Death of an Atheist

[zanzibar]

Of course, all who wanted to play Klyros could go around saying 'bless this and that' and not mean it, but that just seems stupid.

That's what everyone is doing though.  Worship in PlaneShift is a matter of utility, not belief or lifestyle.  People worship gods because of the rewards they get.  Morality isn't a factor, nor is believing the god is good.  There are exceptions, but they're a minority.

The settings might change of course.  And new settings might be revealed to us that change how we understand the relationship between the people in Yliakum and the gods.  But as things are, this is how it is... you worship a God because it would be foolish not to do so, since so many survival benefits come from worshiping a God.  The settings tell us that Yliakum is such a dangerous place that our characters are obsessed with survival.

[Akkaido Kivikar]

I was meaning leave it to the devs to decide how penalties/benefits should be applied in game.

[zanzibar]

I was meaning leave it to the devs to decide how penalties/benefits should be applied in game.

Absolutely.  It's silly to argue over something we haven't had a chance to test yet.

[BlueScreenJunky]

Of course, all who wanted to play Klyros could go around saying 'bless this and that' and not mean it, but that just seems stupid.

Isn't that called roleplaying ?
I mean of course the player doesn't believe in any PS deity (or if that's the case, (s)he should get some help IRL ^^), but if his/her character talks and acts as a believer would, then there's nothing wrong with that. You can roleplay a character whose beliefs are totally different from yours, you just have to roleplay it consistantly.

Besides, I don't see a reason why we couldn't give some advantages to believers if that helps to maintain a good believers/atheists ratio. After all, a believer has to spend some time praying etc. and is restricted in his actions, so (s)he chould have some kind of a reward since an Atheist will have more time to do other things (working, mining, training...) and have more freedom of action.
Besides, the situation is different from the real world : IRL the gods either don't exist, or don't care about us, or interact with us through very subtle touches. As I see it, gods in planeshift interact more directly with the mortals, so it would be easier for a character to believe in them than it is for a player.

[zanzibar]

I think everyone in Ylikaum believes in the Gods.  The key concept is worship.  In planeshift, there are no atheists in the sense of people who believe the Gods don't exist.  Rather, atheist in Yliakum is a word used to describe people who believe in the gods, but do not worship them.

This is my current understanding.  I've been working hard to understand this issue but I'm always open to correction.

[Mordraugion]

@Zanzi
that sounds about right, gods being a natural part of life in Yliakum, denying their existance is like saying there's no crystal or there is no such thing as a Kran, but there will always be those that don't or refuse to worship them.