I hadn't played D&D since 1st edition. A friend talked me into joining a 3.5 FR campaign that was starting up. The party didn't have a cleric, so I went ahead and built one. With no experience and limited access to the books (I am working on resolving that), I came up with what I know think is a fairly weak (awful?) build.
So far, I've mostly been a heal-bot, and this is boring me. I know everyone says that parties don't need dedicated healers, but so far this one does. I had a little more fun last session using some offensive spells. However, this cost me some precious heals, and meant we had to leave the dungeon after the third encounter so that I could rest and pray.
I've looked at AfterCrescent's guide, but it's a bit over-whelming for me at my level of knowledge. I'm thinking a primary role as buffer or caster could be fun, with archer as a secondary role. I'd like to relegate healing to a last resort role. This will probably require a discussion of tactics (don't tumble past the light source and don't expect me to follow you when you do, don't block attack paths and provide cover against our archers, etc.).
I'm not necessarily looking for an optimized build. I'm looking for ideas for a more interesting path for my character. I'm currently thinking of taking Divine Oracle at 6th and running it to 11, then switching to Comtemplative, for the evasion and extra domains. However, I am open to any suggestions. I am a little leery of any path that will cost me more than a level or two of casting. I'd like to be more effective in combat, but mostly I'm looking for a path that keeps me interested. I like the group, so I don't want to get so bored that I quit or suicide my character in order to build one that is more fun. Tips, tactics, spell combos, helpful links, anything to help this build appreciated.
The rest of the party : Half-orc Barbarian, Half-Elf Warmage, Halfling Rogue, Elf Bard, Human Marshal, Half-Orc Paladin. The bard, paladin and marshal just joined last session, so not sure how they will affect the party yet. The paladin is an NPC, created to cover for a player that stopped showing up. All are 3rd level.
Rule set: nothing explicitly ruled out yet. DM seems fairly open. Doesn't seem to like re-training/re-building though. He's let me make some minor changes, because I am inexperienced, but will probably be a little leery of future changes.
My build:
Human NG Cleric 3 of Lathander
STR: 14 DEX: 12 CON: 12 INT: 14 WIS: 16 CHA: 13
Domains: Sun, Renewal
Feats: Scribe Scroll, Combat Casting, Zen Archery
Weapons / Armor: Banded mail, H. Wooden shield, H. Mace, L. Crossbow
Skills: Concentration 3, Craft (Alchemy) 1, Craft (Weaponsmith) 1, Diplomacy 4, Heal 6, Knowledge (Arcana) 3, Knowledge (History) 1, Knowledge (Religion) 4, Knowledge (The Planes) 2, Profession (Scribe) 1, Spellcraft 4
Current spell list:
0 - Detect Magic, Light, Fleeting Flame, Read Magic
1 - Nimbus of Light, Lesser Vigor, Faith Healing (will usually be swapped, only one other has Lathander as patron), Charm Person (domain slot)
2 - Bull's Strength, Sonic Blast, Heat Metal (domain slot)