Gods and Worship in Theros

The most prevalent form of expressing reverence is the practice of libation, pouring out a splash of wine or water in honor of the gods. Pious people perform a simple rite of prayer and libation every morning and evening at a household altar or hearth, while the less devoted might still pour out a splash of wine before drinking the rest.

The defining feature of a Theran temple is a statue of a god--which the actual god can occupy and animate at any time. Worshipers kneel before it, touch and kiss it, drape it in garlands and fine cloth, and leave offerings before it. These acts are sometimes spontaneous outpourings of love or gratitude, and sometimes petitions, imploring the god to cure an illness, send rain for crops, guarantee a safe journey, or perform any other favor related to the god's sphere of influence.

Most people aren't devoted to a single god, though many prefer some gods over others. Someone might ask Pharika to spare a loved one from disease, then later offer prayers to Karametra for a bountiful harvest or to Thassa for safety on a sea journey. 

It's far more common for a hero to be devoted to an individual god than it is for an ordinary mortal. A cleric almost always worships a single god of the pantheon and chooses a domain appropriate to that deity for their Divine Domain feature.

Often, heroes choose to devote themselves to particular gods either out of piety or self-interest. Sometimes, though, the gods choose champions who might not be entirely willing. Heliod, for example, takes pride in selecting only the best mortals to be his champions. He doesn't care how the mortals feel about being chosen, and his demands won't be refused.

Most heroes in a Theros campaign, and all clerics, are assumed to devote themselves to a god's cause, acting as that god's champion. All the characters in a party might serve the same god, but more likely, they represent the interests of different gods as they face the dangers of the world together. 

Being a god's champion carries no benefits in and of itself. Each god's description in this chapter paints a picture of the god's typical champion, including ideas for how a player character might end up in that position and provides ideals that represent the god's interests.

The gods do reward the devotion of their champions, though. The strength of your devotion to your god is measured by your piety score. As you increase that score, you gain blessings from your god.

Piety has nothing to do with faith or belief, except insofar as a person's thoughts and ideals drive them to action in a god's service. Your piety score reflects the actions you have taken in your god's service--actions that the god richly rewards.

When you choose a god to worship as a beginning character, your piety score related to that god is 1. Your piety score increases by 1 when you do something to advance the god's interests or behave in accordance with the god's ideals. The gods expect great deeds from their champions, so your piety score typically increases only when you accomplish a significant goal (such as the completion of an adventure), make a significant sacrifice of your own self-interest, or otherwise when the DM sees fit. Each god's description in this chapter includes a discussion of the god's goals and ideals, which your DM uses to judge whether you earn an increase in your piety score. As a general rule, you can expect to increase your piety by 1 during most sessions of play, assuming that you are following your god's tenets. The DM decides the amount of any increase or decrease, but a single deed typically changes your piety score by only 1 point in either direction unless your action is very significant. 

Benefits of Piety

The gods bestow favors on those who prove their devotion. When your piety score crosses certain thresholds--3, 10, 25, and 50--you gain a benefit detailed in the sections describing the gods' champions. If your piety score exceeds and then falls below one of those thresholds, you lose the benefit you gained at the higher tier. 

If you choose the Oracle supernatural gift, you gain different rewards for your piety score, instead of the ones normally granted by your god. This gift and its benefits are described in the description of the Oracle supernatural gift.

Inspiration and Piety

To some extent, piety is its own reward. Behaving in accordance with your god's dictates and ideals inspires you and might enable you to succeed where you might otherwise fail. At your DM's discretion, whenever you increase your piety score, you might also gain inspiration, reflecting the improvement in the harmony between you and your god.

Impiety

Not every hero chooses the life of a divine champion. Leonin, in particular, are known for rejecting the worship of gods. If you don't devote yourself to a god, you don't have a piety score and you gain no rewards for piety, but you don't suffer any negative consequences. The Iconoclast supernatural gift offers a way for characters to gain benefits similar to rewards for piety without being devoted to a god.

Changing Gods

If events in your character's adventuring career warrant doing so, you can abandon the service of one god and turn to a different one. Once you abandon a god's service, you can rarely go back without performing some act of contrition.

Your DM decides whether your new god will accept you as a champion and what you might have to do to prove your commitment.

When you change gods, you lose all the benefits granted by your old one, including rewards for piety and any other divine blessings. You no longer have a piety score to your old god, and your piety score to your new god starts at 1.