The Third Edition Deities and Demigods is a bit different from earlier versions which tended towards being a 'monster manual' for gods. Here there is much more discussion about how to involve deities in the day-to-day life of the campaign world, even the lives of the characters in your party themselves, ways to make the gods of your world as much - if not more - a part of it that the various gods worshipped in the real world are a part of everyday life, even for those who don't happen to believe in them.

Relgion in a game is always a tricky proposition for that very reason. Players who believe in real-world deities can get a bit twitchy about imaginary ones, and yet do not want to see the gods they revere trivialised by making an in-game appearance. Hence the need for game developers to devise pantheons of their own for their campaign worlds.

The first chapter looks at how to use deities in your game. Monotheism is rare, and most game worlds presuppose a pantheon of deities with each god taking responsibility for certain aspects. Believers tend to hold all the gods of the pantheon in reverence, but may choose one in particular as their main focus of worship. Others will pick to whom they'll pray depending on what they are wanting to pray about, and would not claim to worship a particular god at all. Others dedicate themselves to but a single deity. Of course there's one big difference between your game world and the real one: basically the gods are real and everyone knows this (whether or not they hold them in any reverence or choose to worship any of them), whereas in the real world opinion is divided as to whether or not there are any 'gods' at all (and I write this as a practising Mormon, so please do not take offence!)

The chapter expounds on the differences between a 'tight' pantheon and a 'loose' one. In the tight pantheon, a single religion - with the hierarchy, temples, priesthood, etc., that involves - worships all the deities involved, whereas in a 'loose' one there are faiths focussed on each of the deities in the pantheon. You'll have to decide which style is most appropriate for the way your campaign world operates, how you want your gods to interact with the world and with each other. Other forms of religion including mystery cults, monotheism, animism and dualism are discussed, and by the end of the chapter you ought to have a reasonable overview of what you can do.

Then on to the tricky question of the nature of divinity. Are your gods just super-powerful entities or is there something more about them? Are there limits to their powers or to their knowledge? Is divinity innate to certain beings or can it be earned or conferred upon someone deemed worthy of achieving it? In deciding the answers - and there are no right or wrong ones - to these questions you will start to form an idea of the underpinning nature of the universe in which your game will be played out. You'll find the odd side note about the core D&D pantheon - the one described in the core rulebooks - as you go, but the main thrust of this section is twofold - firstly to help you understand what gods are and secondly to put you in a position to design your own or modify the core ones to suit your vision for your campaign world. There's masses more here but one question stands out: How involved are the deities in what is going on in the world? That's one of the most important choices you'll have to make.

Next is Chapter 2: Deities Defined, which deals with the game mechanics that will make what you have determined is there in your world on a philosphical level actually work within the context of the game. This is of particular import if you have decided that deities take an active hands-on approach to worldly affairs, but even if they won't an understanding of how they function in game mechanical terms means that they become a consistent and integral part of the game, part of the fabric just as arcane magic and strange races are because they too are covered by the rules. This chapter is of most use if you have decided to create your own pantheon, but even if you are going with the core gods, or ones from a published setting, reading through will help you understand how they operate within the game itself.

Chapter 3: The D&D Pantheon is for those who have decided to use the core deities provided (but it does provide an exemplar pantheon for those who'd prefer to design their own from scratch). Using the mechanics discussed in the previous chapter, each member of the pantheon is given a 'stat block' that explains what they can do and how they do it... complete, even, with combat statistics should a brawl break out! For each, as this is a 'loose' pantheon, there are also brief notes on the dogma of their faith and about the clergy and temples organised for their worship. They can also use avatars in dealings with ordinary mortals if they do not choose to put in a personal appearance, so you also get the details necessary to run one should the occasion arise. There are some beautiful illustrations here, also representations of divine symbols and even the odd temple plan.

Should you want something different, Chapter 4: The Olympic Pantheon takes the classic Ancient Greek gods and puts a D&D twist on them. This is an example of a 'tight' pantheon served by a single religion, and if you know anything of the original, provides for some very hands-on deities! Whilst this is a fantasy re-tooling of the Greek gods, they are still quite recognisable yet here they are with all the game mechanics you need to make them an integral part of your game. Although this is a 'tight' pantheon, many of the gods have their own shrines and even clergy specifically devoted to them, yet a single overarching belief joins them all.

In like vein, Chapter 5 presents the Pharaonic Pantheon, the gods of the Ancient Egyptians. This is a very 'tight' pantheon with a unitary body of priests serving all the gods. Rituals and beliefs surrounding death and what comes after are very important to this faith. This is followed by Chapter 6: The Asgardian Pantheon, which provides the same service for the Norse gods.

Finally, Chapter 7: Other Religions looks at a whole bunch of different faiths such as sun worship, a dualist faith based on light and dark, and the mystery cult of Dennari, all designed according to the principles and rules discussed in the first two chapters.

There are two appendices. The first is concerned with domains and spells, and is helpful in deciding what to make available to divine spellcasters based on the deities they follow within your game, and includes some neat new spells. The second looks at divine ascension... should you choose to make this option available to characters who survive to 20th level and are perhaps beginning to reach power levels sufficient to challenge existing deities. It will take careful planning, especially if you do not intend it to be the final climax of the entire game - it is likely to end a campaign arc at the very least. There are, however, notes on running adventures after ascension has taken place.

One option that's not really discussed - but which I've found works quite well - is to have different pantheons operating in different parts of your campaign world. Travellers can have fun learning about the beliefs of the place they are visiting (or at least, you as DM can have fun watching them!) and it can provoke some interesting discussions, particularly if your clerical characters enjoy debating their faith!

If you want to make religion a central part of any game, and of course especially if you are running D&D 3.X, this is well worth reading.

Return to Deities and Demigods page.

Reviewed: 27 May 2014