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Against all the odds, you, yes... you, just passed the Test of the Starstone and gained a spark of divinity, joining the ranks of Cayden, Iomedae, and Norgorber. All of Golarion is wondering however, what kind of deity would you be? What spells and domains may you provide to your clerics? What areas of concern would have your attention? Is there any edicts and anathema you'd want enforced? Thus I pose these questions to see what kind of deity you may be in Golarion for the faithful to flock to! For a simple example:
Areas of Concern: asking questions, gathering information, record keeping
Edicts: ask questions when no answer is to be found, learn about others, write about what you learn
Anathema: purposefully lie when answering a question, destroy documents
Domains: glyph, knowledge, time, truth
Spells: 1st: share lore, 2nd: timely tutor, 3rd; sea of thought
You need not go this in-depth, however, a simple explanation of how you see yourself fitting into the greater cosmology is plenty enough! After all, a seat or two might need to be filled this year.
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It's hard to say... I certainly have my aesthetics, but they're not really things I live up to or believe in sincerely. It's just fun to come across as a trickster or someone who makes suspicious bargains- in reality, I just tell jokes and commission artwork.
The more realistic, down-to-earth option is:
Areas of Concern: Patronage, bargains, and luxury
Edicts: Commission works of art, find mutually beneficial arrangements, enjoy life's luxuries, engage in mischief
Anathema: Mistreat someone doing work for you, exploit an unfair agreement to its full extent
Domains: Creation, Indulgence, Trickery, Wealth
Spells: 1st: Invisible Item, 2nd: Humanoid Form, 7th: Planar Palace
... Which would make me a pretty niche deity. I think most people are going to be better off with the broader focus of Abadar or Shelyn. The spells are more what I think my faithful would enjoy- making stuff invisible has all sorts of fun potential, everyone deserves a little shapeshifting as a treat, and of course you should spend your spells living in magically-provided luxury that you can customize daily.
And as far as that whole "luxury" thing goes, I feel like it's important to appreciate the fact that for less than two bucks, I can go to the gas station and get a plum soda slushie that would have absolutely blown the minds of kings and emperors through the centuries. The Planar Palace food is going to include all sorts of modern dishes that would be difficult to replicate or otherwise impractical in Golarion's setting.
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Taking aside the arrogance of becoming a god and all, it was a fun prompt to think about... (Also, remember folks this is the internet, please don't use your real name!)
Category - Newly Risen God
Edicts - Avoid unneeded conflict, protect those you consider close, be clever in all that you do, strive to be true to yourself.
Anathema - Force others to accept your customs and ideals, abuse or enslave others to your will, betray those close to you.
Areas of Concern - Guardianship, Family, Self-Betterment, Restraint
Follower Alignments - Alignments are shackles that shall bind no more
Pantheons - None
Devotee Benefits
Divine Ability - Constitution or Wisdom
Divine Font - heal
Divine Skill - Diplomacy
Favored Weapon - Longspear
Domains - Confidence, Family, Perfection, Luck
Alternate Domains - duty
Cleric Spells - 1st: Shielded Arm, 3rd: Wall of Thorns, 7th: Unfettered Pack
Divine Intercession
Kilraq’s gifts take the form of connections and support, from the most unlikely of places.
Minor Boon: Kilraq warns his favored against those who might assault those who are best left to their own devices. Once, when a teammate rolls a success on a Perception check to spot a hidden target, they get a cryptic warning from the DM that could lead to a possible non-violent solution to a potential encounter. Kilraq typically chooses to grant this boon in response to an extreme situation where conflict could lead to massive losses on both sides of a fight.
Moderate Boon: Kilraq blesses your diligence to your friends and family, leading to a strong sense of teamwork. Once per combat, if you roll a critical failure on a saving throw, you get a failure instead. Alternatively, if you roll a success on a check to protect an ally from harm, you reduce the damage of that attack by 2 per character level.
Major Boon: Only by seeking to better yourself can you find a way to protect those you call your own. Once per day, when engaged in a social situation where having the correct words or gift could solve the conflict or help save one you call your own, you mysteriously have a token or charm that can help resolve the situation. If there is no possible diplomatic solution to the encounter, you do not lose this boon, but instead, those within a 30-foot emanation around you gain a +2 status bonus to their saving throws or a +1 AC circumstance bonus, whichever is more beneficial.
Minor Curse: Any time you curse, illegally harm or kill another creature, or attempt to betray another, an audible voice rings out saying “tisk tisk tisk". This sound instantly alters others to your presence and gives them a +1 circumstance bonus to their AC against all of your attacks. This curse can be lifted by engaging in sincere acts of charity and community building that benefit society as a whole.
Moderate Curse: Kilraq curses all your allies, leading to disaster as all your friends consider you the reason for their failures. The result of your check to Help Ally is always one degree of success worse than the one you rolled.
Major Curse: You become honest to a fault. You constantly suffer the critical failure effect of zone of truth. Additionally, your intimidation checks are always one degree of success worse than the one you rolled.
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No one in Golarion, least of all Deschain himself, had seen it coming. A fairly morose individual who seldom displayed much in the way of ambition, discipline, or drive, theologians still debate just how the hell he wandered into the Starstone Cathedral, and even moreso, how he managed to pass tests that had defied far more capable beings over the centuries... and yet, there he is.
His faith is not particularly widespread, and his ban on active proselytizing means it will likely remain that way.
Category - Newly Risen God
Edicts - Study the history of the world as best you can (fieldwork is ideal, but books will do if travel isn't practical), learn from cultures other than your own, both teach and learn as opportunities present themselves, lacerate intellectual complacency (your own first, others' second).
Anathema - Show needless cruelty to animals (kill all you need to, but cleanly), advocate for the superiority of one culture over another, betray sincere hospitality, actively seek converts to your religion, join a group or society for social rather than personal reasons.
Areas of Concern- Knowledge, Cross-Cultural Appreciation, Mental Agility
Follower Alignments - Less important than the right general; mindset, but until alignment goes away in the remaster, in general evil types would probably have trouble, as would more zealous sorts of any stripe.
Pantheons - Deschain refuses to join organizations just for the sake of doing so, and his recent ascent means no new pantheons have really had much reason to incorporate him.
Devotee Benefits
Divine Ability - Intelligence or Wisdom
Divine Font - Heal
Divine Skill - Lore (focused on history or culture)
Favored Weapon - Hatchet
Domains - Change, Glyph, Knowledge, Truth
Alternate Domains - Moon
Cleric Spells - 1st: Object Reading, 3rd: Cozy Cabin, 6th: Teleport
Divine Politics- Deschain was rather infamous in mortal life for wanting people to leave him the hell alone when he was at home, and as a deity, he remains skittish when it comes to gatherings. His divine realm, such as it is, takes the form of a small cabin surrounded by dense boreal forest. He has yet to figure out how to make it impossible to get to, which means he occasionally has to put up with visitors of one sort or another.
In general, he seems closest (for a given value of close) with Black Butterfly, Pulura, Zohls,The Lost Prince, Tsukiyo, and Grandmother Spider, all of whom have interests or personalities that don't jangle his delicate sensibilities, and most of whom can be trusted not to just drop by for a chat unannounced unless it's for something important. He wants to like Desna- many of their interests coincide- but she's "dangerously" outgoing, which results in him withdrawing into his shell.
He's not exactly a beacon of neighborly cheer to most others, but he saves special distaste for his fellow Ascended- Norgorber, Iomedae, and Cayden Cailean, largely because he finds them personally insufferable. "A sneaky thieving murderous git, a self-righteous zealot, and a booze-drenched party animal." He's no fonder of, say, Asmodeus or Rovagug, but the animosity there is a bit less petty in its character.
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That's a funny idea.
SuperBidi, the Eye behind the Stars, the Invisible Hand
Category Newly Risen God
Edicts analyze and understand, follow your own laws, train to achieve perfection, prevent butterfly effects
Anathema dismiss a piece of knowledge, proselytize, bring knowledge without providing your sources
Areas of Concern all, but mostly from a theoretical point of view
Holyness Can be Holy
Divine Ability Wisdom or Intelligence
Divine Font harm or heal
Divine Skill Crafting
Favored Weapon blowgun
Domains fate, introspection, perfection, time
Cleric Spells 1st: anticipate peril, 2nd: animus mine, 3rd: hypercognition
Definitely not a god with many followers.
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Ardee*, the Mad Toy Maker, would probably be something akin to the following:
Category Newly Risen God
Edicts Experience the joy of creation, revel in your differences, be spontaneous
Anathema dismiss or judge others or their creations for being different, intentionally bring harm to the innocent or non-violent insane, permanently spread insanity or madness to others or attempt to change others to be more like yourself
Areas of Concern eccentrics and the mentally unstable, creative endeavors born of madness, harmless obsessions
Holiness Cannot be Holy or Unholy
Divine Ability Intelligence or Charisma
Divine Font harm or heal
Divine Skill Crafting
Favored Weapon Spear
Domains Confidence, Creation, Delirium, Dreams, Passion, Repose
Cleric Spells 1st: dizzying colors, 2nd: laughing fit, 5th: hallucination
Ardee would probably create a whole new type of outgoing android heritage, which would possess something akin to the gnomes' mental zaniness and be reminiscent of the elves from Santa's workshop at the North Pole.
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Category Newly Risen God
Edicts: Practice Empathy for all sentient beings. seek to understand the struggles of others, seek first to understand before fighting
Anathema: Refuse to learn from others, Hold onto prejudices when confronted with truth, spread false generalizations of other people
Areas of Concern: Understanding others, protecting the marginalized, Spreading truth
Holyness Can be Holy
Divine Ability Wisdom
Divine Font heal
Divine Skill diplomacy
Favored Weapon Staff
Domains: Family, Introspection, Truth, Zeal
Cleric Spells
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Sanifar, the Warden of the Mind
Category: Newly Risen God
Areas of Concern: Insight into yourself and others, Loyalty, Psychological wellbeing
Edicts: Seek understanding before conflict, Care for the emotionally troubled, Protect what is yours
Anathema: Lie to yourself or others, Betray a trust, intentionally inflict unnecessary harm
Sanctification: Can be Holy
Domains: Healing, Introspection, Knowledge, Protection
Cleric Spells:1st: Soothe, 2nd: Empathic Link, 4th: Rebounding Barrier
Divine Ability: Wisdom
Divine Font: Heal
Divine Skill: Diplomacy
Favored Weapon: Sap
(Note: the 1st level Divine Spell Celestial Accord is automatically available to clerics of Sanifar)
This is the first version. The second version is... different. I may post it later. I may not.
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The no-fun god. No eating food with your fingers! Eat your pizza with a knife and fork.
This is a fantastic prompt! I'll go with my namesake:
Edicts Usurp positions of power, hatch long-running schemes, wear a mask
Anathema Act alone, follow someone else's plan, allow yourself to be defeated without it being part of a larger scheme
Areas of Concern masks, plots, shadows
Divine Ability Intelligence or Charisma
Divine Font harm
Divine Sanctification Must choose unholy
Divine Skill Deception
Domains ambition, decay, trickery, and tyranny
Alternate Domains dreams, secrecy
Divine Weapon Staff
Cleric Spells 1st: sleep; 3rd: shadow projectile; 9th: unspeakable shadow
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Crouza, The Ruinous Revelry
Areas of Concern: Pursuits of happiness, seeking joy in difficult situations, taking pleasure in others misfortune, tearing down those who oppose you.
Edicts: Find joy and fulfillment in living and help others do the same, help people to express themselves, fight those who would oppress others, make mockery of those who stand in your way.
Anathema: Dwell on topics of sadness or pain, Allow an insult to go unanswered, Stop another from pursuing fun unless it is harmful to others, Dismiss someone's expression of themselves.
Sanctification: Holy or Unholy
Domains: Introspection, Dreams, Freedom, Destruction, Zeal, Indulgence
Divine Font: Harm
Spells: 1st: Liberating Command, 2nd: Enhance Victuals, 3rd; Firework Blast
Divine Skill: Diplomacy
Favored Weapon: Machete
I am not that good of a person, I wish I was better but I know who I am, and I know that as a god it would take my best and worst tendencies and only make them worse. I myself have been known to pursue those things that make me happy to the determent of other things in my life, be it staying up a little too late playing games, scheduling too many pathfinder games in my life, eating a little too much, or spending more than I should have on dice and minis. Additionally, my own post history should show I am more than willing to fight others and die on hills in internet spats, especially if its to stand up or defend things I like, and make passive aggressive quips at those I don't like.
Combining all of this into a divine being would not make a good god. It'd make a god who can have good aspects, but taken to the extreme with nothing to ground me back own to reality. And the fact I know all of this about myself I feel would be incorporate as well, hence the desire to be true to who you are and be genuine, even if who you are is a genuine piece of s&@#.
This was a fun mental exercise, thank you for posting this prompt.
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Vale, Patron of Desire
Category Newly Risen God
Areas of Concern Storytelling, Lovers who abandon all others, Acquisition of wealth and affluence
Edicts Be true to your own desires even when doing so harms others, become an inspiration and a muse to those you favor, manipulate people other than your lover to your advantage
Anathema Betray or cheat on your lover, perform a deliberate beneficial act for those you dislike without receiving adequate compensation, tell a tale or story for a purpose other than to share its beauty
Sanctification Can be Unholy
Domains Passion, Confidence, Trickery, Wealth
Alternate Domains Family (effects only work on yourself or your lover), Freedom (effects only work on yourself or your lover)
Cleric Spells 1st: Mindlink, 5th: Illusory Scene, 8th: Dream Council
Divine Ability Intelligence or Charisma
Divine Font Heal or Harm
Divine Skill Performance
Favored Weapon Pick
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Here's the other one.
Faer'San, The Writhing Friend
Category: Newly Risen God
Areas of Concern: Insight, Madness, Tentacles
Edicts: Help people to find those to whom they are well-suited, Cause pleasure, Protect what is yours
Anathema: Fail to accept or acknowledge who and what you are, Disapprove of a person just because they're weird or abnormal, Disapprove of or oppose a mutually beneficial relationship just because it's weird or abnormal, intentionally inflict unnecessary harm
Sanctification: Can be Holy
Domains:[/b] Dreams, Introspection, Swarm, Void
Cleric Spells: 1st: Grim Tendrils, 3rd: Magical Fetters, 5th: Aberrant Form
Divine Ability: Intelligence
Divine Font: Heal
Divine Skill: Athletics
Favored Weapon: Whip
Generally serves as a god to those who are weird enough in whatever way that it's hard for them to find friends and/or romantic partners, but who want love anyway. Also makes himself available as an Occult Witch patron.
And yes - fun prompt indeed.
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(Any suggestions for the name?) Elven Deity of coping with regret and living with confidence, lightning and developing one’s natural talents.
Category: Forgotten God re emerging sounds cool.
Areas of Concern: lightning, confidence, regret. and natural talent.
Edicts: learn from your past mistakes and successes, learn from the failings of others to better yourself and how you treat others. Regret harm you have done to the undeserving. Redeem yourself for past regrets.
Anathema: do not let self-doubt, regret, or fear rule you or keep you from acting. Waste not the talents that come natural to you.
Domains: lightning, confidence, regret(not an existing domain), Talent(not an existing domain)
Favored Weapon: Spear
Sanctification: Holy
Divine skill: Performance
Font: Heal
Spells: 1st: Thunderstrike , 2nd: Clear Mind , 3rd: Lightning Bolt 6th: Chain Lightning
Aspiration at the moment. Could be different if you asked me tomorrow.
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What saddens me is that we haven't gotten much tech in 2e. Brigh and Casandalee's focus doesn't hit the same itch for a technological answer to Nethys's single minded focus on magic that Cixyron did in 1e. That's what informs my answer here.
Were I not on the tech-kick, I'd likely come up with a different answer entirely. Probably an Aiuvarin Orc / Dromaar Elf god of... Aiuvarin and Dromaar, as well as cultural exchanges of all kinds.
The Death of Magic
Category: Newly Risen God.
Area of Concern: Technology, magic-dead regions.
Edict: Seek advanced technology and use it. Emulate and surpass magic with technology. Innovate and create new technology.
Anathema: Aid Nethys or his followers. Pursue the Purely Magical over the Technological.
Favored Weapon: Arquebus.
Sanctification: Holy or Unholy.
Divine Ability: Dexterity or Intelligence
Domains: Metal, Creation, Knowledge, Destruction
Alternate Domain: Lightning
Divine Font: Heal or Harm
Divine Skill: Crafting
Spells: 1st: Technomancy (doesn't exist in 2e), 2nd: Dispel Magic, 8th: Antimagic Field
I'd imagine I would not grant a lot of people spells, as that would go against the entire thing of being "technology over magic." Would probably come from a dead-magic region like Smokeside with a very intense distaste for Nethys.
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Rydge (The Y makes it more godly)
Category - Newly Risen God
Edicts – Try to suck a little less today than you did yesterday; if you’ve done no harm then you don’t owe people explanations for who or what you are; Events in life are not fair but people should strive to be. Spin worlds of wonder without shame
Anathema – Putting someone else down just so you look taller, Judging another hastily, Refusing to admit you were wrong when you are. No Pineapples on Pizza (I mean it)
Areas of Concern- Imagination, Privacy, trying to be good but reserving the right to #### about it!
Symbol: A stick figure pushing a boulder up a hill!
Follower Alignments – Rydge prefers to hang out with people who are better than he is so mostly good aligned preferred. As they have better options in gods, most of his worshipers are Neutrals TRYING to be better with mixed results anyway
Pantheons – Rydge is leery of joining any pantheon that would want him as a member. He would be alarmed to find out he was also rather redundant even before he arrived by other new gods, but hey, thems the breaks
Devotee Benefits
Divine Ability – Constitution or Wisdom
Divine Font - Heal
Divine Skill - Stealth
Favored Weapon – Halberd
Domains – Dreams, Introspection, Secrecy, Truth
Alternate Domains – Freedom, Magic
Cleric Spells - 1st: Biting Words, 3rd: Non Detection, 6th: Word of Revision
Assuming Rydge is a better god, than Ridge was a mortal, jokes about low bars might be made freely. No doubt he would be utterly confused at first, but then begin granting spells hoping to do SOME good by empowering a few brave souls in need so they could do some good personally before he was inevitably destroyed by pineapple on pizza loving writers for Paizo. Rydge would also develop the unfortunate tendency to speak of himself in the third person, another reason he would be an unpopular god and likely to get the cosmic axe fast!
Category Newly Risen God
Edicts Assure the success of all living beings, maintain peace, ensure egalitarian society, encourage healthy competition
Anathema cause unnecessary conflict or harm; cower from injustice or cruelty; encourage or support harmful hierarchies.
Areas of Concern: Life, Peace, Economics/Trade, Justice
Holiness Can be Holy
Divine Ability Wisdom or Charisma
Divine Font heal
Divine Skill Diplomacy
Favored Weapon Bastard Sword
Domains justice, peace, influence, trade
1st: Charm, 2nd: Calm Emotions; 6th Dominate
It's interesting to see that, given the possibility of becoming a god, a lot of posters would choose to somehow engage in politics.
It's interesting to see that, given the possibility of becoming a god, a lot of posters would choose to somehow engage in politics.
I am not sure "lot" is the right word there. To my eyes only about 3 posters really have potentially political focuses in their divine focus. Some of them could be political if you stretched what was said though for sure.
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If I became a god and got to choose my place in the Great Beyond? Well...
Areas of Concern: Travel, communication, pacifism, hospitality
Edicts: Wander far from your hometown, forge relationships with foreigners, study the ways of other cultures, learn different languages
Anathema: Engage in nationalistic chauvinism, harm a guest or a host, be intolerant of those different from you, encourage aggressive wars
Domains: Good, Friendship, Travel, Knowledge
Spells: 1st: comprehend languages, 3rd: fly, 6th: legend lore
I would make my divine realm in Nirvana, on the shore of the Sea of No Shadows.
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I am not sure "lot" is the right word there. To my eyes only about 3 posters really have potentially political focuses in their divine focus. Some of them could be political if you stretched what was said though for sure.
The most common political stance is fighting intolerance: seek to understand the struggles of others (Anathema) Force others to accept your customs and ideals, actively seek converts to your religion, proselytize, dismiss or judge others or their creations for being different, Hold onto prejudices when confronted with truth, spread false generalizations of other people, Dismiss someone's expression of themselves, Disapprove of a person just because they're weird or abnormal, Disapprove of or oppose a mutually beneficial relationship just because it's weird or abnormal, Judging another hastily, attempt to change others to be more like yourself
With the subsets of anti-racism: (anathema) advocate for the superiority of one culture over anotheranti-specism: (anathema) Show needless cruelty to animals
And anti-ableism that I read a lot in Ardee but that I can't really quote.
There's also a lot of individualism with the subjects of:
Self expression: help people to express themselves, Events in life are not fair but people should strive to be
Self acceptation: follow your own laws, strive to be true to yourself, Be true to your own desires even when doing so harms others, if you’ve done no harm then you don’t owe people explanations for who or what you are, Redeem yourself for past regrets
Self improvement: train to achieve perfection, Try to suck a little less today than you did yesterday, learn from your past mistakes and successes, learn from the failings of others to better yourself and how you treat others (anathema) Refusing to admit you were wrong when you are, Waste not the talents that come natural to you.
I could even add: Seek advanced technology and use it
Anti-slavery positions: fight those who would oppress others (anathema) abuse or enslave others to your will, exploit an unfair agreement to its full extent
Anti-war positions: (edicts) maintain peace, Seek understanding before conflict, seek first to understand before fighting, Avoid unneeded conflict (anathema) cause unnecessary conflict
There are lots of other aspects to "good" that are not even glanced over, Deriven is actually an outlier here as he fights for justice (cower from injustice, (anathema) encourage or support harmful hierarchies) and equality (ensure egalitarian society).
So, 3 posters? I think a lot of us have put some political stances in their vision of their godly self and a few are very strongly advocating for political views.
Edit: And... another god with strong political stances while I was writing that post.
PS: I don't judge, I clearly understand that given the possibility to be a god many people would try to change the world (and as such have a strong political impact). I'm just surprised it's so strong among posters.
The most common political stance is fighting intolerance: seek to understand the struggles of others (Anathema) Force others to accept your customs and ideals, actively seek converts to your religion, proselytize, dismiss or judge others or their creations for being different, Hold onto prejudices when confronted with truth, spread false generalizations of other people, Dismiss someone's expression of themselves, Disapprove of a person just because they're weird or abnormal, Disapprove of or oppose a mutually beneficial relationship just because it's weird or abnormal, Judging another hastily, attempt to change others to be more like yourself
With the subsets of anti-racism: (anathema) advocate for the superiority of one culture over another
anti-specism: (anathema) Show needless cruelty to animals
And anti-ableism that I read a lot in Ardee but that I can't really quote.There's also a lot of individualism with the subjects of:
Self expression: help people to express themselves, Events in life are not fair but people should strive to be
Self acceptation: follow your own laws, strive to be true to yourself, Be true to your own desires even when doing so harms others, if you’ve done no harm then you don’t owe people explanations for who or what you are, Redeem yourself for past regrets
Self improvement: train to achieve perfection, Try to suck a little less today than you did yesterday, learn from your past mistakes and successes, learn from the failings of others to better yourself and how you treat others (anathema) Refusing to admit you were wrong when you are, Waste not the talents that come natural to you.
I could even add: Seek advanced technology and use itAnti-slavery positions: fight those who would oppress others (anathema) abuse...
Sounds like we just had a difference in definition of "political". I was referring to only posters who specifically talked about engaging in strong social acts as being advocates for political playing.
For example the god I designed would not be engaging purposely in political actions in the heavens, more reclusive in nature and acting mostly in self defense.
Likely it's the American in me just grossing over the idea that one wouldn't just inherently be against racist tendencies or enslavement, which yeah wouldn't exactly be the norm in the Pathfinder universe.
Fair enough, from your perspective I can see how most posters come across as having strong socially political viewpoints though.
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I am not sure "lot" is the right word there. To my eyes only about 3 posters really have potentially political focuses in their divine focus. Some of them could be political if you stretched what was said though for sure.The most common political stance is fighting intolerance: seek to understand the struggles of others (Anathema) Force others to accept your customs and ideals, actively seek converts to your religion, proselytize, dismiss or judge others or their creations for being different, Hold onto prejudices when confronted with truth, spread false generalizations of other people, Dismiss someone's expression of themselves, Disapprove of a person just because they're weird or abnormal, Disapprove of or oppose a mutually beneficial relationship just because it's weird or abnormal, Judging another hastily, attempt to change others to be more like yourself
With the subsets of anti-racism: (anathema) advocate for the superiority of one culture over another
anti-specism: (anathema) Show needless cruelty to animals
And anti-ableism that I read a lot in Ardee but that I can't really quote.There's also a lot of individualism with the subjects of:
Self expression: help people to express themselves, Events in life are not fair but people should strive to be
Self acceptation: follow your own laws, strive to be true to yourself, Be true to your own desires even when doing so harms others, if you’ve done no harm then you don’t owe people explanations for who or what you are, Redeem yourself for past regrets
Self improvement: train to achieve perfection, Try to suck a little less today than you did yesterday, learn from your past mistakes and successes, learn from the failings of others to better yourself and how you treat others (anathema) Refusing to admit you were wrong when you are, Waste not the talents that come natural to you.
I could even add: Seek advanced technology and use itAnti-slavery positions: fight those who would oppress others (anathema) abuse...
Personally, I don't see the point of being a god if you could not improve the world. That would seem selfish and unnecessary. I would take no pleasure in that and feel no sense of purpose.
Even when I've made evil characters, they are modeled after Dr. Doom. They want control because they believe they can build a better, more productive, and benevolent society with tyranny as the means.
On a side note, that's another reason I hope Dr. Doom is done right in Marvel and Feige understand the character. Dr. Doom is a very interesting villain because his goals are a perfect benevolent society ruled by him with absolute control.
For example the god I designed would not be engaging purposely in political actions in the heavens, more reclusive in nature and acting mostly in self defense.
But at some point, you'll have followers and if they embrace your edicts and anathema they will engage in some forms of politics, and as a god you will certainly have to endorse or condemn their different modes of action.
So, I don't think you can completely stay reclusive. By having edicts and anathema embodying what you stand for you end up... well, actually standing for it :)Personally, I don't see the point of being a god if you could not improve the world.
I do see many reasons to become a god and not care much about improving the world. You can see many such gods in this discussion.
But I think your answer really represents who you are. I assume: "With great power comes great responsibility" describes your vision of divinity.
It's interesting to see that, given the possibility of becoming a god, a lot of posters would choose to somehow engage in politics.
Reading your further clarifications... well, "Hey, check it out - you're a god now" is about as clarion a call for "be the change you want to see in the world" as any, you know? I mean, as a deity, you're going to be pushing the world in some direction, or you're just not doing it right.
More specifically on my own entries... Faer'San's effect on the world is almost explicitly "my temples are the local hook-up spot for geeks and freaks" and not all that much more. If he's helping weirdos find happiness with each other in their own weird little ways, and no one's oppressing them all that hard, then he's good. If it's otherwise... well, "protect your own" is a kind of politics, I guess, but I feel like it's stretching the point a bit.
Sanfar's contribution to "politics" is basically just encouraging people to try to understand each other, even when they're adversaries. If anything, he's playing a mediator role.
Reading your further clarifications... well, "Hey, check it out - you're a god now" is about as clarion a call for "be the change you want to see in the world" as any, you know?
My message was no criticism, I don't want to piss anyone off. And it was, at least to me, not that obvious that "You're a god now" implied to "take a stance for what you stand for".
I mean, as a deity, you're going to be pushing the world in some direction, or you're just not doing it right.
But it doesn't have to be a political one. Violant focuses on technology, Shroudb embodies a lifestyle, these are no political stances of any kind.
And Golarion gods tend to focus on non-political matters. Of all the gods only Abadar and Asmodeus embody a political idea (even if many gods have an edict or anathema that is a political stance, but only one).Faer'San's effect on the world
Faer'San's is lightly political.
Sanfar's contribution to "politics"
Sanfar, on the other hand, has 4 edicts/anathema out of 7 that encourage self acceptance and tolerance, that's more than Shelyn has about art and beauty. So from my external eye Sanfar is a god of tolerance. Maybe you passed an idea you didn't want to pass but I have hard time considering Sanfar's not a political-oriented god from the reading of your post.
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I would just want my followers to live a life they could be proud of, and when they fail to measure up, make things right, forgive themselves, and push forward and throw around lighting bolts.
Meanwhile I'm just imagining what havoc Starfinder-era would bring for my submission. On one hand, Technology isfar more prevalent, so there'd be no need to advocate for technology-above-all when everyone can see that for themselves. Would be a bit saddened they didn't off Nethys themself, though.
On the other, Triune just goes and nabs the guy's portfolio. Likely would direct the churches to aid Triune in anyway possible, and to give the gift of technology to any magic-dead region of the world, becoming even more of a niche god than they were before.
Politics-wise? "Nex, get your hands off of the Duchy." is the big thing I can think of. In terms of relation to other gods, Casandalee, Brigh, and Cixyron would likely have some kind of connection to the guy. And the intense undying hate for Nethys, of course. The non-technology-kick version of me-as-a-god would be uh... far more politically involved: calling for the downfall of one or two nations.
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Kerrad, The Wondrous Gift
Symbol: A spherical aeon stone wrapped with a gift ribbon
Areas of Concern: Magic, Technology, Wonder, Altruism
Edicts: Empower good people with magic or technology, encourage curiosity and discovery, take responsibility for the unintended consequences of your actions.
Anathema: Hoard what you could gift, Engage in reckless research or creation, knowingly empower those who seek to harm others.
Domains: Creation, Family, Knowledge, Magic (Alternate: Change, Perfection)
Divine Ability: Intelligence or Wisdom
Sanctification: Can be Holy or unsanctified
Divine Skill: Craft
Favored Weapon: Any weapon that is an extension of an assistive item (reinforced frame, wheeled blade, etc.).
Kerrad feels very undeserving of his divinity and wishes he could share it freely with those he thinks would do more good with it. He spends most of his time researching the very essence of divinity in hopes of one day being able to truly share his power, rather than just enable divine spellcasters. Likewise, he smiles upon all those who research magic and technology in order to empower good people with it.
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I am not sure "lot" is the right word there. To my eyes only about 3 posters really have potentially political focuses in their divine focus. Some of them could be political if you stretched what was said though for sure.The most common political stance is fighting intolerance: seek to understand the struggles of others (Anathema) Force others to accept your customs and ideals, actively seek converts to your religion, proselytize, dismiss or judge others or their creations for being different, Hold onto prejudices when confronted with truth, spread false generalizations of other people, Dismiss someone's expression of themselves, Disapprove of a person just because they're weird or abnormal, Disapprove of or oppose a mutually beneficial relationship just because it's weird or abnormal, Judging another hastily, attempt to change others to be more like yourself
With the subsets of anti-racism: (anathema) advocate for the superiority of one culture over another
anti-specism: (anathema) Show needless cruelty to animals
And anti-ableism that I read a lot in Ardee but that I can't really quote.There's also a lot of individualism with the subjects of:
Self expression: help people to express themselves, Events in life are not fair but people should strive to be
Self acceptation: follow your own laws, strive to be true to yourself, Be true to your own desires even when doing so harms others, if you’ve done no harm then you don’t owe people explanations for who or what you are, Redeem yourself for past regrets
Self improvement: train to achieve perfection, Try to suck a little less today than you did yesterday, learn from your past mistakes and successes, learn from the failings of others to better yourself and how you treat others (anathema) Refusing to admit you were wrong when you are, Waste not the talents that come natural to you.
I could even add: Seek advanced technology and use itAnti-slavery positions: fight those who would oppress others (anathema) abuse...
To be completely fair though, this was going to be the natural course of the exercise. It's what "you" would be like as a deity, which means people are going to look at their own values, their beliefs, and their drives, passions, flaws, etc and make them into a deity.
Which means, if you're here engaging with pathfinder and the myriad of changes that have come about, you're likely not going to be the kind of person whose edicts and anathemas are gonna read like the biggest and loudest self report ever.
If the question was "You get to make the next Starstone god", the answers would be radically different because people would be looking at interesting characters to elevate, not their actual selves.
Like, I myself tried to look at my positive and negative traits. I'm tolerant of others and often am used as a person to give advice to others when asked, because I feel it's my duty to help others with that. I'm also very much someone who pursues entertainment and fun to my own detriment, I wouldn't have issues with time management and weight if that weren't the case. Stuff like nationalism, cultural supremacy, and the like just never came up because they aren't important to me, and in fact tend to annoy me enough to get me into a foul mood when I see people spouting about it. The only reason I didn't include family and stuff is like, if I were to include all aspects of myself as a deity there'd be like 15 domains and 10s of edicts and anathemas.
And when trying to fit into the confines of what Paizo does when printing a god, and sticking to that format as part of this mental exercise, you tend to prioritize what you care about the most. Which is what makes it fun in the first place, imo.
Yeah, even with the techno-version of me as a god... it's still me. I'd see the situation going on with magic being effectively dead in a region, with no god with a dedicated portfolio over technology, other than arguably Cixyron who... is a demon harbinger. That hits to me at the very core, just seeing that gap there, and the people with such a divide between them and the Skyside residents.
The non-techno version would likely be some Aiuvarin from Erages that sees what kind of division the nation of Kyonin causes their people, and would see to end it. Either way, I would become far more ambitious if I gained powers of a deity, and advocating for the divides to tumble down. Be it an entire facet of life that doesn't function in an area, or an entire nation sending children away just due to the heritage. They're effectively the same character/me, just placed into different places on Golarion.
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My message was no criticism, I don't want to piss anyone off. And it was, at least to me, not that obvious that "You're a god now" implied to "take a stance for what you stand for".
That's fair. I guess the thing from my end is that I mostly don't bother to try to make significant changes in the world because I know that I have almost no ability to nudge the needle on a larger scale, and even makign the attempt to nudge it that much would require expending a lot of resources that I'd rather expend on those that I care about personally. "Protect what is yours" shows up in both sets of edicts for a reason.
I mean, as a deity, you're going to be pushing the world in some direction, or you're just not doing it right.But it doesn't have to be a political one. Violant focuses on technology, Shroudb embodies a lifestyle, these are no political stances of any kind.
And Golarion gods tend to focus on non-political matters. Of all the gods only Abadar and Asmodeus embody a political idea (even if many gods have an edict or anathema that is a political stance, but only one).
see... here I think you're just being really arbitrary about what you count as "political". I mean, "political" mostly means "people are arguing about it". Like, if there's a major social movement to abandon all restraint and destroy the artifacts of the past, then suddenly Irori is very political. Erastil's politics tend to play out on a smaller community-by-community scale, but he still very much has them. Openly declaring your allegiance for Pharasma is a huge political statement if you happen to be in Geb at the time, and is likely to get you killed... and so forth.
So it seems like you're saying that these new gods have politics where our world has politics... in which case, yeah, that's fair, but it kind of makes sense to me that that would be the case.
Faer'San's effect on the worldFaer'San's is lightly political.
Well.. okay.
Sanfar's contribution to "politics"Sanfar, on the other hand, has 4 edicts/anathema out of 7 that encourage self acceptance and tolerance, that's more than Shelyn has about art and beauty. So from my external eye Sanfar is a god of tolerance. Maybe you passed an idea you didn't want to pass but I have hard time considering Sanfar's not a political-oriented god from the reading of your post.
See... here I think I'm confused? Like first of all, he only has six edicts/anathema, and only one fo them seems to be in any way political to me, and that one relatively mildly. Maybe you were thinking of another deity?
Edicts: Seek understanding before conflict, Care for the emotionally troubled, Protect what is yours
Anathema: Lie to yourself or others, Betray a trust, intentionally inflict unnecessary harm
...or maye you got them swapped? If you got them swapped... like, Faer'San is literally a friendly tentacle monster. His big thing is "the freaks and weirdos are my people (whoever the freaks and weirdos happen to be around here). Don't look down on them just for being their own freak selves." That's not really any more political than the ancestry-specific deities that get bent out of shape if people start oppressing that ancestry.
As for how focused he is... well, yes. He's a small god, he's a new god, he's a weird god. he's trying to carve out a niche. That involves specialization.
Side note: he is a niche god... and, amusingly, as far as Golarion is concerned, he wouldn't particularly be offering support to standard LGBT or poly. They've got divine support like the freaking Prismatic Ray, and full 100% functionality permanent genderswap potions that you can save up for and buy at the local alchemist. Now, if they were weird and oppressed, he totally would support them, but they're not. In a real way, they don't need him.
Now he's also not cool with relationships that are harmful to one side or the other (or both) which gets rid of a lot of the stuff we might think of as vile or criminal... but it's interesting to think about what might be fitting under his domain. Think about what kind of relationship could be legitimately good for all involved and yet weird you out?
Now, does that make it more "political", or less? I think that question is a bit of a mirror. The answer mostly says things about the answerer.
So it seems like you're saying that these new gods have politics where our world has politics...
Yes, that's what I meant. Golarion is not, it's a fantasy setting and as such there are millions of Golarions. So it's hard to really speak about politics in Golarion because it's really dependent on the GM/writer vision of it.
...or maye you got them swapped?
I'm truly sorry, I got them swapped.
Faer'San is literally a friendly tentacle monster. His big thing is "the freaks and weirdos are my people (whoever the freaks and weirdos happen to be around here). Don't look down on them just for being their own freak selves." That's not really any more political than the ancestry-specific deities that get bent out of shape if people start oppressing that ancestry.
The part about tentacles is really small, and you even say that it helps those that are "weird enough in whatever way", so I considered it a god for outcasts more than for tentacle monsters. If it's a god focused on weird (lovecraftian) beings, then it was not obvious to me.
Also, tolerance is a rather big political discussion in, at least, Europe (and I think north America). Maybe in your case it's just random, but the fact that it appears so frequently in this discussion makes me think it's not just chance. There are tons of other virtues that are nearly non-existant in the discussion.
The answer mostly says things about the answerer.
I fully agree. But the fact that tolerance is ubiquitous in this discussion makes me think there's something to dig here. What's your point of view, answerer?
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I don't feel there's too much of a mystery why a game that prides itself on inclusivity would attract players who value tolerance enough to put it in their self-insert god's portfolio.
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So it seems like you're saying that these new gods have politics where our world has politics...Yes, that's what I meant. Golarion is not, it's a fantasy setting and as such there are millions of Golarions. So it's hard to really speak about politics in Golarion because it's really dependent on the GM/writer vision of it.
There's lots of politics in Golarion. Geb just had a straight-up purge of Araznists, just to pull one example out of a hat. It just tends to be different stuff.
Faer'San is literally a friendly tentacle monster. His big thing is "the freaks and weirdos are my people (whoever the freaks and weirdos happen to be around here). Don't look down on them just for being their own freak selves." That's not really any more political than the ancestry-specific deities that get bent out of shape if people start oppressing that ancestry.The part about tentacles is really small, and you even say that it helps those that are "weird enough in whatever way", so I considered it a god for outcasts more than for tentacle monsters. If it's a god focused on weird (lovecraftian) beings, then it was not obvious to me.
Also, tolerance is a rather big political discussion in, at least, Europe (and I think north America). Maybe in your case it's just random, but the fact that it appears so frequently in this discussion makes me think it's not just chance. There are tons of other virtues that are nearly non-existant in the discussion.
The answer mostly says things about the answerer.I fully agree. But the fact that tolerance is ubiquitous in this discussion makes me think there's something to dig here. What's your point of view, answerer?
As far as the part about the tentacles...
His sobriquet is "the Writhing Friend"
Areas of Concern: Insight, Madness, Tentacles
Domains: Dreams, Introspection, Swarm, Void
Cleric Spells: 1st: Grim Tendrils, 3rd: Magical Fetters, 5th: Aberrant Form
Divine Skill: Athletics (he likes the grappling)
Favored Weapon: Whip (the closest I could get)
I mean... maybe you don't see that as all that much, but I feel like it's laid on kind of thick, actually.
The point is... it's not that he's focused on weird lovecraftian things. It's that he is a weird lovecraftian thing, who's out there trying to make sure that the weirdos of the world get the hookup... but it's not Because Politics. It's because these are, in fact, his people.
As far as people caring about tolerance... well, yeah. I mean... have you actually paid any attention at all to Pathfinder and/or the people on these boards? PF2/Golarion has been tweaked in a lot of ways to be heavily inclusive (often at the cost of simulationism and sometimes even even at the cost of game balance) and the boards are full of people who feel excluded and threatened by much of society, and who come here as a safe space. We pretty much self-select for "people who really care about this stuff" and "people who can get along with people like that"
Like, one of the things that makes Sanifar (and me) different in this crowd is that we want to understand all of the people... even the ones you hate... for all definitions of "you". (Note - This doesn't mean "agree with". It doesn't mean "approve of". It means "understand". There is a difference.)
I personally think that "political" is some combination of situational, relative, subjective, and poorly defined. For my version of subjective, I think that whether something is or is not political is more of an approach and an arena and an endeavor than a thing about which topics in particular are being addressed. If an old man has profoundly racist ideas and all they do is make him scowl and mutter to himself and try not to interact with the neighbors, that's not political. If they cause him to gun down his neighbor in cold blood without warning in a moment of irrational hatred, that's criminal (and awful) but not political. If they cause him to try to use the podium that the ensuing trial gives him to rant about his views in the hopes of convincing others, then that's political. "Political" is all about trying gain and wield influence in the major levers of power in society. In a democracy, this often involves trying to adjust the thinking of those around you in some way. I don't see either of my deityspawn doing a lot of that unless they were really particularly pushed. If anything, the precept that's most likely to get either (or their followers) into the political arena is Protect That Which Is Yours.
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Currently, most of what I am is "tired", but aside from that... it would prolly be "really weird problems".
It's problems where people go "lol you're so lucky, I wish I had that" because it's the exact opposite of their problems and they can't conceive of how that might be a bad thing; it's the accidents where you look at it and you just go "huh" because you can't figure out how that even could have happened; and it'd also be the medical conditions where they're KNOWN about, technically, but nobody has actually HAD that in like ever, except for apparently you (or they're really common, on the other side of the world).
Caltraos; the Anomaly, the Outlier
Edict: support niche research, accept that the world contains more than what you're used to, become a community for those without one
Anathema: reject an unlikely story out-of-hand, mock or deny somebody's pain, falsely claim to suffer unusual misery
(So like, Caltraos won't be HAPPY if you say your husband died in the war when in fact you were never married, but you won't be punished for it; however, saying that your nonexistent husband was cursed into the shape of a frog and then accidentally stepped on and thus you didn't get any widow's pension, that's blasphemous to Caltraos.)
Divine attribute: Constitution or Intelligence
Cleric spells: 1: gentle landing, 3: hypercognition, 7: retrocognition
Divine font: harm or heal (because there are people who, due to weird circumstances, are healed by void energy)
Divine sanctification: can choose holy
Divine skill: Diplomacy
Domains: truth, luck, knowledge, family
Favoured weapon: halberd
(Only working from the stuff I could find in Player Core, so there's prolly domains and spells elsewhere an would fit well.)
Caltraos' boons are like, people believe you when you're telling the truth, or you cross paths with somebody who has a complementary weird problem (eg "I have way too much of a niche product" and "I need massive amounts of that same niche product"). Their curses tend to involve any unpleasant lies becoming real for, or doubted truths being enacted upon, the target of their wrath. Against charlatans who think the followers of Caltraos are easy marks, Caltraos' curse is temporary (because it's not like those people betrayed their OWN deity), but very obvious, such that they likely won't be able to grift again in that town until memories have faded. (Example: someone claims they lost all their money in a really unusual way, but it's a scam; Caltraos takes notice, so for the next few days, whenever that person would handle money, there's an audible "haha how do you like THAT" and it slips out of their hands or pouch or pockets.)
I'm very entertained with the answers so far! Updating deities from PF1e and making new ones for PF2e is one of my favourite pastimes, so I'm glad to see the care lots of folks put into it, along with the sillier ones. To provide one for myself that isn't mostly a joke about the fact that I'm asking a question, I give you folks this:
Areas of Concern: esoteric research, preserving knowledge, scholarly indulgence, writing
Edicts: study forbidden texts, indulge your curiosity, amass your own library of texts
Anathema: destroy literature, ban literature, study without taking time for meals
Sacred Animal: fennec fox
Sacred Colour: beige and green
Divine Ability: Dexterity and Intelligence
Divine Font: heal or harm
Divine Skill: arcana
Divine Sanctification: none
Domains: glyph, indulgence, knowledge, magic
Spells: 1st: pocket library, 3rd: hypercognition, 4th: sage's curse
Favoured Weapon: staff
I took the traits I feel like I emphasize the most to people who know me more: my love of writing, weird knowledge, and my very strong values when it comes to preservation and not overworking yourself. So, I focused on those for my areas of concern and picked domains that reflected that. Indulgence is a weird one, since it's typically focused on food, but considering my personal library contains an abundance of cookbooks and I wanted to put an emphasis on a glut of learning for the sake of it, I felt it could be interesting. Otherwise, the first two spells are obvious picks, but I thought sage's curse could be a fun one to play into the idea of filling someone's mind with a bit too much hyper specific knowledge.
I'll give it a go
Areas of Concern: curiosity, turns of phrase, esoteric studies
Edicts: engage in wordplay, ask questions, study your interests
Anathema: dismiss a question out of hand, belittle another's research, mistreat or harm a companion creature
Sacred Animal: dog
Sacred Colour: green and blue
Divine Ability: Intelligence and Charisma
Divine Font: heal
Divine Skill: occultism
Divine Sanctification: none
Domains: glyph, knowledge, dreams, truth
Spells: 2nd: timely tutor, 3rd: hypercognition, 4th: forgotten lines
Favored Weapon: longspear
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Well its sounds amusing so why not take a moment.
Magus Black, the Grim Watcher [LE]
Category: Newly Risen God
Areas of Concern: Order, Security, Surveillance, Assassination
Edicts: Witness and record all transgressions; Judge all by Orders Decree; The City Must Survive, but not all people need too; No one is beyond scrutiny; Be brutal, but precise.
Anathema: Allow pandemonium unchallenged; Allow emotions to colour Judgment; Neglecting ones duties; Bend knee to anarchist.
Follower Alignment: Lawful Evil, Lawful Neutral, Neutral.
Devotee Benefits:
Divine Ability: Constitution or Intelligence
Divine Front: Harm
Divine Skill: Society
Favored Weapon: Arquebus
Domains: Cities, Duty, Death, Toil
Spells 1st: True Strike, 2nd: See Invisibility, 4th: Discern Lies
Divine Intercession
Magus Black, the Grim Watcher is slow to slow his favor to those whole grim duties are upheld without baggage. Unfortunately his ire much easier gained from those that spread disorder into the world.
Minor Boon: The Grim Watcher pushes for clarification in your duties. Whenever you roll a critical failure at a check to Sense Motive in an urban environment, you get a failure instead
Moderate Boon: Your gun is tool of death, and a Black Guard’s arms are long indeed. Arquebus have double the normal range increment for you.
Major Boon: Favored well is the Black Guard that does his duty well and without complaint, neither city nor you shall sleep. You can cast Vigilant Eye as a Divine Innate Spell. When you are in a urbane environment, the city sustains you without the need for sleep or rest. You can cast the Dread Ambience Ritual without any Secondary Casters or Secondary Checks.
Minor Curse: A subtle bullseye is placed on your corporeal form. You gain a Weakness 5 to Piercing Damage.
Moderate Curse: When you refuse to do your duty the will of Grim Watcher forces you to follow through. Whenever you would derelict on your duty, no matter how cruel or grim, you are compelled to finish the job.
Major Curse: The Grim Watcher has come for you and his Dread Bullet has pierced your very soul. You become permanently Doomed 3, and nothing short of another intercession can remove the condition. If you should die with this curse still effecting you, your soul is dragged off to the Blackstone Prison in Hell preventing all forms of Resurrection. In order to free a soul bound in the Blackstone Prison the Defense must make their case to the Judge and Lord of the Nine, Asmodeus.
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If an old man has profoundly racist ideas and all they do is make him scowl and mutter to himself and try not to interact with the neighbors, that's not political.
And if this old man becomes a god and adds "racism" in his edicts, is it still "not political"?
To me it is. Very clearly.
If they cause him to gun down his neighbor in cold blood without warning in a moment of irrational hatred, that's criminal (and awful) but not political.
If you gun down someone because they are different, you are very much having a strong political stance. As an isolated person, it's actually one of the strongest you can have (not everyone can be heard by many).
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This is hilarious to me, because a couple of friends and myself literally just spent a few hours talking about what we would be if we were gods in Golarion, what our teachings would be, what our Edicts and Anathamas would be, and all that stuff. Then I jump on to the forums and immediately find this.
I think a good number of people kind of missed the point though and wrote up a god that they thought would be cool, rather than who they would be as a god. Which is awesome too! Don't get me wrong. But unless you are admitting that you, yourself are evil aligned, the "God that is You" should most certainly not be.
Vali Nepjarson, The Laughter in the Snowfall
Once a young adventurer who desired nothing more than to travel to far off lands and find things that would fill him with a sense of awe and wonder, now a god and quite unexpectedly so. With laughter like chimes of ice, he brings comfort, happiness, and knowledge of strange things to those who follow his path. He makes his domain in the coldest regions in all the planes, as the intense cold is the only thing which grounds him and slows down his mind enough for him to focus on his own thoughts. He delights in sharing incredible things with his clerics and paladins, rarely realizing that the most incredible thing he can share is himself. He has an intense love and minor obsession with Dinosaurs, for no other reason than because "they're amazing".
Areas of Concern Soft Cold, Occult Knowledge, Adventure, and Dinosaurs
Edicts Travel the world in search of things that fill you with awe, seek to understand others especially when you are opposed to them, find comfort and calm in the frozen cold
Anathamas Destroy amazing monuments or icons of foreign cultures, deceive others for personal gain, pass up the opportunity to ride a dinosaur, willingly eat green peppers or arugula
Realm Baile Reoite [The Maelstrom]
Temples glaciers, standing stones, places where the road turns
Worshippers hikers, adventurers, bed and breakfast owners
Sacred Animal triceratops
Sacred Colors blue, silver, and white
Devotee Benefits
Divine Ability Charisma or Dexterity
Divine Font Heal
Divine Skill Occultism*
Divine Sanctification must chose Holy
Domains cold, introspection, knowledge, travel
Alternate DomainsSaurian (Not yet in PF2), Trickery
Spells 1st: purifying icicle, 4th: dinosaur form, 5th: howling blizzard, 10th: fabricate truth
Favored WeaponRapier or Staff (Sideword or Shillelagh)
*Some followers of Vali find that they are gifted divine skill in Deception instead of Occultism, and these often find they have a more specific role that Vali has for them*
Divine Intercessions
Vali imparts his joy and laughter upon those who bring comfort and warmth to those who are out alone in the bitter cold, as well as those who seek to share the wonder of the world with others and protect it from those who would harm it.
Minor Boon: You are gifted with a whisper of secrets that Vali has accumulated throughout the eons. When you roll a knowledge check on a topic that you are merely curious about, and you roll a Failure, you get a Critical Success instead.
Moderate Boon: Rather than being bitter and biting, the cold is always comforting to you. You are immune to environmental cold temperature effects up to Extreme Cold, and reduce the damage taken by Incredible Cold to that of Severe Cold. Also while you are in any cold temperature below mild cold, you have a +1 status bonus to attack rolls and skill checks
Major Boon: Dinosaurs see you as friend and kin and may appear to protect you from a particularly dangerous threat. If threat of death is imminent Vali may send a Dinosaur to your aid, even appearing in places where it would be impossible or ridiculous for such a creature to be. Although Vali may send any Dinosaur of his choosing, usually they are less than 2 levels lower than the highest level threat you are facing.
Minor Curse: Whenever you wake up after a long sleep, you find some part of your body affected by something like frostbite, often a toe or ear.
Moderate Curse: Your mind is forced to process too quickly for you to ever focus on one thing. Whenever you attempt an action with the Concentrate trait, you must attempt a DC 7 flat check or the action fails
Major Curse: Vali does not allow you to feel the wonder and awe of the world, and all good emotions feel deadened and hollow. You cannot benefit from any positive effects of any spell or ability that has the Emotion or Mental trait.
I played fast and loose with some of the unspoken rules of deities here, such as giving Clerics of Vali 4 spells, one of which is a 10th rank spell, or how some followers are given a different skill, but all of these are important to Vali's lore.
Vali hates deception and subterfuge, but is incredibly skilled at it. He understands the real meaning behind the words of others innately, regardless of how well they try to hide it. Because of that, he only gives that kind of skill to followers that he feels are trustworthy to use that kind of skill. He doesn't grant shady Rogues who worship him divine skill in deception. He grants it to Paladins who are irrevocably good and whom he knows will use that skill with responsibility.
The same is true of him granting the spell Fabricated Truth. That kind of power is one that fundamentally he feels should never be used. But he also understands that sometimes, never happens. And so if you have gone all the way on his path and he trusts you absolutely, he may grant you the ability to use such a spell. With the caveat that the misuse of the spell is one of the only ways he would ever afflict someone with his Major Curse.
Vali can come across as naïve and childish, but he understands the fears and insecurities of the gods better often than they know themselves. And he knows that there is evil in the world, and so insists that if you follow his path, then you must stand between that evil and the wonderful, amazing things this world has to offer, as well as the innocents who inhabit it.
"Good is easy, as long as you aren't blind to what it actually is. Nice is simple, and anyone can be nice for their own reasons. But to be kind is hard, and frustrating, and all the more important for it. To be kind is to treat people better than they deserve. It doesn't mean don't bring your sword to bear against an evildoer and strike them down if necessary, but it does mean to first seek to help them and seek understanding of what made them walk the path of evil in the first place."
"The Cold rakes at you because you're angry at it. And when you're angry it becomes all you can focus on and it feels so much worse than it actually is. But if you step outside, take a deep breath, and let it be just what it is, you'll find it can be calming, and even comfortable."
"Why Dinosaurs? You ever see a Titanosaurus walk out of the forest and shake the world with it's sheer mass? They're amazing, that's why. Yes, I realize I'm an actual god, shut up. Want a Microraptor Familiar?"
This is hilarious to me, because a couple of friends and myself literally just spent a few hours talking about what we would be if we were gods in Golarion, what our teachings would be, what our Edicts and Anathamas would be, and all that stuff. Then I jump on to the forums and immediately find this.
I think a good number of people kind of missed the point though and wrote up a god that they thought would be cool, rather than who they would be as a god. Which is awesome too! Don't get me wrong. But unless you are admitting that you, yourself are evil aligned, the "God that is You" should most certainly not be.
I made the deity I felt like being at the time. Very much me-ish in a Golarion kinda a way but with lightning cause it is cool.
If an old man has profoundly racist ideas and all they do is make him scowl and mutter to himself and try not to interact with the neighbors, that's not political.And if this old man becomes a god and adds "racism" in his edicts, is it still "not political"?
To me it is. Very clearly.
If they cause him to gun down his neighbor in cold blood without warning in a moment of irrational hatred, that's criminal (and awful) but not political.If you gun down someone because they are different, you are very much having a strong political stance. As an isolated person, it's actually one of the strongest you can have (not everyone can be heard by many).
Look. I already said that the definition of "political" was subjective. Then I told you my personal, subjective meaning of it. Now you argue with me?
As far as edicts and anathema? it's going to depend. There's a difference between edicts/anathema that are there because they bring you into better alignment with your deity or because the deity themselves doesn't want to be associated with certain behaviors, and edicts/anathema that are there because the deity wants to spread things into the world. To assert otherwise is to assert that your initial position on the matter was meaningless because it would make the creation of edicts and anathema an inherently political act.
Edicts: understand yourself, indulge your interests, enjoy the peace and quiet of solitude
Anathema: place others before yourself, lose control of your emotions, seek attention
Areas of Concern: introspection, detachment, self-control, independent action
Divine Ability: intelligence or wisdom
Divine Font: heal or harm
Divine Skill: Stealth
Favored Weapon: shortbow
Domains: Freedom, Indulgence, Introspection, Void
Cleric Spells: 1st: Sanctuary, 2nd: Invisibility, 7th: Magnificent mansion
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This is hilarious to me, because a couple of friends and myself literally just spent a few hours talking about what we would be if we were gods in Golarion, what our teachings would be, what our Edicts and Anathamas would be, and all that stuff. Then I jump on to the forums and immediately find this.
I think a good number of people kind of missed the point though and wrote up a god that they thought would be cool, rather than who they would be as a god. Which is awesome too! Don't get me wrong. But unless you are admitting that you, yourself are evil aligned, the "God that is You" should most certainly not be.
I made the deity I felt like being at the time. Very much me-ish in a Golarion kinda a way but with lightning cause it is cool.
Yeah same here. Me from earth being a Golarion god would be so very different. Likely just Ydajisk but Axis.
Yeah same here. Me from earth being a Golarion god would be so very different. Likely just Ydajisk but Axis.This is hilarious to me, because a couple of friends and myself literally just spent a few hours talking about what we would be if we were gods in Golarion, what our teachings would be, what our Edicts and Anathamas would be, and all that stuff. Then I jump on to the forums and immediately find this.
I think a good number of people kind of missed the point though and wrote up a god that they thought would be cool, rather than who they would be as a god. Which is awesome too! Don't get me wrong. But unless you are admitting that you, yourself are evil aligned, the "God that is You" should most certainly not be.
I made the deity I felt like being at the time. Very much me-ish in a Golarion kinda a way but with lightning cause it is cool.
Right! honestly I have no idea if I would even still be myself if i ended up in Golarion, let alone ended up there and passed the starstone test. I'm sure either of those events alone would change me in ways I could never imagine.
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Right! honestly I have no idea if I would even still be myself if i ended up in Golarion, let alone ended up there and passed the starstone test. I'm sure either of those events alone would change me in ways I could never imagine.Yeah same here. Me from earth being a Golarion god would be so very different. Likely just Ydajisk but Axis.This is hilarious to me, because a couple of friends and myself literally just spent a few hours talking about what we would be if we were gods in Golarion, what our teachings would be, what our Edicts and Anathamas would be, and all that stuff. Then I jump on to the forums and immediately find this.
I think a good number of people kind of missed the point though and wrote up a god that they thought would be cool, rather than who they would be as a god. Which is awesome too! Don't get me wrong. But unless you are admitting that you, yourself are evil aligned, the "God that is You" should most certainly not be.
I made the deity I felt like being at the time. Very much me-ish in a Golarion kinda a way but with lightning cause it is cool.
Yeah, that's the reason I had to just decide on a region to put myself in, otherwise there'd be so many Golarion stuffs I'd care about. Also drafted up the Erages version as well:
Violant, the Living Exchange
Symbol: A handshake of visibly different ancestries.
Category: Newly Risen God.
Areas of Concern: Mixed ancestries/heritages, cultural exchanges.
Edicts: Seek to understand others. Promote cultural contact and exchange. Identify with your heritages equally.
Anathema: Follow any god who claims domain over an ancestry. Promote isolationism. Treat anyone differently because of their ancestry.
Favored Weapon: Dagger.
Sanctification: May be Holy. Would be NG pre-remaster
Divine Ability: Charisma or Intelligence
Domains: Change, Family, Freedom, Introspection
Divine Font: Heal
Divine Skill: Society
Spells: 1st: Celestial Accord, 2nd: Calm Emotions, 3rd: Crisis of Faith
Far more political then just "Nethys can rot" given why Erages evven exists. Would have beef with a lot of racial pantheons.
And for the linguistics version, I'd imagine I'd end up as an Ydajisk clone with a few modifications.
Well... the initial region seems pretty obvious, really. I mean, if you've just passed the Test of the Starstone, then there's only one place to do that. Now, where you go from there...?
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The Stubborn Smile [NG]
Berod Oyeghirn, also known as the Raven Black.
Berod is not sure exactly what happened and how he became a god. But he will not refuse such a great gift of being able to play such a great role in the world and the story. It surely all follows what the story needs and will make perfect sense in the end.
Privately, Berod strongly suspects that he underwent Isekai and ended up taking over (or switching places with) a Golarion native just when they touched the Starstone. It is one of the many mysteries he keeps on exploring to one day understand how it all fits together.
Category - Newly Risen God
Edicts - Seek and share understanding, see things as they are not as you want them to be, respectfully challenge dogma including your own, help people find their own truth and peace
Anathema - Put understanding before good, act based on unchallenged dogma, refuse new bits of truth, give up because it is convenient
Areas of Concern- Philosophy, understanding, truth, stubbornness
Follower Alignments - Any non-Evil (before Remaster).
Must be Holy (after Remaster).
Realm on his way to the Akashic Record
Temples Libraries, Forums, Universities
Worshippers philosophers, harmless conspirationists, researchers, diplomats, counselors, journalists
Pantheons - Berod does not wish to alienate other beings by officially joining a pantheon. He does feel much in common though with those deities interested in knowledge and accepting others as they truly are.
Devotee Benefits
Divine Ability - Wisdom
Divine Font - Heal
Divine Skill - Diplomacy
Favored Weapon - Fist
Domains - Freedom, Introspection, Repose, Truth
Alternate Domains - Family, Knowledge
Cleric Spells - 1st: Charm or Mindlink (for those worshippers opposed to Charm), 2nd: Animus Mine, 6th: Word of revision
Divine Politics- Berod travels everywhere and speaks with everyone to pursue new kernels of truth that will help broaden his understanding. He knows of Tabris' downfall though and is extremely careful in his dealings with Unholy creatures. But that will not prevent him from trying to understand their bit of truth and their point of view and integrate it in the harmonious whole that surely makes up the story of this creation.
Divine Intercession
Berod’s gifts take the form of new understanding that helps overcome obstacles.
Those who anger him tend to lose sight of the big picture altogether and to succumb to flighty moods in the most dangerous moments.
Minor Boon: Berod smiles on those who seek to understand others. Once when you roll a failure on a Recall Knowledge check about creatures, society, culture, religion and other similar topics, you get a critical success instead. Furthermore, the check loses the secret trait, so you know for sure that the result was a critical success. Berod typically grants this boon when understanding can avoid unnecessary bloodshed.
Moderate Boon: Berod shares his divine understanding of how things really are with the worthy. You get a +2 bonus to Perception checks.
Major Boon: Berod's beloved enjoy the clearest minds. You never get a worse result than a failure on a Will save or a Recall Knowledge check.
Minor Curse: The many conflicting bits of truth that fill Berod's mind intrude on your own, disrupting your focus. You get a -2 penalty to Initiative and Perception checks and Will saves.
Moderate Curse: Doubt is a virtue to reach a greater understanding. But taken to extremes, it becomes paranoia which distorts everything. You do not count anyone as an ally and cannot be counted as an ally by anyone either. Spells cast by allies count you as an enemy.
Major Curse: Reality does not make sense to you anymore. Every round you are in an encounter, whether combat or otherwise, you suffer the effect of a Confusion spell with an incredibly hard DC for your level.