monotheism in D&D

[NewJeffCT]

It is generally assumed that Dungeons & Dragons is based on a medieval / feudal system. Yes, I know there are exceptions, but it seems that all of the major campaign worlds out there – Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, DragonLance, Kalamar, Midnight, etc – use a system based on polytheism, or multiple gods. However, by the time you got to the Middle Ages in the real world, monotheism, or one god was generally the standard in Europe, the Middle East and northern Africa – be it the god of Christianity, Judaism or Islam. (Yes, I know Midnight has one active god in Izrador, but they do make references to other gods in the past, and those other gods just being cut off from the world.)

First off, why was this done? Was it done to avoid any potential controversy if a certain type of god was done slightly differently than the scripture of the Bible, Koran or Torah?

And second, are there any quality worlds out there that use one god, or one god and one rival, like Satan in Christianity? Even if they named the god of their world Bob? In summary, how do they handle clerics and spellcasting?

There are certainly enough interpretations of a single god on Earth as it is now to make for an interesting gaming world – look at how many sects of just Christianity there are – Roman Catholicism, Episcopalian, Baptist, Orthodox, Lutheran, etc.

 

[MerakSpielman]

It's been done - I'm sure people will be in in a moment telling you how it work in their campaigns.

I'm just wondering how monotheism would develop differently with D&D style clerical magic... obviously, if you don't worship the One God, he doesn't grant you spells. Commune and other divinations can be used to get the Official Word on confusing or ambiguious religious texts.

Are sects and schisms even possible?

 

[diaglo]

There are certainly enough interpretations of a single god on Earth as it is now to make for an interesting gaming world – look at how many sects of just Christianity there are – Roman Catholicism, Episcopalian, Baptist, Orthodox, Lutheran, etc.

don't forget angels, saints, matyrs, prophets....etc...

in D&D old style you didn't really speak/commune with your deity until you achieved very high levels as a cleric. you spoke with his/her servants. they petitioned on your behalf for spells/powers. most of the time you got what you prayed for...but not always.

 

[Hjorimir]

The majority of my homebrew is monotheistic and, yes, there are schisms. As an example, an upstart religion says that Æhü (God, The Creator, etc.) has done his miracle and now left. They pray to five Seraph who live upon moons circling the planet.

If you want an even better example, see Sepulchrave's storyhour and read about the 'Transaxiomatic' faith that just sprung up.

 

[Olorin]

It's been done - I'm sure people will be in in a moment telling you how it work in their campaigns.

I'm just wondering how monotheism would develop differently with D&D style clerical magic... obviously, if you don't worship the One God, he doesn't grant you spells. Commune and other divinations can be used to get the Official Word on confusing or ambiguious religious texts.

Are sects and schisms even possible?

Sepulchrave's Story Hour

Can you have schisms in a monotheistic world? Sects? Ambiguity? Oh yes.

 

[zenld]

Legends of Excalibur, from RPG Objects, is set in Arthurian legend. It uses the One God and has priests (cleric equivalent). It also contains the druids and other followers of the Old Faith. These forces may be at odds as well as various factions within the Church.
Even prophecy and divination can be vague or open to interpretation. There is much potential for sects, schisms and outright battle between followers of different paths.

Check it out.
zen

 

[Storminator]

I use two gods (good and evil) in my PBeM. But there are other powers in the world as well. Fiends can grant limited powers, and ancestral ghosts can aid loyal descendents.

I'm very happy with my druids. They don't pray to nature, they make it powerful. A few hundred years ago the two gods came into the world cataclysmically. The druids believe the current piece is just a pause between battles, and the avatars of the gods will return to battle, and thereby destroy the world. So the druids are trying to create a web of spirit around the world to lock the gods out. As the druids bind souls to trees, or rocks, rivers, etc they are building the standard nature god.

PS

 

[NewJeffCT]

It's been done - I'm sure people will be in in a moment telling you how it work in their campaigns.

I'm just wondering how monotheism would develop differently with D&D style clerical magic... obviously, if you don't worship the One God, he doesn't grant you spells. Commune and other divinations can be used to get the Official Word on confusing or ambiguious religious texts.

Are sects and schisms even possible?

Well, if you are playing off a Christianity type god, the equivalent of Satan could grant spells to evil clerics?

 

[Henry]

Sepulchrave's world, while featuring monotheistic religions, is not itself monotheistic - there is the nature goddess running around. I would say that it's one of the best-done monotheistic (or duotheistic, so to speak) settings i've ever seen.

 

[Olorin]

Sepulchrave's world, while featuring monotheistic religions, is not itself monotheistic - there is the nature goddess running around. I would say that it's one of the best-done monotheistic (or duotheistic, so to speak) settings i've ever seen.

Point. There is no real nature "goddess" though. Just the paganistic notion of "The Green". As far as organized clerical-type religion goes, there's only the one god.

There's no reason druids in a monotheistic campaign couldn't be the nature aspect worshippers of a one god. That kind of takes away from the flavor of the class though ("The Old Faith"), and would make domains like Animal and Plant redundant.