Deities and Divine Casters

While Paizo and their Golarion setting removed much of the dependence of many divine casting classes upon a patron deity, we are still set in the Forgotten Realms, and that’s not how it works on Toril.

By divine decree of the Overgod Ao, a divine caster on Toril is required to have a patron deity that they forge their connection to for their divine magic, to the exclusion of other deities. This does not mean that a divine caster cannot offer prayers and homage to other deities in Toril, because it is a pantheistic reality, however, they cannot tap into the powers or blessings of more than one deity, and any transgression against that deity — including associating too closely with another deity opposed to their patron — will cause a loss in favor that results in consequences as severe as losing their divine powers entirely.

This taken into consideration, some changes have to be made to the Golarion lore of certain classes, and said alterations will be added here as they’re addressed.

Chosen Weapons

Any divine casting class is assumed to gain proficiency in the deity’s chosen weapon. Druids are allowed to use their deity’s chosen weapon without being considered a violation of their druidic tenets.

Druid

Druids in the Forgotten Realms setting are required to choose a patron deity, and are limited in their domain choices by their patron deity when choosing a domain as their nature’s bond. Druids also have the Aura feature same as the paladin/cleric.

Any deity with the Animal, Fey, Plant, the four elemental domains, or any of the bestial or terrain domains (and their commensurate subdomains) can sponsor a druid. Per 3.5e and earlier lore, Selune also sponsors druids.

Oracle

To be consistent with Forgotten Realms lore, the Oracle cannot follow multiple deities; the difference between the Oracle and Cleric is not their adherence to a deity’s tenets — which would cause them to fall if they didn’t — rather it is by their own understanding of their patron rather than a formal dogma that they follow. So the introductory text of the Oracle is edited as follows:

Although the gods work through many agents, perhaps none is more mysterious than the oracle. These divine vessels are selected by providence to wield powers that even they do not fully understand. Like a cleric, the oracle in the Forgotten Realms must have a patron deity they elevate above any other. Unlike a cleric, who is often beholden to a set dogma, order or temple, oracles lean to their own understanding of the patron that grants them power. The oracle’s own understanding of their patron may even be considered heresies to the more orderly followers of a deity, though this does not mean that their understanding is incorrect. They follow by grace, not by scripture, which is why Charisma is the primary attribute of the oracle over Wisdom. While some see the powers of the oracle as a gift, others view them as a curse, changing the life of the patron’s chosen in unforeseen ways.

Aura: Because of the above, Oracles possess an aura identical to that of a cleric.

Mysteries: An Oracle’s chosen mystery has to be consistent with the portfolio and domains of the deity that sponsors her, much as a cleric can’t choose domains that aren’t part of a deity’s portfolio. We can put together a comprehensive list if need be, but suffice for now that if the mystery doesn’t at least touch on one of a deity’s domains or portfolio, it’s probably not a legal choice. If the mystery is anathema to the deity’s portfolio (for example, Kelemvor and the Bones mystery), it’s absolutely not a legal choice.

Ranger

Rangers can be of any faith, not just one of the druidic sponsoring faiths. Because they in fact gain their divine spells from a deity, they also have the divine aura of a paladin/cleric

Paladins

Corellon sponsors paladins in our setting. It makes zero sense that the Coronal of Elfdom does not sponsor holy warriors in his fold.

Per very apocryphal sources, Selune also breaks the one place removed rule, and has a number of paladins in her church.