Not-spellcasting priests in Eberron [Archive] - Wizards Community

Not-spellcasting priests in Eberron [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Just another user
08-20-05, 05:26 PM One of the pecularity of Eberron over other settings is the fact that the vast majority of priests of every religion are of the non-spellcasting type, the large part are expert, with a minor share of adept and the cleric as the occasional rarity. Then there is no reason for which a single classed pc (or npc), like for example a pure Rogue, could be considered a priest of an appropriate deity.

My question is, what do you think would be the appropriate "prerequisites", both fluffy and crunchy, that a character should have to be conisdered a priest of one the many religion of Eberron? or to be more precise what would you do if one of your character said that his fighter (just to make an example) want to become a priest of Dol Dorn?
MysticTheurge
08-20-05, 05:40 PM Roleplay.

Or if you want, Leadership, for the purposes of gathering a "flock."
ieattrollsforbreakfast
08-20-05, 05:44 PM Crunch-wise, I would say at least 1 rank in Knowledge (Religion). Priests have to know about their religion in a more detailed way afterall. Fluff-wise, I would say the character must be truly faithful, just like a cleric or adept (though perhaps not to the same extend, they can't cast divine spells afterall), and must be ordained into the church by the usual ceremonies, which will differ depending on the religion. To become a priest of the Silver Flame, I expect one has to visit Flamekeep (or at least the archbishop), to be ordained formally, with an interview and test of faith. For the Sovereign Host, I expect one only needs the blessing of a local bishop, a short ceremony (at least compared to the Flamers), and the love of the local people.
Salla
08-20-05, 06:00 PM Crunch-wise, I would say at least 1 rank in Knowledge (Religion). Priests have to know about their religion in a more detailed way afterall. Fluff-wise, I would say the character must be truly faithful, just like a cleric or adept (though perhaps not to the same extend, they can't cast divine spells afterall), and must be ordained into the church by the usual ceremonies, which will differ depending on the religion.

I would think the Knowledge (Religion) would be necessary, but it bears noting that just because someone's joining a priesthood, especially in a place like Eberron, doesn't mean they're actually doing it because they, y'know, believe or anything. I'd add either Bluff or Diplomacy to the requirements, depending on whether or not they're joining the church for legitimate reasons, or if it's for a scam. :)
Just another user
08-20-05, 06:28 PM I would think the Knowledge (Religion) would be necessary, but it bears noting that just because someone's joining a priesthood, especially in a place like Eberron, doesn't mean they're actually doing it because they, y'know, believe or anything. I'd add either Bluff or Diplomacy to the requirements, depending on whether or not they're joining the church for legitimate reasons, or if it's for a scam. :)

Or is the church of the Traveller. ;)

You know, more think about it, more I believe that Eberron need a religious sourcebook, maybe the first of such books that will not be useful only to clerics. ;)
DBlizzard
08-20-05, 07:25 PM I would say the character must be truly faithful...

I'd disagree with this. I don't think the character would necessarily have to be truly faithful. You need to be faithful in some way to get any actual divine abilities, such as divine spells and the like.

I'd mostly require story reasons why he is the priest. He also should reflect it in appropriate skills. A rank or two in Knowledge (religion), maybe Diplomacy (or perhaps even Bluff) or Perform - Oratory would be appropriate.

Backstory would be my primary factor though. If it was to happen through play, I'd want to play it out.
Splendide
08-20-05, 08:14 PM Knowledge (religion) - 4 ranks
Diplomacy - 4 ranks
Start living the Dol Dorn way. Follow rituals, get in contests of strength, help out Last War veterans, that kind of thing.

The Silver Flame has a more central hierarchy, so you'd need official acceptance there.
Just another user
08-20-05, 08:37 PM Knowledge (religion) - 4 ranks
Diplomacy - 4 ranks
Start living the Dol Dorn way. Follow rituals, get in contests of strength, help out Last War veterans, that kind of thing.

The Silver Flame has a more central hierarchy, so you'd need official acceptance there.

Yeah, that is the kind of ideas that I searching for, thanks.
Ok, for how to do it, but I suppose you'll need some kind of..."investiture" even for Dol Dorn (BTW, I agree for the part on the Silver Flame.) I doubt you can just go and say "I'm a priest of Dol dorn, now.
BTW something that is not clear to me what exactly do the priests of the the host? what kind of ritual perfoms? it's ok for the generic priest of the Host, but I've some problem to imagine a priest of the god of strength of arm to marry someone or to "baptise" a child (if the Hosts use such ritual) seems more appropriate for a priest of Boldrei.

What about the other religions, with a even less centralized organization, like the Traveller or the Mockery?
Splendide
08-20-05, 09:21 PM Yeah, that is the kind of ideas that I searching for, thanks.
Ok, for how to do it, but I suppose you'll need some kind of..."investiture" even for Dol Dorn (BTW, I agree for the part on the Silver Flame.) I doubt you can just go and say "I'm a priest of Dol dorn, now.Oh, sure. You'd probably need to do some kind of ritual...maybe a ritual of endurance (pushing a boulder back to where you will be a priest, by yourself) or something like that, but with the Host it probably doesn't need to be some higher-up doing the job. Unless your character is pro-hierarchy; its probably an alignment thing.

BTW something that is not clear to me what exactly do the priests of the the host? what kind of ritual perfoms? it's ok for the generic priest of the Host, but I've some problem to imagine a priest of the god of strength of arm to marry someone or to "baptise" a child (if the Hosts use such ritual) seems more appropriate for a priest of Boldrei.Well, I'd say a priest of Dol Dorn would accept his limitation. He may declare that it is not really up to him to do these ceremonies (which the parents may well agree with) and refuse...or if he's the only priest in the area, he might put together some cobbled together ritual for Boldrei based on what he knows, and hope it sticks.

Or, he might happily baptise the child in the name of Dol Dorn, wishing him strength of form and soul. Similarly, he may invoke the strength of Dol Dorn in binding the couple being wed to each other beyond this world.

What about the other religions, with a even less centralized organization, like the Traveller or the Mockery?Gee, who the hell knows :) Traveller, I can see being equally disorganized, but there might be all kinds of nasty protocols to become a priest of the Mockery. I don't even want to speculate! :eek:
Sarlax
08-21-05, 05:26 AM I'm playing a changeling rogue/warlock who is gradually becoming something of a priest of the Dark Six. From Droaam, he worships the pantheon in a nonevil fashion, seeing them as representative of natural power and the inner nature of all things. When he uses his warlock abilities, they take on various appearances appropriate to which deity he believes he's channeling. For instance, when using his eldritch blast, channeling the Mockery causes the target to be stricken with stab wounds in his unprotected spots, channeling the Keeper makes the target's flesh rot, etc.

He thinks of himself as something of an emissary for monsters. The Dark Six, to him, represent the truth about the mind and soul. The Fury is the power of emotion. The Keeper is the need to acquire that exists in all. The Mockey is the cunning one needs to survive in a dangerous world. The Sovereigns are gods for the "civilized" races, the ones who are too weak and self-deceived to survive without the Sovereigns' comforting lies. He sees the Last War as proof of the failure of the Host.

The Dark Six doesn't have organization. He spreads his message by earning the respect of those he meets before revealing his identify. He prefers to talk with people one-on-one or in small groups, challenging their existing notions of monsters, right & wrong, and society.

I don't think any of the Six would be organized into churches. Whether you worship them for the power to murder and inflict suffering, pray only to appease them, or worship them as my character does, the faith is personal and passed between individuals. One becomes a priest not by being ordained, but rather by being recognized as knowledgable in matters of faith and being able to counsel those who can benefit from your particular wisdom.
camble
08-21-05, 06:02 AM Sarlax great character idea it has alot of depth to it.

A sage could pass on his religios knowledge to others similar to a college lecturer without belief in the religion or claiming to be a follower. Even a follower of a religion could be very knowledgeable without being a priest. Take thrane for example i bet the royals are very knowledgeable when it comes to the silver flame. They would need it to help preserve the power they have. I could see them hosting a dinner party and qouting pieces of scripture to bring a important official to there way of thinking.

Part of most religions is a belief in the structure pertaining to the faith. following of religious holidays observing the proper cermonies for marriage that type of thing, to include what does or doesn't make a priest of the faith in question. Otherwise anyone with any knowledge would be a priest and in some religions i am sure that would fly but certainly not all of them.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Just another user 08-20-05, 05:26 PM	One of the pecularity of Eberron over other settings is the fact that the vast majority of priests of every religion are of the non-spellcasting type, the large part are expert, with a minor share of adept and the cleric as the occasional rarity. Then there is no reason for which a single classed pc (or npc), like for example a pure Rogue, could be considered a priest of an appropriate deity. My question is, what do you think would be the appropriate "prerequisites", both fluffy and crunchy, that a character should have to be conisdered a priest of one the many religion of Eberron? or to be more precise what would you do if one of your character said that his fighter (just to make an example) want to become a priest of Dol Dorn?
MysticTheurge 08-20-05, 05:40 PM	Roleplay. Or if you want, Leadership, for the purposes of gathering a "flock."
ieattrollsforbreakfast 08-20-05, 05:44 PM	Crunch-wise, I would say at least 1 rank in Knowledge (Religion). Priests have to know about their religion in a more detailed way afterall. Fluff-wise, I would say the character must be truly faithful, just like a cleric or adept (though perhaps not to the same extend, they can't cast divine spells afterall), and must be ordained into the church by the usual ceremonies, which will differ depending on the religion. To become a priest of the Silver Flame, I expect one has to visit Flamekeep (or at least the archbishop), to be ordained formally, with an interview and test of faith. For the Sovereign Host, I expect one only needs the blessing of a local bishop, a short ceremony (at least compared to the Flamers), and the love of the local people.
Salla 08-20-05, 06:00 PM	Crunch-wise, I would say at least 1 rank in Knowledge (Religion). Priests have to know about their religion in a more detailed way afterall. Fluff-wise, I would say the character must be truly faithful, just like a cleric or adept (though perhaps not to the same extend, they can't cast divine spells afterall), and must be ordained into the church by the usual ceremonies, which will differ depending on the religion. I would think the Knowledge (Religion) would be necessary, but it bears noting that just because someone's joining a priesthood, especially in a place like Eberron, doesn't mean they're actually doing it because they, y'know, believe or anything. I'd add either Bluff or Diplomacy to the requirements, depending on whether or not they're joining the church for legitimate reasons, or if it's for a scam. :)
Just another user 08-20-05, 06:28 PM	I would think the Knowledge (Religion) would be necessary, but it bears noting that just because someone's joining a priesthood, especially in a place like Eberron, doesn't mean they're actually doing it because they, y'know, believe or anything. I'd add either Bluff or Diplomacy to the requirements, depending on whether or not they're joining the church for legitimate reasons, or if it's for a scam. :) Or is the church of the Traveller. ;) You know, more think about it, more I believe that Eberron need a religious sourcebook, maybe the first of such books that will not be useful only to clerics. ;)
DBlizzard 08-20-05, 07:25 PM	I would say the character must be truly faithful... I'd disagree with this. I don't think the character would necessarily have to be truly faithful. You need to be faithful in some way to get any actual divine abilities, such as divine spells and the like. I'd mostly require story reasons why he is the priest. He also should reflect it in appropriate skills. A rank or two in Knowledge (religion), maybe Diplomacy (or perhaps even Bluff) or Perform - Oratory would be appropriate. Backstory would be my primary factor though. If it was to happen through play, I'd want to play it out.
Splendide 08-20-05, 08:14 PM	Knowledge (religion) - 4 ranks Diplomacy - 4 ranks Start living the Dol Dorn way. Follow rituals, get in contests of strength, help out Last War veterans, that kind of thing. The Silver Flame has a more central hierarchy, so you'd need official acceptance there.
Just another user 08-20-05, 08:37 PM	Knowledge (religion) - 4 ranks Diplomacy - 4 ranks Start living the Dol Dorn way. Follow rituals, get in contests of strength, help out Last War veterans, that kind of thing. The Silver Flame has a more central hierarchy, so you'd need official acceptance there. Yeah, that is the kind of ideas that I searching for, thanks. Ok, for how to do it, but I suppose you'll need some kind of..."investiture" even for Dol Dorn (BTW, I agree for the part on the Silver Flame.) I doubt you can just go and say "I'm a priest of Dol dorn, now. BTW something that is not clear to me what exactly do the priests of the the host? what kind of ritual perfoms? it's ok for the generic priest of the Host, but I've some problem to imagine a priest of the god of strength of arm to marry someone or to "baptise" a child (if the Hosts use such ritual) seems more appropriate for a priest of Boldrei. What about the other religions, with a even less centralized organization, like the Traveller or the Mockery?
Splendide 08-20-05, 09:21 PM	Yeah, that is the kind of ideas that I searching for, thanks. Ok, for how to do it, but I suppose you'll need some kind of..."investiture" even for Dol Dorn (BTW, I agree for the part on the Silver Flame.) I doubt you can just go and say "I'm a priest of Dol dorn, now.Oh, sure. You'd probably need to do some kind of ritual...maybe a ritual of endurance (pushing a boulder back to where you will be a priest, by yourself) or something like that, but with the Host it probably doesn't need to be some higher-up doing the job. Unless your character is pro-hierarchy; its probably an alignment thing. BTW something that is not clear to me what exactly do the priests of the the host? what kind of ritual perfoms? it's ok for the generic priest of the Host, but I've some problem to imagine a priest of the god of strength of arm to marry someone or to "baptise" a child (if the Hosts use such ritual) seems more appropriate for a priest of Boldrei.Well, I'd say a priest of Dol Dorn would accept his limitation. He may declare that it is not really up to him to do these ceremonies (which the parents may well agree with) and refuse...or if he's the only priest in the area, he might put together some cobbled together ritual for Boldrei based on what he knows, and hope it sticks. Or, he might happily baptise the child in the name of Dol Dorn, wishing him strength of form and soul. Similarly, he may invoke the strength of Dol Dorn in binding the couple being wed to each other beyond this world. What about the other religions, with a even less centralized organization, like the Traveller or the Mockery?Gee, who the hell knows :) Traveller, I can see being equally disorganized, but there might be all kinds of nasty protocols to become a priest of the Mockery. I don't even want to speculate! :eek:
Sarlax 08-21-05, 05:26 AM	I'm playing a changeling rogue/warlock who is gradually becoming something of a priest of the Dark Six. From Droaam, he worships the pantheon in a nonevil fashion, seeing them as representative of natural power and the inner nature of all things. When he uses his warlock abilities, they take on various appearances appropriate to which deity he believes he's channeling. For instance, when using his eldritch blast, channeling the Mockery causes the target to be stricken with stab wounds in his unprotected spots, channeling the Keeper makes the target's flesh rot, etc. He thinks of himself as something of an emissary for monsters. The Dark Six, to him, represent the truth about the mind and soul. The Fury is the power of emotion. The Keeper is the need to acquire that exists in all. The Mockey is the cunning one needs to survive in a dangerous world. The Sovereigns are gods for the "civilized" races, the ones who are too weak and self-deceived to survive without the Sovereigns' comforting lies. He sees the Last War as proof of the failure of the Host. The Dark Six doesn't have organization. He spreads his message by earning the respect of those he meets before revealing his identify. He prefers to talk with people one-on-one or in small groups, challenging their existing notions of monsters, right & wrong, and society. I don't think any of the Six would be organized into churches. Whether you worship them for the power to murder and inflict suffering, pray only to appease them, or worship them as my character does, the faith is personal and passed between individuals. One becomes a priest not by being ordained, but rather by being recognized as knowledgable in matters of faith and being able to counsel those who can benefit from your particular wisdom.
camble 08-21-05, 06:02 AM	Sarlax great character idea it has alot of depth to it. A sage could pass on his religios knowledge to others similar to a college lecturer without belief in the religion or claiming to be a follower. Even a follower of a religion could be very knowledgeable without being a priest. Take thrane for example i bet the royals are very knowledgeable when it comes to the silver flame. They would need it to help preserve the power they have. I could see them hosting a dinner party and qouting pieces of scripture to bring a important official to there way of thinking. Part of most religions is a belief in the structure pertaining to the faith. following of religious holidays observing the proper cermonies for marriage that type of thing, to include what does or doesn't make a priest of the faith in question. Otherwise anyone with any knowledge would be a priest and in some religions i am sure that would fly but certainly not all of them.