in_nomine-digest Saturday, August 18 2001 Volume 01 : Number 2338 In this digest: Re: IN> Disturbance question Re: IN> Disturbance question Re: IN> Disturbance question RE: IN> Disturbance question RE: IN> Disturbance question Re: IN> Fwd: The Demon of Manga IN> Fantasy Month- Fantasy Worlds Re:IN> [Fantasy] Outside, looking in (part of the other stuff I'm doing) IN> Fantasy Month - the Demon of Skeletons. IN> Fantasy Month - Fantasy Race. Re: IN> Fantasy Month - a pair of Norse tethers. IN> Fantasy Month - Novalis' Body Gaurd. IN> Fantasy Month - Magical Swords IN> Re:Magical Swords Re: IN> Re:Magical Swords ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 13:44:29 +0000 From: "cassandra benner" Subject: Re: IN> Disturbance question >Anyone have any ideas as to how much disturbance Celestial Form causes? I >am coming up with a plan for my game and don't have my books on me. Eric >you will see what is going on on Sunday. >Thanx >Dave Not to sure... But... I think its equivilant to Celestial Forces, but thars what we use as a house rule. i think. We have a rules book _somewhere_. Not that we use it a great deal. ;o) Toodles Cass *where you come from is gone, where you're going was never there, and where you are aint no good unless you can get away from it* http://communities.msn.co.uk/ADD http://www.drunkendwarfinn.co.uk http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ADandD_Stuff _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 09:46:08 -0400 From: "Eric Bertish" Subject: Re: IN> Disturbance question Disturbance in my game is different than in canon, Dave. - -- Eric - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Adams, David" To: "'IN list'" Sent: Friday, August 17, 2001 9:34 AM Subject: IN> Disturbance question > Anyone have any ideas as to how much disturbance Celestial Form causes? I > am coming up with a plan for my game and don't have my books on me. Eric > you will see what is going on on Sunday. > > Thanx > > Dave > ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 09:56:04 -0400 From: Whistling in the Dark Subject: Re: IN> Disturbance question At 9:46 AM -0400 8/17/01, Eric Bertish wrote: >Disturbance in my game is different than in canon, Dave. Does it come with cheese danishes? I always figured Superiors would be looser about Disturbance if it came with cheese danishes. And just think -- you could shake the loose Essence from your group on a regular basis that way. Just a few random Songs of Thunder and mmmmmmmmmm... cheese danishes. - -- Eric Alfred Burns - Impudite of Secrets -- or Mercurian of Revelation (candidate for the Word of Obscurity) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 10:15:24 -0400 From: "Adams, David" Subject: RE: IN> Disturbance question Cheese danishes would rock! Eric can we use Eric's idea of cheese danishes. Everyone loves cheese danishes. Even Malakim can find redeeming quality in cheese danishes. "Well [insert superior here], I realize that I gave everyone a headache blowing up that wall, but I have managed to appropriate 42 cheese danishes in the process." "Well, why didn't you say so. Here is a rite. Anything else you need?" "No, thank you Archangel" "NO, THANK YOU loyal servitor. Now go get me some coffee" Haagenti has just been able to glimpse heaven. Dave Who just happened to choke on his cheese danish when he read the post. That was spooky in a good way. - -----Original Message----- From: Whistling in the Dark Does it come with cheese danishes? I always figured Superiors would be looser about Disturbance if it came with cheese danishes. And just think -- you could shake the loose Essence from your group on a regular basis that way. Just a few random Songs of Thunder and mmmmmmmmmm... cheese danishes. - -- Eric Alfred Burns - Impudite of Secrets -- or Mercurian of Revelation (candidate for the Word of Obscurity) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 10:46:45 -0400 From: "Adams, David" Subject: RE: IN> Disturbance question One little bit of clarification, I meant the song of Celestial Form. - -----Original Message----- From: Adams, David [mailto:david.adams@t-t.com] Sent: Friday, August 17, 2001 9:34 AM To: 'IN list' Subject: IN> Disturbance question Anyone have any ideas as to how much disturbance Celestial Form causes? I am coming up with a plan for my game and don't have my books on me. Eric you will see what is going on on Sunday. Thanx Dave ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 17:34:31 -0400 From: Mike Bruner Subject: Re: IN> Fwd: The Demon of Manga >> No, it's an Angel of Anime - a Mercurian of Creation who >> was stationed in Japan at the same time as Akira, working >> with cartoonists. The two constantly fight over who was >> the bigger inspiration, though they both claim they had >> nothing to do with Crying Freeman (admit it, it was >> cack). > > No way! That series has "Soldier of Hell trying to >Redeem" written all over it. And it had better stories >than Bubblegum Crisis ever dreamed about having. I concede >the influence of Kobal in the dubbed English dialogue, however. I believe a while back I even supplied the Demon of Bad Translations who handles all of Hell's dubbing needs (except for a few Eli's people manage to sneak by on occasion like Cowboy Bebop). Incidently, I'm listening to my Escaflowne: Lovers Only soundtrack that came in yesterday as I write this; I definitely have to suggest Yoko Kanno as a Soldier of God in service to Israfel (definitely would explain how she could get a hold of the right people for the cool Latin chanting stuff :)). - -- Mike Bruner-- bruner@delaware.infi.net I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 12:14:02 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Fantasy Month- Fantasy Worlds You can Dream anywhere. Knowing this, the Ethereal gods have found an excellent way to be worshipped openly. A scout is sent (in a Vessel of a beam of sunlight) to Alpha Centauri or Polaris, picks a suitable planet or asteroid, and starts constructing a fantasy world. The Greek pantheon is famous for creating 'lost worlds' where they are openly worshipped by cities built by lost Roman legions (there are over a dozen worlds founded by "The 9th") while the faerie courts create true worlds of fantasy. It's not that difficult to do, really. Sure, there is a shortage of worlds; however some of the elder gods can take world Vessels. Also, it is possible to create a small inhabitable bubble on a desolate world and expand it slowly - some worldviews, eg Melnibone, are especially suited to this approach. Of course, even desolate worlds are in short supply, so a single planet may host a dozen Fantasy Worlds - especially as it's a lot easier to enter someone else's Fantasy World and travel a few thousand miles across the planet than to cross interstellar space. These worlds are slowly being populated by humans. The founding humans are invariably Pagan Saints, who establish the culture and worldview. Of course, they can't have children with each other; in addition to needing a Song of fruition they need a mortal partner. So yes, there ARE planets where a mortal hero will be told that all the men have died out, and asked what his stamina is like... It's fairly easy to get mortals to these planets. Once a candidate has been chosen, (s)he is possessed and then the Song of Transfiguration used; the ethereal returns to the Fantasy World via The Marches and the dreams of those who now live there. Getting back is as easy. However, it is rarely revealed to mortals how they arrived - and it is very difficult for them to find out. James. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 12:34:32 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: Re:IN> [Fantasy] Outside, looking in (part of the other stuff I'm doing) Great take on Orcs, Moe. That was something that disturbed me in the Silmarillion, the lack of sympathy for the Orcs - especially given that many of the earliest elves where still alive, and would remember and often be related to the elves who were kidnapped. Of course, most of the traits of Orcs - black blood, bandy legs, hatred of sunlight etc - occur in humans as the result of (correctable) medical problems. A Virtuoso with the Corporeal Song of Healing might well be able to rebuild an Orc into an elf, and if not, a Superior should be able to by removing the disadvantages. Failing that, a selective assassination campaign to eliminate the Orcs with the most 'orcish' traits might eventually breed the race back to something resembling their original form. Hmm - if a Disadvantage is hereditary, what happens if the Songs of Sacrifice is used to temporarily remove the Disadvantage from the parents directly before a child's conception? James. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 16:53:21 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Fantasy Month - the Demon of Skeletons. Shabrn Habbalite of Death The Demon of Skeletons Corporeal Forces:6 Strength: 12 Agility: 12 Ethereal Forces :4 Intelligence: 7 Precision: 5 Celestial Forces:6 Will: 12 Perception: 12 Word Forces: 3 Skills: Acrobatics/4, Artistry (flaying)/1, Climbing/1, Dodge/5, Driving/1, Enchantment/4, Fighting/3, Knowledge (Anatomy)/4, Large Weapon (Sword)/5, Medicine/4, Move Silently/4, Necromancy/5, Running/1, Tactics/2. Songs: Entropy (All/6; Corporeal Variant - causes flesh to wither away if aged beyond normal point of death, leaving a [temporarily living] skeleton); Forbidding (All/6, Celestial Variant - causes the target to be Bound to their skeleton for the duration), Form (Celestial/3), Motion (Corporeal/1, Ethereal/3, Celestial/1). Attunements: Habbalite of Death, Calabite of Death, Impudite of Death, Sanctuary of the Dead, Rotting Curse, Knight of the Dead, The Demon of Skeletons. Artifact: Shabrn's Skeleton is a Corporeal Artifact/3 with the unbreakable Feature (the skeleton can still fly apart - see below) Special Rites: Persuade a human that a dangerously low weight (ribs etc must be showing) is attractive/healthy; terrify a human with a skeleton; bind an Elohite into a skeleton. Special Ability: for a cost of 3 essence, Shabrn can imbue a skeleton with sufficient locomotion for it to be manipulated with the Habbalite of Death attunement. The effect ends the moment the demon (not Shabrn) ceases controlling the skeleton. Shabrn's mindset is typical for a Habbalite of Death - terrify humans with the fear of death as a test, and then kill them as punishment for their weakness. Noticing early on how disturbing humans found skeletons to be, Shabrn began using them in his work. He was not surprised when he earned the Word of Skeletons, considering it his due. He was surprised when Saminga commanded him to provide armies of animated skeletons - pronto. Working feverishly, Shabrn quickly realised that Necromancy could not achieve this. Not being stupid enough to admit failure to Saminga, Shabrn instead ambushed another Habbalah of Death, Bound him into the Vessel's skeleton and then killed him. Once he'd stripped the flesh from the Vessel, he had an animated skeleton. Of course, Saminga wasn't going to like losing demons like this, so Shabrn began hunting Rengade Habbalah - and then Elohim who he encouraged to Trip/Fall - to Bind into their skeletons. When Saminga next stopped by, Shabrn had a working skeleton, plus a number of skeletons who would be operational the moment Saminga provided their inhabitants with the Habbalah of Death attunement. To show how pleased he was, Saminga Bound Shabrn into a skeleton so that he could better embody his Word. Shabrn now helps hunt down Death's renegades and is one of the few demons death has who actively tries to corrupt (non-mercurian) angels - although he is only interested in Elohim. SKELETONS: A skeletons' effective strength is halved for both skill use and determining body hits; additionally if stunned, the skeleton flies apart and must be reassembled (the demon possessing the skeleton can do so using either the Corporeal or Ethereal Songs of Motion) - this process requires a Medicine check and takes CD minutes. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 15:30:23 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Fantasy Month - Fantasy Race. Remnants of Stone are particularly hard to find - any rock, statue or gargoyle could be a soul-killed Trog. Still, no one is terribly surprised that Baal was able to find one. What does surprise people is that he was able to find a silicon based life form. What they should remember is that before the Fall, Heaven was very open and candid about what was going on. So the fact that an alien planet had a form of pond scum which was silicon based was open knowledge - although not many angels cared. And, of course, using the Celestial Song of Fruition on the scum & a Remnant of Stone.... Forget that. What they should remember is that if there is a Troll in town, it's time to leave fast. Trolls - big, tough, slow, stupid. Trolls cannot have Ethereal Forces, and their Agility cannot exceed their Corporeal Forces; they have a maximum strength of 12. Their bodies function as stone Vessels, and can have up to 6 levels of Toughness. Trolls cannot be Enchanters, Alchemists, Necromancers, Dream Soldiers or Sorcerers (due to their lack of Ethereal Forces), but can be Soldiers; the Blessed advantage is very common among them, possibly because of their Celestial heritage. They do not need to breathe, but react badly to sunlight; every Troll has Vulnerability(Sunlight) at a level equal to their Celestial Forces [they get character points for this] and becomes immobile when in direct sunlight (or other strong UV light). A starting Troll may buy up to 3 points of Intelligence and/or Precision at 3 points a level. A Troll must eat at least (Total Forces) kilograms of organic material containing metal (blood, meat, bone etc) every day or it begins to starve - they gain no nourishment from non-metallic compounds, even if silicon based. They are otherwise treated as human. Trolls are Baal's favourite shock troops, and he treats them much better than he does his other Hellsworn. Their ability to drive other broken races into battle and to go toe to toe with angels means that they fill an NCO niche between Demonic Officers and mortal grunts. A troll who has killed an angels' vessel will often be rewarded with a Servitor Attunement, and Baal doesn't mind if a Troll learns Songs; they lack the intelligence to rebel or question orders. Trolls do have dreamscapes, and can learn the Lucid dreaming skill; rarely, Trolls have become Dreamshades. Still, a Troll is not born damned, and will occasionally fulfil it's Destiny. These Trolls tend to find Heaven uninteresting and travel up Jacob's Ladder soon after arriving. James. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 14:56:54 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: Re: IN> Fantasy Month - a pair of Norse tethers. > From: Michael Walton > > - --- james walker wrote: >> North Pole > > Mammon's going to have a thing or two to say about this, > I'm sure. 0:> of course - I imagine he owns a couple of the rival North Poles! > >> Aurora Borealis > > I like this one even better. Thank you. And thanks to everyone else for their comments; I don't want to reply for fear of clogging up peoples email, but I assure you that their greatly appreciated. > One quibble (don't I > always?) Of course - how else to earn the Knight of Nitpicking Distinction? :-) >-- I believe that the plural of Valkyrie is Valkyrior. Quite likely, although my dictionaries don't seem to agree; "Valkyria" is either an alternate or the plural of Valkyr - Valkyries is another plural listed. Given we we use geases instead of Geasa, I don't think we need worry. We can always claim language drift in The Marches is the cause of any differences. James. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 15:44:44 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Fantasy Month - Novalis' Body Gaurd. Even the Archangel of Flowers needs an impressive escort occasionally, and although not fond of intimidation Novalis does prefer it to bloodshed. On those occasions Novalis calls on any Malakite who has earned the following distinction: ENT Granted only to angels who have proven themselves defending the wilderness, the Ent Distinction allows the angel to craft humanoid vessels of wood. The Vessels, which can range from 10' to 21' tall (14' is considered optimal) grant Protection & Power equal to their level; additionally the angel may ignore an amount of Protection in a target equal to the Vessel level. The Ent Distinction counts as a "half-step" increase in rank. Additionally, an Ent cannot become Outcast - if they fail a dissonance check they acquire levels of Nocturnal or Diurnal Discord equal to the lowest die. Extremely dissonant/Discordant Ents do exist, and slumber in the forest until roused. James. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 23:14:21 +1100 From: "james walker" Subject: IN> Fantasy Month - Magical Swords Weren't you always just a little suspicious about how many magical swords there are in fantasy worlds? It was the perfect way for Laurence to influence human society. If he sent an angel to Earth in a human body, they had to spend years building up a Role, and then infiltrating societies, and then acquiring status, and so on. Swords don't need to do this. Swords have status. If a human gets flung out of a lake in front of a warrior, he'll be lucky if he isn't burnt as a witch. Throw a sword though, and the warrior will sweep it up and declare himself the rightful king of England. Since the sword is clearly magical, the warrior won't be surprised if it can talk, and give advice. "Magic Swords" are all living artifacts, forged by Laurence himself. They usually have all of Laurence's non-restricted attunements (which they can grant to their wielders), and generally a couple of Songs - Celestial Motion, if nothing else. Corporeal Charm is very popular, as are NC:Eyes and the Songs of Tongues. A surprising large percentage of the swords have choir attunements from other Superiors. They also have their own Order: His Grace's Personal Order of Swords; and their Grand Master advises Laurence from the comfort of his scabbard. Although each blade has a specific purpose, each choir is chosen for different tasks, and His Grace is careful to forge each blade as a home that the angel will be proud to call himself for eternity. By Choir: Seraphim: The Blades of Kings - Laurence has forged a separate blade for every Christian kingdom. They frequently have gained a choir attunement from either Dominic or Litheroy, and are tasked to guiding 'their' king in the task of ruling honourably. There are rumours of these blades being given the Word of the nation they oversee... They are all elegantly simple in design, the only ornamentation being the gold of their hilts and the coat of arms of their nation etched into the blade. Cherubim: Guarding the Guards - The Swords of bodyguards, and of the commanders of elite units, these blades ensure that a nations' guards are themselves guarded. They are frequently attuned to their wielders, but not always. Sometimes a guard is loyal only because his sword has explained to him the consequences of betrayal... These blades are famed for their cunningly worked basket hilts, small gems woven into the silver wire. Ofanim: Adventurer's Blades - The prized possessions of wandering heroes, these blades continually cheer their wielders on to ever more daring exploits and to pursue more distant horizons. These are the archetypal fantasy blades. Their heavy blades are weightless in the hands of their wielder, and (unusually for Laurence's blades) they have no objections to clearing away vines etc during an adventure - anything to keep moving, and on to the next adventure! Elohim: The Swords of Wisdom - Laurence has forged a blade for each Christian religious order, plus a few others for the Princes of the Church. They guide the Church Militant and carefully watch their charges for signs that their emotions have been tarnished by their worldly duties. These blades are simple and humble. Their only ornamentation is the Oath of their human Order etched into the blade. Malakim: The Slayers - each of these blades has been forged with a specific foe in mind, and they are all named appropriately: Orcbane, Trollbane, Dragonbane and so on. The greatest of their number, Demonbane, is currently Grand Master of the Order of Swords. These blades vary wildly, but invariably strike fear into the hearts of their chosen enemy - Trollbane shimmers with sunlight, Dragonbane seems to have been carved from an icicle that will quench the fiercest fire, Demonbane glows with the Light of Heaven, and so on. Kyriotates: The Heirlooms - These blades have no corporeal form; instead Jean has granted them his Kyriotate of Lightning attunement. If a human inherits a blade, and with it a task, from a slain parent - then a Kyriotate of the Order of Swords may take a hand, possessing the blade and guiding the youngster to their heritage. In addition to possessing the blade, the Dominion will also have a presence in heaven, learning about the previous owner of the sword they inhabit, either by talking with the old owner or by reading their history in Yves' Library. Mercurians: The Scabbards - although some Mercurians inhabit a practice foil or wooden blade, most are bound into ornate scabbards. From these they advise their owners on how to deal with problems which cannot be solved by violence, and to encourage them in the courtly virtues. They are also tasked to train young warriors in the skills and mindset of a knight. James. ------------------------------ Date: 18 Aug 2001 14:43:49 +0100 From: "Richard C Hanton-Rutherford" Subject: IN> Re:Magical Swords I really _really_ like this. I'm even extremely tempted to use one in my non-fantasy IN game; a magic sword is just what Liverpool needs to liven it up a little. Richie H-R - -- ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 18 Aug 2001 09:28:24 -0700 (PDT) From: Maurice Lane Subject: Re: IN> Re:Magical Swords - --- Richard C Hanton-Rutherford wrote: > I really _really_ like this. Indeed. Mind if I add this to my Fantasy page? Suitably attributed, of course. Moe ===== Liber Licentiae Moeticae: http://www.stormloader.com/users/moelane/innomine.html Last updated 07/29/01(this is usually way out of date) __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Make international calls for as low as $.04/minute with Yahoo! Messenger http://phonecard.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ End of in_nomine-digest V1 #2338 ********************************