Deity

It is hard to be precise about as large and strange a topic as the origin and nature of the gods themselves. What is widely known by arcane, scholastic and divine devotees alike, is that there are several functioning tiers of deity, according to their rank and power.
Grand Deities are the formative beings of a world, overseeing its creation and ongoing organization and function. Due to their cosmogonical role, many scholars theorize that these deities are somehow alien to the worlds they create, arriving from outside to work the act of creation. These beings rarely intervene in anything less than the most major affairs of the world. Many worship them in principle but generally expect little specific intervention. In a contest of powers, a Grand Deity can utterly overwhelm a deity or demigod, even when acting outside of their portfolio. They possess near omniscience and omnipotence, constrained only by unknown and mysterious universal principles. When they do interact with mortals they tend to appear distant, serene and unconcerned. These deities often reside in specific regions of The Outer Dimensions, ruling over The Abyssal and Heavenly Realms as well as Elemental Planes.
Regional and local deities are the forefront of worship and religious life in Soma. These lesser deities are not as powerful as the Grand Deities but far more numerous and much more intimately involved in their specific area of power. They tend to have more specific and expressive personalities, with likes, dislikes, quirks and habits. They empower most of the clerics, paladins and other divine casters in the world and are perfectly content to offer blessings, miracles and divine assistant for their followers in exchange for ritual observances and offerings. It is unclear how exactly the process works but there appears to be some connection between the fervency of belief and the number of believers who are adherents of a particular deity.
Demigods and Spirits are the least order of divine powers in the world. They are often beings created by or infused with divine or otherworldly energies. Powerful lords of The Fey and beings of the Elemental Planes occur naturally in the world but most others arise from unusual circumstances, like the theosis of a sorcerer or wizard or the the ascension of a folk hero or divine servitor towards godhood.