Core Religions Survivor - Round Five

[Psion]

C'mon, people. At least Pelor, even if you find him boring, serves a purpose.

To give you super-archetypal super-clerics!

Ehlonna is annoying and superfluous.

Nah. She's a great "sympathetic nature figure." And she looks hot in leather.

 

[lukelightning]

The problem with deities of magic is that they are normally deities of wizards, yet grant clerical spells. "Hi, I'm a god of magic. No, you can't cast fireball."

In my world view, the interesting thing about unicorns is that they're MONSTROUS SAVAGE BEASTS...

Same here. In my game they are horrendous beasts that savor the taste of spoiled flesh, so they kill animals and people and leave 'em in a pile of rot. I've replaced their magic circle against evil ability with an enchantment similar to sanctuary; you get charmed into not attacking them even if it is trying to skewer you with its horn.

 

[ivocaliban]

We've gotten rid of all the racial deities except Gruumsh, so it's time to finish the job - but Gruumsh is too cool to ditch, so let's make him the primary force for Chaotic Evil instead!

Out you go, Erythnul.

Well, as far as racial deities go, you seem to have forgotten Moradin.

Also, the way things look now Ehlonna isn't going to survive round six. That leaves Wee Jas as the only female deity still in the running. Hmm...does that say more about us or the authors?

 

[Bad Paper]

That leaves Wee Jas as the only female deity still in the running. Hmm...does that say more about us or the authors?

It means we dig Goth chicks.

 

[Alaric_Prympax]

Wee Jas can stay as long as she wants to IMO. My group is really juvinile when is comes to saying her name (WHEE jasss). But who would get rid of a goddess of love, then again she does have that death thing going on too. Love and death, well I'm not going any further with that thought...

But what's all this love for Hextor? Looks like he's getting the fewest votes so I take it people like the Scouge of Hell.

 

[lukelightning]

It means we dig Goth chicks.

Wee Jas is the Anti Goth Chick. She's the goddess of law in addition to death. Goth's are supposedly into being individualistic and non-conformist.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

But what's all this love for Hextor? Looks like he's getting the fewest votes so I take it people like the Scouge of Hell.

No, he's just hated less than the others. He and his brother will get theirs, soon enough.

Hextor, aside from the really awful name (seriously, he's like a Legion of Doom reject), doesn't do anything that powerful unique fiends don't do 10 times better.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

The problem with deities of magic is that they are normally deities of wizards, yet grant clerical spells. "Hi, I'm a god of magic. No, you can't cast fireball."

That's a good example of how one-dimensional most D&D gods are.

"I'm the good guy sun god."

"I'm the bookish god of magic."

"I'm the happy unicorn girl."

"I'm the dour guy who hangs out with trees."

The gods of myth were a lot more layered and complex. The closest parallel the ancient Greeks had to Ehlonna was Artemis, who also was a moon goddess, the goddess of hunters and who has all the sexual hangups of someone you'd expect in a pantheon headed up by Zeus. (Yes, some of those traits were grafted onto her by the Romans, but the end result is still complex and interesting.)

Wee Jas is a good example, blending as she does multiple portfolios that don't seem to have much to do with each other, and the combination creates a believably interesting figure.

If you didn't want to use Wee Jas, a more interesting god of magic would have something ELSE to the figure. The Forgotten Realms has a Weave metaphor for magic, and I could see a goddess of magic weaving the tapestry of the world on a loom, which could also bring in elements of prophecy and divination. Instead of a god who's basically Bigby or whomever, you'd have a goddess who works at her celestial loom, who also weaves visions of the future and past into the celestial tapestry, and who incorporates special thread (forged by dwarves?) into the tapestry to add magic to the world.

 

[Cthulhudrew]

Wee Jas is the Anti Goth Chick. She's the goddess of law in addition to death. Goth's are supposedly into being individualistic and non-conformist.

Which is funny, when you consider how much they all seem to look alike and have all the same interests.

 

[kanithardm]

I personally like Tiamat becuase out of all the core deities, she's the one with the most background information. You could build an adventure around her (red hand of doom) and it wouldnt suck.