Just wishing y'all a happy new year, and letting you know there's still a bunch of people eagerly awaiting this mother of all BG2 mods. Will this year be the year?
In Redemption, he pops up late in the game, you talk, he can be redeemed and he's there to help out.
In The Longer Road, he is a joinable party member which will be with you for the entirity of the expansion.
5) Slaying a god and taking their mantle might be enough in certain instances, although no guarantees that you immediately ascend to the same power/status level...you might have to start from the bottom. See Cyric Forgotten Realms
For the point you made, Cyric would be a bad example. After all, when he killed Bhaal/Myrkul he got catapulted into the upper regions of godhood and got strong enough to even kick Ao in the shins for one instance. (Does negating a light trick count as shin-kicking?)