Some things mentioned here such as Devotion level and Events will be described later, but feel free to comment on things in general at any point.
Immortals Rules - Congregations
by Rodger BurnsImmortal beings in the Mystaran multiverse don't need to maintain a body of worshipers to survive or prosper. Most Immortals choose to maintain mortal worshipers, however - mortals can provide information through their prayers, provide power and resources to further their patron's goals, and train as clergy to carry out their patron's wishes. Most of these worshipers' activities are of no note on the larger stage, but each Immortal generally has a few groups of mortal followers that receive especially close attention. These groups are known as Congregations.
In game terms, a congregation is very similar to a mortal Dominion, and is treated in much the same way. There are some differences, though. Most notably, a congregation is defined by people and their beliefs, not territory or borders on a map; multiple congregations can, and often do, exist side-by-side within the same nation or city, where their patron Immortals each strive to push their own dogma. Also, a single Immortal can maintain several different congregations at a single time, each separated by vast distances - or even located on different planes! Where a mortal dominion ruler is forced to focus on a single area to rule, Immortals are much more able to split their attentions in several directions at once.
Benefits of a Congregation
Maintaining a congregation can sometimes be a taxing affair, but it has its rewards. Some of the more common benefits of a congregation are as follows:
* Gold: This represents monetary wealth in any of several forms, donated by the members of the congregation and those who seek its aid or goodwill. The exact amount gathered each game year depends on the size of the congregation and its Devotion level (see below).
Gold can be used by an Immortal in either of two ways. The first is simply to spend it - buying equipment, hiring adventurers, soldiers or specialists, paying for the construction of a building or stronghold, or any similar use. Using gold in this way is limited to merely mortal results, but it can be a subtle way for an Immortal to exercise influence.
The other way that gold can be used is in transmutation. This combines a congregation's wealth with Immortal power to create valuable items from thin air. Transmutation works the same way as Immortal creation of magical items (WotI, p. 57), with a Power cost of 1 TP per 10,000 gp of an item's cost - but the full cost of the item is subtracted from the congregation's coffers, and the item comes into existence permanently. An Immortal can use transmutation anywhere on the same plane as the congregation providing the gold, and can call on stored wealth from multiple congregations at once if desired.
An important note - gold accumulated by a congregation is NOT normally needed for the congregation's normal upkeep. That's assumed to take care of itself. An Immortal may choose to spend a congregation's gold on improving the congregation's situation - this can be especially useful to mitigate negative Events. But this is always an option, not a necessity.
* Power: This is energy that can be used to fuel Immortal spells which require permanent power (such as Wish, Bestow and Transform) or for other uses of Immortal power normally requiring the expenditure of PP. The power must be used in a way that directly affects the congregation that provided the power - if Vanya's congregation among the Heldannic Knights grants her 20 PP per year, she can cast two free Wish spells for free each year that affect Heldann, but can't use the Wishes to affect conditions in Alphatia, or even Thyatis. (A congregation devoted to Vanya in Thyatis might also provide power, that would be usable in Thyatis. But mixing and matching isn't allowed.)
Power provided by a congregation is often used to advance candidates on the Path to Immortality - Transforming Paragons, using Wishes to maintain the Immortal's petition site and set up tests, and similar. Any such use of power is acceptable as long as the candidate is affiliated in some way with the congregation providing the power. Use of Power provided by a congregation is still Immortal activity, and is supposed to be cleared with the Hierarchs - but such approval is almost always automatic, and even if not cleared in advance will usually be forgiven as long as the Power wasn't used maliciously.
Power provided by a congregation can't ever be used to affect any Immortal directly, or improve the patron Immortal's own PP score. A congregation's power can't be 'banked' from year to year; if not used in the year it's generated, it's lost.
* Champions of the Faith: These are high-level characters with a strong link to the congregation, and who can be expected to come to the congregation's aid when needed or further the Immortal's wishes. The levels of Champions of the Faith are determined by the congregation's Devotion Level, but the total number of champions is determined by the scope of the area that the congregation exists in:
- City, Barony or County: 4-8 champions (1 adventuring group)
- Duchy or Principality: 8-15 champions (1-3 adventuring groups)
- Kingdom: 15-30 champions (2-4 adventuring groups)
- Empire or Continent-Wide: 20-50 champions (3-6 adventuring groups)
- World-Wide: 40-100 champions (5-10 adventuring groups)
Champions may be members of the congregation or clerics of its Immortal patron, but they don't have to be; even if none of a congregation's champions are clerics, the congregation still maintains a full staff of clerics of levels 1-9, as appropriate for the local culture. (In Thyatis, this might be a temple; among the tribal Neathar this would be a looser network of shamans and wise elders.) Champions may also hold titles of nobility among the rest of the nation, but this can be a double-edged sword - giving the champion greater power to aid the congregation, but also other responsibilities that may prevent the champion from acting in a crisis.
When running champions of the faith, it's important to remember that they're allies of the congregation and its Immortal patron - not puppets or tools. They can honestly disagree with the congregation's goals even as they wish it well, and can be charmed, tricked or coerced into acting against the congregation's best interests. The classes, capabilities and other details of a congregation's champions should be worked out as needed between players and the DM, without going into too much detail - for with the passage of game years, the identity of specific champions will undoubtedly shift, as old champions retire and new ones are recruited by the congregation's leadership.
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Devotion Level
This is the measure of the commitment and support the congregation offers its patron Immortal. A congregation's initial Devotion Score is determined by the rank of its Immortal patron when the congregation is established:
- Initiate: 1d100+350
- Temporal: 2d100+325
- Celestial: 3d100+300
- Empyreal: 4d100+275
- Eternal: 5d100+250
- Hierarch: 6d100+250
Once this initial level is set, special events (described later) can either increase or decrease the Devotion level. Unlike a dominion's Confidence score, devotion never 'resets' to its initial value during the course of normal gameplay.
A. 1001+: The congregation is Fanatical. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per member per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 100 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 36th level. Demihumans can be of any Attack Rank. Most champions, though, will be of 27th-30th level.
- The congregation's faith is exceptionally strong, and likely to prove self-sustaining even in times of crisis. For each negative Event that occurs, there is a 25% chance that no loss of Devotion occurs, even if the congregation's Immortal patron takes no action. This doesn't apply to Portents, or to positive Events of any kind.
- There is a 10% chance per game year that the congregation learns of the location of an artifact, potential candidate for Immortality, or similar news of interest to the Immortals. The congregation's patron can choose to investigate in person, pass the news on to an allied Immortal, or take any other action desired.
B. 926-1000: The congregation is Dedicated. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 2 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 80 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 33rd level. Demihumans can be of any Attack Rank. Most champions, though, will be of 23rd-26th level.
- The congregation's faith is exceptionally strong, and likely to prove self-sustaining even in times of crisis. For each negative Event that occurs, there is a 25% chance that no loss of Devotion occurs, even if the congregation's Immortal patron takes no action. This doesn't apply to Portents, or to positive Events of any kind.
- There is a 5% chance per game year that the congregation learns of the location of an artifact, potential candidate for Immortality, or similar news of interest to the Immortals. The congregation's patron can choose to investigate in person, pass the news on to an allied Immortal, or take any other action desired.
C. 851-925: The congregation is Pious. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 5 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 60 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 30th level. Demihumans can be up to Attack Rank K. Most champions will be of 23rd-26th level.
- The congregation's faith is exceptionally strong, and likely to prove self-sustaining even in times of crisis. For each negative Event that occurs, there is a 25% chance that no loss of Devotion occurs, even if the congregation's Immortal patron takes no action. This doesn't apply to Portents, or to positive Events of any kind.
D. 751-850: The congregation is Faithful. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 10 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 40 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 26th level. Demihumans can be up to Attack Rank I. Most champions will be of 19th-22nd level.
E. 651-750: The congregation is Dutiful Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 20 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 30 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 22nd level. Demihumans can be up to Attack Rank G. Most champions will be of 15th-18th level.
F. 551-650: The congregation is Respectful. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 50 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 20 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 18th level. Demihumans can be up to Attack Rank E.
G. 401-550: The congregation is Content. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 100 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 10 Power per game year.
- Champions of the Faith can be up to 14th level. Demihumans can be up to Attack Rank C.
H. 301-400: The congregation is Restless. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 250 members per game year.
- The congregation provides the Immortal with 5 Power per game year.
- At this level and below, the congregation no longer supports any Champions of the Faith. Clergy and allied adventurers will be 9th level and lower, only.
I. 201-300: The congregation is Impious. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation provides the Immortal 1 gp per 1000 members per game year.
- At this level and below, the congregation no longer provides bonus Power to its Immortal patron. Any use of permanent Power must be drawn from the Immortal's own reserves.
J. 126-200: The congregation is Blasphemous. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation no longer provides gold to its Immortal patron. All tithes and other donations are used directly by the mortal clergy that collects them.
- Positive portents no longer occur. If a Portent is rolled as a random event and it turns out positive, treat it as a regular positive event instead.
- If devotion stays at this level or below for ten consecutive game years, its Immortal patron immediately suffers a Stroke. The lost level can be regained if the Immortal manages to raise the congregation's Devotion score above 250 points.
K. 51-125: The congregation is Schismatic. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation no longer provides gold to its Immortal patron. All tithes and other donations are used directly by the mortal clergy that collects them. In addition, if the congregation had any gold saved from previous years, half of the saved gold is immediately and permanently lost each game year.
- All portents are negative. If a Portent is rolled as a random event and it turns out positive, reroll the event until a negative event is determined.
- If devotion stays at this level or below for ten consecutive game years, its Immortal patron immediately suffers a Major Stroke. The lost levels can be regained if the Immortal manages to raise the congregation's Devotion score above 200 points. If a Blasphemous congregation has already caused the Immortal to suffer a regular Stroke, the effects of the Major stroke overlap with the previous Stroke - two additional levels are lost (not three), and two levels are regained if the Devotion score increases above 200 points.
L. 50-: The congregation is Heretical. Game effects are as follows:
- The congregation no longer provides gold to its Immortal patron. All tithes and other donations are used directly by the mortal clergy that collects them. In addition, any gold saved by the congregation from previous years is immediately and permanently lost.
- All portents are negative. If a Portent is rolled as a random event and it turns out positive, reroll the event until a negative event is determined. In addition, there is a flat 50% chance that any normal negative event is treated as a Portent.
- The Immortal suffers a Stroke as soon as devotion drops to this level. This is in addition to any levels lost from extended periods spent at the Blasphemous or Schismatic levels. The lost level can be regained if the Immortal manages to raise the congregation's Devotion score above 100 points.
- If devotion stays at this level or below for ten consecutive game years, the congregation immediately disbands, its faith in its former Immortal patron forever shattered. The patron suffers a Master Stroke, and the lost levels can normally not ever be regained - reversing the former congregation's low opinion of their patron would require a series of truly epic acts. The Immortal will not be able to create another congregation in the area for at least another century.
Events and Portents
Congregations will normally be affected by 1d6 events during the course of a game year. Events can be either positive (a gain in Devotion score if the Immortal responds properly) or negative (a loss of Devotion score if the Immortal does not respond properly). The difference here is important to gameplay, and should be noted - for negative events, the loss of Devotion happens by default, unless the Immortal responds in a way that nullifies or minimises the event's consequences; for positive events, the default is for no change in Devotion, and points are gained only if the Immortal is able to respond in a way that establishes the faith and virtues of the congregation as directly linked to the event's positive effects. Exactly what actions are useful to these ends is dependent on the event and the ruling of the DM - the intent here is to keep Immortals involved in protecting their congregations and to encourage role-play.
Events can be determined as follows:
* 1d12 -
1-4: Natural Event
5-10: Mortal Activity
11-12: Immortal Meddling - Roll again on this table, using a 1d10. The event appears to be a natural or mortal-driven event, but is actually caused by another Immortal, plotting to interfere with the congregation. This meddling may be either benign or malicious, as the specific event dictates.
Natural Events - 1d100
01-10: Auspicious Birth (+2d6)
11-18: Comet (-3d4)
19-20: Earthquake (-2d12)
21-35: Fire (-1d10)
36-40: Flood (-4d6)
41-50: Good Harvest (+2d10)
51: Meteor Strike (-5d4)
52-54: Meteor Shower (+2d4)
55-56: New Star (+1d12)
57-60: Plague (-3d8)
61-65: Omen, Bad (-1d20)
66-70: Omen, Good (+1d20)
71-90: Storm (-1d8)
96-98: Tornado (-2d8)
99-00: Volcano (-3d8)
Mortal Activity - 1d100
01-03: Assassination (-3d4)
04-25: Banditry (-2d4)
26-27: Cultists/Heresy (-4d6)
28-30: Discovery (+2d6)
31-40: Heroic Deed (+1d12)
41-42: Insurrection (-2d8)
43-50: Lycanthropy (-1d12)
51-60: Magical Happening, Good (+1d8)
61-70: Magical Happening, Bad (-1d8)
71-72: Plague of Undeath (-3d6)
73: Revelation (+3d8)
74-78: Trade Shortage (-1d6)
79-83: Trade Surplus (+1d6)
84-87: Traitor (-1d10)
89-90: Usurper (-2d6)
91-00: War (-3d8)
Some events can also be portents. A Portent is an event whose onset is so sudden and outcome so obvious that its message - for good or ill - cannot be mistaken. There is a 25% chance each game year that one Portent will occur, in addition to all normal events. A Portent is determined like a normal event, but with two major difference as far as gameplay is concerned. First, a Portent cannot be caused by Immortal meddling - it's either a Natural Event or Mortal Activity. Second, the change in devotion caused by a Portent is only half that of a normal event, but this change is guaranteed to happen, regardless of any action taken by the congregation's Immortal patron. A negative Portent always decreases Devotion, a positive Portent always increases it.
Congregations and Strokes
In a game where congregations are in play, the rules for Immortal Strokes are changed somewhat. To begin with, a Stroke can't be attempted against any random group of an Immortal's worshippers - it has to be aimed at a Congregation. What defines a Stroke is also clearer - rather than just causing 'embarrassment or loss of faith', the effectiveness of a Stroke is determined by reduction in the target congregation's Devotion score.
To implement a Stroke, an Immortal arranges for one or more negative Events to target the rival's congregation. These can be planned to happen all at once, or can be strung out over an extended period - several events at once can be more effective, but also is likely to make the target suspicious and inclined to strike back. Whatever the timing, if enough negative Events happen in close succession to lower a congregation's Devotion score by 50 points, that counts as a Stroke. If the congregation's Devotion is lowered by 100, it's a Major Stroke, and if lowered by 200 or more is a Master Stroke. These strokes can be recovered from if the victim manages to avoid further drops in Devotion and earns enough increases in Devotion score to return the Devotion level to where it was before the rival Immortal started working on their Stroke.
Congregations outside the Prime Plane
Most Immortals try to maintain congregations on Mystara or the Prime, but congregations on other planes of existence certainly aren't unheard of. They are, however, less efficient - a congregation native to a plane other than the Prime generates gold and Power, and suffers events and portents, only once every ten game years, not once every game year. And a congregation native to an Immortal's home plane generates gold and Power only once every twenty-five game years. Note that these game years are as measured on the Prime Plane - if an outer plane has time passing forty times as fast as usual, ten Mystaran years (four hundred local years) still pass between each offering of gold and Power.
Despite this drawback, many Immortals whose home planes are inhabited still maintain a congregation there, in order to have a small extra reserve of power in emergency situations. In addition, Power generated by congregations native to outer planes can be used to fuel Shape Reality spells targeting that plane - a useful way for Immortals to modify their homes without slowing their personal advancement.