Gods and alignments

[Set]

[caveat] This is not meant, *at all,* to be some sort of argument about whether or not a god has an appropriate alignment, whether or not alignment belongs in the game or not, blah, blah, blah, but, the internet, so, I'm probably saying nothing useful here. :) [/caveat]

I am intrigued by how the 'one step rule' for Clerics of various gods creates for some fairly distinctive sub-sects of their churches.

Norgorber seems the the most clear cut, and even then, it's not spelled out or even intuitive if his four facets lean towards one of the four alignment choices his clerics can follow. Father Skinsaw seems to lean towards CE, certainly (but has plenty of room for LE obsessive serial killer sorts, and NE folk who are less OCD about following procedure, but also less wanton and whacky about their killing than the crazy murderclown cult). The Reaper of Reputation seems a good fit for Neutral Evil. All about using language (slander and libel) to ruin the reputations of people, but even there, is a teensy bit of wiggle room for a Neutal (non-evil) destroyer of reputations, someone who has lost family or friends or loved ones to a beloved or popular figure that they know to be a villain, and who has dedicated their life to unmasking those villains who hide under a guise of being benevolent or beloved public figures. Assorted bits of modern fiction deal with heroes being forced to unmask the perfidy of a popular person who is secretly a terrible person and is themselves manipulating public opinion. (This would, obviously, be an outlier among the Reapers of Reputation's followers. I expect most of them are terrible people themselves. The politics of personal destruction rarely leave someone's hands unstained...) Either Blackfingers or the Gray Master could be the safest havens for the non-evil clergy (and worshippers) of Norgorber. Figures like Robin Hood, or movies like Ocean's Eleven, even glamorize 'gentleman thieves,' at times. And poison, particularly in our modern world, is *far* more commonly used to eliminate disease and famine-causing pests, or even eliminate tumors, than by power-mad Medici's trying to control Italian city-states (and not all alchemically minded Blackfingers folk are even guaranteed to be all that into poison, specifically, of their many class abilities, since it is, IMO, not as fun as chucking fiery explosions or 'hulking out' with a mutagen).

So many alignment based splinters kind of make sense to me.

A CN sect of Caydenites could be more about the drunken state itself, and perhaps a little less concerned with stuff that happens *while* they are drunk. A NG sect of Caydenites sometimes roll their eyes at the focus on 'getting drunk' and could be more focused on orphanages and abolitionism (and, yes, responsible use of intoxicants). The mainstream church perhaps regards the irresponsible CN'frat boys' as a good recruiting ground for those who can learn responsibility, while still being able to cut loose.

NG Pharasmins, which I'd love to see more of, could be all about midwifery, family planning advice, medicine (particularly of the very young, and very old), end of life care, and, yeah, funerals. NE Pharasmins could be actively fighting those who defy her will by extending their lives unnaturally, or trying to 'get around' death in various ways, not just undeath, such as abusing the reincarnation spell. The only branch I actually don't immediately see a niche for are the CN Pharasmins. (I'm sure someone has put more thought into this than I, and has an idea here!)

The only *god* of the big twenty who doesn't really 'speak' to me, in any of his alignment options, would be Rovagug. I could see why someone would follow the tenets (or at least *some* of the tenets) of just about everyone else. I could see how a LN priest of Zon-Kuthon could be all about cutting away weakness and strengthening the body and the mind, or a NE Nethyn could be an arcane supremacist, convinced that non-spellcasters should *never* command or rule over 'their betters,' anyone can cast spells, and have a complicated heirarchy of *which* spellcasters are 'superior' which might start with wizards (or sorcerers!), and end with clerics of any god other than Nethys, or those mediochre dabblers called Adepts that everyone pretends don't even exist. But clerics of Rovagug are a mystery to me. I do not get them at all. :)

There might be a CN faction of Lamashtans, with their own clerics, focused on providing nurturing communities for those that modern society calls 'neurodivergent' or 'differently-abled,' and teaches them to regard their differences (in appearance, 'acceptable' behavior, or both) as gifts and opportunities, not defects to be shunned, or hidden away, or surgically or magically 'corrected.' Being that the core faith is Chaotic EVIL, I could also see the more orthodox clerics stoking resentment in these folk, leading to frightening or even dangerous behaviors that 100% inflame the exact sort of prejudice that their flock already face, and perpetuating the cycle that keeps this faction flush with new potential recruits, as they encourage the afflicted to lash out at societies that shun them, 'proving' that society was 'right' to do so in the first place! (Telling those with socially unacceptable behaviors that their violent or disturbing traits are somehow 'gifts from the goddess' that shouldn't be restrained or managed could also lead to disruptions that 'prove' that they should be driven away, or killed! Which would serve the purposes of the greater CE church of Lamashtu.)

What might seem, to us in the modern day, an organization / support group for the 'differently abled' or neurodivergent, could have members who are all about that stated purpose, and an entirely sinister underbelly that is stoking resentment and fear both among their flock, and among the rest of society *against* their flock, given them nowhere else to go, but the safety of 'their own kind' against a world out to get them. Perfect cult or gang recruitment tactic. Give them nowhere else to go. Make them burn all their bridges, or perform acts that will result in a dire fate if leave, not from the cult itself, but from everyone else.

[Tim Emrick]

In Inner Sea Gods, the sidebars about the paladin codes (and antipaladin codes) of various gods provide some good examples of how this "alignment drift" can define a sect within the overall faith. (I can't recall if the main text discusses alignment-based differences between clerics or not.)

Set wrote:

The only *god* of the big twenty who doesn't really 'speak' to me, in any of his alignment options, would be Rovagug.

I think with Rovagug's followers, regardless of alignment, their core beliefs boil down to something like this: "Rovagug is the strongest god. It took a large coalition of other gods to stop him, and even then they could only contain him, not destroy him. None of those lesser gods is worthy of worship. Sure, he'll eat the world when he gets free (and he will), but until then, we should be like Rovagug and take whatever we want without any rules to stop us." None of that encourages playing well with others, even other Rovagug cultists, so it's probably the least likely god for a PC to worship. It's kind of a miracle that the cult still persists! (In that way, it's rather like the cults of the less subtle demon lords--they somehow survive in spite of themselves, because the god/demon always welcomes new tools.)