Disprove a god's existence...

[halfpintgamer1976]

I'm in an Egyptian themed campaign where the pharaoh is descended from the gods to serve man. He is a man himself, although he has convinced the people that he is their god (he's lost touch with his true purpose). Through some wild machinations, my character (a CG Thief) has become a prophet of Bahamut (think Final Fantasy Bahamut, not WOTC's version) and is spreading the word to the kingdom. However, she will pay a visit to the gallows for being a heretic if she cannot prove that the pharaoh is not a god.

How do you prove that a man who claims that he is a god, is just a man?

 

[WayneLigon]

Find out what is not suppossed to happen to the man, and make it happen. For instance, cut him if he claims his blood cannot be spilled (and make sure he has nothing else that can duplicate that effect).

 

[AuraSeer]

There are a couple of ways to distinguish between a deity and some other magic user, but they hinge on understanding of magical details. They're a bit too esoteric to convince the populace.

For instance, you could stick him in an antimagic field and ask him to use some of his powers. Divine abilities will still work, but mortal magic will be suppressed.

 

[billd91]

There's no real way to prove someone isn't a god. All you can do is chip away at the faith of his followers. Even killing him won't really prove he isn't a god. How many Roman emperors were deified after they died? How many Egyptian gods grew old and died? Death wasn't exactly a disqualifier.
You have to chip away at his support while trying to avoide the gallows. Perform miracles (cast spells) for people and challenge this pharoah to do the same. If he has no power, he'll come up wtih excuses that may work for a while, but will eventually serve to help undermine his own support. Since there's a good chance of hanging as a heretic, you'll have to make those challenges indirectly and try to avoid the authorities. But even if you undermine his claim of divinity, you still have to deal with his temporal power.

I have to ask, why do you even have to engage in this showdown at all? You're probably better off staying underground until you've got a lot, and I mean a lot, of supporters.

 

[ThirdWizard]

Kill him.

 

[Sir Brennen]

I was actually a player in a 1st edition game where the DM had exactly this kind of setup. We were all fairly certain this guy was a phony, but things ended in gnomes and fire, as they were wont to do, before we could prove anything. We ran all over town avoiding his priests, being especially fearful of Hold Person in those days. After the adventure, the DM asked why we were so careful to avoid the priests, because -

as clerics of a false god, they couldn't cast spells.

Doh!

 

[Umbran]

Well, first you have to define what qualities a god has that a man does not. We cannot answer that question - it depends upon your DM's cosmology.

For example - not all gods are immortal, so killing him may not prove anything.

Though, in a D&D world, gods usually have the ability to grant clerics the ability to cast spells. So, choose some person you know is not currently a spellcaster - if the pharaoh cannot give this person the ability to cast spells, he isn't a god.

 

[lukelightning]

You can't. "True Believers" are notorious about ignoring fact and believing what they want.

 

[Matafuego]

I'm in an Egyptian themed campaign where the pharaoh is descended from the gods to serve man. He is a man himself, although he has convinced the people that he is their god (he's lost touch with his true purpose). Through some wild machinations, my character (a CG Thief) has become a prophet of Bahamut (think Final Fantasy Bahamut, not WOTC's version) and is spreading the word to the kingdom. However, she will pay a visit to the gallows for being a heretic if she cannot prove that the pharaoh is not a god.

How do you prove that a man who claims that he is a god, is just a man?

Seems a fairly epic campaign to me !!!

I have an idea but it requires a lot of DM cooperation (don't they all do?). If the Pharaoh is descended from the gods to serve man and he has lost touch with his true purpose then MAYBE the gods will want to have one or two words with him...
Where are the REAL gods?
Can't they confront him?
Can't you confront him with their aid, since he's a prophet of Bahamut?

 

[Kae'Yoss]

I'd also say kill him. Or, better, make it look like an accident. Surely no deity would be struck by a stone and die.

For more ideas, we need more details. What does he claims his powers are? Prove that he doesn't in fact, have those powers (and hope they're not something that a mortal could achieve with magic but that isn't widely known).

Omniscient? Surprise him.
Omnipotent? Show something he can't do.
Immortal? Well, that's easy.