Religion in Khoras

Started by Delbareth, May 04, 2006, 01:57:44 AM

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Delbareth

   I have a lot of question about religion. I know that origin of gods are not clearly defined yet (but the mix between true gods and new gods seems favored ;D), but it's on another point and I hope one can answer. Several players asked me about "religious war" and more generally about the fact that there are a lot of different god in Khoras.
Does the people accept their neighbors worship another god? Are the god very jaleous? Do they want to be the only one worshipped? When one people believe in, let's say Semorjon, can a also belive in Barrinos, Imarus, and Kael?  ???
Perhaps it is commonly accepted that all god really exist (polytheism) but everyone worship the god he wants. Or perhaps Barrinor's adept believe he is the only one and could be offensed by other cults...?  ???
About religious war, I think it's much more important between monotheist religion. But are these religions monotheist or polytheist? ??? And what about the gods between two race? It's said that some human may worship some ogrish gods, but in the case of polytheism, does all human accept the existence of ogrish god, or do they only accept "their" human gods...? ???

I'm a bit confused...
Delbareth
Les MJ ne sont ni sadiques ni cruels, ce sont juste des artistes incompris.

Spence

In a pantheon with so many gods, they're generally known by just about everybody.  At least with the greater gods.  Alot of times in a pantheon such as this (Think of Ancient Greece) people will worship multiple gods for different reasons.  One day a person might be sending prayers to Imarus that his/her friend might heal faster from an injury or illness.  The next day that same person might be sending prayers to Erylon in hopes he will guide that person to some game so he/she can bring food home.

There's alot of different ways you can go with this.  Ultimately it'll be what best fits your campaign.

QuotePerhaps it is commonly accepted that all god really exist (polytheism) but everyone worship the god he wants. Or perhaps Barrinor's adept believe he is the only one and could be offensed by other cults...? 

If it fits with your compaign or that adepts beliefs then yes.  Generally i would say that certain other deities and religions would not offend an adept of Barrinor though.  Imarus, Sorrath, Assytia and Threll are all good deities for example, and generally have a good aligned religion following them.

QuoteAbout religious war, I think it's much more important between monotheist religion. But are these religions monotheist or polytheist?

Again it's whatever is going to fit with your campaign.  However, i would suggest the polytheist method and any wars between the gods would be grand scale (all good  deities vs all evil deities for example) and...could be happening right now.  That's a possible storyline that could take PC's from 1rst to 20th level without issue.

QuoteAnd what about the gods between two race? It's said that some human may worship some ogrish gods, but in the case of polytheism, does all human accept the existence of ogrish god, or do they only accept "their" human gods...?

In a polytheistic pantheon, i wouldnt look at race as a limiting factor for anything.  But i'd also pay attention to regions as well.  Some nations arent too habitable for certain races.  For example:  You wont see many Saurians in Normidia, it's abit cold for them.  So Normidians would not have much reason to know about Saurian gods.  However Normidia does see Borellians at a fairly consistant pace so they would have reason to know about the Borellian gods.

Hopefully this helps you some!

Spence

avisarr

I agree with what Spence wrote. That's a good summary.

In ancient times, there were many gods worshiped and people just sort of accepted it. The greeks had lots of gods and a typical greek commoner would pay homage to them all in different ways. At the same time, the greek commoner was aware of other cultures and that they worshiped other gods.

Spence's example of the saurians in Normidia is good. The saurians and the Normidians don't interact that much, so generally the Normidians aren't very familiar with saurian religion. Most races and cultures on Khoras are aware of each other and each other's gods. Some churches cooperate well together. Other churches fight against each other constantly. How different churches get along together depends a lot on the nature of the religion, the cultural and political environment and how much interaction there is. So, as with most things, you have to look at it on a case by case basis.

As for the gods themselves... are they jealous of one another? Do they fight with one another? That's up for each game master to decide. You can have the gods as involved or as uncaring as you want. Depends on your style and what you like.

Here's one interesting historical fact: The Romans worshiped many gods. The Greeks and other cultures worshiped many gods. Now, the Romans were kickass and were constantly conquering other cultures. They found out the hard way that it's hard to get a conquered people to worship your gods. So, the Romans became very good at "adopting" other deities. When they conquered a culture, they would integrate the gods of the newly conquered culture into their own pantheon. Sometimes two gods who were similar would be "blended" into one god and the two churches would sort of meld together. Other times, when there redundant gods, the more popular one would gradually absorb the worshipers and the less popular god would gradually be phased out as the church of that god would slowly disband. Many Roman gods were combined with greek gods or came from other cultures.

So, ultimately, it's all about the people and the churches. You only need to be concerned about how the worshipers and priests get along with each other. Religion is a messy thing. Churches merge, separate, fragment, fade away and rise up again in a never ending struggle for domination. There are thousands of religions on this planet. And there have been many thousands that have faded away to obscurity. Because it's so messy and nonsensical, you can pretty much do anything you want with religion. Churches can justify almost anything. It gives you, as a game master, a lot of freedom.

tanis

     Also, some gods and goddesses just don't get along, and if you look at the deities pages, you can make some rudimentary allies/enemies concepts.
He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.

Spence

There are also those that you would think might get along, but may have a rivalry.

A good example of this could be Assytia and Erylon.  Both hold domain over fauna and flora, but Erylon is a hunter by nature, seeking the best game, the greatest of hunts.  While Assytia is content with making things grow, aiding the wildlife.

These two are quite capable of having a harsh rivalry and it could boil over into their followers.  Just picture a Ranger worshipper of Erylon stalking a deer through the forest, while another Ranger worshipper of Assytia stalks him.  Just as the follower of Erylon pulls up his bow to shoot the deer, the follower of Assytia lets loose a blood curtling scream to frighten the deer away.

There are quite literally endless opportunities for religious interaction with all of the deities David has supplied Khoras with.

tanis

     Or whatever you want, its yo game. ;D
He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.

Delbareth

Ok I agree about Greek or Roman gods.
   But I hadn't made comparison with them because in these Pantheons, all gods form a single family. So it's obvious that everybody know a lot of god and can worship one or another. But... It's a Pantheon. In Khoras, it seemed to me (be I can be wrong), that gods do not form a Pantheon. And that's why I asked about monotheism (for example, the Imarus religion could have been monotheist...).
   But whith your answers, I now think that there is no monotheistic religion in Khoras, and as a consequence, very few religious wars (just "little" church war). And it's very important, for the history of Ithria and for the behaviour of its inhabitants. As I don't want to rewrote history of Ithria, and as there is no example in the past of religious war, I was a little bit confused...

   And finally, about the comment "Do what you want to fit your campaign/ it's your game...". I have to precise that I do not play with D&D and I do not play in campaign. I play a style we call "Arena". I put PC in the world, with the maximum of detail were they are, and they interact with the world AS THEY WANT. Of course I subtly include some events to possibly begin an short/long story. But I don't know in advance what the story will be and what will be the next plot (I often have just few ideas). For that, I need a well defined world, and this world is defined one and for all. That's why a ask question whithout asking me what should be good for a specific campaign (enventually what should be good in general to play with).
Delbareth
Les MJ ne sont ni sadiques ni cruels, ce sont juste des artistes incompris.

Spence

Ahh, i use the word campaign loosely, a sort of catch all term to describe whatever setting/style/game it is you are actually playing.  Sorry if i confused you with that.