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Table of Contents
Religion
Overview
Religion in the twenty worlds is an interesting concept. Since there is no doubt that the gods exist, faith does not take the same form as it does in the “real” world. Instead, worshipers have faith that their chosen deity will take the time and effort to watch over them and protect them - even though they are but one of millions demanding the same attention.
In actuality, the gods do watch over and protect their faithful, but are prevented from taking direct action by a millenia-old agreement known as The Concordant. This agreement is sometimes described as a “gentlemen's agreement” and other times described as a force of nature that physically inhibits the gods' activities. Whether it can be overcome has been a matter of heated debate amongst the clergy since the beginnings of the worlds.
Another major difference between the “real” world and the twenty worlds is that the gods are known to have limits. No dogma claims their deities are omnipotent, although most claim that the combined power of the pantheons is greater than anything.
The Sacred Texts
There are at least four documents that are considered sacred to (nearly) all Human religions. These are The Tale of Time (which tells the story of creation), The Tale of the Transgression (which tells the story of man's relationship to the gods), The Tale of the Spire (which tells of the gods greatest gift to man), and The Tale of the Return (which tells of something
The Pantheons
The various “families” of the Human gods seem to prefer to keep their followers separated. Because of this, each nation (or kingdom) tends to focus on one pantheon. However, since the other pantheons are acknowledged to exist, and to be gods, there is a healthy amount of respect for “foreign” religions.
This open attitude, though, has been sorely tested in recent years in [Spindrift]] and Rota, where an influx of foreign refugees from the wars have brought with them their unusual gods. In some places, tolerance has given way to bigotry, and in others open hostility has broken out.
Here is a list of pantheons by nation:
Non-human deities
Each race has its own pantheon. The main ones are listed here:
Oddball Pantheons
In addition to the actively worshipped pantheons, there are several classes of divine beings that either no longer have worshippers, or never truly had them.
These are:
- The Elemental Lords
- The Lords of Chaos
- The Earthmasters