Do I have to keep the spells I get from my subclass?

Question

I am pretty new to D&D. So far I have been a pure melee class player, just because my first DM advised that they are easier to play. Now I am trying to make a spellcasting character for a first time, and this is hard.

I want to make a Tempest Domain cleric. I really don't want the gust of wind spell provided at 3rd level, but it looks like I have to keep the spells from the subclass spell list, since there is no explanation of the how to use the spell chart under the subclass in the Player's Handbook. (Or perhaps I missed out and didn't read something important about it.)

Do the rules prevent me from replacing the spell from my subclass with a different one, and not putting that spell from my subclass in my spell list?

Answer 1

There is an explanation of how that chart works, on page 58:

Divine Domain

[...] Your choice [of domain] grants you domain spells [...]

Domain Spells

Each domain has a list of spells—its domain spells—that you gain at the cleric levels noted in the domain description. Once you gain a domain spell, you always have it prepared, and it doesn’t count against the number of spells you can prepare each day.

If you have a domain spell that doesn’t appear on the cleric spell list, the spell is nonetheless a cleric spell for you.

^{(Player’s Handbook pg. 58)}

The domain spells are freebies—you can’t “not get them,” but they don’t cost you anything either. If you don’t want to cast them, just don’t cast them. You can prepare just as many other spells as you could without that feature, so ignoring it is the same as not having it. Most clerics are probably going to have at least a few domain spells they don’t care much for and never bother to cast, and that’s OK. There are plenty of other cleric spells to cast.

On the other hand, if you wanted to get a different spell as a domain spell, that’s something to ask your DM. It’s not an unreasonable thing, so long as the spell you want instead is the same spell level and “on-brand” for your domain, but that call has to be made by the DM. Some DMs won’t want to change anything, others might be willing to in general but feel that every tempest cleric ought to have gust of wind and decide you can’t swap that one, and others might be convinced that a given alternative is a fair trade. You’ll only know where your DM falls on that by asking.