In my experience, gods appreciate when people take the time to do this. It must surely be gratifying for them to have players really embrace these words and ideas that they thought up; to bring them to life and carry them in new directions. Players in their turn must be grateful to have this guidance, and the reassurance that comes with it. This is where the rewarding personal relationships come into play, to whatever degree. They grow from this mutual respect.
Players can't fill these roles. Players are ephemeral. They change. They change their minds, their allegiances, they move on, they grow up. Gods are canon - constant, paradigm. Barring cataclysmic events and regardless of who is playing them currently, they will always be what they always were. This is their role - they serve a loftier purpose than regular players.
If my convoluted account of the many benefits has failed to sway you, then the short answer is that you should worship the gods because that's what they're for.
This is not exactly correct...
In the current context of the game the gods are extensively tied to their orgs, but prior to affinity the relation of players to them was indeed more focused around who they are as an individual.
But this was not all, of course Elcyrion merging with Lacostian resulted in Elostian needing to choose one org, he chose Celest. But I vaguely remember some form of conflict between him and the city. And the moment that Hallifax became a thing, he jumped straight over.
I'd also point out that for the most part, most of the orgs already have something "higher" that they can follow.
The path of the White Hart seems more along the line of a religion, as does the Moondance Coven, for example. And the greater power above them is not necessarily the Elders, but nature itself. Elders may join Serenwilde if their personalities and teachings are in line with those of the forest. But realistically, any member of the Pantheon could be kicked out if they are considered to have acted against nature or serenwilde.
In my experience, gods appreciate when people take the time to do this. It must surely be gratifying for them to have players really embrace these words and ideas that they thought up; to bring them to life and carry them in new directions. Players in their turn must be grateful to have this guidance, and the reassurance that comes with it. This is where the rewarding personal relationships come into play, to whatever degree. They grow from this mutual respect.
Players can't fill these roles. Players are ephemeral. They change. They change their minds, their allegiances, they move on, they grow up. Gods are canon - constant, paradigm. Barring cataclysmic events and regardless of who is playing them currently, they will always be what they always were. This is their role - they serve a loftier purpose than regular players.
If my convoluted account of the many benefits has failed to sway you, then the short answer is that you should worship the gods because that's what they're for.
This is not exactly correct...
In the current context of the game the gods are extensively tied to their orgs, but prior to affinity the relation of players to them was indeed more focused around who they are as an individual.
But this was not all, of course Elcyrion merging with Lacostian resulted in Elostian needing to choose one org, he chose Celest. But I vaguely remember some form of conflict between him and the city. And the moment that Hallifax became a thing, he jumped straight over.
I'd also point out that for the most part, most of the orgs already have something "higher" that they can follow.
The path of the White Hart seems more along the line of a religion, as does the Moondance Coven, for example. And the greater power above them is not necessarily the Elders, but nature itself. Elders may join Serenwilde if their personalities and teachings are in line with those of the forest. But realistically, any member of the Pantheon could be kicked out if they are considered to have acted against nature or serenwilde.
As a matter of fact, it IS possible for Gods to change allegiances the way you described... but it hasn't happened much, if it could be said to have happened at all, and it makes little logical sense to consider such an action happening. "Theoretically" a member of Seren's pantheon could get a lot of flak if they were perceived to have acted against nature... but can you imagine any of them doing so? I certainly can't. Even when cross-org divines banded together for a common good, they always were tied to their org's original purpose and their original ideals. Unlike in Aetolia, I've never witnessed a Lusternian God switch sides literally.
Elostian's was a case where instead of saying he switched from Celest to Hallifax (thereby "changing" his allegiance), it would be far more appropriate to say he was patroning Celest while waiting for Hallifax to come out. He never did have much in common with Celest in the first place - it wasn't really a "differences cropped up" kind of thing. The differences were there from the start.
If anything, an ORG would be the one switching allegiances from a God's ideals. The current Glomdoring is, for example, so much a creation of Viravain's, that if one day Viravain's ideals and Glom's ideals were to go down seperate paths, it would be Glom leaving Viravain's teachings, not the other way around. Similarly for the other orgs. If one day a gulf DOES open between Valtreth and Celest, it would likely not be because Valtreth "changed" his minds or his ideals, but much more likely because Celest did.
We worship divine because we value the RP, Munsia. You aren't interested in the RP (cutscenes), so you skip it/them. For some of us, the cutscenes make the game worthwhile.
My posts here have generally been erratic because I realise that this thread isn't going to have any conclusion. I don't mean any offense, Munsia, but explaining why -you- should worship a divine isn't going to make sense to you because you aren't interested in the things someone else would worship a god for: RP, a group to belong to, and so on. To you, a divine is merely a means to an end, a buff you can activate. Quite frankly, if you could put a shrine in your manse and offer it corpses for favors without ever needing to interact with a divine, you would.
For many of us, we worship divine for the interactions. If Isune never gave me another favor for the rest of my time as Entrias, but was always around for conversation/rp, I'd jump on that in a heartbeat. To me (and entrias), Isune isn't just a means to an end, something he can use to his advantage to gain an edge. She's a person with her own personality and past, an intricate soul with her own agenda and a thread in the tapestry of his life. If she wasn't around to worship or be part of his life, he'd be fine.
But the tapestry wouldn't be nearly as colorful.
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
The only Gods that Silvanus respects are Morgfyre and Raezon and thinks much lesser of almost all others, especially Viravain and Fain (limited interactions with others).
To Silvanus, Morgfyre and Raezon are both just means to an end, as they see me in the same way. While obviously the RP is different between the Traitors and non-Traitors, I don't think it's fair to say that not worshipping divine isn't a rp-interaction.
After all, 9 Vernals did what plenty of Elders failed to do.
2014/04/19 01:38:01 - Leolamins drained 2000000 power to raise Silvanus as a Vernal Ascendant.
2014/07/23 05:01:29 - Silvanus drained 2000000 power to raise Munsia as a Vernal Ascendant.
2015/05/24 06:03:07 - Silvanus drained 2000000 power to raise Arimisia as a Vernal Ascendant.
2015/05/24 06:03:58 - Silvanus drained 2000000 power to raise Lavinya as a Vernal Ascendant.
Quite frankly, if you could put a shrine in your manse and offer it corpses for favors without ever needing to interact with a divine, you would.
How silly a notion. I own a font.
In the end, we aren't discussing why I would, as a player, worship a Divine. That was never the intended topic. The conversation drifted that way because someone pointed out I should learn the lore so that I could immerse better.
We are discussing why we as characters should worship them.
Furthering the sentiment of a 'Means to an End' it is a mentality of the IG persona that leads to this. As many of the posts have already stated, we don't all kowtow/worship Divine for being Divine. That much has been made quite clear I think. It's power for power. Some of us seek higher heights and thrive on our ego's, bloodlust, and power hungry-ness.
Quite frankly, if you could put a shrine in your manse and offer it corpses for favors without ever needing to interact with a divine, you would.
How silly a notion. I own a font
Do you own a font because it makes your life easier, or do you own a font because it's something your chosen god had a hand in making, something they "touched" with their essence?
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
I don't mean to say that either choice is better than the other. My point is that if your font could hand out favors mechanically without you needing to interact with a god, you'd be fine with it.
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
Well, if you put it that way...we shouldn't. If every person in the Basin left their orders, removed all patrons from their orgs and went on with their lives, it ICly wouldn't change much, the gods would likely shrivel up and fade away. Mortals don't NEED the gods, it's just that they are another facet of life. I'd suggest that ICly, the gods need mortals more than mortals need gods.
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
@Lerad: I would suggest that your post highlights primarily that Elders exist in relation to orgs rather than independently of them.
Elostian and Elcyrion, possibly even Lacostian (I'm not as familiar with him) fit in the concept of a "Hallifax elder". As does Zvoltz and Jadice likely will too.
This seems like it has a side effect in that... well the most basic example is I guess in the Warriors.
We've had Hajamin, Terentia, Shikari, and Kalikai around. Now, if you wanted a warrior elder for Magnagora, unless you count Morgfyre, you'd likely need to create another warrior for them (perhaps Gruenella, Ivanko, Slaay, or oooh Thax.). And again if you wanted a Warrior type in Serenwilde, and again for Hallifax, and again if Ackleberry comes out, and again if Jojobo comes out.
The same is true for each of the circles, except the Sixth and Seventh, due to their nature, are less likely to appear aligned with cities (Though an awakener of Kelpies might work in Celest).
Their ties to the cities, their ability to practically be classified by the city or commune they ally with. These distance them from being gods and make them feel a bit more as followers of the greater concept behind the city.
Elders also heavily influence their orgs, as players we take our cues from them. Often this can be subtle, but I'd suggest that if an elder popped out next week that was based on the winter court concept people in Serenwilde are trying to push, any opposition would pretty much immediately shut up.
This is unlike say... Athena who had various domains that are unique to her, while she beat Poseidon to become the patron of Athens, she also had cults across greece. Where in Lusternia an elder that was effectively modelled on her would be limited, even though really she could probably be appropriate in both Celest and Hallifax.
In fact, affinity makes mortal civilisations a hard limitation on Elders.
Elostian's order originally drew people from all over the game because his teachings did transcend the limitations of just one organisation. However, now that affinity exists, if you have an appropriate mind for him but that mind exists outside of Hallifax, you can't follow him. If you are perhaps a philosopher in Glomdoring, or perform biological experiments in Gaudiguch then his order would not be a place for you. It was, but now his bond to a mortal construction is too great.
@Saran I believe Isune's was that way as well. As well as the original Auseklis teachings, and I wanna throw Lacostian into that but I suppose that's redundant?
@Saran I believe Isune's was that way as well. As well as the original Auseklis teachings, and I wanna throw Lacostian into that but I suppose that's redundant?
I think Elcyrion as well. I think this could be an example of mechanics limiting the Elders. Still, I think it's the majority that have elder concepts limited to a single org, and just expanding them beyond orgs wouldn't make them instantly "Gods" but it would reduce some of their in-character limitations.
But for the next few hours I will be drinking and trying to talk to cute nerd boys, so I'm out for a bit.
I would suggest that my post suggests that orgs exist primarily in relation to the Gods, rather than the other way around.
The nature communes are the most primary example of this: The "guidance of nature" of communes have always come from the wiccans,
who pray/worship/talk/divine directly with nature spirits. And all of the nature spirits were created or awoken by Elders. Most of these nature spirits are beholden to their creators or awakeners. If Nocht threw a frisbee, I wouldn't be surprised if Night would bring it back then prostrate herself at his feet wagging her tail. (Not literally, of course, but you get the idea.)
The cities do not have such an obvious link to draw upon - the supernals and demonlords are half-formed, not spirits woken by Elders. But to suggest that an Elder would "subscribe" to the ideals and tenets dictated by these half-formed is, at best, misguided. I'd like to see someone try to convert Fain into a Nifilhema fanatic. Or suggest that Terentia call out Japhiel's name when charging into battle. Amusing as that might be, it's simply unimaginable when you just think about the scale on which that these beings exist. The Elders that form the pantheon of an org are in no way "tied" to the ideals of that org - they create those ideals, if not directly through their orders and priests and preaching, then through their agents like the guardian/wiccan smobs.
I'm a little confused as to why there's an either/or mentality that seems to be cropping up. (Or maybe I'm totally misunderstanding here). Plus we keep seeming to get tangled up in semantics between real life definitions and Lusternian ones. Maybe?
It doesn't, at all, seem to me to be contradictory for people to both worships the guiding spirits/half formed of their org, while also worshiping the Elders. The means and modes and history of both forms of worship are different. Is that what people are objecting to? They feel like since religion and worship are more analogous to real life with the guiding spirits/half formed that we should come up with some other word for respecting the Elders, and not call them Gods?
This doesn't really make sense. God, in Lusternia, seems to refer mainly to Powerful being that is respected to some degree or another (vernal gods, like the nine. Soulless gods, demigods, etc) Reserved for Elders are the abilities to manifest realms and draw certain (but far from all) sustenance and power from essence derived from corpses and esteem. As shards, we can only do the same by attaching ourselves to the power of one of the Elders. Some people think the Elders are worth worshiping for this, and that's their prerogative. Just because you disagree, or your character disagrees, doesn't mean anyone who thinks so is insane.
You could probably form a cult around some unaffiliated demigod/ascendant (or other mortal) just fine, have a clan, rp it out. The mechanics would be lacking, but that's because your shard is cut off from gaining sustenance the same way an Elder is.
Meanwhile worshiping Moon and Night and the Supernals and Demon lords have their own religions built up around them. And different ways of "offering" to them (essence! fae!) Its separate but parallel to the worship of the Elders. This division has plenty of parallels in pantheistic religions. It's up to a particular character how they order their loyalties. Allyrianne is Hallifaxian above being a Symphonist and an Isuneite, although she'd have a hard time viewing all three as anything other than harmoniously intertwined. From what I've seen/heard, Elder worship can offer some interesting facets, and differing interpretations on worshipping Nature or the half-formed, and this isn't a bad thing. A Lisaeran wiccan is probably going to draw on different aspects of Moon's Avatars than someone who follows Hoaracle, and that just makes it more interesting.
The orgs, and their accompanying religions, predate the return of the Elders. But so far the Elders who've returned to the basin have all had good reason to take up with one, or another org, due to Who, or what, that org is pursuing for guidance. Most Elders probably have their own reasons and ic justifications for things that might seem weird. Most of the Elders I've talked to feel that organisations are a temporary thing, or are part of their plan, and so are simply working with the ones they feel the most affinity with. No, a Glomdoring philosopher can't be in Elostian's order anymore (if it even existed now), because if said philosopher truly valued philosophy above the Wyrd, they would leave Glomdoring and pursue Elostian no matter what. Affinity doesn't require that Gods refuse non-citizens, it merely places incentives for them to do so. And now Viravain, or Nocht, or Shikari, can benefit from having a philosophically minded Glomdoring order member, instead of everyone going "oh, all philosophers are in Elostian's order, if you want to do combat, you can worship Shikari, and if you care about art, go Isune."
The cities do not have such an obvious link to draw upon - the supernals and demonlords are half-formed, not spirits woken by Elders. But to suggest that an Elder would "subscribe" to the ideals and tenets dictated by these half-formed is, at best, misguided. I'd like to see someone try to convert Fain into a Nifilhema fanatic. Or suggest that Terentia call out Japhiel's name when charging into battle. Amusing as that might be, it's simply unimaginable when you just think about the scale on which that these beings exist. The Elders that form the pantheon of an org are in no way "tied" to the ideals of that org - they create those ideals, if not directly through their orders and priests and preaching, then through their agents like the guardian/wiccan smobs.
From what I recall from one of my characters in Eventru's order, some of the gods took to the half-formed as adoptive children in much the same way other gods took to the spirits. This was E's big thing with the Supernals, as I understand it. The Light itself (as a philosophy, at least) was something that came primarily from the Third Circle Gods to the Supernals in the wake of the Great Silence, since the half-formed were affected by that as well as the Gods.
I think Iklara is supposed to be another example of this, wherein a few Elders took in a sort of adoptive child, but in this instance Something Happened which we still don't know much about.
So, I feel like the way some of the gods relate to the half-formed isn't supposed to be much different from how others will relate to the spirits.
Let me directly answer the question in the thread before sorting through everything else
What makes them different other than the fact they are more powerful
than us? I don't believe the divine believe themselves to be any different than us other than being more powerful. From a perspective view, we are possibly what they could turn into one day (Which would be pretty cool). To me I feel as though they recognize this fact, and choose to either cover it up by making themselves seem more powerful or achieving a more unattainable status, or ignore the fact all together when interacting with mortals.
To My Character: He has been a follower of Lady Viravain for a while. He was more drafted than chose it of his own will but he has this belief in her teachings on a deeper level that radiates with him now that he's delved into it. He has a sense of awe and wonder in this divine that motivates him to do things and be productive even though he has no interaction with the source of the information whatsoever. (I've never talked to her but once, and she attended my wedding, only two times the character has interacted with her). To my character the physical manifestation of the divine doesn't matter it's the subject matter and understanding of the world that really differentiates them from him. Sure they all have faults and personalities, but every single one seems to know more than he does, always. That bridge of knowledge will always mean that they have a right to be respected and worshiped.
As Talan said each Divine's tenants are open enough for anyone to embrace them because they always give knowledge of how to live life, and each divine can expand on it. Living that lifestyle is kind of how all religions are, base tenants that the people who believe follow because they believe in those tenants and either fear the consequences or the benefits are rewarding enough.
Mortals are shards of Elder Gods, i.e., each mortal is a piece of the shattered consciousness of a god made manifest. Each mortal thus has the potential to become a god him/herself, which is what the Vernal Gods were and even the Ascended Gods. In other words, each divine shard within every mortal could potentially become as great as the divine soul of a whole god. It was originally the intent that mortals would have the potential to actualize him/herself to become 'whole' through some actualization. There are no levels of gods (barring perhaps Estarra). A god is a god, whether elder or ascended or vernal (at least on a metaphysical level). Unfortunately, this idea of mortals ascending to godhood never panned out mechanically in-game for a variety of reasons, so it is no longer possible (courtesy of Ayridion's creation of the Threshold Abyss). (Yes, Ascendants as they currently exist are -almost- gods!)
Elder Gods could not procreate or create life from scratch with souls (like they had). The closest they were able to get to was using the raw spiritual force of what was already in existence to form a sort of consciousness, whether the spiritual material was small (fae) or large (great spirits). Alternatively, they could create living beings (animals) and sometimes the spiritual mass of those beings would form a consciousness (animal great spirits). Certainly, the fae and great spirits wouldn't exist without the Elder Gods! (Nor would animals exist for that matter.)
Whether one worships or even respects Elder Gods or not, they are as far above mortalkind in terms of evolution (if you will) as mortals are above lower animals (dogs, cats, cows, snakes, etc.). The question arises as to how you would treat a being who could squash you with a thought. Even if a particular elder god views mortals as a children (mortals hold a divine spark after all, no matter how undeveloped), like an adult they would certainly at least expect good manners and chastising those who do not show the gods good manners should not be surprising. If they find a mortal aggressive or annoying or disrespectful or bothersome, a god may react harshly (though I'm sure it depends a lot on the god). That's why I have always recommended not to provoke a god as that opens you up to any manner of response and you would have no recourse against it. (It's always amusing when a mortal thinks they can shame or put down a god for whatever reason--talk about shouting at the wind!)
But gods have been around for aeons, have acquired a great deal of knowledge and wisdom, have powers beyond the scope of any mortal, and protect reality from unraveling (whether you see it or not). They exist whether people worship them or not--they have no need for mortals for their survival, though offerings are rather delicious to them. They may see mortals as children or tools or rather smart animals. Some gods may enjoy seeing mortals prosper or suffer or play games of politics or war. Some gods may have no strong opinion about mortals one way or the other.
Worship them if you desire, try to use them at your peril, or avoid them for your survival. But never discount them, for they are powerful forces who live in the same realm as you.
You mean my shouting matches with Terentia didn't amuse Her?
Everiine said: The reason population is low isn't because there are too many orgs. It's because so many facets of the game are outright broken and protected by those who benefit from it being that way. An overabundance of gimmicks (including game-breaking ones), artifacts that destroy any concept of balance, blatant pay-to-win features, and an obsession with convenience that makes few things actually worthwhile all contribute to the game's sad decline.
Comments
As a matter of fact, it IS possible for Gods to change allegiances the way you described... but it hasn't happened much, if it could be said to have happened at all, and it makes little logical sense to consider such an action happening. "Theoretically" a member of Seren's pantheon could get a lot of flak if they were perceived to have acted against nature... but can you imagine any of them doing so? I certainly can't. Even when cross-org divines banded together for a common good, they always were tied to their org's original purpose and their original ideals. Unlike in Aetolia, I've never witnessed a Lusternian God switch sides literally.
Elostian's was a case where instead of saying he switched from Celest to Hallifax (thereby "changing" his allegiance), it would be far more appropriate to say he was patroning Celest while waiting for Hallifax to come out. He never did have much in common with Celest in the first place - it wasn't really a "differences cropped up" kind of thing. The differences were there from the start.
If anything, an ORG would be the one switching allegiances from a God's ideals. The current Glomdoring is, for example, so much a creation of Viravain's, that if one day Viravain's ideals and Glom's ideals were to go down seperate paths, it would be Glom leaving Viravain's teachings, not the other way around. Similarly for the other orgs. If one day a gulf DOES open between Valtreth and Celest, it would likely not be because Valtreth "changed" his minds or his ideals, but much more likely because Celest did.
My posts here have generally been erratic because I realise that this thread isn't going to have any conclusion. I don't mean any offense, Munsia, but explaining why -you- should worship a divine isn't going to make sense to you because you aren't interested in the things someone else would worship a god for: RP, a group to belong to, and so on. To you, a divine is merely a means to an end, a buff you can activate. Quite frankly, if you could put a shrine in your manse and offer it corpses for favors without ever needing to interact with a divine, you would.
For many of us, we worship divine for the interactions. If Isune never gave me another favor for the rest of my time as Entrias, but was always around for conversation/rp, I'd jump on that in a heartbeat. To me (and entrias), Isune isn't just a means to an end, something he can use to his advantage to gain an edge. She's a person with her own personality and past, an intricate soul with her own agenda and a thread in the tapestry of his life. If she wasn't around to worship or be part of his life, he'd be fine.
But the tapestry wouldn't be nearly as colorful.
Do you own a font because it makes your life easier, or do you own a font because it's something your chosen god had a hand in making, something they "touched" with their essence?
The nature communes are the most primary example of this: The "guidance of nature" of communes have always come from the wiccans, who pray/worship/talk/divine directly with nature spirits. And all of the nature spirits were created or awoken by Elders. Most of these nature spirits are beholden to their creators or awakeners. If Nocht threw a frisbee, I wouldn't be surprised if Night would bring it back then prostrate herself at his feet wagging her tail. (Not literally, of course, but you get the idea.)
The cities do not have such an obvious link to draw upon - the supernals and demonlords are half-formed, not spirits woken by Elders. But to suggest that an Elder would "subscribe" to the ideals and tenets dictated by these half-formed is, at best, misguided. I'd like to see someone try to convert Fain into a Nifilhema fanatic. Or suggest that Terentia call out Japhiel's name when charging into battle. Amusing as that might be, it's simply unimaginable when you just think about the scale on which that these beings exist. The Elders that form the pantheon of an org are in no way "tied" to the ideals of that org - they create those ideals, if not directly through their orders and priests and preaching, then through their agents like the guardian/wiccan smobs.
It doesn't, at all, seem to me to be contradictory for people to both worships the guiding spirits/half formed of their org, while also worshiping the Elders. The means and modes and history of both forms of worship are different. Is that what people are objecting to? They feel like since religion and worship are more analogous to real life with the guiding spirits/half formed that we should come up with some other word for respecting the Elders, and not call them Gods?
This doesn't really make sense. God, in Lusternia, seems to refer mainly to Powerful being that is respected to some degree or another (vernal gods, like the nine. Soulless gods, demigods, etc) Reserved for Elders are the abilities to manifest realms and draw certain (but far from all) sustenance and power from essence derived from corpses and esteem. As shards, we can only do the same by attaching ourselves to the power of one of the Elders. Some people think the Elders are worth worshiping for this, and that's their prerogative. Just because you disagree, or your character disagrees, doesn't mean anyone who thinks so is insane.
You could probably form a cult around some unaffiliated demigod/ascendant (or other mortal) just fine, have a clan, rp it out. The mechanics would be lacking, but that's because your shard is cut off from gaining sustenance the same way an Elder is.
Meanwhile worshiping Moon and Night and the Supernals and Demon lords have their own religions built up around them. And different ways of "offering" to them (essence! fae!) Its separate but parallel to the worship of the Elders. This division has plenty of parallels in pantheistic religions. It's up to a particular character how they order their loyalties. Allyrianne is Hallifaxian above being a Symphonist and an Isuneite, although she'd have a hard time viewing all three as anything other than harmoniously intertwined. From what I've seen/heard, Elder worship can offer some interesting facets, and differing interpretations on worshipping Nature or the half-formed, and this isn't a bad thing. A Lisaeran wiccan is probably going to draw on different aspects of Moon's Avatars than someone who follows Hoaracle, and that just makes it more interesting.
The orgs, and their accompanying religions, predate the return of the Elders. But so far the Elders who've returned to the basin have all had good reason to take up with one, or another org, due to Who, or what, that org is pursuing for guidance. Most Elders probably have their own reasons and ic justifications for things that might seem weird. Most of the Elders I've talked to feel that organisations are a temporary thing, or are part of their plan, and so are simply working with the ones they feel the most affinity with. No, a Glomdoring philosopher can't be in Elostian's order anymore (if it even existed now), because if said philosopher truly valued philosophy above the Wyrd, they would leave Glomdoring and pursue Elostian no matter what. Affinity doesn't require that Gods refuse non-citizens, it merely places incentives for them to do so. And now Viravain, or Nocht, or Shikari, can benefit from having a philosophically minded Glomdoring order member, instead of everyone going "oh, all philosophers are in Elostian's order, if you want to do combat, you can worship Shikari, and if you care about art, go Isune."
I think Iklara is supposed to be another example of this, wherein a few Elders took in a sort of adoptive child, but in this instance Something Happened which we still don't know much about.
So, I feel like the way some of the gods relate to the half-formed isn't supposed to be much different from how others will relate to the spirits.
What makes them different other than the fact they are more powerful than us?
I don't believe the divine believe themselves to be any different than us other than being more powerful. From a perspective view, we are possibly what they could turn into one day (Which would be pretty cool). To me I feel as though they recognize this fact, and choose to either cover it up by making themselves seem more powerful or achieving a more unattainable status, or ignore the fact all together when interacting with mortals.
To My Character:
He has been a follower of Lady Viravain for a while. He was more drafted than chose it of his own will but he has this belief in her teachings on a deeper level that radiates with him now that he's delved into it. He has a sense of awe and wonder in this divine that motivates him to do things and be productive even though he has no interaction with the source of the information whatsoever. (I've never talked to her but once, and she attended my wedding, only two times the character has interacted with her). To my character the physical manifestation of the divine doesn't matter it's the subject matter and understanding of the world that really differentiates them from him. Sure they all have faults and personalities, but every single one seems to know more than he does, always. That bridge of knowledge will always mean that they have a right to be respected and worshiped.
As Talan said each Divine's tenants are open enough for anyone to embrace them because they always give knowledge of how to live life, and each divine can expand on it. Living that lifestyle is kind of how all religions are, base tenants that the people who believe follow because they believe in those tenants and either fear the consequences or the benefits are rewarding enough.
Mortals are shards of Elder Gods, i.e., each mortal is a piece of the shattered consciousness of a god made manifest. Each mortal thus has the potential to become a god him/herself, which is what the Vernal Gods were and even the Ascended Gods. In other words, each divine shard within every mortal could potentially become as great as the divine soul of a whole god. It was originally the intent that mortals would have the potential to actualize him/herself to become 'whole' through some actualization. There are no levels of gods (barring perhaps Estarra). A god is a god, whether elder or ascended or vernal (at least on a metaphysical level). Unfortunately, this idea of mortals ascending to godhood never panned out mechanically in-game for a variety of reasons, so it is no longer possible (courtesy of Ayridion's creation of the Threshold Abyss). (Yes, Ascendants as they currently exist are -almost- gods!)
Elder Gods could not procreate or create life from scratch with souls (like they had). The closest they were able to get to was using the raw spiritual force of what was already in existence to form a sort of consciousness, whether the spiritual material was small (fae) or large (great spirits). Alternatively, they could create living beings (animals) and sometimes the spiritual mass of those beings would form a consciousness (animal great spirits). Certainly, the fae and great spirits wouldn't exist without the Elder Gods! (Nor would animals exist for that matter.)
Whether one worships or even respects Elder Gods or not, they are as far above mortalkind in terms of evolution (if you will) as mortals are above lower animals (dogs, cats, cows, snakes, etc.). The question arises as to how you would treat a being who could squash you with a thought. Even if a particular elder god views mortals as a children (mortals hold a divine spark after all, no matter how undeveloped), like an adult they would certainly at least expect good manners and chastising those who do not show the gods good manners should not be surprising. If they find a mortal aggressive or annoying or disrespectful or bothersome, a god may react harshly (though I'm sure it depends a lot on the god). That's why I have always recommended not to provoke a god as that opens you up to any manner of response and you would have no recourse against it. (It's always amusing when a mortal thinks they can shame or put down a god for whatever reason--talk about shouting at the wind!)
But gods have been around for aeons, have acquired a great deal of knowledge and wisdom, have powers beyond the scope of any mortal, and protect reality from unraveling (whether you see it or not). They exist whether people worship them or not--they have no need for mortals for their survival, though offerings are rather delicious to them. They may see mortals as children or tools or rather smart animals. Some gods may enjoy seeing mortals prosper or suffer or play games of politics or war. Some gods may have no strong opinion about mortals one way or the other.
Worship them if you desire, try to use them at your peril, or avoid them for your survival. But never discount them, for they are powerful forces who live in the same realm as you.