One thing I would like to point out. Intervention does not mean your deity "shows up", it could if it chose to but, it's pretty unlikely that your situation would require more than a powerful servant of your deity. If for some reason you need your God in order to fight another God, maybe it would happen.
That said, I would like to see a percentage chance of level times three. :P
If you're using it as a hail mary, you're wasting its potential. It may have been intended as such, but it isn't designed as such. Far more effective to use it as a daily prayer for a boon.
Is there anything stopping me from using Divine Intervention repeatedly until it succeeds? I assume gods can't file restraining orders. For instance, if I wanted to raise a party member, could I not just spend all day petitioning my god for Resurrection?
If it fails you need to wait until you've finished a long rest. If it succeeds it's 7 days.
technically... A god can file a restraining order. They are giving you your powers. And while mechanically 5e barely touches on the idea. Thematically a DM could lean back on ideas of older editions and actually deny you your powers until you atone in some way for what you've done to be able to cast those spells again. This was a bigger concept in older editions. Specially for paladins and rangers. But there were a few caveats that applied directly to clerics and druids as well.
One thing I would like to point out. Intervention does not mean your deity "shows up", it could if it chose to but, it's pretty unlikely that your situation would require more than a powerful servant of your deity. If for some reason you need your God in order to fight another God, maybe it would happen.
That said, I would like to see a percentage chance of level times three. :P
Much of the time you wouldn't even technically get a servant. You'd just get some affect that fit your need of the moment. Whether that be the casting of a spell, some kind of temporary boon, or whatever. Aid would only actually show up if it was deemed that was what is required.
So, I have a question about Divine Intervention: for it to trigger the automatic Level 20 effect, does that mean when you are at TOTAL Level 20, or specifically you’re Cleric Level 20, as in no multiclassing?
So, I have a question about Divine Intervention: for it to trigger the automatic Level 20 effect, does that mean when you are at TOTAL Level 20, or specifically you’re Cleric Level 20, as in no multiclassing?
It's a class feature, so it is based on the level in the class. The only exceptions to that rule (basically just spell slots) are listed in the section on multiclassing.
I think you are forgetting that they can do it everyday if it fails so if they have 30 times they use it in combat its odds of going off are much higher.
What people forget if it fails.it can be used again after a long rest. Let's say they use it use a day that a 10% 365 times say they do it every week for a year 52*10 say they us it use it every combat between long rest and say there are 80 within the year that 80 try to get a 10% and of you add level up it increase of happening are much higher. In alot of ways it kinda is stronger than wish as it can cast 9th level spells with no drawback besides waiting either a day or a week if they get it. Verus using wish to use a 9th level there is a 33% chance they cannot cast wish again. Also people don't tend to just make divine intervention a spell they make it have other powers so other time it overpowers by uses, and its ability to do what wish can do but better and more often.
Using it in combat is a waste. Sure it can be powerful one time in 10 (or whatever your level puts the odds at) but most of the time it will use your action to no effect, the one time it works will generally not make up for all the times it didn't.
Using it out of combat can be amazing as you can keep asking and get something like a wish every couple of weeks.
The Class Feature says " you can call on your deity to intervene on your behalf when your need is great" (emphasis mine) so just bothering your god everyday asking if they will give you wings or give you gold or some other buff is likely to not go over well. Also how the god intervenes is entirely up to the DM with the suggestion "the effect of any cleric spell or cleric domain spell would be appropriate". So the DM could grant your request in whatever way they see fit, which means there is that be careful how you word things caveat you'll find in the Wish spell description.
Remember Clerics are supposed to be paragons of their gods. If you were a god and you granted someone the ability to use divine magic and then everyday they bugged you asking for your direct intervention it might become tiresome. Especially if it isn't during an hour of great need but something you do every morning before you have breakfast. There are plenty of deities in 5e pantheons who would likely become annoyed and possibly deny their clerics magic if they abuse their power in this way. And this is not probably how a cleric would act as they are themselves manifestations of their gods' powers.
A god could also not grant your request in the manner you had expected, especially if your god happens to be in the trickster domain or of one of the chaotic alignments. Divine Intervention isn't a reliable easy win button in either RAW or RAI. Crawford does a video on DNDBeyond about the ideas behind the ability that can help DMs understand this mechanic.
So remember your mileage may vary on how much you can abuse this feature to try and get a free wish every week.
All very true and I can assure you that our need was great each time (literally life-saving or even TPK-averting) and the help usually came in the form of a lightning storm which restarted hearts or similar (I am very much a Tempest Cleric). We've been in grave danger many times but have now succeeded on every attempt at DI (over a multi-year campaign)!
This Tempest Cleric appears to have at least 9 lives!
What I did in my games is the following - if you roll for divine intervention and you don't get it, you instead immediately recover a number of spell slots equal to half your level (like the wizard's ability). If this succeeds, you can't use Divine Intervention for two days. Having it unavailable for a couple of days keeps it from just being spammed every day, but it does give you at least something if you whiff. So far it's worked really well.
That phrasing "when your need is great" is very loose indeed! If a deity cares about a character's quest, maybe that character has a great need for any mission-pertinent request. On the other hand, they might be bleeding, out of spell slots & a friendly nation will burn if they fail, but they don't "need" to cross that river today. Maybe they don't even need to live! If the deity judges the status of need, it's effectively just '1 in 10 times, the GM gets discretion for your deity to help you, if they feel like it'.
One thing I would like to point out. Intervention does not mean your deity "shows up", it could if it chose to but, it's pretty unlikely that your situation would require more than a powerful servant of your deity. If for some reason you need your God in order to fight another God, maybe it would happen.
That said, I would like to see a percentage chance of level times three. :P
I'm agree with you.... and also I can easily think about What if I cast Divine Intervention, a God appears and tell me to commit a crime ( and due to my failed roll on Investigation check to detect if is my God ). Then later, after commiting this act, I cast again Divine Intervertion just advice God about what I did and, appears my God. Am I gonna be punished and expelled from this Religion by that ?? omfg.
One thing I would like to point out. Intervention does not mean your deity "shows up", it could if it chose to but, it's pretty unlikely that your situation would require more than a powerful servant of your deity. If for some reason you need your God in order to fight another God, maybe it would happen.
That said, I would like to see a percentage chance of level times three. :P
I'm agree with you.... and also I can easily think about What if I cast Divine Intervention, a God appears and tell me to commit a crime ( and due to my failed roll on Investigation check to detect if is my God ). Then later, after commiting this act, I cast again Divine Intervertion just advice God about what I did and, appears my God. Am I gonna be punished and expelled from this Religion by that ?? omfg.
That is not how divine intervention works. If you use Divine Intervention and you fail your roll, nothing happens. It doesn't mean some other god shows up.
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One thing I would like to point out. Intervention does not mean your deity "shows up", it could if it chose to but, it's pretty unlikely that your situation would require more than a powerful servant of your deity. If for some reason you need your God in order to fight another God, maybe it would happen.
That said, I would like to see a percentage chance of level times three. :P
technically... A god can file a restraining order. They are giving you your powers. And while mechanically 5e barely touches on the idea. Thematically a DM could lean back on ideas of older editions and actually deny you your powers until you atone in some way for what you've done to be able to cast those spells again. This was a bigger concept in older editions. Specially for paladins and rangers. But there were a few caveats that applied directly to clerics and druids as well.
Much of the time you wouldn't even technically get a servant. You'd just get some affect that fit your need of the moment. Whether that be the casting of a spell, some kind of temporary boon, or whatever. Aid would only actually show up if it was deemed that was what is required.
100% agree.
So, I have a question about Divine Intervention: for it to trigger the automatic Level 20 effect, does that mean when you are at TOTAL Level 20, or specifically you’re Cleric Level 20, as in no multiclassing?
It's a class feature, so it is based on the level in the class. The only exceptions to that rule (basically just spell slots) are listed in the section on multiclassing.
Got it. Thanks
I think you are forgetting that they can do it everyday if it fails so if they have 30 times they use it in combat its odds of going off are much higher.
What people forget if it fails.it can be used again after a long rest. Let's say they use it use a day that a 10% 365 times say they do it every week for a year 52*10 say they us it use it every combat between long rest and say there are 80 within the year that 80 try to get a 10% and of you add level up it increase of happening are much higher. In alot of ways it kinda is stronger than wish as it can cast 9th level spells with no drawback besides waiting either a day or a week if they get it. Verus using wish to use a 9th level there is a 33% chance they cannot cast wish again. Also people don't tend to just make divine intervention a spell they make it have other powers so other time it overpowers by uses, and its ability to do what wish can do but better and more often.
Using it in combat is a waste. Sure it can be powerful one time in 10 (or whatever your level puts the odds at) but most of the time it will use your action to no effect, the one time it works will generally not make up for all the times it didn't.
Using it out of combat can be amazing as you can keep asking and get something like a wish every couple of weeks.
At a level 10, how would this ever be successful? Even if you roll 1's with both rolls, wouldn't that still fail?
Ask for something useful, like wings and a 60 foot flying speed.
Then repeat request until it happens.
If you roll 1s, yes, if you roll a 1 and 0 or a 0 and anything but another 0, you'll succeed. Percentile dice go from 1-100.
Divine Intervention: 10% of the time, it works every time.
The Class Feature says " you can call on your deity to intervene on your behalf when your need is great" (emphasis mine) so just bothering your god everyday asking if they will give you wings or give you gold or some other buff is likely to not go over well. Also how the god intervenes is entirely up to the DM with the suggestion "the effect of any cleric spell or cleric domain spell would be appropriate". So the DM could grant your request in whatever way they see fit, which means there is that be careful how you word things caveat you'll find in the Wish spell description.
Remember Clerics are supposed to be paragons of their gods. If you were a god and you granted someone the ability to use divine magic and then everyday they bugged you asking for your direct intervention it might become tiresome. Especially if it isn't during an hour of great need but something you do every morning before you have breakfast. There are plenty of deities in 5e pantheons who would likely become annoyed and possibly deny their clerics magic if they abuse their power in this way. And this is not probably how a cleric would act as they are themselves manifestations of their gods' powers.
A god could also not grant your request in the manner you had expected, especially if your god happens to be in the trickster domain or of one of the chaotic alignments. Divine Intervention isn't a reliable easy win button in either RAW or RAI. Crawford does a video on DNDBeyond about the ideas behind the ability that can help DMs understand this mechanic.
So remember your mileage may vary on how much you can abuse this feature to try and get a free wish every week.
All very true and I can assure you that our need was great each time (literally life-saving or even TPK-averting) and the help usually came in the form of a lightning storm which restarted hearts or similar (I am very much a Tempest Cleric). We've been in grave danger many times but have now succeeded on every attempt at DI (over a multi-year campaign)!
This Tempest Cleric appears to have at least 9 lives!
What I did in my games is the following - if you roll for divine intervention and you don't get it, you instead immediately recover a number of spell slots equal to half your level (like the wizard's ability). If this succeeds, you can't use Divine Intervention for two days. Having it unavailable for a couple of days keeps it from just being spammed every day, but it does give you at least something if you whiff. So far it's worked really well.
May you always roll 20s
That phrasing "when your need is great" is very loose indeed! If a deity cares about a character's quest, maybe that character has a great need for any mission-pertinent request. On the other hand, they might be bleeding, out of spell slots & a friendly nation will burn if they fail, but they don't "need" to cross that river today. Maybe they don't even need to live! If the deity judges the status of need, it's effectively just '1 in 10 times, the GM gets discretion for your deity to help you, if they feel like it'.
I'm agree with you.... and also I can easily think about What if I cast Divine Intervention, a God appears and tell me to commit a crime ( and due to my failed roll on Investigation check to detect if is my God ). Then later, after commiting this act, I cast again Divine Intervertion just advice God about what I did and, appears my God. Am I gonna be punished and expelled from this Religion by that ?? omfg.
My Ready-to-rock&roll chars:
Dertinus Tristany // Amilcar Barca // Vicenç Sacrarius // Oriol Deulofeu // Grovtuk
That is not how divine intervention works. If you use Divine Intervention and you fail your roll, nothing happens. It doesn't mean some other god shows up.