Re: Religions in Space

Ahzad Jinsai wrote:
> 
> A recent post in the SJ folder on the TSR site about the Astromundi
> Religions has gotten me thinking about religions in space.
> 
	Something I've thought long and hard about myself.

> Religions in space, how do you handle them? Are they just a big mish-mash of
> deities w/o any rhyme or reason? Or do they have some substance to them?
> The nature of SJ universe would seem to disallow any sort of coherent
> pantheon. It seems to be a big frontier in a divine sense, with the stray
> god from this world or that world in the role of the pioneer trying to gain
> a foothold among the spacefaring races.
> 
	My own personal view about the deities & the outer planes varies pretty
far from offical, but rather than ranting, here's what I've done.
	In ancient times, there were Elder Gods.  These were truly frightening
deities, with nearly ultimate power.  At the end of their time, they
either fell from power or simply left.  One of those deities was
destroyed, but pieces remained.
	Since that time, two primary pantheons have arisen.  First is the Crux,
which resembled the Egyptian pantheon.  It is the elder of the two
pantheons, and used to have dozens of deities.  However, when the second
pantheon arose, it lost 80-90% of its members in a bloody godswar.  The
second is the Raer, which is actually a family of greater titans who
managed to achieve deity-hood.  Of the two, however, the Crux is again
on the rise, but has drastically changed.  "Ra" is now Solran, and his
mate, Isha, have a powerful church that closely resembles the Christan
church during the Middle Ages.  Other survivors include Ptah & Bast,
both minor cults on large worlds.  The Raer are more a hog-pog of
whatever odd deities I choose to toss in, including Crecus, Llwar, and
several other deities.  The two pantheons are slowly merging together
into a single pantheon, and are no longer at each other's throats.  Of
the two, the Crux are the strongest; the Raer deities are much weaker
than those of the Crux.
	The monkey-wrench of this is Nemesis, one of those pieces left over
from the Elder Days.  Not a nice guy, has the power of several deities
combined.  Everyone is pretty much afraid of him.
	How the demi-human pantheons work into this, I haven't decided.  I do
like individual deities, but I also have a desire to keep things
simple.  IF I add them in, I'd limit them to a handful of deities.


> But I can also see it as a new pantheon trying to be born. Ptah, and
> Celestian vying for the top dog spot. Other gods (lesser or demi) who have
> no real power or influence w/i their own pantheons gathering some followers
> and seeking out a spot in this new pantheon where they might have a chance
> for more power.
> I just had this thought a couple of days ago and it's one I find intriguing.
> I'll have to mull it about for a while and look through various resources
> for possible deities that might wish to escape the old and start new and see
> what kind of ideas I can come up with. I've toyed with the idea of the
> rivalry between the followers of Celestian and Ptah evolving into a bitter
> war as the push to become head of the new pantheon escalates.
> 
	If you wish to create a "space pantheon," here would be my picks:
Ptah (obviously): viewed as the "creator," probably the strongest in
terms of numbers, well respected by craftsmen but has appeal to the
"common man."
Celestian (obviously): the patron of space travelers, well respected by
merchants & travelers.
Selune/Sehanine: another well-respected deity, possible mate to
Celestian, patron of travelers.
Shar/Lloth: hatred of Selune/Sehanine brings her into space, has
followers among resurgent goblin-kin.
Corellon: patron of the Elvish Fleet (he chooses the Grand Admiral,
afterall;)
Vergadain/Waukeen: favored by merchants.
Thor/Tempest/Clangeddin/Athena: patron of warriors.
Baccob: patron of mages.
???: patron of pirates.

	Basically, I'd look at space culture itself for your campaign, and see
what type of people there are and what their needs would be.  Do you
have lots of merchants & pirates?  If so, then deities of wealth,
travel, and raiding would be popular.  Is a sphere currently in a war? 
That'd promote gods of war, battle, protection, and healing.  Etc.


-- 
Night Druid