Gods and Religion

The village of Stonetop maintains a pavilion of the gods, an open-air structure with shrines to four main gods:

• Aratis, the Lawkeeper
• Danu, the Earth Mother
• Helior, the Daybringer
• Tor, the Rain-maker, the Thunderhead, Slayer-of-Beasts

Tor is the most popular god in Stonetop, and associated with the Stone itself, but all four gods receive their proper respect. Depending on the PCs in your game, some of the gods may be more important than others. Aratis, for example, will feature more prominently in a game with a Judge PC than a game without one.

Other communities might worship some or all of these gods, perhaps by different names, perhaps with different aspects and traditions. Or they might have different gods entirely, gods unknown or unworshipped in Stonetop.

Questions

• Who tends the pavilion of the gods?
• Are Stonetop's gods part of a coherent pantheon? Or a mix of gods from different cultures?
• What little gods are revered by your family/in Stonetop/where you grew up?
• What other gods are known in Stonetop? Do any have shrines in the pavilion?
• Which god, if any, do you consider your patron?

Hooks

• Someone vandalizes one/all of the shrines in the pavilion.
• The devotee of a foreign god arrives in Stonetop, preaching strange rites.
• A saint or prophet of a new or forgotten god arises in Marshedge or Gordin's Delve, upsetting the balance of powers there.
• Someone offends their household god(s); misfortune ensues.

True nature

"God" is not a distinct category of being. If a spirit or entity receives offerings and prayers, and responds in kind, then it's a god.

The origin of any given god is for you and your table to decide. A god might be…

• one of the great spirits, there at the dawn of time, or birthed spontaneously from the fabric of existence, or made by the First Creators as a steward of the world;
• a Thing Below, or an emanation of such;
• a spirit of the wild, transformed through worship;
• the child of other gods, or of a god and a mortal;
• a mortal, ascended/transcended/reborn;
• a mortal, revered in death;
• a spirit born from humanity's beliefs;
• one of the above, but also part of a duality/triumvirate; or
• one of the above, but died and reborn.

Divine intervention

Gods shape the world in subtle ways:

through synchronicity, dreams, and omens, or by acting in the spirit world. Even Tor, who sometimes walks the world, limits himself to testing mortals and bestowing gifts and curses.

Every so often, though, a god will touch a mortal and imbue them with divine power.

They then send that mortal forth as their instrument in the world. Such mortals become prophets or saints, heroes or villains, and help shape the world for generations to come. If you have the Blessed, the Judge, the Lightbearer, or the Storm-marked Heavy among your PCs, they might well be one of these god-touched mortals.

Should the PCs wish a god to intervene on their behalf, they can petition them (see next page). Should the PCs offend a god, or oppose one, or otherwise draw its ire, write that god up as a threat (a magical entity).

For most people in the World's End, religion is not about faith or morality. It's a practical matter. The gods are, and they influence the world. You perform rites and make offerings in order to gain their favor and avert their wrath. Even priests and the like aren't necessarily devoted to the gods they serve; they just know what the gods expect and how to read their signs.

There are, however, some mortals who feel a profound connection to their god(s).

Such devotees give offerings gladly. They aspire to emulate their god(s), to heed their teachings and spread their glory.

Devotees might form fellowships with the like-minded, which in time can become institutions: formal priesthoods, mystery cults, temples, and the like. Such institutions can be powerful forces in the world.

They might preserve knowledge, legitimize leaders, protect innocents, or otherwise stabilize societies. But they might also grow corrupt, fat on power and privilege, run by cynics rather than true devotees.

Petitioning the gods

Religion is an expected part of daily life.

You help in the fields, you clean your house, and you give the gods their due.

There's no extra benefit for performing the usual rites or offerings. But if you fail to do them, you invite disapproval from your neighbors and misfortune from the gods.

PCs can seek the favor of the gods in order to Bolster (Book I, Homefront). This involves time and effort, rites and offerings above and beyond what's typical and expected. Be sure to ask the PC for details! What god(s) do they petition? What sort of aid do they seek? What offerings do they make?

Consider, too, the consequences. What other work goes undone? How do NPCs react? Etc.

Should a PC seek a specific boon from the gods—a curse lifted, an injury healed, a curse laid upon a foe, an answer or an insight, etc.—then Make a Plan! Some example requirements include:

• You must learn the proper rites/offerings
• You must obtain a specific sacred object
• You'll need the help of a particular spirit
• You'll need to wait for an auspicious date/time
• You must travel to a particular sacred site
• The rites will take hours/day/weeks
• You must make an appropriate sacrifice (Value 2 at least)
• You risk angering the god(s)

Choose requirements based on the PC's request, the god(s) they petition and how they are typically worshipped, the PC's relationship to the god(s), and how active the gods are in your particular game.

Little gods

These are the gods of households, of specific places or geographic features, of particular chores or crafts or trades. Many are just elemental spirits worshipped at a sacred site. But others are spirits closely tied to humanity.

Little gods mostly just do their thing, quietly watching over their people or places, keeping things running or causing trouble, as is their wont. A little god can:

• Reveal what it knows, from its own perspective, to those who can speak to it
• Calm/annoy/frighten animals or children
• Move/hide/reveal an unattended item
• Express displeasure through accidents, misfortunes, neglect
• Fend off other spirits Little gods manifest only to small children or at the beck and call of someone like a Blessed or spirit-talker.

When they do manifest, treat them more like NPCs than monsters.

Here are some example little gods. Feel free to modify them, expand on them, and ask the PCs questions about them.

Other gods

To create a new god, choose or roll for 1 or 2 themes, who they are relevant to, their standing, and up to 3 observances.

To name your god, use one of these methods:

• Pick a word associated with the god, translate it into an appropriate language, then change it a little ("threshold" >> "trothwy" in Welsh >> "Troth")
• Pick a deity from actual mythology or popular culture, and change a letter or two ("Thor" >> "Tor").

The PCs are approaching Three Coven Lake of Hillfolk outsiders away and to keep the horrors of the lake at bay. I consider having them worship Helior, but decide to make up a new god instead.

I start by picking a theme of "bravery/justice/oaths/protection," but also roll a second theme for flavor. I get a 12, focusing on "fire/rebirth". Then I roll a 6 for relevance ("minority within a larger people"), an 8 for standing ('invoked only when needed"), and 8 for observances ("pilgrimage/hermitage"). I could use a bit more, so I roll another observance: 5 ("fashioning of monuments"). I look at the possible true natures, ponder a bit, and settle on this: The White Hand worship Gyndorn of the Cleansing Flame, a hero of the Hillfolk who led an uprising against the Barrow Builders, and whose name the Hillfolk invoke when facing unholy evil.

Gyndorn charged her followers with eternal vigilance. She calls warriors and spirit-talkers from all tribes to pass through a sacred flame and be reborn as members of the White Hand. Members of the sect follow a circuit around the lakes that Gyndorn took herself, marking certain landmarks with white handprints each time they pass. And each band in the sect carries a consecrated flame with them as they go.

Then give them one or more titles, kennings, or honorifics to reflect their portfolio. Minor gods might have only a title; "She Who Threads the Needle" might go by no other name than that.

If this god will cause ongoing trouble for the PCs or the village, write it up as a threat (a magical entity).

Three Coven Lake, and I've decided that a group called The White Hand patrol the area. Their god tells them to keep