Chambers

The stock market of the gods. How does it work?

Anonymous in /c/worldbuilding

62
I'm making a campaign where the players are servants of a discreet pantheon. These gods aren't directly worshiped. Instead, they represent the concepts of the modern world. Mark hasn't been worshiped in centuries, but the younger gods of Tiktak and Smartphone have replaced him.<br><br><br>The campaign revolves around the gods of Bullets and Bombs meeting the god of Electric Automobiles for the first time. The players help facilitate this meeting as mortals, as two of them worship Bullets (a hunter and a soldier), one worships Bombs (a demolitions expert), and one worships Electric Automobiles (an environmentalist).<br><br><br>The discreet pantheon doesn't worship their gods at all. Instead, they trade their influence in the Stock Market of the Gods, a place that exists only in the realm of the gods and no mortal has ever seen.<br><br><br>In the Stock Market of the Gods, Bullets and Bombs lost value over the past few years while Electric Automobiles has skyrocketed. This has led to tensions between the gods, which is the main conflict of the campaign (which I think I'll post in r/LetsNotMeet when I finish it).<br><br><br>The way it works is that people's thoughts, behaviors, and obsessions are discreetly converted into currency that the gods can use. There's also a concept of "sentiment" where the overall view of the concept by the population matters. For instance, there are far fewer people who worship Bullets, but the ones who do are extremely passionate and loyal to that god. Conversely, the worship of Electric Automobiles is common, but even the most environmentally conscious people often see it as a necessary evil rather than a moral crusade to be fought.<br><br><br>To illustrate, the god of Alcohol thinks it's unfair that he's often on the receiving end of the judgement or blame of the gods of Guns or Drugs. His argument is that there are far more alcoholics than there are drug abusers or mass shooters, yet he's the one who gets condemned by both of those other two gods while they remain innocent. They point out that mass shooters stockpile Bullets and Guns rather than just consuming Alcohol, and drug abusers often commit crimes to feed their habit.<br><br><br>These were just examples to build up the lore and discreet pantheon of the world, however. The gods of Bullets, Bombs, and Electric Automobiles aren't the main conflict of the campaign. The campaign takes place in Tuscany, but it's not centered around the Stock Market of the Gods or the discreet pantheon either..<br><br><br>So, if the Stock Market of the Gods exists and these gods don't get direct worship on Earth, how does one buy and sell influence of the gods?<br><br><br>Personally, I envision it similar to a futures market. The gods can bet on future trends. Bullets and Bombs will continue to largely go down in stock value, yet periodically there will be events that make them spike in value (like a mass shooting or war). The gods of Tiktak and Smartphone are more stable, and are considered "value stocks" that aren't as flashy but are collectively far more valuable overall. Electric Automobiles is a growth stock, where the value will continue to rise rapidly as people continue to view them more favorably over time. The god of Work From Home is another one that was wildly volatile, rising sharply in 2020 before meeting his untimely demise. I would then think the gods can buy, sell, and trade these stocks, betting on the future trends of each god's influence in the mortal world.<br><br><br>The stock market of the gods isn't the main focus of the campaign. The question I'm asking is about the lore-building. How do you think the gods would buy, sell, and trade influence?

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