D&D 5E Guide: How To Multiclass a Cleric

October 25, 2021

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Multiclassing in D&D is a great way to add depth to your character. Customize your cleric with this D&D 5E multiclass guide.

Clerics are one of the original D&D classes, and harken back to when the game was Fighting-Man, Cleric, and Magic-User. Ever since the dawn of D&D, they’ve been the wielders of divine power and deific devotion. With powers that have only grown from edition to edition, clerics are a solid class to take from level 1-20.

But what happens when you decide to layer on multiclassing? It can get tricky– but if you do it right, there’s a lot you can pull off.

Clerics make for some of the best classes to multiclass, and a big part of this is because clerics get a lot of proficiencies and bonus spells even at level 1. A level or two of cleric can make a huge difference for any class. But if you’re staying primarily as a cleric? You’ve still got plenty of options.

A big part of this comes from the sheer diversity of cleric subclasses. Your Divine Domain lets you decide whether you’re going to be a melee fighter, or more of a spellcaster– but even then, Arcana clerics make for a great spellfighter with shillelagh.

Clerics With a Dip

One of the best things you can do as a cleric is take a level or two of one other class to expand your natural capabilities. If you want to primarily level as a cleric, these classes will enhance your capabilities.

Clerics and wizards work together surprisingly well. And often with just two levels of wizard you can snag the arcane school feature and gain access to ritual casting. Necromancy and Divination are two schools that lend themselves especially well to pairing with Death and Knowledge domain clerics. You’ll be able to round out your spell selection without missing out on higher level spells by too much.

Clerics and paladins are a fantastic pairing. You only need two levels of paladin to pick up Divine Smite, and you open up all kinds of doors. Play a spellcasting cleric for maximum benefits (becoming a paladin gets you proficiency with the weapons you need), so taking Arcana or Tempest domain can give you magical oomph while you back up your spells with smites, or go all in on something like War domain cleric and become an absolute powerhouse in melee.

Divine Blend

The other big play as a multiclassed cleric is to find classes that will complement you as you get to higher levels. This is an especially viable strategy if you’re playing a short game since it keeps every level super exciting. But it’s not a great in a longer game as Clerics aren’t nearly as exciting past level 9 or so.

Either way, when you blend another class in, it’s probably best to figure out what you’re doing with your spells. Are you buffing and occasionally healing? If so, consider something to keep you attacking with good “sustain” in combats. Do you need more magic? Amp up your spellcasting with something like sorcerer or warlock.

Clerics and fighters work exceptionally well together. Everyone loves Action Surge, and as a cleric you’ll have a number of amazing spells to benefit from that extra action. But fighters work even better when paired with a melee cleric-build like War or Forge Domain. That’s because they’ll add some extra magic to make you that much tougher in combat.

If you get at least 5 cleric levels, you’ll have 3rd level spells (which gets you Spirit Guardians). On top of that, you’re also a fighter with a subclass. Picking Battlemaster is especially good on the Cleric Chassis, but you can’t go wrong with Rune Knight or Psi Warrior.

Clerics and monks can pair well– with a few caveats. The only one that works really well is the Way of the Shadow monk, which pairs well with classes that use darkness/illusion in general. For clerics, that’s the Trickery domain cleric. You’ll teleport through shadows and create illusory duplicates of yourself– it’s a great way to play a ninja-esque character without playing a ninja.

Clerics and rogues can lead to some esoteric combinations, but I really like them. Twilight Domain cleric is a great base for pairing with a rogue– especially one of the weirder rogues like a Soulknife or a Scout. You’ll be missing out on your sneak attack damage, but you mostly want the rogue for their subclass features.

Clerics and sorcerers can lead to some pretty impressive magical combinations. Especially past 9th level cleric. Sorcerers have some features that play well with cleric Domains, but you have to pick and choose. Something like Draconic Origin (with a lightning dragon ancestor) or being a Storm sorcerer will let you maximize your Tempest domain’s ability to deal max damage when using thunder and/or lightning.