One of my favorite things in making new rules is finding some small inconsequential part of the game and making a whole mechanic out of that. I do it a lot and I usually enjoy the results. In Dungeons and Dragons, there are a lot of opportunities for me to work on small parts. In the 4th edition campaign I run right now, I've taken the gods and made them practically NPCs. I wanted to make the gods more involved as I always felt like they were very unimportant. You pick your Primary Deity at 1st level and most characters never think about it again.
The PCs gain Favor Points with each Deity individually and can spend them by praying to that god for assistance. But not every god can help in anyway. Below is a chart I wrote up laying out how the PCs could spend their FP (favor points) with each god, based on skills, abilities, keywords and alignment to add to their rolls or reroll completely. The PCs keep track of how many points they currently have, as well as how many points they have ever accumulated in their career. If a player has a total of 10 FP then spends 7, they have 3 FP and 10 Accumulated Favor Points.
Divine Favor, Page 1
| Deity | Skills | Ability | Keywords | Ritual Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asmodeus | Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Streetwise | Charisma | Charm, Fear | Deception |
| Avandra | Endurance, Streetwise | Charisma | Teleportation | Divination, Travel |
| Bahamut | Heal, History, Perception | Constitution | Weapon | Binding, Warding |
| Bane | Athletics, Intimidate | Strength | Fear, Weapon | -- |
| Corellon | Arcana, Diplomacy, History | Charisma | Arcane, Divine | Any |
| Erathis | History, Streetwise | Wisdom | Conjuration | Creation |
| Gruumsh | Athletics, Endurance, Intimidate | Strength | Weapon | -- |
| Ioun | Arcana, Dungeoneering, History, Nature, Religion | Intelligence | Implement | Scrying |
| Kord | Athletics, Endurance, Intimidate, Nature | Strength | Lightning, Thunder, Fear, Weapon | -- |
| Lolth | Bluff, Dungeoneering, Stealth, Thievery | Dexterity | Charm, Illusion | Deception |
| Melora | Nature, Dungeoneering | Wisdom | Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, Thunder | Exploration |
| Moradin | Dungeoneering, Endurance | Constitution | Conjuration | Exploration, Warding |
| Orcus | Intimidate, Religion | Strength | Necrotic, Weapon | Creation |
| Pelor | Diplomacy, Heal, History, Insight, Perception | Wisdom | Radiant, Healing, Implement | Restoration |
| The Raven Queen | Perception, Religion | Strength | Cold, Implement, Weapon | Divination |
| Sehanine | Acrobatics, Bluff, Stealth, Thievery | Dexterity | Illusion, Weapon | Deception |
| Tiamat | Intimidate, Thievery | Strength | Weapon | Scrying |
| Torog | Perception | Constitution | Polymorph | Binding |
| Vecna | Arcana, Perception, Insight, Religion | Intelligence | Necrotic, Implement | Scrying, Divination |
| Zehir | Stealth, Thievery | Dexterity | Poison, Weapon | Deception |
Calling a Divine Favor
- Usable once per day, additional use gained each Milestone
- Once per encounter
- A Free Action, unless otherwise stated
Divine Favors often use Favor Point Bonus (FPB) to add to the ability. This bonus is 1/10 of your Accumulated Favor Points with that deity (minimum 0, round down).
If a PC calls a Divine Favor from a god of their alignment, they gain a bonus to it.
- 1 FP – +1 divine bonus to a skill, ability, attack or Ritual roll with that god's association you or an ally you can see make this round. Multiple points can be spent for a greater bonus. Bonus must be declared BEFORE the roll.
Alignment Bonus – Bonus can be gained after the roll. - 5 FP – Reroll an attack, skill, ability or Ritual check you make with a god's association.
Alignment Bonus – Reroll with a +2 plus FPB divine bonus. - 10 FP – The PC can receive that deity's Godsend as a Minor Action, unless otherwise stated.
Alignment Bonus – The Godsend costs only 7 FP.
All Divine Favors still at the discretion of the DM. Dark Gift of the Undying is a Creation ritual. That does not mean Erathis will help you cast it.
Divine Favor, Page 2
| Deity | Godsend | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Asmodeus | Devil's Guile | Gain a divine bonus equal to your Level plus FPB to any Diplomacy checks made this encounter and roll twice each time, choosing the better of the two. Once during the encounter, as a Standard Action, roll a Diplomacy check against the Will defense of a target who can hear you speak. Success Dominates the target (save ends). The target is unaware of this effect. |
| Avandra | Wind At Your Back | Add your FPB to your tactical speed and gain the ability to shift half your speed as a Move Action until your next extended rest or add your FPB to the overland speed of a number of targets equal to your Level Bonus for a number of days equal to your FPB. |
| Bahamut | Shield of the Faithful | Any one target in sight gets Resistance to all damage equal to your Level Bonus plus FPB until the end of the encounter. |
| Bane | Draw From Their Fear | Make an Intimidate check, with an FPB divine bonus against Will on all enemies who can see you. You gain a divine bonus to attack rolls equal to your Level plus your FPB against any who fail until the end of the encounter. |
| Corellon | Arcane Inspiration | For the rest of the day, gain a divine bonus equal to your Level Bonus plus your FPB to any Ritual you perform and half the casting time. Additionally, as a Minor Action, pass any Arcana check to detect or identify magic, even untrained. |
| Erathis | Strength of Many | For each ally who attacked the same target this round, you gain a divine bonus to attack and damage to that target equal to your FPB (minimum 1 per ally). |
| Gruumsh | Let None Stand in Your Way | Gain a divine bonus to all damage rolls equal to your Level Bonus plus FPB until the end of the encounter. |
| Ioun | Knowledge of the Gods | For the rest of the day, automatically pass any knowledge check you make. Once during the day, choose 1 target you can see. Learn a number of important facts they know equal to your FPB (minimum 1). |
| Kord | Confront the Storm | For the rest of the encounter, gain a divine bonus to attack rolls equal to the sum of Experience costs of each visible enemy within 20 squares divided by the cost of a standard monster of your level. If this division would be less than 1, you gain no bonus. This effect ends when you fail to Engage an enemy as per the Divine Challenge rules for Paladins. |
| Lolth | Charm of the Dark | Gain a divine bonus equal to your Level plus FPB to next Bluff check made this encounter and roll twice, choosing the better of the two. You can also use Bluff to Feint (PHB 183) as a Minor Action for this encounter and more than just once per encounter. |
| Melora | Nature's Commune | Gain acute knowledge of surrounding natural area equal to a number of miles equal to twice your Level combined with your FPB. If instead used in combat, for the rest of the encounter, you can choose any and all damage you deal to be one of Melora's keyword elements and gain Resistance to that element 5 + Level Bonus + FPB. You can change this element as a Move Action. |
| Moradin | In The Face of Adversity | Gain a divine bonus to all rolls equal to your FPB for the rest of the encounter. |
| Orcus | Rise For Your Master | You create undead equal to your FPB (minimum 1) within 10 squares of you. The undead must all have the same name, be from the Monster's Manual and have a level no higher than your Level Bonus. These undead last until destroyed and follow only your commands. As a minor action, you can command any one or all of the undead to take a particular action, which they will continue to do to the best of their ability until commanded otherwise. |
| Pelor | Summer's Sun | All allies within 5 plus FPB squares gain hit points as if they had spent a healing surge and also gain your Level Bonus plus FPB temporary hit points. Roll a number of d10 equal to twice your FPB. All undead within burst take that much radiant damage. Additionally, as Keeper of Time, Pelor grants you an extra Standard Action. |
| The Raven Queen | Your Fate is Sealed | For the rest of the encounter, know the current and maximum hit points of every target in sight. Once during this encounter, you can kill a target within 10 squares if it is equal to or below 5 plus FPB% (+3% if undead) of its maximum hit points. The target can not be Raised or turned into an undead without direct divine intervention. |
| Sehanine | Moon's Trickery | Become invisible for your FPB round(s) and you can create an illusory version of yourself in your square. You can move the illusion your speed with a minor action. Upon seeing the illusion, any target disbelieves it with Insight DC 15 plus your Level Bonus plus FPB. Being told the illusion is fake grants a +5 bonus. The illusion disappears when you reappear. Additionally, you can coup de grace any target flanked between you and the illusion (if the target has not disbelieved the illusion). |
| Tiamat | Take What's Yours | You learn the number of worthwhile items (more than 20gp) a target or building has and where it is on their person or in which room. For each FPB you have, you can identify the price one of the items. You also gain a divine bonus to any Thievery check you make this encounter equal to your Level Bonus plus FPB. |
| Torog | Trap the Body | Free Action: Gain a number of Hindrance Points equal to your FPB. To any target within sight, as a Minor Action, you can spend those points. 1 point on a target slows them (save ends with a FPB penalty). 2 points immobilizes them (save ends). 5 points turns them helpless (1 round). 10 points petrifies them. Unspent Hindrance Points dissipate at the end of the encounter. |
| Vecna | Secrets of the Dead | For the rest of the day, your mental stats are considered to be your FPB higher for determining your modifier. |
| Zehir | Coursing Venom | A target within sight gains Vulnerability to Poison equal to your Level Bonus plus FPB until the end of the encounter and all damage dealt by all of your attacks is Poison damage until the end of the encounter. |
The bottom of the first chart mentions a Godsend. This is a special ability each god possesses and each Godsend manifests differently. The people I play with have come to really enjoy the Divine Favor mechanic. It adds an element of roleplay that everyone enjoys and keeps the PCs in character in an effort to score more FP. Plus, with an added way to reroll a bad roll, it keeps the players in high spirits when they roll a 1 on their favorite daily power.
Each PC keeps track of their own FP, so it's not too difficult on me, as the DM. The only real addition to my work is making ways for the PCs to gain Favor into each quest, although that's really not that hard. For a while, we played that, at each level gain, the PC would gain 5 FP with their primary deity, but that ended up being too many points, with how often I was handing them out as well. Dropping the automatic points every level, we've found a good balance.
This mechanic shouldn't be something the PCs rely on, but rather a back-up to the back-up when something goes very wrong. And it rewards players who stay in character and think as their characters would. For example, the PCs happened upon a subservient zombie which obeyed their orders. Because they accepted it as an ally (or rather pack mule / butler), they gained favor with Vecna and Orcus. If they had chosen to kill it, they would have gained points with The Raven Queen and Pelor instead. I try to make the FP gain based on decisions the characters make, or rewarding good (or evil) deeds.
The more astute out there might notice Orcus listed as a god. Although he is not a god, he really ought to be. He's got enough worshipers and now even his own miniature! (although calling it "miniature" is insulting.)