Example Death Situations

The Cause of Death

Basically,a god can die in one oftwo ways:by violence or through the loss ofall worship or reverence.

Obviously,the death ofa god by violence does not happen often.These are cosmic beings ofvast,almost incalculable power.In just about every case,it takes a god to kill a god. Rumors abound ofmortals so epically powerful,wielding artifacts ofsuch might,they can challenge the gods themselves.Most likely these are simply legends.A deity might bestow power into a mortal,or into an artifact wielded by a mortal,to enable the mortal to stand against a god,but such power eventually would consume the mortal.

In any event,it is theoretically possible that a god could fall in battle or fall victim to murder.Myths tell oftitanic battles ofthe gods,and in those battles,some gods fall. Other legends relate to divine betrayals and murders,or heroic tales ofa deity giving his life for some important cause or to perform some cosmic task.

Violence bringing an end to a god causes an upheaval that disrupts the fundament ofthe universe.This sudden loss is felt by the thousands and millions ofthe deity’s worshippers and servants.It causes an abrupt break in the flow ofpower to the clerics pledged to him.

On the other hand,the death ofa god due to a lack ofreverence is slow and agonizing.It can take millennia,and when the end comes,it is usually a surprise to no one.Few,if any,clerics are cut offfrom their power source,because almost by definition the deity has no clerics left. When determining which scenario to choose for your own campaign,consider whether you want the event to be a shocking one or the end to an inevitable chain of events.It is easy to foreshadow the death ofa god losing worshippers,as the PCs see the crumbling ruins of temples and empty shrines.It is dramatic to have the PCs suddenly discover a well-known deity is no more,with thousands ofwailing worshippers hysterical at the loss ofthe object oftheir faith.

Example Death Situations

DMs have to decide exactly how their deities will succumb.Here are a few very basic ideas ofhow to set up a death in a plot or story. • A number ofevil gods together fall upon a member of their own dark cabal and destroy him,so they and their servants can feed upon the power released. • A normally innocuous minor deity learns a terrible secret and is silenced before she can spread the word. • A god whose worshippers were wiped out as a part ofa genocidal purge quickly diminishes in power and dies. • A heroic god ofgood alignment gives his life sealing a terrible breach in the universe that threatens to tear all ofcreation inside out. • An ancient god,imprisoned on some faraway plane for millennia,commits suicide rather than continuing to live in chains. • Mortals ofepic power,supported by the gods ofgood, defeat a minor evil god in his own dark,otherworldly fortress. • Two gods,enemies forever,die with their hands at each other’s throats in a final,climactic battle.

Key Terms

Corpus Dei: The god’s bodily remains (see page 9) Demiurge: The semi-sentient imprint or reflection of a god’s existence in the world, which remains even after death Divinity Spark: Bits of loosed divinity fused into a larger mass (see page 24) Energy Well: Self-sustaining power source arising from the release of energy at a god’s death (see page 25) Godsblood: Thick liquid that appears following a god’s demise (see page 27) Godflesh: The deity’s stonelike flesh (see page 29) Loosed Divinity: Bits of the god’s divine energy that remain near the site of death (see page 22) Token of the Demiurge: A magical item that confers granted powers from the demiurge upon the character

Post Mortem

What happens when a god dies? Is there an afterlife for divinity? Some great reward or eternal punishment for immortals? This book does not actually attempt to answer such questions,at least not definitively.Certainly the answer to these questions should address whether a god can be resurrected or brought back as an undead being.A few suggestions ofwhat happens to the consciousness or spirit ofthe god include the following: • Gods are reincarnated,born again later as new,very different deities. • Gods are reincarnated,born again as mortals—regular people,or powerful creatures like dragons. • Gods have their own special uber-heaven and uber-hell, where they are rewarded or punished.