Ethernalis Systems Reference

Religion and Piety

Faith is measured by conduct. Honor a deity and its shrines may answer. Offend it and its wrath follows you.
A rule-book account of favor, offense, blessings, and divine wrath
11 Deities· −50 to 100 Piety· Two Tiers of Favor· Two Tiers of Wrath
I
The State of Faith

The Piety Scale

A character's piety records their standing with their deity. It begins at zero, cannot rise above 100, and cannot fall below −50. Piety falls by 1 after every 10 turns while the character follows a religion, but this loss stops at zero. Only offenses against the deity can push piety below zero into wrath.

Major Wrath

−50 to −25. The strongest ongoing punishment applies. Shrines answer with major wrath.

Minor Wrath

−24 to −1. An ongoing punishment applies. Shrines answer with minor wrath.

Silence

0 to 24. The deity grants no shrine blessing and inflicts no ongoing wrath.

Minor Favor

25 to 74. Shrines grant a minor blessing.

Major Favor

75 to 100. Shrines grant a major blessing.


II
Conduct Becomes Judgment

Earning and Losing Piety

Prayer and offerings please every deity. Each divine power also favors one school of magic and condemns particular choices. Only a successful spell from the favored school earns piety.

Prayer and Offerings

Prayer and offering choices grant 10 piety.

Favored Magic

Successfully casting a spell from the deity's favored school grants 1 piety.

Passing Time

Following a religion costs 1 piety every 10 turns. This loss stops at zero and never causes wrath by itself.

Offense

Condemned choices usually cost 5 or 8 piety and are the only way to fall below zero into wrath. Some deities also punish specific actions.

Cowardice: −8

Condemned by Palide, Aclevesion, Cuhmn, and Agni.

Deception or Theft: −8

Condemned by Acclimeath.

Helping Others: −5

Condemned by Somphe, Mistrel, and Yrrvynmelech.

Violence: −5

Condemned by Sillish.

Sneaking: −1

Condemned by Agni each time the character sneaks.

Running in Combat: −1

Condemned by Levhi each time the character runs during combat.

Using a Healing Item: −3

Condemned by Es-tvieth whenever the item restores health.


III
Punishment Without a Shrine

Ongoing Wrath

When piety falls below zero, the deity's wrath becomes an ongoing burden. This punishment applies wherever the character travels. At −25 piety or lower, it becomes major wrath. Raising piety back to zero ends the ongoing punishment.

Palide

Minor: −5 Divine Defense, −5 Dark Defense.
Major: −12 Divine Defense, −12 Dark Defense, −5 Melee.

Acclimeath

Minor: −8 Melee, −8 Defense.
Major: −18 Melee, −18 Defense.

Somphe

Minor: −12 Sneak.
Major: −25 Sneak, −8 Dodge.

Aclevesion

Minor: −8 Melee, −5 Defense.
Major: −18 Melee, −12 Defense.

Levhi

Minor wrath makes hunger and thirst arrive 30% sooner. Major wrath makes them arrive 50% sooner.

Mistrel

Minor: −5 Ranged.
Major: −8 Ranged, −5 Melee.

Cuhmn

Minor: −10 Stamina, −5 Dodge.
Major: −20 Stamina, −12 Dodge.

Agni

Minor: −5 Fire Strength, −5 Fire Defense.
Major: −15 Fire Strength, −15 Fire Defense.

Sillish

Minor: −5 Melee, −3 Defense.
Major: −10 Melee, −8 Defense.

Es-tvieth

Minor: −8 Health.
Major: −20 Health, −8 Melee.

Yrrvynmelech

Minor: −8 Dark Strength, −5 Sneak.
Major: −18 Dark Strength, −12 Sneak.


IV
A Place of Judgment

Shrines

The first time a character enters a shrine, they gain piety for paying respects. The shrine then judges their current standing. Blessings and wrath last for 50 turns. A silent low-piety visit does not spend the shrine; it can still answer later if the character returns with favor or wrath.

Major Blessing

At 75 piety or higher, the shrine grants the deity's strongest blessing for 50 turns.

Minor Blessing

At 25 to 74 piety, the shrine grants a smaller blessing for 50 turns.

Silence

At 0 to 24 piety, nothing happens. The shrine remains available for that character until a blessing or wrath effect fires.

Shrine Wrath

Below zero piety, the shrine adds a 50-turn punishment. This is separate from the ongoing wrath already carried by the character.


V
Laws, Gifts, and Rejection

The Divine Powers

The first value listed is the minor shrine effect. The second is the major shrine effect. A deity's shrine wrath generally mirrors its ongoing wrath, but lasts for 50 turns.

Palide

Favored magic: Clerical. Offense: cowardice.
Blessing: +8/+20 Divine and Dark Defense; major also grants +5 Melee.
Shrine wrath: −5/−12 Divine and Dark Defense; major also inflicts −5 Melee.

Acclimeath

Favored magic: Clerical. Offenses: deception and theft.
Blessing: +8/+20 Melee and Defense.
Shrine wrath: −8/−18 Melee and Defense.

Somphe

Favored magic: Illusion. Offense: helping others.
Blessing: +15/+35 Sneak; major also grants +12 Dodge.
Shrine wrath: −12/−25 Sneak; major also inflicts −8 Dodge.

Aclevesion

Favored magic: Invocation. Offense: cowardice.
Blessing: +10/+25 Melee and +5/+15 Defense.
Shrine wrath: −8/−18 Melee and −5/−12 Defense.

Levhi

Favored magic: Invocation. Offense: running during combat.
Blessing: hunger and thirst stop advancing for 50 turns; major also grants +8 Dodge.
Shrine wrath: poison for 50 turns.

Mistrel

Favored magic: Illusion. Offense: helping others.
Blessing: +5/+10 Melee and Ranged.
Shrine wrath: −5/−8 Ranged; major also inflicts −5 Melee.

Cuhmn

Favored magic: Druidic. Offense: cowardice.
Blessing: +1/+3 Stamina Regeneration and +8/+20 Dodge.
Shrine wrath: −1 Stamina Regeneration and −5/−12 Dodge.

Agni

Favored magic: Elemental. Offenses: cowardice and sneaking.
Blessing: +8/+20 Fire Strength and Fire Defense.
Shrine wrath: −5/−15 Fire Strength and Fire Defense.

Sillish

Favored magic: Druidic. Offense: violence.
Blessing: +2/+4 Health Regeneration; major also grants +8 Acid Defense.
Shrine wrath: −5/−10 Melee and −3/−8 Defense.

Es-tvieth

Favored magic: Necromancy. Offense: using healing items.
Blessing: +3/+5 Health Regeneration; major also grants +12 Melee.
Shrine wrath: poison with strength 1/2; major also inflicts −8 Melee.

Yrrvynmelech

Favored magic: Necromancy. Offense: helping others.
Blessing: +10/+25 Dark Strength and +8/+20 Sneak.
Shrine wrath: −8/−18 Dark Strength and −5/−12 Sneak.

Read Religions of Altarmn Read Spellcraft

VI
Canon Against Canon

The Faiths of Others

Every person you meet keeps one of the eleven gods, or none, with a devotion of their own. The gods fall into three canons, and each canon has its own view of the others.

Imperial Canon

Palide, Acclimeath, Aclevesion, Somphe. The sanctioned faiths of the Empire and the most common. Their followers are in open conflict with the rejected canons.

Old Faith

Sillish, Levhi, Agni, Cuhmn. Its followers look down on the imperial gods and fear the cults. They keep away from a cultist sooner than from anyone else and never stand against one.

Rejected Canons

Yrrvynmelech, Es-tvieth, Mistrel. Banned cults of the underground. Their followers hate everyone outside their own god, including those who keep no god at all.

No God

Those who keep no god hold no opinion on anyone's faith. Only the cults hold it against them.

Devotion

A person is lapsed, observant, devout, or zealous. The more devout they are, the more their faith colours their opinions. Followers of the same god start on good terms, and followers of the same canon a little warmer than strangers.

Zealots

A zealous imperial believer facing a cultist, or a zealous cultist facing anyone outside their god, will not walk away. They denounce the other to their face, and two such enemies sharing a room soon come to blows.

Meeting You

The first time a person speaks with your character, your god changes how far they trust you, by as much as 22 loyalty either way, and they may say what they think of it. A zealot of a canon that hates yours has a 1 in 4 chance to attack before a word is spoken. Old-faith zealots never attack.

Asking

Which gods do you keep? names the person's god, how devout they are, and what they make of yours. From then on their faith shows on their card whenever you speak with them. Beasts and familiars keep no gods.

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