5 Backstory Ideas for Your Cleric in Dungeons and Dragons (D&D)

Clerics are an extremely variable divine caster in D&D. They have enough hit points and armor to serve as the tank, they’ve got spells to be a primary damage dealer and they have always found a place as healers for as long as D&D has existed. Now it’s time to come up with a few quick backstory ideas to help bring your character to life. Here are five intriguing ideas to use in your game, or to build off of to create a unique character you’ll love to play.

#1: The Priest

The classic archetype for the Cleric in D&D, the Priest can be any rank in their respective church. A priest could be anything from a wandering friar to a bishop in a large city. Most priests are traditionalists in terms of their deities, following the tenets of the faith. Being a priest of your deity is likely to inform a lot of your backstory decisions, from your church’s traditions to your morning rituals. Think of what kind of faith you want to follow, and ask your DM about what kind of deities there are in their world. Determine how you came to serve your deity, were you called by visions, taken in by priests or did something else call you to serve.

Once you’ve decided on your deity, decide what rank your cleric is in their church. How long have they served their deity? Work with your DM to establish where your church is, and who your peers and superiors might be. Then consider why you might have left the fold, were you given a task by your superiors? Or was it presented directly from your deity? Maybe you broke one of the tenets you had sworn to uphold? Lastly, determine how your priest feels about rival gods and followers. Do they respect other faiths? Or are they monotheistic?

#2: The Cultist

On the other side of the spectrum for the Cleric, the Cultist is a character who has either been roped into a strange organization, or maybe they are amongst the higher-ups helping to build the foundations of the cult themselves. In D&D, cults to gods of death such as Vecna or Demon Princes such as Demogorgon or Orcus are popular. But, just as easily a Cultist could belong to an organization centered around a Fey Queen or even a lesser known Demigod seeking power.

When thinking of your backstory for Cultists, consider how you got involved in the cult in the first place. What does your cult worship and what does your cult ask of you? Does your character feel good about what they are doing? Or, do they even know what it is that they are involved in? Maybe they believe they are involved in the worship of another deity and are being fooled secretly. Work with your DM to determine what cult might best fit your needs, and try to anchor your decision in the world so that your DM can help make your character work.

#3: The Healer

Filling the niche of healer in a D&D party often falls to the Cleric in many groups. If you want to make being the healer part of your backstory this is the backstory idea for you. Healers can range from working with mercy organizations on the part of a church, traveling from war zone to war zone, or they could simply be the village medic, making sure farmers and local militia are tended to. The healer stays near the back in combat, they make sure that everyone is alive and healthy. Does your healer dedicate themselves to the protection of life because they believe everyone deserves life, or maybe they saw a tragedy when they were young, and work towards preventing the same thing from happening in the future.

Think about what inspired your character to go out of their way to heal the sick, do they heal everyone equally or do they only heal the ones they feel deserves it? Does your character go out of the way to travel to where they are needed, or do they simply follow the wind, trusting to be in the right place at the right time. As all Clerics, decide how important your deity is to your tradition of healing. Make a decision about what brought your character to the adventuring party.

#4: The Conman

Your Cleric isn’t quite as noble as some of the others. You don’t go out of your way to heal the sick or to fight for injustice. You serve whichever deity is most useful to you in the moment, changing your faith the way others change clothes. Your powers come from within, by sheer force of will you manifest magic. Your conviction is in yourself and how you control the world. This backstory works best for the Trickery domain and others that use deception.

This backstory idea is perfect for the mischief maker, the trickster, followers of deities such as Loki or Hermes work well for this kind of character. Maybe you are deceitful for yourself, or maybe you serve the whims of a strange deity whose will is unknown. Does your character trick anyone they meet? Do they do it maliciously or more for the fun of it? Work with your DM to determine what deity might work for your character if you choose to worship one.

#5: The Templar

For the Clerics who aren’t so priestly, staying hidden away in churches or monasteries, the Templar is for you. Perfect for clerics of the War domain, or those that want to be on the frontline. Perhaps your character serves a deity who seeks to strike back against their enemies, or perhaps your archbishop has called upon warriors of the faith for a crusade. Perhaps you serve a deity of light whose tenets demand that you seek out evil in the world and destroy it.

Consider how your character came to their faith, and what turned them to become a warrior. Who trained them in the way of the blade? What is their mission that they have left the comfort of their church to seek adventure? Work with your DM to determine how your quest interacts with the world, and flesh out the patrons who might have set you on the world with such purpose. This is a great way to create contacts for your character, and provide purpose over the course of a campaign.

If you like this article or any others I have written, consider liking, subscribing, tipping or pledging here on Vocal as it really helps me continue writing! If you're looking for other articles about Clerics, follow the links below!

• Backstories for Clerics
• Backstories for Clerics Pt. 2
• Spells for Clerics
• Feats for Clerics
• Magic Items for Clerics
• Best Tempest Cleric Build

If you're looking for help with backstories for any other class, check out the list below!

• Barbarian
• Bard
• Cleric
• Druid
• Fighter
• Monk
• Paladin
• Ranger
• Rogue
• Sorcerer
• Warlock
• Wizard