Chapter 22: Patron Gods Mechanics.​
In many RPGs, gods and religion, often featuring pagan deities, play a significant role in the game’s lore. Ludicrous Ludo is no exception, with these themes even adding mechanics to the game. You will select a patron god or goddess for your party to follow. Your selection could help your party in times of strong prayers. This chapter will discuss the mechanics and rules regarding patron gods and goddesses.
22.1 Selecting a Patron God or Goddess:

There are six patron gods and goddesses within the game. Your party’s patron god or goddess determines which one they dedicate some of their lives to worshiping. Some of them need to be unlocked by leveling up as a player, and they are listed by unlock level. These are the six gods and goddesses, listed alphabetically:
  • Ares.
  • Athena.
  • Dionysus.
  • Hermes.
  • Poseidon.
  • Zeus.
22.2 Prayer Points:    

At the beginning of the game, unless said otherwise, all players start with 10 prayer points. These points are not regenerated during the game, except for when a player gets all of their pieces into their home area in a free-for-all match with more than 2 players. In which case, they are distributed to the remaining players who do not have all of their pieces in their home area. They are distributed as such:

​Prayer Points may be spent to “Get Assistance from the Gods.” Spending Prayer Points to do so is referred to as “praying”, which takes up no action, bonus action, or reaction. Initiating a prayer may be done on any part of your turn, except during your movement phase. While it does not require an action, bonus action, or reaction, your party may only use it a maximum of once within the time period from the beginning of one turn to the start of the next.
    
There are two types of initiating prayers. A soft initiation costs 3 Prayer Points but requires a successful vote to take effect. For a vote to be effective, a majority of the players, including yourself, must agree to participate in the prayer. For the voting process, all players hold one of their hands out in a clenched position. They count down from three, saying “go” shortly after saying one. When “go” is said, all players either vote to participate in the prayer, signalled by holding their fingers flat as if they are about to shake someone’s hand, or vote not to participate, in which case they keep their hand clenched. It costs 1 Prayer Point to vote yes, except for the player who initiated it, who spends 3. It costs no prayer points to decide no. The initiating player must vote yes.
    
A majority of players, including the initiating player, must vote 'yes' for the prayer to be effective. Ties do not count, meaning that both players in a 2-player game must vote "yes," and three out of four must vote "yes" in a game with four people. If the prayer is successful, all players who voted yes immediately gain a “Get Assistance by the Gods” and have their Prayer Points spent. If the prayer fails, they do not gain a “Get Assistance by the Gods” but still spend their points. In either scenario, players who decided to vote “no” do not get anything but spend no Prayer Points.
    
​Finally, a player can do a hard initiation on their turn, but not on their movement phase. It costs 7 Prayer Points but succeeds automatically without needing a vote. No vote takes place, with that player being the only one who can gain a “Get Assistance by the Gods” from the initiation.

Praying Types:
  • Soft initiation: 3 Prayer Points.
  • Hard initiation: 7 Prayer Points.
  • Voting yes on a soft initiation: 1 Prayer Point.
22.3 Get Assistance by the Gods:    

When a player gains a “Get Assistance by the Gods,” that player gets to gain one of the stat boosts from either the primary or secondary list. They may only gain one boost per “Get Assistance by the Gods,” but can keep its effects for the rest of the match. They may not pick the same boost option twice in the same match, but may potentially choose multiple within the same category (primary or secondary). Finally, “Get Assistance by the Gods” and what is gained from it cannot raise a stat above +2. A stat remains at +2 if it goes over.
    
The boost only applies to the match in which it is gained, and does not carry over to future matches. Due to this, there is a different section on the party sheet for recording a party’s temporary stats. Finally, values such as maximum HP and maximum spell card hand are immediately adjusted to the new boosted stats. If HP is increased due to this, it remains at its current value, but the HP will now start being set to the new maximum value when pieces are eliminated.
22.4 Randomly Selecting a Patron God:

Refer to the following table. If you obtain a patron god or goddess that you have not yet unlocked, either reroll or make an exception to the leveling and unlocking rules.
22.5 Patron Gods and Goddesses:

Ares:
Unlocked at Level 1.

Primary Boost:
  • Attack: +2

Secondary Boosts (choose one):
  • Boost 1 = Constitution: +1
  • Boost 2 = Dexterity: +1
  • Boost 3 = Adaptability: +1

Athena:
Unlocked at Level 1.

Primary Boost:
  • Intelligence: +2

Secondary Boosts (choose one):
  • Boost 1 = Attack: +1
  • Boost 2 = Engineering: +1
  • Boost 3 = Neuroticism: +1​
4 more unlockable patron gods and goddesses are contained within the Complete Version of Ludicrous Ludo.