Introduction (PSC)

The Priests Spell Compendium continues the work of the Wizard’s Spell Compendium series. It covers priest spells created for the game from 1975 to 1995.
For the uninitiated, this is not a book of “real” magical spells. In a fantasy game world, characters like Merlin the Magician create marvelous magical effects with a wave of the hand. This is a book of marvelous effects that can be used by the good guys (and the bad guys) in the course of a game session. The key to the game is, as always, the decisions made by the players (heroic or otherwise), and the impact those decisions have on the ongoing plot of the game. New spells are fun, but it’s even more fun figuring out unusual ways to use them.
Up to this time, lists of spell effects have been keyed to spell level; that is, relative spell power. In other words, if all a gamer or Dungeon Master knew was a spell name, each level’s list of spells had to be checked. While the last pages of this volume will include level lists (as well as lists by race and specialty), the most important principle of organization used in this work is alphabetical.
The material in these books is presented in the most current game format: that of the 2nd Edition rules. Some descriptions have been updated or combined with similar spell effects to eliminate duplication; some have been modified for better play, and a very few have been dropped entirely.
Generally, “granted powers” of specialty priests are beyond the scope of this series, although a few have been configured as spells. Variant magical systems, such as the kingdom-level magic of the Birthright setting are also beyond the scope of this book. However, the optional Sphere of War, induced in the TOME of MAGIC book (essentially a BATTLESYSTEM rules variant) and the psionics-based spells of the Dragon-Kings of the DARK Sun setting are close enough to standard spells to be included in a special section in the final volume. Clerical cantrips, or orisons, will be included in the back of this volume as well.
==About This Book==
The spells listed in this book are given alphabetically. Spell names that include a proper name are given a primary listing under that name. For example, for Abbathor’s greed, the primary entry is under “A:” Another reference to the main entry will be found at the second word of the spell name; in this case, the entry would read: “Greed, Abbathor’s.”
Be aware that many spell names are irregular compound words, and that standard alphabetical order follows complete words. Thus, dark road will appear before darkbolt. If you can’t find a spell, try looking for it as a compound form.
Some spells may have the same name: or the name of a spell might have been changed. Where two spells have the same name but come from different cultures, the spell from the culture most similar to Medieval Europe is given first. Renamed spells have a short reference under the original name.
Spells associated with specific campaign worlds (other than the Forgotten REALMS and World of GREYHAWK settings) are marked with a special symbol so they can be easily recognized. Spells associated with a specific monster or nonhuman race (dragons, elves, and so on) are noted, the ace name is separated from the spell name by a dash. Specialized priests with unique spell lists, such as the NPC savant-cleric, from DRAGON Magazine are also specially noted.
Generally, spell names and secondary game effects are italicized. For example, the symbol spell has a secondary effect called discord.
Category:Priest's Spell Compendium