Edit:I removed the spoiler space. I don't why I had uit in the first place, but I'm pretty sure I can trust my players.
I'm in the process of designing a campaign setting that will be including a number of powerful NPCs. Basically the world was created by a group of dieties of Lovecraftian sort. They have placed a group of humans, robbed from other primes and set to record them as they struggle against the horrors they placed there. These dieties each have a salient ability that allows them to detect the 'granting' of divine spells, but not the casting of such spells. Outside interference would notifiably irritate them, but they outside of this care little to actively watch their experiment. Fortunately for the humans over the years there has been outside interference. Three notable factions of stewards have come, all of relatively minor Divine Rank, and they each have saught to ready the humans in different ways.
1. The Seraphim: Former servants of these Lovecraftian dieties, they have fallen through acts of compassion. They have taken the form of war-like angels, and want to unify humanity, using the religion they've basically forced upon the masses. They pursue a martial tradition and would like to see a single unifying human force, rather than the current divided state. Through a ceremony they impart a fractured part of their divine soul, giving no divine rank, but imparting the ability to use Creation magic, Clerics and Paladins by the rules of the game. As such they number in the hundreds, but are of low divine rank and would prefer for their messengers to get the point across. They as a group prefer not to mention their history, both as a matter of pride and due to the harmful effect they believe it will have on their message. They are organized in the vain of a much more militant Roman Catholic tradition.The capitol of their holy empire will be where the PCs will be start. They see the other divine forces as counter-productive, a splintering force.
2. The Sidhe:A much more agrarian fey-like group of mischeif makers who came to the prime to stop the malicious trickery of the Lovecraftians. They believe what dieties did was not in good fun. They'd be happy to let humans do what they think is best, finding their own course, but in the wild lands where they live people have asked for their help, and feeling the passion of these people they have felt obliged to help. They likewise give part of their primal self, granting Primal Magic through this spark, Druids and Rangers by the rules. They serve as reluctant leaders in the wild.
3. The Ancients: Precursors to Dragons, they are sworn enemies of the Lovecraftians. They are untrusting of humans, and consider their divine spark to worthy to give away. However the have been willing to teach humans they have grown to trust the secrets of their heritage. Their true ties are to the Gith that live under the surface of this prime. Sher'colum Drataris, or The Gifts of Dragons include The Sword Dance, Song of Dragon's Past, and the Convergence of Body and Mind Spirit. (Mageblade,Monte Bard, and Psionics respectively). They respect the sidhe, but cannot live long beside them and hate the Seraphim for what they were once.
4. Fallen Seraphim: Those who still remain loyal to the Lovecraftians or those who turned on the Seraphim. They take the guise of fallen angels in order to perpetuate the myth of the Endless struggle, as they find the Seraphim's methods counterproductive. Use the same methods, but their spark imparts Entropy Magic, Blackguards and Negative Energy Clerics.
I guess my question is how do I pull off having these divine beings in my setting, while keeping my characters partially in the dark for now, when chances are my charcters are going to be respresentative of the followers of all three groups? I really want to put some ambiguity in this situation.
I'm in the process of designing a campaign setting that will be including a number of powerful NPCs. Basically the world was created by a group of dieties of Lovecraftian sort. They have placed a group of humans, robbed from other primes and set to record them as they struggle against the horrors they placed there. These dieties each have a salient ability that allows them to detect the 'granting' of divine spells, but not the casting of such spells. Outside interference would notifiably irritate them, but they outside of this care little to actively watch their experiment. Fortunately for the humans over the years there has been outside interference. Three notable factions of stewards have come, all of relatively minor Divine Rank, and they each have saught to ready the humans in different ways.
1. The Seraphim: Former servants of these Lovecraftian dieties, they have fallen through acts of compassion. They have taken the form of war-like angels, and want to unify humanity, using the religion they've basically forced upon the masses. They pursue a martial tradition and would like to see a single unifying human force, rather than the current divided state. Through a ceremony they impart a fractured part of their divine soul, giving no divine rank, but imparting the ability to use Creation magic, Clerics and Paladins by the rules of the game. As such they number in the hundreds, but are of low divine rank and would prefer for their messengers to get the point across. They as a group prefer not to mention their history, both as a matter of pride and due to the harmful effect they believe it will have on their message. They are organized in the vain of a much more militant Roman Catholic tradition.The capitol of their holy empire will be where the PCs will be start. They see the other divine forces as counter-productive, a splintering force.
2. The Sidhe:A much more agrarian fey-like group of mischeif makers who came to the prime to stop the malicious trickery of the Lovecraftians. They believe what dieties did was not in good fun. They'd be happy to let humans do what they think is best, finding their own course, but in the wild lands where they live people have asked for their help, and feeling the passion of these people they have felt obliged to help. They likewise give part of their primal self, granting Primal Magic through this spark, Druids and Rangers by the rules. They serve as reluctant leaders in the wild.
3. The Ancients: Precursors to Dragons, they are sworn enemies of the Lovecraftians. They are untrusting of humans, and consider their divine spark to worthy to give away. However the have been willing to teach humans they have grown to trust the secrets of their heritage. Their true ties are to the Gith that live under the surface of this prime. Sher'colum Drataris, or The Gifts of Dragons include The Sword Dance, Song of Dragon's Past, and the Convergence of Body and Mind Spirit. (Mageblade,Monte Bard, and Psionics respectively). They respect the sidhe, but cannot live long beside them and hate the Seraphim for what they were once.
4. Fallen Seraphim: Those who still remain loyal to the Lovecraftians or those who turned on the Seraphim. They take the guise of fallen angels in order to perpetuate the myth of the Endless struggle, as they find the Seraphim's methods counterproductive. Use the same methods, but their spark imparts Entropy Magic, Blackguards and Negative Energy Clerics.
I guess my question is how do I pull off having these divine beings in my setting, while keeping my characters partially in the dark for now, when chances are my charcters are going to be respresentative of the followers of all three groups? I really want to put some ambiguity in this situation.
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