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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Agback" data-source="post: 2669122" data-attributes="member: 5328">Variety is more likely, yes. But variety won't increase the capacity of the economy and population to build temples and support priests. A given number of people will still only be able to afford to support a given number of priests. If there are multiple competing religions, each one will draw the support of only a fraction of the populations, and so it will have to make each establishment serve a larger catchment population. The upshot would be that you would have the same number of clergy and temples per head of population.I would, however, expect to see a different spatial pattern. With a single hierarchy you get churches spaced fairly evenly, one per parish. With competeing hierarchies you would find them concentrated, one per god, in places with good transport connectivity, such as market towns. Under such a set-up I should also expect to see un-staffed shrines in villages, for personal or congregations observances not requiring priestly intercession.</blockquote>