imp_fireball
2010-02-07, 05:44 AM
Anyone wanna homebrew an evil god that exists to make mortals stupid? It's worshipers deliberately lower their intelligence scores. Clerics of its domain have spells that force people to do stupid things, and create mental debilitation.
Also, a partnering god - God of Ignorance! Exists to make mortals dull. Neutral with evil tendencies. Or just plain evil.
Worshipers deliberately lower their wisdom scores. Clerics of its domain cause apathy, door-knob imitation, delusions, madness, etc.
Finally, the opposition - God of Imagination! Worshipers seek to spread imagination, art and pleasure into utopia (the ultimate pleasure would be a never ending, no-holds barred D&D game, ie., where imagery abounds, etc.)! Naturally opposes ignorance and lack of foresight (it claims that ignorance started the war first, and considers ignorance evil). Followers are encouraged to reflect deeply on many things. Clerics of the domain trap their enemies in happy stupors, sending their minds into worlds of their imaginings (the clerics are also much like jesters, seeking to entertain and distract; entertainment is a highly cherished value). Chaotic Good with Neutral tendencies. Inspired by Hatter Maddigan graphic novel and the realm of white imagination.
Anyone up for this?
I had to get the idea down quickly. I've got other things to worry about, so I probably won't work on this myself.
EDIT: I did three. God of Imagination still to go.
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Narg'thrakofralla'ruh (Nar-guh-thra-*coughing noise*-raw-law-RUUUUH! *last syllable enunciated with the most emphasis possible*)
Nature's Maturity, The Anti-theory, The Savage Hope
Lesser God (Chaotic Neutral)
Narg (we'll just call him that), is among the most rebellious selection of natural order representing entities in the cosmos. A stubborn equal rights lobbyist among other deities at heart, he has deeply resented the use of intelligence in society. A warrior as well, he believes that one's species hasn't truly ascended until they have shed all barriers. This includes the barrier brought on by the natural superiority of beings with naturally greater thought capacity. Superiority brings control. Thus those controlling are corrupt. And the less intellectually inclined are in turn corrupted. Narg desires to help the less intellectually inclined through evolutionary empowerment and mastery of instinct, although his worshipers are generally mocked for their behavior and the less civilized lifestyles they choose.
Portfolio: Inability to Grasp Cause and Effect, Instinct, Savagery, Rebellion, Mysticism, Racial Unification
Domains: War, Strength, Chaos, Animal
Cleric Training: In order to be ordained in the institution, the cleric must consume a powerful hallucinatory drug that will cause a full week of delusions. The drug will cause 2d4 permanent intelligence damage. If they survive the experience, they must then recall everything they see down to the most finite detail in writing and to the best of their ability. If they are caught attempting to cure their intelligence damage, they run the risk of being kicked out of the cult.
Quests: Followers of Narg often spread their message through word of mouth to the more downtrodden of society. They will hold clan meetings among tribes and will encourage others that the only limitation that should be imposed by society is that of personal limitation brought upon by the individual.
Prayers: Prayers to The Savage Hope can involve any 'physical motivation'. Some people whip themselves, self inflicting pain (non-lethal) to build up their endurance and adjust to the harshness of life. Others cake themselves in mud and dance about, screaming anything that comes to mind until their voices are hoarse. Others still will engage in things of a more unpleasant or revolting nature (whatever suits alignment and beliefs).
Temples: Not many. They are mostly just gathering grounds where perpetual stock piles of meaningless, confusing art are gathered.
Rites: Naturally, since the god is rather 'universal', rites can involve anything. Some races perform acts derived from culture in order to make themselves appear more distinct among others. Others partake in bouts of combat, not worrying about who wins or loses - merely that partaking in combat is the source of joy and honor for Narg.
Relics: This is a source of debate among followers. Technically, it is written that relics can be anything, from the teeth of a slain great beast to a great scar or collection of scars upon the body of a warrior, dead or alive. Unfortunately, what was written is up for interpretation due to how crudely it was written.
Favoured Weapon: Unarmed, or natural weapon (Narg has a ferocious set of teeth that he rips the ears off of enemies with).
Ustrik'taponus (Oo-Strick-tah-pone-us)
The Bane of History, The Undisputed Answer, The Shield of Duty, The Holy Blockade of Progress
Lesser God (Lawful Evil)
Ustrik is a god that despises the influence and attention mortals have received from other deities and in turn, the attention the deities have been given. Also a very ideological being, Ustrik sought to enter the minds of mortals, bring about epiphanies, and in turn, sow a hatred of knowledge. Ignorance is bliss after all, is it not? Without knowledge, the presence of mortals looking up at the sky or peering into the abyss below will no longer bother him. Ironically, this owes more attention to himself, and yet paradoxically, mortals know little about him (as it is follower mantra to know naught). In recent decades however, followers have been trained by cult leaders to learn skills, applying the psychology of 'how' and not 'why'. Ustrik despises 'why' and how deep it is. Perhaps, having gone through so much depression in his immortal existence, Ustrik became tired of it all, hating the multiverse and wishing that he wouldn't have to perceive of it. So if you merely ignored the multiverse, you wouldn't have to contemplate it! It's irritating after all.
Portfolio: Ignorance, Conformism, Duty, Hatred of Knowledge, Fear of Perception and Opinion, Don't ask don't tell (fear of curiosity)
Domains: Destruction, Protection, Law, Trickery
Cleric Training: To become a cleric of The Bane of History, one must burn all the books in a local library and spread misinformation about the incident.
Quests: In order to spread the message that knowledge corrupts and that the only way to acquire 'purity of being' is to liberate oneself from knowledge's shackles, clerics typically invade libraries and places of knowledge, burning books, trashing education centers and poisoning wells with 'Blinders Root', which induces 2d4 Wisdom damage in victims upon ingestion.
Prayer: Prayers to Ustrik involve shutting oneself in a sensory deprivation room, or writing down the details of any dream they had, and then burning the parchment so as to 'forget' it. If there is no sensory deprivation room available, they will usually blind fold themselves and stick cloth in their ears, remaining this way for up to an hour.
Temples: Temples to Ustrik are pretty rare, since followers are forbid from providing the information as to their whereabouts. Followers to Ustrik mostly just unite in cults, usually never having met one another before (but nonetheless referring to such a meeting as a 'revelation').
Rites: Rites to the The Undisputed Answer are a constant in all aspects of a follower's life. Asking questions is forbidden. Clerics will speak simply of martyrs (knowing that they themselves are technically 'martyrs'), but not refer to their deeds or names in any manner, merely upon the progress of the religion ('A new martyr was ordained in the past year. Honor to her.'). This will be followed by mindless humming.
Relics: The first torch to ever light fire to a pile of books, said to be the first great act as part of the religion's relentless crusade against knowledge, and to actually kick start the flow of followers. An ornate urn contains the ashes of particularly famous documents of the past (such as the original written constitution of a kingdom).
Favoured Weapon: Fire Spiller
Har'sheek (Haw-ruh-sheek)
The Rock, The Non-associate, The Silent Word, The Myth
Lesser God (Chaotic Neutral)
Way back in the eons of the cosmos, Har'sheek was a happy god, caring naught for mortals - merely toying with his creations and abilities granted to him by another higher power. He had many friends, but eventually jealousy was sown by his rivals. Har'sheek engaged in competition, which eventually ended up in a full scale cosmic war that lasted millenia. Now, reduced to a mere lesser god by shifting powers and multiversal disturbances as a result of such a catastrophic war, Har'sheek felt betrayed by his companions. Eventually, he came to the conclusion that nobody could be trusted but himself. Nobody, but the individual. And as such, one must detach themselves from the pleasures of social connection. As a lesser god, few would listen to his ideas and so he began to seek mortals.
Portfolio: Self Reliance, Individuality, Stoicism, Social Awkwardness, Mystery
Domains: Strength, Luck, Death, Trickery
Cleric Training: To become a cleric of The Silent Word, one must consume a poison that causes 2d4 permanent charisma damage and then isolate themselves from all social contact for a year. If they ever attempt to recover this charisma damage, Har'sheek will forsake them.
Quests: Clerics often pray upon the less socially inclined and downtrodden, often inspiring them to make something of themselves through the power of their own being. Their presentations have no allure or lavishness to them. Clerics will also infiltrate temples of opposing religions, by virtue of not alerting attention to themselves.
Prayer: Prayers to Har'sheek involve the writing down of any conversations (as to how they imagined they'd go) that they wished to strike up with fellow comrades (so as to repress the desire of actually socializing), followed by simple, quiet meditation.
Temples: Temples to Har'sheek are very drab and don't attract much attention. Followers have to look very hard to find them (as their are usually no signs leading to them and few are willing to tell people about them so as to avoid making friends), but that's all in the challenge. Some are simple rooms, albeit with great, highly intricate carvings of various wild concepts - symbolizing that sapient life is capable of functioning without being distracted by social desires or team work.
Rites: Rites to the The Myth include intense research in the hopes of obscure discovery all the while isolated from society. Also, strange dances made to scare as many strangers as possible and to validate the perception that they're weirdos or not right of mind.
Relics: The tongue of Mortimore Rains, the man who cut it off in the ultimate sacrifice to Har'sheek and rumored of doing so in order to avoid the pain of delivering a public speech. Also, the dried up, resin-preserved seed of Werto (sir name unknown), said to be a wizard/cleric/mystic theurge that survived over 1000 years of celibacy.
Favoured Weapon: Long Sword
Also, a partnering god - God of Ignorance! Exists to make mortals dull. Neutral with evil tendencies. Or just plain evil.
Worshipers deliberately lower their wisdom scores. Clerics of its domain cause apathy, door-knob imitation, delusions, madness, etc.
Finally, the opposition - God of Imagination! Worshipers seek to spread imagination, art and pleasure into utopia (the ultimate pleasure would be a never ending, no-holds barred D&D game, ie., where imagery abounds, etc.)! Naturally opposes ignorance and lack of foresight (it claims that ignorance started the war first, and considers ignorance evil). Followers are encouraged to reflect deeply on many things. Clerics of the domain trap their enemies in happy stupors, sending their minds into worlds of their imaginings (the clerics are also much like jesters, seeking to entertain and distract; entertainment is a highly cherished value). Chaotic Good with Neutral tendencies. Inspired by Hatter Maddigan graphic novel and the realm of white imagination.
Anyone up for this?
I had to get the idea down quickly. I've got other things to worry about, so I probably won't work on this myself.
EDIT: I did three. God of Imagination still to go.
-------
Narg'thrakofralla'ruh (Nar-guh-thra-*coughing noise*-raw-law-RUUUUH! *last syllable enunciated with the most emphasis possible*)
Nature's Maturity, The Anti-theory, The Savage Hope
Lesser God (Chaotic Neutral)
Narg (we'll just call him that), is among the most rebellious selection of natural order representing entities in the cosmos. A stubborn equal rights lobbyist among other deities at heart, he has deeply resented the use of intelligence in society. A warrior as well, he believes that one's species hasn't truly ascended until they have shed all barriers. This includes the barrier brought on by the natural superiority of beings with naturally greater thought capacity. Superiority brings control. Thus those controlling are corrupt. And the less intellectually inclined are in turn corrupted. Narg desires to help the less intellectually inclined through evolutionary empowerment and mastery of instinct, although his worshipers are generally mocked for their behavior and the less civilized lifestyles they choose.
Portfolio: Inability to Grasp Cause and Effect, Instinct, Savagery, Rebellion, Mysticism, Racial Unification
Domains: War, Strength, Chaos, Animal
Cleric Training: In order to be ordained in the institution, the cleric must consume a powerful hallucinatory drug that will cause a full week of delusions. The drug will cause 2d4 permanent intelligence damage. If they survive the experience, they must then recall everything they see down to the most finite detail in writing and to the best of their ability. If they are caught attempting to cure their intelligence damage, they run the risk of being kicked out of the cult.
Quests: Followers of Narg often spread their message through word of mouth to the more downtrodden of society. They will hold clan meetings among tribes and will encourage others that the only limitation that should be imposed by society is that of personal limitation brought upon by the individual.
Prayers: Prayers to The Savage Hope can involve any 'physical motivation'. Some people whip themselves, self inflicting pain (non-lethal) to build up their endurance and adjust to the harshness of life. Others cake themselves in mud and dance about, screaming anything that comes to mind until their voices are hoarse. Others still will engage in things of a more unpleasant or revolting nature (whatever suits alignment and beliefs).
Temples: Not many. They are mostly just gathering grounds where perpetual stock piles of meaningless, confusing art are gathered.
Rites: Naturally, since the god is rather 'universal', rites can involve anything. Some races perform acts derived from culture in order to make themselves appear more distinct among others. Others partake in bouts of combat, not worrying about who wins or loses - merely that partaking in combat is the source of joy and honor for Narg.
Relics: This is a source of debate among followers. Technically, it is written that relics can be anything, from the teeth of a slain great beast to a great scar or collection of scars upon the body of a warrior, dead or alive. Unfortunately, what was written is up for interpretation due to how crudely it was written.
Favoured Weapon: Unarmed, or natural weapon (Narg has a ferocious set of teeth that he rips the ears off of enemies with).
Ustrik'taponus (Oo-Strick-tah-pone-us)
The Bane of History, The Undisputed Answer, The Shield of Duty, The Holy Blockade of Progress
Lesser God (Lawful Evil)
Ustrik is a god that despises the influence and attention mortals have received from other deities and in turn, the attention the deities have been given. Also a very ideological being, Ustrik sought to enter the minds of mortals, bring about epiphanies, and in turn, sow a hatred of knowledge. Ignorance is bliss after all, is it not? Without knowledge, the presence of mortals looking up at the sky or peering into the abyss below will no longer bother him. Ironically, this owes more attention to himself, and yet paradoxically, mortals know little about him (as it is follower mantra to know naught). In recent decades however, followers have been trained by cult leaders to learn skills, applying the psychology of 'how' and not 'why'. Ustrik despises 'why' and how deep it is. Perhaps, having gone through so much depression in his immortal existence, Ustrik became tired of it all, hating the multiverse and wishing that he wouldn't have to perceive of it. So if you merely ignored the multiverse, you wouldn't have to contemplate it! It's irritating after all.
Portfolio: Ignorance, Conformism, Duty, Hatred of Knowledge, Fear of Perception and Opinion, Don't ask don't tell (fear of curiosity)
Domains: Destruction, Protection, Law, Trickery
Cleric Training: To become a cleric of The Bane of History, one must burn all the books in a local library and spread misinformation about the incident.
Quests: In order to spread the message that knowledge corrupts and that the only way to acquire 'purity of being' is to liberate oneself from knowledge's shackles, clerics typically invade libraries and places of knowledge, burning books, trashing education centers and poisoning wells with 'Blinders Root', which induces 2d4 Wisdom damage in victims upon ingestion.
Prayer: Prayers to Ustrik involve shutting oneself in a sensory deprivation room, or writing down the details of any dream they had, and then burning the parchment so as to 'forget' it. If there is no sensory deprivation room available, they will usually blind fold themselves and stick cloth in their ears, remaining this way for up to an hour.
Temples: Temples to Ustrik are pretty rare, since followers are forbid from providing the information as to their whereabouts. Followers to Ustrik mostly just unite in cults, usually never having met one another before (but nonetheless referring to such a meeting as a 'revelation').
Rites: Rites to the The Undisputed Answer are a constant in all aspects of a follower's life. Asking questions is forbidden. Clerics will speak simply of martyrs (knowing that they themselves are technically 'martyrs'), but not refer to their deeds or names in any manner, merely upon the progress of the religion ('A new martyr was ordained in the past year. Honor to her.'). This will be followed by mindless humming.
Relics: The first torch to ever light fire to a pile of books, said to be the first great act as part of the religion's relentless crusade against knowledge, and to actually kick start the flow of followers. An ornate urn contains the ashes of particularly famous documents of the past (such as the original written constitution of a kingdom).
Favoured Weapon: Fire Spiller
Har'sheek (Haw-ruh-sheek)
The Rock, The Non-associate, The Silent Word, The Myth
Lesser God (Chaotic Neutral)
Way back in the eons of the cosmos, Har'sheek was a happy god, caring naught for mortals - merely toying with his creations and abilities granted to him by another higher power. He had many friends, but eventually jealousy was sown by his rivals. Har'sheek engaged in competition, which eventually ended up in a full scale cosmic war that lasted millenia. Now, reduced to a mere lesser god by shifting powers and multiversal disturbances as a result of such a catastrophic war, Har'sheek felt betrayed by his companions. Eventually, he came to the conclusion that nobody could be trusted but himself. Nobody, but the individual. And as such, one must detach themselves from the pleasures of social connection. As a lesser god, few would listen to his ideas and so he began to seek mortals.
Portfolio: Self Reliance, Individuality, Stoicism, Social Awkwardness, Mystery
Domains: Strength, Luck, Death, Trickery
Cleric Training: To become a cleric of The Silent Word, one must consume a poison that causes 2d4 permanent charisma damage and then isolate themselves from all social contact for a year. If they ever attempt to recover this charisma damage, Har'sheek will forsake them.
Quests: Clerics often pray upon the less socially inclined and downtrodden, often inspiring them to make something of themselves through the power of their own being. Their presentations have no allure or lavishness to them. Clerics will also infiltrate temples of opposing religions, by virtue of not alerting attention to themselves.
Prayer: Prayers to Har'sheek involve the writing down of any conversations (as to how they imagined they'd go) that they wished to strike up with fellow comrades (so as to repress the desire of actually socializing), followed by simple, quiet meditation.
Temples: Temples to Har'sheek are very drab and don't attract much attention. Followers have to look very hard to find them (as their are usually no signs leading to them and few are willing to tell people about them so as to avoid making friends), but that's all in the challenge. Some are simple rooms, albeit with great, highly intricate carvings of various wild concepts - symbolizing that sapient life is capable of functioning without being distracted by social desires or team work.
Rites: Rites to the The Myth include intense research in the hopes of obscure discovery all the while isolated from society. Also, strange dances made to scare as many strangers as possible and to validate the perception that they're weirdos or not right of mind.
Relics: The tongue of Mortimore Rains, the man who cut it off in the ultimate sacrifice to Har'sheek and rumored of doing so in order to avoid the pain of delivering a public speech. Also, the dried up, resin-preserved seed of Werto (sir name unknown), said to be a wizard/cleric/mystic theurge that survived over 1000 years of celibacy.
Favoured Weapon: Long Sword