What about the Gods, then?
Or more accurately, what about religion?
I definitely prefer an Eberron take where multiple types of religion can make sense, because there isn't a proven and undeniable set of gods who absolutely definitely exist, but on the other hand I want to play around with DnD and IRL gods in fun ways.
I think that might work by stealing a bit from Keith Baker's ideas about the Dwarven clan founders and the heroic tales of each clan. If you are a Kundurak Dwarf, you tell stories about Kundurak and his exploits, but many of those stories are actually things that a dwarf a thousand years removed from the life of Kundurak did. As well, your exploits may eventually become stories that dwarves tell
about Kundarak.
Translating that to the gods, a were-wolf knight who fights bravely and ferociously, but with honor, and leads others into battle with them and inspires them to greater honor and courage and ferocity like a wolf leading their pack,
becomes the Red Witch in her guise as the wolf-knight. Your works become stories told about the Red Witch. Some of your later level class abilities might be flavored as blessing of the Red Witch, and no one actually knows if she is literally real of if even her oldest stories are the stories of mortal heroes deified in song and epic poem, but everyone knows that She blesses those who serve her well and embody her ideals.
So, that leads to three ways to handle the gods, which can be left up to the DM and/or the group as a whole.
- The Gods are literally real, always have been, and don't need worship at all. The impact the world mostly through inspiriation because most of them agree that it's the best way to be gods of a world, and those who disagree are outnumbered and overpowered. Sometimes the gods knock on your door and test your hospitality, but most stories about the gods are actually about people who have been inspired by the gods.
- The Gods are stories. Full stop. The world exists mechanistically, and gods exist exactly because they are worshiped and stories are told about them and the deeds of heroes attributed to them. When the gods bless you, it is actually a result of your deeds and prayers interacting with the unconscious collective will of all those who believe in the gods.
- The gods are real, and some have always been real, but others became gods due to stories and faith. Like Irish mythology or even Greek myth, heroes can become gods, but the main/oldest gods simply are, were before mortals existed, and will be long after the world ends.
So, that being said, what sort of stories are told about various gods, and who are the most common gods across the islands of the world?
The Raven Queen - patron of Death, War, Fate, Navigation, dangerous power, trickery, and corvids. Despises undeath, pursues war as the terror of death, striking from shadow or obfuscating an attack with illusion or trickery, striking primarily when a single strike can accomplish the goal, and then fading back into darkness. Dichotomy of trickery and terrifying competence of the best assassins and duelists. Delights in "the crowing" wherein a single champion will call out an enemy captain to single combat before a battle, and demoralise the enemy force in that captain's defeat. Aso a patron of those who wield dangerous and forbidden power while fighting against it's corruption. Often sought out by those who regret warlock deals and are seeking a way to work against their "patron", or a way out of doing more harm than good. Her gift to such individuals is simply the ability to keep their power without being forced to do their patron's will. Lastly, patron of those who seek power and knowledge and aren't afraid to be put through hardship and self-sacrifice to gain it. Like a cross between Odin and The Morrigan.
- Patron of Shadar-kai, Changelings, Kenku, were-ravens, assassins, duelists, and warlocks.
The Red Witch - patron of War, Transformation, Lycanthropes, The Hunt, the moons and tides, and wolves.
- Pursues War honorably but with a ferocity that ignores self preservation.
- Loves a fight that involves defending the innocent against overwhelming odds, and/or leading those who saw themselves as weak, and making them see and accept "the wolf within".
- Delights in those who take down enemies seemingly much more powerful than them, though she doesn't not favor those who hunt dangerous game just for the thrill. Instead, she demands that such thrill seekers seek out monsters and enemies who threaten those who lack the power to defend themselves.
- Would be a patron of heroes who defend a small town from the overwhelming forces of a bandit lord, or those who hunt a rampaging dragon.
The Lady of Silver Mists - secrets, the hunt, asymmetrical warfare, mists, and those who explore deep into the unknown and learn more about the world as a result.
Moradin - patron of builders, settlers of new islands, defenders against supernatural evil, druids who work with settlements to live sustainably within the natural world, and the cycle of renewal that comes after destruction, both in the context of nature, and of civilization rebuilding after disaster or war.
