Ranking Tier 1 Priest Spells (Shadowdark RPG)

Hey, folks! Will from Runeforged here.

Today, we’re doing something a bit different! I’m going to be doing a tier list of Tier 1 Priest spells for Shadowdark. If folks enjoy this, we’ll keep doing it.

I’ll be explaining my thought process for each decision, but a lot of this is just going to be vibes and is based on how my own group plays the game, which may be very different from how yours plays the game.

*Friar art by Eric Lofgren

Tier List Rubric:

• S: Broken. I would pick this up ASAP. These are spells likely to auto-win an encounter with a single successful cast.

• A: Good. I would get it ASAP, but it isn’t quite as game-breaking as S-tier.

• B: Solid. Not a priority to pick up, but might be worth picking up eventually.

• C: Decent but simply not as good as other options. Maybe you’ll find a scroll/wand of it down the line.

• D: Terrible. I would never choose this spell to learn and would even be reluctant to use it even if I had a scroll or wand of it. There are just better things to do with your action.

Tier 1 Priest Spells:

Here we go!

Cure Wounds:

• Explanation:

  • Keeps people alive and is much more reliable and effective than stabilize.

  • Scales decently with level (in a way most other spells do not).

  • Almost universally useful.

  • Auto-pick spell. So clearly better than most other spells. If you don’t take this, I need you to tell me why in the comments.

• Rank: A-Tier (Good), though I could maybe be persuaded it belongs in S-Tier.

Holy Weapon:

• Explanation:

  • Looks better than it is. I think most people forget to consider that, sometimes, just using the priest’s action to attack (assuming a decent attack bonus) is likely to deal about as much damage (and doesn’t require a spell).

  • The +1 to hit is unlikely to turn a single miss into a hit over the course of even a 5 round combat (and many combats are shorter than that).

  • Situationally, can be good for making a weapon magical (to bypass monster immunity to non-magical weapons). Eventually, the party will have magical weapons and this will cease to be an issue.

• Rank: C-Tier (Mediocre)

Light:

• Explanation:

  • Fighting or exploring in the dark is bad for your health.

  • Some of this spell’s value will depend on how often your group runs out of torches. If they never do, this may be less useful.

  • Still, the ability to have light while not occupying a hand with a torch does have benefits.

  • Finally, using the Light spell is more reliable than trying to light a torch in the dark (and failing to do so may be lethal), so it definitely has its place.

• Rank: B-Tier (Solid). There’s an argument for bumping it up to to A-Tier.

Protection From Evil:

• Explanation:

  • While a bit situational (only useful vs Chaotic creatures), this spell is incredibly strong.

  • DISADV on attack rolls and hostile spellcasting checks is good enough by itself, not even counting the situational utility of preventing or dispelling possession/compel/beguile etc.

  • The Focus component makes it a bit unreliable, but it also means you can have this spell active for a very long time using only a single action if you get a bit lucky and/or if you get the ability to cast it with ADV.

  • My favorite use for this spell is to cast it on a high AC character (often myself as the priest) and then move to block a hallway/door or otherwise make the character the center of attention. The amount of damage that can be mitigated with this spell is obscene.

• Rank: A-Tier (Good)

Shield of Faith:

• Explanation:

  • This one’s very meh. I can’t see myself picking it because there are just too many better options and you only get 3 Tier 1 spells known max.

  • It can only be cast on yourself and, unless you’re getting attacked 10+ times within 5 rounds, there’s a decent chance it won’t have any effect at all.

  • Worse still, this spell pales in comparison to Protection from Evil while serving a similar function. Yes, it can used against foes of any alignment and is more consistent in terms of the # of rounds it’s up, but there’s also a pretty big chance you’ll cast it and it won’t have any impact at all.

  • Situationally, if the DM is targeting you mercilessly (with non-chaotic creatures), there’s an fringe argument for picking it up.

• Rank: C-Tier (Mediocre)

Turn Undead:

• Explanation:

  • A bit situational, but extremely powerful spell.

  • It is VERY good at what it’s supposed to do and is one of those spells that will (often) singlehandedly win an encounter.

  • Also one of the few spells that scales really well with level.

• Rank: S-Tier (Broken)

My Picks for Tier 1 Priest Spells

• S-Tier (Broken):

  • Turn Undead

• A-Tier (Good):

  • Cure Wounds

  • Protection from Evil

• B-Tier (Solid):

  • Light

• C-Tier (Mediocre):

  • Holy Weapon

  • Shield of Faith

• D-Tier (Terrible):

  • N/A

Agree? Disagree? Let me know down in the comments!

Final Thoughts

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Sincerely,

William (Runeforged Tabletop Gaming)

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