User:Cedric/Deities and Demigods
So... you want to be a god/dess, eh? Getting pretty proud, eh? High and mighty? Perhaps you think it's just a matter of power over the universe or getting enough followers, eh?
rewrite and update to Deities and Demi-gods v5 (aka The DMG “God Manual”, LVL50+, aka the Game Master’s Guide
Strap on your seat belts, because this book is about Understanding the Forces of the Universe. Here, you will meet the gods, the hierarchy of how the gods and goddess work, the transforms as the power of the gods works its way into your universe, and the way their powers interact with your players and even the DMs themselves.
Perhaps you, the DM, have been fudging your dice rolls to get your intuition to match up with the rolls of the players, quietly balancing the interplaner forces which make the game and your relationship to it interesting. Perhaps you've also been settling with controlling the story game by game, campaign by campaign without some overarching mission or vision.
Well, this book is an answer to your quiet understandings that yearn for more.
The overgod allocates light to all other demi-gods by setting the 'trust values on their trust-card that holds the lesser deities. This all-that-is organizes approximately 20 dimensions and moves hardly at all because of its ancientness. The next level of lesser deities holds up to 8 dimensions each, differing and overlapping on what dimensions these are. After that there are the mortal leaders working on the mortal planes which control some 3 dimensions (or less), like a regular human, if they were to lead. In between the all-that-is and the lesser deities are the dragons and giants which are 3-d shadows of the all-that-is. That is, they represent the universe itself.
The deaths of prior days get absorbed by the Underdark into structures of inhuman dimensions and forms (sometimes daemons) which eventually get consumed to make new mana. The processes of the ALL-THAT-IS takes care of these things to make new light for the sun to rise for the day. So you see, within the Eternal, there is no gender, nor spatial (up and down) and temporal orientation for the ALL-THAT-IS. No all of these orders belong to demigods within. It is a matter of small movements of trust allocated to these lessor gods that define the dynamics of luck and ultimately prosperity. (See DM notes.)
So, the ALL-THAT-IS has a trust-card, whereby the divisions of energy are allocated to empower the passions below. and 50(-balrog, x, x, x) * 10% trust value from the overgod
It is divided into 4 sections:
- Running the game universe,
- The pantheon of the gods,
Part I: Running a universe
Intro
Greetings! Herein lies the tome of arcana, hard-fought, which tells of how one comes to be a god and the measures allocated thereby. Be not threatened of foes too great.
This manual is meant for DM and GMs in regional play or doing advanced gameplay involving long story arcs. IF you're not comfortable with LVL 100 powers, this manual may make you.... uncomfortable. There are a multitude of dazzling and subtle affects to the domain on having gods. , like equpment, special powers, weather affects.
Point of wisdom: When working the gods you will find that the key element is balancing too much order (restrictions) vs. too much chaos (freedom).
There is a game-wide variable: VALENCE which represents the state of the Underdark (death) with the state of the above world. If valence is positive, then there is a net good in the world-soul. If it drops below 0, then adventurers are needed to stamp it out. In good times, leaders, trade, record-keeping (development of libraries), and development of magic can ensue.
Dice Table:
- d2: polarity: +/-
- d4: alchemical elements
- d6: cardinal directions + up and down
- d8: god decision-making
- d10: background aggregation of characters
- d12: godrolls
- d20: DC interactions
- d16: PC-NPC meetups
- d24: object interactions
- d30: NPC interactions
- d60: landscape interactions.
- d120: diamonds and gemstones…
- d360: utterly unknown, but probably for setting up the conditions for the 7th Age….? Roll it at the beginning of your session and write it down. That’s all.
Alignment tensors
A tensor is a vector that is amplified (adding the tension) by a scalar. The vector is your alignment. Standard D&D has two dimensions of alignment: good vs. evil and chaotic vs. lawful. But this isn't enough variability to account for the diversity of the gods. For what is the point, for example, of having two good, lawful gods? There must be something different about them. The Myers-Briggs test has 4 different dimensions to account for all humans, so let's start there.
This is where some power to unite the realms comes from -- serious knowledge on how the gods/goddesses work to influence the realms and relate to Time. It comes from watching the entities in the all-seeing-eye and the ALL-THAT-IS of our realm.
Alignment tensors flesh out more fully the disposition of any and every NPC/PC towards the universe, including the demi-gods. The one (two) exceptions are the All-Father or the All-Mother which sets the minute trajectories for the first variable: what is good (love) and what is evil (hateful). Just the slightest nod above or below the zero, sets the dynamics of the universe. More than that, and things get destroyed from too much power being set in motion.
There are four different dimensions or variables that compose two sets for four: yin/yang (or male/female*), affecting above-ground dynamics and the minds of human/mammal/reptilian creatures).
- morality: good(+) vs. evil
- ethics: chaotic(-) vs. lawful,
- social: individual(-) vs. collective,
- logical: magical(-) vs. mechanistic,
Each of these dimensions is held by one of the eight ability scores. The exact stat varies from character to character. Wisdom, for example, could show up on the chaotic variable or the good vs. evil vector, or magical if one were bringing more magic into the realm for a higher purpose.
Whatever you might be tempted to do otherwise, keep these two groups (yang/yin) separate. Their slight differences define an era.
The female/goddesses have a related, but differently named set, creating the inward dynamics relating and effecting ground-level objects and flesh of NPCs:
- morality: gaia/goddess(+) love vs. hatefulness(-), OERTH
- ethics: proud(-) vs. deferential(+), SUN (Water: Shou)
- grouping: individualist(-) vs. community-oriented(+), WATER (Sun: Shou)
- logic: animism(-) vs. inanimate(+), AIR
Values range from -1.0 to +1.0 and can be any value in between to give subtle variation to things. These values are a result of "normalization" of the realm's negative and positive alignment totals. These digits get placed in 4 decimal alignment value, from +1000 to -1000. The first digits align with the first variables in the alignment tensor, so that really the alignment is 4 dimensions expressed by a single scalar.
If both the god and the spirit side show negative on the first variable, the being does not exist. If one is positive but the other has a higher negative value, then the being has death chasing him/her until that being levels up somehow to tip the scale of neg/pos in their favor or dies off. If both are positive, then the being has +MANA_REGEN
These totals go up with every take-down of an oppositely-aligned being (to the dominant god(s?) over the realms) and down with every ...
The All-That-Is holds the 8-dimensional vector of these together. There are other variables (like reactivity -- of how much things react that touch each other, bad/good equation (saint vs. sinner) on howmuch human morality should effect the realm, etc.) that go up to 20 but this advanced topic is beyond the scope of this book (at this time).
- AL and WotC should tabulate the total deaths across all games so that an "alignment" for the whole game can be tracked an an over-arching story arc maintained. However, one only tabulates novel acts by different parties. 100 people "killing" Strahd does not resolve in 100x(the XP) of Strahd in change of the alignment totals. No, it will be 1xXP + small differences (if present) with each new party.
A large vector on the first two dimension of the goddess side could pull one "intuitively" away from a locale and towards locations far away, exerting influence over large spans of time (months or even years), while one on the masculine side leads to thoughts of virtue (or its opposite depending on it`s valence) and affect their behaviors towards each other. The divine feminine create the flield, while the divine masculine sets the particles in the field. Each affects the other.
Together these form two vectors (g, h, i, j) and (G, H, I, J). Coupled with a LVL, forming a scalar magnitude, these make a tensor. These tensors are the over-force and under-force of a given domain (the former) and set the feels for outward dynamics (the latter).
There are two primary alignment vectors that shows the present disposition of the ultimate game master (UGM) who sets this (should be WotC) towards all of the gods and set things into motion. The UGM should try to fit all of pantheon into a 10 x 10 vectors in which the lessor gods compete for the slots. 10 are for the male gods (Heaven domain) and 10 are for the female gods (Oerth-domains). This matrix gets crunched into a single number for morality. It’s this disposition which defines what morality is and it should move only very rarely, and defines an epoch.
The key elements of setting this primary vector is the person with the most real-world experience with good and evil. Remember the journey of Wo/Man is thousands of years long. Many people believe they've fought for the good, but it ended up hurting someone or something innocent. Likewise, many people who were thought to be evil, weren't. So the wizened sage sets the vector very tepidly -- just like the gods.
As the tensor tree moves downwards it forms an inverted tree and the time-periods get smaller, until you might have daily domain variations depending on events across the whole realm of all games, moving the tensor’s power up or down. These create the weather across the realm, as the highest gods balance these across the lands. If the balance of the yang vector gets out of harmony with the yin vector, dust devils or thunderstorms occur. The water released in the thunderstorm becomes part of the goddesses.
For every domain a god or demi-god holds, there is an alignment tensor. This is another item that separates the (demi)gods from mortal humans. Except for the leader class, mortals don’t hold domains. Strahd, for example, is a demi-god and not quite a mortal human and holds his own domain which other outside his plane have called Ravenloft.
In theory, these 8 could be complemented with 12 more for a total of 20 dimensions to specify everything that happens in the game universe. Color interactions (for alchemy), pH interactions (chemistry), light vs dark (how does the spark of a light interact with the universe), homogeneity, mass vs. solidity and interactions (or mass vs. space), .
XXXMOVETO: other section: Given this, one can imagine gods that specialize in one variable of the tensor. And one direction of the variable, giving 8 base deities.
LVL(alignment vector)HP/POWER. As adherent give power/PTY to their gods, the HP value of the vector goes up.
A demi-god gives 100% of their trust to their own domains, but only some smaller percentage of it to even their own loyalists within their domain, perhaps 10%. People they dont’ trust might have a ranking of -50% — that they’re not welcome in their domain and their alignment tensor will impose itself on them in some way, effectively defining them as “evil”, regardless of what their personal alignment vector says.
demigod_LVL(g, h, i, j) x personal_LVL(g, h, i, j), when the trust is negative, this project will add a curse effectively to your own. When the person is already against the diety, this double-negative cancels out somewhat and the over-god decides how dice are handled….. Basically you subtract the LVL of the player from the demigod and this remainder is available to “play out” and influence the domain below.
[…]
Alignment is your characters primary disposition to the game universe. There are two 4-vectors, one masculine and one feminine. A good vector ontrology can give the DM the complete dynamics of a realm, such that textual narrative isn’t hardly necessary (only the names of objects). XXThese vectors also have the possibility to change the dynamics if you sieze power over certain power objects or territories.XXKelsey
One could also imagine 2 more 4-vectors, one yin and one yang. A final four-vector would be the regulation of the other 4x4 vectors.
\\Use pairs: 60[(-1,0.6),(5 NOTE: This is for Adventurer’s League and above. DMs and players go away OR SUFFER.
Alignment theory: The alignment vector shows your disposition to the game universe. Different vectors that point in different direction imply that conflict will ensue. Ultimately, the gods have designed the universe to resolve all such conflicts and gravitate all interactions of vectors into a perfect circle. It is not unlike the venal-arterial system of the body — many vectors, one, united purpose.
"Good" and "Evil" are specially-loaded terms that can be set (somewhat) by the Game Master (or is it WotC?) — the manager-player responsible for the overall story arc of the game universe. Because: What is good and what is evil? What is good to one group can be considered evil to another, and vice versa. Take the Nazi's for example, what they thought was "good" was "evil" to the allies and hopefully to yourselves (because you're probably in their world).
That being said, I'd advise not deviating much from the normative values of "good" and "evil" for they have evolved over thousands, if not more, years (depending on what plane you're operating from :). However, if you would like to experiment with different values of good and evil, make a demi-god that will hold those values and place it below the ALLGOD. See how the game universe reacts to your experiment. You'll probably learn something...
Your alignment can be suggested by the DM depending on the needs and balance of the universe, unless you start from age 1 or less, where it starts neutral and the DM can't do much about it.
There are two axiis of character alignment and this has been separated in the new system into "alignment" and "attitude". Attitude can be either towards chaos or towards order. You can be destroying order or creating order. That means one can understand the issue of good and evil by multiple levels of assessment, such that a level 10 good could be seen by a level 20 seer as evil (because their greater intelligence and wisdom know the consequences of the former's actions) or vice versa. It's a subtlety that should be exploited by campaign designers if they wish to develop political intrigue in their games.
Faction, guild, and temple affiliations determine modifiers to your power equations (how much power you get per round). Joining any of these (or not), moving into a leader’s territory or a new campaign realm all affect the values of (g, h, i, j) that are used to determine how fate (the god/desses) assist or detract from your efforts. Their vector is crossed with your own to come up with the power modifier. Different demi-gods have different attitudes towards the different axiis related to 4 dimensions of alignment: Goodness (vs. evil), maJicalness (vs. technological), Individualist (vs. collectivist), cHaotic (vs. lawful).
The first digit of your alignment could give faction affilication in the good vs. evil spectrum, while the second offers another dimension of refinement of exactly what is good and what is evil. One could even hide the other variables in the alignment vector in the decimal digits of the first one, since others will see those of opposite alignment as “evil”.
Vectors hover over a domain of power. The power is the source of the scalar in front of the vector to make it a tensor. It gives it intention. These tensors can hover over a domain as small as a oil lamp or the boundary of a sarcophagus. The masculine vector tends to be a bubble or membrane, while the female vector bubbles up from within.
There are actually two 4-vectors: masculine and feminine. The feminine is composed of (tension, Revelement.going-forward, effusiveness vs. to oneself, over-feeling). XXX these need re-ordered to match the masculine vector. This last one is related to the scent (good vs. evil dimension). The penultimate one is related to collectivce vs group dynamics.
Qver-feeling (over-feeling, but for purposes of parsimony relating it to (q, r, s, t), this is spelled with a Q) is a one word description/color that matches the arenas primary mood. In theory these feelings could be mapped onto a scalar from -1 to +1 like rest by using tenths of a unit. In a dungeon, it could be pain or hate, for example. In a forest, it might be love or beaut. Revelement is from -1 to 1. -1 means full secrecy, like one might find in the Velkenvelve with the spider-witch. EffuSiveness is a scalar, -1 means “stuffy”, while 1 means “explosed”. Effusiveness transcends the personal or human qualities of a place and relates to the divine feminine. A happy forest in the sunlight is 1, while a fetid mycogen cave is a -1. Tension is the amount of unresolved gradients of power there are, 1 means everything is “on edge”, -1 means the place is spent — there is nothing to find of power from the realm (this is independent of the value of items that may be strewn about — power trapped in mass is not included). (-1, 1, 0, 1).
Over-feeling, effusiveness, revelement, tension. Over-feeling from Darkness to Light. In between, it is Unhappy (-0.5) to happy (+0.5). Lonely can be -0.7 series, while Sadness can be -0.1 series. Hurt from 0.0 to -0.1. -1.0 means that all human(oid)ness is gone. This is generally true for cephelopods (cthulhu and such), yet they are never to be put at a pure -1, which is reserved for someone with humannish power that has given up all light to be evil. Cephs have never been human, so can’t really be said to be evil in the same way a human is: with all of the knowledge of what those who remain human wish for.
(*) The "or" here actually represents an ignorance in the larger arcana of the universe: is the dynamic of yin (flow) and yang (stasis) superior in the universe or the one between male and female?
Alignment vectors. Every domain has a vector (g, h, i, j) that bespeaks the nature of the domain, be it a dungeon, a warehouse, a celestial realm, or a forest. The alignment of the forces which made the domain generally dictate what the alignment of the domain is. Two of these are canon: (g)ood vs. evil, and c(h)aotic vs. lawful. The other two are (i)ndividualistic vs. collective action, and ma(j)ical vs. mechanistic. The values of these variables can range from -1.0 (the value outside the parenthesis) to +1.0 (for the value in the parenthesis) and range anywhere in between to give nuance to the normal binary (trinary, actually) values. So WWII Germany, an evil, lawful, collective action, technical domain could be represented with an alignment vector of (-1, -0.8, -0.8, -0.6). A scalar in front of the vector forms a TENSOR. The scalar is the LVL of the demi-god who holds the domain. So Adolf Hitler might be a LEVEL 30 say, making the tensor value for Germany = 30 * alignment_vector. However, for the demigod Hitler himself, who's individualist and acting over the domain, a polarity shift must occur on the third variable. The vector gets multiplied by (0, 0, -1, 0) whenever one passes between the demigod to the domain they hold. This is the Phenomenon of the Planar Order: when a demigod is collectivist, the members inside must maintain their individualism, but when they are individualistic holding a domain, the members tend towards collectivism, bonding together under their leader. These tensors get used to calculate the effect from forces above. There can be layers upon layers of such tensors as overarching gods act over demigods. Each one modulates the use of dynamics of magic in the domain. When there is more than one over a domain at the same level, it tends to form parsimony or conflict.
Out-of-date
Alignment tensors flesh out more fully the disposition of any and every NPC/PC towards the universe, including the gods. There are four different dimensions in two sets yin/yang or male/female:
- g: good vs. evil, morality
- h: chaotic vs. lawful
- i: collective vs. individual
- j: majical vs. mechanistic
Together these form a vector (g, h, i, j). Coupled with a LVL forming a scalar magnitude, these make a tensor. These tensors are the over-force of a given domain and set the feels for outward dynamics.
The female/goddesses have a related, but differently named set, creating the inward dynamics:
- G (gaia worship): gaia love vs. hatefulness
- H (attitude): haughty vs. respectful
- I (solitariness): renegade vs. friend of children
- J (mystique): nat(j)ure/animism vs. inanimate
There is a primary alignment vector that shows the present disposition of the WotC or the ultimate game master (UGM) towards all of the gods. The UGM should try to fit all of pantheon into a 10 x 10 vectors in which the lessor gods compete for the slots. 10 are for the male gods (Above domain) and 10 are for the female gods (Below domain). This vector gets crunched into a single number for morality. It’s this disposition which defines what morality is and it should move only very rarely, and defines an epoch.
As the tensor tree moves downwards it forms an inverted tree and the time-periods get smaller, until you might have daily domain variations depending on events across the whole realm of all games, moving the tensor’s power up or down. These create the weather across the realm, as the highest gods balance these across the lands. If the balance of the yang vector gets out of harmony with the yin vector, dust devils or thunderstorms occur. The water released in the thunderstorm becomes part of the goddesses.
For every domain a god or demi-god holds, there is an alignment tensor. This is another item that separates the (demi)gods from mortal humans. Except for the leader class, mortals don’t hold domains. Strahd, for example, is a demi-god and not quite a mortal human and holds his own domain which other outside his plane have called Ravenloft.
XXXMOVETO: other section: Given this, one can imagine gods that specialize in one variable of the tensor. And one direction of the variable, giving 8 base deities.
LVL(alignment vector)HP/POWER. As adherent give power/PTY to their gods, the HP value of the vector goes up.
A demi-god gives 100% of their trust to their own domains, but only some smaller percentage of it to even their own loyalists within their domain, perhaps 10%. People they dont’ trust might have a ranking of -50% — that they’re not welcome in their domain and their alignment tensor will impose itself on them in some way, effectively defining them as “evil”, regardless of what their personal alignment vector says.
demigod_LVL(g, h, i, j) x personal_LVL(g, h, i, j), when the trust is negative, this project will add a curse effectively to your own. When the person is already against the diety, this double-negative cancels out somewhat and the over-god decides how dice are handled….. Basically you subtract the LVL of the player from the demigod and this remainder is available to “play out” and influence the domain below.
[…]
Alignment is your characters primary disposition to the game universe. There are two 4-vectors, one masculine and one feminine. A good vector ontrology can give the DM the complete dynamics of a realm, such that textual narrative isn’t hardly necessary (only the names of objects). XXThese vectors also have the possibility to change the dynamics if you sieze power over certain power objects or territories.XXKelsey
This All-That-Is is both male-female, death-life, yin-yang, above and below. Any other entity is really a demi-god and has an opposite of some kind: the god/goddess, for example. The grim-reaper and the angels,
\\Use pairs: 60[(-1,0.6),(5
NOTE: This is for Adventurer’s League and above. DMs and players go away OR SUFFER.
Alignment theory: The alignment vector shows your disposition to the game universe. Different vectors that point in different direction imply that conflict will ensue. Ultimately, the gods have designed the universe to resolve all such conflicts and gravitate all interactions of vectors into a perfect circle. It is not unlike the venal-arterial system of the body — many vectors, one, united purpose.
"Good" and "Evil" are specially-loaded terms that can be set (somewhat) by the Game Master (or is it GOD?) — the manager-player responsible for the overall story arc of the game universe. Because: What is good and what is evil? What is good to one group can be considered evil to another, and vice versa. Take the Nazi's for example, what they thought was "good" was "evil" to the allies and hopefully to yourselves (because you're probably in their world).
Your alignment can be suggested by the DM depending on the needs and balance of the universe, unless you start from age 1 or less, where it starts neutral and the DM can't do much about it.
There are two axiis of character alignment and this has been separated in the new system into "alignment" and "attitude". Attitude can be either towards chaos or towards order. You can be destroying order or creating order. That means one can understand the issue of good and evil by multiple levels of assessment, such that a level 10 good could be seen by a level 20 seer as evil (because their greater intelligence and wisdom know the consequences of the former's actions) or vice versa. It's a subtlety that should be exploited by campaign designers if they wish to develop political intrigue in their games.
Faction, guild, and temple affiliations determine modifiers to your power equations (how much power you get per round). Joining any of these (or not), moving into a leader’s territory or a new campaign realm all affect the values of (g, h, i, j) that are used to determine how fate (the god/desses) assist or detract from your efforts. Their vector is crossed with your own to come up with the power modifier. Different demi-gods have different attitudes towards the different axiis related to 4 dimensions of alignment: Goodness (vs. evil), maJicalness (vs. technological), Individualist (vs. collectivist), cHaotic (vs. lawful).
The first digit of your alignment could give faction affilication in the good vs. evil spectrum, while the second offers another dimension of refinement of exactly what is good and what is evil. One could even hide the other variables in the alignment vector in the decimal digits of the first one, since others will see those of opposite alignment as “evil”.
Vectors hover over a domain of power. The power is the source of the scalar in front of the vector to make it a tensor. It gives it intention. These tensors can hover over a domain as small as a oil lamp or the boundary of a sarcophagus. The masculine vector tends to be a bubble or membrane, while the female vector bubbles up from within.
There are actually two 4-vectors: masculine and feminine. The feminine is composed of (tension, Revelement.going-forward, effusiveness vs. to oneself, over-feeling). XXX these need re-ordered to match the masculine vector. This last one is related to the scent (good vs. evil dimension). The penultimate one is related to collectivce vs group dynamics.
Qver-feeling (over-feeling, but for purposes of parsimony relating it to (q, r, s, t), this is spelled with a Q) is a one word description/color that matches the arenas primary mood. In theory these feelings could be mapped onto a scalar from -1 to +1 like rest by using tenths of a unit. In a dungeon, it could be pain or hate, for example. In a forest, it might be love or beaut. Revelement is from -1 to 1. -1 means full secrecy, like one might find in the Velkenvelve with the spider-witch. EffuSiveness is a scalar, -1 means “stuffy”, while 1 means “explosed”. Effusiveness transcends the personal or human qualities of a place and relates to the divine feminine. A happy forest in the sunlight is 1, while a fetid mycogen cave is a -1. Tension is the amount of unresolved gradients of power there are, 1 means everything is “on edge”, -1 means the place is spent — there is nothing to find of power from the realm (this is independent of the value of items that may be strewn about — power trapped in mass is not included). (-1, 1, 0, 1).
Over-feeling, effusiveness, revelement, tension. Over-feeling from Darkness to Light. In between, it is Unhappy (-0.5) to happy (+0.5). Lonely can be -0.7 series, while Sadness can be -0.1 series. Hurt from 0.0 to -0.1. -1.0 means that all human(oid)ness is gone. This is generally true for cephelopods (cthulhu and such), yet they are never to be put at a pure -1, which is reserved for someone with humannish power that has given up all light to be evil. Cephs have never been human, so can’t really be said to be evil in the same way a human is: with all of the knowledge of what those who remain human wish for.
Finesse = (lessor_classes_levels_sum/10.5)^number_of_classes // you must have a multi-class name and all classes must be the same level to use finesse as a multiplier.
0000: God flips. There are 4 decimal positions: 10^-1, 10^-2, 10^-3, 10-4. The most aggressive of them gets the first decimal position. When they get defeated or suffer a setback, they swap places with the victor. The specific decimal digit just has to be guessed at to some degree. But consider this: the wisest among them, in times of uncertainty, will seem to be neutral and close to 0.0. So if you want you can start them at the end, the last decimal position and just wait for them to bubble upwards.
But most of the time, you'll know whether they fall on the negative or positive side of the 0. But be wary: many good-aligned demigods are on the chaotic side and look like they're evil to those who want to keep things as they are. Keep these ideas completely separate. Each variable in the vector is a different dimension, which means they're completely independent of one another -- they do not "blend" into the other. If you don't know or can't tell, use the smallest absolute value that you can for the first variable (closest to 0), without being exactly 0 -- that is all it takes to set up the entire dynamics of the game universe, a non-zero value: a butterfly flapping it's wings, to create a raging cyclone decades from now.
Some might be difficult to decide is a brooding mage who looks carefree on the outside, evil or chaotic? That's where your power as the overgod (or the WotC) power has to emerge: they get to examine the overarching principles and goals of the demigod. Are they to make a beautiful world filled with light? Are they working on goals that would last for Eternity? These are the measures of good. Evil characters, however lawful-abiding will be thinking about their comfortable retirement or their kids or their land, their status, etc.
Q: As long as there is injustice in the land, nothing but Eternal values provides a trajectory of good, otherwise self-centered activity is evil. While lawful good might be the designation from a lesser god, the Eternal All-That-Is knows that it turns life meaningless without a self-less goal. That's why there are god/desses of Justice, Love, Beauty, Truth.
present_HP = present_MANA / 100. //the present_mana is the amount of energy the (demi-)god has. This can be used by clerics for healing energy and is a factor of the piety of those incarnate. Individual power = present_HP/MAX_HP; LVL x current_HP/MAX_HP. Power modifier = (individual_POWER*alignment x KEEPER_LVL*ALIGNMENT_MODS) Ability modifier = (relevant ability score/10)^multiclass_modifier Multiclass modifier = # of classes at the top’s level + 1 //if single class the multiclass modifier is 2. If dual-class, the modifier = 3, etc. up to 4, unless you’ve succeeded the Abyss, then the value is up to 10. XXXactually, you have to add all of the ability scores if you use the exponential multiplier. This generally lowers the overall affect. Using the multiplier means you probably shouldn’t be using crit-rolls (except thief when they have an extra round).
The power equation for every class is: Power_modifier * dice * (ability_score/10)2 Unless all classes are the same level, in which case you multiply the last term.
Everything in the game is determined by four powerful forces: the dice, the equations (stat_blocks/maps/realm_history), the god/desses, and personal choice. The DM is the referee of these forces, but the game is designed to have enough wisdom that the DM should be able to trust the mechanics, the dice.
Everything conscious being within the game universe has an alignment vector: gods, NPCs, realms and planes, Every transition into another domain has either a change in odor, temperature, humidity, or ozone. A blue dragon for example changes the atmosphere on the latter.
Luck, crits, perception, mana input are all a factor of these alignment vector interactions — generally between you and the gods.
A dragon would be chatoc but under
Some terminology: A vector is the set of independent variables (g, h, i, j) of (morality, randomness, solitariness, mysteriousness), while a tensor is that vector multiplied by the inTENSity (LVL) of the character, setting the power leverl of the alignment. The gods and goddesses, for example, set a very high tensor for the natural world, and even perhaps for the average commoner in the village. This power quietly protect such areas. The tension (not the feminine vector Tension) is the absolute difference between two vectors, calculated thus: |g1-g2| + |h1-h2| + |i1-i2| + |j1-j2|. The maximum value for this is 8 and signifies MAXIMUM tension. The minimal value for this is 0, signifying complete parsimony. Once multiplied by the intensity multiplier, the extemety of conflict can be estimated. Thunderstorms may ensue. Much swashbuckling and spell energy spent. Intensity is calculated by multiplying the LVL x vector, something like LVL * g + LVL * h + LVL * i + LVL * j.
If you really want to get pedantic, even, your players will have to expend the same amount of energy (MANA) to re-balance the environment as the tensors (or intensity) indicate.
The power modifier is the product of these two tensors.
Alightment vector = [g, h, i, j]. (This vector means something only slightly different on whether it relates to the (M) gods or the (F) goddesses.) M; F: G = (G)ood vs. evil; (G)oddess vs. hatefulness…. morality/overfeeling H = c(H)aotic vs. lawful; (H)auty vs. respectful… attitude I = (I)ndividualistic vs. collectivist; no-good individualist vs. ch(I)ld-friend… solitariness J = Ma(J)ic vs. technology; Na(J)ure vs. rocks/dead material… mystique
It is possible to make the first item (good vs. evil) a vector as well, making it a vector of vectors. The vector would be composed of a list of all of the demigods [odin, melora, …] each of these would contain their own alignment vectors, with their own odor associated with them and the addition of these sets the scalar for good and evil. XXX somehow this data can be used by the WotC to calculate the value that should be present for each demi-god for the good vs evil axis. (A 2dimensional matrix and reduces to a single number for each?)
If the gods set the domain vectors, then the goddesses set the intention vectors affecting your defensive abilities and TOHIT dynamics. These can be based on your ideals, rather than geolocation (like the gods).
Ideals and bonds: Luck_vector = [love, respect towards others, care for children, care for nature]. This is effectively the same vector for the gods, but the semantics are different.
Since there is only one good and evil axiis, no judgement should be implied (of good and evil, duh) by the use of positive or negative signs on the other three axiis. That means a chaotic isn’t evil, nor a negative sign bad.
Also, every transition can be detected when one is entering or leaving a realm, if one is PERceptive or INT enough,
Influence = LVL * Alignment_Vector. This is the common use that is made into a cross-product to calculate To calculate the influcence
XXXpower_modifier = alignment_vector x realms
Damage modifier =
An enchanted forest held by a female goddess would have something like (0.2, -0.2, 1.0, 0.4). For an enchanted elven forest, I’d expect, the fourth term (majic) to be greater, perhaps 1.0 and perhaps neutral on the second term 0,0.
The first term of good and evil has an open interval at it’s lower bound — there is never anything completely evil, because the gods have made sure of it, to make sure reality doesn’t collapse.
ALIGNMENT tensor = LVL*[G, H, I, J] . G, H, I, J range from (-1.0, 1.0]. That left parenthesis on the lower number means is the ever-so-slight bias in the game universe. It is never perfectly evil -1.0, as long as there is good. This is indeed a slight bias in the game universe, published and noted here for your elucidation and/or criticism: that as long as there is a universe) nothing is abolutely evil.
This makes alignment a more precise art (as desired by either player or DM/AL/etc.) because you can choose non-binary choices. For example, you might be only 0.1 evil (-0.1), whereas a pure evil demon lord might be -1.0. It is the opinion of this writer, however, that in the present Age, there is no character or NPC that is pure evil or pure good, so modify those puppies off of their absolute levels.
traditional D&D alignment for a lawful good character would translate to an alignment vector of (1, -1, 0, 0). The 0 means “don’t care” or neutral.
The sum_total effect of all of these alighment vectors helps determine how the universe aligns to your actions with respect to itself. Two equal opponents who only differ in the good vs. evil variable +1 and -1, will have equal power. However because there are no abolutes in this Age, the battles elsewhere have probably already moved these numbers off of their limit, perhaps a 0.96 vs. -0.91 battle, lolz.
[a, b, c, d] x [g, h, i, j] = a*g + b*h + c*i + d*j (cross-product) These vector multiplicands can be adjusted by LEVEL scalars that adjust things upwards (there are
alignment vector = (dedication_to_the_good,
Realm modifier = realm power level x alignment vector. s are represented in the same way: realm_keepers_LVL*( realm_power_level = the gods level as normalized by the omni-father/mother which stays at level 1000 and defines what is good and evil. Giants can be up to level 200 if they are the only giant of the realm. If there are four of them however, they are level 50 each, for example.
Each race, individeual, god, and domain (a campaign or simply an area of interest) have their own alignment vector, such that an Al-Qadim player might get some freedom in the Tomb of Horrors that other players/races don’t.
individual_alignment x realm_alignment.
integer system * (1/5) = decimal system so -5 = -5 * 1/5 = -1.0 3 = 3 * 1/5 = 3/5 = 0.6 1 = 1 * 1/5 = 1/5 = 0.2 +/- 5 = 1.0 +/-4 = 0.8 3 = 0.6
gods and humans, male-female, nature vs civilizaiton, electricity/magic vs. industry/oil. This forms a vertical vector to the horizontal alignment vector. If ever the female/goddess takes over the realm, the sign will flip the good and evil, such that -1 will be good and 1 will be bad.
This entire realm vector determines the sign of the alignment vectors. If the male becomes dominant in the fourth position, then
Example, a LVL15 good, individualistic, semi-chaotic warrior enters the dungeon of a LVL30 evil, chaotic, individualistic wizard within a LVL25 forest held by a lawful, good, magical goddess. The individuals alignment vector is 15*[5,2,4,-1] = (75, 30, 60, -15). The dungeon in the forest’s alignment vecor is 30*[-4, 5, 5, 0] x 25*[5, -5, -3, 4] = [-120, 150, 150, 0] + [125, -125, -75, 100] = [25, 25, 75, ] upon entering the dungeon
NOTE: in battle both the dice and your alignment tensor inform the outcome. One (the alignment vector) is known beforehand, the other (the dice) is determined on-the-spot (effectively determining how perfectly your actions were executed).
A realm, a temple (or demigod), a guild, or a faction, and any particular domain (like a city, dungeon, etc.) should publish their modifier changes upon entering and joining their domains. Each one of these variables ranges between +/-5. A city dedicted to the good of industry might have variables set to (+5, -1 (favors lawfulness), 0 (don’t care), +3)
There are four other hidden variables of alignment, (g, h, i, j), (k, l, m, n). These could be said to be the feminine side of alignment. Most of the tie these aren’t used. Only the dreamer class, a powerless class, accesses them to get info on objects (identify). It is what the Jedi integrate in their body to be perfectly in-tune with the universe. Suffice it to say that they are there, but can be ignored, so the process of the universe can go on unhindered, as it would alter the flow of life and make the job of the gods/goddesses more difficult. The giants usually come out to pound some flesh, usually some sorcerer or psionic wizard misusing the hidden forces of the universe. This is what created the Mage Wars, the chambers of Undermountain, and its accompanying spellplague.
Alignment can run from -1000 to +1000. If you are a god, then these numbers DEFINE good and evil, otherwise YOU are "defined" by THEM. Positive means good-aligned, negative is evil-aligned. When you kill a creature with +50 alignment, for example, you lose 50 points from yours. OR your alignment adds or subtracts the LVL of the creature you killed??? When your alignment gets super good or super bad (over 500+/-), you attract other creatures of the opposite alignment or YOU get attracted to them -- when all things are equalibrium, you are driven towards each other. Children, apart from dwarves, generally start with greater than +500 alignments.
Alignment should be seen as with multiple axiis, these are generally not all equal, hence the primary determination of alignment is signaled with a positive or negative sign (the "good or evil" axis). After that, is Game Master's discretion, but some axiis run along anarchy vs. regimen, human privilege vs. no privilege, magic vs science. One can use each digit as a specifier of the axiis, such that an even digit in the one's column (position) means a positive alignment with the axiis and an odd digit means a negative alignment with the axiis.
It takes an alignment of greater than 500 to wield a radiant weapon. It will generally zap you with a force proportional to your STR, otherwise, until you drop it.
Alignment is a gradient. The HIGHEST level god defines what is good by a POSITIVE alignment score. The amount of power the god has to affect the realms is the number of LVLs they sacrifice to their realm * their alignment. So if they sacrifice 100 levels at 1000 alignment, they have 100,000 units of power over the realms to exert influence (to spend over many rounds). A god may want to keep some of their levels to keep some autonomy. The highest negative alignment, then, defines the being who is OPPOSED to this one, creating the main story arc: good vs. evil. It is power, then, which defines what is good. But beware, if the gods that hold the universe become less powerful than other "gods", the universe can fall apart. Hence, the dragons.
Certain alignment can prevent you from finding highly-charged, oppositely-aligned equipment items. A negatively-aligned creature will be led away from the positively-aligned equipment and vice versa. You have to possess a key piece of information in order to find them.
Players aligned opposite of their gods will get disadvantage in battle. If they are ronin, without gods, they don't get any disadvantage, but they don't get advantage from their gods, either (with same alignment). (Check this: may be too strong of a change). PErhaps something like this (abs(god_alignent - player_alignment)/1000)% of the time they get disadvantage.
Alignment is visible to some classes (legendary leaders or above, magistrates if they're under such a leader, wizards who cast darkvision spell) and races (with darkvision) or under spells or scroll-effects. Alignment is seen as an aura with various colours. The meaning of the different colors, the players have to figure out if they want to use that information. The higher the level, the more refined difference you can see in their aura, such that a difference of only +/-5 alignment points could be detectable by level 50?. If it's the alignment towards you're own god, and you're very pious (loyal), then you could detect even the smallest alignment polarity: +1 or -1.
A player-character who chooses only to kill negatively-aligned creatures will have a perfectly clean XP chain, with no karma. What this may give a character will have to be discovered. The realities of most gameplay means that characters may have to kill an animal, for example, for food. A player must offer something to the gods of those animals, for that XP not to count against his or her alignment. Perhaps they give up all the XP for the kill. That covers about half of the negative karma. And then they may offer it to other creatures or make a ceremonial offering directly. Yes, that settles the remainder.
NOTE: Some armors, particularly those with enchantments, if worn will zap the players each round (1dAC) if they are not aligned with the gods who helped make it. (with some credit to Yaz for the idea.) If it is a weapon, you get bad luck also. [consider (#enchantment) x (extent of their misalignment/100) as the damage]
There is at least one good advantage to keeping a squeaky-clean alignment -- one can stack a cleric class without losing any XP. Of course, whether that new class levels at the rate of your deeds, is going to be completely dependent on the value of those future behaviors.
Alignment is different than attitude which can be chaotic or lawful. Keep in mind, such determination can only be made, and generally differently, by those who hold different laws. Time has to tell what is good and what is evil. You can surmise that that which has survived the test of time, must, by definition, be the good. Order, for example, rather than chaos, is what must stand the test of time, otherwise, all life dies -- even the most EVIL of characters: dragons, liches, chuuls, what have you.
—-
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I finally and completely figured out how to do alignment and luck mechanics in D&D. Forgive me if this is too pedantic, but it really is the only way to do it -- if you want to be complete and perfect.
Instead of a two-dimensional, binary alignment setting on two axiis (good vs. evil and chaotic vs. lawful and only 1 or 0 as values), I'm considering making alignment a four-dimensional, decimal-point vector to express gradations of good or evil, etc. The other two dimensions are magic vs. technology (how does your character or NPC align with these?) and individualist vs. collectivist (are you a group player or solo?)
This alignment vector is crossed with a domain vector to calculate a DAMAGE or luck modifier for all rolls. A domain vector is a vector assigned to every city held by a leader (i.e. *their* alignment vector), dungeon, the abyss, etc., in order to weight in the overall story arc which could be held by a giant Game Master.
The domain vector is used to calculate your current damage modifier whenever you enter or leave a domain. It is the equivalent of "luck" which formerly was just finessed by the DM through fudging dice rolls, but now you only need to assign an alignment vector to each domain. Such domain transitions, btw, could have an "aura" associated with them, much like a cold front passing over you when sitting outside heralds such a transition, or a smell that lets you know that you've passed into another's domain or the demi-gods have switched something above you. Anyway no more guess-work in trying to level out game play! —— WotC and Marcos only:
- A DM should learn how to read a tensor map of a domain and from it know all of the dynamics of feels/aromas of the area. Each vector should have a name, like Forgotten_realms_section10(Sword_mountains(5, 0,0,30),Aaramor_dungeon_complex(dungeon_entrance(-50, 60, 25, -25), dungeon_crypt(sarcophagus_of_Aaron(-10, 5, 0, 0), sarcophagus_of_bigbad(-95, -50, 0, ,0)) , …) and see that one of the sarcophagus is pretty “hot” (this doesn’t mean there’s special treasure that the PCs would like, but hints to some hidden backstory).
- Ideally such maps are an upside-down tree with the over all disposition of the all-GOD giving their relatinship to the branches of demi-gods, going to realms held by each, to individual room where encounters may be had, to individual pieces of equipment — like the fruit of the tree, waiting to be picked or opened like a nut.
- The first dimensional variable in the vector is actually another vector of ~10 dimesnions. These +/-10 are denoted by thei demi-gods which hold them, while the all-GOD holds the totality defining good and evil over them all.
- Clouds and weather are affected by these vectors, where two demigods collide, you have extreme weather patterns at the boudnary of domains. Calm cumulous clouds can be expected where unresolved questions exist for the region by the demigod in power. The higher the level the lower the clouds appear and the more bulbous. Where there is concern by the gods, cirrus clouds can be expected high in the sky. When a region is in conflict with an overruling god, you can expect thunder and lightning. Rain can be the resolution of conflict and the fallout turning to new life.
Godroll
The godroll develops the DM as script-writer in a vast play. No more than every 24 time quanta (4 quanta per person * 6 rounds or 120 collective ft for all you oldtime suckas) (one round if six players or six rounds with one player, two rolls every three rounds if four players, etc.), the DM rolls two d4s, one metal (lead is fine) and one crystal (any will do from the earth, but not ceramic), inserting a non-player & non-DM-initiated inter-action (yes, it must be from the gods, no dice jails either -- you must allow the dice to bounce on their edges and corners on a firm surface to interact with the fates). The DM has some discretion about how often this special dice is rolled (and ideally is composed of crystal or semi-noble metal), but should be done no less than 1x per day. The DM acts as the channel over all of the realms, dispatching to all other gods in the pantheon who are posed and created to serve his/her aims. The aware player can divine much knowledge from the subtle cues of the godrolls and the astute DM can set up many sorts of intrigue that the players can play out over a large time-frame.
Alignment tensors can express themselves here.
XXXrEWRITE: 2 separate rolls would be better. One should be a black on white (good DMs) and one should be a white on black dice (evil DMs) OR the first die is metal (copper, probably) and the second die is crysta (M DM, a F DM should probably reverse these). The metal one gives the TYPE of interaction, the crystal one gives the element.
Re-understand: epic level players or other in supreme harmony with the (game) universe use 2d4s, others (like regular adventurers) should use the d12 system — they are seeking that harmony. The 2d4s represent the yin or yang and the counter-response, like an echo from the universe for the first roll.
There are four forms of interaction (the dominant cycle for everyone, but elves, aryan, azhians/shoux):
- TYPE 1: Sky/Gods interactions: compare their alignment to the god-vector overruling present location/realm
- TYPE 2: People interactions: human-level exchanges, PC to NPC, PC to PC, etc.
- TYPE 3: Oerth/Goddess interactions
- TYPE 4: Cellular/internal reactions: “You feel sick to your stomach.” “You feel hungry.”
The two dice should be rolled separately if you don’t have a metal/crystal dice set.
The second die can give you more detail on the dominant types of interaction (others in parenthesis):
- Group 0(roll 1): Nothing.
- Group 1(2): Wind/Air/Atoms (for Elves/Aryans: Water)
- Group 2(3): Sea/Water/Planes or liquidity (for Elves/Aryans: Air)
- Group 3(4): Sun/Fire/Light (Azhian: Earth)
- Group 4(5): Earth/Matter/Dirt (Azhian: Fire)
- Group 5(6): Major interaction: roll again to see if it’s a group 1, 2, 3, or 4. OR if 0, perhaps take a break. and if 6 again: >lookout<.
This d6 has to be manually subtracted. The numbers above are correct.
So, for example, a roll in a Type 3/Group 4 interaction might offer a feeling that a cave is nearby (without being able to see it, which would require the gods. If it was a type 1 interaction, they might see a cave but have no feeling that there’s something interesting to explore.).
Players can “exploit” godrolls. Let’s say that they’re in the Ruins of Undermountain, third level at the lip of the chasm. Players don’t know if there is something more to explore there or not. They might wait a few rounds or spend a few rounds praying (accumulating godroll data) until the godroll gives them a sort of “signal”. At that point the DM also has to trust the godroll, if they roll a Group 4 interaction, for example, the DM might imagine that there are more layers to explore that are only reachable by the chasm.. If the DM doesn’t roll a Earth related roll, then the DM should let them know that there
A type 1 interaction might inform them that exploring a chasm further will be fruitless and a waste of time. These things give the DM a way to guide the players without revealing their hand. They can speak on behalf of a goddess or god, even imagine their personality, and accomplish things on their behalf through the rolls themselves. They can set up subtle scenes playing out across the realms that otherwise might not get noticed. Players can choose to follow the subtle clues (which may prove fruitless — the interpretation of the gods/esses is a type of art that only the greatest seers ever accomplish) or ignore them.
XXX godrolls can put pressure on the world at large, shifting it's direction. A piece of equipment could show up. An unconscious utterance could be emitted from one of the players (if their not ronin and/or have some karmic tie to one of the gods (a frightful event perhaps could have anchored a god control point to a ronin character)). TYPE 3 interactions with ASM while awake and PER while asleep. TYPE 1 reverses this: PER while awake and ASM while asleep. There are subtle differences between a TYPE 1 and a TYPE 3 interaction, if the next grouping modulates the interaction. A type 1, group 2 cave alert would go like "You intuit a cave nearby" or "A cave is to your left". A type 1, group 3 interaction would be like "You see a cave." or "You feel the wind emerging from the rock." -- concrete interactions. There is a dominant and subdominant dynamic acting at once. Trust me, it's clever. Then there are four groups of these 3 (the subdominant wave): 1. GROUP 1: AIR Impersonal: Over <-> Under (gods vs. goddesses); lightning strikes the earth (type 1), a crowd of commoners mills about or a crowd of commoners talks animatedly (type 2/m), A rock breaks from the cliff wall and tumbles (Type 3). But hit you? Then it's a group 2 interaction at that point. 2. GROUP 2: WATER?: Over <-> Character; 3. GROUP 3: EARTH?: Under <-> Character; rock shows underfoot knocking u off-balance (type 1), "a piece of fruit" "A river can be seen to the East", "a wildflower is in bloom"(TYPE 3) 4. GROUP 4: FIRE?: Personal (within the player); "you feel hungry" (TYPE 2), "The sword of your ancestors was forged from the ore in those hills" (type 1), "You feel a good feeling about the commoner in front of you" "the stream looks refreshing" (feelings in contrast to seeings, as in the under-player interaction)
Hopefully, the distinction is clear. For the ashian, elvish, and aryan races the four groups are the dominant forces while the three types are subdominant.
OKAY, whether your godrolls are good or bad, depends on your alignment vector and: 1) goddess alignment vector for TYPE 1 rolls and 2) the gods alignment vectors for TYPE 3 rolls. This means that if you are not aligned with the goddess, goddess rolls will give players negative effects, so that a tree whooshing in the wind may mean “don’t go there”. DMs are encouraged to use subtle language to convey these things, rather than tell players straight out: the goddess doesn’t want you to go there is not as good as “You hear whooshing in the trees.”
XXXX OUT OF DATE:
Keep these types in mind for the below, because it will help you know how to interpret items which are similar.
Below are the 12 rolls, noted by the indented number. There are an equal number of interactions for each TYPE (in parenthesiis). If you are an elvish/ashian/aryan-type DM, you might switch the order of the dominant/subdominant types, so that there are 3 groups of 4, rather than 4 groups of 3. (NOTE: these lists haven't been re-evaluated. Consider them loose ideas):
- GROUP 1: god <-> goddess interactions; These interactions are generally impersonal (people going about their day) or involve the raw elements (earth, wind, sun, or water) without you being a center of attention. They are "edifices of the Spirit", you could say, inviting you to evaluate or engage, like a doorway. Generally, they're gradients being resolving in a vast theatre between the god forces (generally above) and the goddess forces (generally below). A high-level pious cleric, long-familiar to the region, might be able to divine the will that is playing out...
1. (type 1): Most commonly: "nothing happens" (unless you're in battle and a critical roll happens (see below).) "Lightning strikes the Earth." "Thunder and rain are falling gently on the plain." Notice above energies to below energies. 2. (type 2): (may create dialog or exchange of goods -- depending on how well the DM can play the random event): "a villager passes by on the road" "oxcarts move to and fro on their way to the market." "You see a lot of construction in the village" (gods preparing something in relation to the land, like mining, for example) 3. (type 3): "You hear a river running down a mountain range to the east." "A rock slips out from the wheel of a cart and hits a passer-by in the head."
- GROUP 2: Over - Player; These are personal interactions. The gods are trying to point something out to you. It doesn't have to be noticed by the players, but players which follow them can get higher trust scores with the gods in play...
4. (type 1): "a lightning storm takes place far to the north" -- where the DM knows there is an ongoing battle between two factions, or place an item in the player's way from one of the gods -- you can't tell the player(s) what it is without another (type 1) godroll, unless they’re in favor with the gods.) A type 1 interaction with a natural-made item (i.e. from the goddess) indicates an adverse reaction to the item: "A rabbit corpse lies to the side of the road." A god might point out "A raging snow storm can be seen up in the mountains to the North." to show his strength (and battle with the mountains...?) 5. (type 2): "an unusual stone is to your right" -- a dropped artifact of a mining cart that passed by a day ago. "You find yourself in front of a merchant in the square." 6. (type 3): "You hear the screech of an owl chirping in the [relatively safe] woods to the West.", "A crow flies overhead heading south." "A wolf creep up in the grass". (It goes without saying that killing these signs or omens gives you bad luck.), “An apricot tree (or some item of food) appears to your left.”
- GROUP 3: Under the player interaction; These are invitations of the Spirit -- the goddess is trying to point something out to you.
7. (type 1): "The scent of rain is in the air." "The sun is well and gives you the feeling of safe passages." "A foreboding feeling sends a chill up your neck." 8. (type 2): "you notice your companions short sword is in need of sharpening"). If one player, a statement about your internal state: "You're feeling lackadaisical", "A feeling of ease fills your steps". 9. (type 3): good-aligned travel: "You see the corpse of a rabbit to the side of the road". if near a city that lies to the south: "you smell the scent of fresh-baked bread in the northern wind", "a aged copper piece on the ground") Note: A type 3 interaction with a man-made object indicates an adverse relationship to the object, note the lack of complete sentence to indicate that it is not a full relationship with the viewer.
- GROUP 4: Within <-> player interaction
10. (type 3): You tap underneath the table. You roll a d20 for no reason. (Keeps players from catching on to you, subconsciously. If they try to be clever, asking "Did you do that for some special reason?" Answer: "Did I do that at all?") 11. (type 2): "your shoulder is getting a little sore from your backpack" "You're feeling hungry." (perhaps as a setup to bring them to a path winding through the woods) 12. (type 1): Give a piece of information or advice. If they have good luck -- you can tell something of which the collective experience of their (race or humanoid type) soul has known at some point in space or time. (Did a member of another D&D group leave a relic in a dungeon somewhere without knowing it was a rare magical item? You could find out about it.) The key point for this roll is that it comes from the collective experience of the race/monster type. If they are leaders who have been crowned, they get a piece of insight about the campaign or something they've wanted ("You sense that the gemstone of Aragon lies in the Sword Mountains") otherwise "A voice informs you that the metal in your broadsword came from ore in those mines", "You're intuition tells you that something interesting lies to the west" where you, the DM, know there's a relic from a past campaign never claimed, or "Further exploration down these tunnels will be fruitless.". Here's how this works. If a cave entrance, for example, is undiscovered and uncharted and merely awaits, then the quiet notice of it would be a TYPE 1 interaction (the land itself is showing you). OTOH, if another same-race character had discovered and charted it already, then it is a TYPE 2 interaction (collective consciousness directing your attention, pointing out already visited items). Thirdly, if there are monsters down there and some evil god is trying to get you, it is a TYPE 3 interaction. It is also a TYPE 3 if some sound simply makes you notice a cave (but a group 3 (direct goddess to player interaction) rather than a group 1 like the former example) This will develop DM and player imagination, as well as fill out the game world. You must be very familiar with that world, so that your cues are consistent and add value rather than become an annoyance, generating inconsistencies. In each case, you’re trying to weave the silent narrative of events taking place in the deep background. Lightning may strike the mountains to the east because you know, as DM, that there’s a mine and a Necromancer that lives there (but did you add dark clouds on previous rolls?). Of course, the Leader class probably already knows this through the insight ability. —- Critical damage factor. The factor multiplier for critical hits (when rolling the highest number on weapon [or other offensive maneuver] dice) is related to alignment. STUB
- If oppositely aligned the factor is 3.
- If one party is neutral the factor is the normal 2. (If simulating real life, the DM has to roll with you. If the dice match, only then do you get the 2x factor. In real life, GOD has to agree.)
- If like-aligned the factor is 1 == no advantage.
—— Godrolls are different if you are in the Abyss. On a 1, “nothing happens”, roll 2d20. If snake eyes (1, 1), the sickest/weakest/most stupid player(s) drops dead. This is especially necessary/significant when you’re not doing proper madness effects.
—— Godrolls for real-world evocative divination require a d20 and an indium or crystal die is preferred. Dice categories fall on factor leylines and can help guide your choices when all else is equal:
- odds vs evens: downwards towards precision vs. upwards towards theory.
- 4 vs 5: earth-bound vs. civilization-bound items -- irresoective of order: depends on how the material of the die: if it is crystal, then earth gets five faces. If metallic, then civ dream gets 5 faces.
- more than 10 vs equal-less: higher chakras vs. lower chakras; mind vs. body, respectively
- mod 3? brand or name roulette -- available to the universe as a bridge to the fourth or future dimension?
There are 2 sets of d20 codes, since there are two types of die. That makes six ideas for four types: 4 TYPES: 1. Father Providence; do nothing, give thanks, eat something, give some material asset away, write something for the sacred self (i.e. the divinity in which your made), 2. interactions with self; run as fast as you can until you are short of breath, close your eyes and meditate for a moment, make a rhythm, indulge in something (ice cream, a piece of candy, a movie), 3. person to person; verbal interaction with a random stranger, buy something, mend a relationship, confront a relationship, physical interaction with another, get someones attention that doesn't notice you. 4. Mother Earth; plant a seed, place something in better balance (feng shui) with the surroundings, work on your shelter, give a kiss (earth, a gender-complementary partner, an animal), talk to the void, hug a tree (savor a fruit or vegetable).
—— AL Notes:
- Weather is a serious signal from the gods. A thunderstorm is always a warning that: 1) there is some major power being used/misused in the vicinity, 2) the gods are against it. Similarly, the carriage of information on the wind is a serious signal from the goddess. The goddess effectively shoves the data up your nose, as it were. Shifts of wind can eventually be discerned by aware druids, herbalists, and rangers. If a player detects a pressure front from a cloud overhead, it signals the alignment vector of the realm has shifted significantly (changed hands: the god/dess or leader holding the realms has been usurped for the moment by something else).
- What people notice is another huge interaction, as the eyes were made by the gods. The eyes can be turned to different items of the world, depending on your god. The blue-eyed gods especially do this, while the ones held by the goddess (pretty much any animal-formed "god") will make you look at something that has been known as a danger.
- Human engagement: Another huge force of the god/ddesses is how the universe brings different people together for a purpose or the possibility of some interaction. It is speculated that there is no randomness in the universe — there is only different levels of ignorance.
- Of course, there is always something significant to internal interaciton (Type 4).
Part II: Representing the gods.
Actually, you the DM generally don’t "play" a god, you will be representing them. The GM (like Adventurer's League) gets to keep and play the demi-gods, while the WotC at the top set the trust metrics for the unitary, omni-gendered, omnipresent, omnipotent All-That-Is. The pronoun is RAOWE (pronounced like Tao). The actual game play for gods is usually set by regional GMs (like Adventurer's League) and the Wizards of the Coast who set various parameters that affect game mechanics for the entire realm that affect how everything behaves -- how often man. However, many DMs do use their powers for such. Hesitate.
In the game universe, all the pantheon of gods/goddess, dragons, and such falls under a multi-dimensional 1000LVL omni-gendered, omni-specied "GOD". This "being" has 8 ability stats. The term should not be considered denoting a gender and one should view the "O" in the middle as the circle that makes "all that is". This "GOD" set up all of the mechanics for how everything works in the universe, before Time began, back when the dragons were just little wyrms. This level generally acts infrequently, because at such a level most things have already been seen and answered before. Humans want to slay some dragons? Been there a hundred times. Some orcs on a murdering spree? Well, the gradients to create heroes in the realms were set Ages ago. You could say most of this was done in the First Age, of Dragonlance and Greyhawk, when the evolution of consciousness greatly accelerated the development of the gods and spirits and the first co-operative life was made (before then everything was vicious battles for life and ordered by heirarchy and survival). The only changes you'll probably see at this level are minute adjustments to the alignment vector, like up or down on the scale of 1 part to 10-12. These little adjustments, because they happen at LVL1000 make big affects to the overall dynamics of the game and even the WotC have to learn how to handle such powers, so that the interest n magic and the mysterious isn't dying out in the realms, or that the world isn't getting overpowered by orcs or the undead.
From this unity, two divisions are generally recognized in the present Epoch, which the author calls the Third Age: that between the giants and the dragons. Each side holds about 500 levels each (as expected of 1000), with various events sometimes moving power from one side to the other, but no event has made it imbalanced more than 250 lvls on either side, probably never more than 100 from the midpoint. The 1000 year war (which went beyond the years that you know) keeps this in check.
Parallel to this division you get the elementals, in about four pieces. This is where the goddesses interacts with the god energy above
This "how everything works" is a vast over-simplification of how every interaction from a ray astral energy contacting a piece of excrement needs to be handled. From how death gets processed in the realms by the Underdark to how life springs back in the lands of Faerun. Most every demigod in the pantheon stays in a range of LVL80 to LVL 125. Beyond that and the dragons and the giants come out and knock shit down. Indeed, the enterprise of becoming equal to GOD is huge, and though many have tried, few know or have the selflesssness to get far beyond LVL100. No one knows how ancient the Spirit or over-being is that made the lands, the sea, the air, and the light, from which the four elements of alchemy became separated and life began.
The Wizards of the Coast or Ultimate Game Master sets the vector of the GOD: micro-adjustments to the trust card for what is good and evil by each lower god/dess. The first variable of the alignment vector is named "good vs. evil", yet before the All-That-Is / GOD weighs in, this number is not determined yet to be positive or negative, so is represented by 4 digits, no matter the number of significance: 0000, for example. So, one could say that this starts the process of representing good and evil in the land. It starts as a simple number that is unique. The first demi-god's number could be anything. But then, once the all-that-is decides, it become that number with a positive or negative sign before it: +0130, good.
This scheme may seem arbitrary until one has become enlightened: that there is no other way, short of that being becoming incarnate (again?). For to change the rules of the universe, one has to not only be at the level of the gods, but incarnate -- a feat few could tolerate, for the world is far too slow for having such meat of a body.
When there are two or more god/desses competing for a domain, both alignment vectors will be present. Such a conflict generally will bring representatives of each party into contact. If there's no conflict between the vectors, this will result in parsimonious actions that assist each involved, otherwise clashes will occur to resolve the conflict.
XXXIt is the power of your name that establishes your power after you ascend, as you no longer have a corporeal form. (You might consider this as why the Hebrew god mentions it in this world's scripture.) Try not to underestimate this, for you will have nearly nothing else except your adherents that remain after your ascension.
DC checks
The gods augment difficulty checks as follows. If you are aligned with
Criticals
The event of critical strikes is a matter of sufficient mana in players or the amount of mana in their god -- not merely a high dice roll (wishful thinking of some noobs). If you want to take the easy way out, you use godrolls. Otherwise, you calculate the liklinhood by the knowledge of their god/dess. The amount of Trust from the all-that-is determines how much TIME they get and this sets the liklihood and availability of critical strikes, whereby the gods work through the humans.
XP
The XP value of the gods is exactly like player's. But these gods` XPs change the value of where the negative sign is in the equation of good and evil.
The XP is related to alignment. Your XP is always greater than your alignment, unless you stayed true to a single alignment without wavering (good or evil), then it is the same.
Alignment values
The god/desses alignment values take the form of others below them, in their service. They are added together, plus whatever the individual god/dess had during their own time on Oerth. Keep track of the highest and lowest values across the realms, for these set the standard in which all other NPC and players must calculate the first variable of their alignment vector: good vs. evil.
So if Grak the orc-god has the highest negative alignment of -1,300,000 (evil) and Danaeris, the celestial angel has the highest positive value of +240,000, then you've learned two things. One, the balance of good and evil in the world (in this case, more evil) and how to calculate your first variable to get in the range of [-1, +1]. When a player starts, they will be very small g variable, indicating the sum total of your deeds prior to beginning their character's starting age. It could be something like (-0.03), if they were mostly hands-off in the world (mostly neutral) or perhaps (0.14) if they did some good deeds to get their start point.
XXXBut: there's another point. The ALL-THAT-IS get's both of these to their total. This is where the WotC can decide what is good and evil. Will they just take the higher value and see that as good, the choice of power, or they can decide where the negative sign will go based on ethical considerations: the choice of reason. Which is better? Only the heart which holds the balance of both in the center knows and you may have to use that. Until you know the whole universe and the disposition of every energy or power gradient in the realms, you should make demi-gods to represent your theory of godhood and see how the game of TTRPGs takes it.
The AllThatIs allocates upto of 99.9% of the 1000LVL power to the good vs. evil variable if the people aren't in alignment, leaving very little energy for developing the other 3/4. Consider allocating the reverse percentage of the People's loyalties to the other agendas, keeping at least 1/4 to the first variable at all times, so that if 100% people believe in the gods, 3/4 can be allocated to the agendas of the AllThatIs.
Character's who kill other characters of opposite alignment add the victim's XP to their alignment by reversing the sign of the alignment (and then adding it to their own). This death adds to the goddesse's alignment
A person's XP really comes from the death
Good and evil
There are two caches of value that should be accounted
Good deeds in the realms are accounted from a pool of each individual in the realms. If a thief takes 100units of value from a shopkeeper (normally an evil deed) who has -100 that are not in her favor then the total good for the realm has gone up 100.
Trust cards
Each god/dess has a trust scorecards which itemizes the god`s relationship to various elements of the realms. There are two trust scorecards, one for people, and one for territories. Each has a list of names and a percentage score from 0-100%. This score adds a damage (gods-side) or to-hit modifier (for the goddess side), like an enchanted blade -- it affects all rolls, both DC rolls and class-based rolls. ability score + d20 roll + all-gods_alignment_tensor.
The total internal support from the gods comes from the total of all dimensions of the alignment vector. g1-g2 + h1-h2 + i1-i2 + (or do you separate positive wth negative agreement) . This affects MANA_REGEN.
Like many things, relating to the gods, these values should be kept secret and the players have to infer from behaviors of the universe how much the gods favor them.
Luck
Calculation of luck is based on the sum total of vector from the god/desses, crossed with the player`s alignement vecgtor.
Birthdays:
Game months can bev mapped onto real-world calendars if you’re not tracking the game timeline, so that based on the day your created your character (the moment you rolled your ability dice), you can gain slight favor with some god associated with that game-month. This mechanic can be used to create a special regional "gestalt" across the whole game during any given month.
Reality interactions:
D60 rolls.
Runnig the NPCs
In a full simulationa d60 would be used that dictates the dialog, but since one side is a human player, d30 is used. Up to 4d30s, of four different colors, but one black and one white. 1. ASM: their (emotional) demeanor in response to you. 2. INT: their (intellectual) demeanor 3. effusiveness: how open they are 4. revelament: how secretive they are
Running a universe…
Of course, you’ll be simulating a universe which is the next best thing
Just like a character in the game, realms get some fixed amount of mana per day (or per round). Light energy gets allocated through good alignment vectors, but also evil ones after being disfigured through their miasmas. Miasmas are the tags the gods have assigned to different domain holders that transform and project new energies into the realm. If a miasm is "unfinished business from prior life", ghosts get projected from the energy.
Alternatively, there is negative energy from the Underdark. This is a negative scalar that pulls energy rather than gives it.
Abilities of gods
Apart from a corporeal form (which would be too big to incarnate on the earth) Gods
Statistics of gods
The ability score and other stats of the god/desses have a similar but different function than those for regularly incarnate beings.
present_HP = present_MANA / 100. //the present_mana is the amount of energy the (demi-)god has. This can be used by clerics for healing energy and is a factor of the piety of those incarnate. Individual power = present_HP/MAX_HP; LVL x current_HP/MAX_HP.
Goddesses
The spirit side can send tiny insects to an area, that quietly chirp to announce their presence in areas that the spirit is interested in knowing what is happening. The goddess(es) do this naturally, but is manifested by the all-that-is into particular forms.
The insects, since audible, take just the slightest bits of Time as to be negligible. Herbalist, Dreamers, and Witches might learn the language of these sounds and interpret the state of their realm. Each type is answering a particular question for the World Tree: the Tree of All Souls.
The truth of this is that insects are just the form if you look in a particular way. Much of the time it is best to keep them part of the mystery, like where the path of a butterfly goes.
Current gods with whom you'll be competing
Notables:
Giants
Giants represent a 3-dimensional “shadow” of an ultimately 8+ dimensional entity: the all-knowing, omnipotent, omni-gendered, supreme all-GOD/DESS. The 8+dinensional supreme god/dess, by the way, reflects the multiheaded dragon on the other side of the ler reality that includes both the game world and other planes — perhaps even your own.
Like the heads of the multi-headed dragon, each giant is significant and represent some corner of the universe.
PTY works like this. 1 time-slot of mana goes to your god at a rate of (PTY/20)%. The remainder stays with the player for their own action slots. Missing mana like this brings mishaps occasionally, which the DM can play or not. This mana also comes from all of the commoners. But here's something interesting: the adventurers are given more time-slots than commoners because, well, they're actively engaging the world, most of the time. This means that the amount of mana that they give is more like 50mana (1/2 time-slot) per round. If an event happened that engaged the whole city on behalf of the realm, then their time-slots would be as normal as the universe resolved the situation.
The Mana accumulates at the deity and is used by clerics to heal. It also becomes power for other classes. Each day, some of the mana that remains unused by the deity can be transformed more permanently into HP. These HP can be converted to mana when the clerics or other allies need it, but otherwise contribute to the power of warrior fighting on their behalf.
Clerics can draw a lot of mana per round if they're level and PTY is high if they're healing a lot of people at once.
Side-effects in gameplay because of the god/desses
Like the lower worlds, the gods compete for power and things can get a little out-of-
It is the gods and demi-gods that create the weather. The UGM can communicate to AL groups the alignemnt tensor-state of the realms after tabulating the results of games under them and how they affected the power levels of the gods at the top, creating a subtle cycle of activity that astute players can divine into knowledge of their realm.
The goddesses and demi-goddeses (matrons) move the animals and other beings throughout the realm, including the life force given to trees, herbs for medicine (and cooking), river directions. As events happen that effrect the health of the realm, their 10-state vector gets adjusted and the population of NPC good and bad get redistributed.
——
DM NOTES:
- An “epoch” needs defined. perhaps approximatley 20 generations? 10-12 epochs? might define an Aeon (what I had called “Age”)
- INTEGRATE: the gods require your co-operation in bringing in items into the game and distributing them through the gaming universe. If a dreamer, is looking for a 100ct diamond, you have to ask the WotC level to see if such an item can be brought into the game, and THEN, they have to plop it into some gameplay someWHERE and see if your dreamer can bring it into her world. Items that are one-of-a-kind requrie WotC level, items that are very rare require the next layer of nteraction, while items that are common can be done by the DM.
- Items which are DESTROYED, relinquish their energy/mana back to the top and provide MANA for the Grand Wizards at the WotC. Evil creatures relinquish half of their power/MANA in the from of XP to the gaming party, but the corpse remains in the realms (in most cases, eh?). This decomposition has the other half of the creature mana, which becomes XP for the Wizards above, so alert them to any big kills (and wizards: enquire about any claims that they’ve claimed a big kill). Killing good-aligned creatures relinquishes energy into the Underdark…. and it gets stronger.
- Light is collected from a mana pool (churned through the underdark) from the previous day's deaths across the land.