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Archives of Nethys

Pathfinder RPG (1st Edition) Starfinder RPG Pathfinder RPG (2nd Edition)

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Faiths

Divine Variants

Source Galactic Magic pg. 99
Worshipping a deity often brings spiritual fulfillment and support from a like-minded community. In general, though, a PC’s faith doesn’t impact their abilities directly. For each of the 20 deities featured in the Core Rulebook, the following pages contain not only additional information about the deity’s interests, typical worshippers, sacred sites, and resources their faiths might be able to offer, but they also present several options that can influence a PC’s abilities directly, as well as several ways a deity might express their approval or displeasure, at the GM’s direction.
Theme Knowledge: In Starfinder, most themes reduce the DC of checks by 5 to recall knowledge about a particular subject, such as an outlaw’s knowledge about the criminal underworld (Core Rulebook 33). When picking your theme, you can choose to replace your theme’s special knowledge with the special theme knowledge associated with your deity. Your theme’s 1stlevel theme knowledge ability still grants you its other abilities, such as its class skill and the bonus to an ability.
Favored Weapon: Most deities have traditional weapons: weapons the deity personally wields or armaments commonly carried by the faith. Each favored weapon refers to a specific type of advanced melee weapon, longarm, heavy weapon, sniper weapon, or special weapon (such as longswords or laser rifles), and you gain the benefits for all models of that weapon. Rarely, a deity has multiple favored weapons to provide viable options across a wide range of item levels.
Edicts: Deities expect their followers to regularly take particular actions and promote certain causes, represented by their listed edicts. These are not exhaustive lists, nor are they absolute mandates; edicts are often worded in an open-ended way that encourages worshippers to interpret and apply these expectations based on their current circumstances.
Anathema: Certain actions so violate a deity’s goals, teachings, or style that they elicit the god’s displeasure. Minor infractions might earn admonishment from the faithful or divine agents, whereas severe or recurring infractions might see the violator expelled from the faith altogether, or worse.
Blessings: Deities rarely intervene in mortal affairs directly and dramatically, but they periodically convey favor through small miracles. This entry lists ways a deity might express approval (such as through sensory phenomena) as well as more substantive ways they might aid mortals. While worshippers are the most frequent recipients of these blessings, anyone contributing or important to the faith’s goals might receive the deity’s favor. The GM ultimately determines who earns blessings, when they occur, and what in-game effect they have.
Curses: This entry lists open-ended ways that a deity might inflict suffering, especially upon treacherous members of their faith, those who blaspheme the deity, and those who desecrate their sacred sites. As with blessings, the GM determines when these curses happen and what effect they have—anything from momentary inconvenience to an affliction that serves as a lasting adventure hook, depending on the offense’s severity.