For the Glory of God: Clerics of the One True Faith

[Dethklok]

One thing about traditional roleplaying games that disappoints me is their treatment of religion. There are real-world gods in Deities and Demigods, but most of the gods are invented, and seem to exist largely to dispense magical powers to their servants on command.

What I think is lacking here is the concept of a genuine religion; a worldview that denies the rightness of other faiths or even the existence of other gods. Such religions cannot exist so long as thaumaturgy remains mundane - so long as clerics can dispense curative magic like Pez there is no possibility for real skepticism.

But what if Clerical powers were restricted? Specifically, if their powers were restricted to anything which doubters could dismiss - light curative magic, the ability to bestow plusses and minuses, the ability to tell the future, or the ability to turn undead (never destroy them, only turn them) - then the issue of religion would suddenly become real.

There could be different religions, of course. Some might be polythetistic, like the religions of the Romans or the old Norse; and others might be monotheistic, like Christianity and Islam. Others could even have no god or gods, like most versions of Buddhism. And no one would be able to tell with certainty which faith were true - and why should they, when proof would deny the possibility for faith?

"These newfangled gods, they're no better than the old ones."

"I pray you will learn the error of that ere long, Sir Hugo. In the Holy Land I have learned to baptize heathens in their own tainted blood."

 

[Meatboy]

I've used monotheism often when creating campaign worlds. One of my earliest involved clerics being members of sects under semi devine saints. There were of course "pagan" gods too but I never felt a need to restrict clerical power to make it more believable that people woudln't believe that anothers god was real. I always felt that becuase their were so many different kinds of magic it would always be easy to dismiss the other guys god as "sorcery" or parlour tricks. Especially if high level characters and magic were kept in check.

 

[GMMichael]

You can still allow flashy priestly magic and expect doubters and purgers. If you're not worshiping MY god, that makes you A) a magician, B) one who consorts with demons, or C) a vessel of evil from MY religion.

If you were hoping to introduce skepticism into a campaign (by reducing priest powers), it could be a good element. But it would either render priestly classes almost worthless, or make that low-level of white magic much more achievable by non-clerics.

 

[Dethklok]

I've used monotheism often when creating campaign worlds.

Rad, man.

One of my earliest involved clerics being members of sects under semi devine saints. There were of course "pagan" gods too but I never felt a need to restrict clerical power to make it more believable that people woudln't believe that anothers god was real. I always felt that becuase their were so many different kinds of magic it would always be easy to dismiss the other guys god as "sorcery" or parlour tricks. Especially if high level characters and magic were kept in check.

No, I see this. In the medieval context I usually take for granted, sorcery is regarded as demonic and evil, and no Christian friar would be dismissed by skeptics as having sorceretic abilities since this would tacitly accept the Christian worldview to begin with. But what was the setting of your game like?

If you were hoping to introduce skepticism into a campaign (by reducing priest powers), it could be a good element. But it would either render priestly classes almost worthless, or make that low-level of white magic much more achievable by non-clerics.

1. Supply and demand. In a low magic world, particularly one where magic is only half believed in, even a little bit can go a long way. Fighters and Thieves in the real world are far, far more powerful than their fantasy counterparts, but if I had the ability to "cure light wounds" once per day on command by laying my hand on someone, I would be rich.

2. Clerics could be compensated in other ways. More hit points, the ability to use edged weapons like historical priests did, and so on.

3. Game balance is only fun to people who think it's fun. Some roleplayers actually prefer imbalance. Not all kinds of people are equally useful in an adventuring setting.

 

[Meatboy]

[MENTION=6746469]Dethklok[/MENTION] Not much to say really. It was one of my first campaigns when 3e came out. I wasn't very thrilled with the default pantheon so I wanted something a little different. I just stated that in the Lands of Men there was only one god and if someone were to play a cleric they had to choose and create a patron saint. The saints worked just like gods in 3e but the pcs could only have access to certain domains,so nothing evil.
I think this particular campaign only lasted a session or two. Unforunately one player wanted to be a cleric variant, the non-denominational variety where their power was internal. As DM I was cool with it,but told the player he would need to hide his heathen ways or be persecuted or hunted. However the other players were a little too firm with their role playing and quickly turned said heathen over to the inquisition.
Needless to say as teens this didn't end well. When everyone settled down enough to play again we played in a planescape style setting that could accommodate more eccentricity.

 

[Dethklok]

That's disappointing. Knowing myself, I would have been glad to have seen my character betrayed and turned in, if I couldn't keep my nature a secret or defend myself well enough. That's the fun of roleplaying sometimes.

Once, I played a Catholic priest in Call of Cthulhu. I tried to turn a Byakhee away with my cross. The Keeper had me make a Power roll and then, when I rolled well, the Byakhee departed. I didn't like that at all; I wanted to see my character die, or else be mangled and left to ponder the horror of a godless Lovecraftian universe. As it was my character's Faith was reaffirmed, so he became smug and hyperreligious. Lovecraft would have shaken his head, I think.