Mystra is dead! Oh no!

[NecropolisV]

Truly I think the only people that have the best chance of knowing and should know are magi, sorcerers, priests, bards, and other people of good lore... why? Because you don't expect a warrior to look into the sky and believe mystryl was back (if he even knew what mystryl was or even heard of her) just by seeing a star, and i doubt the average warrior uses magic like mages or sorcerers so overall he would not know! The miscarriages and other things could be interpreted as a disaster, or omen of evil as things like that usually are. Priests would know since they keep up to date on their fellow priesthoods and enemys to take religous advantage. Mages and Sorcerers would know! Even though we seem to cast magic exactly the same, when you think about it, every wizard or sorcerer for at least a bit should have had some trouble while mystryl was taking the weave back, so they know something went wrong in the weave!

[SanTelmo]

The images witnessed by those on Ymph reveal this much to its inhabitants (who were there at the time). Whether they are false, true or half-truths are left for the men of Ymph (where many kind of Mist visions are common enough, perhaps usually not shared by this many at the same time...) to decide.

What is felt and experienced on the Ymph and rest of the realms is the following:

Magic is fickle. Especially just after the event, chaos occurred. Now it has a bit calmed down but for how long, it is unsure. Spells do not at times work as they should and can cause extreme havoc.

Mystra does no longer answer her faithful. In the realms, most clergies and temples of Mystra would rather swiftly turn into chaos and despair. Meanwhile, the secluded and small factions (which would be very rare indeed) and other -few- devouts of Mystryl around are once again blessed with divine connection. As a result of this, they begin to gain followers (likely from the ones of former Mystra).


I will also use this to emphasize the point that Mystryl is not Mystra with a different name. They have completely different philosophies regarding the use of magic and clergies and faithful worshippers would swiftly realize this.

Dogma of Mystra:

Love magic for itself. Do not treat it just as a weapon to  reshape the world to your will. True wisdom is knowing when not to use  magic. Strive to use magic less as your powers develop, for often the  threat or promise of its use outsripes its actual performance. Magic is  Art, the Gift of the Lady, and those who wield it are privileged in the  extreme. Conduct yourself humbly, not proudly, while being mindful of  this. Use the Art deftly and efficiently, not carelessly and recklessly.  Seek always to learn and create new magic.

Dogma of Mystryl:

Embrace the gift of magic in all of its glory, and do not take it for  granted. Magic is your instrument, a thing of raw beauty, power, and  majesty to be used to its greatest potential and never to be cloistered  or contained. Research new subjects, spells, and magical items, for  without waves of purpose and the pride of mages, the creative chaos of  the weave will stagnate. Those who fail to embrace the full potential of  the Lady's supreme gift are the worst of all abusers of the weave.


While the Mystrans seek to invent and work magic (also new magic), they usually do it with extreme caution and modesty and avoid collateral damage.

While all Mystrylites do not seek to deliberately cause harm while experimenting magic, they are not afraid to embrace the unknown and are willing to take risks in their magical conduct.


And before anyone goes ballistic, this is not directed at anyone in special. This is to help understand the change of Mystra to Mystryl. You are welcome to play your characters as they are but the old ways of Mystra are unlikely to provide you with good results (divine-wise), especially if you claim to be a Mystryls follower. Striving for such might in fact result in very dangerous events caused by the fickle and easily offended goddess.

[Numos]

The Forgotten Realms pantheons are boring. Why?

The Numinous Order is interesting. Why?

Forgotten Realms' pantheons are not conducive to conflicts of faith and religion. There are few open ended mysteries, and it offers no reason or incentive for your character to ever doubt their faith. Everyone knows exactly what each god stands for, and heretical cults are extremely fare because you risk losing your magic powers and becoming a brick in the wall. The gods strike me more as cookie cutter philosophies for characters to have rather than genuine faiths.

Contrast that with the Numinous Order where no one knows WHAT the mist is, if Tyr, Torm, and Ilmater really grant them spells, or if some darker entity is behind it all. People find their faith, question it, and a lot of cool conflict arises. Good stuff.

So you can either demand people immediately switch to the new dogma and mercilessly explode people who don't - or embrace conflict between Mystrans and Mystrylans; people who interpret Mystryl's dogma in other ways: and people who reject her completely. I think the latter makes for much better storytelling.

[The Old Hack]

The Forgotten Realms pantheons are boring. Why?

The Numinous Order is interesting. Why?

Forgotten Realms' pantheons are not conducive to conflicts of faith and religion.

I would like to insert a comment here, but please note that I am in no way attempting to refute you, merely to complement you.

The Forgotten Realms pantheons are not very conducive to conflicts of faith and religion as they read. It takes very, very little to change them into something a lot more fun and interesting. In an FR game I once ran, I created a Tormtar faction called the Sanctionists. These believed that Torm's dogma and mandate should not only be forcefully implemented and imposed but also added a 'moral' dimension where they subjected the 'decadent and degenerate' to 'Torm's Justice.' Very briefly put, they went Puritan on the asses of the local populace, closed brothels, outlawed gambling and so forth. You can imagine how much Sharessim, Tymorans and a bunch of others didn't love that! (I should add, the idea was by no means entirely my own but was taken from a brief bit about some Tormites acting kind of like this during the Time of Troubles.)

In a similar vein, I had the Church of Tempus split into two major factions that were outright at war with each other, a Northern and more direct and 'barbaric' one against a Southern more 'civilised' one. Part of the split was as simple as this -- one side called the God Tempus, the other Tempos, and just pronouncing it 'wrong' was often enough to set off fights!

I also had two Sharessim factions, one completely wild and bent on orgies, the other marginally more 'responsible', both uniting against the Sanctionists as their common enemy except for the ones who didn't and tried to use the Tormites against their 'internal enemies'... fun times!

(For some reason, all my players ended up hating the Sanctionists passionately. That just made it all the more fun when they ended up needing them against Banite invaders...)

In short, yes, the FR pantheons suck arse as they stand but they really don't require that much to fix them.

~tOH.

[HungeringShadows]

I also had two Sharessim factions, one completely wild and bent on orgies, the other marginally more 'responsible', both uniting against the Sanctionists as their common enemy except for the ones who didn't and tried to use the Tormites against their 'internal enemies'... fun times!

(For some reason, all my players ended up hating the Sanctionists passionately. That just made it all the more fun when they ended up needing them against Banite invaders...)

I think I might have spotted the reasoning behind their affiliations.

As for how things are interpreted. Leave it to each player to interpret things how they want. So long as it doesn't cause your character or the story you're trying to tell direct harm it really doesn't matter how people choose to roleplay what transpired. I find that players policing each others roleplay creates something of a poor atmosphere.

[Vlaid]

If you don't like the way someone else is worshiping your god, pick up the staff and wizard-hat.

That's what holy wars are for!

[The Old Hack]

So long as it doesn't cause your character or the story you're trying to tell direct harm it really doesn't matter how people choose to roleplay what transpired.

Humph! When my vile heterodox Helmite is attempting to cleave the skull of an upstanding and righteous Ordersman, she is doing the best she can to cause him direct harm, you RP cop!

>.>

I find that players policing each others roleplay creates something of a poor atmosphere.

More seriously: I agree 100% with this. I find it immensely irritating to get Tells declaring that I am 'roleplaying my character wrong'. If you really do have a problem with someone's roleplaying it may be a better idea to send a polite private message on the forums or IRC asking to discuss it, or alternately to ask a DM to adjudicate it.

~tOH.

[Teeth in a Bowl]

H

More seriously: I agree 100% with this. I find it immensely irritating to get Tells declaring that I am 'roleplaying my character wrong'. If you really do have a problem with someone's roleplaying it may be a better idea to send a polite private message on the forums or IRC asking to discuss it, or alternately to ask a DM to adjudicate it.

~tOH.

Do people actually do that?

[Incorrigible]

I quite like the FR gods. Of course on EFU most people are layswords of their faith so in that light I can also see how they are not as fitting.

[Numos]

[Snip.]

I agree with everything you said. Forgotten Realms gods can be made interesting very easily. Though if you go in with the expectation that characters should adhere exactly to a singular interpretation the Dogma from the source books, whether as a cleric or layman, I think you're severely limiting story potential.