Happy Monday, all.
If you’re like me, it sometimes helps to take a step back, and try to look at things from the “big picture” perspective. I’m not saying that the details aren’t important; quite the contrary, the details in any new D&D campaign will determine, at least initially, how your players respond to the world. Players are very often less concerned with the big picture than they are with the little corner of the world that their character inhabits. But for me, it’s hard to really get down to those details if I don’t have the overall framework in place.
So, today, I want to talk about a sweeping topic for the new world: Deities. For me, this is going to be quicker and easier than for some of you, for two reasons. First, I’ve done some of the leg work already. You’ll recall from last week that I’ve already started to put in something of a framework for the deities in Lenryn. Today, I want to build on that some more. The second reason this will be easier for me is that I’ve just got 2 deities. If you’re looking at a larger pantheon (and you probably should be – this is the first dichotomized one I’ve messed with, and I’m not sure how well it’s going to work overall) you’ve got a lot more to do.
At any rate, here’s where I’m going today. I want to profile the deities, including their spheres of influence, symbols, followers, and clergy. Let’s get to it then, shall we?
Theodian, the Sun God
Spheres: Good, Light, Health, Fertility, Labor, Life, Honor, Truth, Air, Fire, Creation
Symbols: The sun (in older traditions); a winged archon wielding a flaming sword;
Followers: Followers of Theodian are dedicated to bringing light to a darkened world. They are solemn in this task; They can also, at time, be rigid, dealing out light only to those that they deem worthy. Lawful Good and Neutral Good individuals are most common, in terms of followers. A good number of Chaotic Good individuals follow Theodian, but many rebel against the sometimes-hard hand of the clergy. Neutral individuals of all flavors tend to follow Theodian, as the world is in a state of unbalance, and aiding that side of things could bring, in their minds, some equilibrium. There are few, if any, Evil individuals who follow Theodian at all.
Clergy: The Church of Theodian is the only organized church in Lenryn. While the Church is monolithic in terms of its organizational hierarchy, there is a good bit of room for autonomy of individual clergy and followers. Each town has a local priest, with larger cities having a presiding bishop with several priests underneath. The local priest, in the case of villages, or the presiding bishop, in the case of the larger cities, has jurisdiction only over his or her particular geographic area, and carries no authority (but plenty of respect) beyond his or her borders. The Church of Theodian has no direct central organization; presiding bishops and other clergy will sometimes caucus at the Temple of the Sun in Breveton, but their decisions there are not binding on the entire Church. There are several monastic orders, also relatively autonomous, and women are as likely as men to be ordained clergy.
Worship: Worship of Theodian is highly ritualized, and includes liturgical components, readings from a variety of holy texts, and various acts of contrition.
Lucius, the Moon God
Spheres: Evil, Darkness, Sickness, Luck, Death, Deceit, the Underworld, Earth, Water, Destruction
Symbols: The moon (in older traditions); a winged demon riding a multi-headed dragon
Followers: Followers of Lucius fall into three categories. First, there are those who are inherently evil. This includes most evil monsters and creatures. Second, there are those who actively seek to emulate Lucius, that believe in the ideals of his faith, and believe this devotion to be a path to strength. Finally, there are those that seek to appease Lucius, believing he is more powerful than Theodian, and ask for his mercy (which seems to be dealt out rather sparsely). Rarely, you will find a Good individual who pays tribute to Lucius, out of fear. Evils mostly follow Lucius, although many Evils seek only self-aggrandizement rather than devotion to Lucius. Some Neutrals, particularly Chaotic Neutrals, are especially drawn to the faith of the Moon God.
Clergy: The only organized clergy devoted to Lucius are actually followers of Theodius who seek to make offerings of appeasement. This order, known as Nighthelms, can be found wandering from town to town and city to city. There are clerics who seek to tap into Theodius’ power. Most of these are evil, although there is one clerical order who seeks to undo the Moon God through the use of his own power.
Worship: Worship of Lucius typically involves ecstatic trances, rhythmic dancing, speaking in tongues, and animal or human sacrifice.
