Dr. Anomaly

Re: Longest Running Thread EVER
 
...and I'm afraid that's all I have time for now. When I have more time later, I'll try to dig out a few more nice pics that don't really belong in the "catsuit" thread.

Re: Longest Running Thread EVER
 

Okay, let's get this ball rolling...
 

Re: keyes bill is unwritten book
 

More bad news...South Dakota doesn't have any libraries, either.

Just some thoughts I had about setting up fantasy religions. Obviously, or maybe not obviously, you don't need to supply all of the following details. Some may simply not be relevent to your game, while others may be left as matters of opinion or speculation among the players and characters (PC's and NPC's) in the game world.
 
Let me know if you think of anything that I left out.
 
(and I hope my outline formatting comes out right.)
 
Stuff to make up about the gods
 
I. The pantheon


A. Creation myth
1. Creation of the natural world
2. Creation of people

B. Organization

1. Family tree
2. Command structure
a) Rigid-fluid
Degree of authority/control

3. Relationships between deities

a) Couples
Allies/Partners
c) Rivals/enemies
C. Reality

1. Form. Examples:
a) The gods are all myth/superstition.
The gods are legends based on exaggeration of historical events.
c) The gods are spirits of dead ancestors or other historical persons.
d) The gods are abstract concepts with no actual consciousness.
e) The gods are quasi-real with forms/attributes/aspect assigned by worshipping cultures.
f) The gods exist on a different level of reality, which allows them to modify their aspects/appearance based on their own desires or the culture they interact with.
g) The gods exist in a concrete sense and have true forms/attributes/aspects, which may be subject to interpretation/misinterpretation by worshippers.

2. Power Level. Examples:

a) The gods are nothing more than mere mortals that are worshipped.
The gods are mere mortals believed to rise to divinity upon death or other event.
c) The gods are somewhat more powerful than typical mortals.
d) The gods have great power that only the greatest of mortals could rival.
e) The gods have incredible power beyond any mortal.
f) The gods have cosmic power, incomprehensible to mortals.

3. Power Source. Examples:

a) The gods' power is intrinsic.
The gods' power is granted by superior gods.
c) The gods' power comes from external forces.
d) The gods' power comes from natural phenomena related to the gods' portfolio.
e) The gods' power comes from worship.
f) The gods' power comes from mortals' deeds. II. The deity


A. Symbolic
1. Name(s)
2. Epithets/Nicknames
3. Appearance/Typical depiction
4. Symbol/Icon
5. Associated items/animals/materials/colors/phenomena

B. Intrinsic

1. Myth/Story
2. Portfolio/Sphere of influence
3. Differences/similarities to other deities
4. Stats/powers/abilities
a) Possessions/Artifacts/Relics
Pets/Familiars/Mounts

5. Divine "rank"/Level of power
6. Home

a) "Plane" where the deity dwells
Relationship of the deity to the "plane(s)"
C. Psychology/behavior

1. Personality
2. Goals/desires
3. Degree of involvement in mortal affairs
a) Manifestations/Avatars
Spells/powers/abilities granted to clergy/worshippers
c) Signs/Miracles
D. Social

1. Among the gods
a) Reputation
Position/function/purpose

2. Among mortals

a) Popularity/Obscurity
Purpose of worship/reasons invoked
c) Abilities/skills typical/valued III. The religion


A. Internal
1. Principles
a) Values/Dogma
Obligations/expectations of clergy
c) Obligations/expectations of laity
d) Laws/taboos/restrictions
e) Attitude toward heresy/disagreement/questioning of doctrine/theology

2. Practice

a) Rituals/Rites
Holidays
c) Prayers
d) Priestly Vestments/Raiment
e) Temple architecture/layout/decor
f) Expressions/idioms
g) Equipment/paraphernalia used
h) Resolution of disputes
i) Punishment/penance/atonement
j) Education/Indoctrination of the faithful
k) Proselytism

3. Status of clergy/laity
4. Sects/factions/orders
5. Organization/hierarchy
B. External

1. Position in the community
2. Relations with other religions

C. Race/ethnicity/location/culture of worshippers

1. Alternate interpretations/aspects
2. Alternate names IV. "Divine Magic"


A. Effects
1. Types of effects available/not available
2. Power Level
3. Special Effects

B. Source/Method to acquire/use. Examples:

1. No actual divine magic exists. Priests don't claim any magic.
2. No actual divine magic exists. Priestly magic is all chicanery.
3. There's no real difference between divine magic and "arcane" magic.
4. Divine magic is an inherent force in the world, separate from wizardly magic. Priests access it by their own means.
5. Divine magic is a fragment of the god's or gods' power, which priests access by being priests or doing something that priests do.
6. Gods grant magic to priests directly and consciously, if they choose to.
7. Gods grant magic to priests through intermediaries or lesser divine beings, with occasional oversight by the god(s).
8. Gods grant higher-powered magic to priests directly and consciously, while lesser magic is granted more-or-less automatically.
9. Priests access magic through their own faith, without the god's direct involvement. Strength of faith determines success or power level.

Re: Musings on Random Musings
 
Here, then, for your amusement, is a list I had posted to another thread once upon a time for laughs... Nothing is sacred here.
 
1. A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject. - Winston Churchill
2. A good laugh is as good as a prayer sometimes. - L. M. Montgomery
3. A SKEPTIC is one who won't take "know" for an answer.
4. All those who believe in psychokinesis raise my hand.
5. And on the 8th day God said, OK Murphy, you take over.
6. Anybody can observe the Sabbath, but making it holy surely takes the rest of the week. - Alice Walker
7. Atheist achieving orgasm: Oh Random! Oh, Chance!
8. Blessed are the Fundamentalists, for they shall inhibit the earth.
9. Campus Crusade for Cthulhu: If your god's dead, blame mine.
10. Don't worry about temptation-as you grow older, it starts avoiding you. - Old Farmer's Almanac
11. Ever wonder why god-centered religions make a woman responsible for messing up the world? - Pagan bumper sticker
12. Give me some of that old-time Religion... HAIL ZEUS!
13. God did not create the world in 7 days; he messed around for 6 days and then pulled an all-nighter.
14. God is a comedian playing to an audience too afraid to laugh.
15. God is my co-pilot, but the Devil is my bombardier.
16. God loves stupid people. That's why he made so many.
17. God put me on earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now I am so far behind, I will live forever.
18. God respects us when we work but loves us when we dance. - Sufi saying
19. Going to church no more makes you a Christian than going to the garage makes you a car.
20. He is YOUR god, They are YOUR rules, YOU burn in Hell!
21. Help Wanted: Telepath. You know where to apply.
22. Here's to the sun God, He sure is a fun God, Ra, Ra, Ra ...
23. I am an agnostic pagan. I doubt the existence of many gods.
24. I am immortal, or at least until I die.
25. I am ready to meet my maker. Whether or not my maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter. - Winston Churchill
26. I care not much for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it. - Abraham Lincoln
27. I don't believe in miracles. I rely on them.
28. I have the body of a god: Buddha
29. I want to know God's thoughts... the rest are details. - Heine
30. If God is inside us, then I hope he likes fajitas, cause that's what he's getting.
31. If God is watching us, the least we can do is be entertaining.
32. If God wanted me to touch my toes, he would have put them on my knees.
33. If Jesus came back today and saw what was being done in his name, he'd never stop throwing up.
34. If money is the root of all evil, why do churches want it so badly?
35. I'm god, yadda, yadda, worship, worship... you know the routine...
36. It's a thankless job, but I've got a lot of Karma to burn off.
37. Jesus is coming back, and boy, is he ticked!
38. Jesus loves you. Then again, so does Barney.
39. Jesus paid for our sins... Now, lets get our money's worth!
40. Jesus saves sinners and redeems them for valuable prizes.
41. Jesus saves, Allah forgives, Cthulhu thinks you'd make a nice sandwich.
42. Jesus saves... but Gretsky catches the rebound! He shoots! HE SCOOORES!
43. Make God laugh - plan for the future.
44. Men never do evil so cheerfully and so completely as when they do so from religious conviction. - Blaise Pascal
45. Never invoke the gods unless you really want them to appear. It annoys them very much. -- G. K. Chesterton
46. On the sixth day, God created the platypus. And God said: let's see the evolutionists try and figure this one out.
47. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.
48. Photons have mass? I didn't know they were Catholic!
49. Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere may be happy.
50. SATAN, SATAN! It's the main megafurnace! She's losin' power and the temperature is dropping fast! I'm not sure if I can hold her! - Scotty in Hell
51. Sects, sects, sects. Is that all you monks ever think about?
52. The fact that God gave us a sense of humor proves he has one himself.
53. The gods that smiled on your birth are laughing now.
54. The more I study religions the more I am convinced that man never worshipped anything but himself. - Sir Richard F. Burton
55. There are two kinds of people: those who say to God: Thy will be done, and those to whom God says: All right, then, have it your way. - C. S. Lewis
56. They think, therefore I am. – God
57. To YOU I'm an atheist. To God, I'm the Loyal Opposition.
58. Want a taste of religion? Bite a minister...
59. When did I realize I was God? Well, I was praying and suddenly realized that I was talking to myself.
60. You've given your life to Jesus, I've rented mine to Cthulhu.
 
 
Cheers,
Michelle
aka
Samuraiko
 
Visit my thread...
http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24273

Re: The Last Word
 
Different
 
 
 
(There you go. It's "different" and it's complete, in that there's nothing else with it, not even punctuation. So how's dem apples?)

Re: A black hole in orbit: what would it be like?
 

Re: Longest Running Thread EVER
 

Re: Longest Running Thread EVER
 
Okay, who would like to kindly explain to the newbie exactly how "rep" works, and why everyone is so obsessed with it?

Re: A Thread for Random Musings
 
Can you believe this crap? Someone actually gave me bad rep because of a frigging typo. Some people are way, way too sensitive.

Re: Longest Running Thread EVER
 

Look, as long as my pants were around my ankles, they were still on! It was perfectly legal!

Re: Answers & Questions
 

Re: Answers & Questions
 

 
Q. How many times was Reagan President according to the current incumbent ?
 
A. Quick, hide it's the decency squad !