Top 10 5E D&D Homebrew Divine Domains by a Factor of Three

Over at Nerdarchy the YouTube channel Nerdarchists Dave and Ted check out the most popular homebrew magic items for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragon at D&D Beyond. We get a kick out of seeing what folks come up with and sharing their creations in posts like this. (There’s lots of these posts whether for homebrew subclasses, magic items, spells, feats and more floating around for the curious.) I’m channeling divinity this time around to see what miraculous creations there are for the most devout class in 5E D&D — the cleric — and checking out the Top 10 homebrew Divine Domains. There’s currently over 1,175 homebrew of them so let’s get into it.

Divine Domains at D&D Beyond

Before getting started it’s important to note you can create homebrew content for private use and share your homebrew content publicly at DDB at no cost — there’s no subscription required to access these services. However if you want to add any of the homebrew Divine Domains mentioned below or any other homebrew content you come across to your 5E D&D collection you must subscribe at the Hero Tier or above. There’s a lot you can do at DDB for free. Check out what you can do here.

The DDB homebrew collection uses several statistics to track entries. Views shows how many eyeballs any particular homebrew creation received, Adds shows the number of times a creation was added to someone’s collection and Rating is an upvote/downvote system. Since there are over 1,175 Divine Domains in the collection I’m going to share the top 10 highest rated, most viewed and most added selections and to see what’s out there along with any crossover between these three lists.

Top 10 highest rating Divine Domains

1. Time Domain. Gods of time tend to be concerned with natural order and preventing excessive meddling in time, even allowing their followers to manipulate time in their service. A very solid mix of features including Domain Spells and Channel Divinity options captures the theme remarkably well. Bravo!
2. Garlic Bread Domain. You are dedicated to the deities of the tastiest snack there is. Silly for certain but there’s an underlying utility baked in although no Domain Spells is a major oversight.
3. Abandoned Domain. Nearly all clerics pray to a god, and their belief in them is what gives them their power. Pretty cool take on a concept I haven’t come across before either. Nice work.
4. Fate Domain. Some would tell you that fate was a superstition, a misguided need to add significance to unremarkable events. Love the concept and this includes a feature with a variable element determined by a roll on a chart, which I love. For our own take on manipulating fate we took the warlock approach with The Norn Otherworldly Patron and special Eldritch Invocations for such warlocks.
5. Luck Domain. Gods of luck — such as Tymora, Beshaba, Erevan Ilesere and Haela Brightaxe — are deities who effect the fates of mortals with subtle influences and superstitions. Flipping a coin to determine accessible Domain Spells each day won me over instantly.
6. Funk Domain. Some clerics devote themselves to the pursuit of holy light, or the veneration of nature, or the protection of the balance of life and death. Others are less traditional. I had high hopes based on the name of this Divine Domain but the features are more boring than what 8th level clerics get — and this one doesn’t even incorporate the standard there. George Clinton this is not. Next!
7. Plague Doctor. The Plague domain focuses on the dark, necrotic energy of sickness and disease. Poor naming convention and a concept I never felt was cool to begin with but I’m 100% sure most people will be like, “ooh, Plague Doctor!”
8. Cold Domain. Gods of cold include Talos, The Devourer, Thrym, Ula and Uller. They value patience and hard, enduring work ethic. Cold isn’t a very evocative concept but these clerics go all in and you’d be hard pressed to find a better adventuring companion in a cold environment (except their magic and features might not be as effective against the creatures found there).
9. Hunt Domain. Gods of the hunt expect their followers to not only respect the natural world, but to master it. Neat idea with some cool features and I dig the divine take. This one appeals to me the most so far.
10. Phoenix Domain. Some believe that creation and destruction are two sides of the same coin. This Divine Domain represents the themes of what it’s going for extremely well.

Top 10 most viewed Divine Domains

1. Time Domain.
2. Blood Domain. Followers of the Blood domain are not as concerned with worshiping the spirit of any particular god, but instead more concerned with worshiping the divinity in the self. I knew it was only a matter of time before coming across this one. Blood for the Blood God and all that. Go get ’em all y’all blood fiends.
3. Garlic Bread Domain.
4. Abandoned Domain.
5. Phoenix Domain.
6. Water Domain. Deities of water value ideals of purity, vitality, serenity, flexibility, and perseverance. Nothing too wild here but the features work well together and it captures the theme wonderfully.
7. Luck Domain.
8. Madness Domain. The Madness domain is both powerful and dangerous. Something else I appreciate almost as much as variable features like the Fate Domain includes is putting uncommon bits of 5E D&D mechanics to use, which this one does excellently through the use of short term madness. Our own Dark Paths: Chained One’s Animus incorporates the same modules of rules material.
9. Fate Domain.
10. Love Domain. Clerics of the Love Domain believe that love conquers all. Finally! A Divine Domain for the sentimental fools out there like me. Don’t worry — it’s not cringe like the Unearthed Arcana version of what would become the Unity Domain in another Unearthed Arcana and ultimately the Peace Domain.

Top 10 most added Divine Domains

1. Time Domain.
2. Fate Domain.
3. Luck Domain.
4. Blood Domain.
5. Abandoned Domain.
6. Plague Doctor.
7. Companion Domain. Dogs that find their way into the worship of deities usually do so out of a desire to protect and aid others. I believe this is a recreation of material from something called Dungeons & Doggies? It references features not included with the Divine Domain and it’s not very interesting mechanically.
8. Pain Domain. The world is filled with pain and torment and the Gods of the Pain Domain represent this suffering. Not my jam but the features represent the concept terrifically.
9. Cold Domain.
10. Hunt Domain.

Divine Domains rising to the top

A bit of a mixed bag when it comes to homebrew Divine Domains in relation to how these go for other classes. Time Domain clearly appeals to 5E D&D players and takes the top spot in every category. I’m enamored of Big Concepts like this myself — I love all that sort of cosmic reality stuff — and the creator hits all the marks I hoped to see. The Abandoned Domain shows nicely too and it’s a standout for me thanks to clever design work. Garlic Bread Domain scores high too but I think a combination of a kooky name and I want to say XP to Level 3 discussed it in a video as well to account for the popularity. It’s not bad though and hey, I love me some garlic bread.

Funk Domain let me down. I had high hopes it would be something really fun and unusual but alas. Oddly enough the Hunt Domain, which if I’m honest I thought sounded kind of dumb at first, wound up being my favorite of all. While checking it out it really captured my imagination. Like the Time Domain I gravitated towards the Fate Domain because again, cosmic reality stuff. But it only led me to look fondly at our own creation for The Norn Otherworldly Patron and the Eldritch Invocations we created for them.

5E D&D cleric resources

I mention our own forays into homebrew content creation for 5E D&D several times to plant the seed in your mind. Now you’re wondering, “What kind of homebrew content do you create, Nerdarchy? I’m extremely interested!” In addition to the monthly rewards our Patreon supporters receive we’ve presented tons of material in our videos and right here at Nerdarchy the Website ready to drop right into your games too. Another place we frequently create new content for Dungeon Masters and players to drop right into games is Nerdarchy the Newsletter and you’ll also get several gifts including $9.99 in store credit so you can add whatever you like there to your own collection when you sign up. We’ve explored the cleric class many times already. Here’s some resources to check out if you dig 5E D&D clerics.

• Stone Domain
• Beauty Domain
• Shelter Divine Domain — Cleric Subclass for 5th Edition
• Travel Domain
• D&D Ideas — Time
• Confessions of a 5E D&D Twilight Domain Cleric
• Exploring Eberron through the Mind Domain Cleric for 5E D&D
• A Group of Clerics is called a Priesthood
• D&D Party Composition — Playing an All Cleric Party
• Tier 2 Cleric Spells and Spellcasting in 5E D&D
• 5 Go to Tier 1 D&D Cleric Spells

*Featured image — Clerics are intermediaries between the mortal world and the distant planes of the gods. As varied as the gods they serve, clerics strive to embody the handiwork of their deities. No ordinary priest, a cleric is imbued with divine magic.

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