Gods (Gods and Men Supplement)

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Religion in the Time of Gods and Men[edit]

Religion in the Ancient World was very immediate in people's lives. They believed that the Gods were constantly among them, and paid homage to all Gods (though they often still had patron deities). Thus, even the most devout priests of Pallas Athena would honor Poseidon before a sea voyage.

This has two major impacts. First, fortune or misfortune were often directly attributed to gods ("We must have lost the battle because Ares came among their army and inspired their warriors to greatness..."). The Gods were seen as being "among" the people constantly. Secondly, sacrifices to the Gods were not only common, but indeed were necessary. Without a sacrifice to the Gods (or at least a small libation or thoughts of praise), any venture was sure to meet with misfortune.

Finally, magic was entirely inseparable from the working of the gods. To the ancients, divine magic and arcane magic are the same entity. Thus, wizards know they unlock their power through study, but nonetheless believe that the ultimate source of that power is from the Gods; they simply access it in a less direct manner than clerics do (through prayer).

Sacrifice[edit]

Any major venture that doesn't begin with homage being paid to the proper deities has a 50% chance of being significantly set back in some way (the Gods, whom are displeased, make this so). The proper sacrifice to each god is usually an animal, but very rarely a deity will demand a human sacrifice.

Environmental Interference[edit]

The Gods, as a sign of their pleasure or, more commonly, displeasure, often interfere with the weather in many ways. This includes all sorts of Evil Weather, as well as dramatically planned eclipses, droughts, rains of frogs, tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, firestorms, pillars of salt or gold arising from the ground, etc.

List of Major Deities[edit]

Mycenae[edit]

The Mycenaean deities are far more human and flawed then most other gods, being distinct characters with their own personalities as well as forces of nature. They are all the patron of something, and each has their own legends and tales surrounding them.

Mycenaean and Trojan Deities
Name Alignment Domains Favored Weapon Description
Aphrodite CG Chaos, Good, Luck, Trickery Whip Goddess of love and beauty.
Apollo NG Good, Healing, Knowledge, Sun Longbow God of the sun (light), reason, music, healing, prophecy, and poetry. The brother of Artemis.
Ares NE Destruction, Evil, Strength, War Longspear God of war and bloodshed.
Artemis CG Animal, Chaos, Earth, Good Longbow Goddess of hunting and archery, sister of Apollo.
Athena LG Good, Knowledge, Law, War Longspear Goddess of wisdom, strategy, and war.
Demeter NG Earth, Good, Plant, Water Mace Goddess of agriculture, grain, harvest and earth.
Dionysus CN Chaos, Luck, Plant, Trickery Quarterstaff God of wine, agriculture, and the theatre.
Hades LN Death, Earth, Law, Magic Longsword God of the Dead and lord of the Underworld.
Hephaestus LN Fire, Knowledge, Law, Strength Warhammer God of fire and the forge (smiths).
Hera LG Good, Healing, Law, Protection Whip Goddess of marriage, family, and motherhood.
Hermes NG Air, Good, Luck, Travel, Trickery Dagger God of travel, thieves, and commerce.
Hestia NG Fire, Good, Healing, Magic Sap Goddess of the hearth and domestic life.
Nemesis LN Death, Destruction, Law, Trickery Longsword Goddess of Revenge.
Pan CG Animal, Chaos, Luck, Good Sickle God of flocks and sheep.
Poseidon CN Chaos, Strength, Travel, Water Trident God of the sea.
Zeus N Air, Destruction, Magic, Protection Longspear God of air, thunder and lightning.

Egypt[edit]

The Egyptian gods have far less personality then their Mycenaean counterparts, and their roles changed over time as different cities gained and lost power.

Egyptian Deities
Deity Alignment Domains Favored Weapon Description
Re-Horakhty LG Good, Law, Sun, War Khopesh The falcon-headed God of the Sun.
Anubis LN Law, Magic, Repose* Mace The jackal-headed God of judgement in the afterlife and embalming.
Apep NE Evil, Fire, Sand* Heavy pick The snake God of darkness, who battles Re-Horakhty every night.
Bast CG Chaos, Destruction, Protection, Strength, War Spiked gauntlet Lion-headed warrior Goddess who was also protects the pharoahs.
Hathor NG Protection, Good, Luck Longsword Cow-headed Goddess of childbirth and miners.
Imhotep NG Earth, Healing, Knowledge, Rune* Quaterstaff Early human engineer and physician who became a God after death.
Isis NG Good, Magic, Protection, Water Quaterstaff Goddess of motherhood, magic, and fertility. She is the wife of Osiris.
Nephthys CG Chaos, Good, Protection, Repose* Mace Goddess of funerary rites who is the nurse and protector of the Pharoah. She is Isis' sister and the wife of Set.
Osiris LG Air, Earth, Good, Law, Plant, Repose* Light flail Green-skinned judge and lord of the dead, who is in charge of the underworld agency that grants all life.
Ptah LN Knowledge, Law, Travel Mace Green-skinned God that called the world into being, and god of craftsmen.
Set CE Air, Chaos, Destruction, Evil, Strength Spear Typhon-headed God of the desert, storms, darkness, and chaos. Like Apep, he is said to fight Re every night.
Sobek LE Animal, Evil, Water Shortspear Crocodile-headed God of the Nile and the reptiles that live in it.
Thoth N Knowledge, Magic, Rune* Quaterstaff Ibis-headed God of the heart and tongue, who is a mediator between disputes of good and evil.

Persia[edit]

The Persians are unique in that they only have one god: Ahura Mazda, who is Lawful Good. He is the upholder of truth, and is omniscent(but not omnipotent). The domains he is associated with are Destruction, Good, Law, and Protection. Those who don't adhere to him will pray to his antithesis: Angra Mainyu, the All-encompassing evil. His domains are Destruction, Evil, Chaos and Death.

Babylonia[edit]

The Babylonian deities have less personality then other gods, but all resemble humans. In fact, Gilgamesh himself used to be a human.

Babylonian Deities
Deity Alignment Domains Favored Weapon Description
Anu LG Air, Knowledge, Law, Protection Mace Sky-God, lord of heaven and all other gods. He also judged those who committed crimes.
Anshar NE Evil, Magic, Trickery Dagger God who used to be lord of the sky, but was usurped by Anu.
Dahak CE Chaos, Death, Evil Scimitar A cruel, evil god who only seeks war.
Druaga LE Evil, Law, Trickery Mace Druaga is the evil god of the underworld and of Devils.
Enlil NG Air, Good, Luck, War Heavy Pick God of wind, breath, loft, and breadth.
Enki LN Earth, Magic, Water Mace God of crafts, seawater, lakewater, intelligence, and creation.
Gilgamesh NG Good, Strength, Travel, War Mace Being who is two parts god, one part man. He later ascended to heaven, where he is the god of strength and war, among other things.
Girru LG Fire, Good, Law, Magic Morningstar The god of light and fire.
Ishtar N Magic, Strength, Summer*, War Light flail The Goddess of fertility, love, war, and sex. Her worshippers often practice sacred prostitution, and though she has many lovers, she treats all of them cruelly.
Ki N Animal, Luck, Plant Quarterstaff Mother goddess of the earth and fertility.
Marduk LN Air, Law, Protection Net 50-named god who is the patron deity of Babylon.
Nanna-Sin CG Chaos, Luck, Good Battleaxe God of the moon and mischeif.
Nergal NE Death, Earth, Evil Longsword A god of the underworld who causes war and pestilence.
Utu CG Chaos, Fire, Good, Sun Scimitar The firey god of the sun.

Hatti[edit]

  • Domains marked with a * appear in Chapter 5 of the Sandstorm Supplement.

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