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Old 09-12-2015, 10:59 PM   #1
Minuteman37
 
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Default God and Pantheon Creation 101

SJGames, any advice on how to craft deities for a setting? Is there some sort of process you go for or maybe some sort of referencing material?
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Old 09-12-2015, 11:17 PM   #2
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

When I need deities for a setting and don't just want to go out and use an established pantheon from the real world, I tend to concentrate on two random generators.

Pantheon Generator

Culture/Religion Generator

I used to have a third generator that I would utilize, but it has since vanished.


Other than these two things, I will go and try to determine first what sort of setting I'm going to be using or what races will be a part of that setting and then attempt to tailor the results to something that might actually make sense. Such as only a few people in a remote rural farming village might actually take the time to revere a god of commerce and money, but the majority might worship one of farming and small animals that go squish.

Other than that, you can always go for mythology for the standard ones. Lovecraftian horrors, lists of patron saints, various religions around the world and use them like a pick & mix from your local shop and if you use just enough BBQ seasoning, you might be able to make them your own and no one needs to know a thing.
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Old 09-12-2015, 11:21 PM   #3
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

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Originally Posted by Minuteman37 View Post
SJGames, any advice on how to craft deities for a setting? Is there some sort of process you go for or maybe some sort of referencing material?
GURPS Religion is for 3rd Edition, but apart from most (not all, even, just most) of the magic system stuff, it's eminently useful for GURPS 4th Edition, or even for people who use some system other than GURPS.

And it's available from e23, almost certainly.
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Old 09-12-2015, 11:28 PM   #4
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

The last time I made up a pantheon, I started out with Dumézil's tripartite theory of Indo-European mythology, which distinguishes gods of law and sovereignty, gods of war, and gods of the people and fertility. Then I imagined that I was making up a variant for an Indo-European people of another timeline. I linked most of the gods with celestial bodies: the first function with Saturn and Jupiter, the second with Mars, the third with Venus and Mercury. Then I added a few more layers: The primordial cosmic forces of Chaos and Fate, the greater deities of Sky, Earth, Sea, Darkness, Moon, and Sun, the adopted mortal demigods, and the servant of the gods of whose origin no one was really certain.

I don't tend to go in for randomly rolled God of X and Goddess of Y. My preference is to come up with some sort of system of relationships. I worked out a whole family tree and a list of divine functions and how they fitted together.

I haven't done so much of that since then. My current campaign is animistic (uncountable numbers of spirits) rather than polytheistic (a comparatively short list of gods).
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Old 09-12-2015, 11:53 PM   #5
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

A few suggestions:

Look at what values are important to the originating culture. For gods that embody "what not to do", look to the vices. Also look to see what natural hazards are commonly available.

For example: A sea-faring culture that places importance on the sea and fears storms, seeing the sun as a source of light - like that of the Greeks - would have different values than a desert culture that views water as a luxury, oases as places of peace where differences are set aside, and the sun as a source of vengeance and madness.

Real life pantheons are good sources of inspiration. The Hindi, Greek, Egyptian, Norse, Celtic, and Chinese pantheons all have their own unique flavors.
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Old 09-13-2015, 12:49 AM   #6
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

Of course, at the other end of the time and effort scale, when one of my DF players decided to play a Holy Warrior and I thought "oh crap, I need a pantheon", I started with the general sky god of good Hymos, and have since expanded to the earth goddess W'fay, god of the sea B'gbrudda, god of warriors and the harvest N'ma Wonson, and the trickster god Noin Lilsch't. Next on the scene will be the god of the underworld, Dahk'n Brwd'n.
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Old 09-13-2015, 12:54 AM   #7
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

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Originally Posted by joncarryer View Post
Of course, at the other end of the time and effort scale, when one of my DF players decided to play a Holy Warrior and I thought "oh crap, I need a pantheon", I started with the general sky god of good Hymos, and have since expanded to the earth goddess W'fay, god of the sea B'gbrudda, god of warriors and the harvest N'ma Wonson, and the trickster god Noin Lilsch't. Next on the scene will be the god of the underworld, Dahk'n Brwd'n.
And why not toss an adversarial god into the mix: Rak'n Ru'un, raging god of mindless destruction. ;)
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The GURPS Marvel Universe Reboot Project A-G, H-R, and S-Z, and its not-a-wiki-really web adaptation.
Ranoc, a Muskets-and-Magery Renaissance Fantasy Setting
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Old 09-13-2015, 01:26 AM   #8
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

A few pantheons I came up with for my Ranoc setting:

The first pantheon is a large one, inspired at least in part by the Greco-Roman pantheon, and is dualistic in that there is a group of renegade gods that seek to overthrow the natural order maintained by the dominant gods, representing many of the culture's vices.

The Gods
Galsus – King of the gods; god of storms, sky, law, nobility, and lightning.
Fehrest – Queen of the gods; goddess of women, children, devotion, kitchens, and taverns.
Kaimana – God of the sea, oceans, marine life, and sea storms.
Hannass – Goddess of nature, agriculture, fertility, life, restoration, rebirth, and reincarnation.
Nyysan – Goddess of the home, hearth, family, diplomacy, and warmth.
Golma – God of the dead, funerals, judgement, and fighting undead.
Ryl – Goddess of wisdom, intuition, oracles, and divination; knowing without knowing.
Navor – God of light, knowledge, magic, astronomy, astrology, art, science, music, and medicine.
Gessa – Goddess of woodlands, nighttime, and the hunt.
Akanksha – Goddess of love, passion, creation of life, and sex.
Suthre – God of artifice, crafting, and the forge.
Vilhelmo – God of war, valor, righteousness, and self-discipline.
Kenen – God of the sun, light, and fighting undead; drives the sun chariot.
Ynnada – Goddess of the moons, watchfulness, and occult knowledge.
Kael – God of justice and discipline.
Trys – Goddess of luck, cunning, pranks, laughster, thieves, and fortune hunters.
Grangre – Goddess of order, science, mathematics, and medicine.
Ha'all – God of chaos, freedom, music, art, and tavern brawls.
Barsus – God of merchants, travelers, roads, and commerce.
Kesuul – God of lycanthropes, hunting, untamed wilderness, and wildlife.
Ricnalis – Demi-goddess of announcements.

The Renegades
Ekchhar – God of evil, tyranny, and power.
Vy – Goddess of darkness, knowledge, magic, power, chaos, and corruption.
Su'kal – Goddess of death and the undead.
Rallos – God of war, destruction, slaughter, rage, and mindless fury.
Hiini – Goddess of deception and betrayal.
Nolkus – God of disease, plagues, and famine.
Bri'ney – Goddess of lust, temptation, jealousy, envy, desire, and obsession.
Volsh – Goddess of depravity and unnecessary torture.
Rilke – Goddess of insanity and madmen.
Lukryz – God of murder, stealth, and assassination.
Brosa – God of gluttony and cannibalism.
Hessen – God of vengeance and retribution.
Myrg – God of greed and miserliness.
Kakotatos – Arch-demon.


I also have a monotheistic religion, worshipping Yohévohé "The One True God", patterned roughly after the Roman Catholic Church during the Spanish Inquisition. o/`

Thirdly, I have a pantheon of horse-deities worshipped by matriarchal steppe nomads:

Raopachtat – First among equals, mare of wisdom and leadership.
Firract – Stallion of strength, masculinity, determination, and all things male.
Remarch – Gelding of justice and balance.
Lechli – Mare of fertility; the maiden of the womanly trio.
Nami – Mare of devotion and the home; the matron of the womanly trio.
Stuchal – Mare of honesty; the crone of the womanly trio.
Parth – Stallion of war.
Zecht – Stallion of speed.

Finally, I have a desert pantheon, cooked up by one of my players.

Shaldania – Blind goddess of law, justice, and truth.
Volmanain – God of the moons, wisdom, knowledge, and learning.
Shala – Vile goddess of the sun, deception, and illusions.
Vormanaith – God of jealousy, envy, war, and destruction.
Tanalorian – God of plants, animals, children, and fertility.
Halnaru – Goddess of death and rebirth.
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"But mom, I don't wanna go back in the dungeon!"

The GURPS Marvel Universe Reboot Project A-G, H-R, and S-Z, and its not-a-wiki-really web adaptation.
Ranoc, a Muskets-and-Magery Renaissance Fantasy Setting
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Old 09-13-2015, 02:24 AM   #9
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

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Originally Posted by Minuteman37 View Post
SJGames, any advice on how to craft deities for a setting? Is there some sort of process you go for or maybe some sort of referencing material?
This is my go-to page for all religions Indo-European. I don't know how accurate it is, but it is good gamer fodder. For proto-Semitic pantheons, I go to The Source of All Earthly Knowledge.
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Old 09-13-2015, 03:13 AM   #10
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Default Re: God and Pantheon Creation 101

A not unreasonable facet to consider is the source of the deities. Are they physical, but immensely powerful or advanced beings? Abstract representations? Constructs? Spirits? Ancestors? Or something more alien? While largely an influence on flavor it can have effects on how you assign the gods' spheres, whether they have them at all and how they interact with and perceive mortals.
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