Priest

Priest is a path of the Magic Power Source. It describes any kind of practitioner who is guided by faith.

Notes

Things to reference:

• s6 priest, duh
• forum post about 7.4 with example of Zyleena
• old 6e material?
• old forum post about power sources (virtues, righteous fury, etc)

Automatic Abilities

All priests must be mindful of the following game concepts:

• The Seven Virtues
• Divine Favor
• Sacred Vows

The Seven Virtues

There are many faiths and many codes of conduct. This list is a simple, generic set of virtues that many an ethos can agree with.

• Prudence: the virtue of good judgment. Could be lost for making an impulsive decision, or one too influenced by a passionate emotional state.
• Temperance: the virtue of restraint. Can be lost for over-indulging in appetites.
• Fortitude: the virtue of endurance and tenacity. Can be lost for giving up too easily in the face of difficulty or danger.
• Justice: the virtue of standing up for what is right. Can be lost for allowing injustice to occur.
• Faith: the virtue of believe in a higher power of good. Can be lost in the obvious way.
• Hope: the virtue of staying true to your beliefs and virtues even if it seems foolish or impossible to do so.
• Love: the virtue of compassion and charity; the willingness to be kind and nurturing to all, regardless of wrongs done to you.

The system does not compel you to follow any of these virtues. If you do follow them, there are game effects, noted below.

Divine Favor

All priests have an attribute called Favor:

• Minimum value: 0
• Maximum value: the number of Virtues you uphold
• Replenished: through acts of contrition
• Spent: to use Priest abilities

Favor does not replenish on its own. You must go through a ritual of contrition, such as a religious ceremony. The specifics of the ritual are up to your chosen faith, but as a general guideline:

• The ritual should take about an hour
• It should require the use of objects (holy symbols, foci, incense, etc) of modest value that can conceivably be lost or taken away
• It must be done in earnest and in good faith

If the ritual is performed correctly, with all accoutrements in place, in a suitable holy site, the ritual restores all Favor (max once/day).

• If not done in a consecrated place, it is half effective.
• If missing accoutrements, or the ritual is rushed (minimum 10 minutes), it is half effective.
• If both, 1/4 effective.

Sacred Vows

Some choose to swear vows of extreme virtue. Monks and ascetics particularly cleave to such ways, swearing, perhaps, vows of silence, poverty, and chastity.

Sacred Vows are optional, automatic abilities. You need not spend any feats, skills, etc to take them. You may take as many as you like at character creation. Taking a new vow any time thereafter is a special ceremony (TBD: probably need help from another faithful, holy places, blah blah).

Vows are much more strict than Virtues, but they can also enable powerful abilities when sworn by magical practitioners. Should you ever break a vow, there are consequences, and it is difficult to take the vow back up again (TBD: atonement ritual?).

• Vow of Charity: You vow to give away all wealth save that which you strictly need. In game terms, you may spend no more than half of your earned wealth on equipment and adventuring goals, the rest must be tithed or given directly to charity. Furthermore, you may not acquire any non-combat possession or service that is more than the minimal, most spartan form of the good or service available, and if given such a thing, you must give it away and exchange it for a more humble gift if possible.
  • Reward: Providence: you will always have all you need--and nothing you don't. If you need a conveyance, a coincidence will occur to ensure it is available when needed. If you lack arms to fight for your faith, you will chance upon them. Rules TBD, but there are limits.
• Vow of Chastity: Total abstinence from all sexual or romantic activity, including thoughts thereof. You must treat your body as a temple, keeping yourself clean, modestly dressed, and free of any defilement of your Creator's design.
  • Reward: My Body Is A Temple: you gain Resist 20%/level to poison, disease, and charm effects.
• Vow of Evangelism: You vow to do everything in your power to convert non-believers to your faith, and never to give up despite difficulties so encountered. While it is unwise to pester, annoy, threaten, or cajole others into belief, it is nonetheless unacceptable ever to give up trying. You must provide counsel to all those who seek knowledge of the Divine, answering questions and guiding potential believers to the light, as well as shepherding believers against straying from the path.
  • Reward: (compel others to serve? gain minions? TBD)
• Vow of Integrity: You vow never to lie, nor break your word, nor conceal truth for others, nor aid anyone in any deceitful act.
  • Reward: Discern Lies: You know truth and lie the moment they hit your ears. All knowing falsehoods detect as such (though not revealing the unspoken truth). You are entitled to Perception checks to realize when someone is speaking a half-truth.
• Vow of Peace: You vow never to do harm to any living thing, regardless of evils it may cause to you or others. Generally not seen to extend to undead, demons, or monsters of any origin not deemed "good" by one's faith; nor does it typically extend to slaughtering and eating animals for nourishment, harmlessly (and painlessly) preventing beings from harming you or others, or inflicting just (ultimately harmless) punishment on children, apprentices, and the like...but do check with the tenets of your faith first, because YMMV.
  • Reward: Sanctuary: Something something you can't attack me Will ends. TBD. You basically have a Sanctity Ward on your person.

Powers

You may take powers of the following schools:

• Light
• Shadow
• No, this isn't even remotely done, don't worry

Talents

Each level, you may select one talent from the list below, assuming you meet all prerequisites. If you select 3 talents from any Talent Group, you have "mastered" that group and can take talents requiring such mastery.

Quick overview:

Other possible paths:

• Ascetic (should they have vows, instead of automatic?)

Healing

Maybe some generic healing talents, like Lay on Hands, for the non-caster types?

Radiance

Your faith is so strong, it glows in the dark. And in the light.

• Halo: at-will, free, range 10, circle y, reserve "x" Focus, spend "y" Mana; a ray of light shines on the area. Allies in area gain +x to skill checks.
• Radiant Ward: your Halo grants Resist 10% (all) per Priest rank.
• Binding Radiance: when you have an active Halo, and you are not inside it, you gain an emanation 0 granting the same effects to you.
• Energizing Radiance: allies in a Halo may extra 1 temporary Mana per Priest rank as a free action once/rd.
• Wrathful Radiance: enemies in a Halo must pass a Will save to stay in area (if you wish them out) or to escape (if you wish them inside it). On success, they suffer nominal holy damage.

Archon

Gain an archon, a la System 6.

Rank 2: it becomes a minor angel. Etc.

Avatar

Prerequisite: must have mastered Radiance or Archon.

Refer to system 6.

Defender of the Faith

• Shield of the Righteous: at-will, immediate, long range, spend 1 Favor; blocks one harmful effect affecting one target. Can "widen" by spending more Favor.
• Sanctuary: at-will, immediate; you become invulnerable. Ends if you take hostile action. Costs 1 Favor per round to maintain.
• Blee

Righteous Fury

Butt-kicking for goodness!

• Sanctified Strike: By spending 1 Favor, you add +100% damage to any attack, and add the "holy" damage type to all damage dealt.
• Judgment is Inevitable: Augments a Sanctified Strike. Damage repeats on each subsequent round you choose to spend an additional point of Favor. Each time you do this, damage increases by 100%.
  • Thus: an attack inflicts 25 damage, or 50 after Sanctified Strike (1 Favor spent).
  • In round 2, you spend 1 more Favor, and the damage repeats, +100%, thus 100 damage.
  • In round 3, you spend 1 more Favor, and the damage repeats, +200%, thus 150 damage. Etc.
• Divine Blast: At-will, swift, 3 Favor, close burst 5; enemies suffer double nominal holy damage (2h spell or a wielded weapon, your choice) and are pushed 5 (ignoring push resistance). Allies are healed for 50% of max hp and cleansed of one hostile ongoing effect each (their choice).
• Bloo

Other Ideas

Aspect of the Divine: take on a celestial, enigmatic, or sinister aspect, becoming slightly extraplanar. See 6e. Part of a separate "path" of talent groups parallel to the Manifester ones.