Cleric Sage Abilities

Below can be found a list of the knowledge fields and studies available to the Cleric Class. Starting at 1st level, clerics gain ONE field and ONE study within that field. This choice is left entirely to the player.

There are four fields to choose from:

The Church: details focusing upon the organisation and political management of the secular religious establishment, apart from its belief systems and supernatural elements. Knowledge and activities relate to governance, oversight, finances and ordinary daily coordination.

Legends & Folklore: describes extraneous supernatural elements of the world that are indirectly related to religion, emphasizing knowledge of beings, magical items, events and individuals — not only with respect to power, but relating also to the stories and hearsay that has arisen from their presence on Earth.

Power: describes the influence of magical energy in all its forms, enabling the character to explore those forces of the universe that arise from outside the Prime Material Plane. This knowledge acts as a form of empowerment and as a means to finding protection against those forces that threaten the character's religion and all natural life.

Theology & Customs: enables the character to employ rituals as a complement to spells, primarily in service to the religion and its congregations, to assuage common suffering and encourage greater understanding and support from the masses.

Sage Studies

The studies within these fields are each described more thoroughly on their own pages — and in turn are a number of sage abilities that await possession by player characters and others. Following are a list of studies sorted by their field.

The Church

• Heraldry, Signs & Sigils: study of the creation, granting and origin of emblazoned signs.

• History: a study of the past, enabling the character to explain and analyze the motivation behind social groups.

• Politics: the practice and theory of motivating the opinions of others so as to master regional government.

• Religious Art, Music & Design: gives knowledge of artistic imagery and other art, to uplift the spiritual consciousness.

Legends & Folklore

• Artifacts: provides knowledge of those magical items powerful enough to have gained notariety.

• Beasts: provides knowledge of supernatural animal forms, their behaviour and their nature.

• Demi-gods: studies the background behind supernatural beings who have god-like qualities but are not religiously worshipped.

• Heroism: a philosophy that quests for reverence and glory through great risk, deeds and selflessness.

Power

• Divination: pursues means of discovering knowledge of the present, past and future through extra-sensory communication.

• Dweomercraft: incorporates the power to detect, communicate with and ultimate control manifestations and creatures of supernatural origin.

• Faith: describes the spiritual bravery and personal force of will needed to sustain religious fervor in one's self and others.

• Medicine: studies the practice of sustaining life through secular and mystical means.

• Outer Planes: gives direct knowledge of the outer planes, their nature and their organisation.

Theology & Customs

• Astronomy & Astrology: permits the character to interpret the universe, to gain knowledge of its natural order.

• Gods: gives knowledge of those entities that lie at the heart of religious beliefs.

• Law & Policy: studies the system of theological laws, to permit tighter enforcement of the God's will among its believers.

• Ritual: comprises the philosophical and ethical duties comprising a religion's relations with the greater community.

Having chosen a field and a study within that field, the cleric is awarded 12 knowledge points in the chosen study (which becomes a 'specialty'). The cleric then rolls 1d8 -1 for all other studies in the cleric's field, generating numbers from 0 to 7. Finally, the cleric rolls a d4 -1 for all out-of-field studies.

Upon gaining a level, the cleric increases specialties by 1d12 knowledge points. In-field studies are increased by 1d8 -1 points. Out-of-field studies are increased by 1d4 -1 points.

Once the cleric obtains 10 knowledge points in any specialty or study, the cleric becomes an amateur in that study. Once the cleric obtains 30 knowledge points, the cleric becomes an authority. Obtaining 60 points makes the cleric an expert, while 100 points makes the cleric a sage. Abilities and proficiencies enabled for each knowledge status may be found on the links for the fields and studies above.

At 5th level, and every four levels thereafter (9th, 13th, 17th and 21st level), the cleric gains an additional specialty from the cleric’s field studies (that is, within the cleric’s present field). At that point, the cleric begins rolling a d12 for additional level gains in that specialty. Suppose that a given field study rated 15 points at 4th level, the cleric having rolled 4d8 -4 up until then. At 5th, the cleric chooses that study as a new specialty; a d12 is then rolled (for gaining a level) and added to the original 15.

At 7th level, and every six levels thereafter (13th, 19th and 25th level), the cleric gains an additional field. All the studies in that field henceforth become field studies and increase at 1d8 -1 per level. Clerics may choose additional specialties from any field they possess.