What makes a Living God different from any other God? Also what makes for a God? ( i.e. is it a divine spark, a level of power surpassed or is it a fundamental change of being? Does Irori have divine ki or is it normal ki just more of it?)
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Personal view:
It's a fundamental change of being, but it's also an amplification of whatever that god's true nature was before godhood. They operate on an entirely different level, metaphors made flesh.
On Irori and ki, I dno't see him simply using ki. He would be using the very cosmic concept of ki itself. Likewise with Sarenrae. A mortal uses fire. An angel uses holy flame. A super duper angel uses holy flame born out of the most sacred stars themselves.
Sarenrae uses the very idea of flame and the sun.
Alright, what about living gods? How Aroden was described before he died. None of the others have been described as such.
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Alright, what about living gods? How Aroden was described before he died. None of the others have been described as such.
By living gods, do you mean former mortals? I think, but I'm just guessing here, that technically that term would apply to Nethys, Irori, Cayden Cailean, Norgorber and Iomedae too, they just don't use it because they have other fancy titles. And I think that what makes them them is that while mortal they represented the concepts they'd eventually claim dominion over so thoroughly and completely that becoming a god seemed right, regardless of the method they used.
Take Aroden, for example. He was the most powerful mage of the Azlanti, the first and greatest human people. If they were everything that was best (and worst) about humanity, and Aroden was the pinnacle of that, it was merely a small step to transcend and become the very concept of "humanity." Likewise, during her mortal life, Iomedae was a dedicated champion of justice, a devoted and charismatic ruler and the epitome of honor. Each of these gods was practically the living embodiment of their chosen portfolio already. The Starstone just made it official.
Personal view:
It's a fundamental change of being, but it's also an amplification of whatever that god's true nature was before godhood. They operate on an entirely different level, metaphors made flesh.
On Irori and ki, I don't see him simply using ki. He would be using the very cosmic concept of ki itself. Likewise with Sarenrae. A mortal uses fire. An angel uses holy flame. A super duper angel uses holy flame born out of the most sacred stars themselves.
Sarenrae uses the very idea of flame and the sun.
That's pretty much how I'd explain it. You can't really call Gozreh a force of nature, he/she IS nature in a sense.
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I don't think "living god" is a technical term, except to distinguish them from "dead gods."
A "god" is really any being that is universally recognized as a god -- or perhaps more importantly, is recognized as a god *by the other gods*.
It's kind of like being a king or queen; just ruling a country isn't enough. You've also got to be considered an equal by other kings and queens.
I think different gods have different essential natures. For example, I'd say that Sarenrae and Asmodeus, having existed since before creation, are completely different in nature from, say, Norgorber or Cayden Cailean, who were born as humans and raised through the Starstone.
For a real-life example, take the Greco-Roman gods. You had household gods, which were basically your ancestors. You had local gods, like a river god or a mountain god. You had ex-humans, like the emperors. And you had the big-shot Olympians, like Zeus. They were all way different from each other, but they all counted as "gods" in a general sense.
Wasn't Aroden pretty well known for coming down from the outer planes and taking care of business? Defending Absolom and kicking The Whispering Tyrant down. Other than the great beat down of Rovagug the other Gods don't do that.
This has been helpful for a champaign I've been working on. Could Aroden's life be saved by some lucky if powerful PCs? If they manage it its gonna be world changing, and they'll be rubbing shoulders with big time deities.
