We once were gods

[Knight who says Meh]

I had an idea for a campaign. The setting would be a world without gods or magic. The gods have been killed off warring with each other. The PCs would be the gods reborn, attempting to regain their place in the cosmos. The plan is to use mythic rules and automatic bonus progression to represent their divinity and their presence bringing magic back into the world. As they travel and grow in power, they would also be reawakening the mythic beasts of old.

So, while I have an idea for the setting and a general over all arc for the campaign, I'm drawing a blank when it comes to the nitty gritty of the campaign. My first thought is to have them track down their respective divine artifacts and increase their worshippers, I don't really know where to take it from there.

I would be interested in anybody's ideas on possible adventures within the campaign and if anybody has had experience in running a similar campaign.

[Kolokotroni]

Define "a world without gods or magic". Because if that means a world without arcane and divine spells in the hands of the players, you will need a lot more then the automatic bonuses progression to manage that.

[tonyz]

It seems to me that some roleplaying encounters, trying to kindle faith in their worshippers, might be appropriate. (Are there any left? How long is it since the gods killed each other off?)

Do the players know about the campaign arc? Do the _characters_ know what they used to be? The first adventures might involve finding that out.

I would wait a bit on finding their old relics -- these might be overpowered at first, unless they're the sort of thing where "the first piece is +1, the second increases both pieces to +2, the third all three to +3, etc.) Maybe the first thing might be to cleanse an old temple (a Pantheon, a temple to all the gods) that's been taken over by something. Defeating that group can be the first campaign arc (and if the PCs or the characters don't know, then cleansing the temple can start revealing their pasts, provide them with a base, and with their first influx of mythic power.)

Also, you want adversaries. Perhaps a guild of wizards who are happy to have the gods not be in their hair any longer? Perhaps a bunch of oracles who have found a new way to channel divine power? Perhaps a kingdom of atheists (like Rahadoum in Golarion?) Perhaps two or three different adversary groups, some of whom could be converted but others who must be fought? Perhaps dark abominations lurking in the depths below the depths?

[Xeximar]

I'm assuming this means that magic hasn't been in the world since the gods died. Are other deities being reborn as well to battle the PCs. Your current explanation seems to say only the PCs would have magic and with the Mythic rules they would have powerful magic indeed.

[Knight who says Meh]

Kolokotroni wrote:

Define "a world without gods or magic". Because if that means a world without arcane and divine spells in the hands of the players, you will need a lot more then the automatic bonuses progression to manage that.

The gods have all died and magic with them. The players could be any class and as they progress other magic creatures/items would reawaken as well.

[Neils Bohr]

You may want to look to the TV show the Almighty Johnsons for some inspiration.

Use leveling and mythic tiers to show their power coming back, and put them on a quest to find the MacGuffin of returning to godhood. Along the way they have to compete against other gods who also seek the MacGuffin, because whoever gets it first gets to set the godly pecking order.

[Hazrond]

Knight who says Meh wrote:

Kolokotroni wrote:

Define "a world without gods or magic". Because if that means a world without arcane and divine spells in the hands of the players, you will need a lot more then the automatic bonuses progression to manage that.

The gods have all died and magic with them. The players could be any class and as they progress other magic creatures/items would reawaken as well.

In that case, plot hook, someone notices the wizard cast a cantrip or something and passes the word along, the party then is hunted by the local government who want to capture them and use their spellcasting abilities for themselves, like how the Warlocks of Qarth reacted to Daenerys' Dragons in Game of Thrones.

[Knight who says Meh]

tonyz wrote:

It seems to me that some roleplaying encounters, trying to kindle faith in their worshippers, might be appropriate. (Are there any left? How long is it since the gods killed each other off?)

Do the players know about the campaign arc? Do the _characters_ know what they used to be? The first adventures might involve finding that out.

I would wait a bit on finding their old relics -- these might be overpowered at first, unless they're the sort of thing where "the first piece is +1, the second increases both pieces to +2, the third all three to +3, etc.) Maybe the first thing might be to cleanse an old temple (a Pantheon, a temple to all the gods) that's been taken over by something. Defeating that group can be the first campaign arc (and if the PCs or the characters don't know, then cleansing the temple can start revealing their pasts, provide them with a base, and with their first influx of mythic power.)

Also, you want adversaries. Perhaps a guild of wizards who are happy to have the gods not be in their hair any longer? Perhaps a bunch of oracles who have found a new way to channel divine power? Perhaps a kingdom of atheists (like Rahadoum in Golarion?) Perhaps two or three different adversary groups, some of whom could be converted but others who must be fought? Perhaps dark abominations lurking in the depths below the depths?

Long enough that the shorter lived races have gone a generation or two without gods but the older lived races would still have a couple of people remember them. The idea would be the players (and characters) know what they once were and wish to regain their former power. I was thinking of using either the scaling magic items from unchained or the mythic bond rules for the artifacts (or a combination of the two.)

I like the idea of cleansing an old temple and a group trying to prevent their return. Thank you.

[Melkiador]

If the PCs coming to power is causing the awakening of all kinds of monsters, then I'd expect heroes to rise up to try to destroy the PCs.

So, your characters need a heroic excuse to come to power. That or they can just be evil.

[Knight who says Meh]

Xeximar wrote:

I'm assuming this means that magic hasn't been in the world since the gods died. Are other deities being reborn as well to battle the PCs. Your current explanation seems to say only the PCs would have magic and with the Mythic rules they would have powerful magic indeed.

Yes, that's correct. I actually had not thought of other gods (besides the PCs) awakening. That would make a good opposing group. Perhaps good and evil gods trying to prevent the other groups rise while securing their own power. Thank you.

[Knight who says Meh]

Neils Bohr wrote:

You may want to look to the TV show the Almighty Johnsons for some inspiration.

Use leveling and mythic tiers to show their power coming back, and put them on a quest to find the MacGuffin of returning to godhood. Along the way they have to compete against other gods who also seek the MacGuffin, because whoever gets it first gets to set the godly pecking order.

I'm not aware of that show. What station is it on? Is it on Netflix?

[Neils Bohr]

Knight who says Meh wrote:

Neils Bohr wrote:

You may want to look to the TV show the Almighty Johnsons for some inspiration.

Use leveling and mythic tiers to show their power coming back, and put them on a quest to find the MacGuffin of returning to godhood. Along the way they have to compete against other gods who also seek the MacGuffin, because whoever gets it first gets to set the godly pecking order.

I'm not aware of that show. What station is it on? Is it on Netflix?

I believe it is still on Netflix, it's an older show from new Zealand that had a re-release on SyFy. It's about the reincarnations of norse gods trying to regain godhood

[GM Cirone]

At higher levels you might have the players travel to the planes to re-establish their domains there, possibly fighting whatever creatures took over in their absence and distorted the nature of their home planes.

[Arcaian]

The gods were killing each other, but unless the final battle was a Arthurian battle where the final two remaining gods killed each other, there would still have been one, or a small group of gods remaining after the fights stopped. They could be interesting for something near the end of the campaign - they still had a spark of divinity, but as all the other gods had died, they lost the majority of their power. As the gods are fighting to restore their divinity, they don't realise that no matter what they do to the other side, this final god is already a deity, and any actions they take to return to divinity will strengthen the god. Presumably the god opposes them, and so you can have him gaining in power. Maybe a small cult of his appears, and no-one knows they can cast (very weak) divine magic, so they're secretly helping the PCs - the god wants more of his power back - until the god has reached sufficient strength, and then his cult - which the PCs thought were good guys - betrays the PCs and helps the other group of gods (not sure if evil or good PCs).

Would make a nice twist - friendly people all along betray you, AND they have magic.

[Knight who says Meh]

The last surviving god would make a good final boss.

So we have the characters, gods reborn, looking to find and reawaken their relics of old. They have to first travel to and re-sanctify a holy place to learn the location of their relics. Meanwhile, a group of rival gods (acting together or separately) try to stop the PCs while simultaneously trying to reclaim their own power. -Stuff happens.- The PCs return to their divine realm to find an ancient god that's not wanting company.

That gives me a lot to work with. Appreciate the help everybody.

[Tinalles]

Hmm. The gods got involved in a horrific war that killed all of them off without destroying the mortal spheres of existence. I think there are some basic questions that you as GM need to know the answer to:

1) What was the cause of the divine armageddon? That is, what were they fighting over?

2) Who were the gods involved in that conflict?

3) Which sides did they take?

4) Who killed whom?

5) Did anyone manage to "win"? What happened to the winner, if any? How did the winner die?

6) Is there some MacGuffin out there still waiting to be "won"? Or was it destroyed in the previous conflict?

7) Will the party consist entirely of gods from one faction in the former conflict? Or will there be representatives from multiple factions who were previously fighting one another?

8) Is the party the whole pantheon, or are there other reborn deities out there slowly regaining THEIR powers? Could be good antagonists/allies.

---

I strongly recommend drawing a sharp line between the past and the present. You, as the GM, get to define the Gods of Old. You can choose what they did, who they loved and hated, and how they met their end.

The players, on the other hand, must have the ability to play their PCs as they see fit. Don't try to force them to adopt the same personalities/attributes that you invented for the Gods of Old. They are reawakening the power, it's true, but they are also building new identities for themselves, which could mean radical change.

Perhaps one of your Gods of Old was Tyrinian, God of Storms, a CN tempestuous weather god. Don't be too surprised if a player takes that and reinvents him as a NG god of agriculture, using his weather powers to ensure a good harvest for the faithful. Similarly, maybe Pialla the LG Goddess of Healers had a crappy upbringing this time around, and winds up turning into a NE goddess of necromancy. Old allies might become deadly enemies; old enemies could turn into trusted friends. Everything can change.

Honestly, I think it's that part of the idea appeals to me the most. Divinity reborn in the mortal world is divinity that can choose new paths.

[Dragonchess Player]

You may also want to research the Birthright campaign setting for inspiration. It doesn't match exactly, but could work as a source of ideas.

Maybe there is a "shadow council" with access to magic (NPC adepts), but secretly controls the governments to search out and suppress other sources (no competition). Especially if the way they fuel their magic is to drain others with "the spark."

With the PCs representing a change to the status quo, they are probably a threat to those who are already in power.

[Tacticslion]

Though it definitely doesn't fit perfectly with your setting, you might be able to steal some ideas that I'd had for my Curse of the Godless campaign setting.

This actually could be stolen from in order to explain both the slow rise/return of the gods, and the slow release of monsters - they're basically the same thing.

[Prometeus]

Knight who says Meh wrote:

I had an idea for a campaign. The setting would be a world without gods or magic. The gods have been killed off warring with each other. The PCs would be the gods reborn, attempting to regain their place in the cosmos. The plan is to use mythic rules and automatic bonus progression to represent their divinity and their presence bringing magic back into the world. As they travel and grow in power, they would also be reawakening the mythic beasts of old.

So, while I have an idea for the setting and a general over all arc for the campaign, I'm drawing a blank when it comes to the nitty gritty of the campaign. My first thought is to have them track down their respective divine artifacts and increase their worshippers, I don't really know where to take it from there.

I would be interested in anybody's ideas on possible adventures within the campaign and if anybody has had experience in running a similar campaign.

This indeed look amazing, as you mentioned before you can blend mythic rules and ABP pretty good with that you are trying to achieve.

Just be careful what to do at higher levels because things can get out of control with high level players and mythic rules

[Kryzbyn]

I have run, and have played in games of this type, albeit in GURPs.

The one i played in:
Gods were weakened to the point of being unable to manifest a physical body and lay dormant, and needed proper shells to use in order to regain their power. We played the shells up to a certain level, then played Avatars of the gods the rest of the way to ascension.

One I ran:
The players were reincarnated souls of former gods who had to regain their powers. Their old memories never fully came back, only bits and pieces. Enough to give them the idea of what each of their "portfolios" were, but not enough to ruin the mystery of the campaign. They had to learn to use their abilities to overcome the beings that had "defeated" them previously. The campaign ended in victory for the young gods, who had destroyed their enemies and re-ascended.