D&D General The Role and Purpose of Evil Gods

[Maxperson]

Except "Domain" is highly specific. It is only a cleric thing. Not even Paladins get Domains. There is no spot on your character sheet for "domain" and it isn't tied to different worship of a god. In fact, it specifically tells you in one of the sections that your domain doesn't even have to match the list on the gods, because some of them so general they apply to any god you want.

In fact, the discussion of choosing a domain to highlight an aspect of a god? That is in the cleric class, the one whose subclasses are DOMAINS. There is no other way to look at domains, their entire purpose is for the cleric class. Nothing else.

Okay. YOU cut yourself off of a great RP tool. My acolytes won't.

 

[Helldritch]

Except "Domain" is highly specific. It is only a cleric thing. Not even Paladins get Domains. There is no spot on your character sheet for "domain" and it isn't tied to different worship of a god. In fact, it specifically tells you in one of the sections that your domain doesn't even have to match the list on the gods, because some of them so general they apply to any god you want.

In fact, the discussion of choosing a domain to highlight an aspect of a god? That is in the cleric class, the one whose subclasses are DOMAINS. There is no other way to look at domains, their entire purpose is for the cleric class. Nothing else.

Yes you are right. But Maxperson is also right. The domain you pick with a god is an aspect of the god you wish to put emphasis on. Yes I worship Wee Jas, but I worship her for her domain over magic, not for the death goddess that she also is.

The domains allow for roleplay. Two clerics of Amunataur might be very different. One worship the aspect of light, the other the healing aspect of the deity. Because of this, they might even be at odds with each other as one sect of Amunataur worship him for his lordship over light and the other sect goes for the healing aspect. Religious wars started for less...

So the domain you choose to worship your god for might reflect on how you worship him and how your current church sees you. Are you an heretic that worship the god on a false truth ( you picked the wrong domain) are you in harmony with your church? There are many possibilities associated with this single aspect of a domain.

Edit:" Just the damn auto corrector"

 

[Maxperson]

Yes you are right. But Maxperson is also right. The domain you pick with a god is an aspect of the god you wish to put emphasis on. Yes I worship Wee Jas, but I worship her for her domain over magic, not for the death goddess that she also is.

The domains allow for roleplay. Two clerics of Amunataur might be very different. One worship the aspect of light, the other the healing aspect of the deity. Because of this, they might even be at odds with each other as one sect of Amunataur worship him for his lordship over light and the other sect goes for the healing aspect. Religious wars started for less...

So the domain you choose to worship your god for might reflect on how you worship him and how your current church sees you. Are you an heretic that worship the god on a false truth ( you picked the wrong domain) are you in harmony with your church? There are many possibilities associated with this single aspect of a domain.

Edit:" Just the damn auto corrector"

Yep. Which is why non-spellcasting Acolytes should pay attention to the domains of the gods and quasi-deities that they worship.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Okay. YOU cut yourself off of a great RP tool. My acolytes won't.

No, I didn't. Domains mean nothing about actually worshiping the god or even being part of a sect. Domains are subclasses for Clerics. That is it.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Yes you are right. But Maxperson is also right. The domain you pick with a god is an aspect of the god you wish to put emphasis on. Yes I worship Wee Jas, but I worship her for her domain over magic, not for the death goddess that she also is.

The domains allow for roleplay. Two clerics of Amunataur might be very different. One worship the aspect of light, the other the healing aspect of the deity. Because of this, they might even be at odds with each other as one sect of Amunataur worship him for his lordship over light and the other sect goes for the healing aspect. Religious wars started for less...

So the domain you choose to worship your god for might reflect on how you worship him and how your current church sees you. Are you an heretic that worship the god on a false truth ( you picked the wrong domain) are you in harmony with your church? There are many possibilities associated with this single aspect of a domain.

Edit:" Just the damn auto corrector"

But you literally just proved that you don't need a domain to do this. "The domains allow for roleplay. Two clerics of Amunataur might be very different. One worship the aspect of light, the other the healing aspect of the deity." That isn't picking the light domain, or picking the life domain. I don't have to put "Acolyte: Domain of Life" I just emphasize the worship of Amaunator The LifeBringer.

I'm not saying that Max is wrong about gods having multiple aspects of worship, or sects. I'm saying that "domains" aren't something you pick as an acolyte. Because they aren't. I mean, you could worhip BOTH aspects of Amaunator, does that mean you as an Acolyte have access to the Life and Light Domains? No. Because "domains" are a mechanic for clerics.

 

[Maxperson]

No, I didn't. Domains mean nothing about actually worshiping the god or even being part of a sect. Domains are subclasses for Clerics. That is it.

No. This is bunk. A cleric of Eldath who has the nature domain will worship in a different way than a cleric of Eldath with the Life domain, and likely be in different sects. Hell the cleric class even says you are wrong, "As a cleric, you choose one aspect of your deity's portfolio to emphasize, and you are granted powers related to that domain." You emphasize the domain(roleplay) and are additionally granted powers related to it. The Acolyte only has the RP portion.

 

[Helldritch]

But you literally just proved that you don't need a domain to do this. "The domains allow for roleplay. Two clerics of Amunataur might be very different. One worship the aspect of light, the other the healing aspect of the deity." That isn't picking the light domain, or picking the life domain. I don't have to put "Acolyte: Domain of Life" I just emphasize the worship of Amaunator The LifeBringer.

I'm not saying that Max is wrong about gods having multiple aspects of worship, or sects. I'm saying that "domains" aren't something you pick as an acolyte. Because they aren't. I mean, you could worhip BOTH aspects of Amaunator, does that mean you as an Acolyte have access to the Life and Light Domains? No. Because "domains" are a mechanic for clerics.

Ho you are so wrong. Either you are unaware of how different religions works even when worshipping the same god or simply choose to ignore how it really works. Some sects might be at war, others might be allies or simply tolerate each others for a "greater good".

Imagine a god with two domains. You could have different sects for one domain, others for the other one and even a few sects worshipping both aspects but at odds with each others....

Such is the way of religions and religious wars. 3 of the main religions of this world have fought each others in the past and they worship the se god! Even within the catholic church base, there are many offshoots...

Imagine a world where a god can have many aspects, all of them right. Who's the most aligned with their god? Especially if the god stays silent on the subject for reasons known to it only...

 

[Chaosmancer]

No. This is bunk. A cleric of Eldath who has the nature domain will worship in a different way than a cleric of Eldath with the Life domain, and likely be in different sects. Hell the cleric class even says you are wrong, "As a cleric, you choose one aspect of your deity's portfolio to emphasize, and you are granted powers related to that domain." You emphasize the domain(roleplay) and are additionally granted powers related to it. The Acolyte only has the RP portion.

Remember that thing about highlighting the wrong parts of your quotes? You might have missed the part that says "and you are granted powers related to that domain." Clerics choose an aspect to emphasize, as a domain that they follow, because it grants them powers.

An acolyte doesn't choose a domain. You can have an Acolyte of Lathander as a War God who leads his people into battle. They pick aspects, sects, how to worship, but the "Domain" is a purely mechanical aspect that Clerics utilize as their subclass. Again, the part you are quoting and relying on is talking about domains for clerics.

Actually, I just went to find the quote and realized you aren't even quoting the Acolyte Background. The Acolyte NEVER uses the word domain. You were quoting Appendix B. Let's look at the full paragraph here, not just that sentence.

"Your DM determines which gods, if any, are worshiped in his or her campaign. From among the gods available, you can choose a single deity for your character to serve, worship, or pay lip service to. Or you can pick a few that your character prays to most often. Or just make a mental note of the gods who are revered in your DM’s campaign so you can invoke their names when appropriate. If you’re playing a cleric or a character with the Acolyte background, decide which god your deity serves or served, and consider the deity’s suggested domains when selecting your character’s domain."

If you are playing a cleric or a character with the background, decide which god your deity serves or served.
Consider the deity's suggested domains when selecting your character's domain.

The acolyte doesn't select a domain. Nowhere in the Acolyte background does it call on you to select a Domain. The only time your character is officially called on to select a domain is as a cleric, because your domain is your subclass as a cleric. You are taking the idea of religious sects, then tying it to domains, which you don't need to do. You can have two sects worshiping the same god in the same "domain" but just in different ways. The concepts aren't linked. And you are doing this solely so you can say that the Death Domain, which is the ONLY domain listed for Iuz, is listed for Iuz because the non-spellcasting acolyte needs it to know how to properly pick which way they worship Iuz.

 

[Maxperson]

Remember that thing about highlighting the wrong parts of your quotes? You might have missed the part that says "and you are granted powers related to that domain." Clerics choose an aspect to emphasize, as a domain that they follow, because it grants them powers.

Nawp! Doesn't say "because." That's your invention. The reality is that it is AND are granted powers, meaning you do the roleplay as a cleric or an acolyte, and if you are a cleric you are also granted powers.

An acolyte doesn't choose a domain. You can have an Acolyte of Lathander as a War God who leads his people into battle. They pick aspects, sects, how to worship, but the "Domain" is a purely mechanical aspect that Clerics utilize as their subclass. Again, the part you are quoting and relying on is talking about domains for clerics.

Actually, I just went to find the quote and realized you aren't even quoting the Acolyte Background. The Acolyte NEVER uses the word domain. You were quoting Appendix B. Let's look at the full paragraph here, not just that sentence.

"Your DM determines which gods, if any, are worshiped in his or her campaign. From among the gods available, you can choose a single deity for your character to serve, worship, or pay lip service to. Or you can pick a few that your character prays to most often. Or just make a mental note of the gods who are revered in your DM’s campaign so you can invoke their names when appropriate. If you’re playing a cleric or a character with the Acolyte background, decide which god your deity serves or served, and consider the deity’s suggested domains when selecting your character’s domain."

If you are playing a cleric or a character with the background, decide which god your deity serves or served.
Consider the deity's suggested domains when selecting your character's domain.

The acolyte doesn't select a domain. Nowhere in the Acolyte background does it call on you to select a Domain. The only time your character is officially called on to select a domain is as a cleric, because your domain is your subclass as a cleric. You are taking the idea of religious sects, then tying it to domains, which you don't need to do. You can have two sects worshiping the same god in the same "domain" but just in different ways. The concepts aren't linked. And you are doing this solely so you can say that the Death Domain, which is the ONLY domain listed for Iuz, is listed for Iuz because the non-spellcasting acolyte needs it to know how to properly pick which way they worship Iuz.

Since you seem to have forgotten.

"If you're playing a cleric or a character with the Acolyte background, decide which god your deity serves or served, and consider the deity's suggested domains when selecting your character's domain."

That sentence is not badly written. You just don't like that which soundly defeats your arguments.

 

[Chaosmancer]

Ho you are so wrong. Either you are unaware of how different religions works even when worshipping the same god or simply choose to ignore how it really works. Some sects might be at war, others might be allies or simply tolerate each others for a "greater good".

This literally has nothing to do with what we are discussing.

Imagine a god with two domains. You could have different sects for one domain, others for the other one and even a few sects worshipping both aspects but at odds with each others....

Uh huh, and therefore since you can have different sects following the same aspect of the god, then there isn't really anything in the domain that makes it special for the acolyte. Domains are only the mechanics for clerics. That is it. Take for instance the PHB version of Moradin. He only has the Knowledge domain.

Could you have a worshiper of Moradin as a Master of the Forge and master of craft? Yes. Could you have a worshiper of Moradin as the God of warriors protecting the home? Yes. Could you have a worshiper of Moradin as the aspect of stone and mountains? Yes.

The domain has nothing to do with it. The aspects of Moradin, the things his worship is related to, that's what matters.

Such is the way of religions and religious wars. 3 of the main religions of this world have fought each others in the past and they worship the se god! Even within the catholic church base, there are many offshoots...

And none of that requires Domains. Domains are only the mechanical tool for Cleric subclasses.

Think of this for a moment. Chauntea is the Goddess of Agriculture. She has only a single Domain. Life. So, does picking the Life domain tell you anything about how your character worships Chauntea? No. You might worship her as the goddess of the harvest, or the goddess of spring growth, or the goddess of harmony with nature, or the goddess of mothers, none of which have anything to do with Domains.

Domains =/= Aspects/Sects/ect

Imagine a world where a god can have many aspects, all of them right. Who's the most aligned with their god? Especially if the god stays silent on the subject for reasons known to it only...

And that question has zero bearing on Domains, which are cleric subclasses. I'm not saying you can't have aspects. I'm saying that a fighter doesn't get to pick a domain, they get to pick a Martial Archetype. Domains might hint at ideas for differentiating a god or goddess into different aspects, but they aren't related directly.