campaign religion
- Thread starter alsih2o
- Start date
Teflon Billy
Explorer
It's left to Clerics. Even Paladins answer more to their heirarchy than to Gods.
alsih2o
First Post
i just seem to see fewer and fewer character descriptions that include a prefered deity...seems every fighter and theif in the old days had a religious bent, now it is only the religious characters who bother to pay religion any mind at all.
i am not saying this is good or bad, just noticing it
i am not saying this is good or bad, just noticing it
Tonguez
A suffusion of yellow
I've done two (maybe three) homebrew campaigns in which Religion was the end-all be-all
1 - a campaign in which all PCs are Agents of the Church (and eventually the 'Inquisitors'). This one was mainly about the 'Church' and its actions in the world (exorcising demons, reovering holy relics, hunting heretics, and destroying devil-worshipping cults)
2 -My current Campaign is set in Mythic Polynesia and the world is populated by 'Spirits' - Ancestor spirits appear and give advice, fiendish eels live in sacred pools, Guardian Spirits protect stretches of forest, NPC 'Chiefs' might be half-celestials and all 'Paladin-types' are possessed by the Tribal War-God.
IMC PCs consult Shaman about events and offer sacrificial chickens to the Sacred Eels before embarking on any adventure. In fact their very first encounter was with an Outsider (Guardian of the Land) and at the end of that first adventure they had to choose one of their party to sacrifice as an offering to the Land (this Sacrificial victim became the new (NPC) Guardian (celestial template and stuff))
3 - the third campaign homebrew (16th/17thcentury alt.Europe) had the Grand Inquisitor Torquemada become Pope and the Catholic Church become politically dominant in Southern Europe, in Britain and Northern France Oliver Cromwells Puritan commonwealth holds sway, magic is outlawed as Devilish, and so all spellcasters flee towards the Netherlands and even into Eastern Europe (which is dominated by Vampires and Lycanthorpes). However just to the South the Islamic Ottoman Empire holds sway (including Granada in Spain) - again mainly Church rather than Divine and in this case the PCs were relatively independent mecenaries but living in a Theocracy. ie the IC politics were often religious.
1 - a campaign in which all PCs are Agents of the Church (and eventually the 'Inquisitors'). This one was mainly about the 'Church' and its actions in the world (exorcising demons, reovering holy relics, hunting heretics, and destroying devil-worshipping cults)
2 -My current Campaign is set in Mythic Polynesia and the world is populated by 'Spirits' - Ancestor spirits appear and give advice, fiendish eels live in sacred pools, Guardian Spirits protect stretches of forest, NPC 'Chiefs' might be half-celestials and all 'Paladin-types' are possessed by the Tribal War-God.
IMC PCs consult Shaman about events and offer sacrificial chickens to the Sacred Eels before embarking on any adventure. In fact their very first encounter was with an Outsider (Guardian of the Land) and at the end of that first adventure they had to choose one of their party to sacrifice as an offering to the Land (this Sacrificial victim became the new (NPC) Guardian (celestial template and stuff))
3 - the third campaign homebrew (16th/17thcentury alt.Europe) had the Grand Inquisitor Torquemada become Pope and the Catholic Church become politically dominant in Southern Europe, in Britain and Northern France Oliver Cromwells Puritan commonwealth holds sway, magic is outlawed as Devilish, and so all spellcasters flee towards the Netherlands and even into Eastern Europe (which is dominated by Vampires and Lycanthorpes). However just to the South the Islamic Ottoman Empire holds sway (including Granada in Spain) - again mainly Church rather than Divine and in this case the PCs were relatively independent mecenaries but living in a Theocracy. ie the IC politics were often religious.
Tsyr
Explorer
Other 
IMC, "gods" don't have the same role they do in normal settings... IMC, the gods may or may not exist... no one can PROVE one way or another. Priests, Druids, Mages, Hedge Wizards, Paladins, etc etc all draw power from the same source. There are only two magic using classes IMC, at least for humans (Wilder and Initiate from Wheel of Time are what I use). A "paladin" is a warrior who has a few levels of one of those classes.
Priests and Paladins would claim their power comes from their god, a druid-type character would claim it came from the earth, a hedge-wizard might have charms or similar he claims to draw power from... but it's all the same stuff. Raw mana chaneled into the form the user wants it. It's just a matter of how you look at it.
Elves use what I call "High Magic", for which I use the Sov Stone rules... it provides a sense that they have some deeper understanding of it than humans... Dwarves use rune magic (customised core-class version of a prestige class in a Bastion Press book), to which they assign a religious importance, similar to human priests. But even there it's the same essential stuff... just different training to use it different ways.
*edit* I forgot to include exactly where I as going with that ramble
Anyhow, because there is no direct proof of the gods, and the fact that every culture seems to have it's own gods, religion plays a fairly important part in the WORLD view (There are religious wars amongst the humans, the dwarves have sort of "converted" one human culture to their religion, etc). However, on an individual, person by person basis, religion is actualy fairly un-important. The few priests who have any sort of magical power (Magic is very rare in my world) are very influencial... but the rest, the majority of the priests, basicly have a fairly small following. Long ago humans used to worship the dwarves and the elves, but when it was eventualy figured out they weren't gods, it took a LONG time for any new religions to form up... humanities faith was "betrayed" by their false "gods". Even now, many centuries later, people are still sceptical about anybody who claims to know a true "god". The wound is still fresh in most cultures minds.
IMC, "gods" don't have the same role they do in normal settings... IMC, the gods may or may not exist... no one can PROVE one way or another. Priests, Druids, Mages, Hedge Wizards, Paladins, etc etc all draw power from the same source. There are only two magic using classes IMC, at least for humans (Wilder and Initiate from Wheel of Time are what I use). A "paladin" is a warrior who has a few levels of one of those classes.
Priests and Paladins would claim their power comes from their god, a druid-type character would claim it came from the earth, a hedge-wizard might have charms or similar he claims to draw power from... but it's all the same stuff. Raw mana chaneled into the form the user wants it. It's just a matter of how you look at it.
Elves use what I call "High Magic", for which I use the Sov Stone rules... it provides a sense that they have some deeper understanding of it than humans... Dwarves use rune magic (customised core-class version of a prestige class in a Bastion Press book), to which they assign a religious importance, similar to human priests. But even there it's the same essential stuff... just different training to use it different ways.
*edit* I forgot to include exactly where I as going with that ramble
Anyhow, because there is no direct proof of the gods, and the fact that every culture seems to have it's own gods, religion plays a fairly important part in the WORLD view (There are religious wars amongst the humans, the dwarves have sort of "converted" one human culture to their religion, etc). However, on an individual, person by person basis, religion is actualy fairly un-important. The few priests who have any sort of magical power (Magic is very rare in my world) are very influencial... but the rest, the majority of the priests, basicly have a fairly small following. Long ago humans used to worship the dwarves and the elves, but when it was eventualy figured out they weren't gods, it took a LONG time for any new religions to form up... humanities faith was "betrayed" by their false "gods". Even now, many centuries later, people are still sceptical about anybody who claims to know a true "god". The wound is still fresh in most cultures minds.
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In my campaign, there are a lot of mysteries and secrets associated with the nature of the world and the nature of existance. Most people believe in the gods and fight among themselves trying to prove who's god is the greatest. Sometimes, the people do not even know that the two warring factions worship the same god who itself is tied heavily to its worshippers, receiving and losing power as the worshippers kill each other (thus, allowing the god to maintain his status).
Clerics are extremely important. There is a section in my world where the Wizards and clerics of certain gods are outlawed and at best tortured if they reveal their talents. Most clerics worship gods and actively promote the dogma of their god; there are many non-cleric priests as well who wield significant political power without the "fancy" miralces." The gods are challenged by the power of various usurpers like some Demon Princes (particularly Demogorgon, Lolth, and Orcus), draconic archetypal entities (Bahamut and especially Tiamat), and the Gates of Hell (who seem to be in league with the chief god of evil in my world). All of these entities have relatively small cults likewise seeking more power and knowledge about the nature of the world and existance.
My players have noticed how important religion is without me ever having to say it. Indeed, most of my players, even the non-religious classes, actively worshipped a god and participated in religious services of the sole cleric. In creating PrC for most of the gods' clerics, I made sure to have a number of powers that not only benefit the cleric but also benefit those who worship the cleric's god. In this fashion, the game encourages attention to matters of religion. Heck, I have one player who eventually changed his character's family seal to reflect his PC's dedication to his god.
I think this sort of think enhances role-playing and, for me, makes the campaign setting more real and impactful... Not to mention mysterious.
Clerics are extremely important. There is a section in my world where the Wizards and clerics of certain gods are outlawed and at best tortured if they reveal their talents. Most clerics worship gods and actively promote the dogma of their god; there are many non-cleric priests as well who wield significant political power without the "fancy" miralces." The gods are challenged by the power of various usurpers like some Demon Princes (particularly Demogorgon, Lolth, and Orcus), draconic archetypal entities (Bahamut and especially Tiamat), and the Gates of Hell (who seem to be in league with the chief god of evil in my world). All of these entities have relatively small cults likewise seeking more power and knowledge about the nature of the world and existance.
My players have noticed how important religion is without me ever having to say it. Indeed, most of my players, even the non-religious classes, actively worshipped a god and participated in religious services of the sole cleric. In creating PrC for most of the gods' clerics, I made sure to have a number of powers that not only benefit the cleric but also benefit those who worship the cleric's god. In this fashion, the game encourages attention to matters of religion. Heck, I have one player who eventually changed his character's family seal to reflect his PC's dedication to his god.
I think this sort of think enhances role-playing and, for me, makes the campaign setting more real and impactful... Not to mention mysterious.
Voadam
Legend
I have it vary from place to place in my campaign, the characters are currently in Sri Raji in Ravenloft where I have everybody being religious and every mundane item is blessed down to the food at the street stand and the water in the river. Other realms it varies a lot, and even among the party we have a cleric of Xan Yae, who deals with his shadowy "spirit guide" a lot, and a champion of Shiva who is learning more about his deity every day ("What? Shiva is a guy?" after having been his champion for years and really getting into the religion, sigh) and then three non religious characters (well one has a patron deity and has made pacts with a devil, but not really front stage type of religious stuff).
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