Greetings all.

I was skimming through the various Cleric Domains (lawd, are they're many!), and I must admit, I gave the Light Domain a pass at first.

I skipped it initially, along with Life Cleric, for two reasons...the first is that they typically align with the conventional, typical Cleric...and while useful, it always seemed bland to me. Second, I tend to favor the darker, grim sort of cleric...if only because it makes for an interesting backstory.

But after being somewhat disappointed by the Grave Domain for creating a "gothic" character (while conceding that keeping you're party death-proof is a wonderful thing!)...I gave the Light Domain a second look...and was impressed by the mechanics. Powerful spells...useful mechanics for applying disadvantage...an AOE radiant attack...potent cantrips...and a useful counter for the troublesome "darkness" spells/situations.

But I didn't want to just make a cleric who preached about the "goodness" of the light, or the glory of the "sun"...and strangely, what I ended up with was a Light Cleric who was more "gothic" than a Grave Cleric...just in time for Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, too.

They were an aasimar, though they were somewhat unaware of this distinction. In fact, Loomis (working name) was a bit of loner...the natural charisma afforded by the aasimar was a bad thing to have when growing up orphaned and poor among the slums of Waterdeep...thieves and gangsters often preyed upon such children, either to serve as cheap pickpockets, thieves, spies...or worse.

And so Loomis dwelled in the one place few would dare to tread...the city cemetary. Isolated, yet safe, living in such a grim yet tranquil place gave him a unique perspective on life...he would often observe funeral proceedings in secret, watching people weep over their loved ones, or having bizarre celebrations to commemorate the dead (modeled after the New Orleans tradition...City of Splendors, after all!).

As he grew older, however, and needed new ways to sustain himself, Loomis did the only thing he could...he robbed the tombs, collecting valuables from the recently deceased. After all...what use did the dead have of such things?

But as the paltry few mausoleaums quickly yielded fewer and fewer trinkets and baubles, Loomis found himself having to venture into the wealthier crypts of Waterdeep nobility to claim the more valuable treasures they refused to be parted with in death. But such activity was risky, as the cemetery grounds of the nobility were often protected by guards. He'd have to take special care...

He went in the middle of the night, when the skies were darkened and not even moonlight could reveal his movements. He broke into the largest crypt he could find access to, and descended down into the depths.

Unfortunate for him, Loomis found more than treasure...roused either by his presence, or some lingering evil, a group of Shadows appeared in this tomb. They descended upon Loomis, and he thought he would die down there, in a grave of his own making, transformed into yet another Shadow to forever lurk in darkness. As he was enveloped by their cold embrace, Loomis cried out desperately for help.

As though answering his prayers, a pale radiant light, like a silvery moonbeam, suddenly emanated from the direction Loomis had entered from. The shadows were disintegrated by this light, leaving Loomis shuddering down upon the dirt. Standing over him, a cloaked figure...holding a curious lantern, ornate in it's design, pulsing with the same silvery glow from just before.

The figure introduced himself as Umber, the old groundskeeper of this cemetary, and former cleric of Selune. He'd been watching Loomis enter his grounds, and had been compelled by his goddess to intervene on his behalf...for Loomis carried the spark of the aasimar, and she did not wish such a light to be extinguished so young.

In exchange for saving his life, Loomis agreed to aid the old groundskeeper in his duties tending to the cemetary. During this time, they grew close, Umber becoming like a father to Loomis. He told Loomis stories of his youth, a cleric in service to Selune. He that it had been his duty to use her soft moonlight (the lantern) to guide wayward souls through the darkest corners of the world, and protect them from the evil which lurked within it. And in his later years, as was customary, he would then use the lantern to ferry the departed souls of the dead into the planes of the afterlife, and keep the lurking shadows and undead at bay.

Loomis was taken by these stories, of Umbers journeys with adventurers into dangerous, yet exciting, places.

However, as years passed, Umber soon died from his old age. Loomis gave him a proper burial, as he had observed so many times, and took up his lantern. Though he was more familiar with this strange goddess of moonlight through his mentors stories, he knew he still had much to learn of her ways.

But before he would follow in Umber's footsteps, he'd have a toast for him...perhaps at the Yawning Portal...after all, he'd heard tales of the Undermountain. What better place to bring the light of Selune?

Anyway, that's my Light Cleric's background...anybody else have one?

Feel free to share below!

Light is a misnomer. They should be called fire clerics / napalm priests / Inquisitors / Knights of the Ashen fields. They have access to armour, burning hands, scorching ray, and fireball. You know, the spells pure offensive kill them all casters use, except those guys cant heal themselves or where armour. Couple that with a channel divinity which is a smart carpet bomb recharging on a short rest and these horror shows will have you soiling yourself as a dm if they are played even slightly well at 2nd level. By 5th they fireballing Or just hitting everything they want to in 30' for 2d10+10 and doing it twice a shortrest at 6th.

The background is good, personally maybe too much :) Dragon heist will give you your epic story, dont spend your creative juice all on the prologue! but folks have different tastes, savour yours and enjoy your game. :)

You're quite right on the Light Cleric Domain...a heavy emphasis on fire.

So I homebrewed a variant of it... the Moon Domain.

They place a heavy emphasis on guiding people through dark places, such as roadways at night, or the ever-dangerous Underdark...and they do so with great speed. They "Bring hope & light to the darkest of places".

I kept the Light Cleric features very similar...but re-flavored "Warding Flare" as "Flickering Ghostlights", "Burning Radiance" as "Silvery Radiance", and "Corona of Light" as "Ethereal Visage"...turning the normally sun-related beacons into moonlight-fueled flashes and will 'o wisps.

I replaced many of the fire spells with comparable replacements.."Longstrider" and "Faerie Fire"..."Pass Without Trace" and "Moonbeam"..."Haste" and "Guardian of Nature" (for that amazingly appropriate ability to become a pseudo-werewolf)...and "Sickening Radiance" and "Destructive Wave" as higher level spells to enhance the radiant damage selection.

Would have loved to add "Crown of Stars", but it's too high level.

My cleric brandishes a lantern as their divine focus...visually, I enjoy the concept quite a bit. 

A concept I always wanted to try out was a schizophrenic cleric who survived a tragic fire that killed the rest of his family, and in the aftermath began hearing a voice in his head that introduced itself as newcome God of Fire, and had chosen this individual to be the prophet of a new age of Fire. If he ever found out the voice in his head were not real, he would probably lose all will to live and break down, but until then he'd be a zealous and crazed devotee of a God nobody had heard of, converting people to his new faith and eventually at really high levels, make his God real out of the sheer faith of so many people believing in the concept. 

One of my first characters was a light cleric. I annoyed my DM to no end with the Warding Flare feature, so have fun with that one lol

I played my light cleric like a Warhammer 40k priest. Purging everything (ermm.. evil things i mean >.>) with righteous fire. Carried around a lantern (my reliquary) and shield instead of a weapon and constantly preached loudly. My party rogue obviously hated me the most until he realized i was great distraction / bait / fodder :D

I had a concept for a light cleric I may or may not use;

A young man, in his mid twenties or so. a tired, exhausted face, but with a wide, wild grin and eyes that dart around with great energy. what was once a suitable uniform for a man of his profession is now stained by the filth of the murky bog and the blood of the undead. Like his father before him, he tirelessly and mercilessly eradicates the filth that stains a would-be-perfect world, purging it in blinding light and fire, dragging the heretics into the sun so that they may be judged by the scorching rays of his goddess. When the baptism is complete, the world would once again be pristine and beautiful, just as she had shown him in his dreams. 

Basically, a light cleric who hunts undead, monstrosities, and other generally "ugly" things with no mercy, in the name of a goddess of beauty. Speaks with a cajun accent and uses a handaxe in one hand and his holy symbol (an ornamental locket with a mirror inside) in his other hand. 

That's badass and beautiful. I love it. Not the typical "and then tragedy struck" D&D backstory, but still has a deep emotional impact on both the character and others. You nailed it.