In a minimalist campaign, it serves me well to keep the pantheon of gods simple. Here are three gods that I will use in my new campaign. I can’t recall how many hours I’ve spent trying to come up with a pantheon of gods to represent various aspects of the world. Those days are over! Three is plenty and I’m done! Well, not completely…I do want to add a few saints and servants of chaos here and there to spice things up. But that is for later. For reference, I will consult Pits & Perils author James and Robyn George’s manuscript.
Three deities and their tenets for my Bree Campaign.
Eos, the One Light
Tenets of Eos (lawful)
- One Spirit. All are connected to Eos.
- One Path. One cannot follow two paths (nor serve two masters).
- One Journey. The beginning, the path, the return. All make the Journey but take different paths and complete at different times.
Silvanus, the Green Man
Tenets of Silvanus, the Green Man (harmony, balance, and nature personified)
- In nature there is harmony and balance. [I will need more here, perhaps. Any suggestions?]
Orcus, God of Death
Tenets of Orcus (chaos and death personified)
- All light will someday be extinguished.
- Send your enemies to set your table. [The more enemies you defeat, the better your position in the Halls of the Dead.
- I am the shadow on the path. [Orcus is the monkey wrench in the machine of Eos.]
I was looking back over your posts as I am getting late into the game of having just discovered Pits & Perils. I really like the idea of a simplified pantheon of gods – and thought I would offer my take / alterations to what you wrote. By now, you probably have developed them yourself, but here you go anyways:
Eos, the One Light
Tenets of Eos (lawful, bringer of light, life, sunshine, justice)
1. One Spirit. All are connected to Eos in life, but only those in service to Eos can join him/her in spirit in death. [Death without service is darkness]
2. One Path. One cannot follow two paths (nor serve two masters). [A liar, betrayer, or one who breaks vows or promises or serves only themselves must face justice]
3. One True Journey. The beginning, the path, the return. All make the Journey but take different paths and complete them at different times. [One may only seek redemption by following the path of Eos at any time in their life, so long as their service can outdo their wrongs]
Silvanus, the Green Man
Tenets of Silvanus, the Green Man (harmony, balance, nature personified, rebirth)
1. In nature there is harmony and balance. [Nurture nature to receive from her, or it will grow fallow along with humankind]
2. All life follows the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth [Sylvanus is rebirth, and those that disrupt this in any way are enemies]
3. I am the protector and sower of nature [Druids and Elves are the natural guardians of this order, and hope for Silvanus’ favor to reincarnate or join the Green Man in the Other World]
Orcus, God of Death
Tenets of Orcus (chaos and death, the underworld personified)
1. All light will someday be extinguished. [Malice is part of this natural order. The strong should dominate the weak.]
2. Send your enemies to set your table. [The more enemies you defeat, the better your position in the Halls of the Dead.]
3. I am the shadow on the path, and the bringer of death. [Orcus is the monkey wrench in the machine of Eos.]
LikeLike
Thanks for adding to this! Your distillation of the simplified religions is really great!
LikeLike
Sorry, I think for Eos I meant: Life (not Death) without service is darkness.
LikeLike
Got it! Thanks.
LikeLike