D&D 5E Could Theros and Tasha's Cauldron the way they're going to handle real-world pantheons?

[Umbran]

It isn't about them not using the D&D pantheons, it's about them not wanting to use the Greek Pantheon anymore. At least it seems like it's going that way.

I think this is the basic bit. The real-world mythologies and traditions don't actually map to the game very well anyway. There's a lot to be said for taking inspiration, and trying to generate a similar look-and-feel, without the problematic issues that arise when real-world traditions need to be deformed to match gameplay needs.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

One thing I would say about "dubious interpretations"... is that a lot of these old pantheons were very... fluid.

I ran a game where I needed an Egyptian pantheon, and I wanted it to be accurate... only to find out that there are several versions and permutation. I ended up settling on one that worked for the game... and honestly, that's more important than an exact "historical" one that only represent a moment in time.

I specifically mention Snorri Sturluson, an Icelandic poet who made up a lot of things about the Norse Gods in the Prose Edda during the 13th century. And the Prose Edda is basically where D&D has mostly based it's interpretation of the Norse Gods on.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I haven't been paying attention to how for example Khaldeim the new MtG setting is going. But much like the case of Theros being their own reinterpretation of Greek Mythology. We'll probably see something similar happen with Norse mythology in D&D eventually getting a replaced by its MtG reinterpretation.

 

[ccs]

Can I finally be a Cleric of the Giant Flying Spaghetti Monster?

Sure, come join my game. We've already got 3 Warlocks & 1 Cleric (across 3 campaigns) who's patron is an enigmatic being known only as "The Salmon God".
What's one more worshiper of a Great Old One?

 

[Don Durito]

Real-world pantheons in D&D have generally been a mess and usually something regulated to an appendix if at all. Never been accurate historically, and often based on certain dubious interpretations, like the D&D Norse pantheon being strongly based on Snorri Sturluson's interpretation of Norse mythology.

Well of course they are. What else are you going to use?

The Norse gods from the Edda are obviously what you'd want in D&D. (What should we base fantasy games on - an actually written myth cycle with clear characterisations, or an incomplete attempt to reconstruct from what little sources available the actual religious practices of viking age people which were probably already different when you travelled to the next valley?)

The problem is not the source but trying to shoehorn them into the alignment system and give them portfolios and such.

 

[turnip_farmer]

Can I finally be a Cleric of the Giant Flying Spaghetti Monster?

Alright, I'm definitely including a god called something like Teratospago in my next campaign and see how explicit I have to be in describing the iconography before someone gets it.

 

[QuentinGeorge]

Tiamat's rivalry with Bahamut completely overshadows her rivalry with Marduk. I don't think they've even acknowledged Marduk as existing since 2e.

Also on a related note, why are the Babylonian and Sumerian pantheons 2 different pantheons in D&D, but not the Roman and Greek?

It's especially weird considering that with Roman syncretism, they didn't just equate their deities with the Greek equivalents, but also the Celtic, Egyptian, and the Germanic gods.

So, yeah, maybe Jupiter is Zeus. But in that case, you can also say Hercules is Thor and Mercury is Odin. (Both are how the Romans saw it!)

I've entirely dumped any earthly pantheons from my homebrew (in fact, I've almost completely dumped D&D style mock-polytheism, but that's another matter).

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I see no reason why WotC needs to "handle real world pantheons" at all.

 

[dave2008]

Because American public education teaches that the Greek and Roman pantheons are the same gods with different names. Meanwhile it barely touches on the Babylonian and Sumerian pantheons at all. Yes maybe kids get the later in one section of one chapter of their 7th grade Social Studies textbook, but Greek and Roman gods not only get more time in the Social Studies class but then come up repeatedly in literature classes, and it is invariably taught that they are the same gods.

IDK. When I grew up ( a long time ago) mythology wasn't even part of the general education in HS (you got a little if you took brit lit - but that was elective). I did take an intro mythology course my freshman year at university and we definitely touched on not only differences between the Greek and Roman version, but also the regional and chronological differences in the Greek versions over time.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

I see no reason why WotC needs to "handle real world pantheons" at all.

That. Especially when many game campaign will roleplay them as concurrent monotheisms or militant henotheisms instead of real life polytheism.