics can only select their weapons from "club, flail, hammer, mace, staff" --- and therefore no ranged weapons, even a sling.

However, clerics are permitted to use slings in B/X D&D from 1981 and BECMI D&D from 1983! Moldvay wrote in the 1981 Basic Rules that "Clerics are forbidden by their religious codes from using edged weapons, such as swords and arrows. A cleric may only use a weapon without an edge, such as a mace or sling." and Mentzer followed this decision in the 1983 Basic Rules, stating "A cleric cannot use any weapon with a sharp edge; this is forbidden by the cleric's beliefs. A cleric may only use a mace, club, war hammer, or sling."

According to AD&D 2nd edition, generic clerics "are allowed to use only blunt, bludgeoning weapons", but no specific list for them is included. Druids are allowed to use slings (included in a convenient list of weapons available to them), and the staff of slinging is a magical item that can only be employed by druids, which implies that slings are not permitted to clerics. However, the weapons table lists both arrows and quarrels as type "P" for piercing but lists sling bullets/stones as type "B" for bludgeoning, suggesting that slings actually are part of the category available to clerics!

Slings are the only ranged weapon consistent with the inspiration for clerics, while crossbows are quite the opposite, being associated with thieves and assassins.

Again, you read me passage from old rules, apparently I should feel fascination and instantly convert to "new bad, old good" and " after TSR there is no D&D" while I feel urge to remind you - not all people see clerics in same way as you or Gary. I see zero reason to upheld "no arrow rule" at all, and sling maybe a deadly weapon, but I doubt that IRL even in pagan religions of Antiquity priests used sling as weapon. Time change, world revolves, please stop being stubborn for such small thing as weapon for priest of fictional religion.