Halaster-Blackcloak wrote:I checked the 1E Deities & Demigods and 2E Legends & Lore, nothing concrete there either. L&L does mention denying powers and spells to clerics, but nothing about whether that includes already-memorized spells. The way I look at it, the gods are virtually all-powerful (at least by human standards) and just because a god grants a priest the ability to use a power or cast a spell doesn't imply that the god is duty-bound to allow the mere mortal to use that power against the interests of the gods. Imagine a druid who decides to set fire to a major forest, or a cleric of a god of war (like Ares) who tries to heal or raise enemies who have attacked a temple of Ares. I just can't picture a god being held hostage, so to speak, simply because a mortal has chanted the proper prayers.
It's funny, I always prefer making up details about stuff like this myself, and tend not to use many of the Complete Fighters/Wizards/Clerics/Etc handbooks, but they do come in handy at times, especially in a pinch! I like the part you posted. It mentions two types of restrictions but you only posted one. Would you post the other one? I'd love to see what it says. Can't find my copy of the handbook.
Here it is
If the priest violates the restriction for the best of reasons (for instance, if a gargoyle is strangling his friend, and he must use a forbidden weapon in order to be able to harm the creature), the god does 1-3 (1d3) points of damage to the priest (after the fight is done) and, if the priest does not undertake a ritual of purification at his earliest opportunity, will take away the priest's spells on the next day.
Then you have
Betrayal of Goals
If the priest deliberately violates the goals of the god, then he's in real trouble. For instance, if a priest of the god of war advocates peace when war is in the offing, or if a priest of the god of love tells young lovers to wise up and forget about romance, then the god will definitely be offended.
The first time this happens, the god will give the priest an unmistakable warning. This could be a heart attack, costing 50% of the priest's current hit points. It could be a portentous destruction of a statue of the god while the priest is present. It could be an earthquake or other warning. The warning doesn't have to be immediately after the betrayal, but will be soon after.
The second time this happens, the god will appear to the priest. It doesn't have to be in person, right then; it might be in a dream, the night following the betrayal. The god will sternly ask the character his motives and order him to return to proper worship.
The third time this happens, the god will immediately reduce the character to 1 hit point and change his character class. The priest will become an ordinary fighter at an experience level two lower than the priest's level (minimum first level); his normal hit point total and possessions will be unaffected. Until the character undergoes a severe ritual of atonement, the god will despise the character and plague him with little ills, diseases, and enemies. Once the character atones for the deed, the god forgives him . . . but the character will still be a fighter.
Sometimes, a god might deliberately confront the character with a test of the character's faith. For example: Part of the god's worship demands that anyone who tramples his sacred flowers be blinded. Then, the god befuddles the priest's wife or daughter, and that character stumbles across the sacred flowers where only the priest can see it. If he conceals the sin, he's punished. If, regretfully, he prepares to carry out the punishment, the god will be pleased. The god might interrupt the punishment, or wait until it has been carried out and then restore sight to the priest's loved one.
And lastly
When Gods Bestow Spells
Another effect of the fact that priests are servants of their gods is this: The god doesn't have to give his priest the spells the priest wants.
In most situations, when the priest prays for his spells, he gets the ones he desires. But if the god and DM wish, he could get different spells on some occasions.
There are two usual causes for this to happen:
If the god is displeased with the priest for some minor infraction, he might give the priest spells which dictate the priests' actions for the day. A fighting-priest might emerge from his meditation with only healing spells on hand, for instance, a clear sign that the god wants him to act in a supporting role today.
Or, if the god knows of a specific opponent that the priest will be fighting today, he might give the priest spells appropriate to defeating that enemy.
In neither case will the god send a telegram explaining why he's done what he's done. The priest has to accept what the god hands him that day, and has to do so without knowing why.
Tiger striped dog wrote:A point of order on Henchmen. Henchmen are generally (but not always) the same class as their PC - or at least they will have one of the classes represented by the PC. I generally start Henchmen off at a lower level, and then advance them forward at half of the XP that the characters earn (or less depending upon their involvement).
Where are you getting that henchmen are generally the same class as their controlling pc from?
Halaster-Blackcloak wrote:It's a good use of henchmen and I've used that method plenty of times before. Thing is, it only works if the henchman being turned into a PC is of high enough level to compete with the other PCs.
So if say the party's all ave l7, and the hench is l4, is that iyo too far away to 'compete' with the PCs?