Ive been doing something similar to this in a game I started. The
characters have all started as adolescents, and they will pass
through their adulthood initiations and then religious initiations,
gaining skills as they go. There really isnt a specific difference
between an initiate and devotee that you can put your finger on. Its
not a rank like captain or major. So my players will become
initiates, and from then on they will have to _act_ devoted to be
recognized by others as a devotee. In other words they will have to
roleplay their obsession with a particular deity, and get their skill
levels up to generaly high levels that are recognized as sufficient
for others to say, hey he must be a devotee...
> I have been toying with the following as a variant rule for my own
HERO
> WARS games. While it will not suit many styles of play, in my mind
it
> better simulates the gradual process of and the requirements for a
hero
> becoming initiated into the deeper mysteries of his or her deity.
> "Devotion" in this case refers to one's relationship with one's
deity or
> pantheon: it is the mechanical measure within the rules of a hero's
piety
> and good standing with his or her gods. As an ability, Devotion may
be
> increased with Hero Points as normal.
>
> Heroes begin as initiates, with Devotion, their god's affinities,
and any
> other abilities as granted by the Magic keyword at 17. Heroes who
are
> initiates of more than one deity have the primary Magic keyword
abilities
> at 17, and the secondary Magic keyword abilities at 13. As a hero
> develops further understanding of and rapport with his or her
deity, he
> or she must not only increase his or her affinities but Devotion as
well.
> Becoming a devotee requires more of an expenditure than three Hero
> Points; it represents the hero becoming committed to the ideal of
his or
> her god. It is also a prerequisite for entry into the priesthood.
>
> If a hero achieves 10W2 in both his or her god's affinities and
Devotion
> (also possibly that god's "virtues", depending on how demanding you
want
> the requirements; a prospective Orlanth Adventurous devotee must
then
> also be Generous, Brave, Just, etc. to qualify a la "PenDragon
Pass"), he
> or she may *then* spent three Hero Points (six if his or her
consecration
> into the mysteries is not played out during the game session) and
gains
> all the status, privileges and responsibilities of a devotee. He or
she
> also gains the god's secret at 12 and may enhance it further with
> additional Hero Points. The hero may now acquire feats (no longer
subject
> to the improvisational modifer) for one Hero Point each. Optionally
the
> hero may be granted one feat in each affinity for no cost.
>
> The advantage of playing out the hero's deeper initiation is simply
this:
> the carry-over may give the hero a windfall of Hero Points to spend
on
> his or her affinities, Devotion or newly-acquired secret (depending
on
> the Narrator's interpretation of the devotion heroquest). Alas, the
> disadvantage is that the hero may *fail* the heroquest and lose
faith
> (Devotion), his or her access to the god's magic (affinities) or,
in
> extreme circumstances, his or her life. I advocate playing it out,
but
> there are reasons why a player may not desire that (ill fortune
with the
> die rolls being the main).
>
> Thoughts? Opinions?
>
>
>
>
>
> Michael Schwartz mschwartz_at_m... Ann Arbor, MI USA