Help: Looking for names for god tiers

[Skim]

Pretty simple, I'm attempting to write a story that will have gods in it. In the story it is important that I have different tiers of these gods, and here's where my trouble lies. I'm not sure what the tiers should be called. I'm thinking of doing 4 tiers.

An example of something I came up with but hasn't quite stuck is:

1. Primeval gods
2. High gods
3. Minor gods
4. Demigods

One of the reasons why I'm not sure I want to do it this way is because demi-god and minor god mean basically the same thing.

Also, it doesn't have to be names that correspond to order like how the list above is - Primeval(before all), High, Minor, demi(Basically half) - and can just be names that clearly identify that one is higher than another. Any help on this pretty absurd and weird question would be much appreciated.

 

[Ruriha]

Is it tho? I'm pretty sure demi-gods are mortals who have the blood of a god whilst minor gods are just gods that aren't as known as the major ones.

 

[MrTiemos]

As I see it, Primeval and Demigod are perfectly fine. The change would have to be the relation between 2 and 3. It makes more sense to me that they’d be Major/Minor, or Higher/Lower. Another way could be Greater/Lesser.

As for comparing Minor to Demi, Demigods are only partially gods aka godlike, where as Minor gods are STILL actual gods, even if not all too powerful. A good way to differentiate would be that Demigods still require a body to survive, where as a Minor god can survive as a spirit/soul/etc.

 

[tiaf]

Lesser/secondary deity
Senior/superior/supreme/grand god

I used thesaurus for the adjectives and the other two are right. Demi god is not a complete god

 

[Skim]

Is it tho? I'm pretty sure demi-gods are mortals who have the blood of a god whilst minor gods are just gods that aren't as known as the major ones.

I thought the same thing about demi-gods until I looked it up and was disappointed. the definition I found said:

A demigod was- a being with partial or lesser divine status, such as a minor deity, the offspring of a god and a mortal, or a mortal raised to divine rank.

Considering few people will have the idea that a demi-god can be a minor god and instead just believe it means half-blood, I'm not sure I even need to worry about this though.

 

[MrTiemos]

such as a minor deity

I think you focused too much on the ‘minor’ portion of ‘minor deity’. To me, a deity isn’t necessarily a god. But perhaps I should check and compare their definitions before saying anything further.

Edit: By definition, they’re apparently the same.
But this makes me think of tiers. To elaborate, what is the difference between mad and angry? They’re essentially interchangeable, but mad sounds more mild in comparison to angry.
Returning to god and deity, I feel it’s similar. Deities and gods are interchangeable, but could be classified differently.

 

[Agecaf]

It would depend on what each tier is characterized by.
For example, "Local gods" could refer to gods whose influence is only applicable in some locations, "immortals/deathless" could be the minimum distinction with mortals, "young gods" when their age correlates to power, or "spirits" could be in a more primitive setting. Each of these could be the lowest tier of the hierarchy, but has a very different power level and flavour.
For the top tier, "the Three" if there's few enough of them, "Overdeities", "Supreme Gods", "the Old Ones", "Primordial Spirits", "Divine Emperor" all could work, and have very different flavours.

A worked example: vagrant god < local god < god < primordial god. Vagrant gods don't have many followers, or their followers are persecuted, and they are barely clinging to existence. Local gods have a strong presence in a location/Kingdom/region and are well established there. Gods have a strong following around the world, with strong influence but their power still depends on their followers. Primordial gods don't even need followers, if anything people pray to them to appease them.

 

[Skim]

I think you focused too much on the ‘minor’ portion of ‘minor deity’. To me, a deity isn’t necessarily a god. But perhaps I should check and compare their definitions before saying anything further.

Edit: By definition, they’re apparently the same.

Yea, pesky definitions -_-
Wish I didn't care so much about having it be serious/making complete sense.

 

[Monk_Origins]

Well, how 'bout this?
1. Primeval Gods- Gods who are linked to myth of creation, source of everything phisical and energy.
2. 4 Divinities- beings who are the responsible for elements(Earth, Air, Fire and Water) or will(Good, Bad, Nature and Karma).
3. Original spirits- basically Et'Ada from Skyrim. Spirits who are representation of concepts, such as but not limited to: Love, Lust, War, Madness and so on.
4. Mortal Gods- Kings, Champions and people of fame who has been elevated to position of (demi)godhood after their death due to their feats and worship they get from certain populace.

 

[Ruriha]

I thought the same thing about demi-gods until I looked it up and was disappointed. the definition I found said:

A demigod was- a being with partial or lesser divine status, such as a minor deity, the offspring of a god and a mortal, or a mortal raised to divine rank.

Considering few people will have the idea that a demi-god can be a minor god and instead just believe it means half-blood, I'm not sure I even need to worry about this though.

I looked up the definition on wiki. A demigod can be a minor god, but a minor god isn't necessarily a demigod - that is if we follow the given definition. From here we can assume that if a demigod is powerful enough, he can achieve the status of a minor god, either in death or in living.

 

[Skim]

I looked up the definition on wiki. A demigod can be a minor god, but a minor god isn't necessarily a demigod - that is if we follow the given definition. From here we can assume that if a demigod is powerful enough, he can achieve the status of a minor god, either in death or in living.

Ah, research prevails!

 

[Yelnats]

Demigod, god, titan, primordial

 

[Angry_Clown]

How much lore do you need to be tied to those definitions? Or is it just names?

 

[Zavha0mnic]

Pretty simple, I'm attempting to write a story that will have gods in it. In the story it is important that I have different tiers of these gods, and here's where my trouble lies. I'm not sure what the tiers should be called. I'm thinking of doing 4 tiers.

An example of something I came up with but hasn't quite stuck is:

1. Primeval gods
2. High gods
3. Minor gods
4. Demigods

One of the reasons why I'm not sure I want to do it this way is because demi-god and minor god mean basically the same thing.

Also, it doesn't have to be names that correspond to order like how the list above is - Primeval(before all), High, Minor, demi(Basically half) - and can just be names that clearly identify that one is higher than another. Any help on this pretty absurd and weird question would be much appreciated.

Throw in godlings below minor gods? Like gods that haven’t had their domain given to them by fate or destiny or whatever. They’re full gods, but unfinished and lacking power.
Demi-gods are half gods. Like Hercules, who is a son of Zeus and his mortal mother. While minor gods are simply ones outside of the pantheon. Like nemesis, goddess of revenge. Or uuhh Hecate, goddess of magic. They don’t have voting power in the council because they don’t represent something extremely important or forceful (like war and the ocean). Primeval is like Primordials, things that are extremely terrifying or powerful. Like Chaos and Night, Day and order being their counterparts. These gods are so powerful that they don’t really care about the squabbles of the High gods or Minor gods. Mortals barely exist compared to the eternity they’ve been alive.