Servants and Companions of the Gods
Some mortal beings, and even some immortal beings, become the paramours and servants of God's. History is replete with examples of humans who drew the love, or the lust, of a divine figure and were then swept up in the furor of being loved by a divinity. Other beings have opted to pledge themselves to divinity and become something more than human. Regardless of the reasoning, or the specifics involved in the relationship, a Consort is someone who has pledged themselves to a Pagan God. There are two types of consorts - finite or infinite.
Finite consorts are humans, or other beings, that have accepted a God's love or support, and as such gain a limited form of immortality for as long as the God's support continues. A finite consort will not age but can still be brought low by disease or accident. Such consorts are usually fits of lust or love, brief liasons that last only as long as the god's interest is maintained. The god's connection to its finite consort is not as complete or as bidirectional, but the god gains an awareness of its consort and can taste what the consort tastes, feel what the consort feels, see through the consorts eyes, and channel its own power through it's consort. The consort gains only it's limited immortality.
Infinite consorts are humans, or other beings, which have done enough or sacrificed enough, that the blessing the god chooses to extent is considerably deeper. The Divinity links part of its own divine essence to its consort, granting a psychospiritual connection which is incredibly deep. The God can taste what the consort tastes, feel what the consort feels, see through the consorts eyes, and channel its own power through it's consort. The connections forged with an infinite consort are permanent, granting part of the God's own vitality to the consort, liberating the consort from age, disease, and granting a supernatural resilience to the consort. The consort gains an awareness of the God's emotional state of being, his attitudes and needs, becoming the perfect servant, companion, partner, or in some rare cases, spouse.
Human consorts do not gain any other abilities for becoming a God's consort, but supernatural beings or those with extant powers will usually gain additional powers or abilities.
The Voice of the God
Almost every god has the potential and the power to consecrate individuals among it's followers as a Priest or a Priestess. Bestowing this privilege on someone is rare in comparitive times as there are few souls with the depth of faith required to serve in that capacity, but it is common for a God to entrust a worshipper with the capability of leading its flock.
This allows the God to hand over administrative functions, and permits itself to remain mysterious and ineffable, but more than that it is a symbol of the Gods power. The more priests there are, the more powerful the God is. Each Priesthood is organized and established by a priest who becomes the High Priest, in theory acting in accordance with the direct command of the God or Goddess. Most of the time however, the arrangement and hierarchy of the priesthood is often left in the hands of mortals.
Priests, by virtue of their consecration and appointment gain access to the ability to perform magic, though this magic is drawn directly from the deity rather than from any other source.
- Each Priest gains the unique source: Divinity and gains two techniques of the God's choosing. These techniques are usually related to the God's portfolio's but this association is not a mandatory thing.
- Source: Divinity - The magician draws his power from a pagan deity, who has granted him this power.
- Innate Power: Recognize the Faithful: The priest can recognize other priests devoted to the same Deity and feels a sense of kinship with those that worship the same God.