What are the benefits of godhood?

[qazxsw158]

What do you beings, particularly mortals who became divine gain from becoming a god. It seems as if you are trapped, lose all your free will and can only interact with the world through your followers by them redoing all the things you already done in the past. 

[Joerg]

Becoming a permanent part of the timeless mythical structure of Glorantha, assured existence, escape from Death.

 

[JRE]

Most powerful Gloranthans agree with your implied assumption that it is not that great, which is why there are many more heroes than demigods, and most heroes that become deified or cult spirits  do it when they are dead and no longer have free will anyway.

One of the general principles in my view of Glorantha is that power decreases your freedom. The game itself reinforces it, by adding big limitations in time and money to Rune level characters, and taboos and limitations to Shamans. We expect similar limitations, increasing as you gain power. for sorcerers and mystics, though we do not have the details.

 

 

[DrGoth]

Thinking about it in terms of devotion helps. Being devoted to that aspect of the world, if you can keep supporting it, why not?  

[French Desperate WindChild]

12 hours ago, qazxsw158 said:

It seems as if you are trapped

you are not trapped, you just leave the mundane world and can't freely interact with it (you need your worshippers to call you)

However, if you leave the mundane world, it is to join the gods world.

Another experience for you, for ever. Who knows what gods do in their dimension(s) when mortals are not heroquesting

[Squaredeal Sten]

13 hours ago, qazxsw158 said:

....becoming a god. It seems as if you are trapped, lose all your free will and can only interact with the world through your followers by them redoing all the things you already done in the past. 

That only applies to the old gods who are parties to the Great Compromise.  If you are Sedenya you evidently get all the benefits without that limitation.

It is unclear to me what the Compromise status of other mortals who achieve godhood in Time is.  Many, like Pavis with city godhood, seem to conform to that behavior. But is it compulsory?

But in game terms:  Everyone's goal is implicitly to build a more powerful character.  At godhood you have achieved the maximum in that direction. 

As additional benefits or prizes:

* You get relative immortality, relative because if Orlanth can be "killed" so can other gods.  But at least there is no expiration date stamped on your mortal package.   

*And you get worshipped too, which is very appealing and flattering. 

You have WON.

This is not to deny French Desperate Windchild's hypothesis that the gods in the Godtime / Gods World feel no limitation.

[Shiningbrow]

However, in response to what others have said, and in particular @Squaredeal Sten, you can HQ to get immortality, plus resurrection, and probably also instant healing... and there are ways to tap into the worship of mortals, such that you can get powers.

So. there's not much of a greater benefit to apotheosis - except maybe being able to be in many places at once.

[soltakss]

On 6/28/2023 at 11:46 PM, qazxsw158 said:

What do you beings, particularly mortals who became divine gain from becoming a god. It seems as if you are trapped, lose all your free will and can only interact with the world through your followers by them redoing all the things you already done in the past. 

You live forever, get a place in the God Time and get people to worship you.

In the Hero Wars you can even come back for a bit to mess about and strut your stuff until the world breaks and is put together again.

 

[JRE]

The real benefit is that a superhero has all the power focused in themselves, which is why they are so badass, but all the power is selfish.

If you apotheosize, like Sartar did, you no longer can change and adapt, but you give people who worship you, or just know some of your secrets, the possibility to tap into that power and do wonderful things they could not do before. A superhero can do many things but only by personal action, and many of them are unmade or neutralized by other heroes. A new god changes their culture, from minor ones like Sartar to major ones like Sedenya.

[Squaredeal Sten]

On 7/2/2023 at 4:47 AM, Shiningbrow said:

However, in response to what others have said, and in particular @Squaredeal Sten, you can HQ to get immortality, plus resurrection, and probably also instant healing... and there are ways to tap into the worship of mortals, such that you can get powers.

So. there's not much of a greater benefit to apotheosis - except maybe being able to be in many places at once.

I'm not sure what you can get by heroquesting, since that depends on the GM.  The line between a superhero and a minor god is not distinct from my distant and unofficial  point of view. 

But as I understand it

*a superhero can be killed in the Middle World, and that resurrection is not automatic. 

*A god can't be killed in the Middke World, only by heroquesting into the Gods World, and doesn't worry about resurrecting a physical body. 

*Also as pointed out above the god can support multiple followers with Rune magic  allowing miracles in the Middle World without personal presence.