So, I'm planning on playing an Inquisitor for an upcoming game, but I'm having a fair bit of trouble finding a suitable deity for the concept.
Now, the Sin Eater archetype states: "There is a sect of inquisitors in some religions that believes it is not enough to hunt the enemies of the church—one must also devour those enemies’ sins." But there is unfortunately no mention as to what religions in the Pathfinder setting would have such a sect.
I definitely want this character to be more of the "cleanse and purify taint to deprive evil forces" kind of sin eater, so definitely not an evil-aligned deity.
On a side note, I am also able to choose between two possible archetypes that can be taken in conjunction with Sin Eater, since the replaced features don't overlap: either Sanctified Slayer or Living Grimoire, but I'm having trouble deciding between the two, because I really like the concepts of both.
Urgathoa is into the whole devouring thing. Of good deities, I could see Apsu being into it given their favored weapon being a bite, or it being an odd twist on Sarenrae's portfolio of redemption.
I think I'd recommend Sarenrae as a deity as well. This would likely pair well with the Sanctified Slayer archetype.
If Living Grimoire is more your jam, a deity associated with knowledge would make sense. Maybe an Inquisitor of Irori who is trying to understand the nature of evil on their own individual path towards enlightenment?
Admittedly, I am pretty on the fence when it comes to the second archetype. Both sound really fun.
I did take the alignment test on easydamus, which came up CG, so Sarenrae would at least be within one alignment step. Of course, obscure Pathfinder deities aren't off the table either.
I also thought about Shelyn, given the glaive would let me into melee without getting in the way of the other two front-liners, but race-wise, we're talking a homebrewed minotaur. The other PCs are just as monstrous if not more-so. xD
Deities by alignment (CG) on AoN which might fit -
Cayden Cailen. You're not eating their sins as such, you're drinking them.
Chucaro. Hooo, those're some trippy sins that bad guy was into. Get a hit off the sins, basically.
Selket. Preserving everything about the fallen is important.
Thisamet. Everything is an occasion for a feast! Favored animal: cow.
Ngl, really liking the Thisamet suggestion. I'll probably go with that.
As for archetype, both Sanctified Slayer and Living Grimoire drop all instances of the judgement class feature, so the questions I need to ask myself is:
Would I rather have the ability to tattoo myself for spell-like abilities and the ability to prepare those spells without a "spellbook";
or have access to the Bane and Greater Bane class features?
Would I rather have a book I can beat people to death with (that functions as a warpriest's sacred weapon, and thus can enhance with bane, albeit at a later level) and prepare spells like a wizard (Int as the spellcasting stat included);
or retain cunning initiative and monster lore, and basically have the primary class features of the slayer (studied target, sneak attack, and a few talents?
The minotaur homebrew doesn't have either an Int or Wis penalty, so both seem equally viable.
Maybe I'll build the character twice to see what I like better.
The original idea behind the concept of a sin eater is that the person who eats the sin absorbs it allowing the person who performed the sin to be absolved of it. In the game this is what a sin eater of a good deity would be doing. Evil sin eaters would of course have another perspective. They would probably consider it a way of gaining power.
Assuming the deity n question is good, a deity focused on forgiveness and mercy would be more likely to support a sin eater. Of the major deities Sarenrae is probably the most likely candidate. By eating the sin of the slain you are giving them one last chance at redemption. If you want to go with a less well known deity, the Empyreal Lord Korada may be worth looking into. Personally I would go with Sarenrae.
While the sanctified Slayer does technically stack with sin eater they seem to be contradictory, unless your deity is evil. A sanctified slayer is basically a divine assassin who hunts down enemies of the faith. The Sin eater seems to be more about redemption.
I don't think they're necessarily contradictory (though at first glance they do seem mutually exclusive). They might believe that such enemies are so vehemently corrupted as to being beyond redemption in life.
They might view removing such individuals from the living world is the best solution to better society, and absolving their sins through sin eating is the best way to rob the Lower Planes of a soul that would likely end up causing more harm later down the line as a fiend.
Such a character might even believe that such souls end up reincarnated, to be given another shot at life.