Is it possible to create a divine spellbook?

Question

The mnemonic vestment says this:

If the wearer is a spontaneous caster, once per day she may use a spell slot to cast a spell from a written source (such as a scroll or spellbook) as if she knew that spell. The spell must be on her spell list, the same spell level or lower than the expended spell slot, and the same type of spell (arcane or divine) as the spell slot expended.

The only classes I can find that use a spellbook are all arcane casters or archetypes that grant arcane casting. Is the spellbook an option that's only available to arcane casters, or could a divine caster make a spellbook of divine spells even if it can't be used to actually prepare spells?

Answer 1

It doesn't seems to be possible

A search in the Pathfinder: Open References application, gathering most of the sources available regarding spellbooks will just explain you that a spellbook is a... book... in which you write spells.

As it's not very indicating, I looked up how to add spell to spellbook. The rules regarding the addition of spell to a spellbook are more informative: they only exists for prepared arcane casters and are stated in their class abilities.

So RAW, nothing exists to let a prepared divine caster write down spell in a spellbook (since they don't possess it as a class ability).

From a flavor point of view

From a lore point of view, divine casters do not know any spell. They pray to an higher being to cast spell through them, their faith acting as a beacon and channel for the divine energy.

They can indeed write scroll, but it stands to reason if you consider a scroll to be a readied spell fixed on paper. Once it goes off, the spell disappears. Divine casters are able to capture the spell being casted through them in a scroll, but they do not "learn" that spell, merely fix its energy on paper.

From a design point of view

I think you need to factor that having a spellbook is a liability to arcane casters: it can be taken away, damaged or destroyed, which leave the caster without any spells. This drawback does not apply to divine casters, as your deity will probably always be here to support you (unless you're a cleric of Aroden). Thus, I think from a design point of view, giving the opportunity for divine casters to permanently write down what's essentially miracle in a spellbook would tip the balance.

Overall

The mnemonic vestment actually allows a spontaneous caster to expand their known spell list. Unless you need a wide array of spells you don't know (as in, very wide), you can probably rely on a few scroll tucked up your sleeves to access a few essentials you don't want to bother learning.

Answer 2

The only classes that can create spellbooks are arcane, and they can only learn arcane spells, so they cannot create a divine spellbook. As a result, there is no such thing as a divine spellbook, and officially, a divine spellcaster with mnemonic vestment is stuck using scrolls. This isn’t a huge hardship, but it is one. Turned out to be incorrect, see pi4t’s answer.

Personally, I let divine spellcasters produce “prayerbooks” for this purpose if they like. I made the same ruling for a warpriest with the arcane bond ability, for example. And I also use D&D 3.5e content, which includes the archivist class from Heroes of Horror—which explicitly and officially keeps a prayerbook, being a kind of divine wizard. But the official rules wouldn’t let you do that. And it’s hard to argue with someone who wants to limit the effectiveness of mnemonic vestment, seeing as it is extremely powerful.

Answer 3

The Living Grimoire inquisitor archetype gives wizard-style divine casting to the inquisitor, and is first party. Strictly speaking the "spellbook" is instead called a holy book, but it would still qualify for the mnemonic vestment. That would give you access to all the inquisitor spells, which is a decent chunk of the level 1-6 divine spells.

Technically, I think you'd also benefit from the inquisitor's lower level versions of spells, since you only need the spell to be on your spell list somewhere, and to expend a spell slot equal to the level of the spell as it is written in the holy book, not what the spell's level would be if you were casting it normally. There are a (very) small number of spells that benefit from this - Greater Magic Weapon is the only one I've found in a cursory search.

As far as I'm aware there are no other first party divine classes that cast their spells from a book, though a generous DM might take the living grimoire as a precedent for divine spellbooks.

Of course, just because the archetype is first party doesn't mean that it exists in your DM's setting. And just because there are some people with the archetype doesn't necessarily mean you can get access to their holy books - they're likely to be pretty rare. So speak to your GM before you decide to get a holy book.

Alternatively, if your game happens to allow 3.5 content then the Archivist lets you get a "spellbook" (this time called a prayer book) which can contain literally any divine spell.

Answer 4

Clerics cannot, but the third-party Theurge class can write a prayerbook

Within Pathfinder core rules, the ability to prepare spells from a spellbook and add new spells to a spellbook is exclusive to the Wizard class. Clerics "meditate or pray for their spells". The third-party Ink & Quill variant spellbook rules appear to concur with this assessment:

Unlike spellbooks, scrolls serve as a shared medium for a variety of different spellcasters, both arcane and divine.

However, the Theurge, a third party class from from Kobold Press' New Paths Compendium, can write a prayerbook, which is just like a spellbook but divine instead of arcane:

A theurge does not receive his divine spells directly from the deity or other mystical force he venerates. Instead, he must search for and collect new divine spells to record in his prayerbook, much in the same way he does arcane spells for his spellbook. These divine spells can come from divine scrolls, holy tablets or other magical writings. The theurge cannot prepare any divine spell not recorded in his prayerbook.

This also suggests the existence of non-scroll spellbook-like writings in general, even if the cleric class does not gain the class ability to create such writings.

The Pathfinder core rules on Divine Magical Writings note that divine spells can be written like arcane spells can, though no specific core rules exist for writing cleric spells in permanent non-scroll form.

Answer 5

It is dubious and very much DM-dependent, but see page 219 and 221 of the Core Rulebook, sub-sections "Independent-research" on both.

Wizards can make a research for new spells, or independent copies of existing spells. It takes a week and 1000gp per level of spell created. Divine casters can research spells "much as arcane casters do" and

Only the creator of such spell can prepare and cast it, unless she decides to share it with others.

What does it mean? Of course it does not give you a spellbook. But if a cleric made notes during his research, or prepared a holy writing to share his new spell with others, it would probably count as a written source.

Of course, it has caveats:

1. DM might rule that spell research is out of his game
2. DM might rule that divine research does not take any notes, just prayer, meditation and offerings
3. And even if you'll find such writing, it will not be of any spell found in the Core Rulebook on divine casters' spell list.

All in all, as a DM I would allow it, as it is way too niche to really tip a balance of the game.

Answer 6

You could buy a scroll of all spells you want to access trough the vestments, and then bind them together into a book form.

This will not be a "spellbook" persay, as you cannot prepare spells out of it, but it has an identical function for the purposes of the mnemonic vestments: you have a book of spells that you can cast using your own spellslots

Answer 7

I was also unable to find any classes that used a divine spellbook. What the text is actually describing is that you have divine scrolls, and arcane scrolls and spellbooks. The way its worded is less than clear or they are just covering unexpected sources like 3pp.

However, it IS possible for a wizard to create a divine spellbook. I was asking if a wizard could learn spells from a divine source in another question and it was split. When a wizard uses a divine scroll they can learn it and write it into a spellbook, but there was nothing which stated if the type of magic changed in this process.