From Facebook May 10th 2013
Are Immortals Gods? Or more like saints?
We leave it up to the DM. Mythological deities often had very mortal foibles, hardly worthy of gods... so if you want to downgrade 'em, fine. Is the definition of a god a mortal thing, or are there truly gods? It's your multiverse; do as you will.
Belief, the power of Immortals and the power of Spheres:
1. The amount of Belief in existence is a function of (# of beings) * (total mental capacity). This is demonstrably calculable (tho always changing).
2. Belief invested in gods & magic is Belief not invested in the converse, and vice versa.
3. Belief in an immortal increases that being's Power.
4. Belief in an immortal increases that Sphere's total Power.
5. Imbalance in Power of the 4 Spheres results in a corresponding increase in Entropy
6. The power behind Magic comes from the differential at planar boundaries; it is essentially infinite, but its distribution is uneven. Immortals know how to use it wholesale; mortals may be taught how to use it retail.
Some older stuff from Dragonsfoot which also fits in here:
From Dragonsfoot
Immortals gain Power from worshippers. The capacity for sensing Belief (and measuring it in finite parameters) is beyond mortals but is common to immortals and has a direct effect upon them.A novice Temporal is awarded a Home Plane, and may expend Power temporarily or permanently therein. (Simply put, permanent expenditures are not depleted by Time, and the converse for temporary expenditures.) One of the first tasks undertaken by a novice Temporal is the creation of a sentient race on one or several planetary masses within that Home Plane, and instilling in them a reverence for their creator. This leads of course to a source of Power (which usually grows, if major errors are averted) produced by the Belief of those beings. Note that despite aeons of experimentation, no immortal has produced thereby a race capable of reaching immortality; that is a characteristic almost unique to the Prime.
Blessed is the Prime Plane, the Womb, source of almost all new immortals. All immortals revere the Prime and its original Creator (probably one of the Old Ones, possibly the Oldest thereof). Intervention in the Prime is generally forbidden to the four spheres of immortals, as meddling could threaten this source of replenishment & growth. Entropics, however (of the 5th sphere), are required to actively affect the Prime, since it (like all things) must run down and decay. Death is simply the opposite of life, and both are necessary components of all things.
Magic is powered by the energy differential at planar boundaries. Clerics receive instruction (from one or more immortals and/or their minions) in one class of formulae for manipulating that energy. Mages use another class of formulae, one which mortals have independently developed over a long time. In both cases, however, the magical effects produced by mortals are too inconsequential to affect immortals (though some may affect immortal avatars, q.v.). The only way mortals can affect immortals is through the use of certain tools created by immortals and containing immortal Power, i.e. Artifacts.
If any of the above is contradicted by Wrath of the Immortals, its developers either didn't read my leftover notes or chose to ignore them.
From Dragonsfoot
In trying to imagine the multiverse, and the scope & mind-set of immortal beings, I made a few basic decisions.The mortal concept of god(s) is a projection of the mortal point of view -- shallow, self-centered, and mirroring the predominant social mind-set of the time and culture (such as patriarchal lineage, just one of many examples).
Mortals are physically incapable of appreciating the perspective of immortals. Some of their mortal guesses about anything related to immortals might be correct, but always by accident. Mortal viewpoints are often dominated by their fixation on fame & glory, power over others, and/or material things (money and objects). Immortals as a whole have transcended those biases. However, just as a lack of money can severely restrict the options & potential of a mortal, so can the lack of Power restrict the options & potential of an immortal. The acquisition of Power (to thereby maximize one's options) is thus a common goal of immortals.
"Law" is a system whereby some impose their viewpoints on others. "Chaos" is simply the opposite, wherein an individual rejects part or all of those viewpoints in favor of his/her own. In being "Lawful" one accepts a premise that certain other individuals do have a better perspective (and this may in fact be true). In being "Chaotic" one may (usually incorrectly) assume the converse, or may simply disregard the importance of such a perspective.
Law/Chaos notwithstanding, some beings are truly Good and some are truly Evil. The very concepts thereof, however, may be far different from mortal ones. Death and destruction, for example, are normal parameters of existence and are not necessary Evil. But the deliberate infliction of unnecessary pain and suffering is probably Evil.
Customs are common to all cultures, even immortal ones. The immortals thus periodically reexamine their own customs (being utterly unafraid of change) but keep many customs in place for pragmatic reasons. In the absence of Law per se, the penalties for violating immortal customs may be severe but are almost always proportionate.
Finally, the muliversal rule: somebody out there has more power than you do. Pragmatically, this can and should affect certain decisions.
Things to think about... the above should be carefully considered when designing an adventure at the immortal level, and when deciding courses of action taken by immortals.