A Dungeons and Dragons Cartoon RPG Suppliment
One of the more unique aspects of the D and D game that the cartoon never fully dealt with were Gods and Priests. We see wizards, warriors, and thieves running around like crazy through the show, but there are never any priests. So does this mean that there aren't any priest classes in the Realm? Of course not. They're just a little rarer to come by. Still, if you want to play a priest in the Realm, just read ahead.
So just why are there no priests in the cartoon? Well, this is Saturday Morning of the 1980's if you remember, and the network censors didn't want to offend religious groups by showing "strange God's". And even when they did get away with showing a "Deity", he didn't even have a name! The closest we come to ever seeing a church was "The Temple of Light" from "Child of the Stargazer", and the closest we ever get to seeing a priest is during the marriage ceremony of Eric to Queen Zinn in "The Garden of Zinn".
But this works out in the story structure of this world when you think about it. This world's Golden Age was over many centuries ago, and the civilization levels are dropping off. Venger, the Would Be Ruler of the Realm, is probably making sure that all worship of Good Dieties is being slowly stamped out, while making sure that evil's influence grows in the land. It is quite possible that there were many pantheons of Gods worshipped Eons ago...but now only a few remnants remain.
The Complete Priests Handbook (from TSR), states that there are 3 types of worship that priests can partake of: a God(Diety), a force(a manifestation of nature*Think Star Wars*), and a philosophy(a way of life wherein your beliefs grant you your powers). Using this knowledge, we can now see what the priests of the Realm believe in. What follows are the Major Dieties, along with their Priest Kits.
The Followers of Good, (Philosophy):
Following the teachings of Dungeonmaster, along with scriptures passed down generation to generation from ancient times, the priests of this philosophy believe that good deeds and thoughts are the best way to lead their lives. It is through their beliefs that their spells are granted, and they seek to counter the evil that is spreading throughout the land at the hands of Venger.
Sidenote: Dungeonmaster is not the leader per se of this religion. He doesn't seem to always abide by these rules, and it may be that the powerful little wizard answers to his own set of rules. Some people think the Dungeonmaster may be a Diety, but their is a lack of evidence to support that. Furthermore, no one actually worships him, and nor would he allow that.
Priest Kit:
Alignment allowed: any good
Races allowed: any
Powers: The Priest can cast "detect evil" three times per day in addition to all other spells. Can turn undead as per Cleric rules. Gains +1 to hit and damage vs. all evil enemies.
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Religion
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Healing, Protection. Minor access to Charm, Divination.
The Nameless God, (God of Destruction, Conquest, Evil):
This is one of the Gods from the original pantheon that first created/formed the Realm. No one remembers his real name, but any who do know of Him know to fear Him. He is a particularly malivent and evil diety, and seeks to dominate the Realm with evil, or if that fails: to just obliterate it.
Unlike other Gods, He partakes in the affairs of mortals from time to time. Like a force of nature, he descends upon the Realm and brings about great destruction. Not content with just conquering the Realm alone, he now moves from planet to planet, bringing death and destruction to entire worlds.
In the Realm, his chief follower is secretly Venger, but others worship this ancient Power independtly of him.
Priest of the Nameless God Kit:
Alignment allowed: any evil
Races allowed: any
Powers: Can cast detect good three times per day. Can control Undead. Gains +1 to hit and damage vs. all good enemies.
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Religion
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Charm, Necromantic. Minor access to Animal, Protection, (May only use reversed forms).
Marduk, (God of Justice, Law, Storms, Rain):
With Tiamat still running rampant through the Realm, it would make sense that her old enemy Marduk is still around, being worshiped by a select few who are still faithful to his teachings. Marduk and Tiamat were enemies eons ago, when Marduk's Pantheon was still strong in the Realm. Truth is, Marduk has little to do with the actual Realm itself, (he's moved on to other Planes now) but he still keeps a minimal interest, mostly because of the presence of Tiamat.
One would think that Venjer would find any enemy of Tiamat's to be a friend of his, but Venger doesn't tolerate the worship of Marduk in his area of control. Truth is, Venger cannot stand Marduk's views about Law and Order. The only order Venger adhere's to is his own.
Priest of Marduk Kit:
Alignment allowed: Lawful Nuetral
Races allowed: Humans, Elves, Dwarfs, Gnomes, and Halflings.
Powers: The Priest of Marduk may cast Detect Lies 3 times per day. May cast Inspire Fear at 3rd level.
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Reading/Writing
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Divination, Weather. Minor access to Protection, Elemental, Gaurdian.
Tiamat, (God of Evil Dragons):
Tiamat is the most powerful of all dragons. So powerful in fact, she has become a minor God. She can be worshipped, but isn't worshipped really by any natives of the Realm, as the evil dragon causes terror to all who encounter her. She only grants spells to Evil Dragons that worship her, and even that happens rarely. It would seem the Queen of Dragons would prefer to be left alone.
NO PRIEST KIT!
Lolth, (God of the Drow, Spiders, Evil, Darkness):
Lolth is another ancient God that still holds an interest in the events of the Realm. It can be taken that since she is still around, that her worshipers the Drow(Dark Elves) are still around as well. And if the Drow are still around, then so are the good elves.
Sidenote: Notice that in all 27 episodes, we never saw one elf. But it can be suspected that they are still out there, somewhere in hiding. Perhaps both Elves and Drow are close to extintion, and this would explain Lolth's continued interest. She could still be interested in her drow's survival, and at the same time interested in finally wiping out the good elves from the Realm.
To pursue her goals, she has even gone so far as to strike an alliance with the evil wizard Venger, a rare event for her indeed.
Another Sidenote: What we saw in "The Hall of Bones" was Lolth's Avatar, which is not as powerful as the God herself, but still very deadly. (and NO, Lolth didn't die when she fell into that pit!)
Priest of Lolth's Kit:
Alignment allowed: Chaotic Evil
Races allowed: Drow
Powers: Can control undead. Can cast Incite Berserker Rage on fellow Drow Warriors.
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Religion, (Elven and Drow)
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Summoning, Necromantic. Minor access to Charm, Combat, Divination.
Corellon Larethian, (God of Magic, Music, Arts and Crafts, War):
The complete opposite of the evil Lolth, Corellon is the most powerful of the many good elven Gods. (If one wanted to play one of the rare elves of the Realm, this would be the God they would most likely worship). The God of Elves is desperate to make sure that his people survive these turbulant years of the Realm. Perhaps he has gone so far as to strike an alliance with the Dungeonmaster, but no one can be sure...
Priest of Corellon Larethian:
Alignment allowed: any nuetral or good
Races allowed: Elves
Powers: May cast charm/suggestion (same as the wizard spell) 3 times per day. May turn undead as per cleric rules.
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: None. This god allows his worshipers to partake of their own unique interests.
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Animal, Healing, Charm. Minor access to Protection, Creation.
Cloud Spirits, (Force):
This is the mystical religion of the race of Cloud Bears. It is basically a belief in the spirits that inhabit the sky, and hold sway over all of nature. The Cloud Bears pray and hold offerings to the spirits in hope for a good harvest and plenty of rain. Though the spirits are mostly worshiped by the Cloud Bears, some humans have been known to take up their faith, for they have seen the miracles the Cloud Bears can produce. (Note that these humans usually belong to barbarian tribes, whose worship is similar)
Cloud Spirits Priest:
Alignment allowed: Nuetral or Nuetral Good
Races allowed: Cloud Bears and Barbaric Humans
Powers: Immunity, (automatically successful saving throw vs. all priest spells of the element sphere, and all wizard spells with heat or cold, but not fire). Can Inspire Fear at 5th level.
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Weather Sense
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Elemental, Weather, Creation. Minor access to Plant, Animal, Healing.
The Church of Light, (Force/Gods of Prophecies, Light):
One of the religions that Venger is having the most trouble stamping out is the Church's of Light. Dedicated to Gods whose names have been forgotten, these temples still stand in locations throughout the Realm. These sites are dedicated to hope and prophecies that speak of redemption for this turbulant world. The magical structures are almost impossible to destroy, thus continuing to spread hope throughout certain parts of the Realm. The Priests of these temples study the stars in search of answers to their prayers.
Church of Light Priest Kit:
Alignment allowed: Nuetral or Nuetral Good
Races allowed: any
Powers: Turn undead, (same as Cleric Ability), Prophecy, (the priest must meditate for 10 turns to see if he recieves a divine vision of the future), Laying on of Hands at 3rd level, (same as Paladin ability).
Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Astrology
Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Healing, Divination, Sun. Minor access to Charm, Creation.
That's all the major religions left in the Realm, and as you can see, some of them are in fact pretty minor. Yes, there are other Gods and Forces out there that your Dungeonmaster can come up with, but these are probably the most easy to come upon in this world.
Still, as you can see, religion has it's place in this world. And it's not going anywhere, no matter what anyone,( particularly Venger) has to say about it.
Back to the Dungeons and Dragons Cartoon RPG!