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Message: <blockquote data-quote="CleverNickName" data-source="post: 4458129" data-attributes="member: 50987">I don't like the idea of "gods" in my game.  Supreme beings who concern themselves with the affairs of humankind seem better-suited to theologians and science-fiction writers, not a fantasy game setting.That said, I do not want to remove religion from my game...it is one of the more popular plot devices, especially when it comes to waging war.  People need something to believe in, a cause worth dying for, that sort of thing...and the game needs a way to explain healing, turning undead, and divine magic.So I came up with the following plan: replace gods with churches.It is mostly cosmetics: each church has an alignment, a favored weapon, a list of domains, and a portfolio...the change to the game mechanics will be minimal.  Clerics and druids belong to a church (or temple, or clan, or whatever), and serve as that particular order's ambassadors, clergy, and laymen. Divine power does not come from a supreme being, but from a collection of church elders related to a particular faith.  Like guild wizards, the elders sit in a faraway temple over a supernatural energy source (a portal, for example), and dole that energy out to their followers.  For example:The Black Raven CultThis secret society meets twice a month in the cornfields outside of Broomstown, on the nights of the new and full moons.  Almost all of their members are halflings, who seek to drive the humans from their ancestral farmlands through fear, trickery, and mischief.  They are known for the black, feathered robes and crow-like masks they wear during their meetings.Alignment: NFavored Weapon: the sickleDomains: Animal, Earth, Plant, TrickeryThe members of the Black Raven Cult draw their power from a group of six halfling elders, who secretly operate from inside the East Shire...one of these elders has opened a portal to the Plane of Shadow, and is channeling the energy from that plane to the cult's followers.-----What do you think?</blockquote>

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