Hey there!
I'm designing a custom pantheon for a homebrew campaign setting, and I've decided that the gods get their power from something. Some trigger, that when occurs, gives them a little bit of that good ol divine power.
Each of the gods has a different source, and the sources can be specific or vague. Or even a bit of both. This helps shape how their churches function, the edicts their followers adhere to, and even the personality of the gods themselves to some degree.
Ex.
Naturally, his followers act as wardens of the elderly, and are often associated with retirement communities, hospitals and clinics, and even funeral homes and cemeteries. The established church/religious hierarchy preaches nonviolence and support of the community, and in general tries to promote safe and healthy living, with a tendency for passivity.
Nezra-gal has a less known source of divine power, and there is a heretical sub-church that teaches alternate rituals and tenets of his faith to suit. He also gains divine power through a ceremonial sacrificing, draining the life energy of the victim, who is finally slain with a scythe. A harvesting of lost souls, so to speak. This sub-sect (ie cult) keeps a low profile, is small, and not very well known.
That is just one quick example… I’ve got others in the works as well, but a full pantheon from scratch is proving taxing on my limited imagination >.>
So, I’m looking for suggestions and ideas for other things that a god in this type of setting might gain his/her power from. Anything an everything could be the trigger… From killing foes in battle, to curing illness, to helping the poor, or capturing slaves, to mining precious metals… something the mortals of the world could do, that the god benefits from, and thus encourages his followers to do more of.
Any thoughts?