Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Clerics of Woden, Part I

Woden
Anglo-Saxon God of Magic, Kingship, Inspiration, & Death

Tenets of Woden
* Be cunning in your craft; wise, poetic
* Establishing your rightful place
* Giving into wild abandon when needed
* Gaining inspiration in your doom

Clerics of Woden
Special: Woden is served by clerics and runecasters (detailed in Part II)
Allowed Weapons: Spear, staff, seax
Allowed Armor: Chainmail and shield or lighter
Symbol: Horse, Ravens, Tree, Irminsul
Can Turn: Otherworldly beings
Mysteries of Woden: Clerics of  Woden 
can cause themselves or another within 60' to either have a +2 bonus to a damage roll or a -2 penalty to make a save. They may do so up to once per day per level.


Folk Variations
Changes to Woden's guidelines can be made to coincide with those who follow similar gods by substituting select guidelines, magical side-effects, divine tests, and spells.

Cernunnos (Celtic): he is also known as Lord of the Wild Hunt, lending a more naturalistic bent to Woden's ways. See Volume II for details.

Odin (Norse): very similar, Odin is described in Volume I, and the rules for both can be traded as desired, emphasizing various aspects- or even be combined to offer greater selection. Note that Woden is presented here as more wild and lacking some of the later associations that Odin has.

Raven Totem: can provide more cunning and mystery (link).

Wolf Totem: can bring in more viciousness and speed (link).


Next week: Priests of Woden, Part II!