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I have to say that the World of Five Gods stories by Bujold are the best depictions of "approachable" deities I've come across in fiction. For me, too, they are my touchstone when designing a pantheon.

Interestingly, the Ferryman may be older than the Queen of Hell. Indeed, he (and it's always* male) may be in the top three oldest, along with the female Earth Mother. The third of the oldest is up for some debate. There are those that say it is the Sky Father, but also a contingent that says it...

The earliest gods that we know of (last time I checked) tend towards Sky Father Earth Mother Queen of Hell Ferryman of the Dead Sea Dragon Honorable mentions go to Fiery Messenger Sea Traveler Wild Huntsman Mother of Grains Those seem to be the predominate themes.

There's something I remember Robert Jordan saying in an interview, but may be apocryphal. It was something like 'I find it hard to design a world without any prejudices, but I really didn't want frank racism. Instead, people's dress, language, and customs formed a culture, and other cultures...

Well, I typed it up, might as well leave it.

Hmm... Let's say- 1st level, 2 sessions 2nd - 5th, 5 sessions each 6th+, 5-8 sessions each So, about 10th level, biweekly sessions, ~4.5 hrs each, 2.5 years of play.

You could do something like each encounter is worth 100 xp per player per level. And then adjust the base by: Minimal Cost - XP*0.5; no PC less than half hp, no one use items spent, no favors expended, minor treasure gained. Average Cost - XP*1; Few PCs less than half hp, few one use items...

Part of it is, as you said, being able to find allies when in need. Many of the monsters that come from myth and legend are benevolent in the stories. Couatl and bakhu (?- benevolent Indian creature ) come to mind; at least non-hostile if not actually helpful. They also give the princesses a...

I have, with the charges dependent on the level of the spell. 1st level - 20 charges 2nd level - 12 charges 3rd level - 8 charges 4th level - 5 charges Although, some wands have 7 regenerating charges, at the rate of 1 per day.

This could be a good use of "seals", actually. Each seal has a positive and negative aspect, chosen when inflicted. So, you can use a positive seal on yourself or allies, and a negative seal on opponents and those that need "persuasion" to follow your superior ideas. This would also allow for...

For me, warlocks take the short-cut to power. They don't / won't train their bodies to peak performance (Fighter, Monk, Rogue) They don't / won't develop their minds to harness magical power (Wizard) They don't / won't merge their spirit / psyche with a greater being / power (Cleric, Druid)...

Sacrifices Each [X] gp of gold, gems, or magic items grants a one-time boon of some sort. it could be +1d6 to a roll, with multiple dice not stacking but better odds of a "6" result. Blood Magic Shed [X] hp to strengthen an invocation. Key Item Investing power into a signature item, possibly a...

Cloakers? Huh, I'll have to look at them closer.

Are there critters or spells that work with the "out of phase" concept anymore? All I can think of are ghosts and phase spiders, but those are explicitly in the Ethereal plane I think. I've been thinking of what can be encountered that is insubstantial but still can affect the PCs.

Me too. I wouldn't mind getting my hand back into writing.

For the most part, I agree with you. However, it can't be said enough that slavery and trafficing is a moral evil. There are people today, in the US, who are slaves. It's kept very quiet, but, well, let's just say working in the ED along a major trafficing route changed my perceptions on some...

Yeah. Gaian? Gai'ic? Eh. Not feeling it. Although, having the specific names you mentioned are pretty good. I can see why gnome and salamander can't be used, and they found good subs.

Cool! This could work, and work well. Humble observations- Nephilim instead of Sorcerer-Kings. This could be particularly appropriate if we think that the original sorcerer-kings were descendants of the cruel gods. This is what gave them an edge to throw down their ancestors, the actual...

Well... it wasn't an aspect of culture.

I remember that article. Pretty spiffy. I tried to adapt that, but was too young and too little attention span for such things at the time. :)