Cleric Point Buy: Armour Decides the Spread
Wisdom takes the 15 because every prepared spell and every domain save DC reads it. Strength 13 is the other required purchase, and it is required by armour rather than by the spell list: chain mail carries a Strength 13 requirement, and missing it costs 10 feet of movement permanently.
The Cleric array, point by point
| Ability | Score | Point cost |
|---|---|---|
| STR | 13 | 5 |
| DEX | 10 | 2 |
| CON | 14 | 7 |
| INT | 10 | 2 |
| WIS | 15 | 9 |
| CHA | 10 | 2 |
| Total spent | 27 | |
Holding concentration at each Constitution
A Cleric concentrating on Bless or Spirit Guardians is supplying the party its damage for the round, so Constitution 14 here is an offensive purchase in defensive clothing. The class gains no Constitution save proficiency, so the bonus is a flat +2 and the DC 10 floor holds 65% of the time.
| CON | Modifier | Save bonus | DC 10 check | 22 damage (DC 11) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | -1 | -1 | 50% | 45% |
| 10 | +0 | +0 | 55% | 50% |
| 12 | +1 | +1 | 60% | 55% |
| 13 | +1 | +1 | 60% | 55% |
| 14 ← | +2 | +2 | 65% | 60% |
| 15 | +2 | +2 | 65% | 60% |
| 16 | +3 | +3 | 70% | 65% |
| 18 | +4 | +4 | 75% | 70% |
Trading the primary score for Constitution
Nothing here is worth trading, and the reason is the modifier table rather than the budget. Wisdom 14 casts at the same DC 12 that Wisdom 15 does, and Constitution 15 concentrates at the same +2 as Constitution 14, so two points would cross the array and no printed number would move.
Scores where the next point stops paying
- Strength 13
- Chain mail without the 10-foot speed penalty: AC 16 at level 1 instead of AC 14 in scale.
- Wisdom 15
- Spell save DC 12, and one more prepared spell than Wisdom 13 allows.
- Strength 15
- Plate, once the gold arrives — the only Strength number above 13 a Cleric has a use for.
What this array gives up to afford that
- Dexterity at 10
- Heavy armour ignores the Dexterity modifier outright, so on a chain-mail Cleric those points buy initiative and nothing else.
Subclasses that change the array
- Life Domain — STR 15 · DEX 10 · CON 14 · INT 8 · WIS 15 · CHA 8
- Heavy armour proficiency at level 1 makes Strength 15 and plate the defensive plan, not Dexterity.
- Trickery Domain — STR 8 · DEX 14 · CON 14 · INT 10 · WIS 15 · CHA 10
- No heavy armour from the domain, so Dexterity 14 in half plate replaces the Strength entirely.
- War Domain — STR 15 · DEX 10 · CON 14 · INT 8 · WIS 14 · CHA 10
- War Priest attacks with the weapon, so Strength 15 buys more than the fifteenth point of Wisdom.
Races that fit this spread
| Race | STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dwarf (Hill) | 13 | 10 | 16 | 10 | 16 | 10 |
| Dwarf (Mountain) | 15 | 10 | 16 | 10 | 15 | 10 |
| Firbolg | 14 | 10 | 14 | 10 | 17 | 10 |
- Dwarf (Hill). Constitution and Wisdom together, plus an extra hit point per level on the d8.
- Dwarf (Mountain). Strength +2 clears the chain mail requirement outright, leaving the points for Wisdom.
- Firbolg. Wisdom +2 puts the spell DC a full point ahead before any point is spent.
The mistake this array is built to avoid
Picking a heavy-armour domain and then dumping Strength to 8. Chain mail needs Strength 13 or the Cleric moves at 20 feet for the whole campaign — a permanent penalty bought to save five points.
Wisdom decides whether Spirit Guardians catches the right three creatures. Constitution decides whether it is still running on round four, which is the round the spell slot was actually paid for.
Cleric ability score questions
Does a Cleric need Strength 13 for point buy?
Only for chain mail and heavier. At Strength 13 the Cleric wears chain mail at AC 16 with no speed penalty; below it the same armour drops movement to 20 feet. Trickery and Knowledge domains skip heavy armour and can leave Strength at 8.
What is the best Cleric array with 27 points?
Wisdom 15, Constitution 14, Strength 13, with 10s across Dexterity, Intelligence and Charisma. That spends exactly 27, sets the spell save DC at 12, and clears the chain mail requirement in the same purchase.
Should a Cleric buy Dexterity at all?
Not in heavy armour. Chain mail and plate ignore the Dexterity modifier completely, so points spent there change only initiative. A Trickery Domain Cleric in half plate is the exception and wants Dexterity 14 for AC 17.
Is Wisdom 16 worth it on a level 1 Cleric?
Point buy caps a bought score at 15, so 16 only arrives through a racial bonus. Firbolg or Hill Dwarf turns the 15 into a 16 or 17 and lifts the spell save DC from 12 to 13, which no amount of point spending can do on its own.
Where to go next
- Druid — The other Wisdom full caster, without the heavy armour question driving Strength.
- Paladin — Shares the heavy armour requirement, so the same Strength threshold shapes both arrays.
- Every array on this page is a plain 27-point spread, so you can try a different split and see each step priced as you go.