Tips for GMs and Writers

What’s Your Fantasy?

Part Six -- Powers That Be

Introduction

When I was a kid, I got into Greek mythology. It was better than a soap opera in terms of sex, violence, vice, and squabbling. The Greek gods had fabulous divine powers, but when you got right down to it, they were in many ways very human. They had their flaws and failings, just like the rest of us.

As I grew older, I explored other mythologies such as Egyptian and Norse, which have the same basic idea -- gods are people too. It spoke to me of the up close and personal relationship those early people had with their deities.

In designing my own pantheon for my first game world, I kept the idea of a lot of gods with their own agendas; it gave me plenty of room for strife and bickering and alliance.

Because I've almost always done fantasy games and stories, usually with multiple sentient races, it made sense to me to do it that way. Would elves and orcs worship the same god? Not very likely ...

Many fantasy authors create their own pantheons. And I'll tell you another good reason why -- if you're working with make-believe gods and religions, you run less of a chance of really, really offending someone!

It takes a diligent, conscientious researcher to set a fantasy game or novel in a world using what for the lack of a better phrase I'll call 'currently active' religions. Katherine Kurtz does it wonderfully well in her Deryni novels.

Others, like David Eddings of Belgariad fame, and Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, who brought us the Dragonlance books, preferred to come up with their own systems of gods and religion.

The temple of the evil god, complete with sinister priests and unspeakable sacrifices, is a staple of the genre. It can serve as the object of quests, the source of fanatic armies, just the sort of thing that adventurers thrive on. The battle against evil forces is an integral part of heroic gaming, and heroic fiction.

In this column, we'll take a look at how religions come to be, what you as the writer of GM need to know about the gods you're creating, and how these can affect your characters.

The Birth of Religion

The earliest forms of religion stemmed from the attempts of primitive people to explain the mysteries of the world around them.

They lacked scientific knowledge, and therefore didn't understand why the earth shook, or the volcano spat fire, or sickness came, or the sun was swallowed up by a circle of darkness. Their way of coping with these things was to attribute it to the actions of gods and spirits.

Once they'd gotten that far, the idea came along that maybe they could somehow appeal to these gods and spirits for help or mercy. A new job came into being -- those who were believed to be able to interpret the will of the gods.

These were called priests, shamans, and countless other titles, but their basic role in the community was the same. The priest advised and offered counsel, directed the spiritual life of the group, and conducted ceremonies.

As civilizations grew and became more advanced and had greater contact with each other, still more gods were needed. Abstract ones, to answer tougher questions about life, death, war, wisdom.

Conflicting beliefs led to struggles over whose gods were greater. In those days, might still often made right, so the belief with the strongest set of followers would overpower and dominate another. Or they might be combined into something new with parts of each original. Or one group might take their religion into secrecy.

The possibilities are endless, and as the one in charge, the GM or writer has some tough questions to face. Even if religion does not play a major part in your proposed storyline, it is a vital and necessary part of the background of the world.

What people believe affects how they will act; many religions include guidelines and restrictions on behavior. You'll need to at least know, whether you plan to use it or not.

Things to Consider

The following is a list of questions that I always try to keep in mind when I am designing a new world and its gods:

Individual Deities

After I have an idea of what the basic setup looks like, I start thinking about the gods that make up my pantheon. My little mental list goes something like this:

• Deity name / names:
• Commonly depicted as:
• Pantheon status / connections:
• Worshipped by:
• Provinces:
• Symbols:
• Teachings:

I'll provide a couple of examples here taken from my own works. The first is Dorian, from my long-time game world. She was largely influenced by the Great Mother of Jean M. Auel's prehistoric epics.

Deity name / names: Dorian; Bright Lady

Commonly depicted as: beautiful blonde woman of sexy / motherly aspect, eyes continually changing color; wears white with gold trim.

Pantheon status / connections: queen of the gods; sister and enemy of Calaan (goddess of evil); wife of Anatole (god of the sun); sister to Regar (god of the earth-fire), lover of Damon (god of the night), Lunari (god of the moon), and Gilwan (god of the sea); mother of Ariel (goddess of the stars), Ahlan (god of the forests), Stratos (god of the weather), and the Ten Daughters of Lunari (muses of the arts and sciences).

Worshipped by: most humans

Provinces: life, healing, marriage, love, childbirth, sex

Symbols: the number 3, golden triangle within a circle

Teachings: life, love, and children are Dorian's gifts; to deprive another of these gifts is a terrible sin.

Our next example is taken from my series of fantasy novels, the MageLore and upcoming ElfLore trilogies. This is Kaledhol, an elven god generally believed to be evil, though his faithful do not see it that way.

Deity name / names: Kaledhol, the Protector, the Destroyer.

Commonly depicted as: hard-eyed avenging warrior-elf in black armor.

Pantheon status: outcast; followers of the other elven gods -- Valannin (god of logic and wisdom), Shannia (goddess of beauty and the arts), Livana (goddess of magic), and Denethel (god of the hunt) -- often won't admit he exists.

Worshipped by: Morvalan elves, southern reaches of the Emerin.

Provinces: war, defense, protection, haste, action.

Symbols: the red basilisk (six-legged lizard with deadly gaze).

Teachings: all non-elven races are vermin to be eradicated or enslaved; put the cause first, followed by family's best interests, and only then one's own wishes.

The Clergy and the Faithful

Once you know who your gods are and what they can and can't do, it's time to start thinking about those who serve them.

If you're running a game, you may be faced with a player who wishes his or her PC to be a priest. The traditional 'cleric' from AD&D is still the main template for creating these types of characters -- they carry 'holy symbols,' and among their powers are healing and the ability to repel the Undead.

It's perfectly reasonable to go a step further and give priestly characters powers that reflect the particular deity they worship.

In my game world, priests of Damon (god of night) can influence the dreams of others, see in the dark, and control shadows. The Talopeans from my MageLore books (serving Talopea, the Goddess of a Thousand Pleasures) have a different set of talents pertaining to their goddess' ... um ... area of influence.

But being a priest isn't all about the power and influence ... the package generally includes a set of vows and duties that can also be tailored to reflect a particular god.

There may be long periods of training, other skills that must be learned before one is deemed fitting to join the clergy. They might be expected to pay hefty tithes, undergo periods of fasting or other deprivation, maintain a humble lifestyle.

There may be an instant enemy -- in my game world Damon and the sun-god Anatole are long-standing foes; it's said that the sky reddens at dusk and dawn to reflect their shed blood as they battle in the heavens; and their priests are sworn enemies as well.

The clergy are responsible for maintaining places of worship and holy items. They build and staff the temples, teach the acolytes, and have duties that can get in the way of going-about-adventuring. On the other hand, they make terrific candidates for hunting down lost relics or driving out evil.

Unless they are evil ... but even that can be fun. I once ran a game in which all of the characters were disreputable, objectionable, and downright vile. One was a C'laani priest in all his ghoulish blood-drinking, flesh-eating, Undead-raising glory ... fun, but not something I'd want to do long-term.

If you have priest-type characters, you have to decide how and when they can use any paranormal or divinely-gifted powers they might have.

In my MageLore books, the character Sybil is a priestess of Talopea. Her healing powers work better on, as she puts it, "those who've learned to appreciate Talopea's gifts." When she attempts to heal her shy, virginal friend Cat, she encounters more difficulty than when she attempts the same thing on her lover, Rayke.

In many cultures, the clergy will also have political strength. The threat, even if never overtly made, of losing the favor of the gods can be enough to bring a king into line.

Don't forget the regular folks. The faithful worshippers, not priests themselves, but the ones who go to church or temple or make offerings at the altar and keep the teachings of the gods in their hearts.

They don't get powers like the priests, so what do they get out of the deal? Maybe the occasional answered prayer, bit of divine intervention, and the promise of a better life in the next world. Maybe faith in a "good" god provides a sort of armor against creatures of evil.

I noticed something that struck me odd a few years back -- my games were all taking on strong religious tones. The gods and their interactions were becoming much more a part of things.

Part of this, I'm sure, was my husband Tim's influence; he likes to delve into the past, into the meanings, and in fantasy worlds these usually involve the works of the gods.

And part of it was the fault of a player named Chris, who wanted to run a Damonite priest, and did so with such tremendous gusto that I started to worry he might show up one session minus an eye (as devoted priests of Damon often did in honor of their one-eyed god).

Whatever the reason, I went with it and enjoyed it. When I began a new game set in the world where I more frequently write, I found the same thing happening again.

And it wasn't just in my games ... it was happening in my writing, too. In my much-loved hobby of writing Gargoyles fanfiction, I noticed several such themes creeping in.

I've come to the conclusion that I am on some sort of personal inner quest. Being raised with no religious background, I've always been intrigued by the subject. I explore it through my writing and gaming, trying, I think, to explain something to myself.

It's making for a fascinating journey, and I'm curious to see where it will go from here.

Where we will go from here, at least in terms of this column, is onward to next month. The theme of the issue is villains, a topic that has long been one of my favorites. I think it's that near-score of experience playing the bad guys that brings them so close to my heart.