On 12/7/2011 1:47 AM, Richard Hayes wrote:
> I'm not bothered about animists worshipping 'proper gods' through a spirit cult -- they interact with only a fraction of the god's power and get only limited access to that god's magic, but they don't have to show the same level of devotion to the god-- they just have to keep a geas and a holy day and maybe a few other basic restrictions. It is pretty much a self-correcting mechanism.
I think the deities worshipped by the Spirit Cults are Great Spirits
rather than Gods. Similar sized cults exist for Gods and Essences but
because they use sacrifice and veneration and are presided over by God
Talkers and Liturgists, they are analogous to Spirit Cults. Most would
normally supply a lingering benefit to their worshippers rather than any
special magic (ie the Praxian Cult of Sword Man would give a lingering
benefit to Sword Combat). Active magic and the like requires a greater
level of worship.
I think from Sartar: Kingdom of Heroes and the Sartar Companion, we've
moved away from people worshipping Gods as Spirits and the like out of
ideological conviction (big exception: the Esvulari). If the Orlanthi
come across a useful spirit, they would interact with it through a
Spirit Talker rather than waste time with a God Talker. The Malkioni
would be more likely to publically ignore it, demonize it or worship it
in secret away from the eyes of the Watchers.
--Peter Metcalfe