An idea I had a while back has recently been revived by some new Divine feats in PHB2.
As some of you may know, I've made a varient cleric for my setting, which changes the cleric to be more of a priest than a warrior priest (since I have a templar class to fill the warrior role). Thus, one of the first things I did was drop the War domain.
But that's only background information. Partly to strengthen the theme of my Cleric, and to give my Templar more options (who gets to select domains as well), I began to think of new ways to change domain powers. The first thing I did was remove the ability to turn/rebuke undead from clerics; Turn undead would become the Sun domain power and rebuke undead would become the Death domain power. To replace this loss, clerics gain a spirit companion; it's a tiny animal, like a familiar, that is summonable for 2 hours per day per cleric level (like a paladin's mount). I'm still working on giving the companion special abilities to make it worth while, but the idea is that it is a spiritual servant of the cleric's deity.
After doing this, I started to look at other domains. The alignment domains could easily be switched to a Turn/Rebuke mechanic, much like the Elemental domains. I then started to think that the turn mechanic (3+Cha mod in uses per day) really stood out as an ability all domains should utilize, and both of a cleric's domains would utilize the same pool.
So, with the alignment domains, elemental domains, and Sun and Death domains covered, that only leaves a few domains to create abilities for:
Animal, Destruction, Healing, Knowledge, Luck, Magic, Protection, Strength, Travel, and Trickery (War is dropped in my world, since Templar are the "war priests").
So, each of these domains would get an ability that uses the 3+cha mod per day pool. Animal can easily be "rebuke animals", but the others don't really jump out with an immediate idea for some sort of creature to turn.
So, I'd like to collect some ideas before I post my own.
I like the 3 + Charisma modifier idea tremendously for domain powers. I do not however think that they need to be turn/rebuke based abilities at all to be honest.
I've been thinking about a variant cleric that has access to only one domain, with spontaneous domain casting, and no turning ability. The option to use the cleric's domain power 3 + Charisma modifer times per day, in place of turn/rebuke, fits the theme much better IMHO. Sun and death can simply have turn/rebuke undead as their specific domain power.
Now some abilities would be easy to work out, like the strength domain, or the destruction domain, or others with a 1/day powers. Some however would require some creative re-writes (like knowledge).
Have you considered an approach like this?
I don't mean they're all "turning" abilities, I mean they all work off the same "energy channeling" pool; the 3+cha per day. So a Sun/Healing cleric could turn undead 3+cha per day, or use their healing domain power 3+cha per day, or any combination that added up to 3+cha per day.
So yes, I've considered that. I still think that Clerics should have 2 domains; you probably remember that my clerics don't have domain spell slots and can't spontaniously cast cure/inflict. Instead they spontaniously cast their domain spells.
My largest reason for clerics having 2 domains: my templar can simulate a paladin if the templar chooses sun/healing as their domains. Currently, my healing domain grants lay on hands, but there is a healing Divine feat that has got me thinking on something with a few more uses.
You aren't going to allow someone with the Good Domain to turn any evil creature, are you? That would be heavily overpowered compared to, for example, turn any undead creature as the Sun Domain will grant.
So if the powers of the other Domains don't necessarily have to be turn/rebuke, but useable 3+Cha times per day, can't you use the regular powers in many cases?
For those Domains where that isn't an option, how about some spell-like abilities? Knowledge could have identify or legend lore, Travel could have teleport or dimension door, Luck perhaps some spell that gives a luck bonus to something. Though Luck and such Domains as Protection could easily be unchanged, except for the 3+Cha times per day thing.
Just some random thoughts.
Túrin
No, any creature with the evil subtype, so evil outsiders.
I could use the regular powers in some cases, but I don't think travel could be. I'd like the abilities to somehow be tied to charisma.
Thanks for the input everyone, you're getting me thinking.