D&D 5E Atheism/Agnosticism in 5e?

[Torg Smith]

In Dark Sun there are no gods. The RAW has the clerics bow before elements, but I will run with no clerics.

 

[Zaukrie]

I run a Forgotten Realms campaign what l where one character thinks the Gods are no different than anyone else, just more powerful. None of this is a rule, is it? Characters believe what they believe, sometimes to their peril

 

[DEFCON 1]

Especially in the Forgotten Realms... I see absolutely no difference between "god" and "very very very very very powerful being". The word "god" has be created in that realm to define those very very very very very powerful beings. If you know they exist, and believe they exist... then you believe in the gods. You can't make the distinction between them saying "Well, they're really powerful beings, but they're not gods!"... simply because you have nothing else to compare those powerful beings to. You'd need to have someone/something else in the Realms that *is* a "god" in your mind to be able to then come to the conclusion that "Mystra is not one."

As Henry pointed out... you might not choose to worship them... but that doesn't mean you still don't believe in them. If you know the very very very powerful beings then you know the gods exist. Because one is the term that defines the other.

 

[Hussar]

Lines from Terry Pratchett's Feet of Clay keep running through my head while reading this thread.

This honestly is something you have to sit down with your DM about though. Of course, you can claim your character believes whatever the heck you want. It doesn't mean you're right.

 

[Snapdragyn]

One thing to note with Forgotten Realms, take some consideration as to how your character would react to learning about the Wall of the Faithless.

Hmm, hadn't heard of that before. Perhaps something like:

'Clearly that these beings mete out such harsh punishment for refusing to bow to them betrays them as the petty tyrants they are. I bend my knee to no one so undeserving of my fealty.'

(And liking the word 'alatrism'.)

 

[Dausuul]

Hopefully without getting into a debate on the distinctions between the two....

Do we yet know if it's possible (RAW - every table will differ, of course) for a character to refuse to worship any deity in 5e?

Um, yes? Unless you're playing a cleric or paladin, why would it not be possible? Your character's beliefs and opinions are up to you.

Now, if you go around denying the existence of gods in a world full of clerics who can smite people with divine fire, you may want to invest in items that grant fire resistance. But honestly, that's a good idea for an adventurer anyway.

 

[jgsugden]

There are no mechanics we've seen that prevent a character that does not believe in Gods or is not sure they really exist.

As for there being a character that thinks that the beings normally referenced as 'Gods' are just powerful outsiders and not truly Gods, that just comes down to a matter of definition. The PC would be objecting to the label, not the existence of the entity - which is not really atheism or agnosticism.

An atheist in the Forgotton Realms might think clerics are wizards and that their power comes from the world, not from the deities they claim exist. In the Forgotten Realms, they'd be wrong, but they could exist. An agnostic, similarly, would be unsure if the deities exist or not.

A PC that thinks that these powerful outsiders exist, but that they were not what they claim to be - and were not worthy of prayer - would be an interesting PC, but I would not call them an atheist or an agnostic. Many villians in the lore of the WotC RPGs have had similar views... mostly villians that aspired to be as powerful as the Gods... Vecna.

 

[Henry]

Hmm, hadn't heard of that before. Perhaps something like:

'Clearly that these beings mete out such harsh punishment for refusing to bow to them betrays them as the petty tyrants they are. I bend my knee to no one so undeserving of my fealty.'

(And liking the word 'alatrism'.)

Given that view, I also found that "maltheism" exists, a belief that (a) god is Evil.

 

[Andor]

Especially in the Forgotten Realms... I see absolutely no difference between "god" and "very very very very very powerful being". The word "god" has be created in that realm to define those very very very very very powerful beings. If you know they exist, and believe they exist... then you believe in the gods. You can't make the distinction between them saying "Well, they're really powerful beings, but they're not gods!"... simply because you have nothing else to compare those powerful beings to. You'd need to have someone/something else in the Realms that *is* a "god" in your mind to be able to then come to the conclusion that "Mystra is not one."

As Henry pointed out... you might not choose to worship them... but that doesn't mean you still don't believe in them. If you know the very very very powerful beings then you know the gods exist. Because one is the term that defines the other.

It depends very much on the world in question.

In the FR there are mechanical consequences to not following a god.
In Planescape there is an entire faction devoted to the idea that Gods are merely very powerful beings.
In Eberron faith is unrelated to the garnering of divine power.

I disagree that knowing powerful beings exist means that you cannot concieve of something else. Most Gods in panthestic religions behave like spoiled children. Maybe your character is adventuring on a quest to discover some being who he feels is actually worthy of his devotion and service.

 

[drjones]

In Dark Sun there are no gods. The RAW has the clerics bow before elements, but I will run with no clerics.

I went with that in 4e and the parties healers were a multiclass bard and a psion. I only brought in the elemental priests as NPCs sparingly in 'old cultures' that were less touched by the magipocalypse of the surface lands. Mostly since it seemed to violate the rules of The Grey that I used to isolate the world from outside resources.