Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 vonril Mar 24, 2009 18:46:56	There's been numerous threads in the past about how because alignment isn't tied to the alignment of a religion in Eberron, you can theoretically have priests of any alignment for any faith. Just look at Cardinal Krozen, a LE Cardinal of a LG faith, the Silver Flame. While interesting possibilities such a paladin of the Blood of Vol have been suggested over the past couple of years, as a GM I've really wanted to take it to the next level with my players who really enjoy Eberron for its shades of gray mentality. Whether it be personal preference or some kind of splinter sect, there was nothing as terrifying to my players as seeing, for instance, a neutral evil cleric of Dol Arrah performing a human sacrifice on a young maiden in order to help cleanse her soul of the darkness within through Dol Arrah's healing light, in the priest's own words. Inasmuch from their own request, I gave my players a challenge of creating four characters of high faith dedicated to alignments completely contradictory. What we have is a party of a LG cleric dedicated to the Shadow, a CG cleric/wizard dedicated to the Shadow, a NG cleric dedicated to the Mockery, and a NG cleric dedicated to the Devourer. They teach a message of acceptance to the darker nature of life and avoiding the truth of such (such as the darker side of war, avoiding dark secrets that could truly benefit mankind) stunts personal and spiritual growth...the theory being that only when The Host can re-accept the Six into their pantheon with the understanding and the responsibility of accepting the existence of darker knowledge and coping with it instead of trying to live without it. It is sort of a mix of standard adventuring with a sort of antiheroesque evangelical theme in the four clerics trying to make their point across Khorvaire about their own insights into the Dark Six. My question to you, the fellow GMs and players, is if you have had your own experiences with priests, monks, paladins, etc. that had a much different take/alignment than would usually be expected from the faith, and what they were. I find the motivations for a Lawful Neutral cleric of the Traveler than simply a Chaotic Neutral one because it really challenges a player to ask himself what drives his own character's faith.
#2 ellorin Mar 25, 2009 3:27:46	Not really...There has been a strong element of Blood of Vol worshipping in our group(all god or neutral), including a paladin of the Blood of Vol, yet I don't think he counts. The Paladin was following the tenets of his faith to the letter-the faith that most Vol cultists follow, not the faith that worships the Queen of Death. In fact, the players denounced her(after they found out) as a heretic and a fraud that corrupts the Blood of Vol. It wasn't as if their faith was actually evil...
#3 PJammaGod Mar 26, 2009 2:55:40	It falls into the concept of "ideals and mortals". Basically said God lays down some ideals. Be nice to others, don't harm children, give to the poor etc etc. Now we all like to put these morals up on a pedestal as something to live up to, but that's the point, we only "live up" to them. Very rarely can anyone claim to be comprehensively following all of these proscribed beleifs and ideals. People are nasty to their neighbors, they make children work in sweatshops for a pittance, they are greedy etc etc. Same concept applies to joe-player in regards to their role as a "divine mediator". They might try to live up to the chaotic and free-thinking anarchistic ideals of the Traveller. But they can't help but keep cringing whenever the barbarian or rogue breaks the law, whenever some rich noble flaunts the tax system, they always feel the need to check with the local constables before going after the thieves guild. The priest might try to exemplify the Traveller, but they seem to keep missing the mark. And that's what RP is all about.
#4 julescarv Mar 26, 2009 6:09:34	One must also keep in mind possibilities for clerics who have alignments contrary to their faiths without actually holding heterodox doctrines. Here are two such possibilities that come to mind: 1. A cleric who is aligned with his faith in his capacities as a cleric, but who has other aspects, completely unrelated to his faith, which simply override his alignment-orthodox faith. Example: a cleric of Aureon who is completely orthodox in his worship of Aureon, and who furthermore, when he's on "church time," executes the will of higher-ranked disciples of Aureon, but has a private life unrelated to his church duties that is so chaotic that he ends up being chaotic anyway (say he's a compulsive gambler and fraudulently borrows money that he'll never be able to pay back using the same property as collateral seven times, has several wives, girlfriends, and boyfriends to whom he's lying and claiming each is his only relationship, etc.) 2. A cleric who interprets his faith in the orthodox manner, but falls short of actually practicing it as he believes it should be practiced; he's aware of his shortcomings, and tries his best to overcome them, but ultimately can't. Example: A cleric of the Devourer who believes that it's only right to drown captured prisoners and animals as sacrifices to the Devourer, but, although he tries, he is unable to actually bring himself to do it and throw people into the water and watch them die in the name of his god. In his own eyes, he's weak and impious, and he regards it as an ineffable mystery that the Devourer still grants him his power. (I think this is what PJammaGod was going for too, I suppose.)