Deity power level = Joke?

[Sammael]

Because if Red Knight didn't have the ability to create miracles, she wouldn't be much of a deity. It's the scope of those miracles that differs.

 

[His Dudeness]

Because if Red Knight didn't have the ability to create miracles, she wouldn't be much of a deity. It's the scope of those miracles that differs.

She can grant spells to her followers. They are limited in scope by its portfolio and in power by her rank in the divine hierarchy.

That's like asking for Robin to have the same power level as Batman.

 

[Rechan]

She can grant spells to her followers. They are limited in scope by its portfolio and in power by her rank in the divine hierarchy.

That's like asking for Robin to have the same power level as Batman.

If I may mug your analogy.

Let's take Batman for a second.

Batman is a billionaire, meaning he has cold hard cash to convert into gadgets, vehicles, bases, etc. He has a lifestyle that lets him focus entirely on being a hero. He has epic levels of knowledge (he has files on all the other superheroes if they go rogue), as well as a very scary level of knowledge in many other fields.

And that's before we get to his actual skills. World class fighter, gadgeteer, stealth operative, and detective. He is a Greater Hero.

A lesser hero wouldn't be Robin, who has a quarter of the skills and none of the resources. A better example would be someone like, say, Green Arrow.

Green Arrow is much more focused. He has the same gadget types as Batman. He's competent. He's focused at what he does. But he just does not have the resources, the breadth of skills, etc. He could pull his weight in a fight against an enemy Batman is fighting (unlike Robin), but he is going to get outclassed because he lacks the width of Batman.

 

[Rechan]

To put it another way, Demon Lords/Princes of Hell are pretty low on the deific totem pole, and yet they have the juice to power high level evil cultists. Because if they didn't, well, how else would they get anything done? Get a few 3rd level cultists to summon a nasty demon, I think not.

 

[His Dudeness]

To put it another way, Demon Lords/Princes of Hell are pretty low on the deific totem pole, and yet they have the juice to power high level evil cultists. Because if they didn't, well, how else would they get anything done? Get a few 3rd level cultists to summon a nasty demon, I think not.

In that case it generally requires a sacrifice to act as a proxy, and a ritual in order to summon the demon. That is why a low level cultist can summon thingies.

Is not like he casts summon devil, he goes through a process to summon one.

 

[On Puget Sound]

You are an ant, with a choice of two humans to worship. One is a five year old child with an oreo cookie, the other is a mixed martial artist with millions of dollars. One has much more power to either reward or punish you than the other does.... but not really, from your perspective. Either one can apply vastly more power than you can imagine either for you or against you.

Granting 9th level spells is giving you a slightly larger oreo crumb than granting 5th level spells, but even the weakest god can, if he or she chooses (and is allowed by whatever rules gods operate under) grant much more than anything printed in a rulebook.

 

[Pentius]

Why are you assuming that both dieties have the same power level to share, if such power level comes from the number of believers in the first place?

Let's take Tempus, major diety and god of war, battle, conflict, warriors, etc. He is a very powerful god, since war and battle are happening all the time.

Now take for example Red Knight, semi-goddes of tactics and exarch of Tempus. Would it make sense that a diety that servers a more powerful beign and has a narrower portfolio to have the same level of power to distribute to its followers than such diety?

All this in addition to weaker church, fewer power centers, fewer political power, etc.

But it isn't saying that both have the same power level in an absolute sense, just that they can both grant all spell levels. I'd expect even a lesser god to be able to grant(cracking open my 1e PHB here) wind walk, or gate, or control weather. The Red Knight might have less power than Tempus, but she could still be able to grant spells, much in the same way that though I am less rich than Bill Gates, I can still lend a buddy 5 bucks, and my 5 bucks will have the same value as Bill's.

She can grant spells to her followers. They are limited in scope by its portfolio and in power by her rank in the divine hierarchy.

That's like asking for Robin to have the same power level as Batman.

No, it's like asking that both Batman and Robin have a higher power level than Alfred.

 

[Alzrius]

I think the reason for indicating the power level of deities is, as some have mentioned, more to act as a sort of guide for how prevalent deities are in the game world, and to give an indication of intra-pantheon interaction, than to measure their power in (what mortals would consider to be) a practical context.

If a certain deity is a demigod, then I can expect to find very few churches to them; the ones there are are probably limited to a relatively small region.

If a deity is a greater deity, then they're probably known the world over, though it may be under different names, etc.

I sympathize with the people who want their to be more of a practical context to the different deity power levels (that is, a game-mechanics context that operates at the level of mortals) - having that can really help to pin down why deities of a higher status are so much more prevalent among the populace - but it's hard to do that without punishing PCs for their choices. A cleric of a demigod who gets to the higher levels shouldn't suddenly find that they don't get the spells they were looking forward to.

 

[doctorhook]

Let's summarize:

Relative to each other, deities vary wildly in power-level. Analogies abound.

Relative to mortals, all deities are literally godlike. Spells for everybody!

I think we're done here.

 

[steeldragons]

Let's summarize:

Relative to each other, deities vary wildly in power-level. Analogies abound.

Relative to mortals, all deities are literally godlike. Spells for everybody!

I think we're done here.

LOL. Very good. Wish I could XP ya but I'm full up (or empty?) for the day.

Completely agree.
--SD