Well rounded pantheon

[face-face12]

So I need some help creating a well rounded pantheon...I think, Let me start out by saying that there are two main religious groups in my world both with their own pantheons. The two main groups are the Haven worshipers which lean more towards light and purity and the Gothic worshipers which lean more towards darkness and struggle, neither group is really good or bad although the Haven worshipers believe otherwise. The religion does play a role in the stories that I have been writing, well trying to write but let me get to the point, while I was creating the deity for both I kept running into an issue, I kept finding my self giving the gods qualities that made them seem strictly good or evil, like the god of truth and light or the goddess of darkness and undeath and I really want to stay away from that strictly good/bad cliche if possible. There are six Haven gods and seven Gothic gods, I'm not asking you to create the deity for me just give me some ideas or tell how to mix qualities and traits or even give me a list of qualities to play with, so then they wont really sound strictly good guy or bad guy, I hope this was not too confusing sorry if i'm not clear on what i'm asking please ask for any clarification!

 

[Pythagoras]

It's tough not to have a good-evil dichotomy when there are only two gods pitted against each other.

 

[face-face12]

It's tough not to have a good-evil dichotomy when there are only two gods pitted against each other.

There are not only two gods. In the post I said six Haven deity and seven Gothic deity which makes 13 and they aren't really pitted against each other, they just have their own motives that sometimes clash with the motives of the other deity.

 

[TheokinsJ]

One question-when you say 'qualities', do you mean a role? (E.g. The sun god, the moon god, the god of fire, God of Wisdom etc), or are you referring to the characteristics of the gods themselves?

 

[Hainted]

Just look at how their roles can be interpreted and misread by the other side. Fire, for example, can be beneficial or highly destructive. Order can be law abiding and tradition or dogmatic and opposed to any innovation. My goddess Sehryld is the embodiment of the Void or Chaos which everything sprung from and will one day return to. This means that she embodies anarchy, and disorder, but also change, and possibility and renewal. It also makes her Goddess of Love, cause what in human experience is more chaotic than Love?

 

[face-face12]

One question-when you say 'qualities', do you mean a role? (E.g. The sun god, the moon god, the god of fire, God of Wisdom etc), or are you referring to the characteristics of the gods themselves?

Both, for example with Elder Scrolls Akatosh is the god of time but he represents the qualities of endurance, invincibility, and everlasting legitimacy

 

[WooHooMan]

I have two pantheons in my setting, both with members of varying mortality. But then there's the devil-figure who, to a degree, is active and hated in both pantheons. And in having this figure in both pantheons, it kind of unifies the two.

So, there's my suggestion. A bad guy can look like an anti-hero if you put him up against someone worse.

 

[face-face12]

I like this suggestion but my Gothics aren't really bad guys, my protagonist worships Gothic deity, they lean more towards growth through struggle and doing whatever you have to do to get ahead or survive, things like that

 

[WooHooMan]

I like this suggestion but my Gothics aren't really bad guys, my protagonist worships Gothic deity, they lean more towards growth through struggle and doing whatever you have to do to get ahead or survive, things like that

I think you misunderstand my suggestion: I'm talking about including villainous figure in both pantheons (like a monster) that would serve the function of making all the gods look like good guys.

For example, in Egyptian mythology, Set is often looked at as a less-than-pleasant god. He's a chaos deity who messed with Osiris and Horus. However, he was an enemy of Apep the evil snake monster. So in most variations of Egypt mythology, Set is neither totally good nor totally bad.
In contrast: the Angra Mainyu in Zoroastrianism only fights good gods. So he's a totally evil god.

 

[Captain Loye]

Perhaps you could look at it a different way. Firstly, are your gods actually interacting with the story, or are they there are justification for the actions of your characters?

If they're just part of your world-building and as a way to differentiate your two societies, you could think about other ways your gods might differ. One society might have gods like the Greeks, with a large pantheon of individuals who interact and are essentially 'human' in their motivations and actions. The other society might have instead give aspects of nature a 'spirit' or god, but have them viewed as a force rather than a conscious personality. The god of fire and spirit of fire might be similar but be worshipped very differently (you wouldn't want to piss off a god of fire who was conscious and could seek you out, but you might feel okay skipping a prayer session if you worshipped a non-sentient fire spirit).

If they're actual characters, you could have their personalities be shaped differently. In Greek mythology (I'm definitely no expert, so anyone feel free to pop in and correct me) the gods seem to be able to express a range of emotions in no way linked to their sphere. Any god can get angry/jealous/sad etc depending on their mood and what they want (very human-like). The alternative is to have a god's personality explicity linked to their sphere, so the god of fire is always impulsive and passionate, the god of night is always calm and enigmatic and so on.

Hope this helps

 

[Trick]

I think misinterpretation is the key. The Gothics could have a god of justice or retribution and the Havens could view that god as a demon of revenge, or even a god of revenge if they acknowledge the godhood of those in the opposing pantheon. It's really about how the two groups view each other's deities. Look at the Christian God, how many times have people said, "how could God do this?" thinking Him cruel, while others maintain faith and say He is all merciful? And that's in reference to the same Being. You have way more freedom to design gods with easily misinterpreted intentions. If the Havens have a god of love, the Gothics could view that god as the deity of lust and over-indulgence, since they seem to be more stoic by your description. I could literally make a list of these opposing interpretations but I doubt you need me to.

Just my $0.02

 

[face-face12]

Oh now I see what you'er saying sorry for misunderstanding thanks for making things clear

 

[face-face12]

Thanks for your suggestion, its really helpful and its more than just $0.02 haha