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Hey all.

One aspect I love about FL is the religion. The write ups in the book are evocative and full of a folk lore vibe. I like that they are interpretable and full of potential... but that does make it harder for the PCs in some ways, I encourage them but they worry a little that they are going rogue.

So I was wondering, how have people handed religion in the Ravenlands, have people created anything? What takes are people using?

Look forward to hearing what you’ve come up with

I typically keep the basics of the religion but make sure individuals remain individuals. The actual presence of the gods seems distant in this setting, their influence generally very subtle. This is rife with opportunities for variation in local beliefs and forms of worship, all branching away from their original forms as villages developed local customs during the reign of the Blood Mist. This seems to me as though it'd be especially true of the various forms of the Protector, with the exception of the Church of Rust which has had more freedom from the Mist.

Still, see this thread about Sturkas of the Hollows for a discussion on how even a Rust Brother can see themselves in keeping with their religion while retaining their own convictions. The Hollows' form of amalgam worship is also a good example of local traditions that I've extrapolated on, trying to imagine what forms of worship and belief make the most sense given a village's history.

Its arguable the gods don't exist at all. With the bitter reach we can see how some of the myths are just flat out false (potentially). The orcs were not gifts to the elves and dwarves from Wyrm/the raven. The orcs were a slave race magically created/breed by the winter elves. If thats the case then the raven/wyrm did nothing and maybe was never there at all.

Its arguable the gods don't exist at all. With the bitter reach we can see how some of the myths are just flat out false (potentially). The orcs were not gifts to the elves and dwarves from Wyrm/the raven. The orcs were a slave race magically created/breed by the winter elves. If thats the case then the raven/wyrm did nothing and maybe was never there at all.

Yeah, it's something I appreciate about the setting after myriad settings of the gods being as clear, undeniable, and typically without mystery as your neighbor, but also nearly or totally omnipotent. Most of even the ancient elves who are said to have worked with gods like Flow, for example, are long gone or dwell eternally in the Stillmist. The Protector certainly doesn't seem to do anything to quash such vastly different presentations as Rust vs Raven, if it does exist, which suggests to me that, at the very most, they are powerful forces rather than deeply person-like gods.

I am inclined to say they are just historical figures who have faded into myth and become gods. The raven and the serpent could have been ships that humanities leaders captained and lead the other ships across the sea. These leaders made diplomatic deals with the elves and then over time became deified. The names of the ships superceding the names of the people as they became more a force of nature instead of people.

Flow was probably just one of the elves who now resides in the Stillmist or who has since been shattered.

I love this discussion and I think you all hit just the right tone of doubt and possibilities

(Let me add that you will get more info to ponder in the Aslene expansion.)

(Let me add that you will get more info to ponder in the Aslene expansion.)

Intriguing! Thanks, Brior.

The Aslene volcano god and Dwarven idea of building up to the heavens I find the most evocative religions in the setting.

Worshipping a giant fire spewing mountain feels right and is also just awesome. Really looking forward to learning more about this.

The dwarf crusade to the stars is just this really interesting generational project. Again, it’s less about religion as we usually think about them but as like a great societal mission. I love that idea.

As for the other gods, I feel like the Elves general lack of “worship” is a useful detail. That’s not to say the mythologies are wholly false but they are still mythologies.