Faith - Incarnate [Spirit]

Both inside and outside the Republic, the incarnate gods have followers who worship them for support and comfort. The Summer Gods have worshipers all through Hava, and the Winter Gods have influence here as well.

For many, the worshipping of the incarnate gods is simply pragmatism over faith; it's much easier for a soldier believe in the power of a twelve foot tall warrior who appears on battlefields to fight the nomadic hordes than it is to believe in the power of the universe and its love for him. That gap in faith is what makes the difference between an Orthodox Raelite, who believes in the practice of Raelism at the exclusion of any other worship, and the reform and mystical Raelite sects, who see the incarnate gods as Rael's servants or as powers in their own right. (There are also Exclusionist Raelites, who see all the Incarnate gods as evil powers out to destroy the one true faith, and want their worship banned and their bodies killed. Best of luck.)

For those who are firm in their Incarnate Faith, the deity they worship will extend a portion of their power, so long as the worshiper remains true to the tenants of the Deity. This is a trade off between the Deity and the worshipper; it apparently draws power from having you as a worshipper, and can see through your senses and draw upon your skills to enhance itself. It can contact and direct you as needed for its plans in the material world. Finally, it makes you a more powerful tool in its hands. You gain powers that normal people don't have, and which most of the time are pretty well unsupervised, and the knowledge that you are working for a great cause, which sometimes lets you get support from the deity's other worshippers. Each Incarnate Faith has its own symbols and call signs that let worshipers identify each other, and they are expected to aid one another in times of peril.

Having an Incarnate Faith does not mean that you can cast 'spells': though some deities prefer having spell casters as worshippers, they do not grant those abilities. Incarnate Faith is not at odds with any of the Lore's, or with Raelite Faith; those who have Faith for both Raelism and an Incarnate god are always Reform Raelists, whose view of the Incarnate Gods as saints of the universe lets them reconcile the concept of following two belief structures.

The higher your rank in the Incarnate Faith skill, the more you know about the mysteries and doctrine of the god, and more highly placed you are in it's worship. A higher rank means you can give orders to other worshipers rather than follow them, and draw funds from church treasures rather than tithe to them. Of course, the higher your rank, the more the god has its eyes on you, and the more it—and the other worshipers—expect from you. You can make tests with your Incarnate Faith to draw upon the deities material resources, or to draw the deity's attention to you in hopes of assistance, though that can be both very difficult and a mixed blessing.

Sub-Skills for Incarnate Faith depend on the god chosen, and are dealt with in the Incarnate Gods appendix (not included on this site).

   

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