Keep the Faith

12 min readNov 11, 2023

Blog #3
5E Behind the screen.

Appendix B [pg. 293 PHB]

Almost assuredly the least used part of the PHB. It contains the lists of deities from multiple settings as well as offers stats for historical pantheons. It includes the deity, their alignment, their domain(s), and their symbol.

Why is this important? Well, that’s because I want to incorporate them into my game. Whether it’s a mix of pantheons or from a single setting, I plan to include them along with a way to weave them, mechanically, into the game.

To preface this endeavor: This is an untested and experimental idea to utilize both alignments and deities in the game. It will likely need to be tweaked and changed in some aspects, but the core of it is to make deities and alignment matter in a tangible way.

Most villages or towns have churches, use them!

Devotion

Players choose a deity aligned with their character’s values and are rewarded or penalized based on how well their actions match their chosen deity’s ideals and their own alignment. A good character would typically pick a good aligned deity or one that has an alignment they share.

Devotion is a dynamic score reflecting a character’s piety and moral choices, influenced by mundane to extraordinary acts that honor their deity. These acts might range from heroic deeds that impact the world to more personal sacrifices that showcase the character’s faith.

Rewards and Penalties are listed further down. What is offered is a baseline and can be tailored to your game. I will likely lean more towards manifesting rewards and penalties based more on their chosen faith.

Geas

When a character significantly deviates from their alignment or deity’s teachings, they may be issued a geas — a divine quest as a chance for atonement. Successfully completing a geas can restore lost favor and grant additional rewards, while failure might lead to harsh divine retribution.
A player may be given a geas to perform as a divine champion as well. You, of course, don’t want to focus too much on one character or faith. However, if a array of quests sit before the party and they’re undecided, perhaps one of them feels a tugging or has a vision of which one to choose.
A rival deity may try to influence or coerce a switch in allegiance if the player wavers too much in their current faith. Perhaps offering to remove their current geas and imposing their own.

In essence, this system can enrich the gameplay by weaving characters’ faith into the fabric of the world, ensuring that their beliefs and moral decisions have significant consequences and adding depth to the story.

Alignment

This defines the character’s principles. Rather, the character’s principles define the alignment. The character’s actions may reinforce their alignment or drift them towards another.
My expectation at the table is that whatever alignment the player chooses, that’s how they will play their character. A Lawful Good character would not steal an apple to feed a hungry child, they would pay for the apple and give that and potentially some extra coin to them.

How this ties into the devotion system: It’s mostly through their chosen deity, as that is where the bonuses and penalties will come from. This will be much more obvious for divine based classes, less so for everyone else, as a cleric would be more likely to actively pursue the interests of their deity. For those other characters, much like the common folk, they will likely turn to a pantheon of similarly aligned deities for off hand worship. Their devotion may not climb high quickly, but as long as they follow their alignment, they won’t be penalized either. Less devout characters may find fewer opportunities, but their actions will still impact their devotion and alignment drift.
As long as good characters do good things, they’re devotion will gradually increase. It will be harder tracking a mixed alignment group, as it would be normally.

Here is a brief breakdown on the alignments and what I’ll be presenting to my players. It’s not exhaustive, but it will get them thinking about how they will play.

Lawful Good

Beliefs: Combines honor and compassion.
Characters: Believe in the power of law and good to improve society and the lives of all.
Example: A knight who always tells the truth and upholds justice.

Neutral Good

Beliefs: Acts beneficially without particular bias for or against order.
Characters: Do the best they can to help others according to their needs.
Example: A healer who aids anyone in need regardless of the law of the land.

Chaotic Good

Beliefs: Values individual freedom and kindness.
Characters: Believe in doing what’s right, through compassion or altruism, but without the constraints of law.
Example: A rebel who breaks the law to help others.

Lawful Neutral

Beliefs: Values law, order, and tradition.
Characters: Act according to law, tradition, or personal codes, without bias for good or evil.
Example: A judge who adheres strictly to the letter of the law.

True Neutral

Beliefs: Sees the value in all things and acts naturally, without prejudice or compulsion.
Characters: Strive to maintain balance, seeing good, evil, law, and chaos as prejudices that must be transcended.
Example: A druid who maintains the balance of forces in nature.

Chaotic Neutral

Beliefs: Values personal freedom and spontaneity.
Characters: Believe in their own freedom and ability to follow their whims, holding no allegiance to law or chaos.
Example: A wanderer who goes wherever the wind takes them.

Lawful Evil

Beliefs: Uses law and structure to benefit themselves and harm others.
Characters: Manipulate the system to gain power, status, or wealth at the expense of others.
Example: A tyrant who uses laws to suppress and control the population.

Neutral Evil

Beliefs: Does whatever they can get away with without compassion or qualms.
Characters: Seek to advance their own interests over others by any means necessary, without the order of lawfulness or the randomness of chaos.
Example: A thief who cares only for personal gain.

Chaotic Evil

Beliefs: Values personal freedom and self-interest and holds no respect for rules or other people’s lives.
Characters: Act on their own whims, engaging in violence and destruction for their own gratification or to get what they want.
Example: An anarchist who revels in destruction and disorder.

Implementation

A player playing towards their alignment or the alignment of their deity will strengthen that alignment and that bond. Moving away from it may indicate alignment drift or shift and at that point you should make sure that’s what the player actually desires. This may also indicate a switch in faith and that can be played up, too.

I plan to use a point system with milestone rewards for positive devotion and penalties for negative devotion. This is untested and experimental, so it will need some tweaking as I go. Here’s a table of the devotion scale:

As a sort of intorduction to the system, I would give the players a temp +1 bonus to attacks for the first week or so of adventuring. The character earns a temporary approval from their deity as they embark on an adventure and it should encourage the players to get down to business sooner.

How does it work?
Certain acts will raise or lower it. These acts will be determined based on the player’s chosen deity.

Here is a general list that could easily be used with just following alignments. Further down is a deity specific example.

Small Acts (Subtle Devotion)

Raise Devotion (+1): Performing daily prayers and personal rituals that honor the deity.
Example: A soldier whispering a prayer to a war deity before going into battle.
Lower Devotion (-1): Failing to observe a holy day or a personal vow in a minor way.
Example: An adventurer ignoring a minor fast or feast day due to the demands of the journey.

Medium Acts (Significant Devotion)

Raise Devotion (+2): Making a notable donation to a cause or institution that serves the deity.
Example: A local merchant funding the repair of a shrine damaged by natural disaster.
Lower Devotion (-2): Acting against the deity’s teachings in a public or influential way.
Example: A town crier spreading rumors that inadvertently discredit the deity’s clergy.

Large Acts (Profound Devotion)

Raise Devotion (+3): A significant personal or financial sacrifice made in the name of the deity.
Example: A noble donating a piece of their land to build a new temple.
Lower Devotion (-3): Committing a serious act that is an affront to the deity’s tenets.
Example: A local leader imposing a ban on the deity’s worship within their jurisdiction.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, just a jumping off point.

The next example, below, is tailored more to a specific deity. It shows Odin and what pleases and displeases him most. Doing these things will move the devotion bar the most, but it may not align with what the party is pursuing, unless you have a particularly pushy cleric.
I included favored weapon because 3.5 used to do some cool stuff with that. It could easily tie into this as having your weapon blessed by your deity if your devotion is positive.

Deity: Odin (NG)
Domains: Knowledge and War
Favored Weapon: Spear — Symbolizing authority and the capacity to make great sacrifices, the spear is often associated with Odin. It represents both the power to rule and the willingness to pierce through veils of mystery to gain wisdom.

Get Brown Wizard Winston’s stories in your inbox

Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.

Remember me for faster sign in

Favor:

Sacrifice for Wisdom: Engaging in a significant personal sacrifice to gain knowledge, akin to Odin’s self-sacrifice for the wisdom of the runes.

Disfavor:

Betrayal of Followers: Committing acts of betrayal or treachery, especially against those who look to you for guidance or protection.

Worship:

Gathering of Knowledge: Embarking on a dangerous quest to recover lost knowledge or a sacred artifact, demonstrating both bravery and a thirst for wisdom.

All of this could tie in handily with downtime activities. Players could devote time to charitable acts or the like to earn some more devotion.
To avoid gaming the system, I would also implement a cool down or something like that. I think it would be pretty easy to discern when a player is roleplaying vs trying to exploit the system for more points.

Let me know what you think of this, how you would use this, or how you would change this. If there’s enough interest in it, I could be persuaded to format and publish this once I’ve expanded it.

Lingering injury table

Oh man. I played with this, it was no good. I thought it would be cool to have tables for different types of lingering injuries, but it was more graphic than what I wanted. Some of the options I came across were cool. Like neck injuries that would affect your voice.

However, all is not lost. I think the lingering injuries table is better served using d8+12 results. Partially because I think the bell curve tables are way cooler than the flat 5% or increments thereof.

Lingering Injuries

The probabilities

Roll 2: 1.04%
Roll 3: 2.08%
Rolls 4–5: 7.29%
Rolls 6–7: 11.46%
Rolls 8–9: 15.62%
Rolls 10–12: 25%
Rolls 13–14: 15.62%
Rolls 15–16: 11.46%
Rolls 17–18: 7.29%
Roll 19: 2.08%
Roll 20: 1.04%

Darkvision

Races that have it in 5e now have low-light vision. Dwarves and Drow have it. It’s essentially a 3e retcon. I’m not sure how this will actually impact this game, we had a human in the last one, so the party needed light anyhow. Scouting will be more important in this game, though, so light will be too.

@elvenmaidinn has a really good blog post here about darkvision, which is what prompted this change.

Downtime Training

This is a continuation from my last post, someone was asking about tool training and the other proficiencies. I don’t think my group will bother learning many tools, but I’ll leave the option open. There aren’t prices on these, I think those are subjective to where and from who the players learn.

Gaming Sets
Learning Time: Shortest, as these are generally simpler skills to learn.

Suggested Time: 50–100 days of downtime.

Method of Teaching: Self-taught or through social interaction and practice.

Players could learn by spending time in taverns, gambling dens, or participating in gaming tournaments.
Costs could include entry fees for games or gambling stakes.

Roleplaying Opportunities:

Players can engage in high-stakes games that could lead to rivalries or alliances.
Success in games might earn them renown or favor with certain NPCs.

Musical Instruments
Learning Time: Moderate, since musical proficiency requires practice and some innate talent.

Suggested Time: 150–200 days of downtime.

Method of Teaching: Usually requires a teacher or mentor.

Costs may include hiring a tutor or purchasing an instrument and learning materials.
Certain bard colleges or temples might offer training.

Roleplaying Opportunities:

Characters might perform in public, attracting attention — positive or negative.
Proficiency could grant access to exclusive events or circles, especially for bards.

Artisan’s Tools
Learning Time: Longest, as mastering a craft takes significant time and dedication.

Suggested Time: 200–250 days of downtime.

Method of Teaching: Often requires formal instruction and practice.

Characters might need to join a guild or find a master craftsperson to teach them.
Costs include guild fees, materials for practice, and possibly a fee for the mentor.

Roleplaying Opportunities:

Characters can contribute to building or crafting projects, affecting the game world tangibly.
Guild memberships can lead to new quests, resources, and networks.

Land and Water Vehicles
Learning Time: Variable, depending on the complexity of the vehicle.

Suggested Time: Land Vehicles: 100–150 days; Water Vehicles: 150–200 days.

Method of Teaching: Practical experience under a trained individual’s supervision.

Costs may include hiring an instructor or paying for access to vehicles.

Roleplaying Opportunities:

Handling a vehicle can lead to travel-based adventures or jobs.
Proficiency in this area could become crucial in chase sequences or escapes.

Specialty Tools
For tools like thieves’ tools or the herbalism kit, which have a very specialized use:

Learning Time: Dependent on the complexity and legality of the tool’s use.

Suggested Time: 150–200 days of downtime.

Method of Teaching: Requires a specialized teacher, which could be harder to find for less legal tools.

Costs include payment for the teacher’s risk (especially for illegal tools) and supplies.

Roleplaying Opportunities:

Characters may need to navigate the underworld to find a teacher.
Success with these tools can open up unique narrative paths in the campaign.

Implementation
When implementing this system, consider the following:

Guilds and Organizations: Joining a guild or organization can provide resources, but may come with obligations.
Teachers and Mentors: Finding the right mentor can be an adventure in itself. Not all mentors are equal, and some may have their own agendas.
Materials and Resources: Obtaining rare materials or specialized tools could be a quest of its own.
Regulations and Legalities: Learning certain tools may require navigating bureaucracy or dealing with local laws.
Adjacent Skill: Learning multiple instruments or tools may take less time based on how similar the skill sets for each proficiency.

Honestly, this system is just a tool. This should be implemented for when a player tells you they wish to do this. Advertise the option, so they know they can, but don’t let this bog down your game if it’s not actually going to see use. I may not even advertise it, but I’ll inform my players if they inquire about it.