What Do Our Clerics Really Know
About Their Gods And Goddesses

PCs (Clerics or Other Classes) With The NWP Skill of Religion

This article briefly summarizes how I envision the details around the secondary skill or non weapon proficiency of Religion.

As given on my site, the religion skill is thus defined:

Religion: A character with this proficiency is familiar with the basic tenets of the major and minor faiths practiced in the campaign world within one particular pantheon (i.e. Greek, Norse, Egyptian, etc.). Observing an act of religious significance (a blessing of warriors before battle, for example) means the character understands the importance of the ritual without a proficiency check. Checks are required to understand the activities of unique or foreign religions (different pantheons). Additional non-weapon proficiency slots may be taken to know more pantheons.

So, what does that mean? It is not as simple as it may appear, for it does not, for example, make it clear this only deals with active religions. Dead religions are not typically part of this skill. Such knowledge would be more akin to a mythology roll or a history roll rather than a religious roll. Furthermore, religions not in close proximity to one's homeland would not be known. A religious cult half way around the world is not going to be known to your character just because they make a roll. It is assumed the PC must have had some contact with the religion in order to have a chance at knowing something, and probably more than a passing familiarity at that.

Mostly, the skill reflects some general knowledge around a particular religious system of gods or what is known as a pantheon. This pantheon of gods and goddesses is a tight collection of deities with a common history (they need NOT have common beliefs, alignments, or goals). Examples would include the Greek pantheon, the Norse pantheon, the Egyptian pantheon, or whatever else the GM may incorporate or allow in their world. Particularly, any pantheon created by the GM could be a fine example of a tight group of gods with a common history. Furthermore, for non-human religions, they may be tightly grouped, such as Elven deities, Dwarven deities, Gnomish deities, or other racially related groups of deities. Such racial groups may be considered a pantheon.

Knowledge has different degrees of complexity as well. Obvious, outward signs and customs are of first degree and are easily picked up by a student of Religion. These are the so-called "basic tenants" of the religion. More in-depth knowledge is harder to come by.

Skills, in general, do not mean one needs to make a roll for every little thing. Walking across a room, for example, does not require a roll in the "walking across a room" skill. If you have this skill, success is assumed to be automatic (unless also chewing gum, for example). Thus, reading, writing, cooking, playing an instrument, riding a horse, rigging the sails, plotting your course at sea, etc. etc. are all assumed to automatically be accomplished if your character has that skill. It is only when the GM feels the skill is moderately difficult or harder than normal for some reason that a roll may be required at all.

This is good news for all those doom and gloom players who have pointed out having skills at 5% or so are nigh worthless. In fact, these skills are quite worthwhile as many times success is automatic and no roll is required, but only IF you have the skill. (Sometimes, though not automatic, the DM may grant such positive bonuses as to make failure difficult, but only if you have the skill will you be allowed such a roll). If you do not even have the skill, a roll MAY allow success, but it depends on the situation. For example, without the navigation skill, you could guess (a sort of general feeling of direction sense), and get lucky (a good roll) and still get close enough to home such that last minute course adjustments will see you through or you may likely come across a friendly ship. However, without some skill in certain areas of knowledge, the ancient language of elves for example, no roll is going to make it known to your character that "gimarian" is an ancient elven word for "love." Such knowledge skills will not come to mind no matter how lucky the roll.

Getting back to our clerics (or other PCs who have the Religion skill), we find we must judge the level of complexity of religious knowledge. This gets tricky unless the GM has spent an inordinate amount of time on every religion in his or her game (and most haven't the time or the inclination to do so; I sure don't). But why is this stuff important anyway? Well, for one thing, it provides the motives for many wars, secret projects, underpinnings of particular cultures, threads of quests long forgotten, powers of might and magic no longer apparent, or any number of plot lines and devices the GM will care to incorporate. The prepared PC will be allowed to have clues, avoid some of the deadliest things on the planet (deities can be so touchy about violating sacred grounds and sites), and perhaps even know how to appease the god, pick up the threads of a failed quest, or understand what is expected of them in social situations rife with religious tension.

But, no article is going hammer out such details for you, so sorry if you were expecting something like that. I only wish to next give three classifications of religious complexity in knowledge. This may help you, as GM, decide how useful the religious skill will be in a given situation (or better yet, allow you to invent a story around such knowledge and make it useful).

First Level Complexity

These are the so-called basic tenants, the outward signs, and those obvious things one could pick up if they made a study of it and were exposed to it. The name of the god or goddess, their alignment or general philosophical outlook, their immediate sphere of influence (sky, love, luck, magic, whatever...), and usually, their primary colors and symbols, their holy days, and perhaps even what sacrifices their worshipers may make.

Believe it or not, even most followers of a deity will not know all of this stuff, so it is not automatically known to them even if they practice the faith (though chances are, if they do not, they are just giving it "lip" service, perhaps because they married into it or it is the family's faith, but they really don't believe in it much themselves). However, if sufficiently devout, a skill roll would probably give them the knowledge they wish at this level.

Clerics must, by virtue of their training, have superior skill along these lines for at least their own deity. Thus, they get this skill for free (they need not spend a NWP slot on it to know about their own god or religion) to automatically know (without a roll) things at this level of complexity. If they wish to have knowledge of second or third level complexity about their own deity, they need to roll. It will be assumed their skill roll % is equal to their wisdom (they need roll their wisdom or less on a d20), or roll less than 5 x WIS on percentile dice. But this higher percentage is ONLY for information about their deity. They still have a lower, more normal roll just as other PCs would have.

Other PCs who take the NWP Religion must concentrate on a particular deity. If they do this, then like the cleric, they know first level complexity stuff of that deity automatically and may roll to know things of second or higher level complexity. Thus, most PCs who take the NWP Religion will know one god well (probably their own god or goddess) and know the general tenants of the pantheon (second level complexity knowledge) with a successful skill roll.

NOTE: If a cleric takes Religion as a skill above and beyond their free allotment, as they well may do, to concentrate on another deity or pantheon or further their studies on their own deity, like other PCs they will have this skill at the normal percentage and not at WIS x 5 as they do for their own god. For my game, the normal starting percentage is 15% plus class % (+15% for clerics or +15% for mages, but rogues and warriors have no bonuses) plus modifiers for wisdom (see table):

The Skill Page (A Comprehensive Table Of AD&D Skills. Then Each Skill Is Described In Detail After The Table)

This will give such a cleric two percentage rolls, one at 5 x WIS and a lower roll at the normal percentages. They will automatically get first and second level complexity things from their own deity and the first roll (at 5 x WIS) becomes superfluous and may be taken off their character sheet. When they wish knowledge of second level complexity from some deity other than their own, they have their normal skill roll. By virtue of 100 hours of further study, this may be 10% higher than their starting roll (as a general rule).

Second Level Complexity

This is knowledge by association or knowledge in depth of the primary deity. If associated to your primary deity of study, your PC may know the associated deity's knowledge at first level complexity. A deity's brothers, sisters, father, mother, etc., gods of similar alignment within the same pantheon would be known at first level complexity, gods of particular importance (loved or hated by your deity), or maybe even all other gods of the same pantheon if the DM wishes this. Furthermore, if very similar, gods of identical alignment and/or spheres of influence from other pantheons in the area may be known - depending on what the DM wants or needs or simply feels is appropriate.

As an example, suppose your PC had Religion with an emphasis on Athena. They would automatically know all Athena's first level complexity knowledge, and a successful roll would give them greater detailed knowledge of Athena OR first level knowledge of associated deities, i.e. some other Greek god (same pantheon), some other god of wisdom or combat (same sphere), or some other lawful good god (same alignment), assuming they have had the chance to study these other gods at least in passing.

For example, one so skilled in Athenian knowledge may know a little about Sif (Norse goddess of excellence in skill of combat, same sphere), or Thoth (Egyptian god of knowledge, same sphere), or Moradin (Dwarven god, same alignment, lawful good), or just about Greek gods and goddesses in general (same pantheon). Such knowledge would require a roll and would be limited to first level in complexity, but even that may tell one much. Naturally, this still assumes such religions are active in the area where your PC lives.

Or, one may wish to know more details about Athena.

The second level complexity of depth may also be automatic for your cleric for their own deity (ask your DM), but usually it will also require a roll. Such knowledge will include special powers of the deity or special powers wielded by their followers, knowledge of specific prayers, what they look like, what they do, what is required to accomplish them, why they are important, how to mess them up (if so inclined), and things like that. Detailed knowledge of the god's appearances (or various appearances), preferred weapons, skills in classes (i.e., 14th level ranger, 18th level illusionist, though actual numbers are for the player's benefit and not the character's), home plane of existence, and your typical bit of knowledge found in most AD&D supplements like Deities and Demi Gods.

As a general rule, I let my players automatically know anything about their god (if they take the Religion skill or they are a cleric of that god) that is in the book or can be found out by talking to the DM BEFOREHAND. So, player and character may share such knowledge in this case. They may even access such books during play (though generally players are discouraged from looking in DMGs or Monstrous Manuals, etc., even if allowed to read spells in the PHB, about the only other exception, during play). However, during play, if they do not know themselves as players or do not have the book handy, they will require a successful roll to prompt the DM to render unto them the information. The only exception to this would be actual clerics of the actual deity, for requiring one's player to acquire the skills of their character in order to play it is sort of bad. The DM should always supplement a PC's knowledge when it comes to class knowledge or class related skills or other knowledge the character SHOULD have, whenever they ask for it or need it, though this will not typically extend to the DM supplementing the player's own INT, WIS, or CHR even if their character has such high stats or lofty skills. (You gotta draw the line somewhere).

Third Level Complexity

This level of complexity is mostly historical, often giving reasons for why the deity holds their current views, powers, or influences. It is well beyond the scope of most PCs (and probably the DM as well), but may, at times, become important. Church leaders and historians (mostly NPCs) may acquire this skill level, clerics who spend (beyond their free slot) an extra slot on their own deity, or other PCs who spend two slots on one deity may know things at this level.

As things at this level are beyond what I generally like to get into as DM, I only allow players to acquire this level of knowledge if they really wish to roleplay certain aspects of it, or perhaps wish to create some of the history for their own deity such that it can become part of my world (or part of some other game or fictional work later, as nothing prevents good writing from being used elsewhere). Unless I make a special effort, however, I cannot see it granting too many game advantages in taking it. Roleplaying is roleplaying, however, so gods speed, as it were, if you wish to pursue this.

Now, as with many skills, more than one NWP slot may be spent on it. This generally confers the status of "specialization." What benefits may be derived from this specialization depends upon the skill and the DM. In the case of the Religion skill, not only would your PC's skill roll increase (by whatever 100 hours of study would grant or about 10% if starting around 30% to 40%), but they would also automatically get information at second level complexity WITHOUT a roll. This means they would both know detailed knowledge about their own deity as well as surface knowledge (first level complexity of knowledge) for the appropriate associated deities.

The greatest game advantage of this is one would have totally covered a pantheon or a particular alignment or a particular sphere of influence (let your DM know which of these three options is your character's intention, for two such slots will not do it all). Thus, we may find many cleric PCs spending a NWP slot on Religion after all, either to be a church historian of their own religion, or, more likely for a PC, to have detailed knowledge (level two complexity) of their own god without a roll and to know about a.) similar gods of the same sphere, b.) gods of the same pantheon, or c.) gods of the same alignment (at first level complexity without needing to roll for it). They will still need to roll for second level complexity things, but only for other deities in the a, b, or c, classifications. Such a roll will have a more normal percentage (see above).

Non clerics would have to spend two NWP slots to acquire such skills.

© August of 2000
by
James L.R. Beach
Waterville, MN 56096