When it comes to matters of religion, I tend to see things a lot like that flaxen-haired fantasy heroine Goldilocks :  There’s too much, not enough, and juuuuust right.  Faith and the divine can be a very powerful and positive force, when approached healthily.  However, it also has an almost proportionate potential to injure and divide.  While higher powers play a significant role in most gaming systems, it’s possible to take things a little too far- just like real life.  When this happens to a role-player, it makes it hard to enjoy the game- and sometimes the gamer himself.

Blind Faith

This predilection for religious fervor can run both ways; that is, a player’s intense focus on faith can carry over to his character, and his character’s devout discipleship can likewise bleed out into reality.  It’s rare indeed for either of these currents to prove very constructive.

To clarify this a bit, a brief example of the outside-in model: The original campaign setting we’ve used for years is centered on a colonizing kingdom and its powerful patron church.  Like several historical examples before it, this monarchy is perpetuated by the Divine Right of Kings.  The government and the religious beliefs it is founded on are inseparable.  Faith is almost mandatory.  Arcane magic is heresy.  Heresy is death.

This campaign world makes for some interesting and intensive plots, especially because the low-magic setting makes everything supernatural that much more powerful.  It also calls into question the role of religion, morality, and conscience for each character.  Alignment becomes far more complex when faith is by nature Lawful, and Good is defined by the law.  So what happens when your peaceable neighborly character is branded “evil” simply because he’s dabbled a bit into arcane spell-casting?  In this world, the answer is typically a fiery end.

At the start of one particular campaign, which opened with the impromptu trial of a local farmer on charges of heresy, it was very clear that certain players had strong feelings against organized religion.  While their characters grew up in the culture described above, and served as peace keepers for the local government which represented the monarchy and the church, their voices were the loudest in the room when arguing against the administration of the law.

The (by now quite lengthy) encounter became more about the right of the church to impose its morality on the legal process, than the legal process itself.  Comparisons were drawn to the men at the helm of the American Revolution, and the perceptions of how their faith shaped the legal climate of the U.S.  Defenses for this farmer cited many real-world precedents, from O.J. Simpson’s verdict to the trial of Jesus of Nazareth, but the game gradually peeled away from role-playing and became about the players’ views of right and wrong.  Don’t misunderstand- it was an incredible first act for this campaign.  However, that initial question of faith really lit a fire under some players- if you’ll pardon the pun.

This type of thing happens from the inside out as well.  A player’s investment in their in-game faith can become a marked influence on their daily lives, with some even shifting or fully converting their spiritual doctrine to one they discovered while rolling dice.  That’s not to say, like some interest groups might, that role-playing leads to devil-worship or praying to Cthulu or swearing oaths by the One Ring of Mordor.  It’s possible though, for many who have yet to define their own beliefs, that the immersive experience of role-playing religion can have a deeper impact on the player than on his caharacter.  While the Lord may work in mysterious ways, I would argue with anyone who claims that RPGs are one of them.

Faith No More?

Bearing any of this in mind, it may seem that leaving religion out of the role-playing experience would make things easier on the game.   After all, there is a certian degree of comfort that comes with avoiding the spiritual side of things when in a diverse group of people.  (Consequently, my friends and I have a standing rule that we never discuss God or government when we’re at a bar, restaurant, or other social setting.)  There are lots of systems that can provide a unique and engaging gaming experience virtually free of religious overtones: Spycraft, Marvel Super Heroes, and Gamma World all come to mind immediately.  As with Chase’s earlier thoughts on “heavy topics” your group may or may not be equipped yet to handle certain religious rites, rituals, or rhetoric.

And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.

However, the benefits of adding the spiritual side to a game are numerous and rich.  Religion can be a powerful motivator, a unifying force, and a satisfying personal choice for the characters in your campaign.  In many systems, they may draw literal power from their faith.  They may be protected by divine agents.  They may find like-minded souls who can aid them as they serve their powers-that-be.  In very complete campaigns, faith can motivate characters to act.  It can compel some to repent.  It may even license others to kill.  No matter how or how often it enters your game, the right amount of religion can add layers and plot lines to your adventure that wouldn’t otherwise be possible.  For me, it’s an absolute necessity.

Before this River Becomes an Ocean…

As with any other aspect of the game, it’s important to establish some ground rules to make religion a healthy ingredient in your campaign.  Decide before the campaign gets rolling what your game will and will not touch.  Game masters may decide to place certain books off-limits during a campaign.  Sure there are published rules for demon-summoning.  Does that mean you have to use them?  Do they make sense in the story you’re telling?  Will they make some players less than comfortable?  This is just an example, but certainly one that shows some important concepts to consider before they appear in your adventure.  Whatever you decide, whether it’s to avoid confrontation or to speed up some aspects of the game, it’s always best to make those choices clear and early.

To get you started, here’s your first and foremost rule: Role-playing religions are mechanical, just like dice pools, attack rolls, and weaponry.  They are a combination of fictional backstory and playable data, just like your characters.  Consequently, they should be treated as such.  They have defined limits, proper roles, and absolutely no power outside the campaign setting.  When in doubt, they can be settled with dice- unlike questions of faith in real life.  Ultimately, they are mechanical, so what the game master says goes.  In that way, any issue about religion in your game is no different than any other rules question.  The game master’s decisions are final, and his word is law.  While it’s true that so much power residing with one individual can be a little disconcerting, there’s no reason to let that ruin your game.

You just gotta have a little faith…

Do you have a penchant for playing faith-based characters?  Has your campaign steered clear of religion because of past head-butting?  Do you find yourself praying only before an important dice roll?  Confession is good for the soul- so tell us in the Comments!