THE ARGELION LORE

Ye. I'll do the thing.

Soooooooo tiny god of home, who feeds the gods the icky gross stuff that keeps them immortal. I'm thinking that she wouldn't have been the first in this position, and that she took over for her mother. If any of the existing gods would like to claim to be her dad (she honestly has no idea) that'd be great. She is low-key part of the council but like, no one acknowledges this and treats her like a minor god.

So in collaboration with Saberteck, I have come up with some concrete references to just how powerful Individual council members are for those wondering such things. These are mostly comparisons between a normal god and a council member. It also addresses some of the exceptions demonstrated by The Watcher, otherwise known as the God of Ultimate Choice.

First off, when comparing a normal god to a council member, a normal god will have one aspect that they specialize in and watch over in their divine duties. A council member usually presides over SEVERAL aspects if not more, and all of these aspects tend to be very broad with wide ranging capabilities and meanings. This basically means that any one council member could do the work of a small army of gods. For some this may raise the question of why us normal gods are even needed if the council is so powerful. A more complete answer may be provided in the future as lore develops, but for now the answer is that this is how the council delegates power and priorities. The existence of the gods is the councils way of making sure the galaxies daily needs are met while leaving the far more pressing and important matters to the council. To have the council handle the jobs of all the other gods would be a MASSIVE waste of their time. Note that this also answers the question of why it is important to replace a god when they permanently die, as the time spent for a council member to do another gods job, is time better spent keeping reality itself in check.

Another example of their power is that gods require the worship and practice of their given aspect to maintain their power. The council is far above such things as prayer, especially since any one of them can embody so many broad aspects being practiced everyday that they may as well be self sufficient when it comes to maintaining their power. This can be seen being demonstrated most by The Watcher. You will RARELY see a follower of The Watcher, if you ever do, please take pity on the poor soul and do your best to convince the misguided fellow that he is doing it wrong and that The Watcher simply doesn't even care for prayer and is likely not even listening, indeed if you don't interfere he will likely simply continue to ignore the poor man. The same goes for any "followers" of the Divine Council, only in their case, if you see one them please kindly inform them that the council appreciates their devotion, but it is really not necessary, you may then proceed to recommend a god in need of more followers if they are really intent on helping the council.

Yet another, much shorter example, would be to point out that the council votes daily on edicts that can see whole stars and planets moved and given new purpose. It should be noted this is a MINOR voting topic out of the many they confront each day. Let this also serve as a reminder that forcing the council to confront you on a transgression you committed only makes them more annoyed that such a tedious subject is brought before their attention. This only serves to piss off the council and accomplishes nothing.

I will leave off with one last example of their power, primarily concerning The Watcher. Should somebody ever wish to visit the Watcher (as to what reason exactly varies greatly, but the amount of desperation is most certainly high), they need only visit the large gas giant planet he resides in. When doing so, a good question to ask yourself is this.

Which is the scarier thought?
The notion that The Watcher is powerful enough to call what is essentially a truly gigantic self-contained mega-storm his home?
Or that The Watcher simply IS the truly gigantic self-contained mega-storm?

How would you guys feel about a god(dess) of dreams whose consort was the god of nightmares??

Now since I have mentioned The Watcher more than a few times, I figure its about time i provide a clear explanation for you all before questions start piling up. First let me make it clear that he will not be a full character, being a former council member himself, being too stronk is in the job description. As such he is limited to being almost excusively a plot device, to be used during significant events or when a wrench in someones plans is needed. Indeed, the only reason he's even allowed that much freedom is simply because he takes a slightly more active role in our divine pantheon than the average council member.

First lets clarify exactly WHAT he is.
The Watcher, as I have said, Is a former council member. He is a being that values choice and taking action above all else. This leads into his reason as to why he left the council. He felt the council was too restrictive, leaving little room for personal choice, and he grew tired of watching the same, predictable choices being made over and over again. In short, he became really, really, really, really, bored out of his gourd. And so he broke off from the council. Now already this brings up the very important question, if the council throws a fit over rogue gods, why in all things divine have they not done anything about a rogue council member!? Well the official reason is because he has not technically directly gone against the council and they have other things to worry about than a rogue council member who meddles in the events of mortals and sometimes gods but otherwise pretty much keeps to himself...for the most part. The unofficial reason is because The Watcher is more than simply a wrench in the works.
Try thinking of it this way. A rogue god is a wrench in the works. The Watcher is akin to a device specifically built to throw wrenches not unlike machine-guns do with bullets. This is what The Watcher is when unprovoked. Now imagine how bad it would be if the council decided to "poke the bear" as it were. In short, the council doesn't do anything because trying to do something about it would cause more headache's than it would fix. It's just much esier to plug the leaks rather than drain the ocean.

Second, we should address what exactly he is capable of.
The Watcher could do many things but here is what he can do, what he won't do, and what he will do. The Watcher possesses the rare ability of omniscience. In this case what that means is that he can see all possible paths and choices that can be made by anything capable of making choices. He can see any choice than has been made, he can see any choice that can be made, but what he can't see, is what choice WILL be made. This is what interests The Watcher the most. He can observe anything he wishes to and pays special attention to choices he's never seen made before, or at least, choices that are difficult TO make. At some points in time, The Watcher may find certain individuals who could take steps on the road to multiple, world or even fate changing choices. If only they had the means or the ability to make such choices. In these cases, the Watcher uses his vast power to either grant them magical powers, increased physical abilities, or maybe even a simple piece of information that could allow them to make ever more choices. One thing he will never do, however, is say or do anything that may limit your choices or steer you along a particular path. Do not mistake my words however, he also never lies, as that would be giving you the alusion to choices that don't exist. But at the same time, he will never give you a straight answer, indeed you are encouraged to never ask him for advice, as any advice he gives will often leave you with more questions and choices to make than you started with. As for the types of powers and abilities he can grant, if it is a player character it shouldn't go any higher than what would be allowed on a character app. If it is a plot npc, the room for powers is....much greater. Otherwise anything is possible with what he can provide. Keep in mind though, all of his gifts are temporary.

Next i'll discuss some common misconceptions of the Watcher that may arise.

Some believe the Watcher has some ulterior motive for what he does, that he has some grand plot in the works that only he and possibly the council knows about. They believe that The Watcher is secretly manipulating them for his own gain in some way. This is false, The Watcher does not have a plan, he has no ulterior motive, and he most certainly is NOT manipulating you. All the Watcher cares about is to observe what a random element will do when provided with choices to make. Manipulating you in any way would ruin the suspense of what choices you make and would merely make the upcoming events more predictable. Predictable is boring. Here's a free tip, if you don't want to gain the Watcher's attention, be predictable.
Some people believe that when the Watcher provides one of his gifts, he has made that individual his champion, one who represents the watcher and who is guided by divine intervention towards great acts, both good and bad. This is only partially true. First and foremost, the individual he has blessed, is NOT his champion. He does not represent the Watchers interest nor does he serve the Watcher in any way. In fact, the Watcher does not even care what these individuals actually DO with their powers. As for them being led to greatness by divine intervention, the Watcher does not lead them to greatness. If the Watcher grants his powwer to an individual it means that the individual is already destined for greatness, he just wants a little more variety in the individuals choices.

Finally lets talk about what the Watchers purpose is and how he is to be used. First lets make it clear that the Watcher will NEVER directly enter into a confrontation or event, nor contribute in any direct way. Doing so is against his own rules and a godly being of this magnitude is simply too powerful to be allowed to do so without being involved in a plot solely revolving around the watcher as a pure antagonist. Overall, the watcher was created to be a wrench in the works, when someone needs something to go wrong the Watchers meddling will do the trick. When an otherwise perfect plan needs a rogue element on the table, the watcher is likely to be that rogue element. The Watcher does not care for the machinations and plots of either gods, the council, or anybody else for that matter. In other words the Watcher is here to provide a problem when you need a problem, provide an important character when you need an important character, or just an interested and possibly molevolent third party in a plot.

Ok, so i've been working with Saber in trying to brainstorm a common enemy to all the gods and the council. I had an idea for this sort of cosmic infection that randomly occurs on different planets within the gods home galaxy. I'm not quite sure how exactly it works yet or what forms it takes, but here is what i have so far.
When the infection infects a planet, it starts manipulating the minds of it's inhabitants, even the wildlife, to worshipping it instead of the gods. At first this usually begins with a shift in whom they pray to, but later on this can develop to ritual sacrifice and other more radical practices.
As the infection grows in power, the planet starts to change as well, slowly turning into a dangerous hellscape overtime. Once it becomes powerful enough the planet will crack open like an egg revealing a very large leviathan esque monster. This leviathan will then travel to other worlds to further spread the planetary infection and create more leviathans and will continue to do so until stopped.
Now i dont know how or when exactly this will have started but the idea is the infection has been around long enough that the council has developed a sort of protocol in the case of infection. The protocol is as follows.

Since all gods can live forever if they are careful, it is likely that there will be many demi-gods. In this case to capitalize on their small army of demi-gods, the council gives demi-gods the secondary duty of keeping an eye out for the infection in the galaxy. If infection is found, they are to nip it in the bud before it becomes a problem. This usually takes anywhere between one demi-god to a sizable group of demi-gods depending on the infection level of the world.
If the infection has progressed to the point where the planet is turning into a hellscape, a full god or two may be called in to use their resources to eliminate the infection before it gets any worse.
If by some cursed miracle the planet manages to birth a leviathan a fleet of gods will be called in to kill it before it can move to another planet.
If multiple leviathans have spawned, expect a FULL mobilization of every available resource to stem the tide before the whole galaxy is destroyed.

Let us know what you think of this idea.

I'm nabbing the Trickster God/God of Espionage