So Many Gods
So Little Time
Designing unique clerics and pantheons

 

Selecting a pantheon	Polytheism	Monotheism	Rival religions	Purpose and other considerations
Other options	Unique priesthoods	-	-	-
1st Edition AD&D	-	Dragon #140	-	Dragon magazine

Most players of the D&D® or AD&D®
games have had to address the question of
religion in the game, whether they liked to
or not. Few DMs relish the thought of
dealing with a complicated religious system,
and players rarely want to bother
with living up to a gods demands, particularly
if they aren?t playing clerics or paladins.
Consequently, most PCs either avoid
gods altogether by professing to atheism
or fail to take the gods they worship seriously.
This is too bad, because religion can
greatly enrich the game by providing
depth of character for PCs and NPCs alike.

As a rule, the religious system presented
in the AD&D game is oversimplified. All
clerics, whether they worship Bast or
Odin, use the same spells, armor, and
weapons. The personalities, motives, and
relationships of the gods are almost
ignored in the official rule books. In fact,
the only difference between clerics of
different gods is their alignments. No
provision is made for organized priesthoods,
and if the gods are offended by the
actions of a mortal, punishment is invariably
the same (religion takes such a small
role in many campaigns).

This weakness of the official rules isn?t
due to any fault of the game?s designers.
When the AD&D game rules were written,
most people played games consisting
of a group of stereotypical characters
venturing into the depths of no-man's-land
in search of ready cash. In this type of
campaign, all the religious guidelines needed
were a few practical rules about the PC
and NPC clerics. Since the early game
format emphasized action over roleplaying,
gamers didn?t really need detailed
information about role-playing the worshiper
of a certain god. In recent years,
the AD&D game has taken on a broader
scope, and many players want their
worlds to be as detailed and ?realistic? as
possible. For these gamers, the official
religious system has a number of faults.

Selecting a pantheon
To cultivate a workable, fairly complex,
and interesting religious system, the DM
should first select which gods are to be
worshiped in the campaign area. The
culture of the people should be worked
out in advance, because the gods need to
fit in with the society that worships them.
Also, the DM should be sure that the players
will be able to relate to the gods he
chooses. There may be some difficulty in
using real mythological gods (particularly
the Greek and Roman ones) because of
this. Most of our information about these
gods comes from plays written by Greek
scholars, many of whom didn?t take their
gods too seriously. Furthermore, many of
these plays are comedies, attributing
human vices to the gods. Accordingly, we
snicker when our characters are expected
to pay homage to Aphrddite, and we see
Zeus as a skinnier version of Archie Bunker.
But religion should be a real force in a
campaign. As a result, if players have
trouble taking the Olympians seriously,
don?t use them.

When using another pantheon, like the
Finnish or Egyptian, one encounters
another problem. Since these gods were
produced by real people, they reflect the
values of their respective societies. If the
DM doesn't know a whole lot about medieval
Finland or ancient Egypt, he may be
uncomfortable role-playing the gods of
these pantheons. Players, too, will have
difficulty relating to a god whose name
they can?t even pronounce. If a DM really
wants to use a pantheon from history, he
should get his hands on a good handbook
of mythology. From the myths, the personalities
of the gods may be extrapolated.
The DEITIES & DEMIGODS book is more concerned
with the physical capabilities of the
gods, and neglects to cite examples from
mythology. It is useful in comparing the
powers of the gods, and lists holy days,
sacrifices, and the like, but it isn't very
helpful in selecting a pantheon or getting
familiar with the deities.

As an alternative to hunting through
libraries in search of gods that don?t fit the
campaign world, the DM can create his
own pantheon. He can then be sure of
effectively role-playing the gods, and can
inform the players of the deities? powers
and reputations. He can tell the players
exactly what he wants them to know
about the deities. Each player may be told
a great deal of information about his own
god and some details concerning others,
while other deities could remain a mystery.
This allows the DM to introduce
some mystery into the game, as players
could be unsure of the motivations of
other gods (even those of their companions).
Actual alignments will almost certainly
remain unknown; even that of a
player?s own god could remain a mystery!

Polytheism
In historical polytheistic societies, people
didn?t choose one god and worship him to
the exclusion of all others. Instead, they
simply prayed to one god more often than
any of the others. In Ancient Rome, for
example, soldiers spent a lot of time pray
ing to war gods, farmers to gods of fertility,
and so on. People prayed to whatever
deities had influence over them at the
time. Thus, within the AD&D game campaign,
a fisherman who prays to Poseidon
on a regular basis wouldn?t hesitate to ask
Hermes for a hand while gambling.

Even clerics should pray to gods other
than their patrons. It is for this reason
that evil gods are tolerated and worshiped;
although evil, they still have divine
powers. Just because someone worships
an evil god doesn?t mean he is necessarily
evil. People selected gods more by their
spheres of control than by their alignments
and attitudes. Clerics would not be
an exception to this. The alignment of a
cleric character is influenced primarily by
the god he worships, but there are just as
many personal factors as there are for
other character classes. The cleric?s alignment
really depends on how he interprets
and follows his god?s will. As a historical
example, the monks who conducted the
Spanish Inquisition aren?t commonly
thought of as being nice guys. Nevertheless,
they were respected (albeit feared)
members of the Christian church.

Clerics whose alignments are different
from those of their gods may find themselves
forced to perform certain acts out
of alignment. Provided that this act is in
accordance with the desires of the deity,
they should not be penalized; indeed,
differently aligned clerics may incur the
wrath of their own gods if they fail to
fulfill their demands. Clerics will never
question the actions or will of their own
gods, as such behavior signifies a lack of
faith. Thus, even a lawful-good cleric
whose god demands human sacrifices will
perform the ritual out of fear of his god if
not love for him.

Because people often pray to other gods
within the same pantheon, there is seldom
any friction between the priesthoods of
two deities of the same culture. The gods
themselves may be locked in a deadly
struggle, but their human followers will
display nothing more than distrust and
aversion. If there is any hostility in the
world due to religion, it is more likely that
the conflict will be between religions
rather than individual gods.

Monotheism
Another rarely discussed alternative to
paganism is monotheism: the belief in one
god. Although it may seem odd at first,
monotheism fits in well with the game. In
fact, the cleric character class seems to be
loosely based on Christianity. They wield
hammers and maces, as did the real fighting
priests, because they were forbidden
to shed blood. Many spells seem to be
based on the spiritual powers of biblical
saints and similar figures. In fact, a close
look at some of the illustrations in the rule
books will reveal clerics with crosses
emblazoned on their surcoats. Monotheism,
then, can?t be totally foreign to the
AD&D game system.

There are several factors that make a
monotheistic religion desirable in the
campaign. First, monotheists don?t have to
deal with other deities in their own pantheon,
so they are less likely to be tolerant
of other religions. Since there is only one
god, more people have alignments that
differ from that of their deity. This is as
true of clerics as other persons. Accordingly,
there can be a lot more corruption
among clergymen. There will also be a
number of semifaithful people who can?t
always be trusted to live up to the god?s
ideals. With only one divine power, a
single god can place any restrictions whatsoever
on the populace. The theory of
divine rule is a lot more convincing if
there aren?t any other gods to contest the
choice of a king. The list goes on.

A monotheistic religion may or may not
approximate one from actual history.
Judaism, Islam, and Christianity would all
be exciting aspects of any campaign world.
Christianity fits in particularly well if it is
organized in such a way that it reflects the
less-than-ideal moral environment of the
pre-Reformation Catholic Church But the
DM could easily come up with a plausible
monotheistic religion that fits into his
world perfectly. Examples may be taken
from literature as well. Druidism, as
described briefly on page 21 of the Players
Handbook, could also be developed into a
worthwhile game religion.

Rival religions
After selecting or creating the first pantheon
in his world, the DM may wish to
introduce one or more other religions.
Besides providing more variety for players'
religions, religious conflicts are an excellent
source of action for any game. With
the introduction of rival religions, clerics
whom the Players Handbook describe as
warrior priests have someone to war
against. Paladins clash in bloody, glorious
crusades. Martyrs, heretics, and saints
inspire people to violence and uprising.
Perhaps one of the religions in the game is
in some way oppressive, conquering unbelievers
or banning witchcraft. Player characters
can easily be swept up in religious
conflicts. Imagine a campaign world like
Arthurian England, where the druids still
practice their secret ways and the pagans
slowly yield to the growth of Christianity.
Each of these religions is in conflict with
the other, though not always open warfare.
Multiple religions help players fit
more easily into a variety of roles, and
heroic characters may become great crusaders,
rallying the faithful to defend their
beliefs, rather than participating in a shallow,
boring struggle against the cosmic
forces of evil.

When selecting a second religion, the
DM should exercise the same degree of
caution. If a violent conflict is desired, the
second religion should be sufficiently
different from the first to merit this. The
DM may wish for the second religion to be
purely evil (i.e., composed entirely of evil
gods). It may be more rewarding for the
second religion to be merely different
from the first, so the players aren?t sure
who is right. Any religion will have less
respect for another pantheon than for
even the most unpopular god in its own.
Some religions may be aggressive, believing
that their divine duty is to conquer
and destroy all heathens. Others may see
all foreign gods as evil spirits or devils.
Most, however, will simply profess that
other religions are false, and place restrictions
on associating with such heathens.

Whenever religious warfare springs up,
the DM must decide its cause. Was it the
direct will of one or more of the gods
involved or a human action based on the
gods word? This is important ? not from
the players? point of view but from the
DM?s. To the players, a religious war is a
religious war. It is important for the DM to
know if one or more gods are directly
supporting the armies, however, for purposes
of spell-casting. If a god is supporting
his clerics in warfare, the enemy
troops will be considered evil for such
spells as detect evil, and reversed spells
are more likely to be granted. If, however,
the war is the result of a human decision,
such spells will only work on individuals
with evil alignments. Most, if not all, conflicts
in the campaign should be of the
latter description. War gods always grant
effective evil-related spells to be used
against the enemy, regardless of alignment.
Such spells, however, are only effective
against enemy soldiers and followers
of enemy religions, and not against evil-aligned
people.

Religious conflicts result in more than
open warfare, however. Long-term
hatreds are likely to be spawned, particularly
if conquest is involved. The conquerors
will despise and subjugate the
conquered, who will in turn hate their
oppressors and plot revolution. Social
division is also possible if two religions
coexist in the same geographical area. To
cite another historical example, many
towns and villages in Germany during the
latter Middle Ages were either Catholic or
Protestant, and no members of one religion
inhabited the town of another. Player
characters unwittingly walking into a
town populated by members of a different,
hostile religion may find themselves
very unwelcome despite their gold coins.

Purpose and other considerations
When creating his own pantheon, a DM
should first have a good idea of what the
people who worship these gods are like.
The gods of a culture will invariably
reflect the values of that culture. The
values of a culture are, in turn, dictated at
least partially by its environment.

Before detailing individual gods, the DM
should determine the underlying theme of
the religion. Does it believe in a cosmic
struggle of some kind, like good vs. evil or
man vs. nature, or does it preach harmony,
unity, and balance? Cultures coming
from harsh environments are more likely
to have conflict as their religious theme.
Religions with a theme of harmony are
likely to have an inordinate number of
neutral or lawful clerics, while those with
a theme of opposition will have few or
none. Harmonious themes are found
mostly in Eastern religions in the real
world, although some tribal religions also
display this theme.

After the underlying purpose of the
pantheon has been determined, the DM
may determine the types of gods involved.
Some mythologies, like the Greek pantheon,
involve abstract elemental deities.
Other pantheons have natural spirits or
abstract concepts as divinities. Again,
hostile environments are more likely to
produce elemental gods. Such pantheons
needn?t be as simple as four gods in
dynamic opposition; there could be many
gods in control of one element, and some
elements that have no gods. This will be
dictated by the culture. Anything that is
important to a society will result in many
gods controlling it; otherwise, it will be the
responsibility of one particularly powerful
god. Thus, an island nation might have
four gods of the sea: one causes storms,
another is in charge of fair winds and
currents, another is god of marine animals,
and the last personifies the mysteries
of the depths. Elemental gods may
be somewhat abstract: there might be
gods of the sun, trees, love, or whatever.
The DM may wish to experiment with
different alignments and spheres of control,
producing evil sun gods or good gods
of death, or placing a single god in charge
of two conflicting spheres.

Abstract gods are those that personify
less tangible quantities: destruction, harmony,
or limitation. They are most likely
to be produced by more civilized, philosophical
societies. These gods can be a lot
of fun; not many cultures in the real
world worship abstract gods, so such a
pantheon is novel and intriguing. The
closest historical examples to this concept
are Hinduism and some Oriental religions.
Some abstract gods will be found in every
elemental pantheon, but it is very rare for
an entire religion to have no elemental
gods.

After determining the types of gods, the
DM should come up with spheres of control
for each god and rank them according
to their overall influence over people?s
lives. Those with the most influence are
likely to be the most powerful, unless the
DM chooses to introduce an ?overlord
god? with a somewhat less important
sphere of control. Remember that the
culture of a people dictates the spheres of
their important gods. For example, a landlocked
nation in the mountains (like Switzerland)
would be unlikely to have an
important sea or water god, but one of
earth, mining, or perhaps weather would
be important. With abstract gods, it
becomes more difficult to determine the
primary gods. Whatever the culture values
most (i.e., honor, luck, dedication, knowledge,
etc.) will dictate the most important
divinity.

It is important for the DM to determine
the values of each of the gods as well as
those of the cultures that worship them.
The alignment of the god will depend
mainly on how the people see his sphere
of control. Due to the historical unpopularity
of death, gods of death have been
widely considered to be evil. Likewise,
fertility and nature have been widely
viewed as good, therefore most earth gods
are good. However, the culture may have
some unique insights regarding their
environment. Death may be seen as a
necessary part of the natural process, for
example. Likewise, the people may be
aware that the sun is the source of life,
but they may also be aware that they have
no control over it, and that it is prone to
causing droughts and the like. Each god
will have a general alignment dictated in
this fashion, but specifics are drawn more
from mythology.

The specific personalities of each deity
are as much a matter of dumb luck as
anything else, therefore the mannerisms
of the gods should be determined by the
DM according to his whim, keeping in
context with the general concept of the
god formed by the culture?s reaction
toward him. It might be a good idea to
construct a code of behavior for the god,
something like the code of chivalry in
Unearthed Arcana or the code of honor
for bushido in Oriental Adventures. This
will not only show how the god would act,
but will also provide guidelines for clerics.
It helps to write a few myths because they
solidify the god?s personality and display
his relationships with other gods. Myths
also add flavor to the game, particularly if
one of the PCs is a bard.

Other options
There are some other options when
creating a religion that are often overlooked.
One of these is the worship of
spirits or intangible divinities. Such religions
are practiced in the real world;
examples are Japanese shintoism and
African animism. Ancestor worship also
falls into this category. The main difference
between these religions and traditional
pantheons is that dozens or even
hundreds of lesser spirits compose the
metaphysical environment (as opposed to
a few powerful gods in most traditional
pantheons.) Each of these spirits shares its
sphere of control with many others, and
clerics do not devote themselves to one
spirit but rather to the whole religion.
Most people don?t even know the names of
all the spirits in such religious systems.

Unique priesthoods
Once the religions are all detailed and
placed throughout the campaign world,
the DM may wish to differentiate between
the priesthoods of different gods. Previous
articles in DRAGON® Magazine have discussed
the possibilities of allowing alternate
weapons and special abilities to
clerics of certain gods at middle and upper
levels. DMs may take this a step further by
altering the weapons, armor, and spells
permitted to clerics according to their
deities. The reason for this is that small,
gradual changes do not reflect the great
differences between gods and religions.
    <Hammer of Thor, Spear of Zeus: Weapons of choice for clerics>
    <Special skills, special thrills: Varying powers helps avoid cleric stereotypes>
    <Clerics live by other rules: Giving and taking away can be okay>

This is where the DEITIES & DEMIGODS book
comes in handy, if you?re using mythological
gods. Whatever weapons the god uses,
you can bet he?ll let his clerics use them,
too. The DM must be careful not to allow
inordinately powerful weapons (like the
long bow or lance). Some weapons are
better than others. When selecting weapons
for a god?s clerics, take speed factors,
lengths, armor class adjustments, and
damage figures into account. Avoid permitting
weapons that are much better than a
mace in any of these respects. If a really
good weapon (like the long sword) is permitted,
it?s a good idea to reduce the range
of available weapons from five to three or
four. Avoid missile weapons at all costs,
unless it?s something small like a dart, or
unless the cleric worships a, god of archery.
Be sure to select weapons that tie in
with the god?s personality. For example,
war gods may permit clerics to use deadly
edged weapons, while a god of love or
healing would not be terribly big on weapons
at all.

It?s all right to change the cleric?s permissible
weapons as long as the change is
counterbalanced. For example, a DM
might want to give the clerics of a war god
the spear, short bow, battle axe, and broad
sword as weapons. This renders the cleric
much more dangerous in combat, especially
against armored opponents. This choice
of weapons may be counterbalanced by
restricting the clerics of the god to chain
mail armor or less, by making them
adhere to a strict honor code (e.g., always
fight to the death), or by reducing the size
of their spell lists appreciably.

Armor is another area that may be
changed. Gods that value movement may
forbid its use altogether, and most peaceful
gods will restrict armor to the lighter
types. War gods will naturally permit
heavier armor types. Gods with good
armor and weapon choices for their clerics
should restrict their spell lists, how-
ever, and those gods who forbid the use of
powerful weapons and good armor should
offer considerable spell-casting rewards.

Most gods will offer spells related to
their spheres of control and restrict the
use of spells that are contrary to it. For
example, war gods will offer both offensive
and curative spells, but won?t offer
locate object and speak with animals. For
every level of forbidden spells, a level of
spells should be added to the lists, and vice
versa. Spells may be written by the DM or
borrowed from magic-user, druidic, or
Oriental spell lists. When doing so, the DM
should reevaluate the level of the spell as
it is to be used by clerics.
 

Religion should take a major part in the
functions of any campaign world. Not only
is it a source of international conflict, but
it also adds a greater depth of character to
PCs and NPCs alike. Religious warfare
provides an alternative to hacking one?s
way through hordes of humanoids that
spontaneously spring from the wilderness.
With more than one religion in the world,
humans become prejudiced against more
than half-orcs, and players are faced with
formidable role-playing challenges which
never require them to draw swords.


DECEMBER 1988