Religion in a Space Fantasy RPG, Part 3

Continuing this line of inquiry, we can turn our attention to how concepts for their different deities help people decide how they should live their lives.

-Nate

Notions of Right Conduct

Having established which types of deities are worshiped in the campaign setting, one then starts to understand just how followers of those deities are expected to act based on their individual faiths.

Those who espouse the Universal Architect, for example, promote activities involving learning and building. After all, they believe that their god understands the master plan for the entire solar system, and they try through study and exploration to discover that plan. This leads to a generally lawful mindset. Just what one does with information gained, however, and how one tries to shape the world, is open to interpretation, and thus opens the door to good or evil tendencies.

In contrast to that, proponents of the Sun God try to embody honor and righteousness along with learning. Just as their god represents the source of light and thus life in the solar system, they work to expose evil and promote justice for all. Thus they tend to be both lawful and good, with a rare exception of neutrality in one aspect or the other.

Worshipers of the World Mother encourage the practice of mercy and thus the establishment of equality among all people. After all, any given world provides plenty for its inhabitants; seeking more than what an individual needs is greedy and even wicked. This sometimes brings them into conflict with the merchant princes and others, when they work to protect newly discovered worlds from harsh exploitation and and speak out against imbalances in labor and wealth. They are good at heart, but do not have strong tendencies toward law or chaos.

For followers of the Moon Goddess, freedom is something to be maintained at all costs. They generally respect the laws of the place in which they live, but do not hesitate to criticize and even take action against laws that don't seem to promote the common good. In this way, they stand somewhat between those who revere the Sun God, the World Mother and the Void. For that reason, some view them as being flighty and noncommittal. They tend toward chaotic or neutral outlooks in regard to ethics, and neutrality or goodness when it comes to morality.

Those who believe in the ultimate power of the Void believe that the solar system faces inescapable doom; it is only a matter of time before the end of all creatures and things will come to pass. For that reason, some are absolute hedonists, taking what pleasure they can from life before it ends. Others work actively to bring about chaos and destruction. In this way, they are almost always chaotic, and few promote goodness.

Further Developments

One of the fun aspects of developing a setting and campaign for an RPG is putting together different elements and then seeing how they develop. While this is most common with Player Characters and adventures—as they say, no plot ever survives contact with the PCs—it can also happen with the background for a world. Take, for example, the deities that are introduced in a previous article. Considering some of their attributes, logical extrapolations can lead to some intriguing and dramatic situations.

• Male and female relations have some interesting implications for interaction between clerics who worship the Sun God and the World Mother. Given that life cannot exist without the necessary interaction of the two, some members of these faiths conduct elaborate rituals that emphasize this interaction. They often take place during a planet's summer solstice. Given that they embrace fertility, clerics of the World Mother don't feel puritanical about such events, but some clerics of the Sun God regard them as scandalous.
• There is a small subset among clerics of the Sun God who view the relationship between the system's primary star and its planets as justification for members of their order to practice polygamy. After all, since the primary star isn't limited to just one world, then why should they who worship it be so limited?
• Although, given their belief in one god who is the Architect of the Universe, clerics of Ptah claim to look beyond such divine attributes as male and female, some view that dichotomy as necessary to the act of creation. Known as the Navigators, this group is known to participate in some of the aforementioned rites involving clerics of the Sun God and World Mother. They take as their symbol the compass and the square, which are emblematic of that union. What is more, they make much use of innuendo involving their group's activities and “the exploration of heavenly bodies.”
• Some of the more patriarchal followers of the Sun God view worshipers of the Moon Goddess as their rivals, since she is a strong female figure who does as she pleases. So far, occasional biased sermonizing is all that has come of it.
• Given their embrace of entropy, and the fact that this doesn't make them popular with others, worshipers of the Void must usually be secretive about their faith and activities. That is why they sometimes where their holy symbol as a tattoo, often on the chest, where it can be covered or revealed as necessary. This is accentuated because, while some cultists just see entropy as an irresistible force in the galaxy, those of evil alignment actively work to cause destruction through acts of murder, arson and the like. 
• Because deciphering and then implementing the plan of the Universal Architect requires a clear mind, some congregations who revere that deity prohibit the consumption of alcohol and other mind-altering substances. Of course, there are others who maintain that certain concoctions can help a worshiper transcend the normal limitations of thought and invention.   

Religion in a Space Fantasy RPG, Part 2

This post expands upon my previous one, developing some more ideas for developing a pantheon.

-Nate

Many Gods, One Galaxy

The clash of cultures that occurs when clerics from different worlds begin exploring the solar system can make for many interesting situations; more importantly, this situation can make for numerous intriguing and dramatic plot implications, through which clerics can be more authentically woven into the background of a campaign setting. Here are some suggestions for a few of the possibilities.

Same Deities, Different Names

In this worldview, gods from different worlds with the same portfolio are actually just interpretations of the same power. For example, the Earth Mother Gaea on one world would be the same as the fertility deities on the other planets, based on how those worlds' inhabitants interpreted her. Essentially, all of them view the same divine truth, but interpret it differently due to their own skewed perception and local bias.

In a campaign, these differences could be resolved peacefully, or there could be conflict as one group tries to assert that its interpretation is the correct one. Either way, clerics who travel from world to world still have access to divine magic.

Influence Limited to One World

Contrasting the previous interpretation, this one holds that each deity's power is limited to its world of origin. This means that, on visiting a new planet, the cleric loses access to divine magic. While this interpretation can seem to make sense, the way it limits a character's special abilities makes it pretty unbalancing as far as game mechanics are concerned.

Competition and Conflict Between Faiths

A slight variation on the previous interpretation is one in which clerics can have access to divine magic on planets beyond their homeworld, provided they bring faith in their deity to those planets. This leads to competition between different faiths, since followers of a deity from one planet might try to convert away the faithful of a similar god on another world. This could lead at best to vitriolic preaching against other congregations, or at worst to all-out holy war between nations.

Other Deities and Domains While the handful of interplanetary deities presented above present natural interpretations of the heavenly bodies in a space fantasy campaign, there are many more domains available in the Pathfinder RPG that would be embodied by other gods. Presented here, then, are suggestions for using those domains and gods in a space fantasy campaign. Air, Earth, Fire and Water—These natural forces could be viewed as deities, especially in animistic cultures. What is more, some theorists believe that it is only in striking a balance between the four that life can exist on worlds; that is why the elemental obelisk incorporates all four in its pyramid-like capstone. Charm—Love and lust are also forces of nature, existing among all cultures on every planet. As such, the deity who inspires these feelings is one who can easily move between worlds, and adherents of that faith are not likely to be divided by conflict. Death—Those who believe that this process is necessary and solemn develop different traditions regarding how it should be conducted. Some practice the immolation of bodies, and scatter the remaining ashes among the stars, while others build elaborate tombs drifting in space for interring the dead. Whatever the case, these clerics find plenty of work performing their rituals on ships and in settlements, given the hazards of life in space. Evil—Unfortunately for those who encounter them, followers of this god also move well between worlds. After all, their self-centered outlook means that new planets just represent more opportunity for them to achieve their wicked ends. When encountering the faithful of deities with similar outlooks, they might find fellow conspirators, or they could find enemies who ultimately betray them. Liberation and Luck—These domains are natural ones for spacefarers, since traveling in an aethership represents tremendous freedom for those who are fortunate. Indeed, those intrepid souls who were first to venture into the void might, long after their passing, come to be venerated as the embodiment of these ideals. Magic and Rune—Given that the process of acquiring magical power involves discovering lost lore and artifacts, the deities who represent this process also travel well between worlds. Here again there's a good likelihood for cooperation between congregations, since sharing this information is to the benefit of all. War—The discovery and exploration of new worlds opens unlimited venues for the bloodthirsty followers of these deities. They are, of course, the most likely to lead crusades, not necessarily due to ideological differences, but because they feel driven to conquer.

Religion in a Space Fantasy RPG

Running a fantasy roleplaying campaign that takes the PCs into space presents some interesting complications when it comes to the role that divine powers play in the game. After all, a god who is worshiped on one world might be entirely unknown on another. What is more, two gods from different planets could have the same spheres of influence, even though they're supposed to be universal in the scope of their influence. With that in mind, presented below are a handful of deities who are more interplanetary in their scope and scale.

Universal Architect

In a polytheistic culture, this faith can cause some conflict. After all, it maintains that a single entity is responsible for the grand scheme of the universe. Even so, that concept is open to interpretation. Some followers maintain that there is only one god, and that worship of any others is little more than superstition. Others contest, however, that additional deities are those who necessarily implement the Architect's plans like laborers on a construction site. Even so, that comparison is not exactly flattering for the other deities. 

This deity's symbol is either a compass and square (in many different cultures) or a set of hieroglyphics (in the desert region from which Ptah originated). Clerics of the Universal Architect wield a warhammer, which is emblematic of building the universe based on the deity's plans.

Sun God

On many worlds, the sun is an obvious symbol of a good influence. After all, it brings the light of day and the warmth of summer. For that reason, this god is the epitome of all that is good, making him a favorite patron of paladins and other such shining paragons of virtue.

The Sun God's holy symbol is a circle with a dot in the middle, often rendered in gold. Clerics and paladins who favor this deity wield the morningstar, the shape of which is suggestive a sun (and that the faithful often pair with a heavy shield emblazoned with the sun emblem).

World Mother

Similarly, depicting the earth as a female deity seems like a logical notion. After all, it is her womb that seeds germinate, eventually yielding all manner of useful herbs, crops and other plants. What is more, the influence of the sun on the warm growing season and the cold winter leads to their being connected as husband and wife. While she is considered to be good and beneficent, she is not so concerned with the balance between law and chaos. 

The followers of this goddess wear a symbol consisting of a circle with a cross through it, which represents the four cardinal directions with which the world is defined. They wield the quarterstaff, a weapon that grows out of their goddess.

Moon Goddess

In contrast to the World Mother, the Moon Goddess is an enigmatic figure. After all, she mostly appears during the night, when darkness envelops the land. What is more, her face is ever changing, implying unpredictability (at best) or duplicity (at worst) in her character. Those who've traveled the spacelanes recognize a similarity between her and the World Mother, which has led to a belief that she is that deity's sister. It is believed, however, that she is unwilling to accept the Sun God's affections, and thus remains aloof and mysterious. Finally, the connection between her phases and the ties has led to her association with Homeworld's oceans and seas, and her nocturnal character means many link her to the animals who only come out at night. 

Followers of the Moon Goddess—among whom the elves are perhaps the most devoted—usually wear a crescent-shaped symbol made of silver. Their chosen weapon is the elven curve blade, which bears similarity to the crescent moon.

The Void

Those who study the heavens at night focus mainly on the points of light, but there are others who obsess with the black that lies between them. Indeed, some become obsessed with this cold darkness, and thus come to see its embrace as the ultimate and inevitable fate of the galaxy. Thus they become obsessed with entropy and all of the harm that it can bring. Given this nature, cults of the Void tend to be secretive in nature and small in their scope. 

The cult's symbol is a black disk that represents the cold dark of space. Its clerics wield starknives, which embody the notions of chaos and destruction.

Mood Music

Since I'm in a space fantasy mood right now, I thought I'd share some Youtube links for music that sets the mood for that kind of adventure.

The Planets by Gustav Holst

Music from the Spelljammer Video Game

Songs Selected by Sable Aradia

"Ambient Space Fantasy" Mix

-Nate