Light Domain
The Light Domain turns revelation, radiance, vigilance and sacred fire into practical cleric powers. In modern D&D it is a full Cleric subclass; in Pathfinder 1e, Light is instead a subdomain of Sun and must be treated as such.
At a Glance
| Divine Sphere | Light, revelation, vigilance, beauty, insight, sacred fire and the exposure of hidden things |
|---|---|
| Typical Role | Radiant area-damage caster, anti-darkness specialist and defensive support cleric |
| Published Rules | D&D 5.5e/2024, D&D 5e/2014, and Pathfinder 1e as the Light subdomain of Sun |
| D&D 3.5e Status | Original campaign Light Domain conversion, fully detailed below (GM approval required); the published SRD Sun Domain remains an official alternative. |
| Typical Patrons | Apollo, Sol Invictus, Päivätär, and other powers whose established portfolios include radiance or revelation |
Edition Applicability
Four playable editions follow. D&D 2024 and 2014 include the published Light subclass. Pathfinder 1e treats Light as a subdomain of Sun, with only specified replacements. D&D 3.5e has no official same-named Light Domain in the SRD; its fourth panel is an expressly original GM-approved campaign conversion with a complete domain spell list.
Light Domain — D&D 5.5e / 2024
Rules status: official 2024 Player’s Handbook Cleric subclass.
2024 Light Domain Spells
| Cleric 3 | Burning Hands, Faerie Fire, Scorching Ray, See Invisibility |
|---|---|
| Cleric 5 | Daylight, Fireball |
| Cleric 7 | Arcane Eye, Wall of Fire |
| Cleric 9 | Flame Strike, Scrying |
Warding Flare
At 3rd level, when a creature you can see within 30 feet makes an attack roll, you can use your Reaction to impose Disadvantage before the attack hits or misses. Uses equal your Wisdom modifier, minimum once, and all uses return after a Long Rest.
Channel Divinity: Radiance of the Dawn
At 3rd level, use a Magic action and expend Channel Divinity to emit light in a 30-foot emanation. Magical darkness in the area is dispelled. Creatures you choose in the area make a Constitution save, taking 2d10 + your Cleric level radiant damage on a failure or half on a success.
Improved Warding Flare
At 6th level, Warding Flare uses return after a Short or Long Rest. Whenever you use Warding Flare, the target of the triggering attack can also gain temporary hit points equal to 2d6 + your Wisdom modifier.
Corona of Light
At 17th level, as a Magic action you emit bright light in a 60-foot radius and dim light for another 30 feet for 1 minute. Enemies in the bright light have Disadvantage on saving throws against your Radiance of the Dawn and against spells that deal Fire or Radiant damage. You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier, minimum once, regaining all uses after a Long Rest.
Light Domain — D&D 5e / 2014
Rules status: official 2014 Player’s Handbook Cleric domain.
2014 Light Domain Spells
| Cleric 1 | Burning Hands, Faerie Fire |
|---|---|
| Cleric 3 | Flaming Sphere, Scorching Ray |
| Cleric 5 | Daylight, Fireball |
| Cleric 7 | Guardian of Faith, Wall of Fire |
| Cleric 9 | Flame Strike, Scrying |
Bonus Cantrip
At 1st level, you learn the Light cantrip if you do not already know it, without counting it against your Cleric cantrips known.
Warding Flare
At 1st level, when a creature you can see within 30 feet attacks you, use your Reaction to impose Disadvantage before the attack hits or misses. Uses equal your Wisdom modifier, minimum once, and return after a Long Rest. In the 2014 version, a creature that cannot be blinded is immune to this feature.
Channel Divinity: Radiance of the Dawn
At 2nd level, use Channel Divinity to dispel magical darkness within 30 feet and force hostile creatures in the area to make a Constitution save, taking 2d10 + your Cleric level radiant damage on a failure or half on a success.
Improved Flare
At 6th level, you can use Warding Flare to protect another creature you can see within 30 feet, not just yourself.
Potent Spellcasting
At 8th level, add your Wisdom modifier to the damage you deal with any Cleric cantrip.
Corona of Light
At 17th level, use an action to create bright light in a 60-foot radius and dim light for another 30 feet for 1 minute. Enemies in the bright light have Disadvantage on saving throws against your spells that deal Fire or Radiant damage.
Light Subdomain — Pathfinder 1e
Rules status: published Pathfinder 1e Advanced Player’s Guide subdomain of the Sun Domain. It is not a standalone Pathfinder domain.
Associated Domain
Light modifies the Sun Domain. A Cleric using this subdomain keeps the Sun Domain structure except where the subdomain explicitly replaces a power or spell.
Blinding Flash
This replacement power replaces Sun’s Blessing. As a standard action, emit a 20-foot flash of light. Creatures in the area with fewer Hit Dice than your Cleric level are blinded for 1d4 rounds unless they succeed at a Fortitude save. All creatures in the area are dazzled for a number of rounds equal to half your Cleric level, minimum 1. Uses per day equal 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
Replacement Domain Spells
| 1st | Faerie Fire replaces the Sun Domain’s 1st-level domain spell |
|---|---|
| 3rd | Daylight replaces the Sun Domain’s 3rd-level domain spell |
All other domain powers and domain-spell levels remain those of the base Sun Domain unless another rule changes them. The legacy page’s former nine-spell “Light” list incorrectly treated the subdomain as a complete standalone spell progression.
Light Domain — D&D 3.5e
Rules status: original SpiralWorlds D&D 3.5e campaign domain, GM approval required. No same-named Light Domain appears in the 3.5e SRD. The published Sun Domain remains the source-based alternative. This adaptation is distinct from Pathfinder’s Light subdomain.
Granted Power — Revealing Light (Su)
Once per day, as a standard action, choose one creature or object within 30 feet whose location you can perceive (you need not see it). For 1 minute per Cleric level, the target is outlined as by Faerie Fire, making it visible if invisible, without removing other illusions or concealing effects unrelated to invisibility. The target can resist with a Will save (DC 10 + half your Cleric level + your Wisdom modifier) and spell resistance applies; your caster level for this ability equals your Cleric level. A successful save negates this granted power.
D&D 3.5e Light Domain Spells
These are spell levels 1–9, not Cleric class levels. A 3.5e Cleric normally selects two eligible domains and gains one additional domain spell slot at each castable spell level, preparing one available spell from either chosen domain in that slot. This is a complete original Light spell list, not the Pathfinder subdomain’s replacement list.
| Spell Level | Domain Spell |
|---|---|
| 1st | Faerie Fire |
| 2nd | Glitterdust |
| 3rd | Daylight |
| 4th | Fire Shield |
| 5th | True Seeing |
| 6th | Greater Dispel Magic |
| 7th | Sunbeam |
| 8th | Sunburst |
| 9th | Prismatic Sphere |
How the Light Domain Plays
The original 3.5e Light conversion centres on exposing a specific concealed target, while the printed 3.5e Sun Domain is a separate option focused on destroying undead. Select either by the deity’s permitted domains, not both versions of Light at once.
Modern Light clerics combine area damage with defensive reactions and revelation magic. The 2024 version improves Warding Flare dramatically by letting it protect any visible target from the start and later adding temporary hit points. Pathfinder Light is different: it is a specialised Sun-domain option centred on a blinding flash rather than a complete modern-style subclass.
Who Grants the Light Domain?
Apollo, Sol Invictus and Päivätär support different expressions of sacred light where their established deity pages justify it. Light may mean truth, beauty, vigilance, solar power, inspiration or the exposure of deception; those ideas should remain culturally distinct.
Priests, Temples and Rites
Light-domain clergy keep lamps and signal fires, expose hidden corruption, guard roads and towers, mark seasonal light, sponsor arts of illumination and serve as witnesses where secrecy itself is dangerous. Their temples may be observatories, sun courts, beacon towers or halls designed to flood important rites with daylight.
What Are Light Priests Doing Now?
Light priests are investigating unnatural darkness, protecting communities from creatures that hunt by night, exposing forged visions, maintaining beacon networks, recovering stolen solar relics and confronting cults that use concealment and false revelation as weapons.
Related Domains and Character Options
Rules Sources and Licensing
- D&D 5.5e / 2024: official Light Domain from the 2024 Player’s Handbook; the revised spell list and features are summarised for table use.
- D&D 5e / 2014: official Light Domain from the 2014 Player’s Handbook.
- Pathfinder 1e: Light is a Sun subdomain from the Advanced Player’s Guide; only Blinding Flash plus the listed 1st- and 3rd-level replacement spells belong specifically to the Light subdomain.
- D&D 3.5e: no same-named Light Domain exists in the 3.5e SRD. The fully playable fourth panel is an original SpiralWorlds campaign conversion, requiring GM approval, with a distinct granted power and 1st–9th-level domain spell list.
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