Theocracies, Priests, and Divine Might

[Tzarevitch]

I tend to agree that the effect of the churches on society is dramatically underplayed in most games. In most religious groups (and I have to think, in ALL groups where the presence of the God is everywhere and where people KNOW the God exists) the word of the cleric to a believer would be close to law. Damning a person's immortal soul to hell or being excommunicated was a terrifying prospect.

As a result, historically churches had IMMENSE political power. They had their own courts, they had their own military, and they controlled governments by telling the King that he would be damned if he didn't follow their recommendations. This immediately suggests some interesting plot twists.

The Birthright campaign I play in is the first time I noticed the power of the church actually factored into a game. The domain I rule (the Barony of Talinie) is a small to mid-size state, but it is also the seat of power of one of the top 3 churches on the continent (the Northern Imperial Temple) of which I am also the titular head (my character LG, Ran1/Pal1/Cleric13).

Talinie itself is an absolute theocracy (it is illegal to worship another religion and most of the bureaucracy of state including the judiciary, tax colleciton etc. is handled by the church), but the same temple entends into the neighboring nations and across the (civilized part of the) northwestern part of the continent.

The Birthright domain rules grant large churches a great deal of political power if they control a large percentage of worshipers within a nation. For example, if I choose I can agitate the people into open rebellion against the ruling lord or I can bless the land and its people to increase their productivity (and increase tax revenues for the ruler and the church) thereby making the lord very happy. I can also call upon the church to smooth over the people's reaction to unpopular policies from the lord's government or I can choose to incite the people against him. The end result is that the nations where my church exists have granted us the right to have clergy tried in our own courts, and the church is largely free from taxation (at least free from taxation by weaker lords). (In Talinie of course the church is the ONLY courts and tithing is required by law.)

The Birthright rules even factor in the dreaded power of Excommunication. (I haven't seen this used by any of the other temples yet because its effects are so dire.) When the church invokes the ritual of excommunication on someone it effectively declares him an enemy of the faith. The ritual places a mark on the person that all priests of that god can see ( I can't remember if lay worshippers can see it too). All priests of the god will forevermore will react indifferently AT BEST to that person. More likely the priests will react in a hostile manner to that person.

If cast on a ruler, the effect is even more dire because it stirs the followers of the church into open rebellion against the lord AND his machinery of state. (If I remember correctly, the common people who follow the church will actually take up arms and form levies to oust the lor from power.) The greater percentage of that church's followers who live in the realm, the bigger the rebellion and the more likely the people oust him from power. (If the church is the sole game in town, the excommunicated ruler is as good as gone).

Tzarevitch

 

[MasterOfHeaven]

I tend to agree that the effect of the churches on society is dramatically underplayed in most games. In most religious groups (and I have to think, in ALL groups where the presence of the God is everywhere and where people KNOW the God exists) the word of the cleric to a believer would be close to law. Damning a person's immortal soul to hell or being excommunicated was a terrifying prospect.

As a result, historically churches had IMMENSE political power. They had their own courts, they had their own military, and they controlled governments by telling the King that he would be damned if he didn't follow their recommendations. This immediately suggests some interesting plot twists.

Maybe... but you have to remember said churches were almost always the _only_ church. The first example that comes to mind is the Catholic Church in medieval times, and look what happened to their power base when Martin Luther created another religion.

Which is why I think almost no church in a standard D&D world would ever gain power to the extent the Catholic Church had... There are simply too many rival deities and faiths that the followers can turn to if their current religious persuasion is no longer feasible. I don't think I'd be terrified of "excommunication" if I knew I could just waltz on down to the temple of some other god and go to paradise anyway.

 

[Information]

Well, the situation can be complicated if you have a preachy PC cleric and other PCs of varied religious beliefs.

My own party is a good example. My PC cleric and fighter/bard are of the same deity, but the other party members worship different deities. But rather than usurping the mantle of other faiths for the sake of the PCs, the PC cleric acts as a moral guide and counselor in times of woe.

The political situation in my campaign is much more complex. The deities form alliances, and the earthly correlation of religious forces usually reflects these alliances. A "theocracy" in my campaign does not translate to rule by a religion, but is usually subsumed into some religious "cause", with various religions working together towards some end.

One country has taken upon itself the cause of eliminating, or at least minimizing, demonic prevalence and influence. So, it is "theocratic" in this sense, that it proceeds from a religious basis in forming and pursuing this cause, but it is hardly rule by a single church or religious body.

 

[Storminator]

By the same token, I would downplay heretical doctrines in a religion with an active deity. Heresies would likely be stamped out by the deities themselves. Think about it - the heretics would likely either be denied high-level spells, or be stricken dead.

I think heresies are great story lines, and should therefore be attempted in all games.

Here's a couple of possibilities: (1) An obscure temple has the priest's switch gods. The priests keep ruling in the name of the old god, collecting the tithes, healing the sick, etc. But the teachings change subtly, and the priests get spells from a new god.

(2) The god doesn't have direct conversations with priests in the gameworld (this is how my games work). The gods communicate thru dreams, visions, etc, and those communications are subject to interpretation. So different sects have different version of certain teaching and practices, and these sometimes diverge into radical difference. And how can you tell if the "bad luck" visited on a sect is the result of the deity's disfavor or another god's meddling?

IMC the different sects have different Domains. If you're a priest of Areon, you can be a Cleric (Domains Law and Good), a Defender (Domains Protection and Strength), an Exorcist (specially made Exorcist double Domain), or a Seer (Domains Knowledge and Healing, NPCs only). No mixing and matching Domains, and each Order has specific teachings. And not all of the things one Order considers taboo is offensive to another. FREX, the Clerics have decreed that mages are an affront to Areon and casting spells is a death sentence. Exorcists could care less. Ridding the world of undead is their only mission, and the Cleric's obsession with the disfunct mage guilds is a big waste of time.

The natural differences in the sects are perfectly prepared for heresies, both real and imagined.

Oh, yeah! SHARK's original point: Religion dominates every aspect of my game, which is essentially monotheistic (if you don't worship Areon you must be a devil worshipper! Heathen! Kill him!)

PS

 

[Harakhan Hexbringer]

Hello everyone! I figured this would be a good subject for my first post, since I have a little experience on the subject of Theocracy in D&D.

Back in 1993 I started a hybrid 1st ed/ 2nd ed AD&D campaign with a different twist. I was tired of the several dozen gods that players could choose from, and I figured I would try a monotheistic setting. After making this decision the next logical step would have to be to make the clerics the ruling government in society, patterned after the Catholic church in the middle ages. They could reasonably back their power by immediate displays of divine might.

The most interesting part of running the campaign was fitting in other spell-casters, such as mages and especially druids, who directly rivaled clerics. The results turned out rather predictable but interesting.

Druids tended to be few in numbers but exceedingly powerful, claiming thousands of square miles of wild lands and allying themselves with the most vicious of creatures, such as werewolves and an ancient green dragon in one example. Only with their combined efforts were they able to stave back the nearly all-powerful Theocracy of Mystra, or the Church as everyone who had a will to live addressed them.

Wizards on the other hand were a bit more tricky to handle. Wizards by nature are extremely intelligent and extremely powerful. They also tend to be bookish, which was their saving grace. After several terrible conflicts (historically), the Church and the mages drew a truce. The mages constructed an academy of magic, funded in part by the Church, and trained the clerics in the mage arts. In turn, the mages were left alone but never totally socially accepted.

As for the "nobility", they were chosen by the Church and given a hereditary bloodline, or they were former adventurers that served the Church well, and given kingdoms to keep them at peace with the Church. Commoners and other adventurers paid them the proper respect, partially out of fear for the Church, and partially out of fear for the immense resources the nobility could command.

I'm sure some would like to know why I picked Mystra as the one goddess. Firstly, I wanted a goddess because I wanted to enjoy the social ramifications of men being the "weaker sex" traditionally. 95% of Mystra's clerics were women. Male priests were highly revered, more so than the women becaue they were clearly destined for greatness. The second reason was that Mystra was the goddess of magic, mystery, and fate. Magic, so that wizards could exist without immediate persecution. Mystery and fate were good choices because clerics could immediately dismiss unexplainable phenomena and circumstances and "the will of the Goddess" and it was readily believeable. Lastly, Mystra was a Chaotic Good goddess by nature. The internal conflicts of a priesthood that strives to allow individuality and freedom by doctrine yet maintains and controls a stuctured society was too declicious to pass up.

Amongst other odd tidbits, Thievery was a trade by nature and not to be shunned. Commoners and Nobles alike used thieves to cause humiliation or to settle scores. If a thief was caught, it was not technically a crime, but it was a humiliation on the part of the thief simply because he was caught. Only a priestess could legally command him to reveal his sponsor. Of course, stealing from the Church was punishable by death.

Most of the game was centered around role-playing and political conflict, as one might guess already. The social strata was set in stone before the PC's began playing. They had the freedom to make any class/race they wanted, and of course they had the choice to worship Mystra or nobody, but woe to the PC that had a priestess tend to their wounds and their Cure Light Wounds spell fails.

Races were another interesting facet to the monotheistic campaign. Dwarves were absolutely devoted to Mystra, but their innate Lawful tendencies always made the pure doctrines of Mystra uncomfortable and unnatural with them. Their place in maintaining order and structure in the vast Theocrasy assured their place in society however. Elves, being Chaotic Good by nature and the eldest of the races, kept most of the ancient history of the Church, and were highly respected. They also tended to look down on the other races, and the oldest elves held humans with great suspicion for "some reason". Halflings were free spirits and tended to wander frequently, and were acknowlegded kindly by the other races as adherents to the pure path of the Goddess. Half-Elves, sadly, were outsiders socially. They were accepted and loved by priestesses without prejudice, but they were too long lived to easily associate with humans, and too repulsive and short-lived to exist well with elves. Gnomes did not last long as far as the overall campaign goes. They were similar to "tinker gnomes" a la Dragonlance but their inventions actually worked. Consequently, their technology level was a mix between late renissance and the industrial era. Steam powered bullet trains were interesting when they're designed for 3 foot gnomes and 6 foot PCs are riding inside. Unfortunately the technological might of the Gnomes was no match for the Drow. In this campaign, the Drow were Lawful Evil and total atheists. Their magical exploits were unmatched by any other race.

I think I've babbled long enough. The Mystra campaign lasted until last year, when one of my friends finally convinced me to try 3rd. ed. D&D. I had about 14 players during one session at its peak. I would have to say it was successful, and if you haven't run one yet, let me give you a small piece of advice: Plan, plan, and plan. There are innumerable nuances to the role-playing aspects to running this sort of game, and the players are going to ask very obtuse questions.

 

[Chimera]

Clerics can, and should, be major players in every Government. Not only from the Religion side, but from their natural skills (wisdom and charisma, Diplomacy) and the honor of their position.

IMC: Clerics have assumed major roles in several new governments. The Kingdom of the Coast, in order to both placate and limit the powerful Prelate of Tambri in the southern regions where the Church of Tambri was dominant, established the Duchy of Harmony, with the Prelacy of Tambri holding the Duchy in perpetuity. To limit her power, the Duchy of Harmony is only 40% of the southern region, with the rest divided between the weak Duke of Inisdale (the son of a dead rival of the King - peacemaking with the family) and the powerful Duke of Egrena (another rival - given this position to get him out of the Capital).

Clerics run several other governments, independent of their clerical domains.

 

[Piratecat]

Harakhan, welcome! Great first post. The game sounds like it was wonderful, and well situated for 3e conversion....

I happen to love intra-church plot lines. Most churches have different branches and sub-sects, and they often don't get along. Makes for fun DMing and interesting role playing.

 

[Corinth]

Religion is not a major factor in my current D&D campaign because it's set in Middle-Earth, which is notoriously lacking in organized religions in amongst its free peoples. However, much of this thread also applies to a campaign where faith is omnipresent because it is (almost always) true and verifiable.

 

[Harakhan Hexbringer]

There can be only one...goddess

Church sects were an integral part of the Theocracy of Mystra. Although there were few of them, some were more feared than others. In my earlier post, I showed there were two kinds of priests, mainly: The fighter/priest and the wizard/priest.

The original reason behind these multi-classed characters was much more innocent: I wanted them to appeal more to players, but at a price. Historically (before 3rd. ed) players generally didn't play many clerics in my games (or in many others according to several posts on the net and Dragon articles) because their offensive capabilities were limited in both melee and magic. Even though players knew they would be up sh*t creek without one, nobody wanted to be the loser stuck with the medic. Personally, my favorite class has been cleric since 1st ed, but I digress. I wanted to tempt the players with additional power, but I recognized that making them multi-classed gave them more power (especially than fighters or wizards) so I bumped up their xp tables a little (custom xp tables) and made each of them understand that the biggest challenge was playing a character with political power not just game mechanics power, and the role-playing challenge would be the most significant judge of their xp gain, not their spell or fighting prowess. Everyone took me up on my offer once. Sometimes they succeeded and played a priest(ess) again later.

The two sects immediately sprang up as a result: Wizard/Priests were superior to Fighter/Priests. Taking role-playing cues from the players, I expanded this immediate bias to include the rest of the campaign. Soon it was discovered that none of the Fighter/Priests ever rose above Bishop rank in the Church. Wizard/Priests were the key players in power within and without the church, while the Fighter/Priests were typically seen supporting the common people and winning the hearts of fellow warriors on the battlefield.

During year four of the campaign, the party stumbled across an island far west of their native coast, about 2300 miles away. This island was populated by a noble race of minotaur. Not the savage race of the Monster Manual, but proud and highly intelligent. Their civilization had the majesty of Rome.

Unfortunately, it also had their military might.

Curious by the presence of humans on their island, their council thought it the best strategm to escort the humans back to their homeland and see what military capabilities these humans had. They spoke to the party on the way and soon discovered they worshipped a different god, and these minotaur knew of the Goddess, but worshpped a false god. His name was Raiden, god of war and nature. When the party returned with these guests, the Church elders (elves) were in dismay. They knew exactly who these minotaur were and which faith they represented.

A new sect was born: The Hand of Mystra. Or as you would call it, the Inquisition.

By the time the church's slow moving cogs assembled and trained members of this sect, the knowledge of Raiden was already spreading throughout the land. Needless to say, the players were a BIT frightened the Hand would find out.

Members of The Hand of Mystra were easily recognized. Typically, priestesses wore red primarily (the holy color) and silver, with hints of black. Naturally these raiments varied according to profession and rank, but I won't go further with that. The Hand, however, wore primarily black robes with silver. Their training combined the best of both prior sects (Fi/Wi/Cl) and they were outfitted with deadly "holy" items to find heretics wherever they went. Curiously, I made about 80% of them Lawful Neutral role-playing wise. The other 20% were evenly divided between good and evil (yes, I know the alignment thing, but it's my campaign, by thunder).

Unfortunately the Church, in their forming of these elite priests, made one mistake: quality over quantity. The Church was primarily run by elves, who like to take things slow. There were too few priests to go around, and few knights were willing to travel with such "heartless ministers". I had several knighthoods from various kingdoms with various philosophies and purposes, but nobody liked The Hand... personally. More people were needed to protect the Church's inquisitors. Thus the Order of the Crimson Heart was born. Culled from the most fanatical youth (can you say 1984?) these "paladins" were trained in the use of minor magical ability and given the divine powers of the paladin. Their fanatic devotion was tattoed on their faces, litarally. Upon entering the order, the holy symbol (a hand surrounded by silver flame) was tattoed on their faces or throat, and proudly displayed. Their mission was to root out evil and heretics at any cost.

The cost was insurmountable. Even as the Church fought to grasp even more military control from the nobility, their own efforts started to destroy them from the inside with political in-fighting. Priestesses turned against each other, Elves and humans no longer trusted each other; elves posessed the dangerous knowledge of this "Raiden" and feared to share it with their human counterparts. Kingdoms warred with each other without the united Church to prevent it. Priests abandoned the divine hierarchy of the Eye seeking to ally themselves with nobles who quietly built up their might and drove out the Hand's vicious inquisitors.

Then the armies of minotaur came. After an extremely short war, the minotaur claimed a large chunk of geography, and the Church was back in power. Unfortunately for her ememies, she did not forget the unfaithful that turned their backs to the Goddess.

The Church made an offer to members of the Guild, short for the Assassin's guild. If any of their members would leave their ranks and join the crusade against the unfaithful and the pagans, their sins would be absolved by the Eye of Mystra herself (sound familiar?). Since the beginning of the campaign, the only force the Church could not extinguish was the mighty Guild, whose members never were captured and died minutes afterwards if that inevitability did come. They represented everything the Goddess was not. The church was amazed to see several actual assassins repent and join. Soon another sect was born: the Crusaders.

Unfortunately these new heroes of the Goddess had little time to show their mettle before another force attacked from a previously impassable mountain range thousands of miles north (damn adventurers!). This black army, comprised of humanoids, and much worse tore through the frontier of the holy land, ten times as merciless and fierce as the minotaur. The words of their unspeakable atrocities reached the ears of the Church's authority too late. These worshippers of "Myrkhul" had claimed all the lands north of Wolfwood as their own. They were said to be ruled by a few powerful men, humans, but... not human. The Church soon decided to send their Crusaders to assassinate these leaders in hopes of breaking up their ranks.

The Drow, who were behind the Guild since its birth, couldn't be more pleased. But that's another political story.