What setting is this character going to be for? There's not really a single D&D pantheon.
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Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
What setting is this character going to be for? There's not really a single D&D pantheon.
Well this isn't for any particular campaign, just a character I have cooked up in my head for when the time arises can put her into a campaign and not struggle when ask which god she is a cleric of. The place holder name was using was Yerstralsil, which at first thought "That sounds too much like a feminine product." Then realization "oh that just a bastardization of Yggdrasil the Norse World Tree." So thus this topic asking for a more appropriate D&D deity name.
I'm partial to Kasaphesence and Shekhinah as gods of order, myself. Kasaphesence is a bit of a mouthful, which is what I personally prefer for a god of that nature, but Shekhinah is a snappier option.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
I mean, why does a Cleric have to serve one god in game worlds that are more often than not polytheistic? Cleric's get a domain, but I don't think there's any mechanical or lore reason why a character needs to have one special divine buddy.
An interesting game world, to me, would be one where there's a pantheon of gods, some of whom have overlapping domains. Clerics, through study and prayer or communion or whatever wind up serving varying "portfolios" of deities. And another Cleric could have a portfolio that includes some of the first clerics gods, and those two clerics could be in conflict. This works out find theologically, because in such a world the gods are much more fickle than classic D&D One Cleric = One Good rationing. A god could see the conflict between the two Clerics as a way of determining which one is more worthy of its favor.
In such a world, if you want a personal relationship with a single higher power, that's called a patron and you can become a Warlock (maybe), or maybe one particular god touched you and you're not a divine soul sorcerer. If the role of a cleric is service of and communion with the gods, exactly who you are calling upon in a given moment may be more a list of contacts that one specific entity. Such a game world would also imply the gods aren't really that 'personally' concerned with mortal affairs, or at least not in a way that truly makes sense to or otherwise validates the mortal world.
I mean, why does a Cleric have to serve one god in game worlds that are more often than not polytheistic? Cleric's get a domain, but I don't think there's any mechanical or lore reason why a character needs to have one special divine buddy.
An interesting game world, to me, would be one where there's a pantheon of gods, some of whom have overlapping domains. Clerics, through study and prayer or communion or whatever wind up serving varying "portfolios" of deities. And another Cleric could have a portfolio that includes some of the first clerics gods, and those two clerics could be in conflict. This works out find theologically, because in such a world the gods are much more fickle than classic D&D One Cleric = One Good rationing. A god could see the conflict between the two Clerics as a way of determining which one is more worthy of its favor.
In such a world, if you want a personal relationship with a single higher power, that's called a patron and you can become a Warlock (maybe), or maybe one particular god touched you and you're not a divine soul sorcerer. If the role of a cleric is service of and communion with the gods, exactly who you are calling upon in a given moment may be more a list of contacts that one specific entity. Such a game world would also imply the gods aren't really that 'personally' concerned with mortal affairs, or at least not in a way that truly makes sense to or otherwise validates the mortal world.
That's a bit of what I've decided on for my Greek mythology inspired world. Basically, I just thought, "what kind of lame-ass Cleric would exclusively worship Zephyr, god of slight winds? What spells are they gonna cast, Gust of Cooling Breeze?" So instead of Clerics to any individual wind gods, I have Tempests, who act as Clerics to all of them.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
I mean, why does a Cleric have to serve one god in game worlds that are more often than not polytheistic? Cleric's get a domain, but I don't think there's any mechanical or lore reason why a character needs to have one special divine buddy.
An interesting game world, to me, would be one where there's a pantheon of gods, some of whom have overlapping domains. Clerics, through study and prayer or communion or whatever wind up serving varying "portfolios" of deities. And another Cleric could have a portfolio that includes some of the first clerics gods, and those two clerics could be in conflict. This works out find theologically, because in such a world the gods are much more fickle than classic D&D One Cleric = One Good rationing. A god could see the conflict between the two Clerics as a way of determining which one is more worthy of its favor.
In such a world, if you want a personal relationship with a single higher power, that's called a patron and you can become a Warlock (maybe), or maybe one particular god touched you and you're not a divine soul sorcerer. If the role of a cleric is service of and communion with the gods, exactly who you are calling upon in a given moment may be more a list of contacts that one specific entity. Such a game world would also imply the gods aren't really that 'personally' concerned with mortal affairs, or at least not in a way that truly makes sense to or otherwise validates the mortal world.
I'm pretty sure it's because all the English-speaking cultures are prevalently monotheistic, and that affects our assumptions about how religion works. (And also the class description assumes a singular god.)
While I'm pretty sure in most polytheistic societies, priests served a particular god, they weren't exclusive. A priest of Ares would've made offerings to Poseidon before traveling on a ship.
Buit, as you say, there's no reason it has to work that way. Clerics could easily serve an entire pantheon. Wanna Inflict Wounds? Time to invoke Bahb, the got of evil.
I mean, why does a Cleric have to serve one god in game worlds that are more often than not polytheistic? Cleric's get a domain, but I don't think there's any mechanical or lore reason why a character needs to have one special divine buddy.
An interesting game world, to me, would be one where there's a pantheon of gods, some of whom have overlapping domains. Clerics, through study and prayer or communion or whatever wind up serving varying "portfolios" of deities. And another Cleric could have a portfolio that includes some of the first clerics gods, and those two clerics could be in conflict. This works out find theologically, because in such a world the gods are much more fickle than classic D&D One Cleric = One Good rationing. A god could see the conflict between the two Clerics as a way of determining which one is more worthy of its favor.
In such a world, if you want a personal relationship with a single higher power, that's called a patron and you can become a Warlock (maybe), or maybe one particular god touched you and you're not a divine soul sorcerer. If the role of a cleric is service of and communion with the gods, exactly who you are calling upon in a given moment may be more a list of contacts that one specific entity. Such a game world would also imply the gods aren't really that 'personally' concerned with mortal affairs, or at least not in a way that truly makes sense to or otherwise validates the mortal world.
I'm pretty sure it's because all the English-speaking cultures are prevalently monotheistic, and that affects our assumptions about how religion works. (And also the class description assumes a singular god.)
While I'm pretty sure in most polytheistic societies, priests served a particular god, they weren't exclusive. A priest of Ares would've made offerings to Poseidon before traveling on a ship.
Buit, as you say, there's no reason it has to work that way. Clerics could easily serve an entire pantheon. Wanna Inflict Wounds? Time to invoke Bahb, the got of evil.
There's also the fact that in the real world, most polytheistic societies had rather more fluid idea of what their gods actually were. The Greeks, for example, took gods from the Egyptians and rolled them into being aspects of Zeus, Hera, and other members of their own pantheon.
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Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
That's sort of what I'm sort of suggesting 6th, a willingness for a game world to have, from a mortal perspective, inconsistencies among the world's gods. Call it their mysteries. Maybe two warring peoples fighting in their respective gods names are actually invoking the same god, whose support for one side or the other is ... fickle, but that might be anthropomorphizing forces the Clerics don't really understand. Again, if you want to have a conversation, get a patron. If you want to throw a message in a bottle and pray you get answered, Cleric. Just don't think too hard as to what Far Realm may be getting back to you.
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Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
I mean, why does a Cleric have to serve one god in game worlds that are more often than not polytheistic? Cleric's get a domain, but I don't think there's any mechanical or lore reason why a character needs to have one special divine buddy.
An interesting game world, to me, would be one where there's a pantheon of gods, some of whom have overlapping domains. Clerics, through study and prayer or communion or whatever wind up serving varying "portfolios" of deities. And another Cleric could have a portfolio that includes some of the first clerics gods, and those two clerics could be in conflict. This works out find theologically, because in such a world the gods are much more fickle than classic D&D One Cleric = One Good rationing. A god could see the conflict between the two Clerics as a way of determining which one is more worthy of its favor.
In such a world, if you want a personal relationship with a single higher power, that's called a patron and you can become a Warlock (maybe), or maybe one particular god touched you and you're not a divine soul sorcerer. If the role of a cleric is service of and communion with the gods, exactly who you are calling upon in a given moment may be more a list of contacts that one specific entity. Such a game world would also imply the gods aren't really that 'personally' concerned with mortal affairs, or at least not in a way that truly makes sense to or otherwise validates the mortal world.
Why do professional athletes only play for one team per season? If a deity's gonna personally invest power in you, they're likely gonna expect you to put that towards their interests, not play the field with the whole pantheon. Which doesn't mean you can't interact with the rest at all, it's just a matter of who your direct superior in that area is. People keep bringing up the point that polytheistic cultures turned to different gods for different functions, but I'm pretty sure in the major population centers there were specific priests of say Osiris and Anubis who would handle last rites, and the priests of the Parthenon had very specifically dedicated themselves to Athena. Clerics aren't the entire body of the clergy, they're people who have specifically built up a connection with a particular aspect of the pantheon. The use of subclasses arguable highlights how general Cleric powers are distinct from the Domain features as well; you can cast Cure Wounds simply because you're in touch with the whole pantheon, but if you want to bring the lightning you're gonna need to give Zeus or Thor a reason to invest in you.
Obviously people are free to come up with their own dynamics in their own settings for this stuff, but saying there's no basis for Clerics to be tied to a particular deity ignores a lot of material from both IRL and the game.
Why do professional athletes only play for one team per season? If a deity's gonna personally invest power in you, they're likely gonna expect you to put that towards their interests, not play the field with the whole pantheon. Which doesn't mean you can't interact with the rest at all, it's just a matter of who your direct superior in that area is. People keep bringing up the point that polytheistic cultures turned to different gods for different functions, but I'm pretty sure in the major population centers there were specific priests of say Osiris and Anubis who would handle last rites, and the priests of the Parthenon had very specifically dedicated themselves to Athena. Clerics aren't the entire body of the clergy, they're people who have specifically built up a connection with a particular aspect of the pantheon. The use of subclasses arguable highlights how general Cleric powers are distinct from the Domain features as well; you can cast Cure Wounds simply because you're in touch with the whole pantheon, but if you want to bring the lightning you're gonna need to give Zeus or Thor a reason to invest in you.
This is a very specific model of how people interact with the divine that's not required by the game, though it is assumed. The competitive monotheism that D&D settings default to isn't much like to how real cultures worked, and, even with more directly interventionist gods that the real world had, it just isn't required. Is a cleric imbued with power by a specific deity? Maybe! Maybe they're just closer to the divine for some reason, so the gods hear them better. Maybe they have the rare ability to channel the power of the gods without becoming a pair of smoking boots. Maybe they're stealing power from the gods. Maybe they just think they're getting it from the gods, but it's really another kind of wizardry. All these and more are compatible with the mechanics of the class.
The subclassing of 5e explicitly doesn't require a single god. You specialize in a broad domain. Even if the gods have well-defined, non-overlapping portfolios, a thing which totally didn't happen in the real world, there can still be multiple gods that fit the bill. A War Domain cleric in the Greek pantheon could be calling upon Ares or Athena primarily, and Zeus likely makes sense as well at times. And then there's all the off-domain stuff you do? Are you really gonna call upon Ares to heal somebody? How do you think that's gonna go?
Well this is an interesting read after my initial question, but I do have a flip side to that question. What D&D deity would be best for a barbarian that is all about nature and hunting. Like they believe in respecting nature taking what only indented use. They make believe in an enteral hunting grounds as their afterlife and make a sacrificial offer of what animal spirit want to be transformed into when they die to pass into said enteral hunting grounds.
I mean, really unless you're playing in one of the older official settings like Forgotten Realms, Eberron, or Greyhawk, that's just something you work out between your DM. And even if you're using an official pantheon, the amount of actual lore you can find with them is going to vary a lot based on what material they've been used for. The easiest answers are probably Mielikki and Silvanus from the Forgotten Realms as your basic Good or Neutral Nature deity.
Really though, if you're getting this specific about it all then you're more homebrewing than looking to fit existing material.
So I have an idea for a cleric character that I have rolled up in my head, but never actually gotten name of said god nailed down.
So am looking for a god of laws and order, for laws are what separates us from beast of the land
A god that gave sentience to people, for what separates a house cat from a tabaxi or a turtle from a tortle
So basically looking for a god/goddess that brought people, civilization to where it is at current point in setting.
Helm in Forgotten Realms or St Cuthbert in Greyhawk. You're looking for a Lawful Neutral deity with a stance like that.
Though there really aren't any deities that "brought" civilization.
Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
What setting is this character going to be for? There's not really a single D&D pantheon.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
Well this isn't for any particular campaign, just a character I have cooked up in my head for when the time arises can put her into a campaign and not struggle when ask which god she is a cleric of. The place holder name was using was Yerstralsil, which at first thought "That sounds too much like a feminine product." Then realization "oh that just a bastardization of Yggdrasil the Norse World Tree." So thus this topic asking for a more appropriate D&D deity name.
I'm partial to Kasaphesence and Shekhinah as gods of order, myself. Kasaphesence is a bit of a mouthful, which is what I personally prefer for a god of that nature, but Shekhinah is a snappier option.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
Erathis from the Dawn War pantheon comes to mind.
Coriana - Company of the Grey Chain
Wagner - Dragon Heist: Bards.
DM - The Old Keep
I mean, why does a Cleric have to serve one god in game worlds that are more often than not polytheistic? Cleric's get a domain, but I don't think there's any mechanical or lore reason why a character needs to have one special divine buddy.
An interesting game world, to me, would be one where there's a pantheon of gods, some of whom have overlapping domains. Clerics, through study and prayer or communion or whatever wind up serving varying "portfolios" of deities. And another Cleric could have a portfolio that includes some of the first clerics gods, and those two clerics could be in conflict. This works out find theologically, because in such a world the gods are much more fickle than classic D&D One Cleric = One Good rationing. A god could see the conflict between the two Clerics as a way of determining which one is more worthy of its favor.
In such a world, if you want a personal relationship with a single higher power, that's called a patron and you can become a Warlock (maybe), or maybe one particular god touched you and you're not a divine soul sorcerer. If the role of a cleric is service of and communion with the gods, exactly who you are calling upon in a given moment may be more a list of contacts that one specific entity. Such a game world would also imply the gods aren't really that 'personally' concerned with mortal affairs, or at least not in a way that truly makes sense to or otherwise validates the mortal world.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
That's a bit of what I've decided on for my Greek mythology inspired world. Basically, I just thought, "what kind of lame-ass Cleric would exclusively worship Zephyr, god of slight winds? What spells are they gonna cast, Gust of Cooling Breeze?" So instead of Clerics to any individual wind gods, I have Tempests, who act as Clerics to all of them.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
I'm pretty sure it's because all the English-speaking cultures are prevalently monotheistic, and that affects our assumptions about how religion works. (And also the class description assumes a singular god.)
While I'm pretty sure in most polytheistic societies, priests served a particular god, they weren't exclusive. A priest of Ares would've made offerings to Poseidon before traveling on a ship.
Buit, as you say, there's no reason it has to work that way. Clerics could easily serve an entire pantheon. Wanna Inflict Wounds? Time to invoke Bahb, the got of evil.
There's also the fact that in the real world, most polytheistic societies had rather more fluid idea of what their gods actually were. The Greeks, for example, took gods from the Egyptians and rolled them into being aspects of Zeus, Hera, and other members of their own pantheon.
Find your own truth, choose your enemies carefully, and never deal with a dragon.
"Canon" is what's factual to D&D lore. "Cannon" is what you're going to be shot with if you keep getting the word wrong.
That's sort of what I'm sort of suggesting 6th, a willingness for a game world to have, from a mortal perspective, inconsistencies among the world's gods. Call it their mysteries. Maybe two warring peoples fighting in their respective gods names are actually invoking the same god, whose support for one side or the other is ... fickle, but that might be anthropomorphizing forces the Clerics don't really understand. Again, if you want to have a conversation, get a patron. If you want to throw a message in a bottle and pray you get answered, Cleric. Just don't think too hard as to what Far Realm may be getting back to you.
Jander Sunstar is the thinking person's Drizzt, fight me.
Why do professional athletes only play for one team per season? If a deity's gonna personally invest power in you, they're likely gonna expect you to put that towards their interests, not play the field with the whole pantheon. Which doesn't mean you can't interact with the rest at all, it's just a matter of who your direct superior in that area is. People keep bringing up the point that polytheistic cultures turned to different gods for different functions, but I'm pretty sure in the major population centers there were specific priests of say Osiris and Anubis who would handle last rites, and the priests of the Parthenon had very specifically dedicated themselves to Athena. Clerics aren't the entire body of the clergy, they're people who have specifically built up a connection with a particular aspect of the pantheon. The use of subclasses arguable highlights how general Cleric powers are distinct from the Domain features as well; you can cast Cure Wounds simply because you're in touch with the whole pantheon, but if you want to bring the lightning you're gonna need to give Zeus or Thor a reason to invest in you.
Obviously people are free to come up with their own dynamics in their own settings for this stuff, but saying there's no basis for Clerics to be tied to a particular deity ignores a lot of material from both IRL and the game.
This is a very specific model of how people interact with the divine that's not required by the game, though it is assumed. The competitive monotheism that D&D settings default to isn't much like to how real cultures worked, and, even with more directly interventionist gods that the real world had, it just isn't required. Is a cleric imbued with power by a specific deity? Maybe! Maybe they're just closer to the divine for some reason, so the gods hear them better. Maybe they have the rare ability to channel the power of the gods without becoming a pair of smoking boots. Maybe they're stealing power from the gods. Maybe they just think they're getting it from the gods, but it's really another kind of wizardry. All these and more are compatible with the mechanics of the class.
The subclassing of 5e explicitly doesn't require a single god. You specialize in a broad domain. Even if the gods have well-defined, non-overlapping portfolios, a thing which totally didn't happen in the real world, there can still be multiple gods that fit the bill. A War Domain cleric in the Greek pantheon could be calling upon Ares or Athena primarily, and Zeus likely makes sense as well at times. And then there's all the off-domain stuff you do? Are you really gonna call upon Ares to heal somebody? How do you think that's gonna go?
Well this is an interesting read after my initial question, but I do have a flip side to that question. What D&D deity would be best for a barbarian that is all about nature and hunting. Like they believe in respecting nature taking what only indented use. They make believe in an enteral hunting grounds as their afterlife and make a sacrificial offer of what animal spirit want to be transformed into when they die to pass into said enteral hunting grounds.
I mean, really unless you're playing in one of the older official settings like Forgotten Realms, Eberron, or Greyhawk, that's just something you work out between your DM. And even if you're using an official pantheon, the amount of actual lore you can find with them is going to vary a lot based on what material they've been used for. The easiest answers are probably Mielikki and Silvanus from the Forgotten Realms as your basic Good or Neutral Nature deity.
Really though, if you're getting this specific about it all then you're more homebrewing than looking to fit existing material.
Another could be Amaunator the solar deity of order, the sun, law, and time.