Game of the Gods
In the Age of Bronze, legendary Heroes are empowered by jealous, petty, fallible gods.
•	The gods are manipulating you as a pawn in their schemes against other gods. 
•	Can you manipulate the gods, making their rivalries work for you?
•	The gods' relationships emerge from play.
•	Heroes may serve more than one god, both consecutively or concurrently.
•	Some gods will approve or disapprove of your actions.
•	The gods' relationships affects how they influence the characters actions.
•	The Heroes' actions can influence the gods' relationships with other gods, and with other Heroes. 
(This game owes 3:16, In a Wicked Age,  and Apocalypse World.)

Preparation of the Pantheon  
The Oracle (GM) and the players sit around a table. Each player is given a deck of cards. The Tapestry is placed in the center where all can see.
Each player (not the Oracle) invents a god. This god will be their hero's first Patron. Go around the table clockwise, starting with the person to the Oracle’s left. Each player will:
1. Give this god a name
2. Describe the god's domain (nature, death, war, love, sea, etc.)
3. Describe the god’s relationship with one other god (they may be family members, lovers, liege and vassal, rivals, enemies, one may be indebted to the other, etc.)
4. Assign a face card to the god (one that hasn’t already been assigned to another god)
As these decisions are made, the Oracle adds each new member of the Pantheon to The Tapestry.  Other gods (those not yet filled in) may emerge during play, or you may decide to complete the whole Pantheon of 12 gods right away. The Oracle's role is to interpret the will of the gods.
NOTE: The Pantheon your group creates may have two factions within it (red vs black, light vs dark, old vs new, etc.); or it may have four courts (suits, families, seasons, traditions, what have you); in short, it may have any subdivisions you decide to define... but it doesn't have to. That’s all up to the group, and it may be different every time.

Preparation of the Heroes
Each player (not the Oracle) now invents the details of their Hero character. Go around the table in the same order as before. Heroes have five Traits: Warfare, Wisdom, Craft, Travel and Speech. In addition, each Hero begins the game with one Gift, given to them by their patron god.
To create a Hero, each player does the following:
1. Assign values of +2, +1, +1, +0, +0 to the five Traits, in any order you wish.
(Example: Warfare+1, Wisdom+2, Craft+0, Travel+1 and Speech+0)
2. Denote the Hero’s patron god on the Hero Sheet
(Relationship = “Patron”)
3. Describe the specific supernatural Gift that was given to the Hero by their patron god.
(Examples: great strength, awesome beauty, stone skin, a legendary ability, a magical sidekick, a helm of invisibility, a cloak of animal form, a winged horse, etc.)

Preparation of the Quest
The Heroes will be given a quest by The Oracle. This quest may come from a god or from a mortal (i.e., the king, a village elder, a helpless peasant, wizened shopkeeper, etc.) 
To determine the Object of the Quest, the Oracle rolls 1d6 twice on the tables below. The first roll (on the left table) determines the purpose, and the second (on the right table) determines the target.
1d6	Purpose of Quest		A Person	An Item	A Monster	
1	Destroy...		1	2-3	4-6	
2-3	Defeat...		1-3	4	5-6	
4	Find/Locate...		1-2	3-5	6	
5-6	Steal/Kidnap...		1	2-5	6	
To determine the Reason for the Quest, the Oracle rolls 2d6 on the table below.
2d6	Because...	
2-3	It is a favorite of an opposed god (name them)	
4-5	It offends a patron god (name them)	
6	It is evil or out of control	
7	A prophecy foretells it	
8	To prove your prowess or worthiness	
9-10	You’ll need it for another quest	
11-12	You’ve been chosen and may never understand why	
The Oracle makes up some details based on those rolls, creating new gods or involving the existing ones, and describes the Quest to the heroes. (Example: “The purpose of the Quest is to Destroy a Monster, because it offends Yargamesh, god of fecundity.”)  Finally, consulting the Tapestry, the Oracle tells the heroes which gods approve, and which disapprove, of this Quest.
Challenges
Challenges are difficulties that the heroes must overcome in pursuing the Quest. They are not revealed to players until they arise. To determine these Challenges the Oracle gathers 1d6 for each player in the group, rolls them all together, and consults the following table.
For each...	The Challenge is...	
1	A military force or ongoing battle	
2	A person or creature must be appeased or defeated	
3	A physical problem requires a technical solution	
4	You must cross or traverse a...
 (1) River, (2) Mountain Range, (3) Sea, (4) Desert, (5) Swamp, (6) Forest	
5	You must move through hostile/enemy territory	
6	A magic spell or enchanted region	
The Oracle places these Challenges in any order desired, and assigns Threat Tokens to each as follows: The final Challenge gets 3; the preceding Challenge gets 2, and all other Challenges get 1. Finally, the Object (whatever the Challenges are preventing the heroes from reaching) gets 3 Threat Tokens.
Example: The Oracle decides that the Object (Monster that offends a patron god) is an undead sorcerer. With 3 players, the Oracle rolls 2, 3 and 4, and interprets this to mean (2) a troll, (3) a chasm with a broken bridge, and (4) an island across treacherous waters. They are placed in this order: Island, Chasm, Troll. Sailing to the island will be 1 threat token, crossing the chasm will be 2, defeating the troll will be 3 and defeating the sorcerer will be 3.
The Challenges will be revealed to the heroes as they arise.

Gameplay 
Play proceeds in Scenes. A Scene is a setting in which the heroes face a complication or challenge, interacting with non-player characters (NPCs) or other aspects of the world controlled by the Oracle. The Oracle begins each Scene by describing the setting, indicating any NPCs within it, as well as any obvious features, activities or contents of the setting. The first Scene is the one in which the heroes learn of the Quest.
All characters (including NPCs) may describe their actions and speak dialog freely. If there is any confusion over the order of actions, the Oracle decides. Whenever a player says their hero is doing something, it happens automatically, UNLESS that something is difficult or dangerous. If the action is difficult or dangerous, the player will have to succeed in an Heroic Action to pull it off.
At the end of each Scene, the Oracle describes how the heroes move on to the next Challenge. If the players decide to stop along the way (at a blacksmith’s, perhaps) or go somewhere in particular (like their temple), they may do so by calling for an Extra Scene. The heroes may even split up and move in different directions if desired. However: each Extra Scene has a 50% chance (roll 1-3) of unexpectedly becoming a Challenge worth 1 Threat Token.
Heroic Actions
To perform an Heroic Action: Decide which Trait your hero is using to perform the action, and describe what your hero is attempting to do – but not the result.  We’re about to determine that, by consulting the following table.
•	For most actions, roll 1d6 and add the value for the Trait being used.
•	If your hero is using a Gift, draw a playing card from your deck instead, and add your Trait to that.
TOTAL	RESULT	
Natural 1, Ace or Joker	TRAGEDY. Mark all gods  “watching” you as “offended”.  The Oracle adds three threat tokens, and involves a new god in the quest.  Example: This troll is the son of the sea god.	
1-3	FAILURE. The Oracle adds one threat token, and introduces another complication or challenge. Example: The troll is hidden in a dark cavern complex.	
4-7	MORTAL SUCCESS. The Action succeeds normally.  The Oracle removes one threat token.	
8-11	HEROIC SUCCESS. The Action succeeds in an exceptional way or causes up to two effects, and may include the description of superhuman feats.  The Oracle removes two threat tokens.	
12	LEGENDARY SUCCESS.   The Action succeeds exceptionally or causes up to three effects, and may include the description of supernatural feats.  Mark all gods “watching” you as “pleased”.  The Oracle removes three threat tokens.	
The Oracle narrates the effects of all Tragedy and Failure results. Players narrate the effects of their own Success results. After each action, the Oracle adds or removes Threat Tokens and adjusts the Tapestry as necessary.  When the number of Threat Tokens is reduced to zero or lower, the Challenge has been defeated. Players reshuffle their decks after each Scene involving a card draw.
Face Cards
Face Cards represent one of the 12 gods.  How does this god get involved? 
When you draw an allied god (your patron, the god who gave you this quest, or the god who gave you the Gift you are using), count this as a draw of 10.
•		Does this god approve of your action?  If they’re not already your patron, mark them as “pleased”.  
•		Do they disapprove of your action?  Still count as 10, but mark that god as “offended”.  
•		If they were already “offended”, mark that god as “enemy”.
When you draw an opposed god (the god this quest is against, a god you have offended, or an enemy of the god who granted you this power), count as a Tragedy.  Mark this god as an “enemy”.
When you draw any other god, consult the Oracle. Does what we know about this god (domain and relationships) imply that they approve or disapprove of this action? 
•		Is the action within the god's sphere of influence? Count as a 10.
•		Is the action opposed to the god's sphere of influence? Count as a 1.
•		Is this god the ally of your patron? +1.
•	Is this god the enemy of your patron? -1.
•		Does this god owe your patron? Count as 10 and mark them as “Neutral” to your Patron.
•		Is  this god a creditor to your patron? Count as 1 and mark them as “Enemy” to your Patron.
When in doubt, assume the god is neutral in this Challenge. Count neutral gods as 5. Mark that god as “watching” the hero.
Heroes may call on their patron god to intervene with a neutral god, and change their 5 to a 10.  The Hero marks the patron down to “pleased”.  The Oracle marks the neutral god as “Creditor” to the patron, and the patron as “Owing” the neutral god.  
The Oracle may spend a Threat Token for an enemy god to intervene with a neutral god, to change their 5 to a 1.  Mark the neutral god as “Creditor” to the enemy god, and the enemy god as “Owing” the neutral god.  
Note that if the action fails, the Oracle gets their Threat Token back.
The Gods
The Oracle interprets the will of the gods.  Heroes may roll +Wisdom to ask if an action will please or offend a god: on any successful roll, they know.
When you act in a god's interests, mark them as "watching”.  If they were already “watching”, mark them as “pleased".  If they were already “pleased”, mark them as “patron”.
When you act against a god's interests, mark them as "watching”. If they were already “watching”, mark them as “offended”. If they were already “offended”, mark them as “enemy”.
When a god is “watching” you, you can distract them from other Hero's' actions.  Roll +Craft (or other Trait as appropriate).  On any successful roll, the god ignores the other Hero's action.

At the End of the Quest
The Oracle updates the Tapestry.  Which gods gained or lost from that Quest?  Which gods became allies or enemies?  
All Heroes add +1 to one Trait (max +3).  If Heroes have any gods marked as “patron”, you may accept a new Gift from one of them.  Mark that god as “pleased”.
The Tapestry
The Gods	Relationships with other Gods
	God / Domain	KD	QD	JD	KC	QC	JC	KH	QH	JH	KS	QS	JS	
K
		_												
Q
			_											
J
				_										
K
					_									
Q
						_								
J
							_							
K
								_						
Q
									_					
J
										_				
K
											_			
Q
												_		
J
													_	
Enemy	Creditor	Neutral	Owing	Ally
		(-2)	(-1)	(0)	(+1)	(+2)

Hero
Traits:  (+2, +1, +1, +0, +0)	Gifts:	Patron God
Warfare					
Wisdom					
Craft					
Travel					
Speech					

Deeds: _________________________________________________________________________

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The Gods
Card	Name / Domain	Relationship	
K			
Q			
J			
K			
Q			
J			
K			
Q			
J			
K			
Q			
J			
		Enemy	Offended	Watching	Pleased	Patron
(-2)	(-1)	(0)	(+1)	(+2)