* Spoiler* - How can you come back as a champion of _____ if you're a priest of another god?

[PneumaticFire]

Based on the recent live stream of the full game, it looks like your only option other than a very quick ending, is to return to Eora as a champion of Berath.

 

I wonder how roleplay wise someone can reconcile this if you're a priest devoted to another god?

 

One could say, 'I had no choice', but then you instantly become a level 1 priest of Eothas/Magran/etc  as soon as you return

 

hhhmmmmm

[Voss]

It depends how literally you want to take 'champion.'

 

You're still praying to whomever for power, but Berath has made you his/her flying monkey for this errand.

In theory, chasing down Eothas serves the purposes of the other gods as well.  

[White Phoenix]

Our Watcher lives because Berath has some purpose. And there may be some roleplaying reason if you support him in Pillars. Or you are Death Godlike.

 

As White March is about Abydon-Ondra relation I think Deadfire tells us about Berath-Eothas. Can't wait to learn what's going on.

 

And probably Berath is 5th faction as there is snake-like eternity symbol in reputation wheel: http://eternityproject.pl/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/pillars-of-eternity-2-deadfire_6022004-600x338.jpg

 

We know Huana worshipp Berath as eels.

Edited May 6, 2018 by White Phoenix

[HAWmaro]

As far as am concerned, am gonna try my hardest to be the champion of Eothas, hope the game allows for such a choice.

Edited May 6, 2018 by HAWmaro

[White Phoenix]

You can be his priest, their is no problem with it

Edited May 6, 2018 by White Phoenix

[PneumaticFire]

Yeah at least form what I currently know, it just seems odd that you're a non Berathean priest instantly after agreeing to be Beraths champion.

From what I saw and recall (skimming through the video), even in a dialogue option early on with Eder, you acknowledge this re Berath. Then moments later you're casting spells in the name of another God.

Edited May 6, 2018 by PneumaticFire

[White Phoenix]

I can't see a problem. Berath chose you tu hunt Eothas in his name not to become his priest. That's a favour for saving your life. It doesn't matter if you are Eothasian, Magranite, druid, rogue or whatever. You owe your life to Berath, that's what matters, because  you decide to hunt Eothas. I don't remember if you can lie and pretend you go in Berath's name.

Edited May 6, 2018 by White Phoenix

[HAWmaro]

You can be his priest, their is no problem with it

I mean side with him in the plot and against berath and the other gods, He's my second favorite POE god after Abydon( wael and galawain are up there too but we haven't seen too much of them yet honestly)

[White Phoenix]

 

You can be his priest, their is no problem with it

I mean side with him in the plot and against berath and the other gods, He's my second favorite POE god after Abydon( wael and galawain are up there too but we haven't seen too much of them yet honestly)

 

Josh Sawyer confirmed you can side with Eothas but what that truly means is yet to discover.

Edited May 6, 2018 by White Phoenix

[Voss]

I can't see a problem. Berath chose you tu hunt Eothas in his name not to become his priest. That's a favour for saving your life. It doesn't matter if you are Eothasian, Magranite, druid, rogue or whatever. You owe your life to Berath, that's what matters, because you decide to hunt Eothas. I don't remember if you can lie and pretend you go in Berath's name.

Heh. You owe your life to Berath because Berath says you do. There isn't a favor being exchanged here. Your living breathing body was just fine, Berath just grabbed hold of your soul and can do anything she wants with it.

 

This is Eora. The gods are jerks, and they're definitely more interested in themselves than people. You have the required talents, so you're Berath's preferred tool for this.

 

Just remember, after the job is done, tools often get discarded... or hung up.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Voss

[tinysalamander]

Disappointing for a setting where one of the questions is whether the gods have divine mandate or should they. Especially since my protagonist is a priest of Eothas who thinks that gods are not needed. Now you are just kind of inverted Thaos… Maybe that was the intention but I don't like it either way. Waaay too railroady for my tastes. I'll try to ignore it as hard as possible, I guess.

[Voss]

Eh. It feels significantly less railroady than the first one, at least so far. There is a big unavoidable plot hook, yeah, but that was true the first time around as well, and also isn't a railroad. On the other hand, no areas look blocked off by magic floodwater that only goes away only once your quarry sets the main city on fire in an unstoppable script regardless of what you do.

 

We will have to see if Eothas will wait around in a hole for months to flip the last switch after a completely successful plot, just so you can be there to stop him at the last minute.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Voss

[MaximilianXimenez]

Disappointing for a setting where one of the questions is whether the gods have divine mandate or should they. Especially since my protagonist is a priest of Eothas who thinks that gods are not needed. Now you are just kind of inverted Thaos… Maybe that was the intention but I don't like it either way. Waaay too railroady for my tastes. I'll try to ignore it as hard as possible, I guess.

The gods are very powerful magical beings. Berath returning your body to life is no different than a super powerful wizard doing so in another setting. The gods don't have divine mandate, just a ****load of power. Mandates come from power and the ability to use it.

[tinysalamander]

The first time it was kind of a backstory. This time not so much. Level reset could be done without killing, and even if the death is required god's hand is unnecessary, IMO.

[Fiaryn]

Disappointing for a setting where one of the questions is whether the gods have divine mandate or should they. Especially since my protagonist is a priest of Eothas who thinks that gods are not needed. Now you are just kind of inverted Thaos… Maybe that was the intention but I don't like it either way. Waaay too railroady for my tastes. I'll try to ignore it as hard as possible, I guess.

 

The thing is, whether they're artificial beings or not does not change the fact that they're (almost) exactly as powerful as they claim to be.

[tinysalamander]

The thing is, whether they're artificial beings or not does not change the fact that they're (almost) exactly as powerful as they claim to be.

And?

[AlphaShard]

I think if you look at it the way it happens in Faerun, you can be a follower of a Deity but still do a favor for another god. Like being a follower of Tyr but doing a mission for Torm or Helm. Since there was this conspiracy to take down Eothas to begin with it doesn't surprise me that the God of Death makes sure that Eothas will return to the Cycle no matter who you worship or if you worship at all. The fact that they were made by an ancient race is largely irrelevant now. Course there may come an option where you don't fight Eothas, we just don't know yet. 

 

As an aside I do find some grim satisfaction as I had roleplayed my Paladin character as a champion of Berath without knowing this little twist to the story. I did notice that when you go to create a priest character there are certain deities you cannot select. I think each of them had a hand in bringing down Eothas but only one controls Death and so you become indebted to Berath to do this. That doesn't mean you won't be able to go back on this promise. 

[Skazz]

Berath doesn’t really control death, though. If we’re to continue using Faerunian comparisons, he’s more like Jergal: a glorified accountant who just wants things to proceed according to the schedule and without unneccessary disruptions. The fact that his job involves the dead is rather irrelevant, and out of all the Eoran gods he’s probably the one with the weakest claim to his domain - after all, the Wheel is a separate natural phenomenon. It’s not like he can decide to keep it from turning or anything.

 

Speaking of “turning”. The Wheel itself is a confounding thing. It’s interesting how virtually everything and everyone in-universe uses that term as if it were a physical (or at the very least perceivable) object. In the finale, Thaos - a guy with firsthand knowledge - even goes as far as to describe the souls seemingly being materially ground to nothingness with subsequent “turns” of the Wheel. Sure, the name and the concept of “The Wheel” are probably meant to be a metaphor, but in a setting where we know for sure that certain gods have different names and incarnations depending on the culture, the fact that everyone in the world appears to have an ubiquitous way of naming and describing the process of reincarnation... well, it makes you wonder.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Skazz

[Fiaryn]

Well, the Wheel does seem to be a physical thing even if the Wheel itself is mostly metaphor. There is no actual literal Wheel, but souls do get drawn through a sort of planetary circulatory system known as adra. What Thaos is referring (with flowery language) to is the known, documented phenomenon whereby souls fragment, splinter, and grind down to nothing over successive incarnations. Rymrgand and Berath were set in place to personify and embody processes that (as far as we know) happen regardless.

 

Where exactly the adra leads is another issue altogether.

 

 

 

The thing is, whether they're artificial beings or not does not change the fact that they're (almost) exactly as powerful as they claim to be.

And?

 

 

I don't think the point requires any further articulation. If something specific confuses you, let me know.

Edited May 7, 2018 by Fiaryn

[KaiG]

The Engwythan gods have as much claim to godhood as the greek pantheon (more so, since in-universe they actually exist). The Olympians weren't responsible for creating the earth or its denizens or anything, they were just superpowered beings who were subject to same weaknesses and vices as mortals, but on a grander scale.

[Voss]

Berath doesn’t really control death, though. If we’re to continue using Faerunian comparisons, he’s more like Jergal: a glorified accountant who just wants things to proceed according to the schedule and without unneccessary disruptions. The fact that his job involves the dead is rather irrelevant, and out of all the Eoran gods he’s probably the one with the weakest claim to his domain - after all, the Wheel is a separate natural phenomenon. It’s not like he can decide to keep it from turning or anything.

 

 

Uh...  Wheel aside, Berath has a very strong claim to his domain as usher/arbiter of souls.  

 

The intro to deadfire rather bluntly demonstrates this.  As you can choose not to cooperate, in which case you get shown through another door by the Usher aspect, and die for good, melting down into the sea of souls and reincarnating as a small furry animal. If you do agree (to play the game), the aspects send you back to your body.  If she/he can send you back to life or end your incarnation, that counts as control in my book.

 

[Skazz]

Isn’t that something every Eoran god can do, though? For example, there’s Woedica messing with the system to get Thaos reincarnated as Thaos every single time he comes back to life. I can’t help but feel that diminishes Berath’s claim a little.

Edited May 7, 2018 by Skazz

[tinysalamander]

 

 

The thing is, whether they're artificial beings or not does not change the fact that they're (almost) exactly as powerful as they claim to be.

And?

 

 

I don't think the point requires any further articulation. If something specific confuses you, let me know.

 

That's not what I was talking about, though. You are the one confused here.

[Voss]

Isn’t that something every Eoran god can do, though? For example, there’s Woedica messing with the system to get Thaos reincarnated as Thaos every single time he comes back to life. I can’t help but feel that diminishes Berath’s claim a little.

Well, it depends. How much of it was Thaos, how much of it was Woedica, and if Berath was bribed/influenced into allowing it (or doing the actual work). Keep in mind, Thaos was there before they were- he might well have built himself a personal hack into the system as it was established.

[Baltic]

Thaos did still have to go through childhood each time. It’s a little different than being put back into the same adult body.