"There's two dozen barbarians outside!"
shouted the guard by the door.

"Wonderful!" cried the cleric of Thor.
"That's only six apiece! Charge!"

"Not yet, fool !" The cleric of Tyr
grabbed him by the shoulder before he
could break for the door. "Defeating them
requires a well-organized plan. You move
when I command, and not before!"

"I'm not moving, whatever you command,
-- the cleric of Diancecht said firmly.
"There's a half-dozen injured men in here,
and I'm staying to protect them."

"I don't know why you're all making
such a fuss." The priestess of Aphrodite
smiled as she loosened the neckline of her
robe. "Why don't I go out first and see if I
can offer them . . . something in return for
our safety?"
 

Arguments like this don't happen too
often in AD&D® game campaigns; in a way,
that's a pity. All too often, role-playing a
cleric is seen primarily as a matter of roleplaying
an alignment; if a character follows
his god's alignment and preaches adherence
to that alignment at every opportunity,
that's role-playing a cleric, right?

Not entirely. True, alignment is part of a
cleric's role, but there's a great deal more to
consider. For one thing, not everyone who
shares alignment thinks the same way. Put a
military dictator and a royal tyrant together
and see how heated the disputes become!
Each may be lawful evil, but each could
have a different view of how his alignment
should be served.

The same thing applies to gods and, by
extension, to their clerics. Two gods may
share the same alignment, but that doesn?t
mean they share the same outlook. Each
lawful good sect will have its own idea of
how to serve the lawful good ethos best;
role-playing a cleric not only requires characters
to follow an alignment, but to decide
how to follow it.

Let's consider the lawful good alignment.
The DEITIES & DEMIGODS Cyclopedia
describes the Norse god Tyr as both a
war-god and the god of law and trust. With
an outlook like that, his clerics might be
expected to battle any evil that threatens the
existing order (evil gods and their clerical
minions, humanoids, rogue humans, and so
forth).

On the other hand, there's Diancecht, the
lawful good Celtic healer-god. The DDG
book emphasizes that he never fights in
large battles, and that even those who heal
characters of evil alignment may serve him
-- hardly the same as the qualities of a god
devoted to fighting and slaying evil types.
Diancecht is not any less good than Tyr, or
any less lawful, but his clerics would more
likely be charged to "heal the sick, protect
the weak, and let no harm come to the
helpless." Both gods have lawful good
creeds, but each creed is very different in
practice.

Consider, too, chaotic good gods like the
elven deity Corellon Larethian and the
Norse thunder-god Thor. Corellon is an
elven ideal, a mighty warrior but genteel
and cultured; Thor is a hot-headed, violent
deity with a passion for hammering the
nearest giant into a pulp. It's doubtful that
they, or their clerics, would have the same
outlook on the world.

A cleric's mission in life entails a great
deal more than just following his alignment.
This concept can be elaborated upon still
further. For example, if your cleric's deity is
a god of war, what sub-topic of that subject
does he focus on? Ares glories in bloodlust
and destruction; Athena is devoted to fighting
skill and battle art; Thor loves nothing
so much as a good brawl; Tyr may see
fighting as the tool by which good dominates
evil.

What methods do gods want their clerics
to use? To some extent, the Dungeon Master
is on his own in deciding this. Would
clerics see Tyr as a god of army commanders,
favoring harsh discipline, clear
chains of command, and military order? Or
is his ideal servant a loner, a man standing
on his own against chaos and evil?

In a tight situation, Hermes might expect
his clerics to rely on trickery or cunning, his
own great gifts. A god of bards (Oghma,
Bragi, or Apollo) presumably values eloquence;
the clerics of such a god might be
expected to talk their way out of tough
situations. War gods like Ishtar and Ares
might want their clerics to use force and
fighting prowess.

These guidelines are certainly not absolute
-- to say that clerics of Hermes would
never fight, or that clerics of war-gods
would never negotiate, would be absurd.
But in a pinch, it seems reasonable that a
cleric would usually use tactics similar to
those used by his god. And certainly he
should win great favor with his deity for
doing so.

Who is your cleric supposed to be fighting?
Does his sect have any particular foes
or enemies? Thor?s hatred of giant-kind is
well known; his clerics might be dedicated
to making war on giant-class humanoids,
particularly frost giants and fire giants.
Anubis, on the other hand, is a lawful good
god of death; as such, undead must appear
to be the ultimate blasphemy. His clerics 
would seek out and destroy undead in preference
to other foes, even opting to engage
and slay undead rather than play it safe and
try to turn them away. Of course, reason
and sanity should prevail -- third-level
clerics of Thor don't take on fire giants, and
a low-level cleric of Anubis wouldn't be
expected to stand alone against a vampire.

Beyond these mortal struggles, there is
the cosmic struggle, the wars of the gods.
Who are the special enemies or friends in
this sphere of activity? Anubis may hate all
demonkind, but his greatest hostility would
surely be reserved for Orcus, master of the
undead. Clerics of Anubis might be required
to do more in opposing a scheme of
Orcus than against the schemes of Demogorgon
or Lolth. Aphrodite and the elven
love-goddess Hanali Celanil are not active
allies, but they accept each other's presence.
Clerics of either goddess would probably
oppose the demon lord that rules succubi,
which are the embodiment of debased,
corrupted love and sexuality. (No such
demon lord is given in the Monster Manuals,
but a DM could create one for his own
world.)

Beyond the obvious assumptions we can
make, relationships among and between
gods are the province of the Dungeon Master.
Do the sky-gods Zeus, Enlil, and Anu
see each other as allies, dangerous competitors,
or respectful rivals?

Keep in mind that relationships among
gods, like clerical codes, are based upon
more than alignment -- the relations between
the quarrelsome Greek deities are
good examples of this. Pan and Apollo, and
members of their respective sects, were
rivals because the two gods unwillingly
shared dominion over music. Aphrodite
resented Hephaestus, her husband, because
she hated being married to a club-footed
cripple; Hephaestus, in turn, resented Ares
for sharing Aphrodite's bed. Athena and
Ares were opponents, while Apollo and
Artemis were loving brother and sister.
Again, it is up to the DM to decide how
much these relationships influence the
deities' sects and their clerics.

What about those activities that are part
of every cleric's duties, like converting nonbelievers --
In the first place, are a god's
worshipers only found among a certain
character class or social group, or are they
from all walks of life? Are only humans
allowed to be worshipers, or do their clerics
recruit from among demi-humankind? Does
the god demand exclusive worship, or can
someone worship several gods at once?
What methods are acceptable in attempting
to win followers? Ishtar's clerics might force 
conversion from those they defeat in battle
("Serve me!"). Ares, an evil war-god,
might have his clerics force conversion from
anyone they can ("Serve me -- or die!").
Loviatar, mistress of pain, might consider
torture a good means by which to instill
faith ("Serve me or die -- slowly!"). Clerics
of Aphrodite, goddess of love, might persuade
unbelievers by well, I'm sure you
can figure that one out.

Another thing to consider is that lesser
gods and demigods may be far more anxious
to win followers than greater gods
would be. Clerics of Zeus may feel secure in
their god's supremacy, but clerics of minor
deities like Hephaestus or Tyche would
have more reason to seek new worshipers to
improve their god's status.

Another thing to consider is that lesser
gods and demigods may be far more anxious
to win followers than greater gods
would be. Clerics of Zeus may feel secure in
their god's supremacy, but clerics of minor
deities like Hephaestus or Tyche would
have more reason to seek new worshipers to
improve their god's status.

An important task of clerics is prayer. It's
always struck me as odd that the rules of the
AD&D® game give clerics no more of a
chance to summon aid through prayer than
common mortals have. In my campaigns,
clerics get a percentage bonus to their
chance of calling for divine assistance. This
bonus is 15% per level of the cleric, but since
I only give a 1% base chance for receiving
divine aid (as opposed to the "official" 10%
base chance), it evens out. In addition, I
take the god's own purposes into account,
for an added bonus of perhaps 1% or 2%;
Anubis may be more inclined to aid his
clerics against a lich or a ghost, Thor
against an army of hill giants, Thoth if a
book of ancient lore was at stake.

In addition, some gods may teach special
knowledge to their sects. Clerics of Diancecht
might know basic first aid (no small
achievement in a world where non-magical
medical knowledge is largely nonexistent); a
priest of Poseidon might have some knowledge
of sailing; a priest of Apollo ought to
be a competent musician.

Finally, the cleric's personal life should be
brought into consideration. Does his creed
view life as a grim, bloody struggle (as the
Aesir seem to perceive it), or as something
of a party affair (as most of the Olympians
apparently felt)? Are the gods serious, reckless,
helpful, or selfish? Do their sects have
rules on love and marriage, and if so, what
are they? Clerics of Aphrodite might be as
amorous as their mistress; Artemis, on the
other hand, was a virgin goddess ready to
kill anyone who saw her unclothed, so her
clerics might be bidden to remain celibate.
Druids might see their fertility as linked
with that of the earth, so they would remain
celibate except during religious rituals
celebrating planting or harvesting.

A cleric's duties to his god or goddess
require a great deal more than merely being
lawful or neutral, good or evil. They will
influence his thoughts. his actions, and his
very outlook on the world. Handled correctly,
guidelines like these should help
players and DMs define their clerics and
choose their actions without eliminating the
all-important personal touch.

Here's praying at you, kid.


MAY 1984