@ChrisPerkinsDnD I have a player who insists on playing an atheist cleric. Weird, I know, but how could I make this work?
— Ari (@Simicslaw) January 2, 2017
A cleric can have faith in something other than a deity and draw magic from another cosmic force (such as the Astral Plane). #WOTCstaff https://t.co/fPdadKoK3D
— Christopher Perkins (@ChrisPerkinsDnD) January 2, 2017
@Simicslaw @ChrisPerkinsDnD Also, I imagine some dieties might reward a cleric's convictions or lack thereof, regardless of actual belief.
— Ryan Drisgula (@MessiahMoose) January 2, 2017
You imagine correctly, though an atheist cleric would reject the very notion and attribute the power to something else. #WOTCstaff https://t.co/EXFYHYLq39
— Christopher Perkins (@ChrisPerkinsDnD) January 2, 2017
@MessiahMoose @Simicslaw @ChrisPerkinsDnD How would you channel divinity if you didn't believe in a divine being?
— Doug Austin (@DougMAustin) January 2, 2017
You'd have to call it something else, methinks. #WOTCstaff https://t.co/7RhsM3MHX4
— Christopher Perkins (@ChrisPerkinsDnD) January 2, 2017
Character classes are a framework of mechanics to explain what a character can do. A fighter/magic user isn’t two classes but maybe its an Eldritch protector of an evil artifact. A cleric who isn’t powered by divinity, can be powered by something else. or Maybe like my Knowledge cleric who is a vundun Bokor, just casts shamanistic spells powered by spirits of ancestors and nature.
Also in a world where gods do exist and manifest powers on a regular basis, maybe atheist is the wrong word. Maybe he Hates gods, or thinks they are negligent landlords or something. If he persists, just tell him no atheists in your world, because if he is already this high maintenance it isn’t going well anyway.