Making Your Town: The Church

When you make a Setting, you probably already have some kind of pantheon…

And let me just say this. Everyone play a Cleric just once, because having the power to command the gods once per week is a pretty cool thing…

Anyways, onto part two!

Most Gods have Temples and Churches, so I’ve separated my idea out into what Domains a Cleric can pick and choose from…

Arcana: Magic is a weird thing. But I can make this work, I think. I can imagine it working similar to a school, or even a library. They make their own books and scrolls and educate those too poor to afford any fancy-shmancy school teachings. Almost acting like a mini wizard school, except it’s a cleric school.

They’d probably work with local schools and colleges, maybe even the Wizard Schools and Magic Shops, or even with libraries and bookmakers, even giving their students and clergymen the opportunity to work with local authors, wizards, sorcerers and etcetera to really emphasize that magical feel…

Death: While there might not be a “Temple of Death”, there’s almost certainly a Graveyard of some kind for people to bury their dead.

So, if there is a Church to a Death God, it will most likely be located very close to this “Graveyard District”.

Forge: The Church of the Forge will most likely work near or even in partnership with local miners, mining companies, and local blacksmiths and metalworkers.

But don’t forget that forge can mean more than just working with metal, so local stonemasons and carpenters might also go to the Church of the Forge depending on the God, Goddess or Deity…

Grave: There are many ways to bury a body, but the most common are burial and cremation. So, some form of crematorium or graveyard will be nearby, and almost definitely looked over by the Church itself.

Knowledge: BOOKS! Of course, they have books, they’d have a miniature library of scrolls, books and just so much stuff!

Maybe they work with the local libraries, schools, or even the lumberjacks that chop down the trees that make the scrolls and papers the Church uses to write down all their knowledge.

And for all that enchanted paper and ink, they’ll need to work with local magic shops and enchanters to get the best price for the quite literally gallons of magical ink and thousands of pieces of magical paper…

Life: Life is all about home, community and healing the sick and injured. Think of it like a shelter for those that don’t have a home.

And since most Life Clerics detest Undead of any kind, they probably oversee burial rites in local graveyards.

Light: Some of these gods are portrayed as the sun itself or as a charioteer who guides the sun across the sky.

Others are tireless sentinels whose eyes pierce every shadow and see through every deception.

Some are deities of beauty and artistry, who teach that art is a vehicle for the soul’s improvement.

So perhaps they use these tireless sentinels as part of Law Enforcement and the Police, and those who worship the deities of beauty and artistry might work with local builders and crafters, painters and performers, writers and musicians…

Nature: There might be a garden of some kind to care for plants, or maybe some kind of animal shelter or farm to care for local animals.

They might work with local farmers to ensure crops grow nicely, and working with fisherman and merchants to bring in new fruits, foods and trade to the city…

Tempest: Tempest is about storms and most of the time the sea, so this Church is probably located near a local river, stream or source of water. Maybe these Clerics purify the water, or help local fisherman with their daily catches.

Perhaps they even work with Sailors and Merchants to ensure safe travel.

Tempest Churches might also be located high in the mountains, ensuring safe travel for people moving through the region and stopping them from being crushed by snowstorms or avalanches.

Because what would turn people to your faith faster than parting an avalanche right in front of their faces…

Trickery: I honestly don’t think there would be a Church of Trickery. But if there was, I can imagine it being close to a lot of taverns, since Trickery Clerics are all about causing trouble and mischief…

War: They work with the military, obviously. Local Barracks, maybe even working with local Inns and Taverns to feed soldiers. The Church would almost definitely work with the Local Towns-guard and heal those wounded in battle.

They’d work with local blacksmiths and mining groups to ensure their Weapons and Armor are masterfully made from the finest metals.