Which Subclasses Should Get a Revision: Cleric

 The Cleric shares with the Wizard the distinction of being one of the two classes that did not see all of its PHB subclasses reprinted in the 2024 version. As one of two classes that got over 3 back in 2014 (and quite a lot more - Clerics had 7 and Wizards had 8) 2024's standardization of giving each class four subclasses to choose from made Clerics actually lose subclasses.

Except not... really. Because, after all, those old subclasses still exist, and you can still take them.

That being said, of all classes, Clerics' old subclasses are also probably the most awkward to update. Pre-2024, Cleric subclasses not only got features at both levels 1 and 2, before the new Clerics even get a subclass, but they also tended to get their armor training, weapon proficiencies, and their divine strike/potent spellcasting features, which all got pulled out of the subclass formula and made into their own separate class choices.

All of this, then, is to say, that Cleric subclasses from before 2024 need a lot of clean-up to use with the new Cleric, and so there's an argument that just about every one of their old divine domains could use some love.

But we're here to be discerning. We can't just reprint every old subclass.

One of the PHB domains (that's easier to write than "subclass" every time) excluded from the new PHB has already gotten a reprint, so what we're going to touch on here is the Nature, Tempest, Death, Arcana, Forge, Grave, Order, Peace, and Twilight Domains.

Nature: No

    The Nature Domain was always kind of the "druid-y cleric," and especially given the parallels between Cleric and Druid features in 2024, I really think you're fine playing a "nature priest" just as a Druid. This was never the most exciting subclass anyway.

Tempest: No

    I could be talked into a yes here, but let's explore this: Tempest is one of the most clearly damage-focused Clerics, which is a cool space to be in. Clerics are often pigeon-holed as the party healers (and people often ignore that other classes can fill that role, though I think few come close to being as effective except maybe the Druid). The real thing is that I think the mechanics to this subclass are already pretty good - not gamebreakingly amazing, but they work.

Death: No

    Another maybe here, but leaning no. Again, I love a dark subclass, and it might be cool to get a player-facing version of this (this is one of two DMG subclasses for NPCs that weren't built for player characters). I'd probably want to flesh a few things out here with another pass, like giving them more than ignoring necrotic resistance at 6th level (one of those damage types that monsters tend to have full immunity to more often than resistance). But I also think we might have a thematically-similar subclass I'm more interested in later on.

Arcana: No

    Ok, I'll grant that this subclass potentially fixes a problem: when your party needs a healer, but no one wants to play a Cleric. You get the person who wanted to play a Wizard to do this instead. But I feel on thematic level that Knowledge overlaps a lot with this.

Forge: Yes

    Forge gods are a pretty common thing, so the thematics here work. The subclass is oddly a kind of retroactive "artificer cleric," actually. But I think this is a good theme that could use a lot of clean-up, especially given that it require heavy armor, something that your Cleric might not get.

Grave: Yes

    This is the more player-facing Death Domain alternative, with a rather more heroic vibe. Certainly one of the most popular subclasses in my experience, it could also use some clean-up regarding its use of Spare the Dying (which is now ranged at baseline).

Order: No

    I'm not really opposed to this subclass, but I think it doesn't really seem like something calling out for a reprint. The concept of it I think can probably be handled by existing subclasses.

Peace: No

    This is one of two subclasses generally thought to be overpowered. A reprint would likely mean nerfing it, and I don't think that would be a popular move. Probably better to just leave it be. I also think you can cover its ground fairly successfully with other subclasses.

Twilight: No

    This one hurts, because I do genuinely love the conceptual vibes of this subclass. It's also flagrantly overpowered, and like Peace, a nerfed version is not going to make people all that happy. Might it be better for the game to release these nerfed versions? Only if tables truly adopt the notion that people must use the new version. It might be the better bet overall to just let overpowered options fade quietly into the background.

 And that's Clerics! Yeah, only two here that I'm really advocating for, but that's fine. Clerics have always had a lot of options for their subclasses. I suspect that when we visit Druids, who have among the fewest subclass options overall, I might be more generous.