This'll be the 1-page intro to Issue 2, shaping up to be a clarion call of Celestial support.
Will be exploring some thoughts on this as they come to me:
- Celestials make the cosmology more interesting as well promote the heroic aspect of D&D.
- Celestials offer more options to the game, in a variety of ways.
- Celestials inspire PCs and perhaps more importantly Players.
Definitely post your own thoughts, we can always expand on this in one way or another.
"I think it was then that I told him truly why I was not on his side: Because the Good was more of an adventure."
-Roberto Calasso, Ruins of Kasch
I gather that you are looking for a more "meta" answer that explains the role in a game that would make a celestial useful. Unfortunately, I haven't given that much thought so instead I'll give a summation of some of the ways I use celestials and other residents of the Upper Planes. I know this won't be to everyone's taste but I present it in the effort to encourage discussion.
Since I defined the planes around themes, I also tried to assign various thematic roles for a number of celestial beings. Some of these roles are:
-exposing lies and deceptions/providing mental clarity
-providing serenity for the petitioners
-giving encouragement and hope
-rewarding those that demonstrate virtue
-judging and serving as champions of justice
-guard the dimensional rifts to places of evil to ensure that none cross over
-announce divine happenings
-guide the dead or return the spirits of the resurrected dead back to the Prime
-hunting and rooting out evil
-calm/pacify souls
-nurturing creativity
-nurturing compassion, etc.
-sages\repositories of wisdom
-philosophers\debaters of the nature and effects of good actions
-strike out at any corruption of the natural order
-hunt down undead
-spies able to observe evil plans afoot
-dispelling fear and doubt
-defending the innocent and those unable to defend themselves
-spirit warriors/ancestor spirits that seek to protect their people and their way of life
-preserving beauty, art, and a joy of life and freedom
-knights-errant of the planes
-inflicting divine wrath and punishment upon some being that has angered the gods
-rescue and rehabilitate individuals that have suffered on other planes (e.g. been drained by the Grey Wastes)
-pranksters that try to use humor to make a person aware of his own hypocrisy or narrow-minded ways
I’ve invent or (more often) co-opted existing celestials to give them what I felt was more distinct personalities or to tie them to specific cultures. For example, for one area that corresponds to a modified version of the Chinese Celestial Bureaucracy, I used five celestials that I tied to the five elements. (And yes, I know that this has no connection to actual Chinese theology)
Five “elemental” archons.
*Hammer Archon – tied to the element of earth. The “spirits of the mountain” strive to root evil out of its hiding places. They are wingless with stone-like skin. They always carry large stone mallets
*Jiaolong – benevolent water spirits that take the form of small Oriental dragons or crocodiles. They perform the daily workings and mundane tasks of the realm. While physically weak, they are adept at dispelling illusions
*Nightingale Archon – appearing as a flurry of beautiful feathers around a being of soft red light, these beings act as the airborne scouts and melodic messengers. While not fierce combatants, they are extremely swift. They are often able to pacify or charm beings with their melodic voices. They can turn into insubstantial wind if they need to escape or to travel faster
*Sword Archon – tied to the element of fire. They are the enforcers of the heavenly laws and protectors of the virtuous. Their forearms can transform into holy flaming katanas.
*Verdant Archons – appearing as a cross between a traditional angel and a dryad. These beings often have vines or sprouts in place of hair. They serves as the healers of this realm, and are especially renowned for calming agitated minds
Good stuff. I'll probably integrate a few things into that one page intro, then link back here for readers to discuss.
Celestial vs. Celestial
/041011/celestial-vs-celestial
There a decent amount of celestial resources here besides this one. I'll try to round a decent number up before Issue 2 releases.
http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0488.html http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0489.html http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0490.html
Yes, it's a Deva that Roy's dealing with, but it still stands with the exemplars. There is a reason there are many paths up Mount Celestia, beings come to be good in many, many different ways. The Deva's know that Roy is aspiring to be Lawful Good, even if he's closer to Neutral Good, but he is trying none that less.
Likewise, they know that each other are aim to do good, even if that have mindsets that are ultimately alien to each other. That's why war is so rare. They don't want to destroy each other. They want to bring the other to their side and embrace them as brothers. They're not always nice trying to prove each other that their way is better, but sometimes siblings aren't. But on the other hand, the Archons and Eladrin are the most likely to compromise with each other and play nice. It depends on the individuals and how much they've been provoked recently.
Good call on the OOtS Heaven reference.
This is all great stuff by the way. The intro will be about a page, so I'll draw on pieces of this discussion but link back here for readers who want to talk about this.
Properly used, celestials provide villians who should not/cannot be attacked directly, only thwarted.
They can show the dangers of pursuing something with a single-minded approach.