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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Set" data-source="post: 4159767" data-attributes="member: 41584">Nice one InVinoVeritas.I see that sort of god appealing to the jealous.  We all know people who had too many 'good breaks' in their lives.  Born beautiful, born rich, ended up with the girl we wish we had, whatever.  It's easier to think that they have somehow stolen these possibilities from us and to want to take their happiness and success and beauty / wealth / fame / family away from them.  Envy and spite, pure and simple.The only thing that the crowd loves more than a hero is to see a hero fall.  Because if we can't be the hero, why should anyone?  And so the followers of the god of misfortune wish bad things to fall upon those who have the things they crave for themselves (and, all too often, lack the motivation to actually strive for, content to sit around and complain about what other people have, rather than earn such things for themselves...).And then there are the others, the miserable and forlorn, who have already suffered so much ill-fortune that they are convinced that the goddess of luck has abandoned them or that the god of misfortune has singled them out.  (And the worshippers of the god of mischance may encourage this by picking people to torment, attempting to win more 'converts' by convincing them that the bad luck will end if they propitiate the god of bad luck, which, 'miraculously,' it does!  God of bad luck and protection rackets!)  Lured into the service of the god of bad luck, they have been convinced that so long as they serve him faithfully, they will avert his 'evil eye,' and no longer be plagued with the miseries that have afflicted them so far.  Some people are hopeless on their own, and bounce from one bad situation to another, always making the worst choices for whatever reason (usually pride, sometimes fear, other times greed, and, quite frequently, love).  'Saving' these people from their seemingly cursed lives, the cult gives them new purpose and indeed does 'save' them from the force that has been derailing their lives, their own awful judgement.So we've got the down-on-their-luck sorts, hoping to avoid the bad things that have happened to them (a mix of people who genuinely got a bad break, those who have colossally poor judgement and benefit from *anyone* telling them what to do, and those who have been deliberately plagued and tormented by the cult, in 'protection racket' style) *and* the malicious and spiteful worshippers, who actively want to torment and punish others who have 'undeserved' riches or fame or status or whatever, that the envious sorts want to take from them.</blockquote>

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