What is a Pantheon and Why is it Mad at Me?

 

This is a re-post of a piece I wrote last year for the fine fellows at Sf Signal.

Q: In a created fantasy world, gods can proliferate by the hundreds. When building religious systems for fantasies, what are the advantages/disadvantages of inventing pantheons vs. single gods, or having no religious component at all?

You can read answers from science fiction authors more famous than yours truly here: http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2009/04/mind-meld-gods-by-the-bushel/

My (typically...