Strange Gods (and Melrose Place & the FF) in Dragon #398?
The article that I mentioned several weeks ago is now online in Dragon #398. It's "Strange Gods," part of the ongoing Unearthed Arcana series (a DDI subscription is required for downloading). Like "Faith and Heresy," this was fun to write, but the satisfaction of seeing it published came much faster: one month!
A few months back, while Jeff LaSala and I were putting the finishing touches on "Faith and Heresy," Dragon Editor Steve Winter asked us to consider spinning some of our thoughts on D&D 4E clerics and religion into an Unearthed Arcana article, pulling in concepts from some of the classic fiction that has inspired D&D and fantasy writers over the decades. Hmm, diving into the works of Fritz Leiber, Michael Moorcock, and H.P. Lovecraft, as well as Greek, Roman, and Egyptian mythology? Hell, yeah! I'll do that! The only thing I was nervous about was riding solo on the writing. Jeff and I had been in a creative mind-meld for much of the previous 18 months, but with the publication of the by-Odin's-beard-it's-awesome Foreshadows anthology approaching the 11th hour of pre-publication pandemonium, he needed to focus on that. Thus did this aging neophyte RPG writer begin his first solo project for Wizards of the Coast. Things did not get off to a good start when hours of typing vanished into the cyber-ether one night. Fun!
Beers, tears, and a cardiac resuscitation later, I was back to writing at mach speed. I lumped my "Strange Gods" into three groups: 1) Disdainful, callous, uninterested gods, 2) Alien, malevolent, unknowable gods (probably with lots of tentacles), and 3) Demigods who don't really get the whole divine thing. Citing examples from fiction and mythology was thoroughly enjoyable, especially since I ended up making references to the Fantastic Four, Melrose Place, and the Tunguska Event, not to mention the old Birthright and Ravenloft D&D settings. (To my surprise, my freaking sidebar to Ravenloft remained intact in the final article! Hallelujah! Uh, I mean, Hail Strahd!)
Then Steve suggested a "Create Your Own God" table at the end of the article. Muahahahaha! For an inexorably non-religious person, I derived a serious amount of joy from this part of the assignment, creating possibilities for appearance (reptilian or steaming body?), behavior (mocking or lazy?), odd interests (innocent mortals: symbols of purity or yummy delicacies?), and lots more. I'm eager to hear about the deities that folks come up with.
Another thing from which I derived joy and even inspiration: the illustration that WotC had commissioned before my text was even completed. I've included it here -- a beautiful, creepy painting from Noah Bradley. Once I saw that image and found the Fritz Leiber passage for the kickoff, I knew that the tone of the article was set. Read and enjoy the divine strangeness.