There are two ways to become a deity in Avalon: Ordination and Appointment. Ordination is the entirely player-driven route where invariably the best players in the land having won at least a single divine gem (in one of fourteen Gem Quest events) compete as "contenders" in elimination contests until only two remain. These final contenders fight out the free-for-all Amethyst Ordination Gem Quest, a three hour event involving two teams headed by their respective contender.
The Ordination is Avalon's most competitive and typically epic event with each contender leading dozens of the best players in open contest to hold the diviner amethyst gem. There is no sure-fire route to victory and the competitors must rely on skill, organisation, competence and nerve to have the best chance of being the one holding the amethyst when the sands of time run out on the three hour event. One recent Ordination went to 'sudden death' as neither contender had the amethyst under control by the end of the three hours - so the entire deity came down to who got to the gem first in a frantic race across the land. Edgtho snatched it up, Salvador was defeated; Aethon the Sun-God arose. Consolation came five years later for Salvador who romped to victory in Ordination XI against lacklustre opponents; Elmaethor god of the stars was welcomed to the pantheon.
Ordained mortals get full free choice of realm and enter the pantheon as fully-fledged High Gods with permanent status regardless of future activity, presence or contribution in divine form. It is as near as one can get to 'winning' Avalon. See HELP ORDINATION, HELP THEOLOGY, HELP GEMQUESTS and the later sub-sections of HELP 25 (History and Legend) for details of Ordination I in 1990 - Maedhros the Ranger becoming divine under the same name - through Ordination XII in 2014 - Salvador the Warlock to Elmaethor, god of the stars.
Appointment is an entirely different matter and until the appointment of Sylvanus, god of the earth (see HELP APPOINTEARTH for an abridged log) the criteria for appointment varied greatly from case to case and was largely the decision - in the moment - of the Omnipotents. After a succession of failed or detrimental appointments based on narrow criteria, the route to appointment was forever altered. Past appointments were focused on recognising excellence in a particular aspect of Avalon without reference to any particular achievements or overcoming difficult challenges. With one or two exceptions, no appointed deity could match the intimate, innate closeness with the land's fundamentals acquired naturally by the Ordained. Reflecting this, appointed Gods began with God rather than High God rank and had to earn elevation or work for it through expansive deity activity.
Before going into detail on Avalon's route to appointment, on how a player would propose him/herself for consideration and what must be done to win a "yes" in the Final Judgment, it is worth defining the complex character reality of divinity. Gods are not like mortals. The gameplay of a deity is wholly different to any of the mortal professions. And each god or goddess has the potential to be great benefit for the realm; or do great harm. Each appointment must be given proper criteria and procedure. First however, the divine persona in Avalon...
The deity exists as pure character role and is only as important as the god player's ability to earn, infiltrate, mould or impose places in the hearts and minds of mortal Avalonians. With some this will be begrudging, with others beloved. There are few relations as extreme as those involving divinity and this must be so, for a deity is personality incarnate.
The deity must be the creative writer of the Avalon narrative, an autonomous director of grand plotlines that involve players deeply in outcomes where one way lies success the others failure. Gods must deftly stage manage without unduly interfering with or discouraging events and clashpoints, working up passions real and role, illuminating possibilities and ideally making sure conflicts are outcome uncertain without safe processional play. The deity must act as the casting agent for continuity, bridging gaps when an actor (mortal) becomes a casualty of war or changing circumstance (i..e. ceases to play) and the medic/counsellor/make-up artist ensuring cast members are kept in good enough shape to do their duty, play out their roles, fight the good fight... and at the same time, Gods should combine the complex paradigm as the judge some yearn to impress, the antagonist some must prove wrong, the formidale enemy some burn to wound, the beloved patron some will die to defend or avenge... the list goes on.
Gods must be both subjective in the action, imbuing worth and real substance to the aspirations and material achievements in Avalon, and concurrently objective, above the action, moving the stories along for the good of Avalon and its fundamental mandate of "epic narrative" and "clash of heroes" - making sure history made today is worthy of becoming the legends of tomorrow. It is a hugely demanding role WAY beyond that of a mortal with thousands of ways to play well but a million mistakes and pitfalls to play worse. A good deity is the well-spring of a whole region of Avalon culture and dynamism, a poor one can ruin weeks of gameplay with ten minutes awful activity and worse, can be the death-knell of player-drive and ambition. All this and more is at stake with each appointment made. This perhaps explains a little of the reasoning behind the Route to Appointment now mandatory for all those wishing to join the immortal pantheon.
The specifics of each person's route is a matter for the individual and the Creator but broadly speaking it will be thus:
1. The mortal to be appointment must define goals that are challenging, consistent with his/her role, testing over a period of months and competitive in some way that tests the player's fortitude and constancy and capability. It is not necessary to achieve all goals but enough of an impression must be given of the player's ability to make things happen; to stand up and be a target; to show he/she can play a leading role in a defined area of Avalon and not fail it.
2. Player to be appointed needs to train or groom or guide the replacement or group of competent successors, so there is no gaping hole left in the realm by dint of the appointment taking the player out of the mortal line-up forever.
3. Prospective appointment needs to show willingness to contribute to Avalon needs - in the bigger picture - where required, and ability to balance the in-role demands with the realm's best interest.
4. As the player looks promising, meeting the needs of the competitive/challenging role, showing constancy and consistency and good dialogue with the Gods, sane perspective on Avalon's day to day development: time for the critical divine role phase. Player will play a stint of deity role in a suitable godly avatar like Sylvanus, Geolin or Astrea. This role will be concurrent with the mortal play and both must be carried along well to reach the final judgment.
5. Deity will need to prove capable of creating not only a role but also a RELEVANCE in the hearts and minds of mortals; without taking on followers or promise of long term continuity. The deity test-training phase can be entirely open and it is fine for mortals to know the relationship being built will carry over into a permanent god or goddess if final judgment is positive. Deity should define some goals, some realm-appropriate, some Avalon-need-aware. This deity phase goals need not be so definitive as it is more a test of personality, imaginative play, establishing relationships with mortals, becoming important to them and showing a contribution to Avalon that's plainly a positive one; promising more of the same and then some, when appointment is made.
6. Deity role is very different to mortal play and with divine powers the player needs to show integrity, trustworthiness, restraint at times but also strident activity others. Deity needs to matter. Deity needs to leave behind mortal anxieties, constraints and more narrow outlook to become part of the bigger canvas. Dialogue with other gods and goddesses is important. The pantheon has rivalries and roles in opposition and genuine needle at times but this can never become isolationist or toxic or paranoid or negative.
7. Deity must not aid mortal directly and will show more and impress better if roles are separated. The point of this phase is not only for the appointment to be made with some confidence the player will be a capable deity but also to give enough of a real taste of being a god/goddess to see whether this is REALLY what is wanted. Not everybody wants to be a deity. Not everybody can cope with having to make oneself relevant by personality alone. There are no beans to stack as a deity nor direct fighting to be indulged. It's a different game altogether. It's no simple power trip nor will a sense of entitlement carry far. The Gods have the tools to make wonderful narratives or define exciting ambitions that galvanise whole cities to action. But they can also sit on the arses and be ignored by the world; and no appointment will be forthcoming if this is what happens.
8. Ideally this deity phase will also be good training in the godly commands and practical powers. It will teach better interplay and give experience how to project ones ideas and ones personality onto Avalon without being crass or perceived petty. Respect is due all the Gods but to be truly well regarded the deity has to show some reasons for mortal high regard. This phase will ensure all appointments are successful candidates who'll immediately begin the permanent god or goddess knowing what they're doing and how to play and best manage the vast array of divine powers/commands.
Details of the role, the goals mortal and deity and a firm notion of where things need to be for the criteria for appointment to be given final judgment "satisfied" - this will be known by the prospective god/goddess as clearly as possible. There's no time limit on the mortal-goal or deity-role phases but a total of one year can be considered longest possible test, train, assess and foundation laying for the criteria to be met.
Ordination by combative competition will always be Avalon's absolute proof of greatness and an achievement of historical significance. Appointment by meeting the diverse and demanding criteria of actual in-game play quality both mortal and divine: this as a complete achievement earning the right to be an Avalon god/goddess can no longer be perceived as the easy or arbitrary or lucky-timing way into the pantheon. Appointment and Ordination can stand together as different but equal and this is reflected in the apotheosis atop the Rock Pinnacle. Where once the appointed god/goddess began a level below the ordained, now both begin with full high-godly rank and the complete repertoire of powers.
Once the final judgment is made, the player to be appointed will need to go through all the same fun and frolics as the Ordination finalists: choosing a realm, proposing divine name, readying patronage help and godly descriptions. Date for appointment will be scheduled and announced and the historic event will soon see us welcoming the latest and undeniably well-deserved addition Avalon's pantheon.
