So, you've decided to become a Cleric!
A Cleric's life isn't easy. It is a life of
walking closely with the God or Goddess of your calling and great
selflessness is required to put the needs of others before yourself, but the rewards are well worth it. (Note:
Not all priests are celibate...that seems to be a popular
misconception.)
Clerics are easily the most valued class in the game.
They have
the ability to deal out a lot of healing in a very short amount of
time. They also have the invaluable skill of Soulbinding,
which is the act of fusing a moonstone to an object which binds it
to the soul of the bearer. This keeps the item with you when
you die. Clerics can also bless items, infusing it with the
power of their God/dess which increases armor defense and weapon
attack potential, and have special offensive powers against the
undead.
They are extremely valued when completing a
difficult area where the final boss monster drops a One a Day weapon
or armor, also called a OaD run, and
are essential on things like Pyramids runs and Acheron's and Dragonskins
runs, where mirror rooms are involved. Mirror rooms turn
healing into attack, and attack into healing so having a strong
healer along becomes essential.
Rolling a Cleric:
Clerics are in need of several critical stats:
-
Strength is not nearly as important since
Clerics are meant to be defensive characters, but it comes in quite
handy for smiting your foes with your mighty hammer or claws.
-
Agility is very important for dodging attacks.
-
Intelligence is another critical stat.
The amount you heal is directly dependant on your intelligence.
High intelligence also means less fizzling.
-
Endurance is critical. A dead Priest
does little good. This stat is critical since it determines
exactly how much health you will have. It's advised not to take a roll with
less than -1 to perfect endurance, unless you'll be using it only for
sitting in the temple and
blessing items.
-
Wisdom is an important stat because it
determines magic resistance. Many people believe it also is a factor
in determining the amount of mana you will gain with each level.
-
Charisma has no effect on the skills of a
Cleric, but it's always nice to be attractive.
If you want a really good Cleric you shouldn't
settle for anything less than the highest amount available for each
critical stat: agility, endurance, and intelligence, and no more
than two off on wisdom and strength.
Choosing a Race
Even with 21 agility Elves don't seem to
have the natural dodge of comparable races, but they do have high
intelligence and wisdom, and are therefore excellent healers. With
slightly below average endurance at 19 they have 724 hit points at
level 25 making them good to take a hit, and heal, but not the best
for PvP fighting.
A great Cleric race is the Half Elf.
They have an excellent balance of fairly high agility, solid
endurance with 750 hit points at 25, and good intelligence and
wisdom.
Halflings have excellent dodge, particularly
with good armor. They have fairly good intelligence and wisdom but
have the second lowest endurance of all the races, giving 650 at
level 25, to balance their high agility. Big single attacks
(like backstab or roundhouse) or traps are a danger for Halflings.
Even with only 17 intelligence, Goblins
are a good Cleric race. Vanos at higher levels are usually
around 350. "New" Goblins (meaning those that can be rolled now)
have average endurance with 750 hit points at 25 but have poison
resistance and are very dodgy with 22 agility. "Old school" Goblins
(meaning those with 22 endurance and no longer rollable) make the
absolute best Clerics, and are probably the most valuable characters
in game.
Gnomes have the distinction of being the
only race that can Vanos for over 400. With the highest intelligence and
wisdom available, fizzles are a thing of the past and mana points
tend to be extremely high. Their huge drawback is the lowest
endurance of any race. Gnomes are very easily one-rounded by
big hits or fall to traps.
Dwarves are a so-so race for Clerics,
their high endurance is a boon but their limited intelligence has a
big impact on how well they heal and how much they fizzle. Lower
than average agility makes them relatively poor at dodging attacks,
but they have the health to make up for it.
Humans with all 20's for stats make a
well-rounded Cleric.
Dark Elf Clerics have similar stats to
Halflings, with relatively high agility balanced with the second
lowest endurance available, and moderate Intelligence and Wisdom.
Dark Elves do have higher strength and would be better at
hand-to-hand attacks, but also have the added advantage of
Infravision, eliminating the need for those pesky torches and
lanterns. They are also susceptible to big attacks or traps.
Some would laugh at a Half Orc Cleric, but
there are those who see the advantages. Lower healing ability than
Dwarves is balanced with poison resistance, coupled with the highest
endurance available and most importantly, Half Orc regen. Half
Orc Clerics regenerate health and mana at four times the rate of
other races, making mana costs reduce drastically. High strength is
also helpful to swing that hammer when Ray fails (as it will a lot
with 14 intelligence). Dodge can be erratic, but who needs dodge
with 825 hit points?
Saurians have similar limitations as Half
Orcs with only 14 intelligence and wisdom, but have very high
agility and slightly below average endurance. They lack any
other special abilities, and aren't really recommended for Clerics.
Equipment for a Cleric:
(Note! All
armor values are fully
decked.
For a complete list, see the Cleric Equipment Guide.)
New Clerics:
-
Mace
-
Ring Mail (47ac)
-
Medium Shield (14ac)
-
Helmet (11ac)
These are the best items available to you in the
Terran shops. Work on getting these items as soon as possible.
Novice Clerics:
-
Flail/Pike/Dual Claws
-
Plate Mail (52ac)
-
Large Shield (16ac)
-
Helmet (11ac)
These items are largely available in Trollheim.
Work on getting
them Soulbound, but it's best not to attempt the spell yourself
until you are at least level 16. Anything lower has a good chance of
fizzling and you'll lose the 1000 gold moonstone and use up all your
mana for nothing.
Dual Claws can be picked up fairly easily by
completing the Terra autoquest that rescues Prince Mavin from the
Goblins of Vetra. Most veteran players don't bother trying to
sell them, but you can sometimes find someone giving one away or
selling one cheap.
Experienced Clerics:
-
War Hammer/Steel Claws (for those with cash, a
Divine Hammer)
-
Plate of Thorns/Titanium Plate Mail (both 57ac)
-
Buckler (18ac) or Whalebone Shield (19ac)
-
Leaf Helm/Dark Helm (both 16ac) or Coral Helm
(17ac)
Soulbound knapsacks full of manastones are
essential to have with you at all times, at least 4.
This equipment is available around Fort Mordu, Forestia, New Alencia and Freelance
or far off in Dar Khandal. It's quite a walk to get out there,
and items are expensive, but if you can afford it, they are the best
store-bought items in game.
Veteran Clerics:
-
Divine Hammer or
Hammer of Destruction/Worg Claws
-
Crystal Mail (58ac)
-
Whalebone Shield (19 ac) or Clam Shell (20ac)
-
Coral Helm (17ac) or
Leaf Helm/Dark Helm (both 16ac)
The Crystal Mail is found in Donas or Caernelin for about 55k
and the Clam shell can be picked up for about 75-100k depending on
your luck. Whalebone shields are sold in Dar Khandal for 40k
and Coral Helms are 25k
Elite Clerics:
The crème de la crème of One a Days, giving a
perfect 100 AC and costing well
over a two million gold all together if you are trying to buy them. If you are lucky
to join a good clan and make good friends by now, you can join on
One a Day runs and get them for free.
Above and beyond this you'll want brilled items,
or questies, but if you're new, stick with what's listed above for
now.
Leveling:
First thing, you can find the Cleric Experience
Table with requirements for each level in experience and gold here: Healer/Cleric/Priest Experience Table
Starting Out:
The quickest way to level up around Terra is to go to the arena until
you are about level 3 or 4, and earn some gold to upgrade your equipment
as much as possible.
Then you should head over to the island of Vetra
and kill the crabs there. You will level up much faster by
going outside and exploring, rather than hiding in the arena. Avoid flying fish, they give good exp, but give no gold.
Crabs drop their claws when they die, giving experience as well as
something that can be sold in the Supply Shop or the Vetran
Encampment for gold.
Setting Off:
Once you reach level 8 you'll need to head out to
another city to find a Cleric's Guild. Duskan and Trollheim
are the best for this, and good until about level 13 or 14.
From there you will want to make a
fast track to Forestia or Fort Mordu. Try to find some
like minded people, and set off in a group. Or if you are lucky
enough to be in a good clan, get a more experienced player to take
you.
Since you are a Cleric make sure your mana is
stocked, and set a macro to heal yourself and those in your party.
If you take South Caravan Road just north of Trollheim, keep in mind
that there are two 100 gold tolls to pass. The Forest path
that can be found near Duskan is cheaper, but more dangerous.
Getting There:
Once you are at Fort Mordu, get to about level 16
on Garden Snakes, Thieves, or up north of the Fort on Demon Hounds
and Demon Spectres.
At about 17 or 18,
set off for the Circus. Here your biggest problem will be
Player Killers, or PK’s. Try hiding in
the corners and leveling in groups.
Don’t hesitate to run if you encounter some big bad players out for
your hide.
The Long Stretch:
Leveling goes pretty quick from 1 up to 19, but
past level 20 is when you'll need millions more experience to gain each level.
It can be daunting to hear that you need another 20 or 30 million
(or more) experience for your next level, but don't give up! The
benefits of having a Priest are well worth the effort.
These are the levels where you'll begin to really
master your spells. Soulbind rarely fizzles above level 19 or
20. Bless is gained at level 20 and Vanos, while you can cast
it at lower levels, won't really be mastered until about level 21 or
22. Lifetap is also available at higher levels and it's use in
party healing is invaluable. See the Spell Guide for a
complete guide to
Healer Spells.
As for locations, Freelance is a great town for levels
18-22. You
can level on nearby Lake Tarnok, if your lucky
enough to have a canoe (50k at Darnok's Shipyard) or know someone who does. Either that, go to the
Dark Castle and level on the Chessboard. Once again, watch
out for PKs, they love this area!
Another great place for level 18-22 is the Great Dwarven Mines located deep under the Lost Hermit's Mountain. Getting
there can be a challenge, but experience and gold are great there.
Watch out for Cave Dwellers, they poison, but also drop Venom Sacks
that can be sold in Duskan for 296 gold each.
Big League:
When you’re around level 21-22, you should have enough equipment
and know-how to level on
monsters in the Catacombs or around Donas Dobhar. You can level to
25 on the Lake or in the Mines, but takes a lot longer. In
these higher level areas, try to drag some monsters to a nice
out-of-the-way area, and kill/heal them there. Fighting only 1
or 2 monsters at a time will help avoid a lot of return damage.
Level 25:
It takes 30k to level up, but hey, it’s small
pickings compared to the road to get there! Congratulations
Priest!
Leveling Tips:
-
The absolute best way to level a Cleric is by
having another character beat a monster down, and you heal it back
up. Healing is much more consistent than attacking, and
you will be able to heal for more than you can hit even at lower
levels.
-
Don’t forget to level on monsters you have
divinity over, it makes everything a lot easier. Use
Giakomo's Monster Experience Calculator to help you find a good
monster for your level and divinity.
-
Try to find undead monsters like Zombies, Death
Knights, and most things around the Cemetary/Catacombs, and use the
spell Deathbane. Make sure you have a divinity amulet of your God/dess
equipped as this will make a big difference. (These can be found in
the Cleric Hideout.) You won't get any experience for each hit with
Deathbane, but you will get the "kill shot" experience.
May Targos bring you new light by day,
May Nallyssa softly restore you by night,
May Alustria wash away your worries,
May Valkyzar blow new strength into your being,
And may Hommet be the stone of your life.
Oh, and…
GOOD LUCK! |
