I played my first game of D&D just before I became a Christian. As I explored my new faith and began to grow, the thought crossed my mind: why not play a cleric of Jesus? Yeah! His domains could be Good and… uh, Light, maybe. And I could convert all the trolls and goblins to Christianity!

I never ended up trying it. And I’m glad. Here’s why.

Most roleplaying settings describe their own cosmology. Dungeons & Dragons has a large fictional pantheon. Exalted has a grand mythological setting, along with gods, spirits, and reincarnation. Even the World of Darkness has multiple planes of existence based on science fiction, Native American folklore, etc.

None of these settings lines up with the Bible. Thus, if you want Yahweh in any of them, you have to sort of cram Him in unceremoniously. He’s too big, too world-defining to fit. He’s not really God if He’s only as powerful as Pelor, or if He didn’t happen to create the world.

Similarly, the Gamemaster controls the roleplaying universe. What your GM says goes, from an individual die roll to the layout of the spiritual realms. Who made the game world? Is there an in-game God or gods? It’s all up to the GM.

Between the game setting’s built-in cosmology and the GM’s final say, God may not have room to be God. Prayer, for example, may not work for a Christian character the way it does in real life. Especially if God’s not there.

And even if you try to put God into the game, He may end up as a caricature. It’s difficult to mimic His voice well. He’s constantly good and loving, but He’s also full of surprises. Iguess that’s what happens when can perceive all of time and space at once: you end up making decisions that catch us mortals off guard.

Okay, so there are some difficulties in playing a Christian character, especially in fantasy settings. So what’s a Christian player to do if she wants to get the Holy Spirit in on the action?

I have some thoughts I’ll share tomorrow.