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<blockquote data-quote="Staffan" data-source="post: 7368357" data-attributes="member: 907"><p>My favorite approach to religion in D&D is the one taken in Eberron.</p><p></p><p>The continent of Khorvaire has three significant religions: one based on a polytheistic pantheon, one based on an impersonal but definitely active force, and one based on a philosophy.</p><p></p><p>The pantheon is called the Sovereign Host, and consists of nine gods representing aspects of civilization: Life & Love, Law & Lore, Horn & Hunt, Hall & Hearth, Sun & Sacrifice, Strength & Steel, World & Wealth, Feast & Fortune, Fire & Forge. These nine are worshiped as a group, and they are considered an inherent part of the world. When the hunter is stalking her prey, Balinor is there with her. When the farmer is planting his field, Arawai is there with him. As the two return home after a day's work, Boldrei is with them in their home. It is very uncommon for someone to worship one of these gods above others - the farmer will certainly pray more to Arawai than others, but when he's taking his harvest to the market he will be praying to Kol Korran for the blessing of good prices, and when he's playing games in the tavern he will pray to Olladra for good fortune.</p><p></p><p>There is also a dark mirror of this pantheon called the Dark Six, generally representing less savory aspects of the world, and in many cases more "savage" aspects: Wave & Whelm, Rage & Ruin, Death & Decay, Betrayal & Bloodshed, Magic & Mayhem, and Chaos & Change. These gods are generally not given names, but instead titles: the Devourer, the Keeper, the Traveler, and so on. Civilized folks rarely worship these, at least not openly, but they are given their due. Monstrous races are more likely to worship these gods, particularly the Shadow - many monstrous races attribute their magical gifts to the Shadow. Some civilized folk actively worship the Dark Six as well, but in those cases it's more common to direct most of your worship toward a particular deity. Few people are dedicated to the concept of evil and savagery in general, but you might very well find assassin cults dedicated to the Mockery, and it's common for changelings and dopplegangers to worship the trickster god known as the Traveler.</p><p></p><p>As missionaries from Khorvaire discover other cultures, they often find remarkable similarities between the gods worshiped by these, although they are often worshiped under different names, and sometimes in different configurations. For example, on the continent of Xen'drik, near the city of Stormreach, you will find giant tribes worshiping Rowa of the Jungle Leaves, Banor the Bloody Spear, Ouralon Lawbringer, and Karrak the Final Guardian - which the Khorvaire settlers have identified as Arawai, Balinor, Aureon, and the Keeper. The giants in question, of course, think that the silly humans have gotten the wrong names, and in particular they have misunderstood Karrak and named him an evil god.</p><p></p><p>It bears mentioning that these gods have no <strong>concrete</strong> presence in the world. They do not have domains on the outer planes, and do not directly answer prayers. Divination magic that in other settings get answers directly from gods instead get those answers from powerful extraplanar beings who also claim to serve the gods.</p><p></p><p>The other main respected faith on Khorvaire is the Silver Flame. Unlike the gods, the Silver Flame has a clear representation in the world, in the form of a gigantic silver-colored flame that erupted from the ground a couple of centuries ago. However, the principle behind the Flame is far older than that - it is the collective spiritual force of almost all the world's couatls, which in ancient prehistory entrapped a number of archfiends within the world. The Silver Flame is more dedicated to the concept of Good itself, both on a more cosmic level (fighting and trapping fiends) and on a more personal level (treat people right). This differs from the Sovereign Host who may be overall Good-aligned, but that's more coincidental - they represent concepts that on the whole are Good, but they are not dedicated to the concept of Good itself. The Silver Flame is primarily worshiped in the nation of Thrane, where the Flame itself resides - there it is the state religion, and the Keeper of the Flame also serves as the Head of State of Thrane (unlike the other successor states to Galifar, who are lead by descendants of Galifar's last king). However, you'll find spots here and there where worship of the same force has developed independently, such as the orc/half-orc/tiefling tribes who guard the Labyrinth surrounding the Demon Wastes.</p><p></p><p>The third faith is not very well seen by others: the Blood of Vol. The Blood of Vol looks at the world and asks, "Who are these so-called gods and why should they be worthy of our worship?" They believe that every human and other living sapient have a spark of divinity within themselves, and that they were cursed with mortality by the gods so they would not have the time to develop this into becoming gods themselves. The Blood of Vol are associated with undead - from their perspective, undead allies of the faith are people who have given up their divine spark but put themselves beyond the reach of the false gods. They are at the same time to be respected (for their power and sacrifice) and pitied (because they have given up the chance of cultivating their divine spark). The Blood of Vol is particularly strong in Karrnath, where they were the official state religion for a while during the Last War, and supported the war effort with undead elite troops (beyond regular zombies and skeletons, but not as unsavory as ghouls or as individually powerful as wights or stuff like that).</p><p></p><p>In addition to these, there are a number of other religions, but those are either geographically isolated to distant regions, or only worshiped in small cult-like cells.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Staffan, post: 7368357, member: 907"] My favorite approach to religion in D&D is the one taken in Eberron. The continent of Khorvaire has three significant religions: one based on a polytheistic pantheon, one based on an impersonal but definitely active force, and one based on a philosophy. The pantheon is called the Sovereign Host, and consists of nine gods representing aspects of civilization: Life & Love, Law & Lore, Horn & Hunt, Hall & Hearth, Sun & Sacrifice, Strength & Steel, World & Wealth, Feast & Fortune, Fire & Forge. These nine are worshiped as a group, and they are considered an inherent part of the world. When the hunter is stalking her prey, Balinor is there with her. When the farmer is planting his field, Arawai is there with him. As the two return home after a day's work, Boldrei is with them in their home. It is very uncommon for someone to worship one of these gods above others - the farmer will certainly pray more to Arawai than others, but when he's taking his harvest to the market he will be praying to Kol Korran for the blessing of good prices, and when he's playing games in the tavern he will pray to Olladra for good fortune. There is also a dark mirror of this pantheon called the Dark Six, generally representing less savory aspects of the world, and in many cases more "savage" aspects: Wave & Whelm, Rage & Ruin, Death & Decay, Betrayal & Bloodshed, Magic & Mayhem, and Chaos & Change. These gods are generally not given names, but instead titles: the Devourer, the Keeper, the Traveler, and so on. Civilized folks rarely worship these, at least not openly, but they are given their due. Monstrous races are more likely to worship these gods, particularly the Shadow - many monstrous races attribute their magical gifts to the Shadow. Some civilized folk actively worship the Dark Six as well, but in those cases it's more common to direct most of your worship toward a particular deity. Few people are dedicated to the concept of evil and savagery in general, but you might very well find assassin cults dedicated to the Mockery, and it's common for changelings and dopplegangers to worship the trickster god known as the Traveler. As missionaries from Khorvaire discover other cultures, they often find remarkable similarities between the gods worshiped by these, although they are often worshiped under different names, and sometimes in different configurations. For example, on the continent of Xen'drik, near the city of Stormreach, you will find giant tribes worshiping Rowa of the Jungle Leaves, Banor the Bloody Spear, Ouralon Lawbringer, and Karrak the Final Guardian - which the Khorvaire settlers have identified as Arawai, Balinor, Aureon, and the Keeper. The giants in question, of course, think that the silly humans have gotten the wrong names, and in particular they have misunderstood Karrak and named him an evil god. It bears mentioning that these gods have no [B]concrete[/B] presence in the world. They do not have domains on the outer planes, and do not directly answer prayers. Divination magic that in other settings get answers directly from gods instead get those answers from powerful extraplanar beings who also claim to serve the gods. The other main respected faith on Khorvaire is the Silver Flame. Unlike the gods, the Silver Flame has a clear representation in the world, in the form of a gigantic silver-colored flame that erupted from the ground a couple of centuries ago. However, the principle behind the Flame is far older than that - it is the collective spiritual force of almost all the world's couatls, which in ancient prehistory entrapped a number of archfiends within the world. The Silver Flame is more dedicated to the concept of Good itself, both on a more cosmic level (fighting and trapping fiends) and on a more personal level (treat people right). This differs from the Sovereign Host who may be overall Good-aligned, but that's more coincidental - they represent concepts that on the whole are Good, but they are not dedicated to the concept of Good itself. The Silver Flame is primarily worshiped in the nation of Thrane, where the Flame itself resides - there it is the state religion, and the Keeper of the Flame also serves as the Head of State of Thrane (unlike the other successor states to Galifar, who are lead by descendants of Galifar's last king). However, you'll find spots here and there where worship of the same force has developed independently, such as the orc/half-orc/tiefling tribes who guard the Labyrinth surrounding the Demon Wastes. The third faith is not very well seen by others: the Blood of Vol. The Blood of Vol looks at the world and asks, "Who are these so-called gods and why should they be worthy of our worship?" They believe that every human and other living sapient have a spark of divinity within themselves, and that they were cursed with mortality by the gods so they would not have the time to develop this into becoming gods themselves. The Blood of Vol are associated with undead - from their perspective, undead allies of the faith are people who have given up their divine spark but put themselves beyond the reach of the false gods. They are at the same time to be respected (for their power and sacrifice) and pitied (because they have given up the chance of cultivating their divine spark). The Blood of Vol is particularly strong in Karrnath, where they were the official state religion for a while during the Last War, and supported the war effort with undead elite troops (beyond regular zombies and skeletons, but not as unsavory as ghouls or as individually powerful as wights or stuff like that). In addition to these, there are a number of other religions, but those are either geographically isolated to distant regions, or only worshiped in small cult-like cells. [/QUOTE]
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